Housing Market Overview
The median home price (often called the average home price), rent costs, affordability metrics, and housing stock characteristics for this housing market.
Housing Market Overview
| Metric | Wheat Ridge | Colorado Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Home Price | $481,463 | $480,058 | $242,182 |
| Price Trend (Annual %) | -0.6% | 11.8% | 8.2% |
| Median Gross Rent | $1,530 | $1,692 | $1,342 |
| Rent Trend (Annual %) | 7.5% | 7.0% | 5.1% |
| Household Income Trend (Annual %) | — | — | — |
The median home price in Wheat Ridge is about the same as in Colorado. Rent is about 10% lower than the Colorado average.
Median Home and Rent Price Trends
Median Home Prices, 2015-2023
Median Rent Prices, 2015-2023
Home prices and rent are moving in opposite directions in Wheat Ridge: home prices fell about 0.6% a year while rent rose about 7.5% a year. That is an unusual pattern worth watching.
Median rent in Wheat Ridge rose about 75.0% between 2015 and 2023, from $874 to $1,530. Over the same span, rent in Colorado rose about 68.8%.
Affordability
On average, housing unit costs 5.4 yearly household incomes in Wheat Ridge.
Buying the median-priced home in Wheat Ridge costs roughly 26.2 years of rent at the median monthly rate. That is a relatively high price-to-rent ratio, which tends to favor renting over buying in Wheat Ridge. The price-to-rent ratio in Colorado is about 23.6.
| Metric | Wheat Ridge | Colorado Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Home Price | $481,463 | $480,058 | $242,182 |
| Median Household Income | $88,507 | $93,055 | $78,145 |
| Price-to-Income Ratio | 5.4 | 5.2 | 3.1 |
Home Prices vs Income Over Time
Between 2015 and 2023, the median home price in Wheat Ridge rose about 129.7%, while median household income rose about 95.7% between 2009 and 2023 — the home price grew faster than income.
Income Growth vs Housing Cost Growth (Year-over-Year %)
Compare income and housing cost trends.
Occupancy & Tenure
| Metric | Wheat Ridge | Colorado Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homeownership Rate | 47.0% | 60.6% | 58.2% |
| Rental Rate | 48.1% | 30.8% | 31.3% |
| Vacancy Rate | 4.9% | 8.6% | 10.6% |
| Median Tenure (years) | 11.0 | 13.0 | 15.0 |
| Median Year Moved In | 2015 | 2013 | 2011 |
Wheat Ridge has a homeownership rate of 47.0%, lower than the Colorado average of 60.6%. Its housing vacancy rate is 4.9%, compared with 8.6% in Colorado.
Housing Stock
| Metric | Wheat Ridge | Colorado Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average Household Size | 2.09 people | 2.45 people | 2.54 people |
| Median Structure Built Year | 1968 | 1984 | 1978 |
| Median Number of Rooms | 5.1 | 5.7 | 5.5 |
The typical housing unit in Wheat Ridge was built around 1968. On average, 2.1 people live in a home with about 5.1 rooms, staying for about 11.0 years on average.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the housing market in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.
What is the median home price in Wheat Ridge, Colorado?
The median home price in Wheat Ridge, Colorado is $481,463, about the same as the Colorado average.
What is the average home price in Wheat Ridge, Colorado?
The typical home price in %s, reported as the median sale price, is %s. The median is used instead of a mathematical average because it is not skewed by a small number of very expensive or very cheap homes, so it better reflects what a typical buyer pays.
What is the median rent in Wheat Ridge, Colorado?
The median gross rent in Wheat Ridge, Colorado is $1,530 per month, lower than the Colorado average of $1,692.
What was the median gross rent in Wheat Ridge in 2020?
In 2020, the median gross rent in Wheat Ridge, Colorado was $1,193 per month.
What is the price-to-rent ratio in Wheat Ridge, Colorado?
The price-to-rent ratio in Wheat Ridge, Colorado is about 26.2, meaning it would take roughly 26.2 years of rent payments at the median rent to equal the median home price. That is a relatively high price-to-rent ratio, which tends to favor renting over buying in Wheat Ridge.
Are home prices or rent rising faster in Wheat Ridge, Colorado?
Home prices and rent are moving in opposite directions in Wheat Ridge: home prices fell about 0.6% a year while rent rose about 7.5% a year. That is an unusual pattern worth watching.
What is the homeownership rate in Wheat Ridge, Colorado?
47.0% of households in Wheat Ridge, Colorado own their home, lower than the Colorado average of 60.6%.
What is the vacancy rate in Wheat Ridge, Colorado?
The housing vacancy rate in Wheat Ridge, Colorado is 4.9%, lower than the Colorado average of 8.6%.