Archive for March, 2011
Clocktower at Highlands Ranch March update
Clocktower at Highlands Ranch has been busy with their new townhome construction, and also on the first condo building. The following is an update of what is available.
The first condo building will be Building 5B, and they are busy with the basement garage foundation.
Looking west at the basement and parking for Condos
The townhomes have 3 buildings that have available units as 2 or 3 bedrooms, interior or end units:
Building 15 is near drywall installation and has 3 of the 4 units still available. The left unit is sold.
Building 15 with available townhomes at Clocktower
Building 10 and Building 7 are in the dirt moving stage, but building 10 has 5 of the 6 units available. The unit that will be constructed on the west side of the building is the one that is under contract. Building 7 on a mini corner location has 3 of the 4 units still available, as one of the end units already has a hold.
Moving dirt for buildings 10 and 7
For more information on these new townhomes and condos in Highlands Ranch, email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net, or call 303-888-2488.
Denver 2011 Parade of Homes Announces Dates
The 2011 Denver Parade of Homes tour, that will feature many Million dollar homes, scattered from Longmont down to Castle Rock has announced the dates for 2011. Save the weekends of August 11 thru Labor Day (Sept. 5th). Besides the weekends add on the Thursdays and Fridays in between for a total of 16 days to drive to all the different homes.
This event is sponsored by the Home Builders of Denver.
All the homes will be for sale, after you have viewed the homes and you see one you like, we can always meet to discuss purchasing your dream home. Email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net, or calling 303-888-2488.
Michael Garard meets with NAR president Ron Phipps
Michael Garard of Garard & Associates attended the private Realtor only Town hall meeting conducted by The National Association of Realtors and hosted by our national president Ron Phillips. He spoke on a variety of subjects based on the town hall format of questions from the microphone. Answers like real estate has led the nation out of the last 6/8 recessions, other 2 were wars. MID matters, as this could effect 15% of the value of your homes, which equates to about 2.5 Trillion, with a “T”, Dollars in equity.
This was all part of The National Association of Realtors Home Ownership matters campaign, coninciding with the Homeownership Matters Bus Tour. Ron spoke for about an hour an a half, and it was great to hear his passion, as he too is a Realtor from Rhode Island, selling homes, just like we do. But he, on our behalf, is also meeting in Washington with lawmakers and congressman trying to further the national agenda of saving the Mortgage Interest Deduction (MID), and discussing ways to keep the lenders lending money for homebuyers.
NAR has 1.1 million members, and is the largest trade association, looking to help buyers and sellers in all their real estate transactions.
Good jobs enable people to achieve the American dream of home ownership. Every time a house is built, bought, or sold, jobs are created—lots of them—right here in Colorado.
- Home sales in this country generate more than 2.5 million private-sector jobs in an average year.
- For every two homes sold, a job is created.
- Each home sale touches dozens of different professions.
- Every home purchased pumps up to $60,000 into the economy over time for furniture, home improvements, and related items.
- Housing accounts for more than 15% of the Gross Domestic Product, making it a key driver in our national economy.
- Housing has led this country out of six of the last eight recessions.
America needs jobs. Housing creates jobs. That’s one of the many reasons home ownership matters to people, to communities, to America. Strong federal government support of homeownership equals strong support for American jobs.
Remember, Jobs and Home Ownership. You can’t have one without the other.
Please keep in mind, not all real estate agents are Realtors, I am proud to be one for the last 26 years.
To discuss this further, call me at 303-888-2488, or email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net.
Douglas County Highlands Ranch Substation Phone Number
We have received several calls from our blog of the Douglas County substation located in Highlands Ranch and wanted to add their phone number, to avoid confusion.
303-784-7800
The following is the address for the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office at the
Highlands Ranch Substation
9250 Zotos Drive
Highlands Ranch, CO 80126
Hours of Public Services: 730am – 530pm, Monday through Friday except Holidays
Services: Public Fingerprinting, records requests, payment of tickets, sex offender lists, etc.
Not available at this location: Concealed Weapons Permits, Sex Offender Registration.
Hope this helps on confusion.
You can reach me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net.
Verona at Highlands Ranch Models have Plumbing and Electrical
Just came back from viewing the inside of the Verona Models: the Albero, the Barone, the Capello, and the level of completion is to the stage that the plumbing and the electrical have been installed. That will leave the insulation, then the drywall, and then the interior finishes.
As I was walking thru the models, some things were noticed. All the units have interior sprinkler systems, which is a nice luxury amenity not found in the suburbs. The construction also has a lot of 2×6 exterior wall construction, even between the units. What this means, is more insulation, and better sound proofing, which is always a concern of buyers.
Since the walls have gone up, the builder on many of their walkthru’s, have made wonderful changes that improve the flow and makeup of the units. This community will still be 55 and above, but they will make early concessions (***). Unfortunately the base price has risen since our last blog, viewed here discussing the 3 Verona models.
Email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net or call me at 303-888-2488 and I can let you know about the changes.
Spaces at The Ranch, Featured Home, Plan 3002, available soon
We just received the word that Shea Homes has an available home ready next month, at 9811 Dunning Circle, at a price of around $265,043. This will be 1734 square feet, a 2 sleep (bed), 3 splash (bathrooms) 2 story home.
3002 floor plan 3002 Artist rendering
Also comes with these features:
- Main-floor office
- Stainless steel appliances
- Solatube day lighting
- Cultured white marble countertops with integrated sink at all splash spaces
- 40″ flat-panel TV
- Wood-style laminate flooring throughout main floor
- European-style cabinetry in sable brown
- Stone backsplash at the kitchen
- Upgraded tile in the master splash
- Deck with stairs overlooking yard and garden-level basement
- Mountain and city vistas from master bedroom
Check out our quick video of Driving into The Spaces at the Ranch subdivision.
Contacting a buyer broker to help when buying a new home can save you thousands. Email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net, or call 303-888-2488.
Last of the Girders to be installed at C470 and Santa Fe
It has been several weeks, but the last of the girders over C470, Santa Fe and the Off ramps will be installed tonight. Real progress has been made.
The merge lane flyover girder bridge over the off ramp has been progressing, and should be completed.
You can always contact me for the latest of what is happening in highlands Ranch, at 303-888-2488, or email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net.
For a previous link to our other blog on this CDOT construction project, click on C470 construction.
Allen Iverson’s mansion in foreclosure in Buell Mansion of Cherry Hills Village
The Arapahoe county Public Trustee has started foreclosure on behalf of Wells Fargo bank on Allen Iverson’s mansion in the exclusive neighborhood of Buell Mansion. When he was with the Denver Nuggets, he bought the home in a Trust for $3,875,000 using a conventional loan of $2,500,000, at an adjustable interest rate of 7.65%. This would have been a monthly Principle and Interest payment of $17,737.86.
The home loan is set to be sold at auction on June 29, 2011, unless he cures the loan of its back payments. The loan has increased to $2,572,914, plus attorney costs and court costs. He does have the home currently under contract, and the last known price is $2,850,000, 1 million dollars less than he paid 3 years ago. Yearly taxes are $30,332 and the monthly HOA dues are $489.
It is also interesting to note that in the Buell Mansion subdivision, all million dollar homes, there have been 8 homes over the last 10 years go thru complete foreclosure and sold at the” court house steps”. Currently there are 5 homes that the lenders have started foreclosure proceedings. If anyone has some cash to invest, we can go house hunting in the exclusive neighborhood of Buell Mansion.
Call me at 303-888-2488, or email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net, to discuss your wants in a luxury home.
HGTV Green home in Stapleton to be open in May 2011
HGTV has announced the times that the 2011 Green Home built in Stapleton will be open for viewing tours. This will be from May 5, 2011 to July 3, 2011, from about 10am to 6pm. There will also be fundraising to benefit Urban Peak organization.
You can view the outside by video at our previous blog with details of the materials used to build the green home.
As always you can call me at 303-888-2488, or email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net to discuss your new home build.
Feb 2011 MLS statistics for Highlands Ranch
The latest MLS statistics for Highlands Ranch has been released, and after 2 months of the real estate selling season, there have been some improvements. TheFebruary 2011 Highlands Ranch MLS one page report can be printed, but a few points stand out.
1. # of closed sales from last February to this February went up 13%
2. Average Days on the Market went up 15% to 112 days, and last month it was 114 days
3. # of new listings dropped 47% to 184
4. Average Days on the Market for condos skyrocketed up 119% to 171
5. Absorbtion rate for condos is about 8 months, compared to homes at about 6.3 months.
6. Number of new condo listings sank to 28, a 65% drop.
For specific area by area, subdivision by subdivision, for your home, give me a call at 303-888-2488, or email me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net.
FHA Mortgage Insurance Premium to Increase
The FHA insurance program that currently insures loans up to $729,750 in high cost markets is set to have an increase in the premium of a quarter of a percentage point on the 30 and 15 year loans. Most FHA loans allow 3.5% downpayment with a 1% upfront premium, and a 0.9% annual premium. It is the annual premium that is going up by .25%.
This new pricing program will go in effect on April 18, 2011 for those borrowers who do not have a case number by that date.
The FHA program is still viable for this market, as 75%-80% of FHA purchase loans are by first time homebuyers.
If you are thinking of buying a home with minimal down, now is the time to act, before it costs you more per month. We can have you call Doug Mayer at Wells Fargo to get prequalified. To set up a meeting to go over your needs and wants in a home, call me at 303-888-2488, or email at mcgmhg@earthlink.net.
Are Homeowners Associations, “HOA’s”, Necessary??
A great article was just published that covers some of the aspects of whether HOA’s are really necessary. Our company was interviewed to offer some insights for the Colorado angle. Having been associated with over 10 different associations, and even have been the president of one association, I was happy to lend some expertise in the matter. This article covers the duties outlined by the covenants, who is on the board, budgets, requirements of officers and city/county zoning and their conflicts. Take a read at:
HOA’s, are they really necessary?
For further discussions of your HOA, or other real estate matters, contact me at mcgmhg@earthlink.net, or calling 303-888-2488.
