Colorado Real Estate Blog

Rising rates could have an effect on Denver Homes For Sale. The star have never lined so perfectly to purchase Denver Area Homes. Low rates, stimulus tax breaks and low prices., I have never seen a big opportunity then now.

Rates rose slightly last week as mortgage bond prices fell.  There were swings in the market within a small range.  Our economy could be getting a bit healthier, based on the retail sales report, which was better than expected.

A few tidbits:

•        The most important news this week will be Tuesday afternoon’s Fed meeting, although data from the Producer Price Index (Wednesday) and the Consumer Price Index (Thursday) will also factor in the market’s behavior.

•        Housing Starts data will be released on Tuesday.  If the decrease is bigger than expected, interest rates could be lower.

As always, if you have any questions about the market in general or rates or programs in particular, please feel free to contact me at any time.

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Good news for Denver area home owners, “The prices are going up”. All five metro counties seen increases in home prices from last year. From January 2009 through January 2010 the “IAS360 House Price Index” report broke down median single family homes as follows;

• Denver: Greenwood Village, Cherry Hills, Denver Homes / Denver Homes For Sale – Up 10.8%

• Adams: Westminster, Brighton, Thornton Homes For Sale – Up 1.0%

• Arapahoe: Littleton, Englewood, Centennial, Aurora Homes For Sale -Up 4.8%

• Douglas: Roxborough, Highlands Ranch, Parker, Castle Rock Homes For Sale- Up 5.4&

• Jefferson: Arvada, Lakewood, Littleton, Wheat Ridge, Morrison – Up 5.8%

Between December 2009 and January 2010 as follows

• Denver — Up 1.5 %

• Adams — Down 3.0 %

• Arapahoe — Up 2.8%

• Douglas — Up 3.2%

• Jefferson — Up 5.8%

Nationally, median single family-home prices dropped 2.3% in January from the previous month showing Denver was the first in the recession and we are the first out.

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Here the wish list you want to provide to your Realtor.

#1 Choose The City:

Denver Homes/Denver Homes For Sale, Littleton Homes For Sale, Arvada Homes For Sale, Highlands Ranch Homes For Sale, Wheat Ridge Homes For Sale, Aurora Homes For Sale, Cherry Hills Homes For Sale, Greenwood Village Homes For Sale, Lakewood Homes For Sale, Centennial Homes For Sale, Parker Home For Sale, Castle Rock Homes For Sale, Westminster Homes For Sale, Broomfield Homes For Sale, Boulder Homes For Sale, Thornton Homes For Sale or Morrison Homes For Sale.

#2 What Style of Home Do You Prefer;

2 Story, Tri-Level, Ranch, Tri Level w/ Basement, Bi-Level, 3 Story etc.

#3 What Vinitage Home Do You Like;

Example 1990 thru 2010

#4 How Many Square Feet Do You Need;

Example 2000 – 2500 Sq Ft

#5 Do You Want A Basement?

Walk-out, Garden Level, Finished etc.

#6 How Many Bedrooms Minimum?

#7 How Many Bathrooms Minimum?

#8 Do You Wan A Garage? If Yes, How many Spaces Minimum?

Now this will give your Realtor a good start. I always adjust after the first day on showings, I listen to my clients and try to find exactly what they are looking for to make there shopping more direct and efficient. I how this help you. To contact a Realtor today, go to www.DenverAreaRealty.com.

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My quest in life is to help buyers purchase homes the correct, safe and easy way. Let’s talk about the norm- The first thing a will buyer do is go to google and type in Denver Homes For Sale, Littleton Homes For Sale, Denver Homes, Littleton Homes, Highlands Ranch Homes For Sale or which ever city they are looking for, be it Lakewood, Arvada, Greenwood Village, Cherry Hills, Centennial, Englewood, Parker, Aurora, Wheat Ridge, Ken Caryl etc. Next they get in there car drive by the homes from the net, call the Realtor off the sign and then the rodeo begins.Very SCARY!!!! Who that Realtor representing? The seller! That doesn’t help you a bit…….

This is how it should go; Contact a qualified “experienced” lender, apply for a loan and get pre-approved. Next, hire a Realtor….. Find an experience professional, has knowledge of the local area and put him to work for you(You want someone to represent you!!!). Why not make him do all the work, It’s FREE to you. The seller pay his commission. Better yet, hire the Realtor first and he can recommend the lenders he has worked with in the past. Now it’s time to start shopping. Since we have the price range you can afford, have the Realtor pull the listings for you. Most the website are days and some are weeks behind on updating the inventory. And if you want to search the net go to www.DenverAreaRealty.com, it’s hooked directly up with the MLS.

Once you find that house, now it’s time to make that offer. Since you are pre-approved, that’s almost as good as offering cash and believe or not we are in a competitive market and you need every edge possible when there are multiple offers on the table. Are you starting to see the difference? Again I can’t emphasize enough, hire someone with a ton of experience, a top producer. You don’t want a part time house wife (For the Record- I have nothing against house wife’s, they have the hardest and most important job in the world!) or a new agent how’s going to cut their teeth on the biggest purchase of you life. Let me ask you a question, would you hire a law student right out of law school to represent you in a $250,000 lawsuit? Would you want a new doctor to operate on you? I hope you answered no, if you didn’t answer this or your answer was yes, that’s like taking a knife to a gun fight…….

Now let’s talk inspections. I run into inspectors everyday that take a couple courses join an association to  get some kind of credentials. This scares me to death. Let’s talk about a real home inspector. I look for real credentials- They must be Professional Engineers,  licensed and insured. Now you have an inspector. Doug Lowe, owner of Inspect Pro is the company you want to hire. He has all the qualification and a tons of experience.

Last, let’s talk about the title company. These are the people who put the deal together and close it. They also provdie your title insurance to insure you home from liens, encumbrances etc. Now there are many goods one out there, but Land Title Guarantee stands out from the crowd. And since the seller is providing the title insurance for you, you should ask your Realtor to put the title company of your choice in the contract.

Now this is just touching the surface of a real estate transaction, contact me today and let me guide you to a successful real estate transaction.

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According to state Division of Housing in Colorado, new foreclosure filings fell 16.8% in January. Foreclosures are down a total of 40% from January 2008. Now here’s the good news for buyers looking for Denver Homes For Sale, foreclosure sales at actions are up 19% from the first of this year but down 60.8 percent from January of 08. We need more foreclosure homes for sale in the Denver market, there are investors with billions of dollars just waiting to invest it in real estate. The impact to our economy would be immense if the banks would steadily start feeding these properties into the Denver market vs. the few which have been hitting are bid so high there is no margin for profit.

The county with the largest decline in filing was Douglas. These homes are location in Highlands Ranch, Parker and Castle Rock. Now the largest increase was in Mesa County. And if you are comparing, Foreclosure did increase in all metropolitan county, but the small increase were Denver Homes.

As I mention above, we need these foreclosure to help revitalize the Denver real estate market, contractor, construction sales etc.

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When purchasing homes in Denver, Colorado Ranch Properties or Farm Land, not all title policies include language specifically excluding rights, neither water nor water rights are insurable by title insurance. Since the ownership in decided through the water courts and title companies don’t have a system to track this information, it is high recommended you contact an attorney who specializes in the field to protect your investment.

As we all know, water is crucial for ranches and farms. One thing you may find surprising, some Denver Homes, Lakewood Homes, Wheat Ridge Homes etc. have ditch rights which are very valuable to the current owners and the future sale of the properties. These ditch rights will allow them to water their lawns and gardens certain times of year and with the growing costs and demand of water, this is huge.

Domestic Wells have become major concern in Colorado in he past years. Many aquifers are drying up and don’t appear to be replenishing themselves even with the record snow falls Colorado has been experiencing for the last few years.

Colorado’s Contract to Buy and Sell Real Estate will help protect your rights and investment providing you have chosen a seasoned professional to help you with the purchase. The contract has section to included any and all water right and the inspection period is a must for checking potability and flows to help insure you are getting what you pay for.  Contact a Professional Broker Today

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Consumer Confidence vs. Spending will Complicate Quick Recovery in Denver’s Real Estate Market

Many analysts agree that recovery from the recession in coming quarters will be slower than recoveries from previous downturns, partly because consumer spending seems unlikely to rebound quickly, according  to data collected by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation (Metro Denver EDC)in its Monthly Economic  Summary for September 2009. Improvement in the Mountain Region  Consumer Confidence Index suggests  local consumers have an increasingly positive economic outlook, although survey respondents are still voicing concern over uncertain job prospects and less-than-stellar
income growth. “Consumers are largely anticipating better conditions, but that optimism has yet to change their willingness to spend,” stated Patty Silverstein, chief economist for the Metro Denver EDC and president of  Development Research Partners. “This will hold recovery back, as consumer spending drives 70 percent of U.S. economic activity.” Consumers’ ability to spend is also in  question as the economy recovers, because consumer wealth and access to credit has declined significantly. These factors are  certainly weighing on Metro Denver retail sales, which were down more than 13 percent year-to-date through May. Metro Denver employers cut 9,400 jobs between June and July, but seasonally adjusted data suggest the loss was  smaller than expected for this time of year. Year-to-date growth rates remained nega- tive in Jully for each of the 11 Metro Denver industry supersectors except education, health services, and government, with the largest percentage declines in natural resources and construction, manufacturing, and professional and business services.  Still, recent monthly increases in professional and business services employment could indicate a stabilizing job market. The indus- try includes temporary and contract worker employment, and an increase in these jobs tends to foretell a better labor market.
Metro Denver’s unemployment rate was 7.8 percent in both June and July. Despite recent increases, Metro Denver’s current unemployment rate is roughly two percentage points lower than the nationwide rate.
The decline in residential real estate seems to be slowing. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), a 7.2 percent increase in U.S. existing home sales between June and July was the largest reported gain dating back to 1999. Metro Denver existing home sales increased more than 6 percent between June and July but remained 13.3 percent below sales from July 2008. The region’s average home prices—while still below the prior year’s levels—are beginning to firm as home sales accelerate. Looking ahead, consumer behavior indicators and other economic drivers are likely to show mixed signals. Slow improvement from one month or quarter to the next will likely still result in weakened trends from prior years, at least until positive labor market prospects and improved financial markets give consumers and businesses the resources they need for growth. Economic indicators for Metro Denver are currently showing this mixed behavior. Economic Summary Consumer confidence vs. spending will complicate quick recovery Eleven of the 18 indicators moved in a  positive direction for the month, while only three indicators moved in a positive annual direction. In last month’s report, seven indicators moved in a positive monthly  direction and three indicators moved in  a positive annual direction. The Monthly Economic Summary provides
a snapshot of metro area economic activity, as well as its relationship to national and regional economic trends. Key highlights include:

Consumer Sector

The Mountain Region Consumer Confidence Index rose in August as respondents’ assessments of present conditions and their near-term outlooks improved. Data available through May show the decline in Metro Denver retail sales accelerating through early summer. Specifically, retail sales across all industries in Metro Denver were down almost 20 percent over the year in May, and statewide sales were down almost 19 percent. The stock market continued to rise in August. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and NASDAQ posted year-to-date returns of 8.2 percent and 27.4 percent, respectively, and the year-to-date return on the Bloomberg Colorado Index reached an even higher 27.9 percent.

Residential Real Estate
Metro Denver foreclosuree filings increased roughly five percent between June and July. Despite moderate increases in foreclosure activity over the past several months, foreclosure filings have declined on a year- to-date basis in each of the seven Metro Denver counties except Boulder County, the City and County of Broomfield, and Douglas County. Metro Denver residential permit activity increased slightly between May and June as builders began more detached and attached single-family projects. Permits pulled through
June for all types of residential buildings fell 68 percent from the number pulled in the first six months of last year.
Commercial Real Estate
According to CoStar Realty Information, Inc., Metro Denver’s direct office market vacancy rate for the second quarter of 2009 did not change from the first quarter at 13.6 percent. Average second quarter lease rates were also flat over the quarter at $21.04 per square foot, and office market construction activity rose slightly from the first quarter. Compared to construction volume in the second quarter of 2008, however, the second quarter 2009 volume was down more than 45 percent. According to CoStar data, MetroDenver’s
direct industrial market vacancy rate rose  in the second quarter of 2009 to 7.2  percent. Average industrial market lease rates declined slightly to $5 per square  foot in the second quarter, and industrial construction halted. Trends in Metro Denver’s flex market  were flat between the first and second  quarters of 2009, according to CoStar.  The region’s direct flex market vacancy rate was unchanged between the first and
second quarter at 14.5 percent, and  average lease rates declined slightly to
$9.52 per square foot. Vacancy and lease rates in Metro Denver’s retail market weakened further in the second quarter of 2009, according to CoStar. The direct retail vacancy rate rose in the second quarter to 9.2 percent, or a rate roughly one-percentage point above last year’s level. Average lease rates fell to $17.05 per square foot in the second quarter from $17.11 per square foot in the first quarter and are now down $0.88 per square foot from last year.
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This article was shortened for length and reprinted by Land Title Gaurantee Companywith permission of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation. For a full version of this report, visit the Metro Denver EDC at www.metrodenver.org.

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When I sell homes in Denver, Littleton, Highlands Ranch, Cherry Hills or Greenwood Village I prefer using the services of Land Title Guarantee Company for the Title Insurance, Closers and Competitive Rates. Below Land Title explains how taxes will affect purchasing or selling  Colorado Real Estate.

Two options for paying  property taxes

There are two options available for paying real estate taxes in Colorado. The first option is to pay the entire
amount of the prior year’s taxes in full on or before April 30. It is also possible to pay the real estate
taxes in two installments—the first installment on or before February 28 and the second installment on or before June 15.

Property taxes and your  closing

Depending on the time of year that a property closes and which method the lender uses to pay property taxes, Land Title will follow one of several procedures for collecting taxes at closing.

If you’re closing early  in the year…

For closings that take place during the first couple of weeks of each year, before the counties have certified new mill levies, Land Title will normally escrow from the seller 120% of the previous year’s property tax amount  (or use the most recent assessed value, if higher). These are short- term escrows, and no escrow fee is charged. Land Title can provide you with the complete escrow instructions and W-9 forms that are needed. Once the mill levies are certified and the actual tax amount is available, the prior year’s (2009) taxes will be paid from the escrow, and the difference will be refunded to the seller.

The lender’s procedure  for handling property taxes

Lenders also play a role in how the title insurance company determines what real estate taxes to collect at closing. At this time of year, lenders typically request that we handle the payment of the prior year’s (2009) real estate taxes in one of two ways. The first option is to collect from the seller (by means of a debit entry on their Settlement Statement/HUD-1) the entire amount of taxes due and remit that amount to the appropriate county treasurer prior to April 30. The second
option is for Land Title to pay only the first half of the prior year’s (2009) taxes.

When paying only the first half  of the prior year’s taxes…

In the event that the new lender requests that Land Title pay only the 2009 Property Taxes
How 2009 property taxes affect your 2010 transaction at closing first half of last year’s property taxes to
the county, Land Title typically follows this procedure:

1. The seller will be debited and the buyer credited for the entire amount of 2009 taxes.
2. The buyer will be debited for the first half of the 2009 tax amount and Land Title will pay this amount to the county. The lender will collect a tax escrow and will pay the second installment when it comes due.
3. The buyer and seller will both  execute a Memorandum of Under- standing Regarding Payment of 2009 Real Property Taxes. This document explains to the buyer and seller that Land Title has paid the first half of the taxes in accordance with the instructions from the buyer’s lender and that
the lender will be remitting the second half of the taxes on or before June 15.

Taxes disbursed but not received by the treasurer

By the first part of February, parties to a real estate transaction often encounter the problem of what to do when the payoff statement indicates the prior year’s (2009) taxes (either all or half) have been disbursed from the escrow account by the existing lender but have not yet been received by the treasurer.
When this is the case, these options are available:
1. Land Title will accept an indemnity from the lender (who paid the taxes) stating that the taxes have been paid in full (or that the appropriate half has been paid). In this case Land Title will close without collecting a duplicate payment from the sellers.
2. Land Title will accept an escrow of 110% or more, depending on the county, of the prior year’s (2009) real estate taxes from the seller/owner until such time as payment of the taxes can be confirmed with the county treasurer. These are short-term escrows, and no escrow fee is charged. Keep in mind that by the time payments can be  confirmed, taxes may be past due.
3. On streamline refinances where escrows are being transferred to the new loan to pay for 2009 taxes, and indemnity letter is required from the lender stating that the lender will be responsible for the payment of said taxes.
4. The last option is for Land Title not to pay the taxes and have this shown as an exception on Schedule B-2 of the title commitment and Schedule B-II of the policy. The title policy would be issued insuring only the previous year’s (2008) taxes as being paid. New lenders requesting a mortgagee’s policy will not, in most cases, accept this option. If you have any questions regarding these procedures, please contact your
Land Title Sales Representative or Closing Manager.

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2031 WILLOW Ct is listed at $387,900 and Features 3 Bedrooms 2 Baths and 2,152 Sq Ft – You Can search more Lakewood Homes For Sale at www.DenverAreaRealty.com

Description:  Air Condition-Central,Cable Available,Ceiling Fan,Double Pane Windows,Double Oven,Dryer,Disposal,Dishwasher,Eating Space/Kitchen,Formal Dining,Fence,Fireplace Insert,Garage Door Opener,Gas Logs,High Speed Access,Landscaped Prof,Master Bathroom,Microwave Oven,Master Suite,Newer Paint,Parking Addl Off St,Patio,Refrigerator,Remodeled,RV Parking,Smoke Alarm,Self-Cleaning Oven,Smoke Free,Skylights,Sprinkler,Stove/Range/Oven,Tile Floor,Updated,Window Coverings
Public Remarks:  SOUTHWESTERN BEAUTY WITH LAKE VIEW ACROSS STREET. ONE LEVEL LIVING WITH PRIVATE BACKYARD.RV PARKING & STORAGE SHED. UPDATED TO THE HILT. NEWER LOWE WINDOWS & APPLIANCES. ALL APPLIANCES STAY. IN TOP CONDITION WITH GREAT VIEWS ON A QUIET STREET

Courtesy of RE/MAX 100  IDX

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