2012 1st Quarter Real Estate Trend

Here are some interesting Statistics for the 1st Quarter Homes sales in Mesa County.

This graph was provided by Advances Title Company as a preview to their newsletter coming out next week.


Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks! Becky Behrens

Put Your Best Features Forward: Simple Staging Solutions

The following link has a few GREAT and EASY ideas that sellers can do to make their home appeal to buyers. The before and after pictures speek for themselves!


Put Your Best Features Forward: Simple Staging Solutions

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!Becky Behrens

619 Panorama - Just Reduced!!

Just reduced to $180,000!!!

This beautiful home in the Redlands is a 4 bedroom, 3 bath home and is a ranch with a full basement and over 2600 square feet. Three of the bedrooms are on the main level.


THE HOME YOU DESERVE....with hardwood floors throughout the main level, newer Accent windows, beautiful fireplace, newer roof, bay window in the living room, and a roomy open floor plan that is great for entertaining. You will enjoy the large kitchen with plenty of counter space. There is A LOT of home for your money in this ranch style home with a full finished basement. You can decide the best place for your grill in the big park like yard with wonderful views and the feeling of privacy. There is no HOA, more than enough RV parking, a dog run, and room for your toys. This home is ready to go and just waiting for your personal touch! The 1361 Sq Ft in the basement is finished and heated, but non-conforming. Buyer(s) to verify; all information subject to change/error.



Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks! Becky Behrens

Some Local Statistics for The New Year

I thought you would enjoy some statistics from last year! It has been VERY interesting to see how real estate sales are trending. Right now the inventory is low only 932 residential listings and we as agents are scrambling for good homes to list. Pricing is very important right now! Also, the average list price is $306,065.00 and they are on the market for an average of 194 days. We sold more homes in 2011, in 2011 we sold 2,394 homes and that is up from 1750 in 2010. Although that doesn't mean that the prices are increasing, in fact the average sales price is down from $210,512 in 2010 to $177,727 in 2011. The following are some more statistics by area. Thanks!

Area          Listings in 2011       Sold Listings in          Average Sales 

                Active           Sold            12/2011                   $ in 12/2011 

City              94              275                22                        $124,935      

North          121             297                 20                        $173,257      

Northeast     77             291                  20                        $155,373      

Southeast     45            304                   15                         $109,922     

Redlands   119             248                   21                        $287,112       

Orchard

Mesa           76              217                  14                        $154,260         

Fruita          84              306                  29                       $212,996          

Clifton       48               161                  17                      $93,515            

Palisade/

East OM    33                  60                   1                        $373,600         

Our brokers gave us the following statistics in our meeting this week.

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!Becky Behrens

Housing market improves, but foreclosures spoil the party

We are seeing the same trend here in Grand Junction. Our inventory is down and home sales are up, however the average price of recently sold homes is down slightly. Housing market improves, but foreclosures spoil the party Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!Becky Behrens

10 remodeling projects that pay back most

Every year Remodeling Magazine puts out a report on what remodeling projects have the most payoff. They take the price of the project versus the added value to the home, if you were to sell it now. The project htat suprised me the most was a new garage door. It isn't a very expensive project. I will testify that numurous times I have had clients comment on the older garage door that isn't moving smoothly and it beat up. It is like your front door and it makes a big impression.

10 remodeling projects that pay back most - MSN Real Estate

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks! Becky Behrens

Congress Restores FHA Loan Limits to NAR-Backed Levels

It looks like this should happen in the near future and the report states that we should go back to the previous loan limit we had prior to October of 2011. The FHA loan limit is currently $271,000 after the limit dropped from $371,000 in October of this year. This is GREAT news and will make financing easier for many of the home buyers in Mesa County. Currently our inventory is lower than is has been in 18 months.

Congress Restores FHA Loan Limits to NAR-Backed Levels

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks! Becky Behrens

As Close to a Crystal Ball as I can Get!

The following article is the closest thing I've seen to a crystal ball for the future real estate economy. I found this article very encouraging and interesting. I hope you do, as well. Just click on the following link to learn more.


Real estate price declines overshooting fundamentals?

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!Becky Behrens

Bull or Bear??---Predictions for Housing in 2011

So are you a bull or a bear??? Click on the following link to find out.

I tend more to the bull side. There is a lot of inventory out there, but folks are buying homes and gettiing some GREAT deals!

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Predictions for Housing in 2011

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!Becky Behrens

Bring The Fall Season Indoors

The following link will take you to a great article about selling your home during the fall season. These are some great tips!

http://www.frontdoor.com/2UPQ03


Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks! Becky Behrens

Mesa County foreclosure filings, sales, up year-over-year | GJSentinel.com

The fact that sales are up is a good thing. Just Remember that an increase in sales doesn't mean that the sales prices have increased. If you compare the first half of this year to the first half of last year the prices have decreased, some areas more than others.

Mesa County foreclosure filings, sales, up year-over-year | GJSentinel.com

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!Becky Behrens

Foreclosure - Strategic Defaults' Can Damage Credit for Years

This is a tender subject. I know some folks feel that they have no other option, but I think it is important to know the repercussions. I'm a firm believer that the more information we have the better decisions we can make. If you are struggling to make your mortgage payments or you are already behind, it is easy to think that maybe you should just walk away. However, there are a few options out there and it is best to stay in contact with your mortgage company. You may be eligible for a loan modification or a good canidate for a short sale. Yes, both of these options will affect your credit, but not as badly or for as long as a foreclosure. Both of these options require work and diligence on your part. It is easy to feel very overwhelmed and just want to quit. Trust me during this process you will feel like throwing in the towel, but the reward for sticking with it is worth it. The Rewards are that your credit won't take as big of a hit. I know some of you feel it can't get any worse, but it can. The big picture of your credit score is that anyone who asks for your SSN can and probaly is running a credit check on you. If you refuse to give them your SSN them the various companies assign you as a person with low credit. Now, think carefully who already has or request your SSN. I can name a few - health and auto insurance, credit card companies, auto loans, banks, physicians, colleges, and employers. Not all of these entities order a credit check on you, but some do and based on your credit score they are increasing your interest rates, reducing your line of credit, cancelling you card, and increasing your insurance rates. The one that most folks don't think about is employers, depending on their parameters, low credit can hurt you from getting security clearance for some positions(especially for government positions). If you are applying for a job and you are in the running, but you have a low credit score it can hurt you. In general, all of these entities feel that if you have low credit score you are a bigger risk to them. I'm not saying this is right, however it does happen.

I know that there are a couple of you reading this now and you have tried these options, but for whatever reason these options didn't work out for you. They key is that you tried and gave it your best.

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-'Strategic Defaults' Can Damage Credit for Years

Save Money...Plant a Tree or 3

According to the US Department of Energy, three properly placed trees could save homeowners between $100-$250 a year in energy costs. Their shade cuts cooling costs in the summer and in the winter they serve as a windbreak and help hold down heating costs.

Check out the National Tree Calculator and it will tell you what each tree will save you annually by area.

You can contact your local nursery to see which trees grow best in your area.


Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!Becky Behrens

What to Look for in an Outdoor Kitchen

In Grand Junction we have a wonderful climate that allows us to utilize our outdoor kitchens most of the year. They can be great for entertaining and adding additional living space. The following article gives us some useful tips when planning an outdoor kitchen.

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-What to Look for in an Outdoor Kitchen

Tax Credit Extended???? and 5 Costly Mistakes First-Time Buyers Make

So this week I have had three people tell me that they heard or saw on the news that the the First-Time homebuyer tax credit was being extended. I haven't heard anything about this, to the best of my knowledge this tax credit is expiring. This means that if you want to take advantage of the $8,000 tax credit for 1st time home buyers or the $6,500 if you have lived in your current home for 5 or more years, then you have until April 30, 2010 to have a house under contract. FYI, that is in 5 days!!!

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-5 Costly Mistakes First-Time Buyers Make

Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!

Becky Behrens

10 Inexpensive Ways to Wow Buyers

Right now there are more homes on the market than we have seen in awhile. Once you decide to sell your home you are competing against bank-owned, forclosures, and short sale homes. These homes are usually priced less, but require some TLC (sometimes they require A LOT of TLC). So in order to compete with these homes, it is important that your home makes the best first impression possible. The following link will take you to some tips to help you accomplish this.

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-10 Inexpensive Ways to Wow Buyers


Feel free to give me a call, send an email, or a text with any questions. Thanks!

Becky Behrens

Call me CRAZY, but I'm optimistic

That is right. I said it! I'm optimistic of what this new year is going to bring. I was driving around town this morning and I saw the following quote on a couple of bus benches "Bill Gates started Microsoft during a recession". My Grandma always said "Life is what you make of it". So if we don't stand by idle and let life pass us by and if Bill Gates started one of the most successful companies during a recession, what have we got to lose?

Then I sit down at my computer this morning and there is a graph in a newsletter I get(you can view it Here). Did you know that the Dow Jones Industrial Average started at 8711.98 last year, it did hit a low of 6469.95 in March and continued to grow throughout the rest of the year and it ended at 10580.33. So overall there was an improvement. The following article was in our local paper The Daily Sentinel -Recession over in Colorado, economist tells legislators. Yes, locally our real estate market has taken a hit, but homes are still selling and folks are still buying them (especially below $250,000). People are still getting married, having babies, and downsizing. Life has not come to a halt, we are just more cautious. As we should be. I don't think we will have a quick recovery, but I think there will be a recovery. As our local paper quoted from our Senator in the above article, “There’s been a lot of rosy scenarios coming from some in the Capitol, but the reality is we’ve got some difficult months in front of us”. Notice he said months...not years. Our economy is slowly improving, we are slowly getting back on our feet, and step-by-step things are looking better. Wouldn't you agree?

Mortgage Interest Rates- Avoid This Costly Mistake

The following article came my way and I found this news very interesting. This Article was sent to me in a enewsletter from a Bank of America lender.

Avoid This Costly Mistake

If you've been following the financial news, you've probably heard that the Fed's been buying Mortgage Backed Securities. Unfortunately, people have picked up on the news and mistakenly discussed how these purchases will continue to cause rates to drop lower. But is that really what it means? No.

The following information can help set the record straight and help you make smart decisions that lead to a low interest rate for your home loan.

How is the Fed's Bond Purchase Related to Rates?

The Fed has been buying Mortgage Bonds. BUT... more precisely, they're buying a lot of FNMA 30-yr 5.0% and 5.5% Bonds. Many of the mortgages in these pools are outstanding home loans with rates between 6.0% and 6.5%, as the rate that a borrower pays is different than the coupon rate given to an investor buying into that mortgage pool, with the difference being taken by Wall Street firms and government agencies. The loans in these pools are likely to be refinanced and paid - because current rates make it very attractive to refinance a loan over 6.0%. Thus, giving the Fed a quick recoup on some of its investment.
Bottom line: The Fed's purchase of higher rate coupons will not necessarily help rates to move lower, as their actions do not impact the loans being originated at today's low rates.

The Problem Is...
Many consumers are in situations where they can refinance now and save hundreds of dollars a month on their mortgage payments. But if they hear people throwing around teases of lower rates ahead, they may decide to hold off on making the decision to save, in the hopes of gaining a few more dollars of savings per month if a lower rate came their way. Of course, while they're waiting, rates could turn higher - especially when you consider that the Fed is scaling back its purchases of Mortgage Backed Securities - and this window of opportunity could pass them by entirely.
Is the Fed Scaling Back? And What Will It Mean to Rates?
Last week, the New York Fed began to scale back their Mortgage Backed Security purchase program. The Fed has been buying about $25 Billion worth of Mortgage Backed Securities per week, but the new plan to drag out these purchases over a longer period of time means that they will be reducing both the frequency and amounts of their purchases. This will cause higher levels of volatility, as the Fed will be purchasing less often and less consistently. As a result, rates will probably rise gradually over time.

Here's the Clincher

Even if consumers are ultimately able to time the market perfectly and save another few bucks per month, they could still end up losing. That's because while they delayed, they lost the savings each month they could have gained by taking action sooner. In other words, they may have lost hundreds of dollars for every month they waited. So even if they got lucky and obtained the rate they were looking for, it could take years to make up what they lost by waiting.
I don't want anyone to miss an opportunity by either waiting or misunderstanding the media headlines. Let's talk further on this. Call or email me, and let's discuss what this might mean for you.


The material contained in this newsletter has been prepared by an independent third-party provider. The material provided is for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment, financial, real estate and/or mortgage advice. Although the material is deemed to be accurate and reliable, there is no guarantee it is not without errors.
As your Trusted Advisor, I always want to make sure you are clear on all details of the home financing process. If you or someone you know are interested in purchasing or refinancing a home, give me a call today!

Mortgage Success Source, LLC is the copyright owner or licensee of the content and/or information in this email, unless otherwise indicated. Mortgage Success Source, LLC does not grant to the recipient or distributor a license to any content, features or materials in this email. You may not distribute, download, or save a copy of any of the content except as otherwise provided in our Terms and Conditions of Membership, for any purpose.

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Cloudy Future for Solar Power

I've had a couple of friends do this and they love seeing their meter run backwards! In Grand Junction we have a lot of homes with hot water baseboard heat and evaporative coolers. The solar saves more money on homes with condensed air conditioning and forced air heating.

REALTOR® Magazine-Daily News-Cloudy Future for Solar Power

Shared via AddThis

My Favorite Quote....

....from this article is "It is like going to the mall and everything is on sale." Between the great prices and the $8,000 tax credit there are deals to be made. I'm trying to figure out how I can get the tax credit! I enjoy free money. I enjoyed the following article in that was in our local paper yesterday.

Click Here to read-First-time homebuyers find warm, cozy market-Daily Sentinel Article


Check it Out!!