That's how many I saw yesterday!  What is it with the smell of these things?   Combination of cat urine, vomit, lysol and filth...I keep a bottle of hand sanitizer available after the tour... I was out pre-running for an investor client of mine, as well as looking at potentials for our own purchase.  Thats one nice thing about being an active investor, my research in the field either helps my client, or helps me, it's rarely wasted. Focused on the North Denver, Westminster and Northglenn suburbs.  Most of these are asking $105k to $119k, 3/4br, avg. 1800 sq. feet, garage, basement.  These make good rental holds and some have potential for fix and re-sell. Out of the 9, found 2 that we will be offering on.   A lot of active traffic out there as well, saw 5 other brokers, 2 working with i... 11/06/2008

We've had Google Analytics running for 3 days on our new promotion website, www.denverforeclosuretour.com,  so far we've seen a lot of traffic from all over the U.S.  Google analytics is able to determine how many visitors, how long they've stayed on the site, what type of browser, etc.   If anyone is promoting their web presence I would certainly recommend getting set up with Google analytics, it's free!   "Thinking of Real Estate?  Think of Rob!" www.RobKellyColorado.com www.DenverForeclosureTour.com Twitter: @RobKellyCo 11/03/2008

The average home price in Metro Denver increased +2% in the full year 2005 to the full year 2006, from $309,000 to $317,000. Comparing 2006 to 2007, the average home price across the metro dropped 2%, from $311,000. The average price of a foreclosure or short sale dropped in that time period -3% to $188,000. The average price of a non-distress sale increased 5% to $370,000. Sales volume over the last twelve months is off -4% for DSF/ASF. Foreclosure and short sale volume is up +31%; non-distress seller volume is off 20%. If you handle a lot of listing and the market seems slow, this is likely the reason why. Some areas did better than others. The attached chart shows different neighborhoods in Jefferson County (email me to get a detailed map that is bigger at lonwelsh@yourcastle.org). E... 10/31/2008

Recap of Denver Fourth Quarter 2007 Home Price PerformanceThe average home price in Metro Denver increased +2% in the full year 2005 to the full year 2006, from $309,000 to $317,000.Comparing 2006 to 2007, the average home price across the metro dropped 2%, from $311,000. The average price of a foreclosure or short sale dropped in that time period -3% to $188,000. The average price of a non-distress sale increased 5% to $370,000. Sales volume over the last twelve months is off -4% for DSF/ASF. Foreclosure and short sale volume is up +31%; non-distress seller volume is off 20%. If you handle a lot of listing and the market seems slow, this is likely the reason why.Some areas did better than others. The attached chart shows different neighborhoods in Denver County (email me for a larger v... 10/31/2008

Broomfield, Westminster, and Northglenn Colorado - Real Estate Trends 4Q 2007By Charles Roberts and Lon Welsh, Your Castle Real Estate.The average home price in Metro Denver increased +2% in the full year 2005 to the full year 2006, from $309,000 to $317,000. Comparing 2006 to 2007, the average home price across the metro dropped 2%, from $311,000. The average price of a foreclosure or short sale dropped in that time period -3% to $188,000. The average price of a non-distress sale increased 5% to $370,000. Sales volume over the last twelve months is off -4% for DSF/ASF. Foreclosure and short sale volume is up +31%; non-distress seller volume is off 20%.Some areas did better than others. The attached chart shows different neighborhoods in North Metro Denver (email me for a bigger map at ... 10/31/2008

Take a look at the first page, for AUN (Aurora North).  Note these positive market trends this year:-          number of active listings steadily declining-          average list price pretty stable (finally!)-          U/C up dramatically-          Number of sales / month up (partially seasonality)-          DOM dropping-          Stability in average sold prices and sold price as % of list-          Sold price as % original price UP a lot - banks are getting better at pricing-          Number of expired listings down Every indicator is improving this year in AUN.  You will see the same trends in DSW (southwest Denver  County), but not as marked an improvement as AUN. By contrast look at DSE (southeast Denver County).  -          listings are up (they should be - seasonality)-         ... 10/31/2008

    The big message has not changed since last quarter - it's still a great time to be a buyer in the condo market. Prices are at a three year low in many areas, and interest rates on mortgages are still historically low.The average condo price in Metro Denver declined 4% between 2006 and 2007: from $187K to $180K. Homes dropped 3% in that time period. Looking just at the first nine months of 2008 vs. the same time period in 2007, the price dropped 6%: from $181K to $172K. Homes dropped 11% in that time period. From their peak prices in 2006, condos have dropped around 9.5% while homes have dropped 12%. These numbers will be slightly different than Metrolist, as they are just Denver Metro and don't include outlying areas like Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, or Boulder.Some areas did be... 10/31/2008

A lot of investors ask what an egress window is and when one is needed. Technically, it's a window for a room below grade that a municipality has deemed large enough to be safe for exit in case of emergency.   While there are some variations, the window needs to be large enough that a firefighter with an oxygen bottle on their back could get in, then carry out an injured person in a fire.  Most often, it's associated with a basement bedroom window, making it a legal bedroom. Basement bedrooms without egress windows are illegal.  Installing an egress window makes them legal.      The confusion is that different cities, counties and agencies have different size requirements and height-above-floor requirements for these windows. Therefore, before you start cutting into the concrete foundat... 10/31/2008

You walk into a property you're looking to buy and rent and you walk down into the basement and voila! you find a full second kitchen.   Great!  You start calculating how much rent you could get if you could rent the downstairs separate from the upstairs and the cashflow is out of this world!  But wait, there are a number of very real problems with this scenario.     First of all, it's illegal unless the property is zoned for more than one tenant and the property has been converted to non-residential use. But there are even more practical reasons why having two separate tenants is often not a great idea. The first is the utilities. Since it's a house there will only be one bill for Excel and water. Who's going to pay it?  Can you really get the tenants to pro-rate their share if you pay... 10/31/2008

The talk around the water cooler these days is all about LOANS. Who can get them? At what price? What if I already have a few loans, do I still qualify?  A year or two ago the question was at what price do I get a loan (those were the days!).  Today it is "am I still in the game?"        Here's the deal:  if you have an owner occupied loan and 3 investor loans you cannot buy any more properties and get Fannie Mae / Freddie Mac financing, meaning you can't get a conventional 30-year fixed loan. Now, my hope is that someone reads this and tells me I'm wrong. That would be great!  But as far as I know that is the case.       Where does this leave you?  You can pursue loans that are warehoused by lenders, meaning they are not sold on the backend to Fannie or Freddie. You are probably lookin... 10/31/2008

  RE/MAX Alliance of Louisville launching "Get on the Bus" a Foreclosure Bus Tour in Denver.   Are you interested in learning how to buy foreclosed homes in the Denver Metro area? Hop on the bus and let us take you on the Denver Foreclosure Tour!   Louisville, CO, October 28, 2008 – Rob Kelly of RE/MAX Alliance of Louisville and David J. Robbins of Golden Lenders will be hosting a Foreclosure Bus Tour on Saturday, November 15th, 2008  This Foreclosure Bus Tour  will provide investors, first time home buyers and others the best opportunity to invest in the current market.  The tour will showcase some of the best bank owned properties in the Denver Metro area.  It is open to the public.  Participants will have an opportunity to view 6-9 homes.  The tour is a 3 hour "Rolling Classroom" tha... 10/30/2008

The big message has not changed since last quarter - it's still a great time to be a buyer in the condo market. Prices are at a three year low in many areas, and interest rates on mortgages are still historically low.The average condo price in Metro Denver declined 4% between 2006 and 2007: from $187K to $180K. Homes dropped 3% in that time period. Looking just at the first nine months of 2008 vs. the same time period in 2007, the price dropped 6%: from $181K to $172K. Homes dropped 11% in that time period. From their peak prices in 2006, condos have dropped around 9.5% while homes have dropped 12%. These numbers will be slightly different than Metrolist, as they are just Denver Metro and don't include outlying areas like Fort Collins, Colorado Springs, or Boulder.Some areas did better... 10/15/2008

If you have not heard already, the inventory of home on the market in Denver has been declining. This is not true in many regions of the county. Your clients, who often only see national headlines, might not be aware of this favorable news. Our market has some unusual factors at work. Let's explore them, so you can better help your clients.If you look at the first chart (MOI 1), you'll see the MOI (months of inventory) for Denver's suburbs on the bottom axis and the average sales price in that suburb on the axis on the left side. Denver metro currently has about six months of inventory (a balanced market, on average), but you can see there is a lot of variety from one city to the next. Lower cost areas, such as Thornton, are seeing inventory move fast. Sellers (mainly banks) don't have... 10/15/2008

Investor often ask me what types of real estate investments are available on the market.  Here's what we tell them. This is the first of several postings on the topic. Please offer comments - positive or negative! Assignments.  If you don't have much equity to work with, and/or if your credit power is limited, assignments can be a way to get started in real estate investing.  You will need to have a strong "sales" personality to succeed at it, though.    Rental Condo or Rental Home.  Purchase of a residential property to be rented out to tenants, usually on a 6-12 month lease term.  This is how most new landlords get started.  You can hire out all of the property management functions, but in many cases you will do many of them on your own.  There are smaller down payment requirements th... 10/15/2008

The average home price in Metro Denver increased +2% in the full year 2005 to the full year 2006, from $309,000 to $317,000. Comparing 2006 to 2007, the average home price across the metro dropped 2%, from $311,000. The average price of a foreclosure or short sale dropped in that time period -3% to $188,000. The average price of a non-distress sale increased 5% to $370,000. Sales volume over the last twelve months is off -4% for DSF/ASF. Foreclosure and short sale volume is up +31%; non-distress seller volume is off 20%.Some areas did better than others. The attached chart shows different neighborhoods in North Metro Denver. Each region has the neighborhood's name and the percentage of sales in the last twelve months that were either short sales or bank-owned properties. The second line... 10/15/2008

Well the news that Conco Phillips plans to build a global showcase for alternative and renewable energies is providing an incentive for other developers to move here too.  A California company finalized a 3,8 million dollar land deal and plans to build 300,000 sq. ft. of commerical space at the Louisville Colorado Technology Center.  Passco Companies, LLC purchased 20 acres within the 580 acre center, which is just north of the planned Conoco Phillips campus.  It's like flies around honey!  "We are excited about this development opportunity in the Colorado market" Carey Levy, president of Passco's development arm, said in a recent statement. Remember that there is opportunity in Boulder County.  Call me to help you. 10/06/2008

An article from The Denver Post, reports that when ConocoPhillips builds out the 432-acre Louisville campus it purchased earlier this year, it could bring more than 7,000 jobs to the area.  Mary Manning, general manager for global real estate and facilities services for ConocoPhillips, said while the company doesn't know exactly how many people will work on the campus, it plans to seek approval from Louisville to accommodate at least 7,000 over the next 20 years.  According to Manning, she expects the first phase of the project to be completed in 2011, rather than in June 2012 as previously announced.  Louisville Mayor Chuck Sisk said he doesn't expect the community will have a shortage of housing as the campus grows.  He added, "We just approved 700 (housing) units in Louisville in the... 06/23/2008

In the next few years ConocoPhillips will be working on the new research and education campus just purchased in Louisville Colorado. The focus of the operations will be on renewable energy.  I'll be part of the relocation team aving had special experience this specialized segment of real estate.  Gregg Ashburn RE/MAX of Boulder, Inc. 303-875-4907 05/04/2008

The Denver real estate market continues to stay relatively flat, with increasing inventory and stagnant or dropping prices.  But just like every market in the country, our little corner of the world has pockets of strength.  Places like Louisville seem to be weathering our current housing storm pretty well.After being named to America's best places to live a few years ago, Louisville has remained on the map as a great place to live in Boulder County.  Residents enjoy an old fashioned Main Street, bristling with activity, restaurants, and shopsPeople who are actively shopping for homes in the Metro Denver area can expect a large variety, with higher than average prices, and plenty of inventory to choose from.  Take a quick look at the active homes for sale in Louisville right now.  And f... 01/17/2008