Tuesday, August 26, 2008

ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH? DENVER RANKED AS NATION'S TOP HOUSING MARKET

Is Denver the top performing real estate market in the country?

According to Case-Shiller, it is.

The most recent Case-Shiller Home Price Indices Report, released today, shows that Denver is the top performing real estate market in the country, with home prices rising 1.5% in June and by nearly 4% during the second quarter of 2008.

(I'm still waiting for the "Breaking News" alert to come across my BlackBerry from the Denver Post.)

I've said it here for months, and those who have listened have benefited: the Denver market was the first into the foreclosure pit, and we will be the first out of it.

The absorption rate for homes in the Denver metro area priced under $250,000, where 80% of the foreclosures occured, is now 3.5 months. Nationally, the inventory of homes stands at 11.2 months. Economists will tell you that 6 months of inventory is a "balanced market".

Now I won't come out and tell you it's a great time to sell a home. The rising prices cited by Case-Shiller are largely attributable to banks raising their list prices on foreclosures, a byproduct of six months of multiple offers and bidding wars on discounted homes. Bargain hunters and investors are out in force, and most of the appreciation we are seeing is at the bottom of the market.

But it's a start.

The government's efforts to revive the rest of the country's falling markets with increased loan limits and tax credits for first-time buyers will only accelerate the pace of our recovery, which is why this remains the best opportunity for investors and first-time buyers in at least 15 years.

I'm kicking off the first in a series of "First Time Buyer Workshops" Wednesday night, October 1. Details will follow in a few days.

Monday, August 25, 2008

ALL EYES ON DENVER

At long last, it's here.

Denver is front and center this week as host to the 2008 Democratic National Convention, and let’s hope our city shines under the national spotlight.

There is a mix of tension and energy around this event that’s palpable. It’s been exactly 100 years since Denver hosted a major political convention. In 1908, Democrats nominated William Jennings Bryan, who would later lose in the general election to William Howard Taft, the hand-picked successor of Theodore Roosevelt.

Mayor John Hickenlooper has pledged that this will be “the greenest convention in the history of the planet”. That means lots of organic foods, recycling crews working downtown 24/7 and 1,000 bicycles freely available to the delegates for their use throughout the week.

It’s interesting to see the mayor driving for a green convention when Hickenlooper himself was drawn here by the oil industry, arriving in 1981 as a geologist during a time when our energy sector was booming. “We were like lemmings,” he said in a recent interview with the Denver Post. But when oil crashed in the mid 80s, he did what Denver itself has done successfully many times over – he reinvented himself and emerged from adversity even stronger.

Hickenlooper opened a saloon – the Wynkoop Brewing Company – which today stands at the center of the revitalized LoDo (“Lower Downtown”) district. His popularity and influence in reviving LoDo helped him to become elected mayor in 2003, and he was re-elected last year.

Rugged, diverse, resilient and beautiful… that’s the Colorado I love, and the one I hope America sees as it tunes in this week.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

FIVE DAYS OF INSPIRING QUOTES

With a major political convention coming to town this week (have you heard?), I was feeling a bit inspired this past week and so I posted a number of thoughtful and provocative quotes on my blog.

A lot of folks I have talked to are planning to "lay low" this week to avoid the gridlock that's predicted in and around town. Some are headed for the mountains.

Not me. When the competition eases up, that's when we charge forward.

Would love to know if any of these quotes connect with you. ALL of them have been applicable to my life and business at some point.

See you around town!

Friday, August 22, 2008

FIVE DAYS OF INSPIRING QUOTES: FRIDAY (DAY 5)

From Anthony Robbins:

"If you can't, you MUST!"

“There are NO failures… only outcomes.”

"The quality of your life boils down to one thing... the quality of your communication with yourself."

"There is no change without commitment."


From Thomas Edison:

‘The trouble with most people is that they quit before they start.”


From Brian Buffini:

"Everything you do must be an endorsement of either your character or your competence."

Thursday, August 21, 2008

FIVE DAYS OF INSPIRING QUOTES: THURSDAY (DAY 4)

From Robert Kiyosaki:

• “Is investing risky? The greater risk is NOT to invest!”

• “Each day, you must decide who will prevail in that inner battle between the wimp and the warrior”.

• “Wealth is measured in time, not money.”



From Henry Ford:

• “Whether you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re right!”


From Robert Allen:

• “Success happens when your dreams finally overcome your fears.”

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

FIVE DAYS OF INSPIRING QUOTES: WEDNESDAY (DAY 3)

From Jim Rohn:

• "Things will change for you when you change"


From Hellen Keller:

• “Life is either a daring adventure, or it is nothing.”


From Herb Kelleher:

• “Skills can be taught, character cannot.”

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

FIVE DAYS OF INSPIRING QUOTES: TUESDAY (DAY 2)

From Tom Peters:

• “Evolution is the systematic correction of errors.”


From Brian Tracy:

• “Comfort zones are the enemy of human potential.”


From Kwame Granderson:

• “Fear is what happens when you focus on the WRONG things.”

Monday, August 18, 2008

FIVE DAYS OF INSPIRING QUOTES: MONDAY (DAY 1)

From Warren Buffet:

• “The difference between gambling and investing is... education.”
• “If you can’t control your emotions, you cannot control your money.”
• “It’s only when you tide goes out that you can tell who’s been swimming naked.”



From Michael Gerber:


• "The conflict between what we know and what we don’t know is called… growth.”



From Raymond Aaron:

• “The rich invite help… the poor resent it.”

Sunday, August 17, 2008

OUT-OF-STATERS COMING TO COLORADO FASTER THAN ANY OTHER STATE IN THE UNION, ACCORDING TO U-HAUL

By a nearly 2 to 1 margin, out-of-staters are moving into Colorado faster than any other state in the country. So says the 2007 U-Haul Top 10 U.S. States Growth Report, reflecting the nation’s top growth states for families who moved during 2007.

The report indicates that for states with more than 20,000 families moving, Colorado had the highest percentage of growth, with 7.01 percent more families moving into the state than out. Oregon was second, with a gain of 3.67%, and Kentucky (3.28%) was the only other state with growth above 3%.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

OPTION ARM - REST IN PEACE

Bank of America said in a regulatory filing this week the average borrower with an option adjustable-rate loan ("Option ARM) now owes 95 percent of the value of his home, up from 76 percent when the loan was made.

Seventy-two percent are making less than full interest payments and 12.4 percent are at least 90 days delinquent. The average FICO credit score for existing Option ARM borrowers has dropped to 680 from an original average score of 715.

Bank of America has said about 66 percent of the Option ARMs went to California and Florida borrowers.

Bank of America is not the only big lender with Option ARM headaches.

Washington Mutual, the "godfather" of the Option ARM loan, has seen its shares tumble over 90% this year, from $40 to less than $4 per share.

Wachovia Corp said borrowers in its $122 billion "Pick-a-Pay" Option ARM portfolio owed 85 percent of what their homes were worth on June 30, up from an original 71 percent. In California's Central Valley, the average was 109 percent.

In an Option ARM loan, borrowers are given four payment options: 1) a minimum payment based on an initial one-year "teaser" rate (often as low as 1.95%); 2) interest only on a 30-year fixed rate amortization; 3) principal and interest on a 30-year fixed rate amortization; 4) or an accelerated paydown option based on a 15-year amortization.

Needless to say, it's option (1) that killed the Option ARMs, and the shareholders of those who offered it.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

AFTER 23 DAYS, THE SPELL IS BROKEN

Two of my unbreakable rules in life are 1) you don't complain about the market, and 2) you don't complain about the weather.

But man, it has been too hot around here.

Today marked the end of a 23-day run with temperatures in Denver of 90 degrees or higher, which breaks the 134-year old record of 18 straight days at 90 or higher set in 1874.

Yesterday, my "assistant" (and seven-year old daughter) Elizabeth went downtown with me to drop off a contract and an earnest money check, but we couldn't escape the city without a run through the fountains at the 16th Street Mall.

Let me tell you, a run through the fountains on a hot day is an okay thing, and I heartily recommend it.

For the record, the high today was 85, and by the looks of the gathering thunderheads out to the east this evening, I would bet we're going to get some rain tonight.

Good to have things back to normal.