Denver ranks 10th in U.S. on housing-market strength

Denver Business Journal
October 27th, 2011

Denver ranks 10th out of the nation’s top 100 cities in the strength of its housing market, according to new data from market-intelligence firm Hanley Wood.

Denver achieved its ranking because its home values are holding steady, its foreclosed-homes inventory is dwindling, and its economy is stronger than most other markets.

“Denver is at the end of a long valley, but there’s still a slow, gradual recovery ahead,” said Jonathan Smoke, executive director of research for Costa Mesa, Calif.-based Hanley Wood. “The good news is, it’s not getting worse. Denver is right at the point of recovery.”

Smoke spoke Thursday at an “Intel for a Changing Market” event at the Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center. The top-100 markets data is in the September issue of Builder magazine.

In a speech entitled “Adapt or Die,” Smoke laid out statistics showing how Denver’s market has gone through the worst, and is expected to continue to rebound — regardless of this being an average year for home building and sales.

“Despite this being an excellent time to buy [because of low interest rates and lower house values], people are just not buying,” Smoke said. “Denver definitely fits into that category.”

But the net demand for homes here exceeds the supply of new construction, Hanley Wood research shows. Home prices here have been moderate, and though there haven’t been any huge gains, the values have hit bottom and are moving up, Smoke said.

“It does not look this way in other parts of the country,” Smoke said. “I don’t enjoy these sessions in California.”

Denver’s economy is the key, he said, and is expected to recover jobs lost during the recession six months before the rest of the country. Hanley Wood predicts that national recovery will be in 2014.

While the level of distressed properties here is higher than in many markets, there are still more re-sales and new home sales than real-estate owned (REO), or foreclosure sales by banks and lenders.

“It’s Denver’s negative supply that we like about this market,” he said.

There was a time banks were out-selling builders by a 3-1 margin as the values of those distressed properties were, on average, 40 percent cheaper than other market homes, according to Smoke.

The ZIP codes with the strongest REO ratio are 80238 and 80230, both in Denver, and 80023 in Westminster. The two counties that have “turned the corner” and have the strongest housing market are Broomfield and Douglas, Smoke said, but only in Broomfield are builders selling more than banks.

As far as values, Denver homes have been selling at the same average price as 2005, though with much less volume, Smoke said.

“This was one of the only markets in the country where we saw this play out,” he said.

The top builders in the metro Denver area flipped in five years, with Richmond American Homes (the homebuilding brand of M.D.C. Holdings Inc. M.D.C. Holdings Inc.

“You just need to appreciate where you are in Denver, as compared to the rest of the country,” Smoke said. “We expect increases in Denver’s market next year, but it will be very slight. At least it’s not a decrease.”

Famous Haunted Property in Colorado-The Stanley Hotel-Estes Park, CO

The Stanley Hotel
From www.LegendsofAmerica.com

This old hotel was built in the early 1900's by F.O. Stanley, who created the Stanley Steam Engine -- a steam powered horseless carriage. The majestic Georgian style hotel opened in 1909, catering to the rich and famous.

Arriving in Colorado in 1903, Freelan Oscar Stanley (F.O.) and his wife Flora had been sent West by F.O. Stanley’s doctor to seek the fresh mountain air.

Stanley, who suffered tuberculosis, had been advised to not make plans beyond six months. The doctor arranged for the couple to stay in a friend’s cabin in Estes Park for the summer. Immediately, they fell in love with the area and F.O.’s health began to dramatically improve.

After spending the summer in the cabin, Flora wanted a home like the one she had left in Maine. Their home was built about one-half mile west of where the Stanley Hotel would later be built. Today the house is a private residence.

F.O. Stanley built the hotel on land that he purchased from the Irish Earl Lord Dunraven. Dunraven came to the area in 1872 while on a hunting trip. He built a hunting lodge, cabin and hotel for his guests and illegally homesteaded up to 6,000 acres in an unsuccessful attempt to create a private hunting preserve. Dunraven was finally run out of the area after trying to swindle folks out of their land and money.

In 1906, construction started on the Stanley Hotel. Wood and rock were obtained from the nearby mountains and the hotel was built in the Georgian architectural style, which experienced a revival in the early twentieth century. In 1909, the luxury hotel was complete, with no expense spared. Equipped with running water, electricity and telephones, the only amenity the hotel lacked was heat, as the hotel was designed as a summer resort.

The Stanley Hotel has hosted many "famous” guests including The Unsinkable Molly Brown, John Philip Sousa, Theodore Roosevelt, the Emperor and Empress of Japan, and a variety of Hollywood personalities. And, of course, the Stanley Hotel hosted Stephen King, whose experience inspired his book, "The Shining.”

In addition to its regular guests, the hotel is also said to play host to a number of other worldly visitors. The most notable is F.O. Stanley himself who is most often seen in the lobby and the Billiard Room, which was his favorite room when he was still alive. On one such occasion, he was said to have appeared during a tour group’s visit to the Billiard Room, materializing behind a member of the tour. Bartenders at the old hotel also report having seen F.O. stroll through the bar, disappearing when they try to cut him off at the kitchen.

Not to be left out, Flora Stanley also haunts the hotel, continuing to entertain guests with her piano playing in the ballroom.

Employees and guests have reported hearing music coming from the room, and when they take a peek in there, they can see the piano keys moving. However, as soon as someone walks across the thresh-hold to investigate further, the music stops and no more movement can be seen upon the keys of the piano.

There are several rooms in the hotel that seem to be particularly haunted. One is Room 407, which is said to sometimes be occupied by Lord Dunraven, who owned the land prior to F.O. Stanley. Reportedly, he likes to stand in the corner of the room near the bathroom door. On one such account, witnesses reported that a light in that corner kept turning on and off. While the light was off, they told the ghost that they knew that he was there, they would only be staying two nights, and would he please turn the light back on. The light turned back on. However, later when the lights were turned off and they were trying to sleep, noises were constantly heard from the nearby elevator during a time when the elevator was not in use. At other times, a ghostly face has been reported to be looking out the window of Room 407, when the room is not booked.

Room 418 gets the most reports of haunting activity apparently from children’s spirits. Cleaning crews report having heard many strange noises from the room, as well as seeing impressions on the bed when the room has been empty. When guests stay in the room, they often report that they hear children playing in the hallway at night. One couple reportedly checked out of the hotel very early in the morning, complaining that the children in the hallway kept them up all night. However, there were no children booked in the hotel at the time.

There have also been many reports by guests of haunting activities in Rooms 217 and 401.

Tour guides tell a story of the ghost of a small child who has been seen by many of the staff in various areas of the old hotel. Reportedly, Stephen King also saw the child, who was calling out to his nanny on the second floor. Other past employees report footsteps and apparitions seen throughout the building.

The Stanley Hotel is open year-round and is located at 333 Wonderview in Estes Park, Colorado.

Denver County 2011 Tax Sale Information

If you're looking for information on your county tax sales, go to your official county website and search the treasurers office for tax sales...if you're looking in Denver County See the information below to get the process started...

This is from the Treasurers Section of www.DenverGov.org

BIDDING RULES FOR THE TREASURER’S ANNUAL PUBLIC AUCTION OF REAL ESTATE TAX LIENS FOR TAX YEAR 2010
TREASURY DIVISION

CITY AND COUNTY OF DENVER
BIDDING RULES FOR THE TREASURER’S ANNUAL PUBLIC AUCTION OF REAL ESTATE TAX LIENS
FOR TAX YEAR 2010

LOCATION OF PUBLIC AUCTION

The Annual Public Auction will be conducted entirely by means of the internet at www.denvertaxsale.com.

DATE AND TIME OF PUBLIC AUCTION

Bidding will begin on November 1, 2011 at 8:00 a.m. M.D.T. and will close on November 4, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. M.D.T.

REGISTRATION/DEPOSITS

Buyers can register and make deposits beginning October 17, 2011 at www.denvertaxsale.com. Registration and deposits may be made until November 3, 2011 at 5:00 p.m. M.D.T. All deposits must be made in electronic funds transfer. Final determination regarding the acceptability of any deposit will be at the discretion of the Treasurer or his employees. Buyers are responsible to ensure the information on their registration is correct since certificates of purchase, redemption checks and refund checks are prepared from this information. Once registration is completed, a bidder number will be issued for bidding.

COMPUTER WORKSTATIONS

Access to computer workstations for bidding will be available in City and County of Denver, Treasury Division, 201 West Colfax Avenue, Wellington E Webb Municipal Office Building, Denver, Colorado between October 17, 2011 and November 8, 2011, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. M.D.T./M.S.T. and 5:00 p.m. M.D.T./M.S.T., Monday through Friday. Access will be on a first come first served basis.

UNPAID TAX LIST AND PUBLIC AUCTION

Publication of the unpaid tax list will be in alphabetical order by property owner name. The list will be published in The Denver Post on September 30, October 7, and 14. Taxes will be auctioned in parcel identification number order. The list of the unpaid taxes, in parcel identification number order, will be posted (1) at www.denvertaxsale.com beginning October 17, 2011 and (2) in Taxpayer Service Section of the Treasury Division for several days before the public auction. Each parcel will be offered for the amount of taxes, advertising, penalty interest, and fees and will be subject to general bidding.

BIDDING

In accordance with §39-11-115 (2) (c) and (d), C.R.S., minimum bids and bid increase increments are as follows:

· Bids will be accepted in the amount of the minimum with the first bid.

· The next bid will be increased by one dollar.

The bidding rules as well as instructions on accessing the public auction and submitting bids will be posted at www.denvertaxsale.com on October 17, 2011.

For bidding purposes, properties will be grouped in batches and sold in one hour increments beginning at 8:00 a.m. M.D.T. on November 4, 2011, and ending at 5:00 p.m. M.D.T. Items in each batch will be identified with a closing time.

Payment transfers that are rejected for any reason, including the lack of funds, may result in cancellation of the corresponding bid(s) and the Treasurer may prohibit a person who fails to pay the amount due from bidding on sales for up to five years under §39-11-116, C.R.S.

It is the bidder’s responsibility to know what is purchased. All successful bids are final. No changes in or cancellation of parcels purchased can be made after bidding is closed.

The certificate of purchase issued on a successful bid will show the legal description, purchase amount, and buyer’s name (as entered on registration form), interest rate, and date of sale. Buyers will be notified when their certificates are ready to be picked up. The City and County of Denver will keep them if the buyer wishes and provide copies.

Redemption interest is 10% per annum. If parcels are redeemed prior to delivery of certificates, redemption checks will be mailed to buyers and notations made on buyers’ lists of purchases.

Employees and officials of the City and County of Denver and members of their families are not allowed to purchase at the Denver Tax Lien Public Auction.

PLEASE NOTE! Delinquent Real Estate Tax payments must be received in our office by 4:30 p.m. M.D.T., Monday, October 31, 2011. Payments will not be accepted after that time without redemption interest. Payments will not be permitted during the Annual Public Auction of Real Estate Tax Liens.

Any questions regarding the Annual Public Auction should be directed to the Treasury Division, Taxpayer Service Section, 201 West Colfax Avenue, Wellington E Webb Municipal Office Building, 1st floor, Denver Colorado 80202, (720) 913-9300.

STEVEN L ELLINGTON
Treasurer

BBB Checklist for Winterizing Your Home

From www.bbb.org

With a tough economy looming like the Grinch over this year’s holiday season, many people are looking for ways to ensure their homes are ready for the cold winter months in an effort to save money through energy efficiency. Your Better Business Bureau is offering a checklist for homeowners to safely prepare their homes for winter and perhaps save a few dollars in the process.

According to the Energy Information Administration, home heating costs this winter are expected to rise by 23 percent for homeowners who rely on heating oil, 18 percent for homes relying on natural gas and 10-11 percent for homes heated by propane or electricity. Luckily, homeowners can fend off some of the rising energy costs by winterizing their home before the harshest weather takes hold.

“As if people needed some more bad news about high prices, high heating costs are the next hurdle for cash-strapped consumers, and yet another reason for homeowners to take steps to winterize their homes before the cold sets in,” said Steve Cox, BBB spokesperson. “Winterizing a home makes good economic sense because a small up-front investment can pay dividends for months by increasing the energy efficiency of a house and reducing overall heating costs.”

Following is a BBB home winterizing checklist for consumers to consult when preparing for the cold months ahead:

• Furnace. Furnaces older than 15 years might be due for a replacement. For younger furnaces, BBB recommends making sure the furnace filter is clean, the thermostat is working properly and the pilot light is functioning. Homeowners can also hire an inspector to do the job and make sure the furnace is in safe working order.

• Heating ducts. Ducts should be cleaned once every two years. Homeowners should also consider adding insulation to any exposed ductwork. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, a home with central heating can lose up to 60 percent of its heated air before that air reaches the vents if ductwork is not well-connected and insulated, or if it travels through unheated spaces.

• Chimney. Before lighting up, homeowners planning on using their fireplace come winter should have the chimney inspected for animals, debris and leaves that may have fallen in. BBB also recommends installing a screen over the chimney opening.

• Gutters and ridge vents. Gutters should be cleaned to prevent any clogs that would cause rainwater to back up and freeze, making the gutters expand and crack. The ridge vents need to be cleaned as well in order to allow the house to "breath" correctly. Otherwise, air will stagnate and create an unhealthy environment.

• Smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detectors. BBB recommends testing smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors and installing fresh batteries. Homeowners should consider replacing smoke alarms older than 10 years.

• Caulking and Weather Stripping. The average American home has air leaks that amount to a nine-square-foot hole in the wall, according to the EarthWorks Group. To prevent leaks, homeowners should inspect the caulking around windows and doors and check for cracking and peeling. In addition, BBB recommends ensuring that doors and windows shut tightly and no cold air is coming in due to worn down weather stripping.

• Seasonal equipment. Homeowners won’t need their spring and summer equipment for a few months, so BBB recommends draining the water from garden hoses and air conditioner pipes and the gasoline from the lawnmower and other garden tools. It’s also time to pull out the snow shovels and plows and ensure they are in good repair.

• Emergency kit. When a winter storm strikes, an emergency kit should have all essential materials in one handy place. An emergency kit should include flashlights, candles and matches, a first aid kit, bottled water, non-perishable food and a battery-powered radio. BBB recommends creating the same emergency kit for the car as well, including a couple blankets.

Selling 'as is' isn't as easy as it seems

Selling 'as is' isn't as easy as it seems
Bankrate.com

Highlights
Buyers assume an as-is home is in lousy condition and needs work.

Selling as is generally doesn't release sellers from state disclosure laws.

It might be better to pay for repairs than accept a rock-bottom price.

Selling a home as is can save repair dollars, but the sales tactic has risks and other considerations sellers should keep in mind.

The main danger of selling a home as is comes from the possibility it will fetch a rock-bottom price. Sometimes, but not all the time, it's more cost-effective to pay for repairs to merit a higher purchase price.

Sellers can advertise their home any way they choose, whether that means as is, willing to make repairs or no comment on the subject, says Patti Ketcham, owner of Ketcham Realty Group in Tallahassee, Fla.

Some sellers don't want to make repairs because they have lived in the home themselves for a long time and don't see the need for improvements, Ketcham says.

"The house is held together with duct tape," she says, "and it's worked fine for them for 45 years, so (they're thinking), 'Why in the world would I need to put in granite countertops?'"

Other sellers are upside-down or underwater -- they owe more on the mortgage than the home is worth, says Jan Baron, a Realtor at HomeSmart Real Estate in Temecula, Calif. These sellers need the lender's permission to close a short sale, and because they expect to lose money on the deal, they're in no mood to pay for repairs.

Virtually all bank-owned homes are sold as is, though in those cases, the stipulation is more about responsibility than the repairs themselves.

"Banks are more worried about the liability," Baron says, "though they don't want to make any repairs they don't have to. The short sellers are thinking more about that they don't want to pay out of pocket because they don't have the money."

Buyers can negotiate for repairs
Moreover, an as-is sale doesn't mean buyers won't try to negotiate repairs because the home's condition, like the sale price, is subject to negotiation regardless of how the property is advertised. In fact, Ketcham says she advises buyers to make an offer on terms they prefer rather than what the seller wants. Just because a house is advertised as is does not necessarily mean it will be sold under that stipulation.

Many states require sellers to make disclosures about a home's condition to prospective buyers, says Joanne Fanizza, a real estate attorney in Farmingdale, N.Y. An as-is sale generally doesn't erase such obligations as much as sellers might wish it did.

Nor does as is mean the buyer will waive a home inspection. Ketcham says sellers can try to head off buyers' demands by getting an inspection before they put their home on the market and using that to price the property and inform prospective buyers of what will and will not be repaired.

"It puts your house in a category way above all the other houses buyers have to look at if you've already had the inspection done," she says.

As is may mean lower sale price
The biggest risk of an as-is sale is a lower sale price. For sellers who have no equity, this trade-off is irrelevant. But for those who expect a profit, it should be a real consideration.

The lower sale price occurs because some buyers will avoid any house being sold as is. First-timers in particular may be unable or unwilling to make repairs or fearful of such tasks, says David Tamny, owner of Professional Property Inspection in Columbus, Ohio.

"People are attracted to an as-is property because they see that house as being (priced) below what it maybe was worth a number of years ago, but once they find out (it needs repairs), it's not really so attractive to them," he says. "They don't have money for repairs, and they don't necessarily have the skill set to make repairs."

"As is" carries a stigma, Tamny says, since the term suggests the house is in poor condition.

"Most houses that are sold as is are sold as is for a reason," he says. "Something is wrong with it usually, and the sellers know they can't deal with it."

The bottom line is that today's housing markets are competitive, and buyers will choose another home if they're suspicious of the seller's motivations, or they believe a home isn't a good deal based on its location, price and condition.

"If you're selling," Ketcham says, "your house has to be priced a little better than the other four houses the buyer will look at that same day."

Feds broaden program to help struggling homeowners

Denver Business Journal
Date: Monday, October 24, 2011, 11:05am MDT

The Obama administration on Monday rolled out changes to a program aimed at enabling more “underwater” homeowners to refinance at today’s low rates.

An earlier version of the “Home Affordable Refinance Program” (HARP) was rolled out in 2009 and has fallen far short of the number of people it was supposed to help.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) estimates up to 1 million borrowers will use the revised program.

The changes will now let mortgage holders refinance no matter how much value their homes have lost, eliminating previous limits.

The plan would streamline the refinance process by eliminating appraisals and extensive underwriting requirements for most borrowers, as long as homeowners are current on their mortgage payments.

Only mortgages backed by Fannie Mae Fannie Mae

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Obama mortgage plan could lift burdens on banks
New Phoenix ads jab at Romney over foreclosures
Feds broaden HARP to help underwater homeowners

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Obama mortgage plan could lift burdens on banks
New Phoenix ads jab at Romney over foreclosures
Feds broaden HARP to help underwater homeowners

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A key hurdle for the U.S. economic recovery has been a sluggish housing market as many homeowners can’t refinance.

Boulder tops list of happiest cities

9News
10.26.11

BOULDER - Look no further than Boulder, Colorado for people who say they are the happiest in the nation, according to a recent survey by National Geographic.

Boulder residents told surveyors they are happier on a scale of 1 to 10 than people responded in any place else in America. That comes from the Gallup Healthways Well Being Index, which asked 1.4 million Americans the question, "How Happy Are you?"

Many factors play into Boulder's happiness, including access to the outdoors, overall quality of life and a relative balance of high technology use and low-tech down time.

"Social networks and TV do bring us a little bit of happiness, but it peaks at about 45 minutes. If we're spending more than that watching TV, we're probably doing it at the expense of more authentic sort of happiness, like socializing, like volunteering, like doing our hobbies, like staying in shape," said National Geographic author and speaker Dan Buettner. Buettner's book "Thrive: Finding Happiness The Blue Zones Way" explores the keys to happiness.

He suggests the best way to keep your kids happy is to never allow TVs in the bedrooms as well as to keep it behind an entertainment center door or in an out-of-the-way place to prevent screen time overload and to keep TV as an intentional thing rather than reflexive activity. Smart phone overload can also detract from one's overall well-being aside from occasional, intellectual-driven usage to learn something or look up a fact.

Sleep is also another big factor in overall happiness. Americans sleep a little over six hours a night, while the happiest people in the country sleep a little more than eight hours a night. Folks who are just hitting the average are losing about a third of the happiness they could be experiencing with a little more than those who get more than eight hours.

Sexual activity plays a big role in the happiness of survey respondents. The grumpiest people, or least-happiest people in the country, rarely if ever have sexual relations. Meanwhile, the happiest respondents reported having sex multiple times a day.

Finally, music plays a big part in helping people stay happy. The happy zone, or time frame to keep people happiest, is with at least two or more hours of music per day.

Best day to list real estate for sale: Friday

Best day to list real estate for sale: Friday
Redfin study: day of the week may make a difference
By Inman News

Sellers should list their home on a Friday for the best chance of selling it, according to Seattle-based brokerage Redfin.

Redfin analyzed data for 1.2 million listings in 16 markets nationwide over the past 21 months. The brokerage found that of all listed homes in those 16 markets, those listed on a Friday were 12 percent more likely to sell within 90 days, and homes listed on a Thursday or Friday sold, on average, for slightly closer to list price: 94.4 percent compared with 93.9 percent when homes are listed on a Sunday or Monday. Put another way, that's a $1,000 difference on a $200,000 home.

Homes listed on a Friday were also 18.8 percent more likely to be toured by Redfin customers. Homes listed on a Sunday or Monday were the least likely to be toured.

"Our theory is that since homebuyers tend to tour homes on the weekends (Saturday and Sunday have 2.5 times more tours per day than weekdays), homes listed on Fridays are the freshest in buyers' minds when they're making their weekend plans. It also seems likely that many homebuyers sort their weekend 'must see' lists by date listed, going to see the freshest homes first so they have the best chance of getting in on a potential good deal before other buyers," the brokerage said in a blog post about the findings.

"These factors put homes listed on Friday in front of more touring buyers on the weekend (which our touring data bears out). More tours leads to more offers, and more offers leads to a better price and a better chance of selling."

In one respect, Sunday beat out any other day of the week: Homes listed on Sunday attracted slightly more online page views than the average on Redfin.com.

While the vast majority of homes are listed on weekdays, no one weekday was especially popular, with between 17 percent and 19 percent of homes listed on any given weekday. About 19 percent of homes were listed on a Friday during the time period studied, Redfin reported.

10 states ranked by high, low homeownership rates

10 states ranked by high, low homeownership rates
From AOL Real Estate: Share ranges from 53% to 73%
October 18, 2011
By Inman News

The dream of owning a home has become increasingly unattainable for many Americans, and the situation is not likely to improve soon, as the collapse of the housing market and the recession continue to take their toll.

That is the disturbing conclusion to be drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau's newly released report, "Housing Characteristics: 2010," an overview of the national home market at the end of the last decade.

One of the highlights of the report is a list of the states that have the highest and lowest percentage of homes occupied by their owners.

A review of the data by 24/7 Wall St., which offers analysis and insight for equity investors, found that homeownership rates were high in thinly populated states and those with low home prices, while homeownership was low in states with expensive homes and large cities.

5 states with highest homeownership rates
1. West Virginia
2. Minnesota
3. Michigan
4. Iowa
5. Delaware

5 states with lowest homeownership rates
1. New York
2. California
3. Hawaii
4. Nevada
5. Rhode Island

The swing between the states with the highest and lowest homeownership is extraordinary. Just over 53 percent of the people in New York state own homes. At the other end of the spectrum is West Virginia, with a homeownership rate above 73 percent. In addition to New York City, New York state includes the relatively large cities of Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse and Albany. In West Virginia, by contrast, the two largest cities -- Charleston and Huntington -- are barely cities at all.

Together, they have just over 100,000 people in a state with 1.9 million residents. For this article, 24/7 Wall St. has primarily considered cities' metropolitan areas, which are cities and their adjacent communities that, according to the Census Bureau, "have a high degree of economic and social integration" with the cities.

According to the report, in the last decade, homeownership in the U.S. dropped the most since 1940. The postwar housing boom lasted for over half a century as increased construction and liberal lending practices made homes affordable to a large majority of Americans.

Subprime mortgages stretched that ease of availability to the breaking point. When the market collapsed, so did the ability of many Americans to own homes because of tighter lending practices and fears that the market still has much further to fall.

The pattern of homeownership will probably not change much in the years ahead. People in large cities have opportunities to rent not available in suburban and rural areas. Home prices are low in states where the number of people per square mile is low. There is little supply in these states, but their populations are not large enough to create excessive demand.

The American dream of homeownership may have peaked around 2000. Much of the U.S. population is still in a struggle with high debt and stagnant income. And job security may not return to pre-recession levels for a number of years. Even if the reasons to own a home return with rising prices, the ability to buy one may not.

Top 10 U.S. areas with rising real estate prices

West Virginia leads list with 8.6% year-over-year growth in August
By Inman News, Friday, October 7, 2011.

Home prices increased in 12 states and Washington, D.C., on a year-over-year basis in August, according to a home-price report released this week by property data firm CoreLogic.

West Virginia led all states with an 8.6 percent rise in home prices, followed by Wyoming at 3.6 percent, and North Dakota at 3.5 percent. The CoreLogic Home Price Index tracks price changes in repeat sales of homes.

CoreLogic August Home Price Index (year-over-year change)

State/district All single-family Excluding distressed sales
West Virginia 8.6% 10.7%
Wyoming 3.6% 2.4%
North Dakota 3.5% 4.2%
New York 3.2% 3.6%
Alaska 2.2% 3.1%
South Dakota 1.5% 0.6%
Washington, D.C.1.3% 1%
Nebraska 1.1% 1.1%
Kansas 1% 3.7%
Indiana 0.8% 2.2%

Liberty’s Malone is largest U.S. landowner

Denver Post
10.11.2011

Media magnate John Malone tops the The Land Report’s annual list of America’s largest landowners, bumping CNN founder Ted Turner into the No. 2 position.

Malone, chairman of Douglas County-based Liberty Media, ousted Turner when he purchased more than 1 million acres of timberland in Maine and New Hampshire earlier this year, giving him holdings totaling 2.2 million acres.

Turner owns more than 2 million acres, according to the 2011 Land Report 100. He had been the largest individual landowner since the 1990s, the magazine’s editors said.

The 2011 Land Report 100, presented by Fay Ranches, is an annual survey of the largest private U.S. landowners. It excludes any leased and/or public lands and focuses on deeded acreage owned by individuals, families, family-owned companies and family-controlled foundations.

10 Most Walkable Cities of 2011

another interesting article....

10 Most Walkable Cities of 2011
www.thestreet.com
By Jason Notte


NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Living within a quick drive of work, the store, school or public transportation is nice, but only having all of those items a few blocks away makes your neighborhood "walkable."

The people behind Walk Score, a Seattle-based service that rates the convenience and transit access of 10,000 neighborhoods in 2,500 cities, have spent the past four years judging the distance between residents and amenities and ranking places based on the results. That "walkability" led to the first set of rankings in 2008 and the use of those rankings by more than 10,000 cities, civic organizations and real estate groups in the years that followed.
It also helped increase emphasis on the elements that make a city walkable. Walk Score's ideal neighborhoods have either a main street or public space at the center, enough people to keep public transit running frequently and a good mix of housing and businesses. Parks and other public spaces make up a large part of the equation, as do amenities designed around pedestrians, nearby schools and workplaces and "complete streets" designed for pedestrians, cyclists and transit. Children don't shoot hoops in cul de sacs in walkable cities.
"Very often, you'll see a good pedestrian design with sidewalks and crosswalks that make a city more accessible and walkable," says Josh Herst, chief executive of Walk Score. "Even in cities that on the whole aren't that walkable, there are neighborhoods that are great places to walk."
It's an idea that's already caught on in U.S. cities, where public transportation systems have grown from little more than 1,000 in 1980 to 7,700 in 2009, when the American Public Transportation Association public transit advocacy group last took stock. From 1995 to 2008, the APTA says public transportation ridership increased by 38% as the highways system grew 21% and the U.S. population 14% during the same period. Even Walk Score had to catch up and didn't start tracking the proximity and value of transit service in more than 120 cities with its Transit Score system until August.
"In quite a few cities for quite a few reasons, including a desire to promote sustainability and public health and a number of economic benefits, we've seen interest in walkability continue to grow," Herst says. "We know that some communities are looking at Transit Score and doing some what-if analysis like 'If you added light rail service down this corridor, how much would that change the transit score for how many people?'"
The convenience is lovely, but U.S. homebuyers are going to need the pot sweetened a bit more if they're going to be convinced to give up cars and yard space for noise and density. A CEOs For Cities study based on Walk Score data insists that a walkable neighborhood adds an average $3,000 to a home's selling price. The APTA raises the stakes by noting that households more likely to use public transportation save more than $8,400, while households that use public transportation and live with one less car save an average of $9,000 annually.
If bribery doesn't work, threats just might. University of British Columbia professor Lawrence Frank found that residents of walkable neighborhoods tend to be at least seven pounds lighter than their counterparts in more sprawling areas.
For a glimpse of what life is like in walkable America, TheStreet offers a look at Walk Score's Top 10 most walkable cities of 2011 and the amenity-packed neighborhoods that made the difference:

10. Oakland, CA
9. Minneapolis, MN
8. Miami, FL
7. Washington, D.C.
6. Seattle, WA
5. Philadelphia, PA
4. Chicago, IL
3. Boston, MA
2. San Francisco, CA
1. New York, NY

Where to Live Like the Wealthy Do for Less

Interesting article...

Where to Live Like the Wealthy Do for Less
By Jason Notte, The Street
September 29, 2011

Real estate's Champagne wishes and caviar dreams are waking to a stingy, jobless reality of metropolitan moochers posing as the wealthy.

The U.S. is at 9.2% unemployment and conspicuous housing consumption is constricted by tightening loan requirements, while the average home has fallen 4.6% in price from a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors. In neighborhoods where housing prices have remained high, properties are increasingly out of reach.

"Even with recent economic softness, this is a disappointing performance with home sales being held back by overly restrictive loan underwriting standards," says Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors. "There's been a pendulum swing from very loose standards, which led to the housing boom, to unnecessarily restrictive practices as an overreaction to the housing correction."

But why break your back paying close to seven figures for a closet in one of the most expensive neighborhoods in the U.S. when there's cheaper property nearby? The zip code's cache is nice and all, but even television and Hollywood helped America realize that Alan Arkin's family in Slums of Beverly Hills could get by on the fringes and that Gabrielle Carteris' Andrea Zuckerman character didn't have to be born or have parents in Beverly Hills: 90210 to get into fictional West Beverly High School.

TheStreet took a look at five of the tonier neighborhoods in America and found five more on the outskirts that gave residents deep discounts while dropping them directly adjacent to all the stores, restaurants, theaters, museums, parks and other amenities that command premium prices from the rich neighbors:

Wealthy: New York's Upper West Side
Cheaper: Inwood

Manhattan's Inwood is an alternative to the Upper West Side.
Photo: flickr | danakosko

Want to grab a morning bagel with Harvey Keitel at Barney Greengrass, catch the Akira Kurosawa retrospective at Symphony Space, grab some cheese and a baguette at Zabar's and head over to Central Park for the summer concert series? There are two vastly different ways for homebuyers to approach this.

The first is to actually live on the Upper West Side and pay the median $933,400 that Zillow says neighborhood residents are shelling out for their homes. The other is to look just a few clicks up the Hudson in Inwood, which offers Riverside Drive-quality views of the Hudson and the palisades, tree-lined streets and well-kept homes on the neighborhood's west side and stops along the A and 1 subway lines that take residents to any Upper West Side stop within minutes.

While Inwood residents aren't exactly a skip away from the Columbus Avenue Shake Shack or the fossil room at the American Museum of Natural History, they're paying an average of only $356,000 to be pretty darn close without having to cross a river or live in another city. Inwood may as well be called "Where?" during dinner-party discussions, but its proximity to the best of the West Side and the small-town look of some of its blocks despite being situated squarely in Manhattan make it a place worth knowing.



Wealthy: San Francisco's Presidio Heights
Cheaper: Western Addition


San Francisco's Western addition is an affordable neighborhood.
Photo: flickr | permanently scatterbrained

So you've heard all about San Francisco and would love a place near a lot of parkland with a really great view of the water and Golden Gate Bridge? OK, that'll be $2.8 million, please.

Presidio Heights and "cheap" almost never appear in the same sentence. With a plot adjacent to the sprawling Presidio of San Francisco National Park and the former military installation's fields, historic architecture and views, Presidio Heights is easily the most expensive neighborhood in the city.

The adjacent Marina and Pacific Heights neighborhoods are similarly sought after and sport $1.16 million and $1.05 million median home prices, respectively. There is, however, a neighborhood south of California Street and east of Presidio Avenue that lets its residents live close by for roughly 20% of the cost.

Western Addition is home to two of the city's hospitals, the city's University of California campus, Japantown, the Fillmore district and a number of parks, but is just five blocks away from the Presidio at its closest point and even closer to Presidio and Laurel heights' shops, restaurants, specialty grocers and coffee bars along Sacramento and California streets.

That's if homeowners want them. Western Addition's jazz clubs, farmers markets, Fillmore Auditorium and restaurants like Yoshi's do just fine for themselves without bankrupting the surrounding gentry. This all still needs a bit of perspective, as Western Addition's $576,700 median price tag on homes is on the lower end of San Francisco's offerings, but would easily make it the most expensive neighborhood in Chicago.



Wealthy: Chicago's North Center/Lake View
Cheaper: Albany Park


Chicago's Albany Park appeals to some who like North Center.
Photo: flickr | Zol87

When you live in either of these Chicago neighborhoods, gentrification isn't something that's happening, but what the guy who owned your condo two owners ago heard he was responsible for just before shrugging it off and heading out for post-game beers at the L&L Tavern.

Lake View and its Wrigleyville and Boystown neighborhoods are among some of the most sought-after in the city, especially for those who like the idea of living in a doorman building on North Lakeshore, catching the Brown, Red or Purple lines to work, making a dinner comprising items purchased at Whole Foods and then heading out for a show at Metro, a game at Wrigley or a few drinks on Lakeview or North Clark. They're paying a median of $300,000 to do so, which is considerable in a town where the high-end median is $446,000 for properties on West DePaul.

The same can be said for nearby North Center, which hikes up the premium to $346,000 while adding bars, restaurants, bowling alleys and movie theaters while subtracting the lake and the Wrigley Field-adjacent nightlife. Is there any way to take part without paying some of the highest buy-in prices in the city?

The answer's found a few paces west in Albany Park, where a neighborhood dotted with green space like Ravenswood Manor Park and Ronan Park right on the river also has three brown-line stations just a few stops away from both North Center, Lake View and even Wrigleyville, where the Southport stop provides Albany Park residents a more favorable ride home than what their more monied neighbors are taking when they jam the red line's Addison station after the ninth inning.

Albany Park does just fine on its own, too, as Koreatown's restaurants, the mix of hookah and dart bars at West Lawrence Avenue and North Pulaski Road and the proliferation of bicycle, gadget, tobacco and other shops scattered throughout the neighborhood give the place the type of character that doesn't come one mixed-use residential development at a time. For all this, homebuyers pay about $189,000 on average, which is less than more remote but well-tread gems like the artistically inclined Pilsen neighborhood ($199,000) and little more than still-developing neighborhoods like Humbolt Park ($174,100).



Wealthy: Beverly Hills, Calif.
Cheaper: Hollywood


Hollywood is more affordable than nearby Beverly Hills, Ca.
Photo: flickr | letizia barbi

There was a time when they would let any hillbilly with poor marksmanship, a pickup truck piled high with personal belongings and a little oil money into Beverly Hills with a smile. Now anything less than the $1.9 million median home price wouldn't even secure you a parking spot.

Perhaps there's the stray "dingbat" apartment here or there, but the overwhelming majority of Beverly Hills and the area surrounding have prices that have been star-quality for a good, long time. Beverly Hills is ringed by the Hollywood Hills ($971,200 median home price), Bel Air ($1.74 million), Westwood ($655,700), Century City ($642,600), West Los Angeles ($760,300), Pico-Robertson ($667,600) and Mid-City West ($800,500) neighborhoods, which are all well above the city's $375,900 median.

The only neighborhood directly adjacent to Beverly Hills that even remotely meets that city's median is Hollywood, where a $417,200 price tag has led to increasing gentrification in West Hollywood and throughout the rest of the neighborhood in general. High-end restaurants, coffee shops and bars are open, celebrities and paparazzi are back and home prices were on the rise until the recent dip in the housing market. The lingering memories of drug dealers and 24-hour pizza places may buy a homebuyer some time in snatching up some rich-folk-adjacent property here, but considering it's the one piece of the Beverly Hills ring that isn't ridiculously high-priced as of yet, Hollywood's rebound shouldn't be bogged down much longer.



Wealthy: Aspen, Colo.
Cheaper: Basalt


Basalt, CO is as outdoorsy as pricier Aspen.
Photo: flickr | twred

It's a little early to be thinking about ski season, but not if your options are plunking down a median $1.99 million for a place or spending a quarter of that to take a one- to two-hour drive at the height of winter.

Aspen and neighboring Snowmass really want skiers to commit when considering property in either area. That $1.99 million isn't great, but it's a deep discount in Aspen after the housing crisis and recession knocked the frosty wind out of home sales and continued to send prices downhill well afterward. The median cost of a home in Aspen was 25% more at this time last year.

It's a similar story in Snowmass, where the $1.25 million median is almost 22% less than it was in summer 2010. Homebuyers can bet against a comeback and wait for prices to plummet to the six-figure mark, but that kind of self-destructive cynicism isn't necessary when there's already a more budget-friendly option down the road.

Basalt, Colo., isn't exactly bargain basement with its $575,000 median home price, but has more to offer than Aspen and Snowmass. Basalt's roughly 27 minutes from the slopes at Aspen and six minutes from Snowmass, but its position on the Frying Pan River and Ruedi Reservior make it a great trout-fishing and boating spot as well. If so inclined, a homeowner can take some of that savings, invest in a decent mountain bike and spend the summer pedaling through Roaring Fork Valley. It's in the middle of the action without being amid the throngs of tourists, which in itself justifies the commute.