Here in Denver, we’re used to having people moving into town, not leaving town. But a bit of the opposite is happening now—including senior-aged sellers who follow their kids elsewhere—adding a level of complexity that makes the timing of the Colorado sale critical, according to specialists with The Steller Group, Senior Solutions Division.

“Senior moves are always complicated, but when you’re packing up and buying a home out of state, everything needs to fall in place perfectly,” says Blair Bryant, broker with The Steller Group.

That’s the situation that Leslie and Paul Farley of Southglenn in Centennial faced when they decided to move this spring to a pretty town in the Texas Hill Country, to be closer to their kids in Houston.

Out-of-state moves are more common now, notes Bryant. A January Forbes article on “Ten states people are fleeing” in the wake of the pandemic lists Colorado as No. 7—with the cost of real estate, crime rates, and shifting politics as motivators.

Meanwhile, Bryant says, Denver sellers are still finding situations where they can recover so much equity that they might be able to buy a new house out of state, free-and-clear.

On trips south to see their son and daughter-in-law, the Farleys would wander off the Interstate onto back roads in central Texas—and found pretty Lockhart, a town of 16,000 with an authentic main street that’s 25 minutes from the airport in Austin and two hours from Houston.

The pair hired an agent in Texas, while watching for new listings there via Zillow. Meanwhile, they talked with Bryant at Steller, who had handled a very successful sale of Leslie’s mom’s house in 2022.

Nothing but a few false leads showed up in Texas for many months—until Christmas Eve, when Leslie suddenly saw a new ranch pop up that looked perfect.

Paul Farley says the couple was suddenly confronted with a choice of buying a home they had never seen, or staying put in Denver. “You can’t do something without doing it,” he says. The offer went in on Christmas, and suddenly the Texas home was headed for closing.

“That set the clock ticking,” says Steller’s Bryant. “Nobody wants to be making two mortgage payments, so the sale in Centennial had to happen promptly.”

Nevertheless, Bryant recommended the couple make about $7,000 worth of upgrades before showing the house—refinishing the hardwood floors, exposing hardwood on the stairs, and installing new carpet. The Farleys moved out for two weeks on March 10, while Steller’s sister remodeling company gave it a fresh look; and Steller’s in-house staging expert readied it for presentation.

“Staging makes a huge difference,” Bryant says.

In a market that lacks the urgency it had a year ago, the listing went live March 23 and sold the first weekend with multiple offers.

“The market is still good, but we can’t predict for how much longer,” says Bryant. “Whether or not you’re moving out of state, if you want to sell by July 4, you need to get going.”

Steller has 3 free seminars in April, in Arvada, Centennial and Lakewood. See the box above for a schedule or visit DenverSeniorSeminars.com.

The news and editorial staffs of The Denver Post had no role in this post’s preparation.