Colorado Springs Real Estate Resources: January 2008

To Sell or Not To Sell?

There are plenty of factors to examine in our ever changing real estate market these days. The most important things to look at are your reason for moving and interest rates.

First ask yourself why you want to sell your home. Maybe you are looking to upgrade to something better, or maybe it is for relocating for a job or to be closer to family. You might be looking to downsize at this point. There could be any number of reasons, but it is important to really analyze your reason.

If you are upgrading to a more expensive home or buying around the same price range, then the current market is perfect for your plans. Although you may be taking a loss on the sale of your home in the current market, you are going to incrementally save more in this buyers market on the purchasing end. The low interest rates these days will most likely be better than your current mortgage rate which will have a direct effect on your payment amount. You’ll get “more bang for your buck,” as they say with the falling interest rates. So it can definitely be a win-win situation in these cases. I recommend speaking with a Realtor to see how your situation stacks up, and how much your home is worth in the current market.

Those looking to downsize need to assess the situation with a Realtor to see what the best option or plan would be for your needs in the current market. Realtors, otherwise known as Real Estate Consultants, are usually well versed in people’s life changing plans and can offer a lot of insight on any situation.

Labels: Listings, Market Value, Selling My Colorado Springs Home

New Shopping Center Planned for Falcon

Woodmen Hills and Meridian Ranch have seen some sizeable growth east of Colorado Springs. Retail supply has been slowly catching up to the area, but there is still quite a bit of demand for more convenience in the area. North American Development Group has contracted to buy almost 40 acres on the northwest corner of Woodmen and Meridian roads to answer the demand. They envision a 232,700 square-foot shopping center, to be called Falcon Highlands Northwest. This shopping center is designed as a 130,000 square-foot box with several smaller sites that would accommodate restaurants, banks and automotive parts stores, and other miscellaneous stores. The developer hopes to receive approval from El Paso County to start construction in 2009, with shops opening in 2010.

Safeway, Walgreen’s, and Wal-mart are just a few of the large stores already located in and around Woodman Hills and Meridian Ranch. Many fast food and sit-down restaurants, dry cleaners, banks and other stores and services have added convenience to the location as well. Lowe’s is expected to add a store soon near Meridian and U.S. Highway 24. Woodman Hills and Meridian Ranch are on their way with this continued growth in the area.

Top Colorado Springs Real Estate Resource

DanielsTeamHomes.com is a wonderful new resource for Colorado Springs real estate and Monument real estate! There is tons of information for you on selling a home, buying a home, real estate investing, and other general real estate information as well.

Buyers will find many resources at their fingertips at DanielsTeamHomes.com. You will be able to find home buyer resources, suggested reading for home buyers, home buyer tips, home buyer reports, home buyer finance information, home loan finder service, complete access to the area’s entire listing database, an area for home buyer questions, neighborhood information, school reports, relocation information, luxury home information, featured listings, new home / new home construction information and best of all, a Free Listing Alert which will keep you updated with the latest homes and price reductions on the market. This search is updated 4 times a day so you will see listings and price changes before most other buyers or investors! Definitely the top used asset of DanielsTeamHomes.com for many home buyers and investors.

Sellers also have countless resources throughout DanielsTeamHomes.com. Sellers will be able to find many home seller resources, home seller tips, home seller reports, market trends, an area for home seller questions, and a free online evaluation of your home’s value. The free online evaluation seems to be a favorite of the site’s visitors.

All of these resources mentioned are just a brief description of DanielsTeamHomes.com, so definitely take a look at the site to see everything that it has to offer.

75% of Foreclosures In The Unitied States Are In 5 States!

The media likes to make the worst of the foreclosure rates in every market. Foreclosure rates are up everywhere, but there are only 5 states in the entire country that account for a whopping 75% of the nations foreclosures. Colorado is not one of them. Here are your top 5 states...

Nevada

California

Florida

Ohio

Michigan

Garden of the Gods In Our Backyard!

Garden of the Gods is one of the most spectacular and scenic parks in all of Colorado. It is a nationally recognized public park that has amazing views and rock formations that will astonish you. Located on the West end of Colorado Springs at 1805 North 30th Street, this park is easily reached from anywhere in Colorado Springs. Entrance to the park is free and many tours are available at no cost. Garden of the Gods boasts almost 1400 acres of open space and 5 miles of trails for hiking, walking, mountain biking and horseback riding. Rock climbing is another activity that is popular since the park has so many wonderful rock formations (A permit must be obtained for climbing). Free naturalist led walks occur daily and present fascinating teachings about wildflowers, rattlesnakes, gold-seekers and many other topics. Garden of the Gods Nature Presentations also take place on a daily basis at the Visitor Center and are free also. These presentations last about 20 minutes and explore a wide variety of topics, including the geology, ecology, wildlife and the cultural history of Garden of the Gods. Call the Visitor and Nature Center at (719) 219-0108 for more information or visit their website.

Park Hours:
November 1 - April 30: 5 a.m. - 9 p.m.
May 1 - October 31: 5 a.m. - 11 p.m.

Labels: Colorado Springs Attractions, Parks

Colorado Springs Market Statistics

Are you looking at selling your Colorado Springs or Monument home? Take a look at the latest stats for the month. Below are the graphs and details for current monthly supply of homes based on a six month average, current monthly supply of homes based on the last 30 days, and current supply & demand (market saturation). Where does your home stand?

More listings continue to hit the market while total sales continue to plummet. Take a look at the charts above to see what montly supply your home should be compared to. Visit http://www.copropertyvalues.com/ to get the value of your home to compare with this market's current monthly supply.

Labels: Listings, Market Conditions

What is An Appraisal?

An appraisal is needed in most cases where a loan is involved. Your final loan will not be approved until your lender orders a professional appraisal of the home to make sure that the agreed-upon selling price is justifiable based on the current market value of the property. The cost of the appraisal is typically determined by the complexity of the appraisal report and the time required completing it. This cost is generally factored in as a closing cost.

A professional appraiser will select the appraisal method that is applicable to the particular property to arrive at an unbiased opinion of value. One approach is to look at comparable homes in the area that have sold within the last six months. If there are a number of similar properties that have sold recently, the appraiser's job is easy. It is more complicated to arrive at the appraised value if your home is located in a rural area or a diverse neighborhood. The appraised value will usually be very close to the sale price. If the appraisal comes in lower, the real estate agent may be able to provide the appraisers with additional information on recent sales which will result in increased value.