Real Estate Information

Well, I've said it before, Colorado is ahead of the curve in terms of economic recovery.  Today's Business Journal echos this sentiment:

CSU, CU Economists: Colorado’s Recovery Could Start as Early as Summer

Excerpted from The Denver Business Journal - Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Colorado went through a bad economic year in 2008 and can expect more of the same this year, but there are signs that a recovery could start as soon as summer, a pair of Colorado’s top university business economists agreed Wednesday.

While calling 2008 “a horrific year,” Martin Shields, regional economist at Colorado State University, said that “things really weren’t so bad in Colorado” as they were across the nation.

Speaking at the South Metro Denver Chamber of Commerce’s annual Economic Forecast Breakfast at the Hyatt Regency DTC, Shields noted that Colorado was one a handful of states that actually created slightly more jobs than it lost last year, although the pace of job growth slowed.

He also said that Colorado’s housing market, although overbuilt, had “no real-estate bubble to pop” as compared with other states like California and Florida, so its economy has been hurt less by deflation in housing prices.

And while he predicted 2009 “will be a rough year” in the Centennial State, with the loss of an estimated 3,400 jobs, “we expect us to begin a recovery by mid-summer.”

Richard Wobbekind. associate dean in the Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado at Boulder, who also addressed the breakfast, said he agreed with much of Shields’ assessment, although he added there is great uncertainty about when a recovery may begin.

“We’re talking about an economy that’s stuck in the mud,” Wobbekind said. “The best-case scenario is that we start to pull out of this by mid-summer,” with the third or fourth quarter of the year a more likely starting point, he said.

To read the full article, please click here:  http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2009/01/19/daily20.html?surround=etf

Keep up the good work, Colorado! 

Jan

I am very proud to share my new listing, just on the market today!   16111 E. Belleview Drive is a beautifully updated 3 bed, 2.5 bathroom home in Piney Creek Overlook.  See the virtual tour here:

Call me if you'd like a personal tour.  This home is an amazing value, and it won't last long!

Jan

Information about first time home buyer tax credits as amended by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (HR 1).

Please consult your tax advisor / accountant to determine whether you are eligible for this tax credit before making any decisions or changes to your tax status.  This website is for information only and should be verified by a tax professional.

 The 3 changes to the first-time home buyers tax credit program include: 

1. The Tax Credit is for home buyers (either spouse if filing jointly) who have NOT owned a principle residence during the three-year period prior to the purchase.  Ownership of vacation property or rental property does not disqualify home buyers from this program.
2. The maximum credit is $8,000 or 10% of the home purchase, whichever is less.
3. The credit is available for homes purchased on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 31, 2009. 
4. To qualify for the full tax credit, married couples' modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) should be under $150,000 and single filers' MAGI should be less than $75,000. Partial tax credits may be available for married couples with MAGI incomes of over $150,000 but under $170,000 and single filers with incomes over $75,000 but under $95,000.  If married couples who qualify for the first-time tax credit file separately, they would both claim 5% of the home purchase or $4,000 each (whichever is less) on their tax returns.
5. Home buyers who qualify for this program, but who do not intend to purchase a home till the end of 2009, may elect to alter their tax withholdings (up to the amount of the of the tax credit) in order to save up money for a down payment.  However, if the purchase of the home does not occur, the taxes must be repaid to the IRS.
6. There is no recapture or repayment clause IF the home is owned for at least 36 months.
7. The effective date of purchase for new construction (even if buyer owns title to the lot) is the date the owner first occupies the house.  So even if construction began in 2008, as long as the home and buyers qualify for the tax credit, they will be eligible if they take possession any time during 2009.   However, new construction bought from the builder is only eligible if the settlement date (closing) takes place between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009.
8. The law allows taxpayers to elect to treat qualified 2009 purchases as a 2008 purchase so that they can receive the tax credit on their 2008 tax returns.
9. The full amount of the eligible tax credit is refunded to the buyer, regardless of whether the buyer has paid an equivalent amount in taxes. 
   
    The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

Source: newquestcity.com

Several large U.S. banks — including JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. — said Friday they will halt home foreclosures while the federal government works out a plan to stabilize the nation’s banking industry.

The White House is considering a plan that would use federal funds to buy at-risk mortgages and refinance them, thereby making them more affordable to the homeowner.

Details:

• JPMorgan Chase said Friday its moratorium would remain in effect through March 6.

“We will not add to the foreclosure process any new owner-occupied residential loans that are owned and serviced by J.P. Morgan Chase,” CEO Jamie Dimon said in a letter Thursday to Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., chairman of the House Financial Services Committee.

“We believe three weeks is adequate time for the Treasury to announce — and for us to implement — a new plan,” Dimon wrote.

New York-based Chase (NYSE: JPM) implemented a similar foreclosure freeze for 90 days beginning on Oct. 31.

“We stand ready to work with you to put the appropriate processes in place, including a national modification standard, to reduce the incidence of foreclosure and to encourage long-term, sustainable home mortgages,” Dimon wrote in the letter to Frank.

JPMorgan Chase is the parent company of Chase bank, the fifth-largest bank by deposits in Colorado, with 87 branches in the state as of June.

Washington Mutual Inc., one of the nation’s most active mortgage lenders, merged into Chase in September. WaMu had 40 offices in Colorado.

• Bank of America also will suspend foreclosures until March 6, but the date remains flexible, said spokeswoman Jumana Bauwens.

Charlotte, N.C.-based BofA (NYSE: BAC) bought Countrywide Financial Corp. in July in a $2.5 billion that made the bank the country’s largest mortgage lender.

• Citigroup will suspend foreclosures until March 12, the Associated Press reported.

The foreclosure suspension applies to owner-occupied homes on which New York-based Citi (NYSE: C) owns the first mortgage, and to mortgages where the bank has reached an understanding with the homeowner.

This report includes contributions from the Atlanta Business Chronicle, Business First of Louisville and Business Courier of Cincinnati, sister newspapers of the Denver Business Journal.

The times they are a changing.......  LOANS

You cannot have more than one FHA loan now.  Used to be good for buying rental properties, but harder to get now.  Call me if you have any questions.

PMI or Private mortgage insurance has gone up dramatically recently.  Not only to they get bailed out, they are charging us to bail them out again.  ugh..... congress who mandated the looser qualifying guidelines and those who lent the money.  By the way mortage insuance is now tax deductible like your interest.

Probably the best thing to do if you are not putting 20% down is to do a first mortgage  and a second mortgage.  This usually requires 10% down.

FHA loans go up to $368,000 now in Arapahoe County and you can put down as little as 3.5% . These are pretty good loans now.

There still is good money out there to purchase residential and investment properties. Now is the time.  Denver is picking up.

I am pleased to be able to show you my newest listing!  It's a 3 bed, 2.5 bath paired home in Southcreek.  The home is in perfect condition, and is a wonderful value at $179,900.  Please visit http://www.Obeo.com/515071 to learn more about it!

 Please let me know if you, or your friends or relatives may be interested in this wonderful home!  I'd love to show it to you!

  Jan

The final public meeting for the Parker Road Corridor Study, Hampden to E-470 will be held on Thursday, January 15th.  It will be at the Shalom Park Retirement Community at 14800 E. Belleview Drive, Aurora.  There will be an open house from 5:00 - 7:30 PM, with a brief presentation at 6:00 PM. 

The draft corridor study recommendations and the draft Access Control Plan will be presented.  Please see the attached newsletter for a project update and directions to the meeting.

Hope to see you all there.

 Jan

January 2, 2009

Happy New Year to Everyone!  Please look at the newsletters that are posted for Piney Creek, The Hills at Piney Creek, the Highlands at Piney Creek and Siena.  The information on the MARKET for the past year is very, very interesting.  I am hoping, (as all of us are that live here) that 2009 will be a GREAT year.  I have many reasons to believe it will be!  It will probably start out slow, but the momentum is definitely growing!

I heard through the grapevine that the New Years Party at Al's Bistro was wonderful.  We are so lucky to have some real non-chain venues offering live music so close to us!

Have a great one everyone!

Jan

Well, the directories are in my garage and will be delivered next weekend, weather permitting.  (That is, that we do not have 40 inches of snow to wade through again.)   As always, please let me know if you have any changes. 

Also, the lights in Piney Creek are wonderful again this year.  We live in such a great community.  It's hard to believe, but I have lived and worked in here 24 years now!

Happy Holidays to you all!

Jan

Hello!  Welcome to The Jan Mueller Team Blog website.  Please check back often as we discuss market condition and events that affect us here in the Denver area. 

Have a safe and happy December, and be careful out on the roads!

Jan