The Fisher Clark Urban Deli at 723 S. University has been getting lots of great press lately, and I am giving it some more.  What a dream!  This deli is helping Denver change its image from an overgrown cow-town to a true urban metropolis.  The Italian sandwich was excellent, but the lemon square was exceptional.  Paragraphs  could be written about the perfectly lip puckering combination of tartness and sweetness, and the crust was perfect.  Fresh bread, olives, and more!  If you can’t afford a trip to S.F. this fall, at least treat yourself to a similar urban experience by having lunch at Fisher Clark.  The best part is that it is located in my neighborhood…Bonnie Brae just got a little cooler.  (Best small deli to come to Denver since Parisi’s on Tennyson.)

723 S. University (University and Exposition) / www.fisherclarkdeli.com

We’re pretty proud of our little real estate company. We opened the door in January 2006 after doing lots of research about the urban Denver real estate market. We did searches of registered trademarks, existing domain names, registered companies with the Secretary of State’s office and more, because we wanted to create a new brand that stood out from the competition. We conducted focus groups of recent buyers and sellers to hear what they had to say too. And as a result, we created LIVE Urban Real Estate, and our distinctive logo and tagline “Where Do You Want To LIVE?”

Bottom line, we did our homework. And we’ve gone the extra length and expense to register our name and logo with a Federal Registration Trademark. That’s why its so disappointing when we see new real estate companies popping up with names and logos that are so similar to ours. Give me a break! Its maddening. We’ve seen Denver Urban Living, Urban Thrive Real Estate, Denver Urban Live, Live Here Real Estate and more. And we’ve seen lots of logos with our familiar leaves, the same lime green, similar typefaces and illustrations, and more. Aaaaauuugghh. Should we be flattered by all this imitation?

Hmmm…is it a Buyer’s market or a Seller’s market, well, that’s the million dollar quesiton that in today’s real estate market really has no answer.  However, sellers beware, when you have a buyer who is interested in your home, don’t take this news lightly.  Sure, they might not present the perfect price, or the perfect terms, but hey, there’s interest, so it’s better to take it to heart than not. 

At LIVE Urban, we’re fully on board the green train - launching a LIVE green-focused marketing strategy next month, along with an electronic version of our newsletter.  We’re one of the few brokerages in town that uses e-contracts to reduce printing and paper use, and we have a ton of listings that are built completely green.

We do not, however, work in a storage container…yet. (more…)

…The Sky Is Falling…The Sky Is Falling.

I’ve been reading a lot lately about the “real estate meltdown” and I feel like I’m missing something. All of us at LIVE Urban Real Estate are working with buyers and sellers every day. And no one is talking to us about a meltdown. We set the price of a house just like we always have. We figure out how much a buyer can spend, just like we always have. The fundamentals are the same.

Maybe the disconnect is that we’re living in Denver, and our local real estate market, as well as the rest of the state of Colorado, is faring much better than the rest of the country, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. While 43 states showed declines in the first quarter of 2008, Colorado averaged 2.29 percent home-price appreciation compared to the first three months of 2007.

The headlines and indexes we all see are skewed by rapidly falling home prices in California, Florida, and Nevada, according to the Rocky Mountain News. “Most people don’t live in a Miami condo” said Michael Englund, chief economist with Action Economics in Boulder. There’s a news flash for you.

Are there some things about a local real estate transaction that are tougher? Yes. Using a local lender who knows we’re not in Miami is key. And doing your homework on the market where you live has never been more important. Now is not the time for buyers or sellers to be unrealistic. But that’s the same as it’s always been.

After thinking about it for awhile, now when I read about the “meltdown,” I’ll remember our buddy Chicken Little and his recurring “the sky is falling” cry, then get back to reality.

I love northwest Denver. I’ve lived here for nearly 20 years now, and bought my house way before the Highlands and Berkeley were cool. Matter of fact, most of my friends and family thought I was crazy. “You’re going to live where?” they asked, “Why?

I moved here because of the same reasons most of us have… great historic homes, an interesting neighborhood vibe, a compelling multi-cultural mix, etc. We’re heard the list so many times, we all have it memorized. Its great. We know. And it really hasn’t changed. Maybe some, but for the better, don’t you think?

That’s why I get bummed when I read all those cranky letters in local newspapers from a few NW Denver residents about the rapid ‘decline and fall’ of the area because of the on-going scrape and builds. Is it really all bad?  These new homes, are by-in-large, creating  stronger, more valuable, and ‘greener’ neighborhoods. Now I’ll admit that some of the new homes aren’t well designed, and don’t quite fit in. But most of these homes are being built on large, under-utilized lots that used to have a small, crappy house on them. Frankly, they’re not worth saving. Rarely is a nice, brick bungalow or tudor torn down. (I hate that too!)

Cities evolve, grow and change. They get bigger and denser. Increasing density in city-close neighborhoods, like NW Denver, is smart. Its a fact that more and more people want to live in the city. They want to commute less, and as a result, walk and bike more. That creates more livable neighborhoods, more vibrant neighborhood business areas, and increases the value of our investments. And increasing density in these urban areas decreases urban sprawl. That’s really a good thing, isn’t it?

Your credit score: did you know that you have to have a credit score of 700-plus to qualify for a low-rate mortgage?First, your credit score is a number assigned to your creditworthiness.

Your credit score indicates how well or how poorly you’ll repay a debt. The higher the number, the more likely you’ll repay on time.

Your bill paying information on credit reports provides the basis for your credit score.

Consumers who take the time to obtain their credit score, for only about $15 under most circumstances, are more likely to have a better understanding of the scores.

That includes knowledge that mortgage lenders rely heavily upon credit scores to approve or reject home loan applications.

Informed consumers also know they can generally raise their credit score by consistently paying bills on time every time; by paying off debt and closing those paid off accounts; by not coming close to maxing out credit cards and by regularly checking their credit reports to make sure they are accurate.

Your credit report is free from AnnualCreditReport.Com. For more information about your credit score go to MyFICO.com.

Your walk score: An agent in my office told me about this website yesterday, and I think it’s really cute - type in your address, and a Google Map appears showing everything that is within walking distance of your place!

Check it out here.

OK, we all know it is a serious pain in the booty to have your house on the market.  Real estate agents call at the last minute and want to show it, sometimes they are even sitting outside, waiting for the lockbox code with buyers in their backseat - while you are trying to get the kids breakfast and clean up after last night’s supper.

But, you know what?  Those might be the buyers that BUY your house.  Then you can move on, move up, move over - whatever it is you are trying to do, and you won’t have to keep the place tidy and the personal photos packed away anymore! So, even though it might be a bit embarassing to admit that your house is not always Open House Perfect, let them in!   Gather up the kiddos, take breakfast to go, and smile as you open up the door on your way out, because those buyers are on their way in, and you want them to know that you LOVE living in your house, and they will, too!

The moral of this little rant?  Never, ever turn down a showing.  Those buyers won’t be back another day.  They are going to look at one of the million other houses just like yours that are for sale in your neighborhood that WOULD allow a showing, and they are going to buy one of those. 

P.S., it’s a great idea to rent one of those little temporary storage boxes that can sit outside your house with all of your clutter inside.  That way, you can keep your stuff close by for easy access, but potential buyers don’t have to step around the baby’s bouncer to see your gorgeous, newly remodeled kitchen - toast crumbs and all.

Houses aren’t free in Denver.  You can’t even find very many for $1.  But there are certainly crazy good deals to be found if you are looking to buy a fix-up and hold for at least 2-3 years. This article in CNN Money does a good job of explaining the best strategy for today’s investors:

Rock-bottom home prices have finally begun to lure vulture real estate investors into the fray.

Sharon Restrepo, a broker in South Florida, where home prices have dropped nearly 27% over the past 12 months, recently bought a three-family home in Cape Coral from a very motivated seller for a mere $65,000. It listed for $195,000.

She can rent the three apartments out for about $1,500 and turn a profit, while she holds on to the property until the market recovers.

“The savvy investors here,” she said, “are buying up everything they can.”

Read the rest here.

It’s a really unique time for Rehab and Rent-ers in the Denver Metro Real Estate game:  vacancies are at an all-time low, and home prices continue to drop.  I really think that now is a great time to start or build your Real Estate portfolio - whether you have a long or short-term strategy for the properties. 

In Denver, flipped properties continue to sell, but only if they are priced reasonably - those investors who are buying bank inventory at rock-bottom prices and renovating SMART - meaning that they are not over-improving for today’s market, no matter what price range they are in.

The same goes for Rehab and Rent-ers — if you can snap up a cute little property that looks like crapola, and put only enough money into it to make it a nice little rental, you are playing the game SMART - in a couple of years, when the market stabilizes and buyers outnumber renters, you can always make a few more improvements to get top dollar.

Ready to start looking for Denver Real Estate?  Connect with your inner vulture and get in the game!

Well, guidelines continue to change for Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac associated loans…this time, the change has a direct affect on how you might be able to qualify for the purchase of a new primary residence while retaining and converting your current residence into a rental property…as of August 1st, 2008 buyers who are interested in pursuing this route to build their wealth will need to provide their lender with the following in order for their newly acquired “rental income” to count towards the financial qualification of their new home mortgage: a fully executed lease agreeement, a receipt of deposit from the bank for the tenant’s required security deposit, and the big kicker, the newly converted rental property must contain at least 30% equity. If not, you guessed it, the “extra rental income” is not able to be used as part of qualifying for your replacement home purchase. You may ask why such a harsh equity requirement, well, the speculation consists of the banks’ attempt to prevent home owners from having the “new rental property” slip into foreclosure. If a home owner has substantial equity in their property, they are more likley maintain their property and have pride of home ownership. So, the morale of this story is check with your local lender about the ever changing guidelines that may affect your next home purchase.