The national press is now getting involved.  This video clip is from the Today Show on NBC, where Real Estate expert Barbara Corcoran picked Denver as the NUMBER 1 market in the country for a real estate rebound! It is nice to see others validating what we’ve been saying for months!
Some of the reasons include our fabulous weather, an educated population, stable and diverse job base, best park system in the country, AFFORDABLE!  
The Top 5 real estate markets, primed for a rebound:

Denver, CO
Raleigh, NC
Austin, TX
Seattle, WA
San Francisco, …

I just got this email from US Senator Michael Bennet.  Since it relates directly to the housing market, the local economy, and the $8000 tax credit for home purchases, I wanted to share it here.
Dear Fellow Coloradan,
We all know that the struggling economy has put enormous pressure on Colorado’s families and businesses. That’s why we passed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) in February. This package will work to put our economy back on track, creating or saving 59,000 jobs in Colorado, making historic investments in …

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The National Association of Realtors (NAR) Pending Home Sales Index, that tracks housing affordability, rose to a record level in January. This was a result of the combination of mortgage rates, family income and home prices in January were “the most favorable since tracking began in 1970,” according to the group.
NAR also forecasted that existing home sales would rise 0.3% this year, then 5.8% in 2010. The median price for existing home sales would rise 3.9% in 2010. But the median price for new homes would drop only 3% …

I’m not sure how handing the states billions of dollars for education and medicaid will help the economy, but the lawmakers must be smarter than me.  I don’t know why it still shocks me when a bill with a specific purpose becomes so multi-faceted that no one really knows all that’s in it.
A quick rant over, the real purpose of this post is to update everyone on the real estate aspects of the package.  So here goes.

$8,000 or 10% of the purchase price, whichever is less, looks like it’s going …

A few days ago the Rocky Mountain News published an article headlined “Worst January Ever For Home Sales.” What criteria they used to determine it was the worst ever was not disclosed.  The Rocky simply broad stroked the criteria as “by many measures.”  I would like to know what measures make this the worst ever.  In my opinion it was pretty darn good.  The Get Home Denver Team had the best month in over a year in January!
It is true, some statistics took a beating year over year.  Average price …

Will home staging follow the way of the mullet, acid wash jeans, and pet rocks? Here today, gone tomorrow?
I believe staging is here to stay for the same reason you would get your car washed before selling it, or take a shower before going out on a date. It just makes sense to present you, your car, or your home, in the best possible condition. Think of staging as property enhancement. When would it ever go out of style to enhance a property to its best potential, …

Even before the historic 2008 election, the bailouts of AIG, the Banking Industry and the Auto Makers, there was a program in place to help stimulate home purchases.  
In fact, I wrote about it in August 2008.  But, with the start of a New Year, I thought it wise to re-visit the program.  The program is a tax credit for those buying homes.  There are a few “catches”, so here some details.
 
Highlights

1st time homebuyers who purchase a principal residence between 4/9/08 and 7/1/09 qualify.  Retroactive for those who have already closed.
Maximum …

Happy New Year!  2009 will bring with it some exciting opportunities in the world of Denver area, Real Estate.
Predictions:

Foreclosure and Short Sale Transactions will continue to dominate the Denver Real Estate Market.
Those looking to buy or invest in properties will get better deals than anytime in the past 20 years.
The inauguration of President Obama will change the attitude of the country from Fearful to Hopeful.
This attitude change will be the single largest reason the economy begins to improve.
The Federal Government Stimulus Packages will do nothing to help those currently in …

2008 was a difficult year for the US real estate market.  Denver was not immune to the epidemic of foreclosures, and general market malaise.
However, Denver fared much better than most other markets around the country.  In fact,  I predicted in Feb. 2008, that the Denver Real Estate market was on the mend.  This, in my opinion, is still happening. I believe we hit the bottom of the market in February or March, and have been bouncing off of the bottom since.
Here is the year to date recap through November …

The number of unsold homes in the Denver area continues to decline. In October there were 23,120 homes on the market, a 20.1% drop from 2007!  Inventory hasn’t been this low since January 2005, when there was slightly less than 21,000 homes available.
One of the primary reasons for the lessening inventory is the fact that would be home sellers, are not putting their homes on the market given the current conditions.  Many sellers we work with are choosing to be landlords, or just sit tight until the competition from bank …