Stacie Staub

The last time you hired a professional to perform a service for you, were you satisfied with the results?  How did you find them?  Would you hire them again?

There are lots of ways to screen an individual or company.  Some are free, some come at a small cost, but it is SO worth the time and effort  to do your own little background check before handing someone access to your home, your possessions…or most importantly, your family!

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Stacie Staub

Look, the last year has NOT been the easiest time to be a Realtor.  From mortgage fraud to unprecedented foreclosure rates, from appraisal industry overhauls to interest rate rollercoasters, the name of the game has been just ‘hang on, ride out the storm, and only the strong will survive’.  A lot of Realtors have taken this as a forced time-out, sitting back and letting the rest of us do the hard work.

Because, let’s face it, it’s not easy to show first-time homebuyers literally hundreds of homes in really low price ranges, most of them foreclosures that have been trashed inside and out, only to get into bidding wars over and over again, until they finally get into their first place.  For a while there, it felt like I was making about a dollar an hour, but I stuck it out, because I honestly, honestly LOVE this industry.  It would have been easier to go and get a “real” job with a steady paycheck and benefits, but I decided to work HARDER instead.  I didn’t have very many clients, but the ones that I had got the best of me.

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Stacie Staub

2617 W. 37th Ave. - 2 BR in Sunnyside $315,000

This classic bungalow has a lot of upgrades, including a new kitchen with slab granite countertops, and a sunroom addition that leads to a perfectly private backyard. 

With a full basement that’s only half-finished, there is plenty of space and head-room to add another bedroom space and bathroom downstairs.

What makes it special:

- The neighbors.  What a great block, and only a few houses away from The Lumber Baron Inn and Gardens.

“I love sitting on the front porch with my next-door neighbor, enjoying a glass of wine and watching a bride arrving for her wedding in a horse and carriage…it’s really magical.”

- The location.  Only a few blocks from the fab restaurants at 32nd and Zuni, the Pedestrian Bridge to Lower Downtown, and Highland Square. Favorite spots include Red Trolley, Litte Man Ice Cream, Duo, Pasquini’s, Gallop Cafe, and Root Down.

“I can walk or ride my bike anywhere in just a few minutes.  I love being able to “go out” without going far!”

- The potential.  This lovely home is priced to sell quickly, but with a little TLC the equity will be immediate.

“I hate to sell my house.  I love living here, and would stay forever if I could.”

Price Recently Reduced/Sod Allowance Available

Want to check out 2617 W. 37th Ave. in Highlands?  Contact me!  Stacie - call/text - 720-299-6635 - stacie@liveurbandenver.com

John Skrabec

Each spring, Denver Digs Trees brings you low-cost and free street trees.  This fall, they are offering low cost Shade Trees for Your Yard!

These medium and large sized trees, strategically planted in your yard (on private property), will help you save money and fight global warming by providing valuable energy-saving shade for your home.  Properly placed trees can lower a building’s air conditioning use by 30% – this means lower energy bills and less carbon released into the atmosphere! Shade trees also beautify your space, enhance property values (up to 10%!), reduce air pollution, buffer noise, and provide shelter for birds and other wildlife. These trees are low-cost for Denver residents – only $25 each!  (trees this size usually sell for more than $100)

Trees are FREE for our target neighborhoods.  These neighborhoods, chosen for their particularly low canopy cover, include Athmar Park, Baker, Barnum, Barnum West, Chaffee Park, Clayton, Cole, Elyria-Swansea, Five Points, Globeville, Jefferson Park, Lincoln Park, Montbello, Northeast Park Hill, Ruby Hill, Skyland, Sunnyside, Sun Valley, Valverde, Villa Park, West Colfax, Westwood, and Whittier.

Learn more and Download your Shade Tree Application.  To have an application mailed to you, call 303-722-6262 or email info@theparkpeople.org (include your mailing address and Subject Heading: “Request for Shade Tree Application”).

Application DEADLINE: Sept 1, availability is limited, apply today!
Tree Pick-up: Oct 3  (location TBA)

The Shade Tree Program is brought to you by The Park People and EnCana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc.  We are grateful to the City of Denver for assistance in selecting trees suitable for Colorado’s climate and the urban environment.

Irene Glazer

Why Rent? When renting an apartment or a home,  you sign your lease, you owe first and maybe last months rent as your security deposit, and perhaps a pet deposit. That can amount to thousands of dollars.

Why would anyone rent when you can become a homeowner for NO money down, and STILL be making a payment that is very similar to your rent payment?

Are you aware that there is a 0% down program still available? That means zero, zip, nada. If you qualify, you could own your place with less money than it would take you to get into a another rental home. This is not like the programs of the past with their high interest rates and adjustable mortgages. This is a regular 30 year fixed mortgage. You don’t even have to be a first-time buyer, and it is actually more affordable than the FHA loans out there b/c there’s no mortgage insurance.

If you can afford to rent, with this program, you can afford to own your home!

Also, just a quick reminder, the summer is racing by and Nov. 30th will be here before we know it. November 30th is the deadline for the $8,000 tax CREDIT (that’s free money). In order to meet the deadline, buyers should plan on being under contract by no later than Oct 15th to safely close before the tax credit expires. Since many first time buyers take 3 months to complete their search, the TIME IS NOW.

If you wait until the last minute to look for a home, there will be no guarantee that your lender can close your loan on time. There’s expectation of large volumes of procrastinators, $8,000 is a lot of money to miss out on.

Stacie Staub

Well, that’s it folks, according to Newsweek the recession is (probably) over, and according to my Twitter and Facebook friends today, housing prices were up in May for the first time since the housing crisis started:

Single-Family Home Prices Rise in May

Nationwide, detached, single-family home prices gained 1.6 percent in May, according to Integrated Asset Services, a specialist in default management and residential collateral valuations.

The increase is the largest since July 2005, IAS reported. The index had previously declined more than 19 percent from its peak in June 2007.

Compared to April, the Northeast was up 3.2 percent, the Midwest 1.9 percent, the South 1.1 percent, and the West 0.9 percent.

In all areas but the South, prices also rose in April.

“Two month’s worth of positive data hardly signals a turn in the national housing market,” says Dave McCarthy, President and CEO of Integrated Asset Services. “But we have to be encouraged by what we’re seeing in several important counties and neighborhoods.”

Did you buy a house at bottom?  If not, you missed it.   But, don’t despair, there are still great deals to be had in almost all of Denver’s Urban and Metro neighborhoods - you’re just going to pay a bit more for them than you would have in the Spring.  But, you will probably pay less than you will next year.  There is also a decent amount of inventory to look at - but there are also a lot of buyers just like you, trying to take advantage of the First Time Buyer Tax Credit, which expires on November 30, or looking to move up or down the property ladder while the market is still reasonable.

LIVE has more listings right now than at any point in the company’s history, but we are also getting multiple offers on properties that are priced aggressively, so don’t be afraid to write an offer on the home that you are interested in - if you don’t you might miss your chance!

Loving the bounce…it’s an exciting time to be part of Denver’s Real Estate industry.

Rachel Gallegos

Modern Zen Simplicity in Sunnyside

Modern Zen Simplicity in the city! Fabulous Floor plan, HERS rating, Energy Star Certified, Solar Installed, State of the Art Water Filtration System, Sauna, Fully Finished Basement, 4 Bedrooms Plus Study, Walk Score 74!

Watch the Video Tour for 4427 Decatur St by clicking here!

Mic Ortega

 According to The Denver Business Journal and Walkscore.com, Denver is our countries 10th most walkable city.  Walkscore.com uses a mathematical formula to evaluate how easy it is to navigate a given neighborhood on foot, using such factors as distance to stores, restaurants, schools and parks from various points in each neighborhood.

Neighborhoods are scored from an upper range of 90-100 (“walkers’ paradise”), where most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car, to a lower range of 0-24 (“car-dependent”), where virtually no neighborhood destinations are within walking range.

The report said Denver has four “walkers’ paradise” neighborhoods: Lower Downtown (with a score of 97), Golden Triangle (96), Capitol Hill (93) and Cherry Creek (90).

In the next tier — scoring 80 and above — are Baker (89), Alamo Placita (87), Five Points (87), City Park (85) and Highland (79).

For the full article, click here.

Click Here for America’s most walkable cities list

Click Here for Denvers most walkable neighborhood list

Mic Ortega

Is a Tankless Water Heater for You?

There are many benefits to tankless water heaters: the water is heated only “on-demand” so no energy is wasted keeping a large tank of water hot and ready to use; most of the 20%-30%”passive energy loss” (in pipes, etc.) is avoided; on average, tankless systems cost one third less to operate; tankless water heaters have an average life expectancy of 20 years, while traditional water heaters last 10-15 years; and tankless water heaters are powerful, but compact–most can be wall mounted inside or outside the home. How do you decide if a tankless water heater is right for you? The U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Savers website is a good place to start.