Colorado Housing • For Buyers • March 4, 2020

Finding Your New Home in Four Steps

by Fort Collins

content_Windermere_Real_Estate_Blog__-_Home_in_Four_Steps.png

Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer or you currently own and are looking for a new home, the ideas below will help you better navigate that all-important first step: Finding a property that is both appealing and affordable.

The search for a new home always starts out with a lot of excitement. But if you haven’t prepared, frustration can soon set in, especially in a competitive real estate market. The biggest mistake is jumping into a search unfocused, just hoping to “see what’s available.” Instead, we recommend you first take some time to work through the four steps below.

Step 1: Talk to your agent

Even if you’re just thinking about buying or selling a house, start by consulting your real estate agent. An agent can give you an up-to-the-minute summary of the current real estate market, as well as mortgage industry trends. They can also put you in touch with all the best resources and educate you about the next steps, plus much more. If you are interested in finding an experienced agent in your area, we can connect you here.

Step 2: Decide how much home you can afford

It may sound like a drag to start your home search with a boring financial review, but when all is said and done, you’ll be glad you did. With so many people competing to buy what is available, it’s far more efficient to focus your search on the properties you can afford. A meeting or two with a reputable mortgage agent should tell you everything you need to know.

Step 3: Envision your future

Typically, it takes at least five years for a home purchase to start paying off financially—which means—the better your new home suits you, the longer you’ll most likely remain living there.

Thinking of your near future, what life events do you anticipate in the next five or six years? If you’re planning to add to the family or change careers, or even rent out a portion of your home to others, share this information with your real estate agent. They will be able to help you evaluate your current and future needs to help find the best home that you can grow into.

Step 4: Visualize your ideal home

When it comes to this step, be realistic. It’s easy to get carried away dreaming about all the home features you want. Try listing everything on a piece of paper, then choose the five “must-haves,” and the five “really-wants.”

For more tips, as well as advice geared specifically to your situation, connect with an experienced Windermere Real Estate agent by clicking here.

Northern Colorado Real Estate • July 14, 2017

Odds Are…

by Fort Collins

As you drive around Northern Colorado and see homes with “For Sale” signs in the front yard, there is a simple rule of thumb.

If the home is priced under $400,000, the odds are that home is under contract on its way to closing.

If the home is priced over $400,000, the odds are it is still available.

For example…

In Fort Collins there are 275 homes priced under $400,000 on the market (with signs in the front yard). 168 of those are already have a buyer and 107 are still for sale. So, 38% of the homes priced under $400,000 are available to purchase. (Check out the live feed of the homes for sale in Fort Collins under $400,000 HERE.)

For homes priced over $400,000 there is a different story. 454 are on the market in Fort Collins. 171 of those are spoken for which means 62% are still available. (Check out the live feed of the homes for sale in Fort Collins over $400,000 HERE.)

For the rest of Northern Colorado the numbers are very similar. Roughly a third of the homes priced under $400,000 are still available for sale and about two thirds of homes priced over $400,000 are available.

Another important point is this – there is a perception that ALL homes priced under $400,000 are already sold. This is not true. Yes, inventory is tight but there are opportunities for buyers.

►► If you would like a detailed report on the market, we just released our quarterly market report called The Scoop. Contact us to receive a copy. (970) 460-3033 or NoCo@windermere.com ◄◄

Blog • Fun Facts • February 3, 2017

Limited Choices

by Fort Collins

Pretend that customer walks into our office and tells us they are looking for a single family home in Fort Collins. We would tell them that there are 314 to choose from. But if they told us their price range is up to $300,000, their choices would be limited to just 10 homes.

Single family homes priced under $300,000 only represent 3.18% of the total inventory in Fort Collins. This is a big reason why buyers are opening up their search to communities that surround Fort Collins.

Here’s a snapshot of the major Northern Colorado markets:

Loveland: 176 Homes For Sale/15 Priced Under $300,000
Windsor: 151 Homes For Sale/6 Priced Under $300,000
Greeley: 98 Homes For Sale/33 Priced Under $300,000
Fort Collins: 314 Homes For Sale/10 Priced Under $300,000

What’s important to know is today’s market dynamics create an ideal scenario for the move up buyer to use the equity in their home, leverage the low interest rates, and buy the home of their dreams.

Blog • Economy • January 27, 2017

Our Crystal Ball

by Fort Collins

Last week Windermere’s Chief Economist Matthew Gardner joined us for our annual Market Forecast events in Colorado. We were pleased to host over 500 customers at two events in Denver and Fort Collins.

Here are some of the big takeaways that we shared:

Interest rates will increase to 4.6% by the end of the year
First-time buyers are back and will make up 47% of all buyers in 2017
Inventory will remain at record lows and will continue to drive up prices
Appreciation is expected to be between 9% and 7% across our Front Range markets
Home builders will get creative in order to hit lower price points – we will see more “tiny homes” and more homes without basements

Click HERE to see Matthew Gardner’s infographic on the 2017 Forecast.