Colorado First-Time Home Buyer Guide: Money to Keys

A first-time buyer in Colorado needs four things in this order: a clear monthly budget, a written pre-approval, a signed buyer agreement with a licensed Colorado broker, and a search set up on the live MLS. With those in place, the Denver metro purchase runs 60 to 120 days from first showing to keys, and closing costs land at 2% to 3% of the price.

This is the complete guide. It covers the Colorado assistance programs that cut the cash needed, the pre-approval, the agency paperwork the state requires, the search, the showing, the offer and the closing. Each section ends with the next page to read on kennarealestate.com.

How much cash a Colorado first-time buyer needs

Three numbers make up the cash: the down payment, closing costs and reserves. On a $500,000 Front Range townhome with an FHA loan at 3.5% down, the down payment is $17,500. Closing costs at 2% to 3% add $10,000 to $15,000, before any seller credit. Lenders want to see one to two months of the full payment left in the bank after closing. Total: $30,000 to $40,000 of cash or assistance for a $500,000 purchase.

Conventional loans for first-time buyers start at 3% down. VA loans for eligible veterans and USDA loans in rural Colorado counties allow zero down. The FHA versus conventional guide for Colorado buyers compares the mortgage insurance on each.

Colorado down payment assistance: CHFA and metroDPA

Two programs cover most Front Range first-time buyers.

• CHFA. The Colorado Housing and Finance Authority is the state's housing finance agency. It offers first mortgage programs paired with down payment assistance, either a grant or a second mortgage, to buyers under its income limits who complete a CHFA-approved homebuyer education class. The loans are written by CHFA-participating lenders, not by CHFA itself. Current limits and assistance amounts are on chfainfo.com and change each year.
• metroDPA. A down payment assistance program sponsored by the City and County of Denver and offered in participating cities and counties across the metro area. It pairs a first mortgage with a forgivable second loan for down payment and closing costs, again through participating lenders and with income limits. The current list of participating jurisdictions and the terms are on the program's site.

Both programs add 2 to 3 weeks to a pre-approval, so start them before you tour. Both accept FHA, VA and conventional first mortgages. The Denver first-time buyer programs guide lists city-level grants on top of these two, and Kenna Credit Care helps buyers who need 3 to 6 months of credit repair first.

Pre-approval: the document that starts the search

A pre-qualification is a guess based on what you say. A pre-approval is a lender's written commitment after pulling credit and reading your pay stubs, W-2s or two years of tax returns, and two months of bank statements. Front Range listing agents do not present an offer without one attached.

Mike Oswald, VP of Mortgage Lending at Rate, NMLS 261003, Equal Housing Lender, issues pre-approvals for the group's buyers in 24 to 48 hours and runs CHFA and metroDPA files. You are free to use any lender. The Colorado pre-approval guide lists every document to gather, and the Colorado home financing guide compares loan types.

Ask the lender for the full payment, not the loan amount: principal, interest, property tax, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance and HOA dues. Front Range insurance now runs $2,500 to $4,500 a year on a detached home because of hail, and a metro district can add $1,500 to $3,000 a year in property tax on a $600,000 home. Those two lines decide what you afford more than the interest rate does.

The Colorado agency forms

Colorado requires a licensed broker to disclose in writing how they work for you before showing property. Expect two documents from the Kenna Real Estate Group:

• Brokerage Disclosure to Buyer. A one-page Colorado Real Estate Commission form that explains buyer's agent versus transaction-broker relationships. It is not a contract.
• Exclusive Right-to-Buy Listing Contract. The buyer agreement. It states the term, the areas covered, the compensation and who pays it. Since August 2024 a written buyer agreement is required before touring, and the buyer's agent compensation is negotiated in it and in the offer, where the seller is asked to pay it as a concession in most 2026 Denver metro closings.

Read both. Ask for a 90-day term on the first one you sign. The how we help buyers page explains what the group does under that agreement.

Where and how to search

Every home listed in REcolorado and the Pikes Peak MLS appears on the Colorado home search within minutes of going live, with the same photos and data the agents see. Set a saved search with three filters that do not move: top price, minimum bedrooms and a commute boundary. Then compare areas with the explore pages: Aurora, Lakewood, Thornton and Colorado Springs carry the largest share of detached homes under $550,000 on the Front Range, and Colorado condos carry the entry price in Denver and Boulder.

The what $600K buys in the Denver metro post shows what each price band returns by city.

What to check at a Front Range showing

• Roof age and hail history. Hail season runs May to September. Ask for the roof's install year and any insurance claim; a 20-year-old shingle roof is a $12,000 to $25,000 line item.
• Foundation and grading. Expansive bentonite clay heaves basements and lifts slabs. Look for stair-step cracks, doors that stick and downspouts that drain toward the house.
• Sewer line. Homes built before 1980 in Denver, Aurora, Lakewood and Arvada carry clay lines; a $150 to $300 scope during inspection is standard.
• Radon. Colorado is EPA Zone 1; plan a test on every home.
• Furnace, water heater and AC. Ages over 15 years on any of the three go into the offer strategy.
• HOA and metro district. Ask for the dues, the reserve balance and the mill levy before you write.

The Denver home inspector guide tells you who to hire once you are under contract.

Writing the offer

A Colorado offer is the Contract to Buy and Sell Real Estate, the Commission-approved form. The price is one term of a dozen. The ones that win or lose a Front Range home in 2026:

• Earnest money. 1% to 2% of the price, held by the title company.
• Deadlines. Inspection at 7 to 10 days, appraisal at 14 to 21 days, loan availability at 21 to 28 days, closing at 30 to 45 days. Shorter deadlines make a stronger offer at the same price.
• Seller concessions. With more inventory than 2021 across the metro, buyers ask for $5,000 to $15,000 toward closing costs or a rate buydown, and get it on homes past 30 days on market.
• Inclusions. Name the appliances, window coverings and the shed. The Colorado form does not assume them.

The making an offer on a Colorado home page walks through the form section by section. After acceptance, the what happens after your offer is accepted guide covers inspection, appraisal and title.

Title, closing costs and closing day

A Colorado title company, not an attorney, runs the closing. It issues a title commitment within 7 to 14 days of contract. The title company conducts a thorough search of county records for liens, easements and ownership gaps before insuring the deed. By Front Range custom the seller pays for the owner's title policy and the buyer pays for the lender's policy.

Buyer closing costs of 2% to 3% include the lender's origination and underwriting fees, the appraisal, the lender's title policy, recording, the first year of homeowners insurance and 2 to 3 months of taxes and insurance for the escrow account. Colorado has no transfer tax; the county documentary fee is one cent per $100. The Colorado closing costs guide itemizes each line. Property taxes are paid a year in arrears, so the seller credits you their share at closing.

Three business days before closing the lender delivers the Closing Disclosure. Wire your funds only after confirming the title company's account by phone at the number on the title commitment; wire fraud hits Colorado closings every week. Sign, the deed records with the county clerk and recorder, and the keys are yours.

Buyers coming from out of state

Buyers relocating from Idaho, Utah or the Mountain West sometimes arrive after working with real estate agents in Driggs or another resort market where contracts and closings run on different forms. Colorado's Commission-approved contract, its title-company closings and its deadline table are different, so read the Front Range relocation checklist before your first showing. The common concerns of first-time buyers in Colorado post answers the questions the group hears most.

The first-time buyer timeline

Where to go next

• First-time home buyer guide for Colorado
• The Colorado home buyer's guide
• Buying a Denver area home with little to no money down
• FHA and VA home buying in Colorado
• Search homes for sale in Denver
• Meet the Kenna Real Estate Group agents

Talk to the Kenna Real Estate Group

The Kenna Real Estate Group at Keller Williams DTC takes first-time buyers from the first budget conversation through CHFA or metroDPA, the pre-approval, the search, the offer and closing day, and explains each Colorado form before you sign it. Call or text 303-955-4220. A live person answers. Not a robot, not a phone tree. Or start today and search every home for sale in Colorado.