Building Permits are down in Mesa County

Yes, they are down. According to the local paper, the building permits are down by 50%, and that is a significant decline. Part of the reason is due to tougher lending practices. In Mesa County, a majority of our builders are smaller and self-employed. Therefore, the lenders aren't lending them the money to build their next home until the home they are currently building is under contract or sold. The lenders do this in order to reduce their risk. Another reason is a number of builders decided to build larger more expensive homes and now those homes are sitting on the market longer than planned, partly due to the tougher lending practices. Not as many people can afford to buy those nice expensive homes. However, there are a lot of homes out there for sale and it is a great time to find some good deals. Especially, if you are willing to invest a little sweat equity.

Far fewer housing permits issued - Article from Daily Sentinel

What is Happening In Grand Junction Area Real Estate - 7/27/08-8/02/08

Market Statistics for July 27, 2008 - August 02, 2008

According to our local MLS, there are currently 1,728 active residential listings in Grand Junction, 314 homes are under contract, and 79 homes sold last week. They are broken into areas below-

• City Area - 188 active/5 sold


• North Area - 268 active/ 14 sold


• Northeast Area - 182 active/ 11 sold


• Southeast Area - 169 active/ 8 sold


• Clifton Area - 90 active / 5 sold


• Orchard Mesa Area - 182 active / 9 sold


• Redlands Area - 225 active / 12 sold


• Fruita Area - 285 active / 13 sold


• Palisade/East Orchard Mesa Area - 66 active / 2 sold


• Northwest Area - 29 active / 0 sold


• West Area - 44 active / 0 sold


• Whitewater - 39 active / 0 sold

The Different Neighborhoods in Mesa County - This is a general guide to the different areas

Benefit for the Roice-Hurst Humane Society

There will be a barbecue to benefit the Roice-Hurst Humane Society this weekend, August 9th, from 11-3 at Ace Hardware in Clifton. Some of the folks from our office are working with Ace Hardware to make this event happen. All proceeds from this barbecue will be donated to Roice-Hurst. Non-monetory donations will be accepted, as well. The following are some of the items they need:

• Purina Cat and Dog Food



• Wet Cat and Dog Food



• Cat Litter



• Old Blankets and Towels

If you would like to make a donation, but are unable to join us at the barbecue, we are accepting donations at the front desk of Monument GMAC Real Estate (on the corner of Patterson and 28 1/4 Road). Ask for Lyndsy. Also, it you would like to help out at the barbecue send me an email.

Foreclosures Increase in Mesa County

That sure makes it sound worse than the actual numbers suggest. It is true that foreclosures are up over last year. A local article is saying that we had a 21% increase over last year, however I think that it is important to look at the numbers. Mesa County had a total of 242 foreclosed homes in the first two quarters versus 191 for the same period last year. Compared to other cities in Colorado and in the U.S., we are doing pretty good especially for a community our size.


Mesa Co. foreclosures outpace statewide increase - Local Article

Do You Know Your Credit Score?

In one of my recent posts I mentioned that the lenders have tightened their standards. Although, there are still ways to qualify for 100% financing it isn't as easy as it was a year ago. I always suggest that talking to a lender should be your first step in buying a home. Once you and I know where you stand, we know exactly how to proceed in order to find you the best and most house for your money. One of the most important factors is your FICO (credit) score. Do you know your FICO score? How do you stack up and what does it mean? If you are unsure I would recommend that you check out the following websites.

myFICO - This website is recommended by Suze Orman. For a small price you can find out what your FICO score is and if needed how to improve it.

CreditBloggers, Where do you rank... - This explains how and where your credit score ranks.

Is It A Good Time To Invest In A Rental?

The answer to that question is going to be different for each individual. There are a few factors to consider before investing in a rental. As a general rule, lenders are going to require that you have some money to put down on your investment. A rental can provide some tax breaks and write-offs, an accountant can tell you the different ways you might benefit. In the end it comes down to the bottom line, how much return will you see from your investment? It is important to know what your expenses will be. Your expenses included mortgage payment, taxes, insurance, any utilities you might pay, management fees(if you chose to have a company manage your building), any HOA dues, times of vacancy, and other miscellaneous expenses. There are different ways you can see a return. You can break even on your annual expenses, but sell the building at a profit in a couple of years, or make a profit from the rent received, or both.

Right now in Grand Junction the vacancy rate is 1.8% (almost nonexistent), but the asking prices sometimes make it hard to profit from the rents received when very little cash was put down on the mortgage. However, the rents being received, across the board, are continuing to increase due to lack of availability. I just rented a 2 bedroom 1 bath apartment for $950/month in the Redlands area, with a 1 year lease. When looking at investment properties it is important to see if the rents currently being received are low or if improvements can be made to the building. If you can raise the rents or improve the building and then raise the rents you could realize even more profit. This is an investment definetly worth considering, especially when compared to some mutual funds. The following websites and recent newspaper article may help you with your figures. You can, also, search investment properties on my website at http://www.bringingyouhomeonline.com/. Feel free to send me an email or give me a call if you have any questions.

Daily Sentinel article - Apartments Difficult to Find

A Local Lenders Blog - http://kevinwade.blogspot.com/2008/07/grand-junction-rentals-should-you-buy.html

http://www.catholicoutreach.org/AlmostHome.html - Click on the Almost Home Report and you can view available rentals and the monthly rents.

Latest U.S. Oil and Gas Rig Count

My recent post about the Oil and Gas Commission meeting about 2 months ago has continued to be one of my posts that has generated the most interest. This was recently reported by the Associated Press and I thought some of you might find it interesting. This article states that Colorado has gained 4 rigs. I wish I knew how many total were in Colorado, how many of those are on the western slope(I'm guessing most of them are), how many were natural gas, and how many were for oil.

U.S. oil and gas rig count down by 6

HOUSTON — The number of rigs actively exploring for oil and natural gas in the United States dropped by 6 this week to 1,951.

Of the rigs running nationwide, 1,550 were exploring for natural gas and 392 for oil, Houston-based Baker Hughes Inc. reported Friday. Nine were listed as miscellaneous.
A year ago, the rig count stood at 1,781.

Of the major oil- and gas-producing states, Colorado gained four rigs, Louisiana gained two, and North Dakota gained one. Texas lost six, New Mexico lost four, Alaska lost two and Arkansas and California each lost one. Oklahoma and Wyoming were unchanged.

Baker Hughes has tracked rig counts since 1944. The tally peaked at 4,530 in 1981, during the height of the oil boom. The industry posted several record lows in 1999, bottoming out at 488.

Published August 1, 2008 @ 1:40 pm by The Associated Press