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Kenna Real Estate Group · Colorado buyers

Buying a Bigger Home in Colorado at 7%: More Bedrooms, a Home Office, Room for a Parent

When the house runs out of room, the calendar decides, not the rate. Here is what the bigger home costs at 7 percent, how a seller credit cuts the payment, and how to sell the small one in the same move.

A live person answers. Not a robot, not a phone tree.

The short answer

The jump from a 3-bedroom to a 4-bedroom in the Denver metro is about $100,000 to $150,000 of price, which is $660 to $1,000 a month at 7 percent with 20 percent down. A seller credit used as a 2-1 buydown takes $600 of that back in year one, and the equity in the home you are leaving covers the down payment for most 2019-and-earlier buyers. The move is a calendar problem: sell and buy in the same window without carrying two payments.

4-bedroom homes

$100K to $150K

over a 3-bedroom, same neighborhood

About $660 to $1,000 a month at 7% with 20% down.

Seller credit

$10,000

as a 2-1 buydown

Saves $616 a month in year one on a $480,000 loan.

Days on market

53

Denver metro average

Homes past 30 days with a price cut are the ones that give the credit.

Timing

Rent-back

30 to 60 days

Sell first, stay in the old house while you close on the new one.

What the extra room costs, line by line

HomePricePrincipal and interest at 7%, 20% downAll in (taxes, insurance)
3 bed, 2 bath, 1,600 sq ft$500,000$2,661about $3,200
4 bed, 3 bath, 2,400 sq ft$625,000$3,326about $3,950
5 bed, 3 bath, 3,000 sq ft with a finished basement$725,000$3,859about $4,550

Rates in the table are the note rate. With a $10,000 seller credit as a 2-1 buydown the 4-bedroom payment drops to about $3,330 all in for year one and about $3,640 in year two. Metro districts in newer subdivisions add $250 to $400 a month; check the parcel before comparing.

Where the extra bedroom is cheapest

The fourth bedroom is a finished basement in most 1970s to 1990s Front Range subdivisions, and a basement bedroom costs half what an above-grade one does. Search the basement and finished-basement pages by city, then the 4-bedroom pages.

Selling the small one in the same move

  • Sell first with a rent-back. The strongest offer on the new home; you stay 30 to 60 days in the old one after closing.
  • Buy with a contingency. Weaker in multiple offers, fine on a home past 30 days on market.
  • Bridge loan or HELOC. Borrow against the old house to close the new one, then pay it off at the sale.
  • Price the old one right on day one. Small homes with no offer in 21 to 30 days lose more to a late cut than the credit would have cost. The price-cut playbook.

kennarealestate.com · free guide

The Colorado Buyer
Concession Playbook

What to ask for by loan type, the 2-1 buydown math on your price, the offer wording, and the inspection credit script

The simple answer

Ask for a credit, not a lower price. A $10,000 credit as a 2-1 buydown saves $616 a month in year one; the same $10,000 off the price saves $66. Sixty-three percent of Denver-area sales include a concession.

Prepared by
KENNA REAL ESTATE GROUP
Call or text 303-955-4220 · A live person answers.

Kenna Real Estate GroupPage 1 of 8

Sample from page 3: A credit versus a price cut

  • $10,000 off the price: $66 a month less, for 30 years.
  • $10,000 as a 2-1 buydown: $616 a month less in year one, $315 in year two, on a $480,000 loan at 7%.
  • $10,000 toward closing costs: $10,000 you keep in the bank at closing.
  • The seller's cost: identical in all three.
The rest arrives by email
What is inside (9 sections)
  • 1A credit versus a price cut
  • 2The caps by loan type
  • 3The buydown math on your price
  • 4What to ask for, in order
  • 5When to ask, and which homes say yes
  • 6The offer wording
  • 7The inspection credit script
  • 8New construction
  • 9The checklist, and who to call

Get the buyer concession playbook

8 pages · PDF · free · emailed the same day · in your inbox within a minute

Name, email, phone, and the PDF is in your inbox within a minute. A live person follows up once. Want to see more first? Open the guide page, or call or text 303-955-4220.

Related

Need the room this year?

Text the bedroom count and the city to 303-955-4220. A live person sends the homes and the payment with the credit priced in, and the net on the home you are leaving.

Call or text 303-955-4220What is my home worth?

Questions people ask

How much more does a 4-bedroom cost than a 3-bedroom in Denver?

About $100,000 to $150,000 in the same neighborhood, which is $660 to $1,000 a month at 7% with 20% down. A basement bedroom is the cheapest fourth bedroom on the Front Range.

Should I sell my house before buying a bigger one?

In this market, yes for most people: sell first with a 30-to-60-day rent-back, or buy a home past 30 days on market with a sale contingency. Carrying two payments at 7% is the expensive option.

Can a seller credit lower my payment on the bigger house?

Yes. Sixty-three percent of Denver-area sales include a credit averaging about $10,000; used as a 2-1 buydown it saves about $616 a month in year one on a $480,000 loan.

What about the rate I am giving up?

The rate on the old loan goes away when you sell no matter what you buy. Compare the new payment with the credit against what the extra room is worth to you over the years you will live there.