NAR Chief Economist Speaks Out On Colorado Real Estate

Dr. Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors, recently spoke in Denver about the economy and home sales in particular. NAR has been lobbying congress about the importance of stabilizing home prices, which will then stabilize the assets of banks, insurance companies, investment firms, and individual homeowners. He is hopeful that the $8,000 credit to first time buyers will act as a strong stimulant to get these first time buyers "off the fence".



Dr. Yun showed statistics that demonstrate how much healthier Colorado's real estate markets are, especially when compared to the four problem states: California, Nevada, Arizona, and Florida. There is good evidence that Colorado has already bottomed out and should have a solid summer sales season. California, which has suffered a severe downturn, is now showing renewed activity. Lower priced California homes are selling well, with multiple bids becoming common. It may be at the "tipping point" where everyone jumps back into the market.



When asked about inflation, Dr. Yun said that inflation is inevitable, given the money being pumped into the economy, so interest rates will be driven up from their current, phenomenally low rates under 5.0%. Those that wait for home prices to drop or interest rates to drop further will probably miss the combination of low prices and low interest rates.



Colorado is a key growth market for real estate over the next 20 years. It continues to enjoy a strong net immigration rate, which should translate into increased demand for mountain resort real estate. He also talked about the influence of the baby boomers, many of whom are buying retirement homes. Mountain Realtors® have also seen the effect of the wealth transfer from the depression generation to the baby boomers, resulting in boomers buying mountain homes. While resort real estate sales have been slow the past couple months, there is pent up demand. The only real question is "when will the buyers get off the fence"?

Click Here for Dr. Yun's Presentation

We Know Denver ROCKS!

Survey Says..........................Denver!

Good News From the Denver Post - FINALLY!

As Realtors we are always complaining than The Denver Post makes the real estate market worse because they only want to print bad news. It has kept buyers out of the market for sure that might otherwise have jumped in long ago. We finally have something positive to read:




Metro home prices rise
0.8 PERCENT GAIN
By Aldo Svaldi
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 06/25/2008 01:00:40 AM MDT


Home prices in metro Denver rose in April from March, bucking a national trend of declining home values, according to a report Tuesday from the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices.

April's 0.8 percent monthly gain in metro Denver compares favorably with a 1.4 percent decline the index reported across 20 large metro areas that included Denver.

And it represents the first month- over-month gain in Denver captured in the index since August, about the same time the subprime-mortgage mess tanked credit markets.

"I believe both the prime selling season and fewer new homes has helped the resale home market," said independent real-estate analyst Gary Bauer.

But Bauer said mortgage financing has remained tight, which has slowed closings. Boulder mortgage banker Lou Barnes said that tightness combined with a weakening economy made it premature to call a bottom.

"Locally, we are closer to bottom than nationally, if only because our price peak passed in 2001," Barnes said. "Foreclosures here may soon stop rising, but the plague will be with us for another couple of years."

Housing experts have long argued that weaker rates of home-price appreciation in Denver compared with overheated markets such as Las Vegas and Miami this decade would eventually translate into a quicker recovery here.

Las Vegas and Miami home prices are down more than 26.5 percent in the past year, according to S&P/ Case-Shiller. Despite those stomach- curdling declines, home values are double 2000 levels in Miami and 65 percent higher in Las Vegas.

Denver's increase this decade is a more modest 28.5 percent. And Denver's annual home-price decline of 4.7 percent, while not pleasant, is much less disruptive than the 15.3 percent decline captured in the 20-city index.

Another home-price index Tuesday from the Office of Federal Housing and Enterprise Oversight showed a 0.8 percent decline nationally in April from March and a 4.6 percent decline over the past year.

That more conservative OFHEO index looks at homes financed with government-backed mortgages and includes refinancings. In Colorado, the index showed a price increase of 2.29 percent for the first quarter. In Denver, the price increase was 0.9 percent.

Barnes said he prefers the OFHEO index because it isn't as heavily influenced by foreclosures. Poor maintenance on foreclosed homes typically results in a 10 to 20 percent discount from resales under more normal conditions.

Out of an estimated 5 million resales this year, about 1.4 million will represent foreclosures, more than double last year's level, Barnes said.

Aldo Svaldi: 303-954-1410 or asvaldi@denverpost.com


http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_9686382

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Risky Loans Come Home to Roost

To understand what's happening to the mortgage industry, take a look at Douglas County. One of the country's most prosperous communities now has a foreclosure rate approaching what its former public trustee calls a "tipping point."

In 2006, foreclosures as a percentage of population were higher than any other year since 1991, said Jack Arrowsmith, Douglas' former public trustee and its current clerk and recorder.
At a recent foreclosure sale, Douglas officials offered 32 residential properties for auction. According to Arrowsmith, nobody bid on 31 of them.

That's why mortgage companies making risky loans are now closing by the hundreds.
Offering no-money-down home loans to unqualified buyers using artificially low teaser interest rates was just that - a tease. Especially here in Colorado.

We led the nation in foreclosures most of last year. We're still No. 4 in the latest RealtyTrac poll.
So on Tuesday, when a Federal Reserve governor expressed shock at the quick national collapse of the risky lending market, she sounded vaguely like Capt. Reneau in "Casablanca."

Subprime lenders, as risky-loan makers are called, are closing up so fast that financial experts now debate if it will affect the entire economy. Analysts can't agree. But with stock-market-traded mortgage companies reporting huge losses from subprime lending, it can't help.
The explanation for crazy lending has always been crazy.

"It is no longer community banks making mortgage loans," Englewood lawyer Robert Hopp told a recent foreclosure seminar at the Colorado Bar Association. Out-of-town lenders provide mortgage money for a fee. Risky loans are quickly packaged with other mortgages and sold as securities for a fee. Investors buy the mortgage-backed securities expecting a fat return.
Everybody gets paid. Risks get diluted in big loan portfolios. Those who can't afford houses suddenly can.

And lo and behold, the American Dream comes true. Is this a great country or what?
It all sounds too good to be true because it is.

Now, the only people capable of stopping the madness - the money grubbers - are getting a clue. Loose and deceptive home lending profits no one.

In Douglas County, Arrowsmith believes fewer risky home loans is good news. It makes lenders and borrowers more accountable, he said. That, in turn, will help everyone's property values.
Stabilizing home values is what this is all about. Arrowsmith lived through the real estate bust of 1988, when home values actually declined. It was ugly.

"It's a positive thing that lenders are starting to review the process," Arrowsmith said of the risky-loan meltdown. "But it's going to take time.

"In the long term, lenders are going to require borrowers to put some money into their property."

Sure, that thins the homebuying herd, but it forces folks back to the reality - and responsibility - of homeownership.

The risky-lending boom of the early 21st century was a Ponzi scheme. It depended on constant growth in real estate values. You could lend anybody anything so long as their house was worth 10 percent more each year. For lenders, growth meant collateral would always be worth more than the money tied up in it.

According to Hopp and Arrowsmith, some lenders made loans worth up to 20 percent more than the assessed value of homes. These lenders believed appreciation would make up for negative equity. When the market stagnated and borrowers couldn't keep up with mortgage payments, negative equity and zero-down lenders ended up with a bunch of houses worth less than the amount of money owed on them.

When that happens, you get foreclosure auctions where only one house in 32 is worth a bid.
And lo and behold, the American Dream comes to Jesus.

Jim Spencer appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Reach him at 303-954- 1771 and jspencer@denverpost.com.


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A House Divided?

Give him a home in good condition priced below $300,000, and Grand Junction real estate broker Hal Heath claims he can probably sell it within a few hours.

"As soon as I make two phone calls, a sale is done," said Heath, whose greatest fear is selling a home too quickly and not getting a maximum price.

Matt Rivette, a broker with Pro Realty Inc. in Greeley, has the opposite experience.
He throws cold water in the face of home sellers unwilling to accept declining values and an extended stay on the market.

"If you want to sell a house you bought five years ago, chances are that here in Weld County it has less market value than what you paid," Rivette said.

When it comes to real estate, much more than 300 miles separates Greeley and the Front Range from the mountain destinations and Western Slope.

Large swaths of the Front Range from Fort Collins to Pueblo struggled with flat or declining median home values, according to Trulia.com, a San Francisco provider of real estate data and listings.
Home gains in Arapahoe, Boulder, Denver and Douglas counties were positive, but fell far short of covering the commission a seller would need to pay to get out of a home if they hire a real estate agent.

Median home sales prices were down 3 percent in Adams County, 3.4 percent in Larimer County, and 1.1 percent in Jefferson County, according to Trulia.com, which compared sales for September through November with the same period in 2005.

Home prices nationally have been declining as buyers cope with rising interest rates and excess supplies. The median price of existing homes sold in November was 3.1 percent lower than in November 2005, according to the National Association of Realtors.

But, it's a different picture heading west across Colorado.

In mountain resort communities, continued interest from second-home buyers drove double-digit appreciation rates. In Pitkin County, which includes Aspen, values were up 8.2 percent. In Eagle County, which includes Vail, values were up 23.9 percent.

Rising home values in Vail and Aspen have pushed workers and less wealthy residents into surrounding towns. But even bedroom communities such as Basalt and Glenwood Springs on the Western Slope are getting too pricey for some.

An influx of oil and gas workers is driving up real estate values, brokers said.

"There is a steady stream of buyers in different price ranges," said Michael Dunn, a broker with Bray & Co. in Glenwood Springs.

Anything that comes on the market under $300,000 in Gar field County gets snapped up, Dunn said. Even homes worth up to $500,000 move quickly.

Garfield County home sale appreciation was 12.5 percent, comparing the three-month period in 2006 and 2005. Mesa County, home to Grand Junction, saw a 14.2 percent spike.
The big divide in median home sale appreciation rates across the state is due in large part to higher foreclosure rates along the Front Range, according to Boulder-based mortgage banker Lou Barnes.

Anemic price gains contribute to foreclosures, making it harder for homeowners to sell. That, in turn, depresses surrounding home prices. Breaking the cycle is hard, particularly in Weld County, home to Greeley.

Last year, more homes entered foreclosure in Weld County, 2,073, than were sold, 1,870.
The backlog of unsold homes in Weld County is huge. Assuming no other homes were listed for sale, it would take 27 months to clear out the inventory of unsold homes at the current pace of sales, according to data ProRealty has collected.

Once concentrated in Weld, Adams and Arapahoe counties, foreclosures are spreading south and west.

"The guys who work foreclosures tell me that new filings in early January are just racing despite the weather," Barnes said.

Median home sales prices were down 1.1 percent in Jefferson County, west of Denver.
They were down 1.5 percent in El Paso County, home to Colorado Springs. The inventory of unsold homes rose 30 percent last year in El Paso County, according to Stuart Scott, a broker working in Colorado Springs.

Builders had to push hard to find buyers for about 1,000 speculative homes they had built or that were already under construction, said Scott.

Builders have cut back on new construction, Scott said. Permits pulled fell from 400 a month in November 2005 to around 170 in November 2006.

Staff writer Aldo Svaldi can be reached at 303-954-1410 or asvaldi@denverpost.com.

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN PURSUING BUYING REAL ESTATE IN THE COLORADO MOUNTAINS OR THE WESTERN SLOPE, CONTACT US. WE HAVE PRE-SCREENED REALTORS IN EVERY COLORADO COUNTY THAT WE WOULD BE PLEASED TO REFER TO YOU. THEY ARE EXPERIENCED, HAVE EARNED NUMEROUS DESIGNATIONS, AND ARE HIGHLY REGARDED. GO TO www.ColoradoDreamHomes.net for more info.

Colorado's Star Power

Colorado's star powder
State's resorts remain a top destination of movie stars, musicians, politicians
Vail, Aspen and Telluride.

By Brian Metzler, Special to the News November 28, 2006

Celebrities are people, too - at least when they come to Colorado.
Take, for example, Kelsey Grammer. When the Hollywood actor and his family arrived in Colorado last week to spend the Thanksgiving weekend at their home in Beaver Creek, one of their first events was a trip to the new Costco store in Gypsum.
Apparently everybody needs groceries, big-screen TVs, holiday trimmings and bulk quantities of paper towels, toilet paper and Diet Coke, even if you happen to have arrived in the state by private jet.
"He loves to shop at Costco," said Brenda Smith, a membership coordinator at the Gypsum store. "He was just like any other normal person stocking up for the holiday weekend."
With the holiday season officially under way, it's high time for celebrity sightings in Colorado resort towns. Aspen, known as the Malibu of the mountains, has gotten the most notoriety as a holiday mecca for the rich and famous. But Vail, Beaver Creek, Telluride, Steamboat and Crested Butte also attract actors, athletes, politicians and high-profile businesspeople during the winter months.
Some celebs, for example Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Tom Cruise, Martina Navratilova, Ian Ziering and Robert Kennedy Jr., are avid skiers or snowboarders and share the same slopes as the rest of us. Diaz and Timberlake were on a ski vacation in January in Telluride when they helped a badly injured skier until the ski patrol arrived.
Of course, because celebrities have a lot of money and want privacy, they can do things we can't. Cruise, who owns a home in Telluride, has been skiing with Telluride HeliTrax on a couple of occasions. And two years ago, singer/songwriter Edwin McCain paid for a full day of snowcat skiing for himself and four friends.
But not all celebrities ski or snowboard. Some come to Colorado to spend time with their families and friends, dine at fancy restaurants, shop at lavish boutiques or simply enjoy the mountains.
"You don't really notice them after a while," said bartender and telemark skier Matt Hargraves, who has lived in Aspen for 12 years. "You'll see someone famous every now and then, but it's almost not that big of a deal, unless you happen to bump into them on the sidewalk."
Part-time residents Jack Nicholson, Don Johnson, Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Kurt Russell, Goldie Hawn, Melanie Griffith, Antonio Banderas, Nick Nolte and Navratilova are the most commonly seen around Aspen every winter. Other recent vacationers have included Mariah Carey, Mischa Barton, Michael Jordan, Will Smith, and Luke and Owen Wilson.
The list of celebrity sightings at Vail and Beaver Creek includes Diaz, Timberlake, Ziering, Britney Spears, Tom Brokaw, Gloria Estefan, Snoop Dogg, Mary Hart, Ross Perot, Jack Kemp, Jack Nicklaus, Clint Eastwood and Arnold Schwarzenegger, as well as local residents Ryan and Trista Sutter, who earned national fame on The Bachelorette TV show.
President Gerald Ford and his wife, Betty, were part-time residents of Beaver Creek for more than 25 years and were avid skiers until health concerns limited their mobility. Other visitors have included Matt Lauer, Buzz Aldrin, Minnie Driver, Jane Fonda, Emilio Estevez, Mimi Rogers, Robert Redford and the Wilson brothers.
Actor Danny DeVito and his wife, Rhea Perlman, have visited Steamboat Springs several times in the past several years, as has former boxing champion Evander Holyfield. Actor/comedian Bill Murray also recently has taken a vacation to ski Steamboat's champagne powder.
Cruise is the most notable part-time resident of Telluride, but the opulence and remoteness of the resort town has attracted numerous other stars. Oprah Winfrey owns a home there, but Hollywood director Oliver Stone sold his a few years ago.
Actor Tom Skerritt often is seen around Crested Butte, where he has been a part-time resident and co-owner of the Idle Spur Grill and Brewery for several years. Ed Zwick, a Hollywood director and producer, also is a part-time resident of Crested Butte, while other visitors in recent years have included skateboard superstar Tony Hawk and Washington Redskins quarterback Mark Brunell.
Where can you expect to see celebrities? There's no exact formula. Waiting for private jets to arrive at Aspen/Pitkin County Airport or Eagle County Airport in Gypsum might seem obvious, but many stars are met by private cars on the tarmac and never enter the building. Hanging around posh restaurants, clubs or hotels, such as the Hotel Jerome in Aspen or the Sonnenalp Resort in Vail, can work, but you've got to be patient and lucky, too. Waiting near the line of Aspen's Silver Queen Gondola can work, but who wants to spend time doing that when you could be skiing?
The best way to spot celebs is to attend the Aspen Celebrity Downhill Weekend on March 9-10 in Aspen (ayexp.org) or the American Ski Classic on March 21-25 in Vail (vvf.org). Through the years, those events have brought together skiing legends and sports, entertainment and corporate celebrities for amateur ski races, parties and fundraisers. Among the big names that have attended those events include Eastwood, Carey, Kenny Loggins, Matt Dillon, former Celtics star John Havlicek and daytime actor John Castellanos.
While many celebrities try to remain as inconspicuous as possible, others just blend into the hordes of tourists that visit the state's resorts every winter.
"I was eating lunch at the base lodge and saw Mark Brunell," said Boulder resident Mike Slone, co-owner of a company that produces ski and snowboard books, Web sites and movies. "He had a ton of Crested Butte swag on and no ski equipment, so I knew he was someone famous. As he passed by the table, I asked him if he was Mark Brunell and he said, 'Yes.' Then he talked with me for about 15 minutes while his wife and kids went out to ski. He was a really nice guy."
Vail
• Britney Spears
The pop princess has been spotted in Vail. Soon-to-be single, the mother of two who has a well-documented taste for coffee might be found coming out of Starbucks, venti in hand.
• Arnold Schwarzenegger
The Governator is a frequent visitor to the Vail area. Perhaps it reminds him of his native Austria. You might run into Schwarzenegger at Hotel Gasthof Gramshammer, operated by another Austrian, Pepi Gramshammer.
• Ryan and Trista Sutter
The Bachelorette lovebirds call Vail home, and they say they aren't leaving. Though they have said they wouldn't immediately dismiss the idea of doing another reality show, Trista said, "If we would have to leave Colorado, we would pass."
Aspen
• Martina Navratilova
The tennis superstar makes her home in Aspen, at least for part of the year. There's a good chance you'll find Navratilova, an avid skier, on the slopes, now that she officially has retired from tennis (again) and has more free time.
• Jack Nicholson
Though he has said he doesn't ski as much as he once did, the film legend has a home in Aspen. He was seen skiing in the area in December.
Telluride
• Cameron Diaz
A trip to Telluride in January had this Charlie's Angel playing guardian angel. While on the slopes, Diaz and her flame, Justin Timberlake, stopped to help a badly injured skier.
• Tom Cruise
Cruise owns a home in Telluride, and he considers it the ultimate retreat. When he and his now-wife Katie Holmes needed some privacy after the birth of their daughter Suri, they headed to Telluride.

See more "star quality" homes at http://www.ColoradoDreamHomes.net

Colorado Might Look More Like Florida by 2030

November 18, 2006State’s aging population a rising challenge


By PERRY SWANSON THE GAZETTE

WESTMINSTER - Colorado’s population will look a lot more like Florida’s a quarter-century from now as the number of people age 65 and older triples to 1.2 million, experts said at a conference Friday. Florida has long had the greatest proportion of residents age 65 and older. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 16.6 percent of the state’s 17 million residents were in that age range last year. Colorado was ranked 47th among the states, with 9.7 percent of its residents age 65 and older last year.

But Colorado will catch up to Florida in the rankings as retirees move here and baby boomers who live in the state stay put, experts said. By 2030, people age 65 and older will account for 16.4 percent of the state’s residents. The state’s overall population, meanwhile, will increase from 4.5 million to 7.3 million, according to projections the Demography Office issued Friday. A surge in the population of older people creates challenges for governments, businesses and especially the young, according to demographers, economists and others. The problems could be severe for members of the baby boom generation who failed to save enough money for retirement, said Todd Swanson, a specialist in aging with the Colorado Department of Human Services. “Where will the boomers go when they run out of money? Well, be nice to your kids,” he said. Swanson was among the speakers at the annual meeting of the Colorado Demography Office, a state agency that examines population trends.

The baby boom generation includes people born from 1946 to 1964. The first boomers will turn 65 years old in 2010, hitting a traditional retirement age. But some boomers, particularly women, might delay retirement, said Bill Kendall of the Center for Business and Economic Forecasting. “These are women who, unlike their mothers and older sisters, have been in the labor force all their lives,” Kendall said.

Among other population trends the Colorado Demography Office identified Friday: - El Paso County’s population increase from 2004 to last year was the fourth-highest in the state, with an estimated 10,765 new residents. That’s about 29 new residents each day. Douglas County had the highest number of new residents during the same period: 12,252 people. Douglas and Weld counties were tied for the fastest percentage growth, with the population in each county increasing 5.1 percent. - Colorado’s home-building boom continued from 2004 to last year as 46,700 new houses and apartments were built. About 14 percent of the new housing units were in El Paso County. - The state’s population growth is expected to accelerate to about 100,000 new people each year through 2035. That’s up from about 75,000 new people annually from 2000 to last year. Thanks to a strong job market, migration from other states will overtake births as the largest contributor to population growth.

For more info on County housing trends go to www.ColoradoDreamHomes.net

Colorado's Growth Rate Tops Nation's

Population likely to hit 5 million in '08, 6 million by 2018


By Bill Scanlon, Rocky Mountain News October 17, 2006

Babies are a growth industry in Colorado, but the death rate is as flat as the real estate market.
Net result: a rising population, as more Madisons and Briannas, Jacobs and Joses are born, while the Herberts and Dorothys and Arthurs are hanging on well into their 80s and 90s.
As America celebrates its 300 millionth person today, Colorado posts a population of 4.8 million, plus a faster growth rate than most of the nation.
While the nation is growing at just under 1 percent a year, Colorado's rate is 1.4 percent, with a forecast of 1.8 percent growth in the near future.
That's a rate more typical of developing countries than of most Western democracies.
So far, Colorado has been able to accommodate that rapid growth, including an influx of illegal immigrants, without grinding traffic to a halt or a skyrocketing crime rate.
1 million more in 11 years
Colorado's population is expected to hit 5 million in 2008, just 11 years after it hit the 4 million mark.
And it's expected to reach 6 million by 2018, according to Cindy DeGroen of the state demographer's office.
The Front Range will continue to be the population hub, while in the short term the epicenter will move slightly east - from Jefferson County today to the fast-growing counties of Douglas, Weld and Adams tomorrow.
The number of households also will continue to accelerate, DeGroen said.
In 1950, 3 1/4 people shared each household. Now, it's 2 1/2 people.
The trend of not wanting to share the kitchen and bathroom with too many people seems destined to continue, particularly as more people become empty-nesters.
The houses themselves will be smaller as the huge retirement-age baby boomer generation exercises its clout and demands housing easy to care for and with easier access to entertainment, said Simon Montagu, director of the Denver Regional Council of Government's customer resource and support center.
"They'll want mobility around their houses, want to be closer to the bus lines," Montagu said. "They'll probably demand that we recalibrate the timing of the crosswalks so they have time to walk across."
More wealth than ever before will be in the hands of seniors.
The Central Platte Valley in Denver, now a singles scene, will be taken over by baby boomers, who nonetheless will frequent the microbreweries as part of a happy, active retirement, forecasters project.
As the urban centers sprawl, the number of travel miles will skyrocket, which will make investment in public transportation and alternative fuels even more crucial, Montagu said.
"I'm optimistic," he said. "People at the county and city levels have been working hard to make sure that in 10, 15, 30 years, this is a world-class city."
More diversity on horizon
Meanwhile, Colorado's population will become even more diverse.
The Hispanic fertility rate now is more than double that of non-Hispanic white women and nearly double that of all other ethnic groups combined.
Life expectancy will keep climbing in Colorado - it's now at about 78 years - but at the slower rate of the past six years, rather than the faster rate of the previous century.
Still, the children of the babies born this year may expect to live on average into their 80s and their children almost to 90 on average.
This generation of Coloradans has hit the first-ever plateau - merely equaling their parents' lifestyles, rather than exceeding it, said Joe Pelton, a futurist and space scientist.
"The problem is less of population growth and immigrants, and more of a shift of increasingly higher-paying jobs and better jobs overseas."
To counter that trend and to ensure that Coloradans of the future enjoy a comfortable lifestyle, education will be key and so will environmental sustainability, said Pelton, who recently left the University of Colorado and now teaches at George Washington University.
"Can we adapt? And in a more energy efficient way?
"Given the pressure from China and India, it really is a question of how to create and generate better jobs and well-paying jobs, and in a way that is friendly to the environment."

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New Developments

Agassi Graf to Develop Properties With Case's Exclusive Resorts
By Oliver Staley
Sept. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Agassi Graf Development LLC, the real estate company formed by retired tennis stars Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, is partnering with Exclusive Resorts LLC, the time- share company headed by former AOL Time Warner Chairman Steve Case, to develop ``luxury resort communities.''
Agassi, who will become a senior adviser to the company, will work with Exclusive Resorts to create resorts featuring Agassi-Graf Tennis and Fitness Centers, according to a statement by Exclusive Resorts.
Agassi, 36, retired earlier this month after a 20-year playing career that saw him win eight Grand Slam titles. He is married to Graf, 37, a former women's champion.
Closely held Exclusive Resorts, based in Denver, has more than 2,400 members and more than 300 residences in locations such as New York, Paris and Vail, Colorado. Case is the company's chairman. Always go to http://www.ColoradoDreamHomes.net for the best Real Estate information around!

The Extremes

Want to get old?

Live in Clear Creek County - or Eagle, Gilpin, Grand, Jackson, Park or Summit county.
Those seven Colorado counties, along with two Iowa counties and Montgomery County, Md., have the nation's longest life expectancies - 81.3 years - according to a Harvard University researcher.

Fifteen Colorado counties scored in the top 50 in Dr. Christopher Murray's life-span and health-disparities study, which appears in the September issue of the journal PloS Medicine.




United States Counties with the nation's longest life expectancy:

Clear Creek, Eagle, Gilpin, Grand, Jackson, Park and Summit counties, Colo.;
Montgomery, Md.; Lyon and Sioux, Iowa

Areas with the shortest:

Six counties in South Dakota; Baltimore City, Md.; Petersburg, Va.; Marlboro, S.C.; Phillips, Ark.
Sources: Harvard University Initiative for Global Health; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_4321677