ESTATE PLANNING TIP FOR YOUR CLIENTS THAT OWN PROPERTY IN COLORADO - 09/24/08 07:39 PM
I was attending a class today about time shares, where I picked up this tip from the instructor.  This instructor is an attorney, who owns several time shares, and is on the board of one in the Vail Valley.  He was explaining that one of the big problems they encounter, is when a time share owner from another state dies.  Any deeded interest in Colorado has to be probated, which in many instances can cost more than the value of the time share.  The state of Colorado has what's known as a Beneficiary Deed.  This allows the owner of a time … (1 comments)

DENVER MLS NOW REQUIRES DISCLOSURE OF SHORT SALE - 09/18/08 10:42 AM
As of now, all listings have to disclose their short sale status.  Early in our downturn, which started in 2003,  many Realtors would not disclose whether a property was a short sale in the listing.  The reasoning was, they didn't want to attract low ball offers and thus hurt the seller's chance of getting a short sale negotiated.  As time went on and the lenders came to realize they needed to co-operate more, more and more agents chose to disclose this information, especially starting in Jan of 2008, when the Colorado Real Estate Commission started requiring that on the purchase contracts. … (4 comments)

BUY VS RENT; QUICK ANSWER! - 09/16/08 12:18 PM
We as Realtors, are often quick to answer Buy, but often many times the answer is much more complicated than that.  In fact, we aren't always the best people to ask.  The buyer's tax accountant or financial planner would be best qualified to help any buyer with such a question.  But when we are asked....here's a quick calculation you can do for your buyer.  This information comes from an article in the July 16, 2008 issue of Money Magazine, where the author, Amanda Gengler, was interviewing several experts on the real estate market.  This suggestion was offered by economist Patrick Newport. … (4 comments)

HERE'S AN IDEA FOR YOUR LOCAL MLS, TO BETTER REFLECT OUR MARKETS! - 09/15/08 03:38 PM
One of the most meaningless statistic we get from our local MLS's, is DAYS ON MARKET.  I'll get asked this from time to time, especially form an out of town buyer.  When they do, I'll quote them the most recent figure, but I then go on to say that it really doesn't mean much.  I want them to understand that after looking and comparing homes, if they see one they like because it fills their needs and is priced right, then they need to act on it.  What I don't want them thinking is, "well, if the average days on market … (4 comments)

FOR BABY BOOMERS ONLY - 09/14/08 03:50 PM

While Bill Graham is no longer with us, his concerts still are.  Either Bill, or someone in his organization, had the foresight to record all of these concerts, as well as concerts that Bill Graham Presents produced around the world.  You can now listen to many of these concerts by going to www.WolfgangsVault.com  Wolfgang was Bill Graham's first name, which was given to him, when he was born in Germany in 1931.  Now his estate has made these recordings available to the public.  The amount of artist and the shows that are archived is phenomenal.  You can actually listen to … (11 comments)

CONTINUING GOOD NEWS FOR THE DENVER HOUSING MARKET! - 09/10/08 11:21 AM
On Sunday I had posted a blog from the Denver Post with good news about our housing market here, in Denver.  Today, the Rocky Mountain news carried an article explaining that our home inventory had fallen 20% year over year from August 2007.  I knew, from various industry articles, that inventory was improving but this is the first time I've seen an actual number for the year to year improvement.  Some industry experts feel that our present inventory (26,000 +or -), is where we need to be to start to see a rise in prices.  We may not see that right … (2 comments)

ARE YOUR TRANSACTION FEES IN DANGER? - 09/09/08 01:14 PM
A couple of weeks ago, I remember there was a lively discussion on the the cost of gas and should we be charging our clients a fuel charge.  Most thought a direct fuel charge was tacky and I would have to agree with them.  Some suggested adding on a transaction fee when the buyer's agency agreement was enacted.  Now I know some large companies require the payment of these types of fees, usually for processing, paper work, office expenses, etc., but I see in the September 2008, Realtor Today, where these fees are being challenged in court Federal Court.  The plaintiff … (5 comments)

ARE YOUR SHORT SALES STILL A SECRET? - 09/08/08 04:43 PM
How is your market disclosing short sales?  In Colorado, we started dealing with these in 2003, and at that time the conventional wisdom practiced by the majority of listing agents was to not disclose in the listing that the property was a short sale.  The reasoning was, that if the public realized this, then they would make low ball offers and hence jeopardize the seller's ability to get the short sale approved by the lenders.  In those days, Colorado was one of the few depressed markets, so lenders were taking a harder approach to their loan losses.  As time went on, … (3 comments)

MORE GOOD NEWS FOR THE DENVER HOUSING MARKET - 09/07/08 09:14 PM
Today's Real Estate section of the Denver Post had some confirming news about the metro Denver housing market.  In an article authored by Rodger Campbell of The Kentwood Company, he outlined some of the positives about our local market.  First of all you have to be aware of a couple of things about our economy , here in Colorado.  First of all, we historically run counter to the rest of the nation.  While we are hitting our highs, the rest of the country isn't doing as well, and when we aren't prospering, the rest of the country is.  This was explained … (4 comments)

AN INTERESTING TAKE ON THE MORTGAGE SITUATION - 09/06/08 02:32 PM
I got this forwarded today from one of my lender contacts.  This came to him from the Shirmeyer Rate Market Report that's put out by Sigma Research, Inc.  They start out by saying how over the last 20 years mortgage rates have averaged about 1.6% above the 10-year Treasury rate, while in today's market, it's been running 2.4% or more above that rate.  According to them, it's been running higher to attract more investors to the mortgage market, however, even with these higher margins investors aren't flocking in to buy mortgage backed securities.  Because of the sub prime mess, mortgages still … (0 comments)

LATEST CRAIGS LIST SCAM - 09/05/08 09:46 PM
I just saw on tonight's news, that there was a new scam on Craigs List.  When we post our listings on this service, some enterprising thieves have been using the photos to advertise some listings as rentals.  The pigeon is given a house "for rent" with a complete photo tour, and then directed to send their deposit to some overseas address.  This is pretty serious stuff, as the FBI is investigating the local case, here in Denver.  No harm came to the seller, except they couldn't figure out why people were looking in the windows and walking around the back yard. … (7 comments)

IMPERIAL LEGAL FOR CREDIT REPAIR. IS THIS REALLY TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE? - 09/02/08 03:08 PM
I recently received an email from a friend about Imperial Legal.  This is a Tampa, Florida company that claims to repair clients credit.  They claim they can have 85% of their clients "Loan Ready" in 60-120 days, and the average person sees an increase in their credit scores, on all three bureaus, of 100 points within 60 days.  They claim they can anything off someone's credit report Permanently, including the following: late payments, collections, repossessions, bankruptcies, foreclosures, child support derogatory items, judgments, and tax liens.  They charge $200 down, for a couple, and then $160 per month for 13 months.  The … (1 comments)

A New HOA Wrinkle - 09/01/08 05:38 PM
I just had a new wrinkle thrown at me.  Trying to get a home closed in two weeks doesn't leave a lot of time to work through things.  My buyers had contracted on a house for an amount that was about $30k under what the current owners had paid for it four years ago.  The accepted our offer based on the title company's estimate on if the sellers would have to bring any money to closing, (they had none).   In fact, they had moved out of the house and for all practical purposes washed their hands of the deal.  All … (5 comments)

 

Jerry Becker - Littleton, Colorado

Littleton, CO

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Jerry Becker and Associates

Address: 8201 Shaffer Parkway, Suite B, Littleton, CO, 80127

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