Parker CO Homes For Sale, Homes in Castle Rock, and Elizabeth CO Homes Blog

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Staging: Set the Mood to Music

I show a lot of homes at times (recently I was doing 16 per day) and I am constantly amazed at how homes differ when they are showed. Almost universally, the homeowners that are prepped on how to show their homes in the best light have the best showings, and are usually the ones my buyers end up buying. So here are the items that make my best and worst list for showing a home:

Worst

1. Blinds closed everywhere, to the point where I feel like I have to open them up to give the home a chance

2. Any kind of smell when you walk in the front door or go down into the basement; cats or any pets, any evidence of meals just ate or being prepared, musty damp smells etc.

3. No staging whatsoever; clutter, clutter, clutter, old futniture from the 1920's, empty rooms, furniture that is too large for the space, and more clutter!

4. Condition issues; not being able to open the front door because the key doesn't work well in the door or deadbolt, cobwebs anywhere around the front door, homes not updated, dirty bathrooms, dirty windows etc.

Best: (yes the homeowner would have to know there is a showing for some of these)

1. The lights are on everywhere

2. The key works well opening the door (preferrably in a new lock which is sweet to open)

3. In the Winter, the fire going

4. Some kind of pleasant smell like vanilla or chocolate or cinnamon

5. MUSIC like smooth jazz playing in the background

6. The home is spotless and shows some kind of pride of ownership and not neglect

So there you go. TAKE THIS TO HEART SELLERS! These things make a difference trust me!

This Blog is dedicated to Parker Colorado Real Estate, Parker Colorado Homes, Elizabeth Colorado real estate, Elizabeth Colorado homes, Franktown Colorado homes, Franktown Colorado real estate, Lone Tree Colorado real estate, Lone Tree Colorado homes, Highlands Ranch real estate, Highlands Ranch homes, Castle Rock real estate, Castle Rock homes, and metro Denver Colorado real estate property listings. Search the Denver MLS directly for properties and homes at http://www.coloradodreamhomes.info/ and access a huge real estate resource at http://www.coloradodreamhomes.net/

Sunday, August 03, 2008

Maybe the "Mo" is back? We'll See...

A good article to read. Denver is not looking as bad as what people read in the papers about the NATIONAL REAL ESTATE market.

Real estate is Local.
Real estate is Local.
Real estate is Local.

http://origin.denverpost.com/business/ci_9821687

Has Housing Hit a Floor?

Has housing hit a floor?

An analysis of the time it takes to sell a home indicates that prices could soon begin to appreciate.

By Margaret Jackson
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 06/12/2008 01:41:44 AM MDT

Lon Welsh, managing broker of Your Castle Real Estate, recently analyzed home-price trends in the metro area as they compare with the average number of days a home spends on the market. Between January and May, the average days on the market was 89; a year earlier, it was 100. (Hyoung Chang, The Denver Post)
If historic trends hold true, Denver's housing market could be poised for a turnaround.

Real-estate broker Lon Welsh recently conducted an analysis comparing the number of days homes spend on the market to price appreciation. The data, going back to the 1970s, indicated that a change in days on the market often precedes a change in price appreciation.

Welsh, managing broker of Your Castle Real Estate, says a recent drop in the number of days homes are spending on the market offers a glimmer of hope that prices could be headed for improvement.

Between January and May, metro-area homes spent an average of 89 days on the market, down from 100 last year.

"It's too early to call this a trend yet, but I'm optimistic that this is a leading indicator that our market is going to improve its rate of appreciation in two years or so," he said.

He pointed to similar changes in previous housing cycles to back his conclusion.
For example, in the 1970s, when Denver's housing market was booming, the average price went up 12 percent a year and houses were on the market an average of 56 days.
That all changed in the 1980s, when appreciation slowed to 4 percent annually and the average number of days a house sat on the market jumped to 85.

"That's when oil walked out of Denver," independent real-estate analyst Gary Bauer explained. "At that point in time, Denver had a very limited economy."
The market bounced back in the 1990s, when Denver created a lot of high-tech and telecom jobs. Home values rose an average of 9 percent a year, while the number of days houses sat on the market dropped to 46.

The loss of nearly 30,000 jobs in 2001 had a big impact on the housing market, Welsh said. The average appreciation dropped to 3 percent annually, and the average days on the market leapt to 84.

Jeff Thredgold, economist for Vectra Bank Colorado, agreed that this could be a turning point. It's also an indication that Colorado's housing market didn't get as crazy as in Arizona, Nevada, California and Florida, where prices doubled over the past four years, he said.

"Now, they're dealing with huge delinquencies and foreclosures," Thredgold said.
But Bauer cautioned against comparing days on the market to appreciation rates.
"There are other factors that affect appreciation," he said, citing in-migration, overall pay rates, mortgage rates and consumer confidence.

While such factors are indeed drivers of price appreciation, Welsh said he's optimistic about the predictive power of days-on- market data: "A major change in the days on market seems to occur before a big change in home-price appreciation."

Run Comps Yourself!

YOu can now run select reports on solds in Parker and Elizabeth...courtesy of Colorado Dream Homes!

http://virtualmls.com/MI/MarketData.aspx?UserID=D8C3876BF3AD6E126AF14AF38306467AA8FA17BB172F3DD0

We are NOT in a declining market!

O.K. so maybe this is over a month old, but it is still a light on the horizon that buyers should make note of!

From Taylor Bean and Whitaker, a national lender/underwriter:

Effective Monday June 23, 2008 TB&W has revised our Declining Market Zip Code Database. TB&W did a cross-comparison of the four major MI Companies, and was able to eliminate several large metro areas that were previously considered declining market and added some other areas within existing expanded declining markets that were previously considered non-declining.

In essence, our previous revision had approximately 8500 zip codes listed in declining market. The new list has approximately 6700 zip codes in declining market. The major areas that are benefiting from this change are; Boston metro, Ohio, and Denver metro, as well as several smaller areas. Some non-metro areas of Florida have been added to the list due to the majority (in most cases all) of the MI Companies imposing such restrictions.

Any loan that was previously considered declining, and has not yet closed, is eligible to take advantage of the new guidelines if desired and all other program guidelines are met, including having a verifiable MI Cert in the file prior to closing. Any loan that previously was not considered declining, but is now listed, must have a verifiable MI Cert in the file prior to closing. If a verifiable MI Cert is not attainable the LTV/TLTV restrictions for declining market must be applied.

The Zip Code Search file, Scenario Pricer, and DataSentry have all been updated with the new database.

Please direct questions to TB&W Management, Account Executive, or Client Services