Tweet |
Exterior Renovations Deliver Best ROI
A beautiful new kitchen is often the renovation homeowners dream of. But if getting a high return on investment (ROI) is at the top of your checklist, you may want to consider doing exterior work instead.
Seven out of the ten highest payback projects are exterior renovations, according to Remodeling Magazine Cost vs. Value Report 2018. Except for a minor kitchen remodel, work done on the exterior of the house generated higher returns than did interior renovations.
Here are the five renovations that give the highest return, according to Remodeling Magazine.
Garage door replacement
A new garage door can give your home instant curb appeal. Expect to spend about $3,500 to install a new 16×7-foot windowed garage door with lifetime warranty and new heavy-duty galvanized steel tracks. Average ROI is 98.3 percent nationwide and 96.7 percent in the mountain region.
Remodeling Magazine’s mountain region includes Colorado, New Mexico, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Wyoming and Montana.
Manufactured stone veneer
Stone is a popular siding, particularly in Colorado. Adding stone to your home’s exterior gives it character and gives high payback when you sell. At a cost of $8,221, ROI in the mountain region is 93.8 percent and 97.1 percent nationwide.
Wood deck addition
Speaking of trends, inviting outdoor living areas are hot, so wood deck additions add desirability to your home. Estimated cost is $10,950. Average payback in the mountains is higher than across the nation—84 percent compared to 82.
Minor kitchen remodel
At last, we can talk about redoing the kitchen. Expect to spend $21,198 to replace some of the components in your kitchen such as fronts of existing cabinet boxes and drawers, new hardware, new energy-efficient cooktop/oven range combination and refrigerator, laminate counter tops, and flooring. Average mountain region payback is just under 84 percent, and 81 percent nationwide.
Siding replacement
A $15,072 investment to replace old warped or cracked siding with new can help sell your home. You will get around 65 percent of that back here in Colorado and almost 77 percent nationwide.
Here are the top ten renovations with the highest payback.
For the full report, visit http://www.remodeling.hw.net/cost-vs-value/2018/key-trends-in-the-2018-cost-vs-value-report
Originally posted here by Tom Kalinski Founder RE/MAX of Boulder on Wednesday, November 7th, 2018 at 2:02pm.
Video Podcast: Boulder Valley Real Estate Conference 2018

The highly anticipated Boulder Valley Real Estate Conference will be here soon! It will be held on Thursday, November 15, featuring an outstanding line-up of speakers and panelists who will discuss the latest issues and trends in local real estate from our tech economy, Bitcoin, and development projects along the Front Range to housing policy, housing stock, and insights into commercial real estate. RE/MAX of Boulder is proud to be the presenting sponsor. Our Broker/Owner Jay Kalinski and Realtor Duane Duggan speak with conference organizer Chris Wood from BizWest to give you the details. Click below to see the video.
Originally posted here by RE/MAX of Boulder on Friday, November 2nd, 2018 at 1:22pm.
You can also find the original video here on the RE/MAX of Boulder YouTube Channel.
Colorado Economy Resurges, Adds Thousands More Jobs
Colorado’s economy continues to expand in 2018, even after signaling a slowdown at the beginning of the year. Job growth was revised upward to 2.4 percent growth for the year, according to the mid-year economic report from the Leeds Business Research Division at the University of Colorado Boulder.
The rebound follows a slowing of employment growth last September to less than 1.9 percent – the lowest level in almost six years. In June 2018, job growth increased 2.8 percent year-over-year.
The increase means about 15,000 more jobs than expected will be added through 2018, bringing the total to 62,000 new jobs by the end of the year.
The state’s gross domestic product also rose 4.5 percent year-over-year for first quarter 2018. The increase shows Colorado’s economy is continuing to grow after slowing to just 1.4 percent in 2016— the lowest level since 2010. Economic output rose to 3.6 percent in 2017.
Meanwhile, Colorado still has one of the lowest unemployment rates in the nation, logged in June 2018 at 2.7 percent. While fewer people have been moving to Colorado – dropping from 67,781 in 2016 to 46,626 in 2017 – more Coloradans are going into the labor force. The increase in workers has enabled continued employment growth, despite the decrease of people moving to the state.
Sectors leading the way in job growth are natural resources and mining, and construction.
Natural resources and mining have shown strong employment growth, according to Business Research Division Executive Director Richard Wobbekind. “Energy prices are obviously factoring into it,” Wobbekind notes.
The construction industry is “finally back to the same level of employment that they were at pre-recession. They are really mostly constrained by lack of available workforce,” he says.
While a shortage of skilled labor continues to challenge the construction industry, Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows construction employment across the state was 171,200 in June 2018, a 5.2 percent year-over-year increase. This surpasses the last peak of 170,100 in July 2007. Average annual pay for construction workers was $59,446 in 2017, slightly above the average Colorado pay of $56,916.
Agriculture’s outlook is not as robust, however. Drought, wildfires, and low prices are slowing growth. For example, corn prices have declined more than 30 percent from five years ago.
“It’s a tough road to hoe in some of the rural areas,” Wobbekind said.
Read the full Mid-Year Economic Update at https://www.colorado.edu/business/2018/08/17/state-economy-adding-thousands-more-jobs-expected-report-predicts
Originally posted here by Tom Kalinski Founder RE/MAX of Boulder on Wednesday, October 31st, 2018 at 11:01am.
Three Colorado Cities Claim Smokin’ Hot Zip Codes
Colorado Springs’ 80922 zip code is the No. 2 spot hottest zip code in the country – moving up from No. 7 in 2017, according to analysis of 32,000 zip codes by realtor.com®.
The annual analysis of zip codes looks at how long it takes homes to sell and how frequently properties in each zip code are viewed to determine which zip codes are most popular and fastest moving.
Greeley’s 80631 and Broomfield’s 80021 zip codes also ranked in the top 50 hottest, coming in at Nos. 44 and 48 respectively.
High-income millennials helped fuel a 10 percent rise in how fast homes sold in popular areas in 2018. More and more millennials are getting older and buying homes, which realtor.com says is driving demand in smaller, more affordable suburban areas. These 25- to 34-year-olds are attracted to affordability, strong local economies, and outdoor and cultural amenities.
The number of households in Colorado Springs grew 21 percent from 2010-2018. Homes in El Paso County sell in 15 days with a median list price of $297,811 – an increase of 9.7 percent in the last year. Located 60 miles south of Denver, Colorado Springs offers lifestyle features millennials want – outdoor activities, popular local breweries, and more affordable housing than Denver.
Here are the top ten hottest zip codes in the U.S.
Homes in the top 10 hottest markets sell in 20 days on average, 46 days faster than the rest of the country, 25 days faster than their respective metro areas, and 18 days faster than their respective counties.
In eight out of the top 10 ZIPs, millennial median household income is 1.3 times higher than the national median, $78,000 versus $60,000, respectively. Mortgage originations in nine of the top 10 counties are millennial-dominated with 34 percent of mortgage originations.
For the full report visit https://www.realtor.com/research/hottest-zip-codes-2018/
Originally posted here by Tom Kalinski Founder RE/MAX of Boulder on Wednesday, October 24th, 2018 at 2:19pm.
What Makes a Smart City Smart?
Boulder is known for its highly educated, technology-oriented citizenry. The city is even ranked No. 1 nationally in the “Bloomberg Brain Concentration Index,” which tracks business formation as well as employment and education in the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
But does that make Boulder a smart city? Not according to Colorado Smart Cities Alliance (CSCA). CSCA might summarize a smart city as an environment that works well for the people who live in it.
Specifically, CSCA defines a smart city “as an environment that enables all of us to effectively and efficiently live, work, and play. It leverages advancements in science and technology to create an area that is intelligent about strategic and tactical needs and wants of all the constituents.”
Boulder, Longmont, and Fort Collins are among a dozen cities along the Front Range that are founding members of the CSCA. Founded in 2017 by the Denver South Economic Development, CSCA is an open, collaborative, and active platform where stakeholders work to collaborate on continually improving the region’s economic foundations for future generations. The initiative aims to make Colorado a leader in the development of intelligent infrastructure. The goal is to accelerate the development of statewide Smart City initiatives that will improve our play, family, and work lives, from transportation and housing to public safety and the environment.
In ColoradoBiz Magazine, DesignThinkingDenver’s CEO Joe Hark Harold says, smart cities could design systems that save water and energy, reduce traffic and traffic congestion, lessen crime, better prepare for disasters, provide better connections between business and customers, and even manage the lights remotely.
There is urgency behind this movement, driven by an increase of those who live in urban environments. More than three million additional people are expected to move to Colorado by 2050 — an increase of more than 50 percent from 2015, according to the Colorado State Demography Office. Coupled with the growth the state has already experienced, the projected increase has spurred community leaders to collaborate on finding innovative, cost-effective ways to better monitor, manage, and improve infrastructure and public services.
“The Colorado Smart Cities Alliance is advancing policies and technologies that will better equip Colorado residents to live, work, and play in a future that is increasingly being shaped by the complex challenges of urban growth,” says Jake Rishavy, vice president of innovation at the Denver South Economic Development Partnership. “We’re working to create a 21st-century technology infrastructure right here in Colorado that will help to enhance everyone’s quality of life, particularly as our communities continue to grow.”
Among its activities, CSCA hosts regular “Civic Labs” events around the state to share challenges, expertise and solutions. At the Denver Smart City Forum in June, speakers described “smart” technology as having to be about the people who use it and benefit from it, that is, human-centered design and thinking.
“People, not technology, will create smart cities,” said Colorado’s Chief Innovation Officer Erik Mitisek.
To find out more and get involved in the Colorado Smart Cities Alliance, visit http://coloradosmart.city/
For more about the recent forum and DesignThinkingDenver, read http://www.cobizmag.com/Trends/Smart-Cities-Arent/ and http://www.cobizmag.com/Trends/Denver-Digs-Deep-on-Smart-City-Development-and-Implementation/
Originally posted here by Tom Kalinski Founder RE/MAX of Boulder on Wednesday, September 26th, 2018 at 11:31am.
Boulder Rent Prices Decline
The usual story of ever-rising Boulder rents took a new turn this month. Data for August 2018 shows Boulder rents fell slightly by 0.1 percent last month and by 0.1 percent year-over-year, according to the latest report from rental site Apartment List.
That translates into median apartment rent of $1,150 for a one-bedroom and $1,410 for two-bedrooms. But even with the minor dip, Boulder’s median two-bedroom rent is above the national average of $1,180.
Nationwide rental rates went up about 1.5 percent, which the report found is down from a high of 3.6 percent in 2015.
Compared to the state and nation, Boulder’s rental price growth is below average. The city lags the state average of 0.4 percent rent growth year-over-year.
Rent also decreased in Colorado’s City of Aurora with a reduction of 0.8 percent year-over-year. A two-bedroom apartment in Aurora rents for $1,560.
But statewide, rental prices continue to trend upward. Colorado’s rental prices rose 0.4 percent over the past year. Eight of Colorado’s ten largest cities show rising rents.
Loveland, Thornton, and Westminster all have year-over-year growth above the state average with rent increases of 2.8 percent, 2.6 percent, and 1.9 percent, respectively.
Thornton is the most expensive of all Colorado’s major cities with a median two-bedroom rent of $1,860.
Many cities nationwide saw increases, including Phoenix, Atlanta, and San Francisco, rising 2.5, 1.5 and 1.1 percent, respectively.
Orlando has the fastest rent growth in the nation with an increase of 5.3 percent over last year. Second in the nation is Riverside, CA with 4.1 percent year-over-year growth, followed in third place by Anaheim at 3.6 percent.
The state of Nevada leads the country for the fastest rent growth at 3 percent, followed by Arizona at 2.2 percent.
Apartment List determines rent standings using reliable median rent statistics from the Census Bureau and extrapolates forward to the current month using a growth rate calculated from Apartment List listing data.
You can read the full report at https://www.apartmentlist.com/co/boulder#rent-report, see the national rental statistics at https://www.apartmentlist.com/rentonomics/national-rent-data/. If you want to know where rents are growing fastest, visit https://www.apartmentlist.com/rentonomics/rents-growing-fastest/.
Originally posted here by Tom Kalinski Founder RE/MAX of Boulder on Monday, September 17th, 2018 at 2:39pm.