Denver Among Top US Cities for 2009 Home-Value Gain: Metro Denver had the third-largest gain in home values among cities nationwide in 2009 through November, with a $10.7 billion increase, according to Zillow Real Estate Market Reports.  read more here

Juju: Colorado, Denver Among Nation’s Best Places to Find a Job: Denver is America’s eighth-best city for job seekers, and Colorado ranks No. 8 among the states, according to job search engine Juju.com.  read more here

Jabs brings back American Furniture Warehouse to Grand Junction: American Furniture Warehouse is returning to Grand Junction. The Evergreen-based furniture store plans to open its 13th Colorado location on 20 acres. The store closed on the last two parcels of four parcels on the property on Thursday. The price of all four parcels together was about $9.9 million. read more here

Colorado Stocks Enjoyed Big Rebound in 2009: Colorado stock performance improved starkly over 2008, powered by federal stimulus funding and improved market confidence that resisted the notion that another depression loomed, analysts say. read more here 

Rates on 30-Year Home Loans Fall to 5.09 Percent: WASHINGTON (AP) – Rates for 30-year home loans inched downward this week, the first decline in a month, but remained above last month’s record lows.   read more here

Vinyl Toy Company Kidrobot to Make Boulder its Home: Kidrobot, a New York-based company known for its limited-edition vinyl toys and apparel, is moving its headquarters to Boulder. Paul Budnitz, the company’s founder and president, said that Kidrobot hopes to have the head office operational in Boulder by March or April.   read more here

General Dynamics Opens Colorado Data Center; 100 Jobs Expected: A unit of giant defense contractor General Dynamics Corp. has opened a data center in Westminster to support its work for the Department of Homeland Security. read more here

Jim Renshaw
Land Title
Guest Blogger

Click on Map for Most Recent Metrolist Real Estate Statistics

Click Here for Total MLS Sales Statistics

Thank you to Jim Renshaw at Land Title Guarantee Company for compiling the Denver market stats.

Michelle A. Potter
Denver Realtor
The Berkshire Group, Realtors
303-489-4035

The Denver residential real estate market showed an uptick in average home sales prices in December of 2009 in comparison with December of 2008.  According to data released by the Denver Metrolist Inc. (MLS), prices increased during this year-over-year time period to the tune of 17%.

To read more about Denver residential real estate market conditions, you might like:

Denver Market Condition Extremes

Thank you to the Berkshire Group Realtors for providing the information for this update.

Michelle A. Potter, Denver Realtor
The Berkshire Group
303-489-4035

Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love!

~Hamilton Wright Mabie

Wishing you a holiday season filled with peace, health and happiness.

Michelle

Colorado Mortgage Rates Sink to 4.54%: Colorado home mortgage rates continue to sink this week, reaching 4.54 percent on a 30-year fixed loan Wednesday, according to Zillow Mortgage Marketplace. read more here

Kiewit Named Contractor for Denver Zoo’s $50M Asian Tropics Exhibit: The Denver Zoo said Monday it has selected Kiewit Building Group from among five bidders as general contractor for the zoo’s 10-acre Asian Tropics exhibit, the largest exhibit in its 113-year history.read more here

Colorado Unemployment at 6.9% in October, 3rd Straight Decline: Colorado’s unemployment rate fell slightly to 6.9 percent in October, the third consecutive monthly decline in joblessness and the lowest rate since January, the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment said November 20th. read more here

Realtors: Existing-Home Sales Rise in West, but Less than National Rate: Home resales in Colorado and other western states rose 1.6 percent in October from the previous month and are up 12 percent from a year earlier, the National Association of Realtors reported November 23rd. read more here

Region’s Cities Among Nation’s Best Performing: Northern Colorado ranked high in the nation and at the top for Colorado in the 2009 Best-Performing Cities index.read more here

Company Announcements Help Establish Base for Job Growth in Metro Denver: In Metro Denver, numerous company announcements over the past several months reflect the region’s strong business climate – even during recession – and will help establish a base for job growth as conditions improve, according to data compiled by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation (Metro Denver EDC) in its Monthly Economic Summary for November 2009.read more here

New Home Sales Rise in October: New home sales rose 6.2 percent in October compared to September, according to a report released jointly by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This increase was 5.1 percent above the October 2008 level.read more here

Michelle A. Potter, Denver Realtor

Here is another assessment of the Denver real estate market conditions for November of this year:

Thank you to Jim Renshaw at Land Title for compiling these Denver real estate statistics.

Michelle A. Potter
Denver Realtor
RE/MAX Professionals

All data taken from:  Metrolist (MLS), Inc, on December 5, 2009.  Denver, Colorado.

November sold data outperformed, 2008, 2007 and 2006 in number of single family and condo units closed for the month.  This is the first time in four years we have seen a Month outperform several years prior for the same period.  The $8000 Tax Credit, low interest rates and increased consumer confidence because of low housing prices fueled this years November closings.   The November sold data showed 3289 closed units and in 2008 it was 3056 units closed or 233 more units closed this year for a 7.08% increase over last November.

We have had a seasonal slow down from October to November with closings slipping from 3708 units in single family and condo homes in October to 3289 units in November or an 11.3% reduction in closings from October 2009 to November 2009.  Normally a reduction of 10% occurs between October and November, so watching this trend of increased sales year over year and normal seasonal downward sales can help us predict the 2010 real estate year in Denver.

Here’s the sold data for November of the previous 5 years.

• December Active Listing Inventory is at 14259 for single family home’s is down from 17176 from one year ago.
• The number of Active listings for Condominiums in December is 4620 and last December there were 5095 units available.
• The current 18879 active single family and condominiums is the lowest December inventory in more than 5 years.

Listing inventory continues to decline as you can see over the last five years.  A little abnormality occurred in December of 2009 for homes priced from zero to $250,000.  Normally we would see a decrease in inventory, but this price range actually went up from November 2009 to December 2009 from 4963 Single Family units to 5080 single family units.  We want to watch this over the next several months to determine if a market shift is occurring in the lower price ranges.  2009 has experienced the largest price increase on average in the lower price ranges and the extension of the $8000 first time home buyer Tax Credit and the addition of the $6500 Tax Credit for existing home owners should continue to cause the lower price ranges to appreciate, but watching the inventory in the upcoming months will tell us more about where we are going.

• There are fewer properties to compete with today and serious buyers are buying now, as the Tax Credit has been extended and expanded to include current homeowners.
• Interest rates are 4.875% for conforming loans today and more than likely will be a little higher in 2010 causing buyers to make a buying decision now versus next year.
• We anticipate a slight rise in interest rates in the first half of 2010. We are seeing investors creating loans have more competitive jumbo rates in small doses.  Watch as these are in and out of the market quickly.

Under Contract data is still outperforming pervious years for December 2009.

• The number of properties under contract is at 5694 single family and condo units.
• The number of properties under contract today is 298 units higher than 12 months ago.
• Job stability in Denver will allow more buyers after the first of the year to take advantage of the Tax Credits being offered.
• The number of properties under contract in December of 2009 is the highest recorded December in 4 years.

What should sellers do in this market?

• Today’s real estate market for sellers is a choice of your home being a beauty contest or a fire sale.  You must be the best looking home or the lowest priced property to attract today’s buyer pool
• Although inventories are decreasing, know your specific price range, as each price range affords a different amount of buyers buying today.
• Consider an Owner Will Carry scenario for upper end price homes with equity.  This is a creative tool for those sellers who have the ability to carry the paper for the buyer buying their property and get a return on investment.
• Offer a holiday special price reduction, like “10% off the Price for Christmas to New Years Week”.

What should buyers do in this market?

• With the extended $8000 dollar Tax Credit for First Time Buyers and the NEW $6500 Tax Credit for existing homeowners who will buy a primary residence, get into the system of being prequalified now as there will be an increase in the buyer pool causing competition for homes in January and February.
• Have you considered using your Retirement Account IRA to purchase an investment property in 2010?  You can do that with a good upside for returns compared to other investment vehicles.
• Become a prequalified buyer before looking.  The guidelines for lending changes daily and you want to be approved before moving forward.

Feel free to call me with any Denver real estate questions.

Michelle A. Potter
Denver Realtor
RE/MAX Professionals

If you are considering purchasing Denver real estate, your lender or mortgage broker will pull your credit report as part of the loan application process. Most lenders use the FICO score (which ranges between 300 to 850 points) to establish your credit worthiness, evaluate your credit risk, and then determine the rate for your loan (assuming you are indeed worthy.)

While FICO calculations remain closely guarded, the recently released list of common credit mistakes will provide some insight as to what will adversely impact your credit score. FICO’s, “Damage Points”, assigns an estimated point drop based on common credit mishaps.

As you can see from the FICO chart, the higher your original score the harder you fall with a credit mistake. If your score was a 780 and you max out a credit card, your score can drop by 25 to 45 points. On the other hand, if you started with a 680 FICO score and max out a credit card, you are looking at a drop of 10 to 30 points. No idea here on the higher you start the bigger you fall rationale, yet it is consistent throughout the model.

Lesson learned – if you are thinking about buying Denver real estate, it is best to know what common mistakes can negatively affect your credit report and ultimately the rate of your loan.

Michelle A. Potter
Denver Realtor
RE/MAX Professionals

Real Estate guru Barbara Corcoran cuts to the chase on the reason banks and loan servicing centers are failing homeowners who are in financial trouble. She offers practical advice and tips to distressed homeowners on how to deal with the banks in this video:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Michelle A. Potter
Denver Realtor
RE/MAX Professionals