I recently included Paravicini’s Italian Bistro located in Old Colorado City in my restaurant posts.  I found out by receiving their enewsletter that they are included in a progressive dinner being sponsored by several very nice restaurants in Old Colorado City on March 23, 2010.  That’s tonight!  If you want to see if there’s still room and get more details, call Paravicini’s at 719 471-8200.  The other restaurants participating are Gertrude’s, Pizzeria Rustica, and Jake and Telly’s.  The only one of the 4 restaurants I haven’t tried yet is Jake and Telly’s, but it is a local favorite.  The food at all 3 of the other restaurants is delicious.  Gertrude’s menu includes some very nice vegetarian dishes for those of you looking for a vegetarian restaurant in the Pikes Peak Region.  What a lovely way to spend an evening!  Attending offers an opportunity to do a little walking around the area.  In case you are not familiar with Old Colorado City, it is one of my favorite haunts in the Pikes Peak Region.  Lots of fun shops, good restaurants, and an amazing view of Pikes Peak.  Territory Days is coming up Memorial weekend and there are always other events throughout the year.  The lights at Christmastime are really beautiful.

I don’t want to repeat blog posts I write on other sites, but I want you to have access to the content.  I am now one of the featured bloggers for our company site, HomesColorado.com.  RE/MAX Properties just launched a new site this winter and the blog is now up and running.  Enjoy the article I’ve written on the effects on equity by accelerating your mortgage!  And watch for my posts on HomesColorado.com about once a month.  You’ll always find a link here.

Trying to pick up a quick lunch before going back to work?  In the car between appointments and feeling hungry?  After 14 years in Texas and another 22 in Colorado, I love anything with chilis.  Of course my favorite southwest food is at my favorite restaurants in New Mexico, but I can’t get there every day.  So what’s a girl to do?

When I’m hungry, I pick up a burrito at either Chipotle or Qdoba.  I admit I go to Chipotle more often because I’m a creature of habit and they came to Colorado Springs first, but both have fresh ingredients and lots of options.  Tell me if you think Qdoba’s website is more fun.  Another advantage is that they are both located all over town.  So the next time you feel hungry and want to “fill er up” give one of these local quick food shops a try.  Meet a friend there.  Friends will tell you if you drip salsa on your shirt.  Both restaurants provide napkins.

I love it when a plan comes together!  As you may know, I read a lot of articles and listen to a lot of speakers whose content pertains to the real estate and investment markets.  I want to make sure I’m on top of the latest information for the benefit of my clients and readers.  Today I read my new Realtor Magazine Online and half the articles happened to be on subjects I’ve thought about recently.  That’s where my plan comes in - I have a tendency to see trends rather than follow them and want to share those insights with you.

One of the current articles is on a topic critical to any seller in the current market or who is thinking of taking the plunge.  How to price homes in the MLS.  ONLY HIRE A REALTOR WHO KNOWS YOUR MARKET AND WHO WILL BE HONEST WITH YOU!!  Did you know that 90% of pricing is based on location and size of the home?  Did you know buyers want all the great stuff you put in your house, but at a steal of a deal?  Did you know you are competing with foreclosures and short sales and those distressed sales are anywhere from 30-75% of all sales in many communities?  Colorado Springs is currently at about 30% with that number expected to increase to between 40-50% of sales as ARM loan rates reset.

All too often, I see homes listed way above where they are selling in that neighborhood (like one right now in my own neighborhood - $35,000 too high).  Why?  Do the sellers really want to show their home for months on end and then have the listing expire?  It is hard enough to get a sale when the price is in the right range but prices keep dropping because of financially distressed properties nearby.  You can decide for yourself why people would do this to themselves.  Share your thoughts if you’d like to.

My team and I are honest about what sellers can expect to get for their home in this market.  Not only that - we tell you if things are changing so you can change your expectations as well.  This market is not static.  Some day we hope to be able to tell you it is improving month after month, but that’s not now.

Here’s the link to the article from Realtor Magazine that prompted my post today.  Colorado Springs is listed as a market that is on track.  Homes are being priced for the most part to reflect recent sales and the amount of inventory is staying fairly steady.  That’s good for current and future sellers.  If you have questions about your neighborhood, we’re only a phone call or email away.  What are you going to do to sell your home after the home buyer tax credit goes away?  Let us help you come up with your plan.

I like to stay in touch with past clients and one of the most frequently asked questions I get is “How’s the Colorado Springs real estate market doing?”.  In the past week I had the opportunity to hear Alex Charfen, founder of The Distressed Property Institute and the Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) real estate designation, speak to our company and my response to a recent client inquiry reflected what I heard Alex say.  We are not out of the woods yet.

My family built a new home in Colorado in 1988 and it did NOT appreciate for 5 years until MCI opened their headquarters in Colorado Springs in 1993 and did massive hiring.  Many new jobs followed in the technology and service sectors.  Colorado Springs grew.  Our home has appreciated nicely since 1993, even though those first years were not good, but we didn’t build our house intending to rake in appreciation in 12 months, 18 months, or even 3 years.  Many people had that mindset as they bought between 2004 and 2007.  It hasn’t worked out for them as we as a nation have experienced a devastating recession and billions of dollars of wealth has been lost.  What does it take to get positive home appreciation?  Jobs!!!  Until we see the job situation improve, we will not see a robust real estate market.  Does that mean you shouldn’t buy now, or sell and buy a nicer home?  Absolutely not.  Over a lifetime, home ownership has proven to be an amazing vehicle for wealth accumulation compared to renting and paying someone else’s mortgage.  But you do have to pay attention to your personal financial circumstances and lifestyle and decide whether you can afford to not have any appreciation for the next 2-3 years.  That is what we will probably see locally and nationally.  We expect Colorado Springs to improve ahead of many markets, but there is no guarantee when that will happen.

So what did I tell my client?  Here’s my response.  Do you agree with me?  Or do you believe the national press telling you all is good, no worries, things are looking up?  Stayed tuned for more facts in the coming weeks.  Then you decide.

We’re doing better with the number of sales than last year, but last year was the worst year in about 20 years in Colorado Springs.  The $8000 first time homebuyer tax credit is helping increase the number of sales for 2009 and 2010, but prices are not going up.  Rather we expect them to either stay flat or decrease again once the tax credit goes away 4/30/10.  It’s an awesome buyer’s market, but a lousy seller’s market.  My team and I are telling people that if they have to sell or they are looking for a great move-up deal and are willing to take a price hit on their current home to get the $6500 move-up buyer credit and great pricing and low interest rates on a larger or newer home, then go ahead and list their home, but if they just want to “try” to sell, this is not the market for that.  There is another wave of foreclosures coming as ARMs reset in 2011 so we don’t expect prices to improve locally for at least another 2 years.  We’re encouraging people to pay down their mortgages and pay in additional principal to build equity in the coming few years.

Are you considering taking advantage of the $8000 home buyer tax credit or the new $6500 move-up buyer tax credit?  The deadline to do so is April 30, 2010 with a closing by the end of June, 2010.  But what if you want to purchase a brand new home?  That is still possible also.  I have been working with clients who are building new homes in the past 6 months and the builders are eager to get you in a house.  Just recently Hallmark Homes notified me that they will guarantee a closing by the end of June and are offering finished basements in some areas.  I have found Classic Homes in Wolf Ranch to be excellent to work with and my clients feel like VIPs.  Thank you to Tina and Teresa for being exceptionally caring and communicative.  We all appreciate you.

If you want to look into this option yourself, I have a team of experts who can help you come up with a plan so that you can be in your own home in 2010 and hopefully take advantage of the tax credit as well.

Ready for another great place to go out and eat in Colorado Springs?  Do you like Italian?  Do you like the ambiance of Old Colorado City?  Then try Paravicini’s.  They also have a second location in Palmer Lake named La Zingara.  We like the variety of menu items (love the mussels!), the fresh bread and house salad, and think they have the best calamari fritti.  Located at 2802 W Colorado Ave at the west end of Old Colorado City, there is plenty of parking behind the restaurant.  If you like dessert, the cannoli is pretty yummy.  I like to take one home and put it in the freezer until I’m ready for dessert.

I’ve lived in Colorado Springs for 22 years and have seen restaurants come and go.  A few I was sad to see close.  Others were open such a short time it was obvious the owners didn’t plan for enough money to stay afloat until they were solvent.  Or maybe they just didn’t have good food or service.

One of my favorite places for Chinese food is Tsingtao House at the corner of Woodmen and Rangewood, just east of the King Soopers.  I used to have another favorite Chinese restaurant but when new owners took over I didn’t like the food anymore.  Then I found Tsingtao House.  I have to go a few extra miles to get there, but it is worth it.  It’s a great value.  They have a varied menu and the food is consistently good.  They have a great lunch and dinner special that includes soup, crab wonton, eggroll, and hot tea.  Give it a try!  It’s great when we can keep local restaurants open.  And watch for more favorites in the future.  What is your favorite Pikes Peak Region restaurant?

Did you ever want to be an astronaut?  Do you get feeds from the NASA website regularly?  Are you a space geek?  Then get to the Fine Arts Center soon to see the current exhibit on the history of NASA.  I love looking at Hubble photos and have used them as inspiration for ATCs (artist trading cards).

Every week I provide sellers whose homes I have listed with information about trends in our local market so they can be up to speed on what’s going on.  The good news during March was that the number of listings flattened and the number of showings for our company is staying steady.  Sellers have to know this market is not easy and must have a hardy constitution to weather all the uncertainties if they really want to sell their home.  This is not a market to “try” to sell.  That commitment has to be made upfront.  But, with a leveling of listing activity and a 22% increase in sales in El Paso County for March 2009, there is a glimmer of a silver lining on all those clouds.

There are still a lot of foreclosures and short sales to wade through and many more coming, so any upward trend won’t happen quickly, but when it does come, it will be steady because that’s what our local market usually is - steady.  No flash and dash like 40% gains per year seen in Florida, just steady upticks in prices.  Distressed property sales are still more than 30% of the monthly sales for March and 94% of homes that sold were priced below $400,000, so El Paso County is becoming more affordable to more people.  With the $8000 tax credit for first time buyers (remember that also means people who haven’t owned a home in 3 years) and low interest rates, we are in the midst of a perfect storm.  What an opportunity!!!  There is increased activity in some areas of California and in Las Vegas, so we’ll just keep watching the trends and keep you informed.