Did you Know…….?

The price of gold on the day of the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games 8/8/08 was $857.80 an ounce. The day of the opening ceremonies in London the price of gold was $1,617.90. – BTN Research
Housing starts climbed to an annually adjusted 760,000 in July. – Commerce Department
That is a 37% increase from 2009’s 554,000 housing starts. – Treasury Department
It is still way below the 1.1 million housing starts needed to just keep up with our growing population. – Mortgage Daily News
32% of homes are owned free and clear. – Federal Reserve
24% of home owner’s with a mortgage are underwater. – Federal Reserve
In 1880 72% of Americans lived on farms. In 1920 that number dropped to 50%. Today just 2% of Americans live on farms. – Social Security and the EPA
1% of the population accounts for 21.8% of all health care expenditures. 5% of the population accounts for 49.5% of all health care expenditures. – National Institute for Health Care Management
The average American aged 65 or older makes 8 visits per year to a doctor, a hospital and/or an emergency room, that’s once every 1 ½ months. – Center for Disease Control
The cost of living in the US increased by 25% in the decade of the 50s, 28% in the 60s, 103% in the 70s, 64% in the 80s, 33% in the 90s and 28% in 00s. – Department of Labor

Michael is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been in real estate since the mid 90′s and with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range. About Me If you have questions regarding this article or would like information about Boulder real estate not yet on the market, call me or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes

Boulder Homes Not Yet On The Market

If you are looking to buy a home in Boulder you will notice very few new high quality listings for sale. Boulder real estate is heating up and as it does, the best way to find a new home is to find it before the competition (other buyers) can to drive the price up in a multiple offer situation. Call me today for homes not yet on the market however going on the market in a short while.

Michael is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been in real estate since the mid 90′s and with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range. About Me If you have questions regarding this article or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes

Jobs Equal Healthy Boulder Real Estate

Boulder County is the most educated county in United States. There’s a high percentage of highly intelligent residents, which is its greatest asset for attracting and retaining strong employers and employees. Boulder real estate is healthy, a sure sign of good times coming. It’s all about jobs. Strong jobs equal strong Boulder real estate.

Numerous high tech businesses in the Boulder Valley Corridor are starting to hire. When I asked a local head hunter if there were going to be a lot of out of town people coming in she said “there seems to be a robust amount of talent available in the area right now.” Of course as time goes by the tech area will need more and more talent to feed the demand.

Many high schools in Boulder County offer special programs such as Skyline High School in Longmont that offers the Scientific Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) program, a magnet component that prepares students to excel in science and math related fields. Also with the onset of the International Baccalaureate Program in numerous schools in the Boulder Valley; Boulder schools could help “grow” their own work force and provide opportunities for our children’s future by implementing similar programs in all schools.

Boulder offers a quality of life that attracts and keeps people here. It’s a life that can’t be beat. We love our Boulder real estate and we often come up on lists for a very high quality of life. A lifestyle robust in fitness, with running trails right out our office door,  world class organic food, home grown brews, entertainment, high intelligence, happy people, entrepreneur heaven, skiing and snowshoeing nearby, dog friendly areas and many opportunities to enhance our lifestyle.

Michael grew up near Santa Fe and is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range.  If you have questions regarding this article or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a (CNE) Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO. What’s your lifestyle? I take great pride in my in-depth knowledge of Colorado luxury home market trends, research-based pricing strategies, having a powerful network of qualified luxury home buyers, first-hand Boulder real estate insight and proven 16 year track record of selling unique Denver and Boulder luxury real estate.

Castle for a Curmudgeon?

Clyfford Still by some was thought to be somewhat of a curmudgeon. This November, four rare works by Clyfford Still come to Auction at Sothebys in support of the long awaited museum in Denver devoted to the elusive master of abstract expressionism. The challenge is that the museum will be devoted to one artist.

With an agreement with Denver and Still’s widow, Patricia. The Still will be opened. Still who died in 1980 at the age of 75, had bequeathed his collection to an American city that would keep it intact and display it in isolation from the work of other artists. Denver competed with 19 other cities to acquire the collection. Sothebys Auction  on 9 November will be selling 4 masterworks  by Still to further support the museum’s endowment. The primary mission is to move this artist’s reputation back into the top echelon.

Clyfford Still was an early and  groundbreaking Abstract Expressionist who found much in common with like-thinking peers in Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock and others connected with the New York School.

Still reserved 94 percent of his oeuvre for himself making the works some of the most intact in history.

The new director of the museum Dean Sobel formerly of the Aspen Art Museum, which operates on a European Kunsthalle model and thus does not have a permanent collection. We hope this single artist museum in Denver lives up to the likes of the Van Gogh in Amsterdam, the Zentrum Paul Klee in Bern and the Warhol.

Opening week of the Clyfford Still Museum in Denver will be Mid-November 2011.

Michael grew up around Santa Fe and is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range.  If you have questions regarding this article or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO.

Short Sale Colorado

Short sales can be painful.  Add to that, the concern, that the bank may come after you years later, for a deficiency, a tax consequence or send you a 1099 or promissory note to payback the deficiency. All of these can be devastating to your finances,  often spinning short sellers into bankruptcy. A short sale takes about 3 years to overcome, a bankruptcy can double that, foreclosure can add more time. The title to the property may be clouded by a deficiency or a judgement which can also cause future issues.  If the short sale is not done properly and in a timely manner it can lead to foreclosure.

What would you think if all of the problems with a short sale could be negotiated away and done in a timely manner? No deficiency! No tax consequence! No 1099! No promissory note! Short sales are tough enough on the homeowner. They don’t need to complicate your life and make it worse and spin you in to bankruptcy.

We work with investors who utilize their own in house negotiators to negotiate all the guesswork out of short sales. We can negotiate away the tax consequence(s), the 1099, the promissory note, the deficiency. What this means to you is no further problems or issues to deal with in the future. It is a clean short sale. No future surprises.

We can help you. Call me today to see if you qualify for a short sale. We can help take the pain part out of the short sale process.

Michael grew up around Santa Fe and is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range.  If you have questions regarding a clean short sale or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO.

Bullet Proof Real Estate

Boulder Real Estate on Left

Forbes Magazine says. As the economy seems to unravel around us these cities are bucking the trend as the top 25 Recession-Proof Cities. Bullet proof as it were. These are the 25 metro areas in the U.S.  leading the bull market in real estate. Also Q2 stats are out about the Boulder area in the governmental websites that I track which substantiates what Forbes is saying. The bottom (in Boulder at least) is over, done, finished, adios. What does this mean? It means we will continue to see more and more multiple offers, higher prices and competitive bidding for Boulder real estate and Boulder luxury real estate.  The statistics for the increase in home prices for this story come from Zillow. While I vehemently dislike Zillow as a tool to figure out what your home is worth (they are extremely inaccurate 98% of the time-up or down) they do a good job of tracking price changes in the market. For this list, Zillow poured through home and real estate price data for 499 metro areas, reviewing values for homes both on and off the market using list prices, final sale prices, tax records, and property histories. Three markets in our great state of Colorado made it on to the Forbes 25 Recession Proof list; Boulder, Fort Collins and Pueblo. According to Zillow; Boulder real estate Second Quarter 2011 Price Increase: 1.6% First Quarter 2011 Price Increase: 0.5% Price Plunge Since Peak: 6.7% decline. According to the government website Second Quarter increase: .12% at least Zillow is going in the right direction.   Read the entire story in Forbes.

Michael is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range.  If you have questions regarding this article or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO.

Boulder Real Estate-In Praise of Louisville

WINNER 2011 Top 100 rank: 1
Population: 18,400
Unemployment:6.3%Compare Louisville to Top 10 Best Places

The report highlights small towns across America with populations of 50,000 or less, high job opportunities, fiscal strength, excellent schools, safe streets, great health care, outdoor and cultural activities and 300 days of sunshine (great weather).

The writer says it is a “sunny lively mountain town”; it is not a mountain town. While the views are great of the front range, Louisville is mostly in a valley and is situated on the “plains.”  I agree with “crime rates are among the lowest in Colorado” and the town is “easy to navigate.”  Louisville boasts lots of good jobs in tech, telecom, aerospace, clean energy, alternative energy and health care and many companies are relocating to the area as happy workers are great workers. In addition there are  world-class mountain biking, hiking, and skiing nearby as well as in the close by Rockies. Housing prices are still lower than Boulder real estate and schools rank well and are in the top three academically. Not everyone wants to live in Louisville;  however given the Music Festival, the Farmers Market, Street Faire, the great little mom and pop restaurants that have been here some since the 50’s and Main St. Louisville, what’s not to like? Read Money Magazine article. Ps. Superior Colorado came in at 20/100!

Search the MLS for Louisville or surrounding area

Michael is a longtime resident of Boulder and one of (FSIR’s)Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty. If you have questions regarding this article, Louisville or Superior or  would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO. 

Boulder Real Estate

Posted by Michael Hughes

The summer heat permeates my being and my morning runs. I think about what was over there, years ago or what has changed in Boulder. Here,  historically the lowest interest rates & home prices Boulder has ever seen, make now the best time ever to buy. Opportunities available today will not last forever… Much like the stock market you can’t choose the bottom however if the bottom has not already occurred it is near it. John Paulson has repeated over and over ‘buy.’ Who is JP? He is the hedge fund leader who anticipated the coming collapse of the subprime mortgages, shorted them and several billion dollars later he has evolved as the pinnacle of wisdom on housing and mortgages and timing.

I remember coming to Boulder in the late 70’s and thinking how outrageous I thought it was to have to pay $189,000 for 5 acres and a 2400sf ranch surrounded by open space. Brilliant? No. Time after time real estate in Boulder has proven to be a great investment. It is a time tested theory and over time it will test out again and again and again. As long as you’re not using your house as an ATM utilizing HELOC’s or refinancing and removing equity every other year you’re, if not already, going to be golden. Boulder real estate, stronger than ever and becoming more and more extraordinary every day.

Michael is a longtime resident of Boulder and one of FSIR’s most successful Realtors with Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty. If you have questions regarding this article any of the neighborhoods or have any questions about Boulder or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO. 

Boulder Real Estate-Photography-Visuals-The Basics

Posted by Michael Hughes

It’s clear I am not an expert photographer (which is precisely why I hire a professional photographer, just after I schedule the professional stager for my Boulder real estate listings-visuals are often why they sell faster than the average listing), but if the situation dictated that I had to take the DIY path, I am reasonably certain I would remember to close the lid, move the trash can, and relocate, at least temporarily, the couch potato and his dog (not shown for reasons of privacy). The lighting and the content are so poor in these photos.

Clearly this is a discounted broker doing their own photos of this property. I pity the sellers. Talk about taking the band-aid off one hair at a time!

Call me I can help and if you would like to comment or need help buying or selling Boulder Real Estate or if you are interested in Listing and Selling your Boulder Real Estate in a professional manner, please, TEXT, call or email me. You can also visit me at my Website. Thanks for reading. Michael Hughes at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty-Boulder, CO

Boulder Real Estate-Buyers Agent

Posted by Michael Hughes

Who I am as a Buyers Agent

1. Honesty and Credibility-You will feel comfortable with me because I will always tell you the truth. I will never sugar coat it. Truth! I will not push you toward undue increases in the amount you wish to spend, however I will help to educate you to how much you can get for your money. I will always tell you the truth. It is your purchase and I can negotiate the pants off any other agent in the business.

2. Area Familiarity-I sell Boulder real estate in neighborhoods all over Boulder County. I know about the schools, local parks, local events, restaurants and the many things that make that neighborhood unique.

3. Good Follow Through-I will always do what I say whether you prefer e-mail, calling or face to face meetings. My buyers know, like and trust me because I always follow through with what I say. I walk the talk.

4. Organization-Having been in business since 1996 I have systems in place and am extremely organized. Which will help you and keep you from redundant tasks.

5. Good Listener-You are human and unique. No two buyers are alike, I do not judge, I do as you wish, find you what you want and never assume anything. That is why I ask a lot of questions to really understand what you want, who you are, your lifestyle, your needs and what you are looking for.

6. References or Testimonials-Upon request.

If you have any questions, would like to comment or need help buying Boulder Real Estate or if you are interested in Listing your Boulder Real Estate please, TEXT, call or email me. You can also visit me at my Website. Thanks for reading. Michael Hughes at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty-Boulder, CO