Real Estate – What’s happening?

With all the recent articles about the Market turning down, Sub Prime Mortgages dissapearing, Mortgage Companies closing their doors and a bevy of homes on the market, knowing the facts is more important than ever. Feel free to check out the following links to ‘catch up’ on your Real Estate Reading.

Realty Times

Inman News

CNN Money

Real Estate News

Real Estate Insider on Pricing

You’ve decided to sell with the help of a real estate agent and are ready to “put your home on the market”.  You’ve reviewed the agent’s market analysis and decided on a list price. List Price? Wait a minute – not list price, what you had in mind was the sales price! Well, truth is – list and sales price CAN be the same, but they don’t have to be. The list price is the price, determined by your agent and yourself, at which the property will be offered to the market.

The sales price is the price the market is willing to pay for your property. That can be higher, if it is a very active market, or lower, if it is not.  It is not determined by any other factor – only by the market. It doesn’t matter what your neighbor’s house sold for, what you would like to receive or even what your agent told you – the market (all the potential Buyer’s) will determine the sales price.

It is then up to you to decide if that is a price you can and will sell at, or if it is unacceptable. There might be some negotiating room – however, usually buyers will not pay more for a property than market value. (Keep in mind – it’s not only the Buyer’s who have to “buy” your sales price – it’s also the appraiser who will have to agree on that sales price, in order for the Buyer’s to get the mortgage to purchase the home.)

Does that mean you should offer your home at a higher price and wait for an offer? No! You have to be compatible with similar properties in the area, to have a chance of receiving an offer. If your property is priced too high, you will price yourself right out of the market. For example: If 10 homes are available in your area, and they are all priced around $250,000, with similar square footage and features, yet your home is priced at $280,000, why would a buyer want to pay more? Put yourself into the Buyer’s “shoes”.

The best way of determining pricing is by talking to a professional and maybe touring some of the available homes in your area for comparisons. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to contact me. Thanks.

Colorado Springs South/West Area

Colorado Springs’ South West Area roughly covers the area from Cheyenne Mountain to I-25,  Colorado Avenue to just south of Academy Blvd.  It is probably the most diverse area of town, when it comes to properties - homes anywhere from brand-new to 40, 50+ years old, ranging in prices from $100,000 to several Millions throughout several neighborhoods.

The South West Area also offers some beautiful views, either of the city or the Mountains. It also is home to a variety of “tourist spots” that are fun, even for the “Locals” –  including Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Seven Falls, the Broadmoor, Helen Hunt Falls and Old Gold Camp Road.  Almost any section of this area has easy access to shopping (groceries, furniture, antiques, miscellaneous and cars – at Motor-city), I-25, Ft. Carson and Downtown Colorado Springs.

School Information

Depending on the Area you decide to live in, your children might go to School District 12 or School District 11. Please be sure to verify prior to purchasing or renting a home.

• Home Page School District 12
• Boundary Map School District 12
• Registration Information School District 12
• Home Page School District 11
• Boundary Map School District 11 
• Registration Information School District 11

General Information and Links for the South West Area

• Ft. Carson 
• Cheyenne Mountain Zoo 
• Seven Falls
• Helen Hunt Falls
• Junior Achievement 
• The Broadmoor 
• The Broadmoor Golf Courses  
• El Pomar Foundation
• The Sports Corp
• Colorado Springs Downtown
• Bear Creek Park and Nature Center
• World Arena

Colorado Springs Neighborhoods – Colorado Centre

If you’ve lived in Colorado Springs for any length of time, you know how much the North/East side expanded – new homes and stores galore!  - specially toward Falcon. However, if you are looking for a quieter area – you might want to try Colorado Centre. Located off Powers or Marksheffel and Bradley or Drennan, it’s separate enough from the hustle and bustle of downtown, to make you feel as if you’re out in the country.

Colorado Centre is like it’s own little village – surrounded by open fields, grazing antelope, the occasional cow or horse. FYI – once the Banning Lewis development gets under way, the views might change a bit! For now tho, Colorado Centre is ‘away’ from everything – Horizonview Drive being the “main strip” through this development, which offers a park and playground, a Basketball Court with Picnic tables and it’s own Fire-station.

A branch of the Olympic committee used to reside “out there” as well – but their building is now up for sale and the area is looking for ‘new’ neighbors to occupy the space. Home prices range from $155,000 to approx. $220,000, and square footage from approx. 1,000 to 2,700, and despite it’s feeling of being secluded, you’re only a few minutes away from parks, schools and shopping. As for schools – Colorado Centre is being served by Widefield School District 3. Something to keep in mind -  Peterson Air Force Base , Schriever Air Force Base and even Ft. Carson are easily accessible from Colorado Centre.

So if you’re ready to give the “Colorado Life Style” a try – take a look at Colorado Centre!

The Real Estate Roller Coaster

Lately every time you open a newspaper or turn on the TV or Radio, you can hear something about the downslide of real estate, the financing issues, the market dropping out and fears about a Real Estate Bubble bursting.

Because of all the “hype”, I thought you’d enjoy a video, based on the Real Estate market since 1890, and adjusted for inflation, that shows the market from 1890 till today as a Roller Coaster. Enjoy. And if you have questions about the ‘actual’ market – ask the Colorado Highlands Group please. Thanks.

Colorado Springs Neighborhoods – Wagon Trails

Wagon Trails is situated on the North/East Side of Colorado Springs, in the popular Norwood Development. It is bordered by Dublin Blvd.on the South, Bridle Pass on the East and North and Austin Bluffs Parkway on the West.

Wagon Trails is serviced by Colorado Springs School District 11.

Places to shop are available directly on Austin Bluffs, and include Albertson’s, Subway, Ahh Bagels and a  Liquor Store.

A Grease Monkey, Dry Cleaner, Beauty Salon, Nail Shop, Fitness Center for Women and a Karate School can be found here as well.

Wagon Trails also offers a Recreation Center , a Park and Walking Trails throughout, and is the future site of Freedom Elementary School .   

Home Prices range from approximately $199,000 to $450,000, with square footage ranging from 1,300 square feet all the way up to 4,800 square feet.

What do you know about loans?

A big part of Home-ownership is your home loan. If you’re like everyone else – that’s probably NOT your favorite component. However, it’s probably the one element you really need to be knowledgeable about.

 According to a recent article on CNNMoney.com, more than 3 out of 10 Consumers do not know the terms of their home loan. Do you know what type of loan you have? If you’re looking to buy – how familiar are you with the different types of mortgages available to you? Do you have, or are looking for a conventional loan, fixed for 15, 20 or 30 years? Or an adjustable rate loan, where the interest rate is fixed for 2, 3 or 5 years and then adjusts?  A VA loan or FHA loan?   

If you’re thinking about an Adjustable Rate loan, to keep the initial payments lower, consider this: According to a recent survey, 34% of homeowners who currently hold an adjustable rate mortgage do not know how to make the payments, once their loan adjusts to a higher interest rate. If you are unsure about your current or planned home loan, talk to a professional and have them explain your mortgage type to you, to see what your best option might be – to keep your current loan or to refinance, or what to choose when getting ready to purchase. (Be sure to discuss things like: Length of time you expect to live in this home, any expected future pay raises, a monthly payment amount that would be acceptable to you etc. And if you’re choosing an ARM – adjustable rate mortgage – ask for what your worst case scenario/highest payment might be.)

 Regardless of the type of loan you end up choosing – either for a new purchase or to refinance your current home – beware of predatory lending.  What does that mean? There really is no single definition – but more a combination of a variety of factors; a “group” of warning signs. 

Basically, the same thing your parents told you growing up still holds true:   

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

For example: If you have heard from a number of people that the rate is currently at 6%, yet someone offers you a 2.5% rate (*), if several lenders/banks have told you that you have to “clean up” your credit first or pay off a credit card/car/etc, and yet someone tells you it’s no  problem, or if, once you receive a Good Faith Estimate, the closing costs and fees are much higher than on any other Good Faith estimate you received, if hard pre-payment penalties are part of the loan (**) and/or closing gets delayed several times, making the initial low quoted interest rate expire and thereby increase your costs and monthly payments.  All of those could be warning signs of predatory lending.

Your best option is to work with a professional, ask questions, do your research, check out your lender with the Better Business Bureau,  find out how long your lender has been in business and compare a couple of lenders/banks and their loan products.

With all the recent news about problems in the sub-prime lending market and changing interest rates, your best option is to be educated about the possibilities available to you (either to refinance a current property or purchase a new home), BEFORE making a decision.

(*) – If the offered rate is below the current market rate – you might be incurring negative amortization. Meaning: You pay less than the loan is actually costing you, and anything you do not pay in any given month (both principal AND interest) will be added on to the total loan amount, which leaves you owing more at the end of the period than when you started.

(**) – Pre-payment penalties come in two forms: hard and soft pre-payment penalty. A hard pre-payment penalty means that whether you sell your home or refinance your home, you will have to pay the penalty, often a percentage of the interest due for several months. A soft pre-payment penalty usually means that you only incur the penalty if you refinance within a certain period of time, not when you sell your property. It’s important to know which type of penalty, if any, applies to you, to plan accordingly.

How much is TOO much?

You are considering selling – but in the back of your mind, you’re wondering….what should you do, to make sure that you’re home is “up to par”….?

You’ve seen “those” shows – they are everywhere, any station at any time – or so it seems. All of them promote remodeling, staging and fixing up your home prior to selling it. If you watch enough of them, you can’t help but wonder: Should I renovate? Remodel? Paint? Stage? Heck, obviously, something needs to be done prior to selling…but what?

If you’re thinking along those lines – stop. Take a good, hard look at your home first. Pretend you’re a buyer, looking at your home for the first time. If you can’t – have a friend do this for you. Walk through the house, and take it room by room. That’s how the “little things” we tend to overlook as we live in a home, become obvious. Is the paint chipped on the corners of the baseboards? Are there finger prints on the walls – specially around the light switches? Is the door not opening properly? And what happened to the yard? Where did the weeds come from? Has the closet always been this full? And why is it so dark in this bedroom? Has a bulb burned out?

Many of those little things are truly that – small items, that are easily and inexpensively fixed, yet have a huge impact on how a buyer might experience your home.  Take care of them first and then re-evaluate your home. Maybe by now it’s  ready to “strut it’s stuff” to potential buyers. If you still have doubts of feel the need to do more, take a look at some other items … on the decorative side.

 Items, that might cost a little more – like hardware. Kitchen and/or bathroom faucets, cabinet handles/knobs and door handles/knobs. Are they worn out or scratched in your home?   Do they work? Or do they need that certain “twist” to open/close? Does the key actually lock the front door? Take a look at your hardware, and decide accordingly. This doesn’t mean that you need to replace each piece, but make sure they’re in working order and clean.

Whatever you decide to do – either on your own, or with the help of a professional – keep in mind – if you’re getting ready to sell, this is not the time to spend a “ton” of money on your property, (See previous article on remodeling.)  unless it has deferred maintenance, mechanical, functional or structural problems. If your home is in good condition (structure, systems, maintenance) then this is the time to showcase your homes good features, not change everything. Think about what attracted you to this home in the first place? The goal at the time of sale is to “break even” or get some money due to appreciation etc – not go broke due to remodeling “overboard”.

Thinking about Remodeling?

If you’ve owned your home for any length of time, you might have started thinking about remodeling. With all the shows on TV, promoting the benefits of remodeling, it’d be no wonder if you did – think about updating/replacing/remodeling that is.

But what should you do and what should you consider before tearing out that first tile, wallpaper or carpet?

Before doing anything – and I mean ANYTHING – make a plan. Decide what you are trying to accomplish by remodeling. Are you trying to add more space? Update your home? Make it more energy efficient? Or are you trying to increase the possible resale value?

Once you’ve discovered what drives you to remodel, plan out your project, or projects. How will the final product look? Will it improve the traffic flow? How will you use the remodeled area? What are the costs? And in comparison, how much do you have to spend? And who will do it? Can you do the project yourself? (From planning, to permits, to completion?) Or should you hire a professional?

While the return of investment varies, a good rule is to update/remodel your home, so it matches the homes in your neighborhood. If you add “too much” to your home, you might not be able to recover the investment, when it’s time to sell. People not only pay for the home, the also expect to pay a certain amount for a certain neighborhood. Meaning: Don’t over-improve your home – specially if you’re remodeling to improve ‘curb appeal’ and resale value.

If you really can’t live with your home “as is” any longer – it might be time to consider moving to a home that already has some or all of the items you are looking for.

Meet Colorado Springs – Kings Chef

How long have you lived in – or how often have you visited – Colorado Springs? How often have you driven by a small, purple castle, called “King’s Chef” in downtown Colorado Springs? Have you ever stopped in? If you haven’t – you’re missing out on some of the best breakfast and lunch offerings around.

King’s Chef started out as a Valentine’s Diner in 1956, then went through 3 Owners and one move (from the corner of Tejon Street and Costilla Avenue to the current location), before the current Owner, Gary Geiser took it over in 1997.

If you haven’t seen King’s Chef, or if it’s been a while, it’s located on 110 E Costilla, and it’s open Monday through Friday, from about 7:00 am to 2:00 pm, Saturday and Sunday from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm.  Be prepared to get close – King’s Chef can seat 13 people at a time on the inside, another “bunch” on the outside patio, if weather permits. Just make sure to come hungry – the portions are huge and the green chili is fantastic. And should you manage to finish your plate, you can proudly call yourself a member of the “Clean Plate Club”. (Only then will you be allowed to pick a candy from the candy box!)

So the next time you’re downtown and hungry – stop in at the King’s Chef! You won’t regret it. It’s a true local “Institution” with several awards to its name.