Is now a good time to sell my home in Colorado Springs? 

Is now a good time to buy a home in Colorado Springs?

Here's what we think: 

2012
Facts:	Loss/Benefit for sellers:	Loss/Benefit for buyers:
Active listings are down almost 10,000 from 2012	Less competition on the active market	Less to choose from
Sales are up 708 units	Folks are buying more than last year, giving a better chance of sale	More full price & multiple offers
50%+ increase in building permits	New builder competition for the resale market	More new homes and revitalization of newer communities
Average sales price was up nearly 5%	Building equity in your home & supports a higher sales price	The market has hit bottom, and is on its way back up
The hot pricing point is $250,000 and under	If your home is worth 250k or less, you’re on the upside of the curve, and have a better chance of sale.	If this is your price range, you’ll have more full-price and multiple offer situations
Interest rates are super low	Buyers can borrow more money to support higher prices	Buy more house for the money
2013
Forecast:	Loss/Benefit for sellers:	Loss/Benefit for buyers:
Homes under contract to hit the highest mark in the past 5 years!	Better chance of sale	More competition for existing homes
Sales prices will increase around 5%	Builds equity & allows higher pricing	Less house for the same amount of $, than last year
Building permits will continue to rise	Tough builder competition for re-sales, more dust, but filling in vacant lots in existing subdivisions	More new builds to choose from but there may be a delay in construction completion
Homes coming to market will increase	More competition, so your house must be able to compete (look & smell good)	There will be more home in tip-top shape to choose from
High price ranges will see more activity	If your home is valued over $250k, this is welcoming news!	We appear to have hit the bottom of the market, and are now on our way back up-hurry!
Mortgage rates will probably begin to rise with uptick in market conditions	This will limit the number of qualified buyers	As the rate rises, buying power decreases

This info is based on the ERA Shields stat pack data through 12/31/12

Call or visit for more information:  719.576.3600 or www.MotherDaughterRealEstate.com

Should I buy a house now?

This is a great post:

Why Buy Now … Buying Power!

For home buyers with a long-term housing plan, today's mortgage rates are an incredible value as compared to even February of last year.  Last February, the 30-year fixed rate mortgage averaged 5.05 percent nationwide and today you are around 4.00 percent. If you are one of the many that have waited, you will have saved 13% on your mortgage payment. Take a look at the math :

February 2011 : $539.88 principal + interest for every $100,000 borrowed

February 2012 : $477.42 principal + interest for every $100,000 borrowed

That's $62.06 monthly savings for every $100,000 borrowed.

Same Mortgage Payment ~ 77% More Home

 When you buy a home, you think in terms of "monthly budget" and that's why mortgage rates are critical to home affordability. Your purchasing power is a direct reflection of the mortgage rates of the day. As mortgage rates rise, purchasing power falls. As rates dip, purchasing power rises.  This is why your mortgage dollar goes so much farther today as compared to 20 years ago -- mortgage rates are scraping rock-bottom in 2012 at levels that were previously unthinkable to economists. 

Let's say you have a monthly budget of $1,700 for your mortgage.

In 1991, a $1,700 mortgage payment gets you a loan size of $200,000

In 2011, a $1,700 mortgage payment gets you a loan size of $353,000

In other words, in 2012, for the same monthly payment, you can borrow 77% more from the bank than you could in 1991. Talk about a great deal!   

While property values rose, the affordability index dropped. With rates low and property values stabilizing, this becomes as close to the “perfect time” to buy as we can accurately estimate. No one knows when the bottom or top of any market comes until after it is long gone. Whether we are moving up, down, or laterally the forecasts say that now is the time.

Jim Harmelink

ERA Mortgage
NMLS# 283201
Office: (719)535-7405
Toll Free:(866)820-5526
Fax: (719)535-7393
Mobile: (719)651-0291http://jimharmelink.eramortgage.com/

How do they decide when to close school district 12 for bad weather?

Gayle & I currently have, or have had, children in school district 12, and have always wondered how the superintendant decides when to close school in bad weather.  Well here it is straight from the superintendant himself in an email I rec'd:

Dear Parents:

After talking with several of you this morning regarding the really poor road conditions you encountered, I thought I would send this message regarding our procedure for determining delays and closures.  

Our process isn't very scientific...our director of facilities and I divide the District in half and drive the roads beginning at 4:00 a.m. when we suspect inclement weather.  He drives the northern sections of the District, I drive the south.  We correspond by cell phone during our evaluation of the driving conditions, and we typically finish between 5:00 and 5:15 a.m. so that we can make a determination on a delay or closure by our 5:30 a.m. deadline.

This morning, while we encountered some isolated icy patches, we had very little trouble navigating the major roads across the District, and in fact, many roads were perfectly clear.  As a result, I decided to maintain a normal schedule.  After receiving calls regarding conditions specifically along Star Ranch Road later in the morning, I again drove the south end of the District at about 8:00.  What I found very quickly was that areas that presented little or no difficulty earlier in the morning proved absolutely impassable and dangerous on my second trip.  Not that it matters, but I can only guess that when the wind picked up, what was merely wet a couple of hours earlier became solid ice very quickly and became extremely dangerous.

For those of you who attempted to drive these roads this morning, I am truly sorry that you had to deal with these dangerous conditions.  The fact of the matter is that had I encountered at 5:00 a.m. what I encountered at 8:00 a.m, I would have made a different decision; but, that obviously is a moot point.  What is important, however, is to know that this isn't the first time we've been caught in this untimely scenario, and it certainly won?t be the last.  It will inevitably happen again due to timing or due to the fact that some sections of the District are only slightly impacted while others may be heavily impacted.  So while you probably are aware, remember there is never an attendance penalty at any District 12 school for absences due to weather. If you ever feel the roads from your specific neighborhood are too dangerous to travel regardless of our school schedule, I encourage you to use your individual discretion and keep your children at home if you wish.

If you wish to contact me, please feel free to call or email me at your convenience.

Respectfully,

Walt Cooper
Superintendent of Schools