The latest info – updated when I have something new
to say!
Land Title
Guarantee Company March
2010 Market Analysis from
·
The prices in
Summit County reflect a significant decrease: The Median Single Family average
price YTD vs. 2009 Full Year is 11% down, the Median Multi-Family average price
is 10% down and the Median Residential Land Price is 41% down.
·
March 2010 is
flat with monetary volume to March 2009.
·
The most active
price points in
·
March was slow
for $1M and over Residential Improved Unit transaction movement.
·
YTD Residential
Volume had 163 transactions in 2010 vs. YTD 2009 92 transactions, with both
years showing similar $ Gross Volume with 2010: $85,312,400 and 2009:
$83,877,000- another indicator that prices are coming
down in
·
March 2010 is
flat in monetary volume from 2009. YTD, up 6% for 3 months in 2010 vs.
2009. March 2010 transaction volume is up 21% from last March 2009. YTD, up 14%
for 3 months in 2010 vs. 2009. This trend is another indicator that prices are
going down, and lower priced inventory is moving quicker than higher end
inventory in
·
The Average
Price History for Real Estate Transactions based on the Residential Improved
Unit Price Point Summary show that the Average Single Family price is similar
to Full Year of 2006 ( 2010-$739,807 and 2006-$737,253), same with Multi-
Family ( 2010-$368,479 and 2006-$333,501).
·
YTD Median
Residential Price for all transactions is $419,000.
·
There were four
recorded Bank Sales in March in
·
There are 47
Notice of Election properties, 8 Certificate of Purchase and 7 properties that
have gone to the Public Trustees Deed in March.
·
YTD there are 99
Notice of Election properties, 9 Certificate of Purchase and 30 Public Trustee
Deeds in
Vacation-home sales rose 7.9 percent in 2009 to 553,000 from 513,000 in 2008,
while investment-home sales fell 15.9 percent to 940,000 from 1.12 million the
previous year, according to NAR’s 2010 Investment and Vacation Home Buyer Survey.
Sales of primary residences rose 7.1 percent in 2009 to 4.04 million from 3.77
million in 2008. Roughly one-fourth (26 percent) of vacation-home buyers and 8
percent of investment buyers say they intend to use the property as a primary
residence in the future.
Homes purchased for investment purposes made up 17 percent of market share in
2009, down from 21 percent in 2008, while vacation-home sales accounted for 10
percent of transactions, up from 9 percent a year ago. The total share of
second homes was 27 percent in 2009, down from 30 percent of sales in 2008.
The median sale price of a vacation home was $169,000 in 2009, up from $150,000
the previous year. The median sale price of an investment property was $105,000
last year, down from $108,000 in 2008.
April 1
Market Update: (in a nut shell: topsy-turvy!)
Homes (SF & duplex) 593 available median $949,500 /
58 pending median $750,000 /
69 sold 1st Qtr median
$628,000
Condos & townhomes 1006 available median $415,000 /
152 pending
median $1,025,000 / 91 sold 1st Qtr median $292,000
Lots 367 available median $379,000 /
9 pending median $385,000 /
16 sold 1st Qtr median
$ 160,000
Compared to March of last
year, the average selling price of SF homes is down 14%, but the price of
duplexes is up 12%.
The average condo sold price increased
20%.
The average land sale is up 34%
Home Buyer Tax Rebates are expiring
soon – must be under contract by end of April & closed by end of June to be
eligible for $6500 move up credit or $8000 1st time buyer credit.
Copper Mtn Studio ready for
summer concert season! $225,000
Wildernest 2 bedroom with
lake view $219,500
Dillon Cabins – room for
lots of friends, especially in the big hot tubs $435,000 & $495,000
Keystone romantic get-a-way $200,000
Dillon 4 bedroom with great
yard $389,000
Mortgage
Info –From Rene & Jeff Kneller,
Mountain Equity Mortgage
Volatility for home loan
rates has already begun. The Fed did what they set out to do - purchasing $1.25
Trillion in Mortgage Backed Securities, and succeeding in their plan to lower
home loan rates and help stabilize the housing sector. And even though they
stretched out the length of the program slightly - in order to soften the
impact of the end of the program - the training wheels are now off, the safety
net is gone, and home loan rates have already moved higher. In fact - as the
Fed will now gradually become a seller of their massive holdings of Mortgage
Backed Securities - rates are very likely to continue to move higher still.
Even
after home loan rates took a jump higher last week, they still remain at
reasonably low levels - which makes right now a crucial time to take advantage
of the opportunities that exist, including the Homebuyers Tax Credit which is
down to its last month.
Ski area closings (its snowing now – should be a good end of season!)
Keystone this Sunday April 11
Copper Mtn &
Breckenridge April 18.
Feb 8
Real Estate Industry Reps Meet With Congressman Polis Staff on Condo Financing
Late last week REALTORS®, Title Companies, and Mortgage
Brokers from
Feb 1
New listing
Dated, but
perfectly functional. The house
next door sold in 2004 for $450,000 – just to be torn down. Last neighborhood
sale $785,000.
http://summit.mlxchange.com/Pub/EmailView.asp?r=366062340&s=SUM&t=SUM
All listings,
community info etc etc www.GolfAndSkiHomes.com
Fun Stuff:
Check out the International Ice
Sculptures in Breckenridge - they should
be good for the next week, then weather depending…
Feb 6 – Spontaneous
Combustion – bonfire & fireworks at Frisco Marina
Feb 16 – Mardi Gras – look for entertainment all over, with the big parade
in Breckenridge
There are now 1455
properties (homes & condos) available & 192 under contract. 39 closed in January (always a slow month).
2009 Summary
for
Jan 15
Foreclosure News -Copied from Summit Daily News today:
“They're up very significantly,” said Bernie Zurbriggen, broker and owner of
High Country Real Estate. “But we didn't have that many to start with.”
Of
While the statewide number dropped from 2.41 percent the previous year, the
number in
“Our market lags in terms of turning around,” said Daniel Johnson, broker with
Resort Brokers Real Estate. “When the rest of the country starts climbing,
we're going to see a delay before that happens here.”
Johnson said
Homes that enter the foreclosure process often end up getting sold for much
less than they're worth.
“It makes the neighborhood look terrible, because if the guy next door sold for
a lower amount of money, it sets the market,” Johnson said.
Summit County Public Trustee Bill Wallace said 300 properties entering
foreclosure in 2009 broke down to roughly: 139 single-family residences, 63
time-shares, 78 condominiums, 14 vacant lots and three commercial properties.
“We had very few actually go to sale; most of them got cured. The owners worked
something out with their mortgage company,” Wallace said.
Maggie Dew with Stewart Title of
The foreclosure process generally starts when a borrower is more than 90 days
late on a mortgage payment. A notice of election and demand is filed, the
borrower has up to several months to work with the lender — depending on the
situation — and if all else fails, the Summit County Sheriff's Office is sent
out to evict the residents.
A local resident living in a home
worth more than $1.2 million ran into hard times after some high-end East Coast
homes in which he'd invested were struck by successive hurricanes earlier in
the decade.
“I started to see the writing on the wall,” said the resident, who shared his
story under the condition of anonymity.
The man had purchased the three homes at $1.1 million, $2.3 million and $2.5
million. He repaired all three of them after two hurricanes in 2004, and they
got hit again in 2005.
“I had lived there 15 years and never got hit by one,” he said, adding that
hurricane insurance for each home increased from $3,500 per year to $60,000 per
year.
In 2007, the man was able to sell the $1.1 million home, but the $2.3 million
home was later foreclosed upon and the third remains in litigation.
As the housing market started to crumble, he tried to keep afloat by taking out
a mortgage against the Summit County home for its full value (he'd first paid
for it in cash), realized he needed more money and took out a second position
for $500,000.
He said before the foreclosures, his credit score had been excellent.
“Since the damage was done when I stopped doing business on the East Coast
properties, I had to decide what I could and couldn't afford in life,” he said.
“I stopped making payments on this house as well.”
Before the foreclosure on the local home, which remains on the foreclosure
list, he said his lender wasn't especially open to negotiations. But in recent
months, the talks have improved. He's not worried about getting kicked out of
the house.
“I know exactly where I sit in regard to where the laws are,” he said.
“Everything down to the specific day can be remedied.”
Robert Allen can be contacted at
Jan 1
Happy New Year!
2008 & 2009 were slow
years… after the excitement of 2006 & 2007. 2006 was the busiest year we’ve
ever had, but the average transaction price peaked in 2008. Although the number
of sales in 2009 was down 65% from 2006, the average transaction price increased 34% in the last 4 years.
Inventory is still high, but buyers do seem to be regaining interest, so I
expect prices to stay fairly flat in 2010, and stay flat until the number of
buyers & sellers evens out… then expect prices to increase (my crystal ball
says summer 2011).
Although the sale price to asking ratio
looks pretty strong, the majority of listings took some pretty big price cuts
since 1st entering the market. The final sales price of SF homes in
2009 was actually only 82% of the original asking price. Expect to negotiate!
Statistics
– 2009 year end compared to previous
years
Just Listed:
Affordable 2BR condo with
big views $224,500
Keystone – views & easy
ski access $200,000
Dillon Cabin with 2 living areas $439,000
Room for the generations - and a great money
maker $495,000
Lowe’s coming soon? Looks promising! The home building supply chain wants to open in
Silverthorne at Wildernest & Adams Sts where the old car dealership was.
Home Depot has been talking (for years) about building across the road from
this location, but never seems very organized. In contrast Lowe’s is acting
very serious and is actually moving ahead with the town approval process very
rapidly. If I got to make the choice – I vote Lowe’s! Not only are their
products more interesting (good experiences with remodels) but the location is
better – there is already an ugly building here that needs to go away and there
will be much less impact on the Blue River.
Computer advice for XP users – how to speed things up. Worked for me!
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20091228/NEWS/912279994/1004&parentprofile=1055
Dec 1
Happy December! That means
that the county is out of the between season doldrums and stuff is happening!
All ski areas are open, and even though we haven’t had much real snow fall the
nights have been cold enough to cover the ski runs with plenty of man made
snow, and even to freeze the skating ponds (Keystone & Meadow Creek Frisco
are open).
Tonight
(Thurs) is the Lighting of Dillon, with music, Santa, reindeer & a
Christmas Tree Fundraiser for Advocates for Victims of Assault. Celebration
starts at
Tomorrow (Friday) – being the 1st
Friday of the month… is “1st Fridays in Dillon”, the social/artists gathering
at the Dillon Arts Center on Village Place across from Pug Ryan’s.
Breckenridge’s holiday
kick-off is Saturday at
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Market Update – Local
Condos sold in past year 400 median price $308,000
2008 692 347,500
2007 1209 319,000
2006 1399 247,500
Homes sold in past year 351
735,000 (single family and duplex)
2008 427 713,000
2007 660 690,000
2006 750 617,500
If next years market is
comparable to this year – we have a 23 month supply of condos, and a 21 month
supply of homes. The supply is slowly coming down, but we are still in a buyers
market.
We still don’t have many
foreclosures to contend with, since values are significantly up from just a few
years ago, and few owners purchased with less than 20% equity to start with…
Market Update – National
Pending
Home Sales Continue to Show Gains
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts
signed in October, rose 3.7 percent in October and was 31.8 percent higher than
October 2008, NAR reported this morning. It is the ninth
consecutive month that the index increased.
The index showed gains in three of the four regions of the country. In the
Northeast, it climbed 19.9 percent during the month and was 44.2 percent above
a year ago. In the
NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun says that despite
these gains, home sales could dip in the coming months. “The expanded tax
credit has only been available for the past three weeks, but the time between
when buyers start looking at homes until they close on a sale can take anywhere
from three to five months. Given the lag time, we could see a temporary decline
in closed existing-home sales from December until early spring when we get
another surge, but the weak job market remains a major concern and could slow
the recovery process,” Yun says.
Mortgage Rates: In Freddie Mac Primary
Mortgage Mkt Survey (for the week ending November 27)
in which the 30-yr fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) avg. 4.83%. The 30 yr has not been this low since the
week ending
RISMEDIA,
1. Through
a tax credit worth up to $6,500 for existing homeowners in the market for a new
home.
2. Through a new closing deadline of
3. By increased phase-out limits that start at $125,000 for singles and
$225,000 for married filing jointly- up from $75,000 and $125,000 respectively.
The new limits apply to homes purchased after
Read more: http://rismedia.com/2009-12-01/2-million-americans-expected-to-take-advantage-of-extended-expanded-homebuyer-credit/#ixzz0Ye9snnNf
Nov 1
Happy Halloween!
Some might say its still
officially fall, but winter has hit the mountains. A Basin & Loveland are
already open, Keystone moved up its opening date to Nov 5, Copper Mtn Nov 6,
Breckenridge Nov 12.
In the past
39
84 listings had price
reductions, 1 price was increased.
51 listings went under
contract (36 of those had price reductions).
Median $440,000
54 sold. Median price $377,500
Take your pick - there are now 1709 properties
available to choose from! But since more are selling than being listed, and the
price of those sold is increasing… what are you waiting for? (Inventory to go
down and prices to go up is not the right answer!)
Home buying incentives: Yippee!
The senate has voted to
extend the 1st Time Home Buyer tax credit ($8000), and add a repeat buyer credit ($6500) for those
who have been in their old homes more than 5 years.
More good news – they also
voted to keep the loan limit for conventional loans at $729,750 until 2011,
allowing borrowers to pay lower interest rates than if the loan was considered
a ‘jumbo’.
More info from
News from the governor:
Last week we learned
Forbes.com and
Featured listings: always available at www.GolfAndSkiHomes.com
Keystone
ski condo has easy access to slopes & entertainment $215,000/$200,000
Wildernest
2 bedroom just updated $224,500
Dillon
rental giant – 2 homes in one
$439,000
Downtown
Dillon for the ultimate carefree vacations $315,000
The
least expensive 4 bedroom home in the county $378,000
What else would you
like to know? Just ask!
Oct 14
Looking to make home improvements to help keep energy
costs down this winter? The federal government is offering some financial
incentives in the form of tax credits. The credits can be claimed on a homeowner's income taxes for 2009 or 2010,
whatever year the improvements were purchased. With a credit, the amount comes
off any taxes you owe. Also, the credit is nonrefundable, meaning it allows
taxpayers to lower their tax liability to zero, but not below zero, according
to the Internal Revenue Service. Upgrade your insulation, windows, doors,
roofing, heating and air-conditioning system or water heater, and you could
qualify for a federal tax credit for 30% of the purchase price of the product
-- up to a $1,500 maximum credit. To qualify for the credit, you must place
those purchases in service between
Details
on which products qualify can be found on the Environmental
Protection Agency's Energy Star program Web site. Some stores also post
information. For instance, at Home Depot's Web site, there's a link to a list of specific
products that qualify. Click on "Tax Credit Eligibility."
Oct 5
Forbes slide
show: Where Home Prices are Hitting Bottom
RE Stats – 3rd
quarter: Average sale prices close to those of 2006, with much less volume.
Interest Rate prediction: Stewart
Title’s economist hosted an info session for Summit Realtors yesterday – and
scared us all with the prediction that mortgage rates (30 year fixed) will be
6% by Christmas (that’s a weird financial marker!) and will hit 7% sometime
next year. Which doesn’t sound all that bad, in fact its
still historically very low, but it will definitely impact purchasing ability.
Consider: if you are looking to buy with a $500,000 loan it would currently
cost you $2653/month (4.9%). At 7% your payment would be $3326. If you have
been approved for a $500,000 loan at today’s rates, then in a year you will
only be qualified for $398,766 – that is 25% less house!
Sep 28
Financial Benefits of
Home Ownership
There are a number of personal
and emotional reasons to buy a home. But there are also some strong financial
reasons to make the investment. In addition to exceptional home affordability
and near historic interest rates, here are some important financial benefits of
owning a home:
Increased Net Worth: Few things have a
greater impact on net worth than owning a home. In a comparison of renters versus homeowners, the Federal Reserve
Board of Consumer Finance found that the average net worth of renters was just
$4,000 compared to homeowners at $184,400.
A Big Tax Deduction: One of the largest tax deductions available is the amount of
interest paid on a mortgage. In fact, a $150,000 home at a 5.50% interest rate
can add up to approximately $8,000 in first year's interest. This amounts to a
significant savings - effectively reducing the amount of a homeowner's monthly
loan payment.
Long-Term Appreciation: Over the last few years, home prices have corrected and become
more affordable. While that's good news for potential buyers, it has overshadowed
the long-term appreciation of a home's value. The reality is, despite market
ups and downs, real estate historically appreciates around 6% per year. Even if
you calculate a modest appreciation of 3%, a home purchased today for $150,000
should grow in value to $364,000 over 30 years.
$8,000 Tax Credit: Don't
forget, the government is offering an $8,000 tax credit for first-time
homebuyers - or for folks that haven't owned a home during the past three
years. However, the program is scheduled to end soon. In fact, the Internal
Revenue Service recently reminded potential buyers that they must complete
their first-time home purchases before
Rate Review
In
Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Mkt Survey (for the week ending September 25) in
which the 30-yr fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) avg. 5.04%. Last year at this time, the
30-year FRM avg 6.09%.
The 15-year FRM this
week avg 4.46%. A year ago at this time, the 15-year FRM avg 5.77%. This is
the lowest the 15-year FRM has been since Freddie Mac started tracking it in
1991.
The five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid
adjustable-rate mortgage (
The one-year
Treasury-indexed
Sep 21
First snow! Blew in quickly
this morning, we now have a white coating on the hillsides (but just wet
roads). With this weather I don’t expect the aspens to hang on too long, so get
out you camera now! There is some blue sky peaking through now, but we are
expecting a chilly week.
If you want to combine 2
lookyloo sports this weekend, do the Parade of Homes
tour (Sep 26/27). SDN article on winners http://www.summitdaily.com/article/2009909189991
Curious? Come pick up a magazine/tour guide at my office.
Sep 12
The leaves are turning… next
weekend should be good for color viewing. We never know how long the colors
will last though – depends what falls from the sky. Expect more crowds than
usual on
Condo activity is picking up
as bargain hunters prepare for ski season. Not much action on homes though, and
no one is even looking at lots…
Sep 4
Bargain homes: http://summit.mlxchange.com/Pub/EmailView.asp?r=923264895&s=SUM&t=SUM
Short Sales: http://summit.mlxchange.com/Pub/EmailView.asp?r=612027243&s=SUM&t=SUM
Short doesn’t necessarily mean cheap –
you still have to do your homework! Only very patient buyers should try this
process.
Aug 26
Ski Passes on sale, expect
prices to increase Labor Day
Keystone/Breck/Vail http://www.snow.com/passsales/default.aspx?cmpid=ESS00010
Copper Mtn http://www.skicolorado.com/?crmcontact=1247750&crmpas=CRM_CW_PSP_06_E1_090824
“Affordable Housing” –
Silverthorne is postponing development of the Smith Ranch neighborhood (50
acres next to Willowbrook) until the economy picks up, but is making progress
on Solarado (jointly with Dillon). Solarado is only 8 units with average price
of $250,000.
US
map shows foreclosure rates, unemployment & income by county. Summit Co
is hard to find – it’s the little squiggle to the right of Eagle Co, above Park
Co. Shows 1 in 1,486 homes in
foreclosure here
Inexpensive
investment/vacation properties: http://summit.mlxchange.com/Pub/EmailView.asp?r=1438586224&s=SUM&t=SUM
Cost/income estimates: http://lakedillon.com/web/investmentincome.htm
Aug 14
Overlooking
Quick Stats Quarter to Quarter Analysis
from Title Company of the Rockies
Transactions Second Quarter 2009 vs. First
Quarter 2009
Property
Segment
Area Single Family Duplex/Triplex
Condominium
Townhouse
Commercial Vacant Land Misc
Area
Totals
Breckenridge - Blue River
▲ NC
▲ ▲
▲
▼
▲
▲
Copper
Mountain Area ▼ NC ▲ ▲
NC NC NC ▲
Frisco NC ▲
▼ ▼ ▲
NC
NC ▼
Keystone Area ▼ NC ▲
NC NC ▼
NC
NC
Silverthorne
- Dillon ▼ ▲
▲ ▲ ▲ ▼
NC ▲
July 30
We are seeing more
properties go under contract every week. There are finally more listings going off
the market (pending or withdrawn) than coming on (active & re-listed).
Inventory levels are still high, but it’s nice to see them dwindling.
FIRESALE! River
Bank Lodge in Keystone
$215,000 (last sale was $252,000). Spectacular views, walk to
gondola & all River Run activities.
Be in for the holidays… coming up sooner than we think!
General RE News:
From CBS news July 23;
The
Sales of previously occupied homes rose for the third month in a row in June, the National Association of Realtors reported. That hasn't happened since early 2004, during the boom.
"The turnaround in the housing market appears finally to be here and indeed may be gaining some speed," wrote Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors Inc.
Stocks jumped on the news, with the Dow Jones industrial average rising above 9,000 for the first time since early January.
Home sales rose 3.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.89 million last month, from a downwardly revised pace of 4.72 million in May. Sales were up in all four regions of the country.
Daily Real Estate News |
Housing Experts: Now Is a
Perfect Time to Buy
… but that opportunity may be slipping away.
For people who have a job and money, a dream house is within reach, writes Marc
Roth, founder of Home Warranty of America and a columnist for BusinessWeek.
He points out that mortgage rates remain
low, prices are still at historic lows, and the government is offering
incentives for first-time homebuyers.
He also adds that the inventory of homes to buy is still large, but it is
shrinking. According to the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, the housing
inventory peaked in November 2008 at an 11-month supply. At the end of May
2009, it had fallen to a 9.6-month supply.
Roth says
anyone who dallies will miss a good opportunity to buy a first home at a
terrific price or go shopping for a move-up property that is a great buy.
Source: BusinessWeek.com, Marc Roth (
July 20
In
1204 condos for sale, 161 under contract, and 153 have closed in the 1st
half of the year with an average price of $414,392.
Under Contract (I like to follow this since
it shows what buyers are attempting to do right now):
The median price is $1,025,000; price
range $123,000 - $3M. This is abnormally high now since about half are new
construction on the
ski run in
Breckenridge.
890 homes for sale, 53 under contract, and 119 have closed with an
average price of $952,267.
Median price of those under contract is
$710,000, with a range of $299,000 - $2,995,000.
Showings have picked up in
the last couple weeks as more visitors are here escaping form the heat in
June 22
New lake oriented listings in honor of summer:
Marina
Place 2 bedroom -
great shape, perfect location for summer fun
Not
on the market yet – 5 bedroom home with the best
views in the county (in my opinion!): lake, marina, 2 mountain ranges… Completely redone interior. Expect $900,000ish.
In the last week: there have been 100 new listings added to our inventory, 45 taken off
the market, 26 put under contract, and 12 closed. I like the contract to closed
ratio – things are definitely picking up! Still a lot of inventory…
Fun stuff:
Arts & hors d'oeuvres–
check out local photographers & artists at Dillon’s 1st Fridays – on
the 1st Friday evening of the month at La Riva (AKA Dillon Center),
Main St, Dillon
The Old Dillon Inn, Silverthorne’s historic roadhouse, will be reopening soon (as soon as
they get their liquor license). Don’t expect anything fancy; it will still have
that rustic cowboy feel & a muddy potholed parking lot.
June 6
It doesn’t matter what
the calendar says – once the marinas are open its summer in
Summer events
are now getting under way – lots of fun stuff going on, from art shows to BBQs
to concerts… To help with your plans I have listed (what I think are) the most
interesting happenings around the county as well as ideas for ongoing fun stuff : www.GolfAndSkiHomes.com
Recreation & Events link
“Denver is the nation's top city on the verge of recovery,
according to a segment that aired Tuesday
Good news for us, since many of our
buyers/owners are from the front range.
Bargain Hunter Alert -
Frisco Bay Townhome short sale! Looking for $325,000 – but we really
don’t know how much lower the bank will go until we negotiate. This really is a
great deal – the last home in the complex sold for $372,000 – and this one has
more upgrades & updates (river rock fireplace, granite counters, newer
appliances…). 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, 1 car garage, 2 lake facing decks… and
view to the lake & marina (easy walk to the Island Grill!).
Why is this
such a bargain? Because so few people are making decisions these days,
we need to do something to get you off the fence!
Its Saturday, and the phone just ain’t ringing… which
baffles me. Interest rates are awesome, tax credits are great, selection is
very good, the stock market is making (me) money, but people are still
pessimistic. The good news is that the
Owners: your property tax info is on its way… and
will probably show an increase in the value of your property. The assessments
are based on supposedly comparable sales from Jan 2007 – June 2008. If you
think your valuation is too high I can give you a list of what the assessor
should have been using as your comps - which you can use to argue. More info –
Summit Daly article: http://www.summitdaily.com/article/2009904309940
For rent:
4 bedroom home in Frisco
$2200/month. Or $2600 furnished. Long term.
Keystone 1
bedroom at
If you know someone… please
pass on my number!
My
favorite listings – not necessarily my own – I just think these are great deals!
April 20
Activity as I see it… We still aren’t getting many 1st time
callers, but property showings are picking up – which tells me that the people
looking have been thinking about it for a long time.
But there are a lot of people researching on
their own, though not ready to tour properties or even ask questions (if the
4211 hits on my web sites in March are any indication).
More deals are falling apart these days in
the 1st week of contract, since even though the buyers & sellers
are coming to terms, the lenders aren’t cooperating. Many times the issue is
that the lender won’t approve the condo complex, since in other parts of the
country homeowners associations are in trouble. Not the case here – but the
money guys don’t look at individual markets. And although Fannie & Freddy
have cancelled their ’no more than 4 loans per borrower’ policy, the money
sources are still refusing to make loan #5.
Unfortunately many of the would-be buyers
have properties they need to sell first (those who have always dreamed of
retiring here, investors from
The 1st time buyer credit (below) should encourage many local buyers, but it seems that they are so freaked out by the national media that they aren’t willing to make any decisions yet (yes, the national foreclosure & appreciation rates are lousy, but Colorado is doing better than most).
High inventory + historically low interest rates = a great time to buy. If I didn’t already have 4 mortgages…
Absorption Rates: the latest catch phrase to describe what’s happening in the real estate market. The absorption rate tells us how the supply is in relationship to demand. Six months’ supply is considered a balanced market — when the number of listings roughly equals the number of buyers. Numbers over six represent a buyers’ market and those below a sellers’ market.
Looking for the strongest buyers market – where (theoretically) sellers will be more willing to negotiate? Keystone homes: 40 months – ouch! Frisco homes – 29 months. Copper Mtn condos – 24 months. Breckenridge condos – 22 months.
The best
absorption rates (strongest markets) are Dillon & Wildernest condos – 10
months; Dillon homes – 14 months.
Is the Real Estate Market Bottoming Out? It looks like it may be here: article from the Summit Daily News on the Summit & Colorado market.
1st time home
buyer tax credit – or haven’t owned
in 3 years? (from Jim Doyle,
A new bill provides for a
$8,000 tax credit that would be available to first-time home buyers for the purchase
of a principal residence on or after
A person is considered a first-time buyer if he/she has not had any ownership interest in a home in the three years previous to the day of the 2009 purchase.
There are income
restrictions based on the purchasers tax filing
status. Individuals filing Form 1040 as Single (or Head of Household) are
eligible for the credit if their income is no more than $75,000. Married
couples who file a Joint return may have income of no more than $150,000. The
credit does not totally go away at those income levels but
phases-out between $75,000 - $95,000 for singles and $150,000 - $170,000
for married filing joint.
Statistics
– details of past 3 years
Trends
– an overview of the past 10 years
“Be fearful
when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.”
Warren Buffet
Laura Champe laura@lakedillon.com www.GolfAndSkiHomes.com