Arvada, CO

The other day I was thinking how common it used to be to discuss with people who are renting, the idea that they could get a home of their own, for not much more than they pay in rent. And I don’t mean that long ago, just a couple of years ago. I never seem to hear people talk that way any more, and wondered what happened to that line of thinking.

Is it possible that the only way people got into mortgages for a monthly payment about equal to their rent was because of the proliferation of those notorious ‘teaser rates’? (Those ‘teaser rates’ were what we all heard about on the radio – mortgages with 1% or 2% interest. Of course, they only stayed that way a short time.)

Is it still possible to buy a house in Colorado, and have a mortgage quite close to what you paid in rent?

“This calls for research!” I shouted.

I went straight to the Colorado Division of Housing’s web site, and found the "Single-Family" Housing Vacancy and Rent Survey, Researched and Authored by: 
Gordon E. Von Stroh, Ph.D. of The Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver. Here’s what he said:

“Average rents by number of bedrooms were:
one bedroom, $631.12;
two bedrooms, $855.93;
three bedrooms, $1,151.16;
four bedrooms; $1,343.85;
and five bedrooms, $1,488.42.”

(Read it for yourself by clicking here)

So let’s say you rent a 1-bedroom apartment for $630 per month. What could you buy and end up with about the same payment?

It just so happens I have a one-bedroom condo for sale in Arvada. Homes cost less in some other cities, such as Thornton, but let’s use this example in Arvada for now. It’s listed for $100,000. Let’s say you put down 3% and get a loan at 5.5% interest on a 30-year fixed-rate loan. Your payment would be $550. Add $125 to that for HOA fees, and about $100 for insurance and taxes, and you’re looking at $750. Yes, it’s a little more, but you could have a tax write-off for mortgage interest, taxes, and some loan costs. Plus, you get a garage. Plus, you’re not subject to having your rent raised every time your lease runs out.

Hmmm … what do you think of that?

Let’s look at someone who rents a 4-bedroom house for $1,350. What if they wanted to buy a house and keep their payment about the same? At 5.5% interest, you could get a loan for $211,346 and your payment would be $1,200, to which you’d have to add about $150 for taxes and insurance. $1,350 per month for a home of your own.

Of course, you need certain things, like a decent credit score, a job and some cash. But as long as interest rates and prices stay like they are, owning a home of your own for about the same as you’re paying for rent may be something you can do.

And don’t forget – if you get a house under contract before the end of April, you might qualify for an $8,000 tax credit.

Want to know more? Please call or email asap.

I write posts on real estate issues and local events in the Denver metro area, especially those communities between Denver and Boulder, as a public service. My hope is to give people an idea of the 'flavor' of our community, in case they're new or moving to the Denver area.

I am a residential real estate agent, happily helping folks buy a house or sell a house in the beautiful and friendly suburbs northwest of Denver.

Read more about Olde Town Arvada.

Check out my website.

Find all the homes available in Arvada, Westminster, Broomfield, North Denver, Thornton, Lafayette, Louisville, Wheat Ridge and Golden.

Arvada has homes for sale of every type and nearly every price range. I preview available homes, to stay on top of the Arvada real estate market.

On February 4, I went out and looked at eleven available homes. You can read the summary below. I have not provided addresses because these homes are not listed by me, and I don't want to step on other agents' toes.

You'll notice I couldn't even get in to three of these homes, and another had wrong information in the MLS. That's two of the reasons I preview whenever I can, before I take my client to see homes.

2-story with basement built in 1961, listed since Sept 22, listed for $219,900. 4 bedroom, 4 bathrooms, 2-car garage

I couldn’t get in to see this house, as the lockbox didn’t work.

1-story with basement built in 1958, listed since January 5, listed for $230,000. 3 bedroom, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

The MLS said this home was for sale at $215,000. However, the owner was there and asked what the MLS said. He told me that was wrong, the price is $230,000. I don’t know if this is some kind of ‘trick’ to get people in to the house, or some kind of mistake. He said a person could offer $215,000, but it would be a short sale at that price. I didn’t feel it was worth $230,000. The MLS said, “Cute remodel”, but the remodeling was kind of a mish-mash. Plus, it was only about a block from the freeway, so freeway noise was a consideration.

1-story with basement built in 1971, listed since August 12, listed for $209,900. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

This house was a bit small, but cute. I felt the MLS photo really did not do it justice. It had the old-fashioned rounded doorway, vinyl windows, and a nice yard. I was actually surprised it was still on the market, so made a note to check the listing history when I got back to the office. Sure enough, it had recently been reduced to the $209,900, but had started at $225,000. I don’t believe it will be long before they have an offer, unless the listing has become stale.

1-story with basement built in 1971, listed since September 16, listed for $219,900. 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

This house needed all new carpet, had no privacy from neighbors in back, had original windows. The MLS did mention that it had updated wiring, new roof, new furnace, windows, and more. However, there were no permits on record for any of that work except some electrical.

1-story with basement built in 1962, listed since March 11, listed for $199,900. 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2-car garage

This house was dated, needed yard work, had no privacy from neighbors in the back yard. It was a short sale, I believe this house to be over priced.

1-story with no basement built in 1973, listed since January 6, listed for $205,000. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

This house was dated, needed yard work, had no privacy from neighbors in the back yard. It was a short sale, I believe this house to be over priced.

1-story with basement, built in 1961, listed since September 25, listed for $219,950. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

This house had a moldy smell emanating from the basement, no dining room, and a dated kitchen with a tiny wall oven. Other than that, it was cutely remodeled and nicely staged. Still, it’s going to be difficult to sell at that price.

1-story with basement, built in 1960, listed since November 14, listed for $209,800. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

There were at least two dogs loose in this home, barking and not happy about someone at the door. I elected not to go in. But the location wasn’t what most people are looking for, due to proximity to a busy through-street.

1-story with basement, built in 1959, listed since December 12, listed for $197,000. 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

This home had the cute rounded doorways and coved ceilings of its era. However, it was also quite close to a busy main road and needed work. Price will likely have to come down to interest a buyer.

1-story with basement, built in 1961, listed since November 27, listed for $219,900. 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

This house was messy and needed work. Without anything special to entice buyers, I feel it is overpriced.

1-story with basement, built in 1966, listed since September 10, listed for $219,900. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage.

I couldn’t get into this home. I was given the wrong code and couldn’t get the right one when I called the listing office. This was a pretty good price for this neighborhood, although the listing says its dated and this is not one of the view lots.

I write posts on real estate issues and local events in the Denver metro area, especially those communities between Denver and Boulder, as a public service. My hope is to give people an idea of the 'flavor' of our community, in case they're new or moving to the Denver area.

I am a residential real estate agent, happily helping folks buy a house or sell a house in the beautiful and friendly suburbs northwest of Denver.

Read more about Olde Town Arvada.

Check out my website.

Find all the homes available in Arvada, Westminster, Broomfield, North Denver, Thornton, Lafayette, Louisville, Wheat Ridge and Golden.

Arvada’s Westwoods neighborhood currently has 7 homes for sale, ranging in price from $309,900 to $595,000. One of these is a short sale and another is a bank-owned foreclosure. Some of the available Westwoods homes have been on the market for several months, but four of them have been on the market for less than 30 days.

There are no Westwoods homes currently under contract.

Five homes sold in Westwoods in the past six months, none of them were short sales or foreclosures. Their selling prices were from a low of $339,900 to $421,250. The number of days on the market until these homes were under contract were 10, 99, 110, 130, and 174, for an average of 104 days on market.

Here's my thoughts on Westwoods:

There is a less than six month absorption rate in Westwoods. (That means if no more homes came on the market, and homes continued to sell at the same rate, the current inventory would sell in less than six months.) That's pretty impressive for this price range. The reason Westwoods homes sell at a brisker pace than others is the beautiful west Arvada location, the golf course, new shopping and restaurants nearby, and community trails.

If you want to see any of the available homes in Westwoods or anywhere in Arvada or the surrounding area between Denver and Boulder, please give me a call. To list your home, please let me know you're thinking about selling asap - I take only a limited number of clients at a time.

Read more about Arvada's Westwoods neighborhood here.

I write posts on real estate issues and local events in the Denver metro area, especially those communities between Denver and Boulder, as a public service. My hope is to give people an idea of the 'flavor' of our community, in case they're new or moving to the Denver area.

I am a residential real estate agent, happily helping folks buy a house or sell a house in the beautiful and friendly suburbs northwest of Denver.

Read more about Olde Town Arvada.

Check out my website.

Find all the homes available in Arvada, Westminster, Broomfield, North Denver, Thornton, Lafayette, Louisville, Wheat Ridge and Golden.

Arvada’s Five Parks neighborhood currently has 15 homes for sale, ranging in price from $275,000 to $300,000 for attached homes. Available detached homes start at $375,000 and go as high as $525,000. Two of these are short sales. Most of the listed homes have been on the market for several months, which is not unusual in this price range.

There are three Five Parks homes currently under contract. Their listed prices were between $375,000 and $435,000. One of them is a short sale which has an offer on it pending lienholder acceptance. The number of days before these homes went under contract were 355 for the short sale, 126 and 369 for the other two.

Seven homes sold in Five Parks in the past six months, two of them were short sales. Their selling prices were from a low of $274,000 (for an attached home) to $464,000. The number of days on the market until these homes were under contract ranged from as few as 8, to as many as 735, with the average being 200.

Here's my thoughts on Five Parks:

There is a 1 year absorption rate in Five Parks. (That means if no more homes came on the market, and homes continued to sell at the same rate, the current inventory would sell in one year.) That's not good news for home sellers in Arvada's Village of Five Parks Neighborhood. However, Five Parks remains a popular neighborhood. Since its inception, this neighborhood has promoted a community feel, and that shows when talking to loyal Five Parks home owners. Still, there are some negatives this neighborhood has to deal with. Busy train tracks border one side of the neighborhood, lot sizes are small, Arvada's shopping and entertainment are not close by, and new homes are being built nearby, which will be some heavy competition for home buyers' attention.

If you want to see any of the available homes in Five parks or anywhere in Arvada or the surrounding area between Denver and Boulder, please give me a call. To list your home, please let me know you're thinking about selling asap - I take only a limited number of clients at a time.

Read more about Arvada's Village of Five Parks neighborhood here.

I write posts on real estate issues and local events in the Denver metro area, especially those communities between Denver and Boulder, as a public service. My hope is to give people an idea of the 'flavor' of our community, in case they're new or moving to the Denver area.

I am a residential real estate agent, happily helping folks buy a house or sell a house in the beautiful and friendly suburbs northwest of Denver.

Read more about Olde Town Arvada.

Check out my website.

Find all the homes available in Arvada, Westminster, Broomfield, North Denver, Thornton, Lafayette, Louisville, Wheat Ridge and Golden.

Arvada’s Meadowglen neighborhood currently has only 3 homes for sale, ranging in price from $287,500 - $360,000. None of them are a foreclosure or short sale. These three homes have been on the market since last July and August.

There are no Meadowglen homes currently under contract.

Four homes sold in Meadowglen in the past six months. Their selling prices were from a low of $187,000 to $279,900. None of them were a foreclosure or short sale.

Here's my thoughts on Meadowglen:

At first glance, there appears to be only a 2 month absorption rate in Meadowglen. (That means if no more homes came on the market, the current inventory would sell in two months.) That makes Meadowglen a seller's market. However, Meadowglen is in the middle of a densely populated area, with lots of other homes to choose from. So home sellers in Meadowglen still need to be sensitive to pricing their home right if they expect it to sell in a timely fashion.

And the evidence of that fact is clearer here than most. As I said above, the three homes on the market have been sitting there for about six months. Yet, the homes that have sold in that same six months went under contract in only 2, 4, 0 and 34 days. The average time from listing to being under contract (days on market) for Meadowglen sales is only 10 days. Still, we can see that homes can sit unsold a long time even in this popular neighborhood if not priced properly.

Meadowglen continues to be a popular Arvada neighborhood, due to their community pool and proximity to the lake, schools, trails, shopping, restaurants, and recreation. Homes here tend to have smaller lots than some of the surrounding neighborhoods, but Meadowglen homes are about ten years newer too. Homes situated nearer to the busy 80th Avenue will sell for less than others, of course, but this is a lovely 'pocket' neighborhood.

If you want to see any of the available homes in Meadowglen or anywhere in Arvada or the surrounding area between Denver and Boulder, please give me a call. To list your home, please let me know you're thinking about selling asap - I take only a limited number of clients at a time.

Read more about Meadowglen here.

I write posts on real estate issues and local events in the Denver metro area, especially those communities between Denver and Boulder, as a public service. My hope is to give people an idea of the 'flavor' of our community, in case they're new or moving to the Denver area.

I am a residential real estate agent, happily helping folks buy a house or sell a house in the beautiful and friendly suburbs northwest of Denver.

Read more about Olde Town Arvada.

Check out my website.

Find all the homes available in Arvada, Westminster, Broomfield, North Denver, Thornton, Lafayette, Louisville, Wheat Ridge and Golden.