According to Fox News, the top city for investing and making money in the housing market is Denver Colorado.

Greg Rand, CEO of OwnAmerica.com spoke with Fox Business News on how to invest in the economic and housing growth of Denver.

People are moving to Denver from all over the country," says Rand, "The average age is 31 years old, so the population is young, stable and the future looks good in the long term."

The unemployment rate in Denver at 7.9 percent is lower than the national average and the foreclosure rate, according to Rand, is half the national average.

"It comes down to the lifestyle," says Rand, "low cost of living, high quality of life, and a love of the outdoors."

Denver is also home to 9 Fortune 500 companies, offering great job opportunities and the median home price is only $244,100.  Looking at housing prices for Denver in the last 15 years; "we didn't see a full housing collapse in the Denver market," says Rand, "we see a correction, but it bounced back again."

Watch the full video at Fox Business News.

Image Source: Denver.org

Posted in Real Estate Investing, Real Estate Industry, National News

The number of residential luxury homes for sale in Denver dropped to 566 in December of last year, down from 650 available homes in November 2011.  Year over year, the inventory level dropped 35% from 875 available homes, according to Dennis Huspeni of the Denver Business Journal.

The average sale price was $1.51 million in December, up from November's average sales price of $1.44 million These numbers were from the 11 county area surrounding Denver where most of the homes sold were in Douglas County. "There's a very limited inventory out there." said Gary Bauer a Littleton broker, who compiled the results from Metrolist data. "But I think in 2012, we'll see improvements in the number of transactions and the average sales price."

Statistics reported include:

• 502 luxury homes sold last year, compared to 505 in 2010.
• Sales Volume is down 1 percent from $773 million in 2010 to $763 million in 2011.
• The average sales price stayed the same, at $1.5 million, year over year.

Read the full story at Denver Business Journal

photo credit: wagneriteam

Posted in Real Estate Market Conditions, Real Estate Industry, Luxury Home Market

What is the best way to connect with clients looking to buy a home?

...And more importantly,

how do they connect with YOU?

The National Association of Realtors surveyed recent home buyers about their purchase and found that 40 percent first learned about their home from internet searches.

And, 91 percent of home buyers who used the Internet to search for a home eventually purchased the home through a real estate agent.

"Local metropolitan multiple listing service websites were the most popular Internet resource, used by 56 percent of buyers;" states the survey, "followed by real estate agent websites at 46 percent; Realtor.com accounted for 45 percent; real estate company sites were 40 percent; other websites with real estate listings, 38 percent; and for-sale-by-owner sites, 14 percent; other categories were notably smaller."

88% of Home Buyers are searching the Net

The NAR reports that the typical homebuyer looked at a median of 12 homes over a period of 12 weeks and used a combination of resources in their search. 88 percent used the internet and 7 percent a real estate agent; 55 percent used yard signs, 45 percent attended open houses, and 30 percent read newspaper ads. A buyer typically starts on-line and then contacts an agent."

Video is the Way to Connect with Home Buyers

Are you using the internet to its full potential? Google is the second largest search engine on the internet. Successful real estate agents use video to connect with potential clients, whether it's an introductory video, an expert video, or a home or neighborhood tour. Video is a powerful way to generate leads when customers are searching the web for information.

People are out there searching for homes on the internet right now and looking for a real estate agent to help them. Help them connect with you.

Click here to learn more about how you can Harness the Power of Video in your Business.

Sign up for a Free Consultation with one of our video marketing specialists and 25% off IPTV Boyz professional Video Production Services.

Read the full report at NAR.

photo credit: liquidnight

Posted in Headlines, Real Estate Industry

Home buying in Colorado is still a better option than renting, especially since apartment vacancies are at a 10-Year low and rent prices have increased statewide.

A home buyer purchasing a typical 2 bedroom home in Denver at current average interest rates would have a mortgage payment of approximately $965 a month. Denver's average home sale price from August to October 2011 was $192,000. (Monthly costs based on 4.25% interest rates with a 20% down payment.)

"Denver's overall cost of living is 35% above the national average, so it's not the cheapest place to live." states Trulia, a real estate data website. The median price for apartment rentals is $700 in the Denver area with rents ranging all the way up to $2,000 a month depending on location, size and amenities.

In Colorado Springs, the average home sale price is $178,549, which calculates out to be approximately $900 a month, based on 4.25% interest rate and a 20% down payment.

"Colorado Springs enjoys an overall cost of living that's 29% below the national average. Apartment rentals are lower-priced here than in Denver." states Trulia. The average price for apartments is $640 per month with amenity-rich apartments going for $800 and up.

The National Association of Realtors recently reported that 30-Year Mortgage rates have fallen below 4%, for the first time in thirty years. "Expect mortgage rates to average something closer to a 4.5 percent rate by spring of next year and possibly hit 5.0 percent one year from now." predicts NAR Chief Economist, Lawrence Yun. "A lower mortgage rate in later months is not likely."

So depending on what you are looking for, home buying is still an affordable option versus renting. Take advantage of low interest rates and low prices on homes and hire a professional REALTOR® to help you decide if buying a home is an option for you.

photo credit: herlitz_pbs

Posted in Denver Colorado Real Estate, Real Estate Market Conditions, Real Estate Industry, Gen X-Y

Denver ranked 10^th in the U.S. on housing market strength, reported Dennis Huspeni for the Denver Business Journal.

"Denver achieved its ranking because its home values are holding steady, its foreclosed-homes inventory is dwindling, and its economy is stronger than most other markets." writes Huspeni.

The data was collected by Hanley Wood, a Marketing Analysis firm, presenting the healthiest housing markets in the largest 200 housing markets in America.  "These 200 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) are ranked based on an index that measures the key economic variables that drive home sales, including unemployment, home price appreciation, job growth, median income growth and household growth." states Hanley Wood. 

"The good news is, it's not getting worse. Denver is right at the point of recovery." said Jonathan Smoke, the executive director of Hanley Wood.  In spite of this being an average year for home sales and new homes being built, Smoke predicts that the Denver market has been through the worst and is expected to rebound.

Hanley Wood predicts that national recovery will be in 2014.  "Denver's economy is the key," said Smoke, "and is expected to recover jobs lost during the recession six months before the rest of the country. "

Read the full story at Denver Business Journal.

photo credit: JoeInSouthernCA

Posted in Real Estate Market Conditions, Real Estate Industry