Denver Real Estate Blog 
Existing-Home Sales Rose 5.1% in February
Friday, March 27th, 2009 at 9:03am. 191 Views, 0 Comments.
Existing-home sales rose 5.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.72 million units in February, up from 4.49 million units in January, the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) reported. Existing-home units include single-family houses, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops. The February 2009 unit sales figure is 4.6 percent below February 2008.
First-time buyers accounted for half of all home sales in February with activity concentrated in the lower price ranges, said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. He added that distressed sales accounted for 40 to 45 percent of transactions because entry level buyers are shopping for bargains.
Distressed homes typically sell for 20 percent less than the normal market price, which lowers the overall…
Mid-size Metro Areas Ranked By Quality of Life
Thursday, March 26th, 2009 at 3:30pm. 642 Views, 0 Comments.
Several lifestyle qualities make mid-size metropolitan cities an attractive alternative to living in a big city. Mid-size metro areas have between 250,000 and 1 million people and account for only 20 percent of the U.S. population.
A new bizjournals quality-of-life study ranked 124 mid-size metropolitan cities. Those with the highest scores had healthy economies, light traffic, moderate costs of living, impressive housing stocks and strong educational systems, reported G. Scott Thomas of bizjournals.
Provo, Utah, topped the list. Boulder, Colorado, came in second and Madison, Wisconsin, third. Provo scored high its impressive inventory of big homes. It also has steady population growth, an unemployment rate typically two to three points below the…
Colorado Mortgage Rates Continue To Fall
Wednesday, March 25th, 2009 at 8:46am. 241 Views, 0 Comments.
Market watchers expect the Federal Reserve's decision to buy U.S. Treasuries will drive down mortgage rates in coming weeks, the Denver Business Journal reports, but rates are already falling both nationally and in Colorado.
Freddie Mac's weekly nationwide rate report says 30-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to an average of 4.98 percent this week, just shy of the all-time low 4.96 percent in mid-January. In comparison, a year ago, 30-year mortgages were averaging 5.87 percent.
Existing homeowners appear to be lining up to lock in new mortgages at lower rates. Fannie Mae’s refinancing volume surged to $41 billion last month. The Mortgage Bankers Association said applications to refinance existing mortgages jumped 30 percent last week.
NAR Applauds Federal Reserve Purchase of More Securities
Tuesday, March 24th, 2009 at 10:24am. 217 Views, 0 Comments.
“The National Association of Realtors® applauds the Federal Reserve announcement today that it would purchase an additional $750 billion in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities and up to $300 billion in longer term Treasury securities,” National Association of Realtors® President Charles McMillan stated on March 18. “This is great news for American home buyers and homeowners because mortgage interest rates will continue to remain at historic lows.”
Greater numbers of home buyers will be able to purchase a home, he adds, and homeowners facing challenges will be able to refinance into better terms. The Federal Reserve’s move will push affordability conditions to the best levels in 40 years.
Continued low rates will also lessen foreclosure…
Mayor Launches Greener Denver Climate Prosperity Program
Monday, March 23rd, 2009 at 9:52am. 237 Views, 0 Comments.
“Greener Denver is a triple win for our community, benefiting our businesses, our environment and our economy,” Mayor John Hickenlooper said March 17 in a Denver Office of Economic Development press release. “It will help local businesses save money, grow the demand for green products and services and train the green workforce of the future.”
Greener Denver, a strategic initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and expand economic opportunities for local businesses. Denver is one of eight cities selected last fall by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund to participate in its Climate Prosperity Project. The city’s initiative is designed to transform the economy, achieve climate goals and ensure social equity in a sustainable future. It builds on Mayor…
Denver Builders Offer Creative Incentives to Buy
Sunday, March 22nd, 2009 at 11:03am. 205 Views, 0 Comments.
Builders are creating a variety of incentives to get buyers into a home, reports kdvr.com. One of trends is a "buy back guarantee." Several developments in Denver offer this incentive to take away a buyer’s fear of making a big financial mistake. For example, the builder of the Vallagio community says if in three years a buyer no longer wants the loft, the company will buy it back at the original purchase price.
The buy back offer seems to be working. "Since January our traffic has been substantially up and our sales have tripled," general partner Peter Kudla said.
Denver Market Ranks Among Healthiest Markets for 2009
Saturday, March 21st, 2009 at 1:26pm. 231 Views, 0 Comments.
The home building recession has not hit the Denver market as hard as other Western markets, reports Boyce Thompson in Builder, the Information Source for the Building Industry. The Denver market has benefited from several factors, among them:
The median price of an existing home was still an affordable $219,300 last year, down only 10.6 percent in the last year.
The Denver population growth rates is one of the highest in the country – 2 percent annually each of the last five years.
Builders pulled 8,800 permits last year, down from more than 20,000 in 2005 but a percentage decline close to the national average.
According to Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, the busiest builders in the Denver market are: D.R. Horton, Richmond American Homes, Standard Pacific…
Denver’s Foreclosure Situation Better Than Portrayed
Saturday, March 14th, 2009 at 2:18pm. 321 Views, 0 Comments.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City released a study on March 4, 2009 that indicates the foreclosure situation in Denver is not as bleak as it is often portrayed, reports the Denver Business Journal.
Findings in the Federal Reserve’s study show:
- Although up to 46 percent of the adjustable-rate mortgage loans in the Denver area have yet to reset, the recent decline in short-term interest rates should make readjusted rates less painful for those borrowers. For example, the London Interbank Offered Rate [LIBOR] has declined to below 3 percent, which means a reset of around 8.8 percent.
- More than 60 percent of Denver-area subprime loans are current.
- Although more than 78 percent of Denver-area subprime loans have adjustable rates (compared to 65 percent…
Carbon Monoxide Safety Act Expected to Take Effect July 1, 2009
Thursday, March 12th, 2009 at 6:49am. 188 Views, 0 Comments.
Governor Bill Ritter is due to sign into law the Lofgren and Johnson Families Carbon Monoxide Safety Act, reports Dr. Eric Lavonas in the Denver Post. The law would take effect July 1, 2009.
Key provisions of the law are:
- Homeowners and landlords must install a carbon monoxide alarm near the sleeping quarters of every home that is heated with fossil fuel, has a fireplace, or has an attached garage.
- The installation requirement takes effect when a home is sold, remodeled, repaired, or leased to a new tenant.
Modern carbon monoxide alarms are inexpensive (available for under $20), easy to install. The unit constantly samples the air and sounds a warning before serious levels of carbon monoxide can enter the body.
The Denver Post article also said…
Colorado Fares Better Than Most In Mortgage Delinquencies
Wednesday, March 11th, 2009 at 9:13pm. 250 Views, 0 Comments.
Although more Coloradans fell behind on their mortgages in the fourth quarter of 2008, the state fared better than most, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Colorado’s delinquency rate ranked 42nd nationwide in the fourth quarter, with first being the highest rate and 50th the lowest. California, Florida, Nevada, Arizona and Michigan continue to dominate the delinquency numbers.
In 2008, foreclosure activity fell in Colorado for the first time since the state began keeping records in 2003, according to the Colorado Division of Housing. In January, the state ranked 25th nationwide in foreclosures started.
The Denver Business Journal also reported…
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