Search for home sweet home in Wellington getting more expensive

If local Realtors have any complaints about doing business in Wellington these days, it is because there are not enough houses to go around. “I’ve sold every Wellington listing I had,” said Todd Patterson, a Wellington resident who works with ERA in Fort Collins. “I love working in Wellington.”

Patterson went on to say that the small town of Pierce, along Highway 85 southeast of Wellington, is booming as well. “Journey Homes recently purchased between 60 and 80 lots there and only two are still available,” Patterson said. He expressed some concerns about the rising prices in new developments underway in the Wellington zip code.

Lou Kinzli, who has been selling real estate in Wellington for more than 35 years and has had his Kinzli Team – RE/Max Alliance office in town for 16 years, laments the small number of homes in the resale market. “There’s only a single home available between $179,000 and $230,000 and of 23 homes in the $230,000 and $300,000 range, 18 are new homes, only five are for resale,” he said.

The hottest market is for resale homes between $180,000 and $280,000, according to Kinzli. Listings are only on the market for seven to 14 days and go at or slightly above list price. “Part of the reason the market is so good here is because of the availability of government subsidized USDA housing that requires no money down,” Kinzli said. This program, especially attractive to entry-level buyers, is not available in Fort Collins. Families must earn under $88,000 a year to qualify.

Kinzli is counting on finding a buyer for a series of five houses on eight lots that he owns across the street from his office on Cleveland Avenue, Wellington’s main street. He has recently torn down the small white house that bordered his properties on the east in order to make the commercially viable corner more appealing to a potential buyer. He bought the house for $128,000 12 years ago, recognizing its value because of its location close to I-25. He envisions a restaurant on the spot. Ideally he’d like to see a single buyer purchase the properties as a package.

Ruth McMillen, broker-associate with Grey Rock Realty in Fort Collins, sold the two listings she had in the Buffalo Creek subdivision in Wellington in seven days. “According to the Multiple List Service, Wellington homes are selling for 101 percent of list price,” McMillen said. “Anything under $250,000 goes like hot cakes.” She saw a slight lull in August as families were getting their children off to school, but now things have picked up again.

Several developers are currently active in the Wellington Zip code. J and J Homes is building 120 units to be known as Wellington Downs between the Meadows sub-division and Bomgaars Hardware store east of I-25. Like Sage Homes who is developing 120 acres to be known as Prouty Farms, J and J has been building in the area for several years.

Hartford Homes at Harvest Village has plans to construct nearly 300 homes in the $289,000 to $317,500 range. Several smaller contractors are also at work filling a need for new housing in the area.

Kareen Kinzli Larsen, broker-associate with the Kinzli Team, shared the following statistics compiled by the Multiple Listing Service. Overall, homes in Wellington are now selling for 1.4 percent above asking price. In 2014, homes sold for .5 percent above asking price.

Year-to-date for 2015, 134 resale homes have sold in Wellington with an average sale price of $248,353. That compares with an average sale price of $226,656 in 2014 which represents a 9.6 percent increase in average price of sales. Last year 116 resale homes had sold in the same time period indicating an increase of 15.5 percent in sales for 2015.

New construction tells a different story. So far in 2015, 49 new homes have sold with an average price of $268,189 compared to an average price of $240,416 in 2014, an increase of 11.6 percent.

By this time last year, 83 new homes had sold in Wellington. The 60 percent decrease for 2015 reflects the fact that builders have run out of lots to build on in Wellington,” Larsen said. “Builders and developers are having to create new subdivisons. In the meantime, there are fewer new homes available.”

The numbers don’t lie. Wellington is growing, and it’s getting more expensive to live in the 80549 Zip code, though it’s still a bargain compared to much of the surrounding area.