Marianne Snygg, ABR, ASP, GRI, SFR

University Park, Colorado Springs, 80918

There's a sweet, but small, enclave of spectacular upscale homes perched on the side of the mountain with breath-taking views to Pikes Peak on the north side of Colorado Springs. It's called University Park because it backs up to the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. One of the great neighbors in the area is the YMCA. It's a full service facility with a pool, gym, and children's programs.

All the homes in University Park are as beautiful as this one.

Homes in the University Park start around $400K and go up to over $1M. There have been some foreclosures in the last year and homes have lost approx. 10% of their value in the recent down turn. There were 17 home sales in 2009 and there are currently 19 homes for sale.

For more information about this home or about the neighborhood, go to http://www.ServingColoradoSpringsNorth.com.

Pine Creek in Colorado Springs, 80920

The Pine Creek neighborhood is one of the nicest neighborhood in Colorado Springs. It sits on the north side of town, east of I-25, just a little bit south of the Air Force Academy, with great views of Pikes Peak.

Pine Creek is a golf course community. The homes surround and intertwine thru the golf course. Green fees are $34 to $44 for daily use. However they do have annual SWilver, Gold, and Platinum passes.

Some of the builders in Pine Creek are: Keller, Classic, Saddletree, Vantage and Campell Homes. Ground on the community was broken in 1994. There are currently 51 homes for sale. Starting at $295,000 for lower Pine Creek, and $1.5M for a huge home overlooking the golf course. Average days on market were 153. There were 55 homes that sold last year. And the list prices have rolled back to 2003 prices.

Recently the HOA built a children's park that includes the usual play equipment and a small water park. Pine Creek is a great community to live in with lots of walking trails and family activities.

Come check us out!

Photos Courtesy of Pine Creek Homeowners Association.

Country Living in Woodmoor, Monument, Colorado

The community of Woodmoor in the city of Monument, isn't really unique to Colorado. It is unique to most other urban neighborhoods. It's 10 miles north of Colorado Springs, and is located on the east side of I-25, and on both the north and south side of Hwy 105, and ends just west of where the trees end.

What makes Woodmoor unique are the trees.All the homes are on treed lots at least 1/2 acre. Every home is different from every other home; no two are alike. The neighborhood has old horse trails thru the area, that are now being used as a foot path. Not only are residents walking the trails, but wildlife are, too. It's a very friendly neighborhood, where neighbors wave to each other, stop and talk with each other, give each other a hand, and while driving also give others the right of way.

In the spring, the trees begin their pine cone production. Everything gets a thin layer of yellowish-green pollen on it. In the summer, the smell of the trees and the fresh air, with the birds singing hypnotic! The fall is the best season, with longer days, milder temperatures, and usually an early snow storm. Winter temps get down below freezing and snow storms are infrequent until around March.

Price ranges for single family homes in Woodmoorstart at $250,000, and go up to $700,000. With the recent recession homes have lost about 8% to 10% of their previous value. And most homes in the area sell for 97% of list price. Foreclosure are happening in Woodmoor at the same rate they are in the rest of El Paso County.

Sales data:

Check out this blog for more information about Woodmoor.

If you would like to know more about this great neighborhood, I'm so enthusiastic about it, that I'd just love to tell you more!

Historical Foreclosure Stats for El Paso County

• El Paso County, Colorado, historical foreclosure stats go back to 1981. That year there were 587 foreclosures.
• The lowest they have ever been was in 1995 with 438 for the entire year.
• The S&L debacle in the in the '80's, created a recession that topped off in 1988, with foreclosures at an all time high of 3,476.

Our current recession and sub-prime market crash has produced an even higher amount of foreclosures than the '80's did. There are many reasons for those numbers to be higher:

1. There are more people and homes now than in the '80's
2. Prior to the sub-prime blow out, home affordability was at it's highest since the second World War.
3. Unemployment numbers are higher now, too.

The following stats show increases over the years of the current recession.

But, more importantly, the agregate numbers for the current recession is over 26,000 homes in our county! That number far out reaches the agregate of foreclosures in the '80's, which came to about 20,000.

January 2010 had 2,195 foreclosures, compared to January 2009 totals of 2,250. There are a lot of families that have lost their homes. There are a lot of homes without any one living in them. It's blight on our neighborhoods, and a shame in our communities. Unfortunately, unemployment is high. But on the other hand, interest rates are low and home prices are low.

What will 2010 produce?