When the current clouds hovering over the real estate industry have passed, it goes without saying that some markets will have survived the gloom better than others.
According to HousingIntelligence.com, four Colorado markets – including Boulder – will be among those that will shine in three to five years. Only Texas had more cities on the list than Colorado, with nine making the list of top 21 markets – most of which were in the western or southern U.S. And most of those on the top 21 worst markets in three to five years were in coastal states.
Here’s a complete look of the markets the real estate information source expects to thrive, as well as those that will take longer to recover when the market improves:
Best Housing Markets in 3-5 Years
Tyler, TX
Victoria, TX
Sherman-Denison, TX
Morgantown, WV
Odessa, TX
Bowling Green, KY
Longview, TX
Fort Collins/Loveland, CO
Hinesville-Fort Steward, GA
Boulder, CO
Midland, TX
Brownsville-Harlingen, TX
Longview, WA
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Santa Fe, NM
Owensboro, KY
Columbus, IN
Rome, GA
Pueblo, CO
Texarkana, TX-Texarkana, AR
Greeley, CO
Worst Housing Markets in 3-5 Years
Ocean City, NJ
Atlantic City, NJ
Salinas, CA
Champaign-Urbana, IL
Gainesville, FL
Orlando-Kissimmee, FL
Dover, DE
Barnstable Town, MA
Kankakee-Bradley, IL
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, CA
Rockford, IL
Palm Coast, FL
Jacksonville, FL
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA
Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI
Naples-Marco Island, FL
Cape Coral-Fort Meyers, FL
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL
Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT
Source: HousingIntelligence.com
Four Colorado cities on top markets list
RE/MAX of Boulder recognized for top sales volume in 2007
RE/MAX International has recognized RE/MAX of Boulder, Inc. for having the highest sales volume among its more than 4,200 offices throughout the nation in 2007.
Tom Kalinski, owner/broker of RE/MAX of Boulder, accepted the award on behalf of the office’s 86 agents and staff at the recent RE/MAX International Convention in Las Vegas, Nev.
The office reached $761 million in sales last year, garnering the top slot among RE/MAX offices nationwide. That amount also earned RE/MAX of Boulder the 177th spot on REAL Trends’ list of the top 500 brokers in the country for 2007. The office’s Realtors closed 1,712 real estate transaction sides last year, which placed it 294th for sides on the list. REAL Trends Inc., a publishing and communications company based in Denver, is a leading source of analysis and information on the residential brokerage industry.
Kalinski says his office’s biggest year was in 2005, when the office’s sales volume totaled $960 million.
“This is a market where you have to get out there and work hard for your customers,” he says of how agents at RE/MAX of Boulder managed to rise above the challenges in a slow real estate market.
He says building personal relationships with customers, who return again and again as well as refer their friends and family to RE/MAX of Boulder, has been key in his office’s success.
“We would like to take a moment to thank all of our buyers and sellers who trusted us to get the job done for them,” he says of the recognition by RE/MAX International. “While this may be a very special award, it is only an award. What we value even more is the relationships established during those transactions. That is a critical factor in real estate.”
He notes the fact that home values within Boulder city limits continue to increase and that Boulder is a wealth-based market somewhat cushions the Boulder Valley from the negative fluctuations in the real estate cycle.
“On a national level, you hear a lot of gloom and doom in real estate but, in 2007, RE/MAX of Boulder was flourishing, and it continues to flourish in the current market,” Kalinski says. “The market in this area has been and remains very strong; we are not suffering to the degree that other markets are suffering.
“Of course, we’re not the only market in the country that is wealth-based, by any means, but we’re not subject to the market whims that others are.”
Here’s a look at some of the facts about RE/MAX of Boulder’s performance in 2007:
• 1,712 buyers and sellers trusted RE/MAX of Boulder with their biggest asset: their property;
• The office averaged five closings per day, seven days a week;
• The prices of properties for which RE/MAX of Boulder represented the buyer or seller ranged from $87,000 to $3.4 million;
• 65% of the office’s business in 2007 was repeat customers or referrals;
• RE/MAX of Boulder’s agents average 19 years of experience in the real estate business;
• All of its agents are full-time professionals.
Over the years, RE/MAX of Boulder has assisted numerous companies with their relocation needs, including Google, IBM, Ball Aerospace, the University of Colorado; North Face, Patagonia, Red Bull, Sun Microsystems, Noodles, Wells Fargo and many more. RE/MAX of Boulder serves all of Boulder, Broomfield and Weld counties as well as parts of Gilpin and Larimer counties.
Boulder area market marches on despite downturns elsewhere in nation
The latest housing statistics bode well for the Boulder County market. While how many homes have sold and prices are down in some communities, the market has remained stable compared with others around the country.
“It continues to amaze me, at least in most of our market area, that we continue to see real strength in pricing and value in residential real estate,” says Ken Hotard, senior vice president of public affairs for the Boulder Area Realtor Association. “I think this is more reflective of a market area in which we didn’t see real price run-ups and a lot of sub-prime and creative mortgages that got a lot of people in many parts of the country in trouble.”
The decreases in number of homes sold and prices between May 1, 2007, and April 30, 2008, is a reflection of slower job growth and something beyond the industry’s control, he says. Even though Colorado may see only a 1.5 percent increase in jobs this year – not as impressive as a 3 percent increase seen in years past – it should sustain the housing market. And the single-digit commercial vacancy rates along the U.S. 36 corridor, compared with 15 percent and 25 percent a couple of years ago, will also help support the residential market, Hotard says.
“We’ve seen this over the last couple of years, where sales volume has been the main indicator that we’re seeing the effects of the overall national economic downturn,” he says. “We have slower-than-usual job growth and we’re not seeing the buyers we have in the past. … But when you look at how prices are holding up, it says the Boulder area marketplace is still a good investment.”
Historical data, which shows a 6.2 percent annual appreciation rate in the city of Boulder between 1980 and end of 2006, supports that theory, Hotard says.
“That’s nothing to sneeze at,” he says.
For the same period, Boulder County had a 4.8 percent annual appreciation rate, which is not as impressive as the city’s but is still a solid return on investment, Hotard says.
Click to see the full statistics...
Our Community, Our Clients!
Meet the Nichols family!
Originally from Chicago, Dan and Lori Nichols came to Boulder in 2001 and, like most of us, never left. With the additions of Naomi, 3, and Levi, 3 months, their family outgrew their Boulder condo and they recently moved to a home in Louisville.
Their company, Little Mountain Outfitters, was “born and raised” in Boulder, helping local families enjoy our great outdoors since 1996. From sunscreen and sunglasses to joggers and winter gear, you’ll find anything children would ever need to have fun outdoors at Little Mountain Outfitters.
Stop in and let the Nichols know you’re also a part of the RE/MAX of Boulder community. The business is located right around the corner from the Pearl Street Mall and Broadway.
Little Mountain Outfitters
1136 Spruce Street
www.littlemountainoutfitters.com
Boulder home appreciation rate second in Colorado, does well on national level
Boulder’s home appreciation rate continued to hold its own in the first quarter of this year, coming in second only to Grand Junction in Colorado and among the top 55 metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) in the nation, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight.
With a 4.11 percent increase in appreciation for the first quarter of 2007 to the first quarter of 2008, the Boulder MSA grabbed the 53rd slot among 259. Grand Junction, with its 9.08 percent increase in a year, was ranked 2nd nationwide and was the state’s top performer. While the Colorado MSA’s of Greeley/Weld and Pueblo saw home prices depreciate over the year, both managed to stay out of the bottom 20 MSA’s nationwide. Here’s a look at how all seven of the Colorado MSA’s appreciation rates compared with the state, the national average and other MSA’s throughout the U.S.
Metro Area Appreciation Rates - 1st Quarter 2008
Source: Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight
Boulder officially ranked among top ‘green cities’ in the nation
Country Home magazine ranked Boulder No. 5 among the 2008 Top 25 Places to Live, based on factors such as official energy policies, green power, green buildings and the availability of fresh, locally grown food. Fort Collins/Loveland was the only other Colorado metro area to join Boulder on the top 25, coming in at No. 14. Corvallis, Oregon, took the No. 1 slot.
Other Colorado cities, ranked on their eco-friendly lifestyles, to make the list of all 379 “green” cities were Denver-Aurora, No. 29; Colorado Springs, No. 41; Grand Junction, No. 83; and Greeley, No. 91. The Denver metro area also was ranked No. 8 among cities with a population 500,000 or more.
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