Colin Dunn
Supporting Actor
Boulder housing is still very expensive. I looked on realtor.com a few weeks ago, and 1,100 sq. ft. 1960s tract homes still have asking prices well over $300K. Condo prices seem to have come down, though many condos in Boulder are "flat-style" (apartment-like) rather than "townhome-style" properties. I would only buy a condo if it has a basement that can be finished into a home theater. There seems to be no advantage of a flat-style condo over just renting an apartment - lack of privacy / sound insulation makes these types of residences undesirable to a home theater enthusiast who does NOT wish to disturb the neighbors!
Prices are more reasonable in eastern Boulder County (Lafayette, Superior), Broomfield (now its own county), and the Denver suburbs. Home prices are almost "Texas cheap" ($75/sq. ft.)in Green Valley Ranch (a development east of Denver), but foreclosures are so prevalent in that area that few people advocate living there.
Since the coastal housing bubble has burst, a lot of artificial home equity has been wiped out. This will thin the ranks of people moving to Colorado with six-figure down payments. The credit crunch has also reduced the number of buyers, and the amounts they can borrow. Since very few people can afford to buy homes with cash, these developments must necessarily push down the prices of homes in the Denver area. Hopefully, this will keep a lid on prices over the next several years. In fact, I've already read an article that mentioned that homes under $300K are flying off the shelf in Denver, but homes in the $400K-$600K range languish for months. There's a five-year inventory of million-dollar homes in Denver. Some of these expensive homes are going to get dumped at a discount, or foreclosed.
I'm getting ready to go back to Denver in 2010. I sold my place in Austin (where prices stayed relatively firm) and am awaiting a combination of factors I expect to hit in 2010 - a recovery in the job market, and another wave of distressed properties hitting the market in Denver. Perhaps some of those hold-outs in the $400K-$600K range will have to sell for ~$300K. Then, hopefully, I'll actually get something worthwhile for the price (2,000+ above-grade sq. ft. plus big basement, built after 1990).
As for Bozeman - haven't looked recently but it was even more overpriced than Boulder when I started this thread. Homes there started at $230K and went up from there, but Bozeman lacks the jobs base of the Front Range area. Prices obviously had been bid up by investors, rather than people who actually live there. Given what university / government jobs pay, home prices in Bozeman should have been about half as high.
Prices are more reasonable in eastern Boulder County (Lafayette, Superior), Broomfield (now its own county), and the Denver suburbs. Home prices are almost "Texas cheap" ($75/sq. ft.)in Green Valley Ranch (a development east of Denver), but foreclosures are so prevalent in that area that few people advocate living there.
Since the coastal housing bubble has burst, a lot of artificial home equity has been wiped out. This will thin the ranks of people moving to Colorado with six-figure down payments. The credit crunch has also reduced the number of buyers, and the amounts they can borrow. Since very few people can afford to buy homes with cash, these developments must necessarily push down the prices of homes in the Denver area. Hopefully, this will keep a lid on prices over the next several years. In fact, I've already read an article that mentioned that homes under $300K are flying off the shelf in Denver, but homes in the $400K-$600K range languish for months. There's a five-year inventory of million-dollar homes in Denver. Some of these expensive homes are going to get dumped at a discount, or foreclosed.
I'm getting ready to go back to Denver in 2010. I sold my place in Austin (where prices stayed relatively firm) and am awaiting a combination of factors I expect to hit in 2010 - a recovery in the job market, and another wave of distressed properties hitting the market in Denver. Perhaps some of those hold-outs in the $400K-$600K range will have to sell for ~$300K. Then, hopefully, I'll actually get something worthwhile for the price (2,000+ above-grade sq. ft. plus big basement, built after 1990).
As for Bozeman - haven't looked recently but it was even more overpriced than Boulder when I started this thread. Homes there started at $230K and went up from there, but Bozeman lacks the jobs base of the Front Range area. Prices obviously had been bid up by investors, rather than people who actually live there. Given what university / government jobs pay, home prices in Bozeman should have been about half as high.
