If you're like most people, you are paying to heat the water for your home 24 hours a day, every day. The average homeowner pays to keep hot water hot even when they don't need it. Traditional water heaters make for standby energy losses that cost you money. We do not leave our homes heated while vacationing. We only heat our homes when there is a demand for heat. Wouldn't it be great if you could pay to heat water only when you need it? 

There is a way. Tankless water heaters provide continuous hot water, heating water only as you need it, thus providing greater efficiency and energy savings. An average, traditional 50-gallon water heater can supply about three to four back-to-back showers. With a tankless, you can enjoy endless back to back showers! Also referred to as instantaneous or demand water heaters, they provide hot water on demand for as long as you need it, but only as long as you need it. 

On Demand water heaters are 50% more efficient and give you a typical cost savings of 30 to 45% over the old style water heater. They provide endless hot water to multiple outlets at the same time without fluctuations in temperature, and they shut off automatically when the faucets are turned off. 

Your family stands to gain additional protection, as well. As opposed to standard gas water heaters, tankless water heaters have sealed combustion which means no open flame or flue gas. Flue gas cannot enter your home. In addition precise water temperature control helps prevent the risk of scalding, especially important when you have young children in your home. 

The compact, wall-mounted units can be installed internally, externally or recessed, thus providing a significant space savings over a 40-gallon traditional water heater that requires approximately 16 square feet of space. Because of smaller size, they can be placed in close proximity to the kitchen or master bath, reducing wait time and energy consumption while waiting for hot water at the source. 

With a life expectancy of 25 years (and easily replaceable parts that extend the life by many more years), as compared to 10 years for standard hot water tanks, tankless water heaters reduce landfill waste. Additionally, they provide lower emission of CO₂ gases into the atmosphere, adding to their green characteristics. 

Proper installation and maintenance of your demand water heater can optimize its energy efficiency.  Whether space, energy savings, or the need for multiple showers is your issue, a call to an AUTHORIZED SERVICE PROVIDER/INSTALLER is your key to success. Without quality installation, even the best equipment can fail to give you its best performance. Proper installation ensures you get all the capability possible from your instantaneous water heater. 

The Colorado House Finders' Real Estate Consulting team are experienced, professional real estate agents with certifications in Real Estate, Lending and Appraising, who specialize in Denver Colorado real estate.  For access to Denver MLS listings , contact Colorado House Finders or www.ColoradoHouseFinders.com.

By now, staging a home for sale has become a common practice by sellers and their real estate agents. And like many things in preparing a home to sell, you can either choose to do it yourself or hire one of the many professional stagers around. There are advantages to both. 

The obvious benefit to staging your home yourself is the cost savings. If you are really on a budget, you might want to do a few Internet searches for staging tips and put your head together with your agent to come up with a house that presents itself well and that potential buyers can imagine living in themselves. 

This brings us to our first tip. All that wonderful memorabilia, photos and items that truly express your personality - take them down. Try to use more generic furniture, art and only a few accent pieces. That leads us to the next tip. 

Less is more. We live in a time where we have a lot of stuff, and most homeowners really like their own stuff. But, for a buyer to truly get a feel for the home and be able to, once again, imagine his or her own things in that house, you must create visual space. 

While painting, cleaning carpets and assuring that your home has the scent of a warm and inviting place are no-brainers, they bear mentioning. These are the basics to making sure your home shows off in the best possible way. Antique white shades for the walls works marvelously. Lighting should be bright and well-balanced, and left illuminated when you know you have a showing. Clean out closets, garages and other storage areas to increase the sense of available space for the buyer. 

A great thing to do is leave the scent of baking bread wafting through your home on the days when there's a showing. For the bread, don't think you have to make your grandmother's bread from scratch. Get a conveniently packaged, unbaked loaf or rolls at the grocery store. Just pop them in the oven and the smell will be intoxicating! 

A professionally trained stager will come in and help you move beyond these basics. In that process, they take out everything from the room and start all over. Large pieces of furniture come in first, then smaller pieces, lighting and, finally, artwork. There is an art to it and, if your budget can handle it, this kind of service can end save you valuable time and help you get closer to your asking price. 

IRIS (Interior Redesign Industry Specialist) is a nonprofit organization with high and comprehensive training standards in the industry. Look for a stager who has trained with an IRIS approved instructor to make sure you're getting the best possible service. 

The Colorado House Finders' Real Estate Consulting team is experienced, professional real estate agents with certifications in Real Estate, Lending and Appraising, who specialize in Denver Colorado real estate.  For access to Denver MLS listings , contact Colorado House Finders or www.ColoradoHouseFinders.com.

Along I-25 south of Denver from Belleview Avenue to Lincoln Avenue in the area known as the Denver Tech Center, higher density, transit-oriented development has taken place over the past several years. Pushing this development was "T-Rex", the $1.67 billion transportation expansion project whose goal was to "transform the way people in the Denver metro area commute within the area of the I-25 and I-225 intersection". This area was, at the time, estimated to be the 14^th busiest intersection in the entire United States. 

By many measures, the T-Rex project was successful. The interstates widen to seven lanes in many spots, and 40 miles of light-rail track were laid. The T-Rex project finished 3.2% under its $1.67B budget and 22 months ahead of schedule in 2006. 

There are several mixed-use "mini-cities" or "villages" now popping up in this corridor within a half-mile walking distance of the light-rail stations. They combine several uses on one site in a coordinated way, and retail, office and residential developments are usually a part of it. 

The magazine Colorado Biz reported that during his promotion to urge voters to pass the 2004 FasTracks Initiative, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper urged voters to envision the region transformed into a network of "villages" connected by mass transit, with each village having places to live, work, shop and play. Walking would be a key activity and strolling to a coffee shop, corner store or hopping the train to get to work would be the way of life. 

One of the most successful mixed use neighborhoods the City-Center Englewood, built between 2000 and 2002 on 55 acres that had previously been the Cinderalla City shopping mall.  This is truly a TOD - transit-oriented development, the term for mixed-use developments with a transit anchor. 

The Belmar area in Lakewood, CO, a five million square foot mixed use, new urban center for this Denver suburb, was one of the first mixed-use developments in the Denver area. Though it is not currently connected with light rail, the area successfully mixes retail, offices, residential and entertainment venues. Getting around without having to jump in the car is key to the lifestyle in this area. 

The Colorado House Finders' Real Estate Consulting team are experienced, professional real estate agents with certifications in Real Estate, Lending and Appraising, who specialize in Denver Colorado real estate.  For access to Denver MLS listings , contact Colorado House Finders or www.ColoradoHouseFinders.com.

Dr. Ben Bernake and the Federal Reserve have cut short-term interest rates for the last two consecutive months by a total of .75% in an effort to prevent the U.S. economy from slipping into a looming recession. Since most consumers do not understand how short-term interest rates actually impact their ability to borrow money, these rate cuts often create a common misconception that a decrease in the Federal Funds Rate translates to an equal drop in mortgage interest rates when these cuts often cause the latter to rise.

There are two primary interest rates controlled by the Federal Reserve that dictate the overall cost of borrowing money on a short-term basis: the Discount Rate and the Federal Funds Rate. The Discount Rate is the interest rate the Federal Reserve Bank charges member banks when these institutions borrow money from the government. The terms of these loans are usually no longer than 30 days and generally do not have a direct impact on the consumer. The Federal Funds Rate is the interest rate that commercial banking institutions charge each other over night for the use of Federal funds to meet their individual reserve requirements. This interest rate tends to impact the individual consumer and the economy as a whole over time more directly.

Mortgage interest rates, on the other hand, are determined by the trading price of mortgage-backed securities and fluctuate based on the performance of the bond market. The 30 year fixed rate mortgage tracks the yield on the 10 year Treasury note and usually runs about two percentage points higher than the 10 year Treasury yield on any given day. In accordance with basic rules of supply and demand, when investors purchase mortgage bonds the price of the securities increase, causing yields and interest rates to drop. Conversely, when investor appetite for mortgage-backed securities decreases, bond yields and interest rates rise as the bond prices drop.

Over the last few months bonds have been favorable investments in light of the credit crisis caused by bad loans, a weak labor market, and a slow housing market, and as a result these soft economic indicators long-term mortgage rates have seen steady declines. Since the Federal Reserve leverages rate cuts to stimulate economic growth, there is a good possibility that investors will abandon conservative bonds and seek out more aggressive variable rate investments (i.e. stocks) as soon as recession fears pass, causing bond prices to drop and mortgage interest rates to rise.

Our goal is to give you the tools necessary to be an educated buyer. Please contact us at info@coloradohousefinders.com if you have questions about this or any other topic related to the buying or selling real estate in Denver.

Damon Chavez is the co-founder of Colorado House Finders, a full-service online resource for real estate in Colorado. Damon's dedication to customer service and knowledge of the Colorado real estate market make him the smart choice when thinking about a move to Colorado.

The Cherry Creek neighborhood in Denver was one of the top neighborhoods searched on the Colorado House Finders website last month.  Since Cherry Creek was one of the most popular neighborhoods searched, we felt it appropriate to provide our in-state and out-of-state visitors a more in depth view of the Cherry Creek Real Estate market.

The boundaries for the Cherry Creek neighborhood are bordered by East 6th Avenue (North), East 1st Avenue (South), University Boulevard (West) and Harrison Street (East).  The Cherry Creek neighborhood is a blend of old and new with homes representing architectural designs from every decade since the beginning of the 20th century.  However, over the years the Cherry Creek real estate market has changed from smaller single family bungalows to luxury detached and attached single family homes and high-end condominiums valued at over $758 to $1,000 per square foot, such as those found in the North Creek complex at 1st and Detroit.

The high level of interest in the Cherry Creek neighborhood is due in large part to peoples’ attraction to the community’s eclectic amenities, such as the diverse restaurants, art galleries, clothing boutiques, coffee shops, hair salons and evening venues.  In addition, the Cherry Creek neighborhood is bordered by the Cherry Creek mall, a major commercial retail center anchored by Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus and the newly constructed Nordstrom and 160 other shops and restaurants.

Cherry Creek is definitely one of the most unique 10 block areas in Denver offering amenities to accommodate any lifestyle.  This is one of the main reasons for the double-digit increases in home values over the last few years and will be for many years to come.  If you are interested in knowing more about the Cherry Creek community and Cherry Creek real estate, please contact Colorado House Finders at info@coloradohousefinders.com.

Damon Chavez is the co-founder of Colorado House Finders, a full-service online resource for real estate in Colorado. Damon's dedication to customer service and knowledge of the Cherry Creek Real Estate market make him the smart choice when thinking about a move to Colorado.

Until recently the Denver real estate market was one of the few in the country that did not have licensing requirements for mortgage lenders. Although the Colorado Division of Real Estate has implemented a new Mortgage Broker registration procedure, unscrupulous lenders are still finding ways to exploit home buyers looking to get financed on the purchase of a new home. Before talking to a mortgage professional about getting pre-qualified for your next loan, consider the following information and take the necessary steps to protect yourself:

Your personal information is a hot commodity.

Requesting a credit check is a crucial step in the home buying process, one that all lenders will require before considering you for a mortgage loan. Unfortunately most people fail to realize that the inquiry data that is collected by the major credit repositories (Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian) each time your credit is checked has now become a salable commodity and a significant revenue source for these companies.

The inquiry data that is collected on your credit report is compiled into an “inquiry lead” that includes your name, address, phone numbers (including unlisted numbers), credit scores, current debt and debt history, property information, age, gender and income, which is then sold at a premium to an indefinite number of other mortgage lenders for a significant profit. Once these lenders have your information they will employ every bait-and-switch tactic necessary to recoup their investment in an attempt to lure you away from your reputable lender, which is usually accomplished by contacting you shortly after getting pre-qualified and telling you your information has been “passed on” to them by your current lender because they weren’t able to offer the same competitive interest rates and loan programs.

Protect yourself by “opting out” 48 hours prior to talking to any lender.

The Consumer Credit Reporting Industry has provided a way to remove your name from lead lists. You can contact them by phone at 1-888-567-8688 or online at www.optoutprescreen.com, or by aligning yourself with one of the many reputable mortgage lenders that the Denver real estate market has to offer and asking them to assist you. You must “opt out” at least 48 hours prior to having your credit checked to ensure your request is processed in time. If you plan to have your credit checked prior to the 48 hour waiting period you are now an informed consumer, and can be vigilant of suspicious phone calls or mailers from lenders who may have purchased your information.

You have the right to shop for the real estate and mortgage professionals that best suit your needs. Take the necessary steps to protect your privacy and ensure that you’re able to align yourself with the professionals of your choice. Unsolicited marketing tactics can be annoying and intrusive, but five quick minutes to opt out of these schemes can protect your right to make informed choices on your terms.

Damon and Josh are co-founders of Colorado House Finders, a full-service resource for real estate in Colorado. Their dedication to customer service and knowledge of the Colorado real estate market make them the smart choice when thinking about a move to Colorado.

A report produced by Standard & Poor and Yale University economist Robert Schiller states the Denver Real Estate market is showing early signs of recovery.  This is based on results from the study that illustrates how the Denver Real Estate market has seen a 1.3 percent appreciation in home values between May and June 2007 and 0.8 percent between June and July.

According to the study, the Denver Real Estate home appreciations peaked in February of 2001 after a 15% year-over-year appreciation for the past decade.  Whereas, several other markets around the country continued to see significant increases in home value appreciations.  Since Denver’s rate of home value appreciation stabilized before several other markets around the country, S&P Vice President Maureen Maitland stated “Now, Denver seems to be going in an upward direction.”

Economist Michael Kone, principal of Boulder-based Housingmetrics, said there is still “intense pain” for the lower end of the housing market in the Denver area, with a “huge bump” in foreclosures to come, as sub-prime mortgages adjust upward.  Colorado is on pace to see more than 37,000 foreclosures filed this year, a 30 percent increase over the record set last year. Colorado and the Denver area are among the top 10 worst areas in the county for foreclosure rates.  Expensive houses, Kone said, are doing much better in the metro area.  Also, as always, there are pockets of strength.

Based on analysis that was performed by Bright Rain Solutions between July 2005 through June 2006 and July 2006 through June 2007, there are 30 Denver neighborhoods that have seen between a 10% and 36.6% increase in home prices.  However, on the flip side, there are another 30 neighborhoods that have seen between an 11.2% and 57.2% decrease in home values during the same time-frame.

If you are interested in additional information regarding the topics covered in this article or need additional information regarding real estate in the Denver Metro Area, please contact us at info@coloradohousefinders.com.

Damon and Josh are co-founders of Colorado House Finders, a full-service resource for real estate in Colorado. Their dedication to customer service and knowledge of the Colorado real estate market make them the smart choice when thinking about a move to Colorado.

Just the other day I was at a listing presentation with a prospective client discussing how to sell his home faster than the other active listings during the Denver Colorado real estate housing slump.  He of course wanted to know about our marketing strategy, communication plan, and competitive listings in the area and what I suggest for a listing price. 

Most successful agents who practice selling real estate in Colorado full-time instead of part-time will deliver a comprehensive plan for marketing and communication, however, there are very few within the Denver real estate market that have the experience or skill set to analyze any market and determine the optimum price that will sell their client’s house in the shortest timeframe.

When evaluating your listing agent, it is important to pay attention to the marketing and communication plan, but it is absolutely imperative that your agent can recommend a listing price for your home and concisely illustrate the methodology to arrive at the listing price.

The analysis should illustrate the general market conditions of the area, inclusive of current market conditions, employment factors, increases or decreases in property values during a 36 month time frame, owner vs. tenant occupancy and comparable units for sale.  It should illustrate the marketability of the subject property inclusive of neighborhood value ranges, marketing time in the area, and specific comments regarding the positive and negative characteristics of the property that could affect the value.

If your real estate agent provides you the analysis illustrated in the paragraph above, you are working with an agent that is a step above 90% of the other real estate agents in the Denver CO real estate market.  However, if you want your home to sell faster during a buyer’s market, you need an agent that will comprehensively evaluate the following characteristics of your home to arrive at the optimum listing price.  Such market factors and home characteristics as seller concessions, days on market, neighborhood location, site size, front and back yard views, house style, condition, room count, basement finishes, heating and cooling features, energy efficient items, types of porches, patios and decks, fireplaces and basement types. 

If all of the following home characteristics are evaluated and compared against three to six past neighborhood home sales and current listings during a twelve month timeframe, it is without question that your agent will be able to recommend the optimum price to sell your house in the shortest time frame.  Remember, 80% of selling your home in the shortest timeframe is a result of pricing it at market value from the beginning.

Damon and Josh are co-founders of Colorado House Finders, a full-service resource for real estate in Colorado. Their dedication to customer service and knowledge of the Colorado real estate market make them the smart choice when thinking about a move to Colorado.

Just the other day my partner and I where showing a new client homes in the Highlands neighborhood in Denver CO. The Highlands neighborhood is a very desirable neighborhood in the Denver real estate market, due to the bungalow style homes, urban feel, local shops and restaurants and proximity to Downtown Denver.

Unlike many real estate markets in Denver and throughout the country, the Highlands neighborhood is one of the magnet communities that have experienced double digit (13 percent) home appreciation over the last year. The problem with the high appreciation in a market like the Highlands neighborhood is that you get inexperienced agents that are unknowingly providing their buyers and sellers wrong advice. This wrong advice could lend itself to a home buyer paying more than the house is worth and unforeseen negative home appreciation for many years.

My client that I spoke of in the beginning of the article was working with an inexperienced agent who did not understand the Highlands neighborhood. However, they were fortunately also working with one of the Colorado House Finders’ appraisal consultants well versed in the Highlands community.

The situation with our new client occurred when their inexperienced real estate agent made an offer on a house in the Highlands neighborhood that was overpriced by another inexperienced real estate agent. Not understanding the Highlands market, this agent did not have the competency to advise the client on a reasonable offer to make on the house. As a result, they made an offer on the house that was thousands of dollars over market value. Fortunately, this client sensed doubt in their agent’s competency and as a result contacted one our appraisal consultants. Our appraisal consultant provided a thorough analysis of the subject property and the Highlands neighborhood that clearly illustrated the subject was significantly overpriced for the market.

You are probably asking yourself why the purchase would have occurred and how the property would have appraised? The answer is a result of the blind leading the blind. Unfortunately, there are many Realtors and appraisers who believe that if a client is willing to buy a home for a certain price, then the home must be worth that price. Due to the nature of the Highlands neighborhood with properties in various stages of condition, differing styles and value differences relative to the homes proximity to local shops, and an inexperienced appraiser guided by an inexperienced Realtor could have very easily had the house appraise at an inflated listing price.

It is extremely imperative that during a buyer’s market you work with a real estate agent that has experience in a local real estate market or the ability to thoroughly analyze a real estate market. Much like the case with our new client, they would have unknowingly purchased the house at $40,000 over market value, simply because they were misrepresented by an inexperienced real estate agent.

Damon and Josh are co-founders of Colorado House Finders, a full-service resource for real estate in Colorado. Their dedication to customer service and knowledge of the Colorado real estate market make them the smart choice when thinking about a move to Colorado.

What is the future of the real estate industry? What new trends are taking place in the real estate industry? Many people are speculating on the changes taking place in the real estate market in Colorado and other areas around the country. The idea of “One Stop Shop” real estate services is gaining interest among real estate professionals in Colorado and other states in the country, however, many real estate professionals are unaware how to implement the business model.

For as many real estate professionals that are unaware how to implement the “One Stop Shop” real estate business model, there are just as many who are unwilling to accept that this business model will be a reality. For those people, I want to ask them if they have ever heard of the mega-retailer Wal-Mart and if they understand their business model? The one stop shop business model is commonplace in our society and becoming commonplace around the world.

The term “One Stop Shop” originated in the United States in the early 1920’s and 1930’s. According to Gary Martin, author of the Meanings and Origins section of Phrasefinder website, the earliest tracing of “One Stop Shop” was found in an advertisement for a car repairer in The Lincoln Star, Lincoln Nebraska, July 1930. They summed it all up in their tagline – “Have it all done in one place. Save your time. Save your money”.

Like many of us who have come to expect value from the mega retailers, many consumers are asking for more value from their Real Estate professionals. Some people might expect this value to come in the form of price discounts, however, I’m referring to packaged real estate services and the ability to deliver value in pricing real estate, contract negotiations and marketing by leveraging individuals skilled in the functional disciplines of Real Estate, Lending and Appraising.

Damon and Josh are co-founders of Colorado House Finders, a full-service resource for real estate in Colorado. Their dedication to customer service and knowledge of the Colorado real estate market make them the smart choice when thinking about a move to Colorado.