Denver Real Estate Blog 
Denver in Top 25 Cities for Government Careers
Friday, May 29th, 2009 at 7:55am. 702 Views, 0 Comments.
Based on criteria ranging from the average commute time to the number of currently available government jobs, Denver ranks No. 12 in GovCentral.com’s Top 25 Cities for Government Careers.
GovCentral looked specifically at a city’s growth rate, cost of living, average commute time, unemployment figures, the rate that unemployment increased since February 2008, and, most importantly, the number of jobs currently posted on USAJobs.
Several key characteristics of Denver caught their attention include:
- The city is a major energy research center and a regional headquarters for government agencies.
- Its major employers are concentrated in air transportation, telecommunications, aerospace and manufacturing.
- The downtown financial district houses both major national…
Denver Fares Best Amongst 20 U.S. Cities In National Survey
Thursday, May 28th, 2009 at 12:28am. 581 Views, 0 Comments.
According to the S&P/Case-Shiller® Home Price Indices, Denver fared the best among 20 U.S. cities. The 20-City Composites recorded annual declines of 18.7%. This is a slight improvement from the return reported for February.
“Declines in residential real estate continued at a steady pace into March,” says David M. Blitzer, Chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor’s. “All 20 metro areas are still showing negative annual rates of change in average home prices with nine of the metro areas having record annual declines. Seventeen metro areas recorded a monthly decline in March, with Minneapolis, Detroit and New York posting record monthly declines. On a positive note, nine of MSAs are reporting a relative improvement in year-over-year returns and nine…
Distressed Sales Distort Market Values
Monday, May 25th, 2009 at 1:00pm. 495 Views, 0 Comments.
About 50 percent of nationwide transactions are sales of distressed homes, resulting in market distortions in otherwise stable neighborhoods, Robert Freedman reports in REALTOR Magazine.
The median national home price today is about $169,000, down almost 14 percent from a year ago and an estimated 30 percent from its peak. “We’re only capturing transaction prices,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said, “and those prices might be 20 percent to 25 percent below actual values.”
Lenders add to the problem of market distortion by not refinancing mortgages of troubled owners. Not being able to refinance worsens a homeowner’s financial situation. The lack of reasonably priced financing for higher-cost homes also contributes to the…
States Make Bridge Loans Available to First-Time Home Buyers
Saturday, May 23rd, 2009 at 11:02am. 955 Views, 0 Comments.
Many states started monetizing the first-time homebuyer tax credit before the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced its plan to do so. Nearly a dozen states make bridge loans (advance loans) available to households that want to claim the tax credit, Brian Summerfield reports in REALTOR® Magazine. The loan is repayable with proceeds from the first-time homebuyer’s tax credit.
On May 13, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan
announced the department will allow consumers to obtain a bridge loan,
repayable with proceeds from their tax credit, to help cover their down
payment. Guidelines for the new policy will be released shortly.
For states to consider offering bridge loans, they need to be convinced they will get a…
Denver Number One Of Top Housing Markets On The Rebound
Tuesday, May 19th, 2009 at 12:49pm. 518 Views, 0 Comments.
Denver, Colorado, is projected number one of five top American real estate markets on the verge of recovery from the housing slump per Barbara Corcoran speaking on MSNBC Today.
Characteristics of a city that could rebound:
1. Job growth.
2. Growing population.
3. Location with good weather.
4. Lost of First-Time Home Buyers.
5. No overbuilding of condos or office spaces.
6. Vital Downtowns where people can live without a car.
7. Well educated population.
8. Large number of foreclosures early.
Top housing markets:
5. San Francisco, CA
4. Seattle, WA
3. Austin, TX
2. Raleigh, NC
1. Denver, CO
Some reasons Denver leads the nation mentioned are that in Denver you can get a 3 bedroom, 2 bath for $193,000. Denver is a great real estate success story. It once had the highest…
Rates On Bigger Mortgage Loans May Finally Come Down
Saturday, May 2nd, 2009 at 6:53pm. 347 Views, 0 Comments.
The cost of home loans from $625,500 to $729,750 in high-cost regions should come down in the next few weeks, Kathleen Pender reported in SFGate.com. Although the economic stimulus act passed in February increased the conforming loan limit in high-cost regions to a maximum of $729,750 for single-family homes through the end of this year, lenders have been waiting for Fannie and Freddie to issue underwriting criteria before lowering their rates. Fannie issued its criteria March 30 and Freddie on April 16. Both will start buying loans of up to $729,750 from lenders on May 4.
The conforming-loan limit is the biggest mortgage that can be purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Anything over the limit is called a jumbo loan, which costs considerably more. On…
Renovated Cherry Hills Country Club Course Reopens May 1st
Friday, May 1st, 2009 at 1:21pm. 355 Views, 0 Comments.
The Cherry Hills Country Club is scheduled to reopen its 18-hole golf course May 1, after a $7.6 million, eight-month restoration, according to the Colorado Golf Association, reported the Denver Business Journal.
Key goals of the upgrade were to bring back many aspects of the original course design by William Flynn and to keep attracting U.S. Opens, PGA Championships and other key golf tournaments. The club will host the Palmer Cup, a competition between U.S. and European college players, in June. And the U.S. Amateur championship will be played at the course in 2012.
The golf course restoration included:
• Lengthening the course by 291 yards.
• Redoing all tee boxes and bunkers, and rebuilding some greens.
• Replacing the irrigation system.
• Removing 200…
Denver Foreclosures Declined 46% In Past Year
Monday, April 27th, 2009 at 3:39pm. 401 Views, 0 Comments.
Foreclosure filings in the Denver metro area declined nearly 46 percent in the first three months of 2009 from the same period a year ago, Denver Business Journal reported. The data is based on figures released by RealtyTrac, Inc. in its “Metropolitan Foreclosure Market Report.” The company is an Irvine, California-based marketer of foreclosure properties.
Among the 203 large U.S. urban areas listed by RealtyTrac, the Denver-Aurora area ranked 60th in foreclosure filings in the first quarter of 2009. One in every 144 households in the area (7,250 properties) was in some stage of the foreclosure process in the first three months of the year, according to RealtyTrac. The total is down more than 22 percent from fourth quarter 2008 and down almost 46 percent…
Denver Ranks in EPA’s Top 10 Greenest Cities
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009 at 6:30pm. 965 Views, 0 Comments.
Boasting 109 Energy Star certified buildings, Denver ranks No. 7 in the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) March study of cities with the greatest number of energy-efficient buildings, Forbes.com reports. Notable Denver buildings include Union Tower, Financial Plaza, Harlequin Plaza, Wells Fargo Center and the Denver Marriott.
The EPA gives out its Energy Star rating to commercial buildings and manufacturing plants that emit 35% less carbon dioxide and consume 35% less energy than like-sized buildings. Among the structures the EPA rates are schools, hospitals, office buildings, courthouses, grocery and department stores and auto plants.
The number of Energy Star-certified buildings is up 130% from last year. The majority of spaces that receive the…
Listing Prices Rise in Large Metro Areas
Monday, April 20th, 2009 at 11:15pm. 257 Views, 0 Comments.
Asking prices rose 1.1 percent in March according to Altos Research’s latest 10-city composite index. The reason for the increase in median listing prices, BusinessWeek.com writer Prashant Gopal clarifies, is that the more expensive ones are lingering on the market while less expensive ones are selling.
“It implies some amount of stability in that the bottom is not falling as much,” said Mike Simonsen, co-founder and CEO of Altos Research.
In the cities of Los Angeles, Houston, Boston, San Diego and San Francisco, asking prices rose more than 2 percent. In contrast, Salt Lake City had a monthly drop of 4 percent in its median listing price.
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