Get Your First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit - NOW!!

You've decided to purchase a home and take advantage of the 2009 First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit. Here's what you have to do to get your benefit:

1.Close on your home purchase by November 30, 2009,
2.Ensure that you are a qualified first-time buyer under IRS guidelines,
3.Decide which year to file under, 2008 or 2009,
4.File an amended 2008 return or choose to apply the credit to your 2009 tax return.

That last step is important: Deciding When to Apply the Credit

If you want the benefits of your credit as soon as possible you might choose to file under your 2008 tax year. Since April 15 has already passed, you would have to file an amendment to your return. However, if you've already filed for an extension of your 2008 return, then you can simply claim the credit when you submit your return.

A Visit from the District Attorney!

A Visit from the District Attorney!

This is a very interesting article I found on fraudulent Real Estate transactions. This is highly directed to Real Estate investors as they are always seeking a prudent deal and sometimes the best are too good to be true.

A couple of years ago, Real Estate fraud was all about hyped up appraisal valuations and colusion between brokers, lenders, appraisers and title people. This article is sharing about people fraudulently selling homes that don't below to them!!!

Please pay attention to the last paragraph where it addresses steps to take in today's market to insure you are working with the actual seller and it points our potential red flags to look for.

Why use an Exclusive Buyer Agent in Denver

EXCLUSIVE BUYER AGENTS -- represent homebuyers--never sellers. These agents are required by law to get the best price and best terms for the Homebuyer. All consumer advocates recommend that homebuyers take advantage of the benefits offered by exclusive buyer agents. Exclusive buyer agents are specialists in the home buying process. This higher level of professional service for buyers has resulted in an average of over 5% savings and greater satisfaction for homebuyers. Because these agents do not list property, they do not have company listings to try to sell to you first. Instead, all homes are available to homebuyers without bias, including For Sale By Owner, New Build Construction by homebuilders, and Multiple Listing Service homes (other Realtor listings). Exclusive Buyer Brokers will better protect the interests of buyers than dual agents, sub-agents, designated agents, or so called split agents. They are more likely to negotiate a lower sale price on a home, for example.

Metro Denver home prices up

Denver continues to buck national Real Estate trends. The number of homes sold last month increased to 4,186, up 15.4 percent compared with May, according to Metrolist data. The median price for a single-family home rose 8 percent to $237,500. That's also 3.3 percent higher than last June's median price of $230,000.

I work the central Denver neighborhoods in the City & County of Denver near downtown. I can tell you that over the past several months, good properties in good locations that are priced well sell VERY QUICKLY... like the first couple of days on the market. I'm still not seeing a lot of people take advantage of the $8,000 1st Time Home Buyers Tax Credit, but homes are moving. Interest rates are still at all time historic lows.

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_12772370

Denver Neighborhood Rents & Vacancies Both Up

According to the Colorado Division of Housing, both Vacancy & Rents increased in the 1st Quarter 2009 for Single Family Rental Homes in Denver. This report does not include apartment units.

Vacancy for the 1st Quarter 2009 was up to 3.6% and metrowide average rent for rental housing increased to $1,004.44 from $984.61 a year ago. Still a very tight market.

Vacancy rates for the first period by county include: Adams (5.1 percent), Arapahoe (2.9 percent), Boulder/Broomfield (2.1 percent), Denver (4 percent), Douglas (2.4 percent) and Jefferson (3.8 percent).

Read the entire article: http://www.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2009/06/22/daily71.html?ana=from_rss

Denver Homebuyer Incentive; "Green" Program

The City & County of Denver, the Governor's Energy Office, the Denver Board of REALTORS® and the University of Colorado Denver have announced the new Green Pilot Study worth $1,000 for homebuyers

Includes:
- FREE energy walk through of prospective homes
- Discounts on insulation, furnace upgrades and appliances.

Eligibility:
1. Must be a single family detached unit
2. Have a Denver mailing address
3. Be build prior to 2000

*Please note that this study is entirely voluntary and participating buyers will not be obligated to invest in any home efficiency upgrades.

Contact Jon Roberts with Your Castle Real Estate for more information.

Home Energy Tax Credit & Xcel Energy Rebate

There is a 30% federal tax credit (up to $1,500 max) for installing efficient furnaces, A/C units, windows, heat pups, water heaters, etc. Congress expanded this credit for 2009 & 2010 to include doors, insulation materials, and certain roofs. There are no income limitations on these credits (at least as of right now). Note "efficient" has a technical definition so check the IRS' website to make sure what you are installing qualifies. Be sure to get a certificate from your installer for proof should you ever be audited by the IRS. See the IRS website for more information: http://www.irs.gov/formspubs/article/0,,id=207332,00.html

Another set of incentives you may not have known about are rebates offered by Xcel Energy. You can get up to $120 for a new furnace, up to $500 for a new A/C, up to $300 for insulation, up to $100 for water heaters, and more. Some of the rebates require you to use one of their certified installers and other rebates let you use whomever you wish for installation. Your installer needs to sign-off on these rebate forms and I have found that they will require you to hand-hold them a bit since these rebates are so new and they are not very familiar with them. Visit Xcel's website for more information: http://www.xcelenergy.com/Residential/Programs_Resources/HeatingandCoolingRebates/Pages/HeatingandCoolingRebates.aspx

These two things won't pay 100% of the cost for more efficient appliances, but can take a sizeable chunk out of the cost. For example a qualifying new furnace and A/C unit may cost around $6,500, but with the above incentives may only end up costing $4,380 ($6,500 - $1,500 tax credit - $120 Xcel furnace rebate - $500 Xcel A/C rebate).

Denver Real Estate #1 AGAIN in S&P Case/Shiller Index

For the second consecutive month, the Denver area fared the best among 20 U.S. cities reporting drops in home prices, according to data released Tuesday.

Denver is among eight cities that reported a month-over- month gain in prices, rising 1.5 percent compared with May. Dallas posted a larger gain at 1.7 percent.

"There has been a lot of recent optimism about how great Denver is and how it is still a good place to buy real estate. It is terrific to see that this news is backed up with some real statistics."


http://www.denverpost.com/ci_12727752

5280 Magazine's Top 8 Denver Neighborhoods
(% increase is from 2007)

Baker - Avg Sold Price: $255,000 up 8%
Berkeley East - Avg Sold Price: $314,000 up 7%
Cherry Creek - Avg Sold Price: $1,161,000 up 11%
East Highland - Avg Sold Price: $296,000 up 7%
Platt Park - Avg Sold Price: $402,000 up 4%
Rosedale - Avg Sold Price: $360,000 up 17%
University Hills - Avg Sold Price: $303,000 up 6%
Wash Park East - Avg Sold Price: $705,000 up 8%

Forbes: Denver best city to buy a home

This article doesn't come to any surprise to me. I've lost too many 1st Day on the Market full price or above offers in the last 2 months for this not to be the case. In the central Denver Neighborhoods where I work, well located and well priced homes and investment properties move FAST.

http://www.forbes.com/2009/06/22/cities-deals-home-lifestyle-real-estate-home-buying.html

"Denver scores very well in terms of being able to bring people into a stable housing market," says Christopher Cornell, an economist at Moody's ( MCO - news - people ) Economy.com says. "It has better growth potential than most cities today."
Cornell attributes Denver's stability to its main industries--energy and technology--that he says aren't likely to decline simultaneously. He also says its housing market didn't grow as much as in other parts of the country over the last five years. "Little boom, little bust," he says.

Denver Neighborhood: Platt Park

Located directly south of West Wask Park, you'll discover the cozy little neighborhood of Platt Park. Bordered on the north by I-25, Broadway on the west, S. Downing on the east and Evans Ave on the south.

This neighborhood has become a very popular place to live in Denver for many reasons. The neighborhood is very centrally located just minutes from downtown and 5-10 minutes to the Denver Tech Center. It's also close to the very popular Washington Park and the University of Denver about a mile to the east on Evans Ave.

Another attractive feature of Platt Park is it's walkability. Old South Pearl street is a commercial district smack dab in the middle of the neighborhood offering arguably the best sushi in Denver, Sushi Den. Next door is Pearl Street Grill and next to that is the best Indian food I've had in Denver, the new India's Pearl which occupies the old and missed Lola's (relocated to the Highlands). Across the street is Stella's, a very popular coffee shops. Up the street is one of my favorite date spots: The Village Cork, a wine bar. Across the street from there is Hansen's Irish Pub. Catch some live music up from there at Lincoln's Roadhouse. Don't forget about The Black Pearl, Gaia Bistro, Izakya Den (from the owner's of Sushi Den).

Want some more out of the Platt Park neighborhood?? How about a Light Rail Station located at the intersection of Lousianna & Clarkson. This stop on the Southeast Rail line will quickly take you to downtown or the Denver Tech Center.

The old Gates Rubber Company is a 50 acre brownfield development located at the very northwest tip of the neighborhoood. After several years of environmental cleanup, buildings are starting to go vertical. Word is development has been stalled due to current market condition, but look for this highly visible and well located plot to continue to move forward. Plans are for a mixed-use development with Office, Retail and Residential units to surround the Broadway Light Rail Station.

Real Estate in the area has seen a nice rise in home values. Everything from single family homes, duplexes and small multi-unit structures can be found in Platt Park. There has also been quite a bit of scrape development in the area with the favorable R-2 Zoning (more to come on this as Denver introduces a new zoning code this year). Victorians and bungalows dominate the architectural style along with the new modern construction and some 50's brick ranches.

Average single family home price in Platt Park as of April 2009 was approx. $400K. Average Days on Market to sell a home here was 106 Days. Here is a link a website with lots of nice photos of the neighborhood: http://www.city-data.com/forum/denver/116544-platt-park-area-old-south-pearl.html

Denver Neighborhood: Highlands

The Highlands Neighborhood is an eclectic and diverse neighborhood located just to the north & west of downtown Denver. Part of it's appeal is it's access to downtown. Just minutes for most residents, "LoHi" is walkable via the pedestrian bridge that crosses I-25 around 16th St.





The Highlands Neighborhood has traditionally been referred to a huge area bounded by Sheridan Blvd to the west (which is also the Denver Co. line), I-70 to the north, Colfax Ave to the south and I-25 to the east. However, the huge Highlands area is actually broken up in to 6 distinct neighborhoods: East Highlands, West Highlands, Berkeley, Sunnyside, Sloans Lake & Jefferson Park.

Several amentities can be found in the Highlands:

1. Highland Square is a very lively commercial district located at the intersection of 32nd Ave & Lowell Blvd. It is considered by many to be the heart of the neighborhood. Homes walking distance to wonderful restaurants, coffee shops & boutiques in Highland Square demand a premium.
2. Sloans Lake & Park. Sloans Lake Park which is occupied mostly by the lake is 177 acres just north of Colfax Ave.
3. Jefferson Park. A small 1 block park just a hop, skip & jump from Invesco at Mile High Stadium. Tons of new development going on around this park.
4. Tennyson Commercial District is an approx. 6 block up & coming commercial area with lots of new shops & restuarants on Tennyson Street between 38th & 44th Ave.
5. Historic Potter Highlands. A historically protected part of the neighborhood with beautiful turn of the century Victorians. Boundaries are for Potter Highlands is Federal to the west, Zuni to the east, 32nd Ave to the south and 38th Ave to the north.
6. "LoHi". This is the part of East Highlands located just across the pedestrian bridge headed into downtown. LoHi has seen an explosion of develpment due to the walkable amenities and very favorable zoning for development.

Architecurally this is something for everyone in the Highlands neighborhoods. The neighborhoods are primarily single family residential with some duplexes and small multi-unit structures. There are historic and character filled bungalows & victorians as well as a bunch of solid brick ranch homes built in the 40's & 50's. Due to some favorable zoning and relatively cheap lot prices for the proximity to downtown, there has been a lot of tear down/scrape development in the area where new modern larger homes have been built.

Here are some average home prices and other statistics for the various areas of the Highlands as of May 2009:

• West Highlands - Avg Home Price: $366K and Avg 88 Days on Market
• East Highlands - Avg Home Price: $300K and Avg 80 Days on Market
• Sloans Lake - Avg Home Price: $315K and Avg 81 Days on Market
• Jefferson Park - Avg Home Price: $239K and Avg 127 Days on Market
• Berkeley - Avg Home Price: $194K and Avg 64 Days on Market (Great Value!)
• Sunnyside - Avg Home Price: $164K and Avg 91 Days on Market (Great Value!)

NOTE: The new construction homes on lots that have been torn down sell considerably higher and provide modern living in the city. New condos start in the low $200K's, New Townhomes available in the $350-700K range and a few single family homes in the starting at $400K.

Denver Neighborhood: East & West Washington Park

Washington Park is one of Denver's most prestigious neighborhoods. Many characteristics have helped create the allure desireable area of Denver. For starters, it's very centrally located. It's located right off interstate I-25 and just about halfway between Denver's two largest employment areas which are downtown and the Denver Tech Center.

Another draw is the 165 acre park itself. Denver residents tend to love the outdoors and remain quite active. There is a running trail that encircles the park and makes for a nice 2.7 mile jog/run. In addition to the park, there are lot's of walkable amenities in the neighborhood. S. Gaylord Street in East Wash Park is a one block commercial district with a several great restaurants, shops & bars. Alameda Ave offers coffee shops, restaurants, conveient stores. There are also a couple of corner businesses scattered thorough both the East & West sides.

Most local residents know, but for the newbie it's good to know that the neighborhood is distinctly different on the East & West side of the park and is often referred to as "East Wash Park" and "West Wash Park".

East Wash Park is bounded by University Blvd to the East, S. Franklin to the west, Alameda Ave to the north and I-25 to the south. East Wash Parl is considered to be more affluent and is evidenced by the average single family home price of $665K. East Wash Park is prodiminently single family homes sitting on double lots (6,250 SF) or lots & a half (approx. 4,687 SF). Homes in East Wash Park today average appoximately 108 Days on Market to sell.

West Wash Park is bounded by Broadway to the west, S. Downing to the east, Alameda Ave to the north and I-25 to the south. West Wash Park is denser than East Wash Park with apartment buildings, condos and townhomes sprinkled among single family homes. For this reason, the average single family home sells for approximately $391K. However, there are 1/2 duplexes, townhomes and condos that can be purchased in the neighborhood from the $150K range. Homes in West Wash Park today average appoximately 85 Days on Market to sell.

In addition to the density, there are couple of more reasons the West side of the park is more affordable. There are several busy streets on the west side that aren't found on the east side. There are two one-way streets: Emerson & Washington. These streets provide great opportunities to quickly cruise north & south through town. However, all those cars moving up & down them make them quite busy and should be taken into account when considering a home to purchase. Logan and Downing on the west side of the park have stop light, businesses and tend to be more busy than most.

Typical single family home in East or West Wash Park was built in the early-middle part of the 1900's with bungalow and victorian being the prodiment architectural sytle. Homes typically range from 800 to 1800 SF and often have basements that are can be finished and provide additional livable SF.