Brian Petrelli - MBA, GRI

More big news for Denver foreclosures: In the largest industry settlement since the US settled with the tobacco industry, 49 state attorneys, including John Suthers of Colorado, filed the $25 billion agreement in court on Monday agreed to last month.

We're still waiting to see exactally how this plays out and if it will impact the number for foreclosures and Denevr short sales on the market. the deal is supposed to help roughly a million borrowers to see a reduction in the mortgage debt, but only time will tell.

From the Denver Business Journal:

The complaint alleged the five mortgage servicers’ misconduct “resulted in the issuance of improper mortgages, premature and unauthorized foreclosures, violation of service members’ and other homeowners’ rights and protections, the use of false and deceptive affidavits and other documents, and the waste and abuse of taxpayer funds.”

Colorado had the nation’s ninth highest state foreclosure rate in 2011 among the states and 12th highest in December 2011, according to RealtyTrac.

Most of the settlement amount, about $20 billion, is slated for home refinancing and principal reductions for struggling borrowers. About 1 million borrowers can expect their mortgage debt to be reduced by lenders or to refinance their homes at lower rates.

If you'd like to learn more about Denver foreclosures or Denver HUD homes, give our team of foreclosure experts a call at 303-726-1874.

Inventory is still way below average levels and is nearly 40% below where we were at this time last year.

More news on the declining housing inventory; this time for Denver luxury homes. The numbers today for luxury homes is nearly identical to the number earlier this week for all of the Denver homes for sale. Earlier this week, we reported that year-over-year inventory is down 33%. Today, we're finding out that inventory for Denver luxury homes is down year-over-year by 40%.

The number of sold homes in that time frame remained about the same, suggesting that the market may be finding an equilibrium.

From The Denver Business Journal:

There were 40 percent fewer luxury homes on the market in metro Denver in February than in the same month of 2011, according to a report released Friday.

Brokers listed 604 homes with a price tag of more than $1 million in February, compared to 644 in January and 1,005 in February 2011, according to the report analyzing Metrolist Inc. data by Gary Bauer, an independent Littleton broker, Metrolist analyst and board member.

Thirty homes in that market sold in February, down slightly from 33 sold in January but up from 27 in February 2011.

These numbers include the statistics for Denver luxury foreclosures as well.

If you are interested in more detailed statistics or information on Denver luxury homes in specific neighborhoods, give our team a call at 303-726-1874. Each neighborhood can have it's own unique markets, so let us send you a detailed report.

We'll continue to monitor the market and post the stats here, but as we've been reporting since last fall, the inventory continues to fall while the demand for homes, spurred largely by the low interest rates, continues to climb.

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When reporting market trends on Denver homes for sale, many companies will compute numbers by excluding all Denver distressed properties from their figures. This can lead to an overoptimistic picture of the true home market. Today, however, CoreLogic's numbers show a year-over-year increase and factor in all of the Denver distressed properties on the market (Denver foreclosures, Denver short sales, Denver HUD homes, etc).

This is big news and reflects the severely diminishing supply we've seen over the past 6 months. (See our post from yesterday on the housing inventory in Denver being down 33%.)

From the Denver Business Journal:

While home sale prices continue to slide nationally, Denver is bucking the trend with a year-over-year increase, according to the most recent CoreLogic home price index report.

Home prices in the Denver-Aurora-Broomfield metro area, including distressed sales, grew 1.1 percent in January from a year earlier, CoreLogic reported.

And in a revised December 2011 home price index, CoreLogic is now reporting a rise of 0.1 percent over December 2010, which makes for two months’ worth of year-over-year growth.

With the number of Denver foreclosures and short sales diminishing, the traditional resale market is picking up steam. While it used to be Denver HUD homes and that would occasionally see multiple bidders, we're seeing it happen much more frequently on traditional sales in certain areas of town and it is almost a given that a HUD home or foreclosure will have several bidders.

If you are serious about buying a home in the near future, give our team a call at 303-726-1874. We can set you up on the daily email alerts for your area so you don't miss anything.

There are still some great deals available on Denver distressed properties, but with prices heading up and inventory heading down, you need to move quick.

More supporting statistics out today confirming what we've been reporting since October - the inventory of Denver homes for sale has decreased drastically. The latest statistics show that the inventory available now, is down 33% from where it was this time last year.

This reduction is across the board in both single family homes as well as Denver condos. In addition, we're seeing a steep drop off in the available number of Denver HUD Homes and Denver foreclosures.

This decreasing inventory is causing several of our current clients to be forced into bidding wars on newly listed homes that just a year ago may have sat on the market for 6+ months. If you are serious about buying a home, you need to get organized, get prequalified, and get set up on our daily email alerts for the newest Denver homes for sale so you can move quickly. Give our team a call at 303-726-1874 to get started.

From the Colorado Division of Housing:

The single-family and condo inventory in the Denver area declined 33.1 from early March 2011 to the same period this year. According to new data released Monday by Housingtracker.net, the total inventory declined from 21,909 to 13,965 year over year, but was up 1 percent, month over month, reflecting seasonal changes.

If you are thinking of putting your home on the market, this low inventory puts you at a huge advantage when listing your home. Give us a call today to learn more about your specific neighborhood: 303-726-1874. With the number of Denver foreclosures and Denver short sales decreasing at such a rapid pace, this could be the best time in years to sell your home!

Some more very positive news from Metrolist today regarding Denver homes for sale. Inventory is falling, homes under contract are increasing and and sold homes are way up (12% year over year). All of this corresponds with what we've been saying for over 6 months on our blog. The Denver market is very strong and our biggest concern is the lack of inventory available for buyers.

From The Denver Business Journal:

If February is any indication, 2012 is going to be a better year for home sales in metro Denver, according to a report released Monday based on Metrolist Inc. statistics.

The number of homes put under contract in February stood at 4,150, up 19 percent from the previous month and up 12 percent from the same month last year, according to the report by Gary Bauer, an independent Littleton broker and Metrolist analyst and board member.

And this

February’s inventory of unsold homes was 10,086, down 3 percent from January and down a whopping 42 percent from February 2011’s 17,358.

As far as homes sold, there were 2,495 last month, which is up 1 percent from January and up 12 percent from the same month last year.

For years, the #1 question I get asked by clients and friends is "When do you think the market will turn around." For a long time now, I've been saying that I wish I knew. For the last month, my answer is simple: "Now."

The number of Denver foreclosures and Denver short sales are down and the invetory of available Denver homes for sale has been decreasing for a long time. If you are thinking of buying a home this year, the time to start looking is now.

Give our team a call at 303-726-1874. We can set you up on daily email alerts so you don't miss the best deals when they hit the market. Many of the best deals on Denver foreclosures are receiving multiple bids in the first few days and Denver Short sales are moving much quicker than they did even 6 months ago. Call or email us today.