At Home Colorado - Boulder County Edition

REAL ESTATE

Real Estate News, Open Home Listings, Homes for Sale, Rentals and More!

BOULDER COUNTY

10 Home Trends to Look For in 2022

(Photo: Scott Gabriel Morris/Provided photo/TNS).

Open Homes and Virtual Tour Quick Guide Looking for a home? View comprehensive listings of local virtual tours and open houses taking place from all across the area.

December 31, 2021 - January 1, 2022

5 Trends That Will Move Mortgages and Housing in 2022 In the instant gratification age, consumers are more pampered – and less patient – than ever. However, the mortgage industry has yet to deliver anything of that level. Here are trends to watch in 2022.

Real Estate New Year’s Resolutions for 2022 It’s time for New Year’s resolutions! This year, why not add a real estate resolution or two to your list – and see if you can make it happen?

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THE LIGHTER SIDE COLORADO HOME AND REAL ESTATE

New year check-in quiz: How are you doing?

How are you coping with supply chain shortages?

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Mary Lynn Bruny Tom Kalinski Mary Hill Duane Duggan Paul F. P. Pogue Cathy Hobbs Jeff Ostrowski ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Thais Hafer Toni McNeill Mary Romano MANAGING EDITOR Greg Stone

EDITORIAL

At Home Colorado is a weekly publication designed for the Colorado home and real estate community. The Boulder County edition publishes Friday in the Boulder Daily Camera and Saturday in the Longmont Times-Call.

The Northern Colorado edition publishes Saturday in the Greeley Tribune and Loveland Reporter-Herald. Submit press releases and article ideas to: gstone@prairiemountainmedia.com.

ADVERTISING

To advertise in At Home or to promote your virtual home tour visit AtHomeColorado.com/Advertise, call Thais Hafer at 303.473.1456, Toni McNeill at 303.684.5329 .

At Home is an advertising feature of the Boulder Daily Camera, Greeley Tribune, Longmont Times-Call and Loveland Reporter-Herald. ©2021 Prairie Mountain Media.

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Wow. Who would have thought a year ago that we would still be enduring this pandemic? Add to this chaos inflation, labor shortages and MARY LYNN supply chain BRUNY woes (as well as natural disasters just to spice things up). There has been enough going on to test the zen state of the Dalai Lama.

What can be expected of us lesser mortals? How are you faring?

Answer these questions to assess your mental wellbeing:

If you have a partner, how is your relationship?

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Better than ever.

We have adjusted to so much time together.

Hard to tell since they moved into the garage, installed all those locks, blacked out the windows and blocked my cell number.

How has your diet been?

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Extremely healthy.

I’ve been doing a bit more snacking and drinking.

I live surrounded by halfeaten pizzas in greasy boxes, dirty take-out containers and dozens of empty liquor bottles. But they’re my friends now. They tell me this all the time.

If you have children, how is your relationship with them?

READ MORE ONLINE AT: ATHOMECOLORADO.COM 2

AT HOME COLORADO

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Better than ever.

We have adjusted to so much time together.

Goodness! I have

completely forgotten about them! The attic has such great soundproof insulation!

How concerned are you about whatever bad habits you’ve developed during the pandemic, such as too much screen time, online shopping, snacking, drinking or not enough exercise?

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I don’t have bad habits.

Yeah, I should probably cut down on my screen time.

Those are bad habits?

If you are single, how do you feel about that?

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3.

I’m happy being on my own.

I’m good but am open to meeting someone. It’s just hard now.

During this God-awful time I would gladly clutch onto any breathing human being if only for a moment of respite from this circle of hell in which we are relentlessly stuck.

What do you do when you have the urge to cough in public?

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3.

I never cough.

I really fight the urge.

I never go out and only cough when I’m crying myself to sleep.

How important is your pet to you right now?

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3.

The same as usual.

Snookums has been my special little buddy.

Both my cat and dog left me. Sometimes I think I see them peeking out from the neighbor’s curtains, but they hide whenever I come near.

I barely notice this.

I’m bummed I can’t get some things, but hopefully this will soon pass.

I’ve hoarded rooms full of TP, water, MREs and tin foil, and am turning my crawl space into a bunker to prepare for the eventual Armageddon.

When you hear that COVID variants may be with us forever what do you think?

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We’ll adjust.

I wish it were over, but I guess we’ll adjust.

The word is just a relentless black hellhole of despair that is collapsing in on its horrible, miserable self. I just can’t adjust.

What’s your face mask situation?

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3.

I only use white K95s.

I have quite a collection of cloth ones in fun patterns.

I only wear one and never wash it. The horrible smell repels COVID and all bad stuff. I know this is true because people back away whenever I come near.

SCORING

Answered mainly 1s: You are so perfect that it’s a bit scary.

What is your secret? Whatever the reason, most people find you so well adjusted as to be kind of intolerable.

Answered mainly 2s: You’re well balanced and healthy. This is awesome, as you will most likely have to take care of all the poor folks who answered mainly 3s.

Answered mainly 3s: Times are hitting you hard, my friend. Take care and just remember 2022 has to be better. Actually, that’s a lie.

Now we know it can get worse.

Buckle up, buttercup and hang on.

Mary Lynn Bruny writes about local real estate and home-related topics for At Home Colorado.

Email her at ml.bruny@comcast.net.

To read previous The Lighter Side articles, go to athomecolorado.com/ the-lighter-side.

BOULDER DAILY CAMERA / LONGMONT TIMES-CALL

REAL ESTATE

2021 was a record year in real estate, 2022 shows two Colorado metro areas among the “hottest” Nationwide, 2021 brought the highest level of home sales in 15 years, according to National Association of Realtors® (NAR) Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun. He also expects 2021 to end with a 15% national increase in median home prices. Next year will see prices rise about 2.8% as rents continue to rise.

“The housing market has been the one bright spot during the pandemic for two major reasons,” Yun said, citing low interest rates and the impact of COVID-19 as both the first and second reasons fueling the real estate market.

Looking ahead to 2022, two Colorado cities made Realtor.com’s list of hottest housing markets expected to lead the nation in price appreciation and sales growth: Colorado Springs and Denver-Aurora-Lakewood.

At the fourteenth hottest metro, Colorado Springs is forecasted to see a 10.3% increase in sales in 2022 compared with 2021, while prices are expected to rise 5.2% year-over-year. That’s a combined percentage change of 15.5%, according to Realtor.com.

The year-over-year growth forecasted for No. 58 ranked Denver-Aurora-Lakewood is a 6% increase in sales and a 5% rise in prices for a combined percentage change of 11%, reports Realtor.com.

This year’s top 10 are concentrated in the Mountain West, Midwest and New England, with Salt Lake City, Boise and Spokane as the top three. Across the top 10 markets home sales are forecasted to grow by 11.6% year-

TOM KALINSKI

over-year in 2022 – nearly two times the 6.6% national home sales growth projection.

Additionally, average home Looking ahead to 2022, two Colorado cities made Realtor. prices in the top 10 are expected to com’s list of hottest housing markets expected to lead the nation in price appreciation and sales growth: Colorado increase 7.4% – Springs and Denver-Aurora-Lakewood. (Photo: Pexels). more than double the national pace lead the nation in listing price of 2.9%. appreciation and home sales While mortgage rates are growth. Following are the key expected to rise, they will remain trends expected to drive growth in relatively low with Yun predicting a rate of 3.7% by the end of 2022. housing hotspots, cited by Realtor.com: Regarding inflation, Yun said Strong tech jobs, less crowding: historical data shows that real This year’s top housing markets estate has served to hedge inflation have an average of 60 fewer for homeowners. He expects people per square mile and a supply-chain issues to stabilize strong job market. STEM – by mid-2022, easing inflationary science, technology, engineering pressure. and mathematics – jobs also rank He also predicted the pandemic high, with half of the top 10 would continue to affect office metros offering a higher share of workers’ choices about where STEM jobs. to live. “We’re only in the first Remote work and escape from innings in terms of residential the big city: LinkedIn data shows choices,” he said. “People haven’t fully digested the changes from the the share of job seekers applying for remote work in metros like hybrid, work-from-home model.”

Boise and Spokane is at least 6.8% The 2022 analysis includes higher than the national average. housing markets among the 100 The report projects that workers largest U.S. metros expected to

are likely looking to get away from big city living without giving up a big city salary.

Millennials and retirees drive the market: More than 45 million millennials are at “typical firsttime buying ages,” which puts them in the driver’s seat for housing demand. In four of the top 10 markets, seniors aged 65plus account for nearly one-third of households, led by No. 10 ranked Tampa at 32%.

More affordable home prices: Median listing prices in the top 10 markets are an average of 8.6% higher than the national average, yet half have more affordable prices than the national average and the other half have lowerprices than key big-city feeder markets.

For more information on 2021 results, see magazine.realtor/live/ article/2021/11/a-record-year-inreal-estate-sales. For the full list of Top Housing Markets of 2022, see news.move.com/2021-12-07Realtor-com-R-Forecasts-the-TopHousing-Markets-of-2022.

Tom Kalinski is the broker/ owner of RE/MAX of Boulder, the local residential real estate company he established in 1977. He was inducted into Boulder County’s Business Hall of Fame in 2016 and has a 40-year background in commercial and residential real estate. For questions, email Tom at tomkalinski33@gmail.com, call 303.441.5620, or visit boulderco.com.

Wendy Conder

Let’s discuss your real estate goals today!

An Experienced Real Estate Agent You Can Trust When it’s Time to Buy or Sell Your Home.

WENDY CONDER

303-775-0108 • wendy@wendyconder.com December 31, 2021 - January 1, 2022

May your new year be filled with dreams come true!

Diane Stow

ABR, CRS, GRI, SRES, CNE

Call Diane Today!

303-775-3338

diane@dianestow.com

www.dianestow.com 512 4TH AVE, STE 101 LONGMONT 80501 (303) 651-3939

Each office independently owned and operated.

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return on your investment.

Boulder continues to tout the highest average price per square foot in Boulder County ($558).

REAL ESTATE

December Boulder County real estate market report Hindsight is 20/20. If you purchased a single family home last November in Boulder County market statistics say it is now worth significantly more. MARY HILL Will this trend continue? With the continued low interest rates (3.25% for a 30-year term) and the low supply of homes for sale

Erie Single family home prices in Erie reversed course since October, losing an average of $50,000.

Compared to a year ago, prices increased an average of $150,000.

This correlates with an increase in the average price per square foot of 20 percent. Erie’s average of $218 per square foot makes it the most affordable place to purchase a single family home in Boulder County.

across the county prices should continue their upward trend.

Boulder County Boulder County’s average sales price of single family homes increased from $788,230 in November 2020 to $1,014,125 in November 2021. A $15,000 increase in average sales price occurred from October to November 2021. Only 173 homes were available to purchase in November, down 50 percent from a year ago.

Boulder In Boulder average sales prices rose about $50K compared to October. But, compared to a year ago, the average price skyrocketed approximately $400,000. WOW! The average price per square foot was similar to that of last month, but up 35 percent over the last year. To put this into perspective, a $1 million dollar home purchased last year (if you could find one) would be worth approximately $1.35 million today. Not a bad

NOVEMBER 2021 VS NOVEMBER 2020 SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENTIAL SALES

LOCATION

AVERAGE SALES PRICE

HOMES FOR SALE

CLOSED SALES

MONTHʼS SUPPLY

DAYS ON MARKET

AVERAGE PRICE/SF

BOULDER COUNTY NOV 2021 YTY % CHG OCT 2021

$1,014,125 +28.7% $1,030,619

173 -49.6% 260

311 -17.3% 350

0.5 -50.0% 0.8

39 -36.1% 38

$364 +26.4% $379

BOULDER NOV 2021 YTY % CHG OCT 2021

$1,616,784 +33.4 $1,661,629

67 -58.4% 102

85 -16.7% 111

0.6 -64.7% 1.0

ERIE NOV 2021 YTY % CHG OCT 2021

$725,920 +26.9% $779.163

23 -36.1% 24

LAFAYETTE NOV 2021 YTY % CHG OCT 2021

$747,171 +17.0% $838,002

14 -46.2% 17

LONGMONT NOV 2021 YTY % CHG OCT 2021

$685,224 +16.5% $638.918

47 -50.0% 70

LOUISVILLE NOV 2021 YTY % CHG OCT 2021

$1,101,172 +47.9% $1,095,049

5 -28.6% 15

YTY-YEAR TO YEAR

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AT HOME COLORADO

64 -5.9% 48 29 -14.7% 30 128 -16.9% 135 19 -13.6% 15

0.5 -16.7% 0.5 0.5 -37.5% 0.5

44 -36.2% 46

21 -64.4% 38 36 -33.3% 36

$553 +34.9% $558 $218 +20.4% $237 $319 +17.7% $332

0.4 -42.9% 0.6

33 -42.1% 29

$273 +21.9% 262

0.3 0.0% 0.8

35 -30.0% 36

$369 +24.2 $374

FROM IRES MLS DECEMBER 27, 2021

Lafayette Lafayette home prices continued their wild gyration with single family homes selling for an average of about $90,000 less in November than in October.

But, the average price was up 17 percent compared to last year ($638,718 to $747,171).

Longmont The average price for single family homes in Longmont rose approximately $46,000 compared to October. This corresponds to an average $11 per square foot increase. With its low inventory of homes for sale (0.4), houses that are in good condition continue to receive multiple offers.

Louisville Louisville’s average sold price was about the same as in October as I predicted last month. And, a $1 million dollar home purchased last November would be worth approximately $1.48 million now.

Who wishes they had invested in real estate in Louisville last year?

Analysis What’s the future of the housing market in Boulder County? If we continue with the low inventory of homes on the market and low interest rates, prices will continue to climb. If you are thinking about selling your home now is a great time to take advantage of the large number of buyers clamoring to purchase a home.

Mary Hill is a Realtor at The Hill Group, Coldwell Banker.

Call 303.808.7796, e-mail cofrontrangelife@gmail.com or visit cofrontrangelife.com.

BOULDER DAILY CAMERA / LONGMONT TIMES-CALL

19 Years

of Boulder County Gold Awards!

1456 Clemson Drive Longmont 8850 N. County Line Road Longmont 2642 Sherwood Circle Boulder 4 Bed, 3 Bath $705,000 7 Bed, 9 Bath $3,875,000 3 Bed, 2 Bath $1,075,000 3068 sq ft Ranch in NW Longmont!!

Luxury home with barn on 35 Acres!!

Remodeled, modern open floor plan. www.1456.wkre.com www.8850.wkre.com www.2642.wkre.com Dennis & Jann Culver: 303-618-3366 Dennis & Jann Culver: 303-618-3366 Ardee Imerman: 303-946-5458

735 Pearl Street Boulder 3900 E. County Road 30 4 bed, 3 bath $1,350,000 4 Bed, 2 Bath Pearl St Townhome! Remodeled 4 bed / views. Horse property on 7 acres! www.735.wkre.com www.3900.wkre.com Fred Dodds: 303-898-3586 Barry Remington: 720-373-9297

Fort Collins $899,000

2329 Glacier Court Lafayette 3 Bed, 4 Bath $1,590,000 New modern custom home in Trail Ridge West. www.2329.wkre.com Paul Calcagno: 303-579-6463

1485 Wagonwheel Gap Road Boulder 15600 Peoria Crossing Road Byers 525 3rd Avenue Longmont Land $1,000,000 Land $2,225,000 Commercial $4,500,000 Best of both Worlds! Awesome foothills lot!

355 acre certified organic farm near Byers.

Grand historic building in Old Town Longmont. www.1485.wkre.com www.15600.wkre.com www.525third.wkre.com Keith McQuillen: 303-589-1432 Jim Green: 303-775-2553 Tom Hill: 720-312-7271

VIEW THE ENTIRE MARKETPLACE INVENTORY OF LISTINGS ON WKRE.COM BOULDER OFFICE: 303.443.2240 LONGMONT OFFICE: 303.776.3344 wkre.com December 31, 2021 - January 1, 2022

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REAL ESTATE It’s time for New Year’s resolutions! These tend to include losing weight, joining the gym, waking up half an hour earlier, and more. This year, why not DUANE add a real estate DUGGAN resolution or two to your list – and see if you can make it happen?

When it comes to real estate, it’s great to have time on your side. Good things happen when you have plenty of time. However, the procrastinator in all of us can make it tough to get started in the real estate market. The sooner you make progress on any of these resolutions, the better.

Write down what you want to achieve and work on a plan to get there. After all, if you wait until 2023, you will be one year older when you start. No matter what your age, one of these resolutions below can apply to you.

I resolve to save for a down payment on my first home Saving for a down payment is the biggest hurdle most firsttime buyers face. Research low down payment loan programs so you know how much of a down payment you actually need. Check out any available down payment grants or assistance programs that may be available locally. Figure out what you can cut in daily expenses and put into savings.

Skip the daily $5 latte. Check out Colorado’s First-Time Homebuyer Savings Account (FHSA), which can help you save for a down payment: coloradorealtors.com/ fhsa.

I resolve to buy my first home Once you have the down payment ready to go, it’s time to buy your first home. Meet with a local real estate lending professional and determine a price range you can afford for a home. If the lender identifies qualifying or credit issues, work on a plan to resolve those. Get a pre-approval from the mortgage lender first before meeting with your Realtor® to see what homes are available in your price range. The homeownership rate was 65.4 in the third quarter of 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. From this figure, you can see that a large percentage 6

AT HOME COLORADO

Real estate new year’s resolutions for 2022 This year, why not add to a real estate resolution or two to your list – and see if you can make it happen? (Photo: Pexels).

of people never own their own home.

The graph to the right, provided by the National Association of Realtors®, shows how much wealth was created by being a homeowner for the last, 5-, 10-, and 30-year time periods in the Denver Metro Area. Continuing to be a renter, you will miss out on the great wealth-building opportunity that homeownership offers.

their own home AND own a rental property. I could not find a statistic showing exactly how many Americans own both a primary residence and a rental at the same time, but I’m confident

old house as described in the last resolution, you’re on your way to fulfilling this resolution. To acquire your first rental property, you might be able to refinance your old home in order to pull

that it’s a pretty low percentage.

However, as you can see from the graph above, owning a second property can be a significant source of wealth building.

If you are able to keep your

cash out for a down payment on a new residence. Then you can rent the first house and use a lowdown-payment, owner-occupied

I resolve to move up to my next home As the old saying goes, “Life Happens,” which means sometimes you need a bigger house or one in a different location. If you’re expecting to search for a new home this year, contact your mortgage lending professional and your Realtor.

You can learn how much you are able to spend on a new home, and whether or not you will need to sell your old home in order to buy the next one. If you can keep the old home and rent it out, you have already achieved the resolution below.

I resolve to buy my first rental property As stated above, the national homeownership rate is 65.4% according to the U.S. Census Bureau. That means that substantially less people own

CONTINUED - See Page 8

BOULDER DAILY CAMERA / LONGMONT TIMES-CALL

M WT ANT MORE INFORMATION? Check out these great homes and many more at: Check out these homes and many more at:

tinyurl.com/BoCoFeatured

12 UNIT APARTMENT BUILDING 1945 Canyon Blvd BOULDER $6,000,000

QUEEN ANNE VICTORIAN 1039 Mapleton Ave BOULDER $3,600,000, 4 Beds, 3 Baths, 2504 SqFt

NESTLED IN A MOUNTAIN TOWN 6806 S Brook Forest Rd EVERGREEN $1,625,000, 5 Beds, 5 Baths, 3883 SqFt

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS 420 21st Ave LONGMONT $1,500,000, 1 Level, 7577 SqFt

6 CUSTOM ESTATE LOTS 0 CR 16 1/2, Lots 1,4,8,9,12,16 FREDERICK $1,450,000, 5.25 Acres

30 ACRES - FLAGSTONE QUARRY 2463 Steamboat Valley Rd LYONS $1,250,000, 30.67 Acres

SECLUDED MOUNTAIN HOME 14383 N St Vrain Dr LYONS $889,000, 4 Beds, 4 Baths, 2643 SqFt

CHARMING HORSE PROPERTY 8029 Firethorn Dr LOVELAND $825,000, 5 Beds, 3 Baths, 2464 SqFt

AMAZING MOUNTAIN VIEWS 263 N Cherrywood Dr LAFAYETTE $780,000, 5 Beds, 4 Baths, 3270 SqFt

HISTORIC DOWNTOWN GAMING ZONE 127 Main St CENTRAL CITY $750,000, 4275 SqFt

BUILD A LAKEFRONT DREAM HOME 7670 W Grand Ave LITTLETON $675,000, 0.13 Acre

SOLD TOGETHER OR APART 1525 Spruce St 1A & 1B BOULDER 1,275,000 (together), 3052 SqFt

COOL & SOPHISTICATED 444 17th St 903 DENVER $535,000, 2 Beds, 2 Baths, 1065 SqFt

GORGEOUS END UNIT 3047 W 113th Ct A WESTMINSTER $450,000, 3 Beds, 2 Baths, 2026 SqFt

PRISTINE MOUNTAIN LAND 0 Moose Dr LYONS $350,000 40 Acres

GREAT LOCATION 2707 Valmont Rd 211B BOULDER $338,900, 2 Beds, 1 Bath, 792 SqFt

GREAT SPACE FOR SMALL OFFICE 118 8th St DACONO $324,990, 1980 SqFt

UPGRADED TOP TO BOTTOM 5120 Williams Fork Trl 209 BOULDER $260,000, 1 Bed, 1 Bath, 625 SqFt

BUILD YOUR DREAM HOME 105 Millionaire Dr E BOULDER $225,000, 5.95 Acres

CHARMING 2 OFFICE CONDO 777 Poplar Ave 765 BOULDER $195,000, 383 SqFt

Boulder 303.499.9880

Downtown Longmont 303.651.3939

Downtown Boulder 303.442.3180

Nederland 303.258.7070

4770 Baseline Rd #220 Boulder, CO 80303

1911 11th St #200 Boulder, CO 80302

December 31, 2021 - January 1, 2022

512 4th Ave #101 Longmont, CO 80501

286 N Bridge St Nederland, CO 80466

Lafayette 303.497.0588

109 N Public Rd View these homes online!

Lafayette, CO 80026

rem.ax/bocohomes

Louisville 303.666.6500

225 W South Boulder Rd Louisville, CO 80027

Each office independently owned and operated.

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Real estate new year’s resolutions (continued) loan to buy the new property.

If this is not possible, check into investment property loans and get pre-approved for a loan to buy a rental property. Check to see how much down payment is required.

It’s usually 20%.

Most people don’t like to own a rental because they don’t want to be a landlord. Research companies that can professionally manage your investment property. This will make you a much happier rental property owner.

I resolve to pay down my mortgage People have different goals regarding their mortgage. Some homeowners would like their home to be free and clear when they retire. Others want to build equity to have more down payment for the next purchase. In the U.S., we are actually one of the few countries in the world with 30-year mortgages. The argument for keeping your mortgage for 30 years is that towards the end of the term, you are paying it off with cheaper, inflated dollars.

There is also an argument to keep the balance high for tax

deductibility and use the proceeds from a mortgage to invest in other things. If paying off your mortgage quickly is one of your goals, there are a variety of mortgage acceleration techniques that can make that happen for you. Your financial planner can help you make those decisions.

I resolve to build a real estate investment retirement plan Somewhere I heard that we spend our youth creating wealth, then we spend our wealth creating youth. When you think about it, that is so true! With three family members living in senior communities here in Boulder, I find it amazing to see how much wealth is necessary in the latter years of life to finance housing and medical care. The nice part about owning real estate is that home values have continued to rise, and rental income has continued to go up to help support those retirement years. As stated above, many Americans do not own a home and a rental property, let alone a real estate portfolio. A real estate investment plan doesn’t have to be huge to make real

estate work for you. It could be to buy a rental house every two years over the next 10 years. If you have five free and clear rental houses by the time you retire, that is an incredible nest egg to take care of you as you age.

I resolve to invest in real estate using IRA funds It’s been possible to invest in real estate using IRA funds since 1978.

Most Americans don’t know that, let alone know how to do it.

Many CPAs aren’t familiar with the process either. Investing in real estate in your IRA, allows you to let real estate values and income grow tax free, helping grow your retirement account faster.

I resolve to get my estate plan in order As I said in the beginning, there is a resolution on this list for everyone regardless of age. If you have created real estate wealth, it is important to figure out what happens when you are gone. Meet with an estate planning attorney and make your wishes known.

Even the great musician, Prince, died with a $300 million estate

and had no will. A little planning makes it easier on everyone!

Get time on your side The younger you are when you start acting on any of these resolutions, the better. When I started selling real estate in 1978, Baseline Subdivision houses in Boulder were selling for under $30,000. Today, they start around $650,000. Not exactly a get-richquick, fix-and-flip TV story, but an undoubtedly strong investment.

Talk with your Realtor®, mortgage lending professional, and financial planner. Work out a strategy and get moving today!

Duane Duggan is an awardwinning Realtor® and author of the book Realtor for Life. He has been a Realtor for RE/MAX of Boulder in Colorado since 1982 and has facilitated over 2,500 transactions over his career. He has been awarded two of the highest honors bestowed by RE/ MAX International: The Lifetime Achievement Award and the Circle of Legends Award. For questions, email DuaneDuggan@boulderco.com, call 303.441.5611 or visit boulderco.com.

ASK ANGI

Decluttering after the holidays

By Paul F. P. Pogue Ask Angi (TNS) The holiday season tends to leave a trail of clutter in its wake.

Between decorations, gifts (and their wrapping!) and the supplies you put out to host guests, it’s no wonder you’d have a mess on your hands. As overwhelming as it may seem, it is possible to declutter your space (and set off a New Year’s resolution to be more organized!) And you certainly can do better, if you devote some time and attention to getting it right.

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AT HOME COLORADO

First things first — be ready to commit some time to this task.

Decluttering takes time, and you’ll likely get discouraged (and possibly quit) if you expect to finish it all in a single weekend.

When it comes to decluttering, it’s a mess-tackling marathon, not a sprint.

The most important trick for decluttering is compartmentalizing and sticking to it. Experts say letting yourself get distracted or overwhelmed is a sure ticket to organizing failure. Go through one room at a time, tune out

distractions, and follow a checklist. Divide the project into four categories: “toss,” ‘keep,” “donate,” and “misplaced.” This system will help maintain a steady flow as you move through the room. If things belong there, leave them; otherwise, place them in the box and move on. Don’t follow through with the action on the box until the room is complete.

It can be tempting to move misplaced items back to where they belong as you come across them, but that’s the kind of thing that derails decluttering efforts!

Once you’ve completed a room, go ahead and return the “misplaced” and “keep” items to where they belong, get rid of the “toss” items, and put “donate” items aside for later.

Another tip is to follow the old saying, “a place for everything and everything in its place.” If something goes back to the same place every time, it’s pretty easy to avoid a mess.

Once you’ve got your clutter

under control, keep a daily or weekly checklist of things to do that will help maintain your newly ordered surroundings. Get into a routine of resetting rooms when you’re done using them. Put away books, pencils, toys, craft items or whatever you might be using as soon as you’re done with them.

This will quickly become second nature if you make it a regular habit.

You can also turn to the experts for help by hiring a professional organizer. A pro tends to cost between $55 and $100 per hour, but the skills they bring to the table make the cost more than worthwhile. If you can’t afford to hire someone for the several hours it would take to organize the average home, consider a shorter consultation. Even if they walk you through just one room, an organizer can teach you the basic skills to bring order to your mess in no time!

For more tips visit angi.com.

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ago of mixing different cabinets in the same space. This mix of colors and materials remains on trend.

COVERPROFILE

Cozy elements Hygge is still hot as it relates to infusing cozy elements into a home, such as fireplaces.

Home offices As society continues to pivot more and more, workers will continue to work from home. The home office trend is predicted to continue to grow.

Black and white Many people continue to look for a color palette that is timeless yet elegant, and black and white remains a popular choice.

Bronze, brass and copper While traditional finishes such as chrome and nickel have their appeal, many are opting for more unexpected finishes such as bronze, brass and copper.

Black cabinetry makes a powerful statement in this kitchen. (Photo: Scott Gabriel Morris/Provided photo/TNS).

DESIGN RECIPES

Mirrors Mirrors are back in vogue.

Whether you are using them down a hallway or in a series to mimic the look and feel of windows, a generous use of mirrors remains a popular trend.

10 home trends to look for in 2022

By Cathy Hobbs Tribune News Service (TNS)

W

ith a new year comes new trends. What will be hot this year?

While many existing trends are slated to remain popular, a number of new trends are also emerging. Here are some of the predictions for what will be on trend for this year.

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Tile Whether on the floor, walls or as accents, the prominent use of tile remains on trend, especially in bathrooms and kitchens.

Wallpaper Wallpaper remains hotter than ever. Whether you choose to use it on an accent wall or to cover surfaces in an entire room, wallpaper provides an opportunity

to infuse both color and texture into a space.

Tone on tone Yes, it is still OK to infuse bursts of color, but monochromatic or tone-on-tone interiors remain modern and fresh.

Two-tone cabinetry The trend started roughly a decade

Colored cabinetry From red to black, blue and even purple, the trend remains to incorporate color and individuality into social areas such as the kitchen.

Cathy Hobbs, based in New York City, is an Emmy Awardwinning television host and a nationally known interior design and home staging expert with offices in New York City, Boston and Washington, D.C. Contact her at info@cathyhobbs.com or visit her website at cathyhobbs.com.

A spare room is converted into a functional home office.

A bathroom is adorned with tile throughout including wall areas.

(Photo: Scott Gabriel Morris/Provided photo/TNS).

(Photo: Scott Gabriel Morris/Provided photo/TNS).

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REAL ESTATE

5 trends that will move mortgages and housing in 2022

By Jeff Ostrowski Bankrate.com (TNS) In the Amazon age, consumers are more pampered – and less patient – than ever. Tap your phone and, voilà – hot food from your favorite restaurant arrives in minutes. High-end electronics appear on your doorstep in hours.

However, the mortgage industry has yet to deliver anything like that level of instant gratification.

The typical time from application to consummation of a mortgage is 50 days, according to ICE Mortgage Technology, a glacial pace compared to the swiftness of most other things in modern life.

“The mortgage space is many decades behind everyone else,” says Chris Boyle, a longtime executive at mortgage giant Freddie Mac and now president of home lending at Roostify.

Boyle’s company is one of many aiming to hasten the mortgage process so that closing times might someday be measured in days rather than weeks. Roostify is part of a new breed of property technology, or “proptech,” companies that aim to pull home loans and property sales into the digital age.

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Here are trends to watch in 2022: Mortgages: Getting to ‘yes’ faster

Digital players want to close your mortgage more swiftly – although even the optimists say the process will continue to unspool over a period of days and weeks, rather than the seconds and minutes used as benchmarks in other corners of the economy.

One obvious obstacle, according to Jess Kennedy, co-founder of Beeline: Mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, who set the rules for most mortgages, have built-in seven day minimums for many of their processes.

While proptech companies acknowledge they won’t be able to wire the money within hours of your mortgage application, they’re focusing on a different goal – giving consumers a yes or no instantly.

Beeline, a lender that does business in two dozen states, promises to let borrowers know exactly where they are in the process at any moment. “We liken it to the Domino’s Pizza Tracker,” Kennedy says.

Roostify, which works to speed the mortgage process on behalf of lenders, has a similar approach.

“You want to give the consumer certainty,” Boyle says.

Roostify focuses on time savings by automating paper-intensive parts of the process, like verifying tax returns and pay stubs. Having an actual human look at every document adds days and weeks to the timetable, Boyle says.

But automation takes lenders only so far. The complexity of mortgage applications poses challenges for lenders that hope to fully automate their approvals.

Every application is unique, and loan applications from selfemployed borrowers and real estate investors can stump even veteran loan officers. In other words, programming a robot to shepherd a $300,000 loan through approval ain’t easy.

“Every single application is a snowflake,” Kennedy says. “It’s really hard to create a system that can account for every beautiful snowflake.”

Home appraisals: Analysis goes virtual

The U.S. housing market is booming despite a chokepoint: There just aren’t enough property

appraisers to visit and evaluate all the houses changing hands and being refinanced.

Hoping to find at least a partial solution to that problem, the overseer of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will begin accepting more “desktop appraisals” in early 2022. The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced in October that remote valuations will take the place of some traditional appraisals, which require appraisers to visit properties that serve as collateral for mortgages.

Paul Ryll, founder of Oscar Mike Mobile Appraisals in Greenville, South Carolina, welcomes the change. By not visiting a property in person, appraisers should be able to crank out more valuation reports, he says.

“There’s no reason an appraiser can’t do that in 72 hours. It should drastically reduce the turn times,” Ryll says. “As appraisers, we need to embrace the change.”

Even if they don’t tour homes in person, appraisers still will rely on a variety of data sources, including property photos posted in the multiple listing service.

CONTINUED - See Page 14

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HAPPY NEW YEAR

2022

Wishing you the best in the coming year!

THE #1 TEAM AT RE/MAX OF BOULDER & Your Real Estate Resource for the New Year

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Real estate trends (continued) Cash offers: New breed of firms wants to be your ‘rich uncle’

During the coronavirus housing boom, bidding wars became commonplace. When sellers weigh multiple offers, they tend to favor the sure thing of a cash offer over the slightly less certain bid that’s contingent on financing.

As a result, cash buyers often can score a slight discount compared with buyers who are relying on financing. And cash buyers might be able to drive a harder bargain around inspection contingencies.

That has led to a number of companies making cash offers on behalf of buyers who don’t really have $300,000 or $400,000 in the bank. Companies such as Homeward, Ribbon, Unlock and Better.com make cash offers on behalf of borrowers who later finance their deals.

One of the new breeds of “power buyers” has a catchy take on the offering. “Think about us as a rich uncle,” says Adam Pollack, co-founder and chief

executive of Accept.inc. “We want to turn every buyer into a cash buyer and every offer into a cash offer.”

These companies raised millions in 2021, and they’ll continue ramping up in 2022.

iBuyers: After a setback, still going strong

In 2020, as the pandemic first threatened the U.S. economy, iBuyers, or instant buyers, slowed their roll. Then, with the housing market booming, they became aggressive buyers of homes in Sun Belt markets. In 2021, Opendoor, Offerpad and Zillow Offers paid sellers premiums for their homes.

Skeptics wondered whether Zillow’s generous offers and modest fees made business sense. In early November, Zillow conceded that it was paying too much for properties, even in a market characterized by soaring home values. Zillow grabbed headlines when it shut down its Zillow Offers unit.

Zillow, creator of the vaunted Zestimates of home value,

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seemingly learned the hard way that technology isn’t always the answer to a brick-and-mortar business like flipping houses.

“They just got in over their head, couldn’t scale, didn’t understand the complexity,” says Ken Johnson, a housing economist at Florida Atlantic University.

Yet the other iBuyers are still in business. Stefan Peterson, cofounder of Zavvie, a real estate technology company that works with brokerages to help sellers compare offers from iBuyers, says the remaining iBuyers will dial back the generosity.

“It’s been kind of an open secret that iBuyers were making very strong offers,” Peterson says. “They seem to be coming back down to earth, but they’re still very close to 100 percent of (market value).”

Blockchain: Not coming to housing yet, but perhaps someday

Perhaps the hottest area of technology is blockchain, the innovation that underlies bitcoin

and other cryptocurrencies. For now, the real estate industry is focused on more mundane tasks, such as shaving a few days off mortgage closing timelines.

But Geoffrey Thompson, chief blockchain officer at proptech firm Roofstock, sees a growing role for the hot technology.

“Purchasing a home is vastly different from owning a digital asset, and navigating the securities laws in this area can be tricky,” he says. “In 2022, I expect new experiences to surface that connect blockchain to real-world assets and make purchasing real estate more seamless, efficient and possibly even fun.”

He even sees non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, expanding beyond digital art and collectibles into old-fashioned real estate.

“In the short- or medium-term, it may be feasible to buy and sell real-world properties in the form of NFTs,” Thompson says.

Visit Bankrate online at bankrate.com.

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home

...is where our stories begin.

We are grateful for our clients and friends, near and far, who have continued to support RE/MAX of Boulder and RE/MAX Elevate through the past years and particularly through the trying times we’ve all been going through.

May your holiday season be bright and may your stories continue to grow as we move into 2022.

We wish everyone a very special holiday season!

2425 CANYON BLVD #110 1320 PEARL ST BOULDER, CO 80302 303.449.7000 BoulderCO.com

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724 MAIN ST LOUISVILLE, CO 80027 303.974.5005 ElevatedRealEstate.com

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