Denver real estate blog

We stopped taking the newspaper a few months ago. What I miss most about the daily rag is the comics, which I guess goes to show you just how valuable the daily was in my life. Oddly enough, about the same time, I stopped watching the 10 o’clock news, which is now the “all the time” news, so I am no longer in touch with the talking heads of broadcast media. So, it was a bit unusual that as I was waiting for my plane home after an out of town conference a few days ago, I was idly watching a talking head on a television in the terminal. The talking head was speaking in sad tones about the state of the economy and mentioned in passing the national real estate market having lost XXX trillions of value in the last few years. It suddenly occurred to me that the talking head did not understand the concept of a market, as he was just reading the script. So goes my inspiration for this article.

According to Webster, a market (from the Latin -mercatus), is “a meeting together of people for the purpose of trade by private purchase“. Further, a market is a geographic area of demand for commodities or services. Real Estate is defined as property in buildings or land. So, a “real estate market” is “a meeting together of people in a geographic area for the purposes of purchasing buildings or land“. What the media is constantly referring to as “the real estate market” is really a reference to housing data compiled from thousands of markets to present simple and reportable national averages that can be addressed in 30 or 60 second sound bites.

In the Denver area real estate market, as with most markets nationwide, there are really many “markets”. Certainly there are many geographic markets, with values in neighborhoods such as Washington Park remaining steady, and values in Green Valley Ranch plummeting due to excessive foreclosures.There are new development projects such as The Landmark in Greenwood Village that are selling as fast as the builder can finish them, and other new home projects that are not selling at all. There are also markets stratified by price. Today, in Metro Denver, the price bracket of $100,000 to $200,000 is actually a sellers market, with multiple offers presented on some properties, and sales well over asking price on many bank owned homes. However, there is a glut of million dollar plus homes, with sales slowed to the level of watching grass grow.

And the “real estate market” is very dependent on another market, the “monetary” or “credit” market. With the worldwide money market in complete disarray, the housing market, as well as every other market, is captive to the lack of available credit.

The “real estate market” is much too individually specific, much to complicated, and much to local to accept what the talking heads are spewing on the nightly news. If you have need to buy or sell real property, you must take time to understand the market as it applies to your specific needs. You might want to spend time with a knowledgeable Realtor® and have an extended conversation about how your specific needs relate to the “market”.

Written by Larry D. McGee, Denver Realtor - Visit Website Sphere: Related Content

I just returned from the Rocky Mountain CRB meeting at the Broadmoor Hotel, where I received my “thank you very much” award for serving as chapter President. Beyond that, the small but vociferous group of leaders in attendance brainstormed ideas on just how to make the Rocky Mountain CRB more useful to the managing brokers. One particularly good idea, which became a theme, was to have speakers from outside the industry speak to us about how to do better the things we do. Great concept, and we will make that happen starting in December. Realtors® need positive technique influence from other successful business models, and the RM CRB Chapter has a plan to make that happen.

Learning from Others

Of more interest to you is my happenstance discovery of a “You Tube” video on the http://www.thephoenixrealestateguy.com blog site. Go there and view the 15 minute video attached to the first entry today. Listen and learn.

Remain Calm

In these challenging times, I hear many Realtors® asking “what do I do to make a sale”. Here are my thoughts:

Please remember that we are in the sales business. We sell a service. Many people still want to acquire houses, and many people still need to sell them. The service we sell is the expertise to join together a buyer and a seller and effect a sale of real property. It is more difficult (but obviously not impossible) today because people are scared and concerned about the economy, politics, war, and their job. The public needs you, as the professional, to be informative, reassuring and yes, professional. Be calm, point out the plus sides of buying a home today, the big one being that prices are low enough to make home ownership possible for many people.

Selling Simplified

Selling is simple. Here is how it works:

1.) Find another person to talk to. (there are people everywhere, just start connecting)

2.) Ask that person about the things that matter, family, occupation, recreation, and dreams (F.O.R.D.). (if you do not care a whit about people, it is difficult to demonstrate genuine curiosity)

3.) Listen. (this is really hard, because we really want to talk. You are listening for clues of change)

4.) Determine if there is a need for the thing you are selling.

5.) If so, sell it; if not, add or make current their contact information, bid a pleasant goodbye, and find another person to talk to.

We have in our home over 30 books on selling techniques, and they all boil down to that level of simplicity. Just 5 things, all 5 of which we learned before we were 6 years old. Somewhere after 6, probably by age 10 or 12, we learned about rejection. That learning experience was painful, and has screwed all of us up since then. Humans hate rejection, and we will avoid it whenever possible. We go to great lengths to find business without actually asking for it, hoping that because of our great technique, people will just line up and beg to work with us. That does not happen often enough to make a living. Rejection will not kill you (it does not feel good, but it will not kill you). Talk to people, you will find business. Really.

Cheese Chasing

Back in 1998, Spencer Johnson, M.D. wrote a very cool book titled “Who Moved My Cheese”. I urge you pick up a copy and breeze through it. It is a short but valuable read. Since our cheese has been moved, both internally and externally, and is probably true that our cheese will never sit still again, you should embrace techniques to help you keep your eye on the cheese.

Written by Larry D. McGee, Denver Realtor - Visit Website Sphere: Related Content

Along with many other Denver area residents I have enjoyed visiting the annual Parade of Homes, supported by the Home Builders Association of Metro Denver. As a Realtor®, I am of course professionally interested in the products, styles, and vision offered by some of the areas best custom home builders. Therefore I noted with interest the announcement in today’s newspaper of the 2009 Parade of Homes. The 2009 event will be held at McKay Shores, a high end development in Broomfield, a suburb northwest of Denver. Home prices from 1 million to 1.5 million, down somewhat from recent years. Reading the announcement led me to a curiosity moment. Knowing that million dollar plus homes are not flying off the shelves, I looked at the sales of homes in the 2007 and 2008 Parade of Homes, and then at the current available inventory of similarly priced homes.

Oops!

It appears that the very cool, extremely well designed and well built custom homes showcased in both the 2007 and 2008 Parades are not selling well. Some of the 2007 homes are now owned by the banks that financed them, and I am told that showing activity on the 2008 Parade is very slow. Seems we like to look, but do not (or cannot) want to buy.

There are 1,940 homes for sale in Metropolitan Denver priced between 1 and 3 million, the recent target prices for the Parade homes. 38 such homes sold in the past 30 days. That amount of inventory divided by that amount of sales indicates a 4.25 year supply of homes in the 1 to 3 million price range.

A much as I enjoy visiting new million dollar homes, I must question the wisdom of next years Parade. What banks are going to finance the construction, especially in light of sales at the past 2 events? Which builders really want to showcase their product, risking the embarrassment of their best not selling?

Why?

While it is probably too late to alter the 2009 event, I respectfully offer a thought on future events. Build really nice showcase products that are obtainable by the above average buyer. Make them very functional, use the best products, make them green and energy efficient. 2000 to 3000 well designed square feet, with space for 2 cars and some toys (and a plug for electric cars). With a four year supply of million dollar homes, the building community may need to rethink.

Written by Larry D. McGee, Denver Realtor - Visit Website Sphere: Related Content

Today I will take a break form “Bailoutgate” and turn my attention to the Colorado Ballot issues. Before I
make a few comments, I will briefly describe each of the 13 (thirteen??!!) proposed amendments and 4 referendums.

• Amendment 46 - an anti-discrimination measure

• Amendment 47 - stipulates that an employer cannot require an employee to belong or pay dues to a labor union

• Amendment 48 - requires that the term “person” be applied at the moment of fertilization

• Amendment 49 - addresses payroll deductions form government employees

• Amendment 50 - Allows increased stakes at Colorado casinos, with the increase in tax revenue funding community colleges

• Amendment 51- somehow increases the state budget limit to fund development disabilities

• Amendment 52 - requires that 1/2 of of severance tax revenues go to a transportation construction trust fund

• Amendment 53 - extends the potential of a business’s criminal liability to that business’s executives

• Amendment 54 - limits campaign contributions for contractors holding government contracts

• Amendment 55 - creates “just cause” conditions as a requirement for an employee’s dismissal by by the employer

• Amendment 56 - establishes at 20 the maximum number of employee’s that can be employed without the employee providing health insurance
• Amendment 57 - requires an employer to provide a safe workplace
• Amendment 58 - increases the severance tax on oil and gas ($321 million)
• Amendment 59 - requires that any excess state funds be delivered to K-12 education

Referendum L - requires that an elector be 21 years of age to serve in the Colorado general assembly

Referendum M - addresses obsolete defininitions of land value

Referendum N - eliminates outdated provisions of the Colorado constitution

Referendum O - increases the number of signatures required to initiate an amendment to the Colorado constitution

WOW! That is a bunch of stuff. All of those references were loosely paraphrased from a (5) page notice in the Denver Post on Sunday, September 21. By loosely, I did nothing more than try to describe in very simple terms the just of each amendment or referendum. To actually read and attempt to understand every proposal absorbed over 2 hours of my time. I consider myself at least in possession of average literacy, and I quite frankly did not completely understand over 1/2 of the material presented. Many Amendments conflict with one another. I am given to understand that these conflicts are deliberate, presented by organizations with opposing agenda.

At the risk of offending many well meaning people, the voters in Colorado should reject every proposal on this years ballot, and then demand a constitutional convention. The Colorado constitution is a mess, rife with conflicting provisions that limit taxes on the one hand and demand taxes on the other. The constitution is littered with provisions that should reside in the statutes. While the electorate should most certainly have the ability to challenge and amend the Colorado constitution, it should certainly be more difficult than is presently true.

If we continue to dilute and obfuscate the principal governing document for Colorado, we will make Colorado a very undesirable place to live. Of course a voting population that has become self absorbed with personal benefit probably deserves no more than a failed government.

Written by Larry D. McGee, Denver Realtor - Visit Website Sphere: Related Content