DREAMING OF HOME OWNERSHIP? GIVE IN TO YOUR EMOTIONS
Equity. Interest rates. Return on investment. Tax benefits.
In the wake of the home price boom that accompanied the Pandemic years of 2020-2021, financial factors have come to dominate the thinking of would-be homebuyers.
The numbers matter, of course. Homebuyers need to spend wisely and make ends meet. And by all means, home ownership is a fundamental step toward building wealth.
But dollars and cents are not what people remember most about establishing a family home.
A home is where you create fond memories that last a lifetime. It’s where you plant roots and become a part of a neighborhood or community. It’s where your children grow up, make friends, and ride bikes. It’s where you can create the kitchen of your dreams, string up a hammock, or plop into your favorite chair at the end of the day. It’s where you grow a garden and gather for backyard barbecues and birthday parties.
A home is where the snapshots in so many family scrapbooks come to life.
So, when we hear of a recent report that says 82 percent of Americans believe it’s a bad time to buy a home, it begs the question: Are these folks focusing strictly on the financial picture? Or do they need to be reminded of scrapbooks yet to be made?
While there may never be a perfect time to buy a home, there’s always a reason to embrace the emotional value of a home.
Just ask the people who own one.
WHAT LANDLORDS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT NEW TENANT RIGHTS LAWS IN COLORADO
With new laws enacted during the latest Colorado General Assembly, landlords across the state face a significant shift in how they need to manage their relationships with tenants.
Among new laws that are putting more rights in the hands of tenants, the most notable is HB 24-1098. It states that a landlord cannot evict a tenant without cause, such as not paying rent or some clear violation of the lease. An important factor is that landlords cannot refuse to renew a lease for a client, barring a few certain exceptions (i.e., a landlord is selling the property, making a significant repair or renovation, or wanting to move their own family into the property).
Other noteworthy changes:
1. Landlords are limited in how much extra they can charge for pet rent, and the refundable pet deposit is capped at $300 per household (not per pet). Also, you cannot charge for emotional support animals or service animals.
2. Landlords can increase rent only once during a 12-month period. This limit also applies to tenants on month-to-month leases.
3. Landlords must give tenants a 60-day notice before increasing the rent.
Are these reasons to leave the landlord business? Not necessarily. However, it will be interesting to see how the new legislation alters the landscape for managing investment properties. As the challenges of owning rental properties continue to mount and get trickier, there is anecdotal evidence that more Colorado property investors may cash out or opt to turn over daily responsibilities to property management companies.
Do you have a question about selling or managing your rental property? Call me for more information on how The Group – or our affiliate, The Source Property Management – can help with your decision.
DEADLINE FOR SENIOR PROPERTY TAX CREDIT EXEMPTION IS JULY 15
With age comes privilege. With age plus home ownership? Perhaps even more privilege for senior citizens living in Colorado. Colorado offers certain senior citizen homeowners a break on property taxes, a program known as the Senior Property Tax Homestead Exemption tax credit.
Here’s who is eligible to apply for the credit this year:
- You must have turned 65 as of January 1, 2024.
- You must have owned your home for at least 10 consecutive years before January 1, 2024.
- You must have lived in your home as a primary residence for at least 10 consecutive years before January 1, 2024.
- The surviving spouse of a senior citizen who previously qualified for the credit can also apply.
If you qualify, here’s what the credit means:
- The state will exempt 50 percent of the first $200,000 in actual value of your primary residence from property tax. For example, if your home is valued at $400,000, then your property taxes will be assessed based on just $300,000 in value.
HERE’S HOW YOU APPLY
You must submit your application directly to the office of the county assessor where you live by July 15. If the assessor approves your application, the tax credit is then applied toward your 2024 property tax bill, which is payable in 2025.
If you were previously approved for the Senior Homestead Exemption, you don’t need to apply again. Once approved, the exemption remains in effect as long as you continue own and live in the property.
The Group Real Estate sets up shop in Weld County with new Windsor office.
The Group celebrated the launch of a new Windsor location at 517 Main Street with a ribbon cutting and grand opening party on May 29. Opening our eighth office is another of our strategic moves to respond to the changing demographics of Northern Colorado.
“The Group always wants to be a leader and get in front of the current trends,” explained President Brandon Wells. “It was recently announced that Windsor is Colorado’s fastest-growing municipality, with its population growing 23.3% over the past three years – a fact that even further validates our decision to bring our locally owned services to town.”
The Windsor office is The Group’s second location to adopt the mobile agent model, following the Timnath office that opened in 2021. “The successful Timnath office was built with the modern, more mobile Realtor in mind, and will be a model The Group uses as it expands,” Wells said.
The 1,250-square-foot space will feature 21st century technology and will be hosted by a head concierge, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Appointments with a Group Realtor can be made at the Windsor office seven days a week by visiting thegroupinc.com or calling 970-223-0700.
Along with the Windsor location, The Group has two offices in Fort Collins, two in Loveland, one in Timnath, and two in the Steamboat Springs area.
COUNTY POPULATION GROWTH TEN YEAR PROJECTION
The Colorado State Demographer predicts that Weld County will rank third in the state for total population growth from 2024 to 2034, behind only El Paso and Adams counties. Larimer County will rank sixth.
Weld and Larimer counties combined are expected to add 145,616 people between 2024 and 2034.
COUNTY POPULATION GROWTH TWENTY YEAR PROJECTION
For the 20-year period ending in 2044, the two counties are predicted to add 274,818 people.
NORTHERN COLORADO AT A GLANCE
Housing inventory is on the rise in Northern Colorado, providing more choices for homebuyers. The following chart reflects changes in inventory (single family homes for sale in Northern Colorado) in local communities between May 2023 and May 2024.
REAL ESTATE BY NUMBERS
- $11.8 million. Price that homebuilding company Lennar Colorado LLC paid for housing lots in the Kinston subdivision of Centerra in east Loveland.
- $1 million. Amount that Occidental Petroleum Corp. donated to Greeley-Weld Habitat for Humanity to support the organization’s Hope Springs housing project, which will include 174 homes for affordable housing.
- 12 percent. Share of homebuyers in the U.S. who received financial support from family or friends for their downpayment in April, up from 9 percent in April 2023, according to the National Association of Realtors.
- $820,000. Price that Weld County has agreed to pay for two 135-year-old buildings in downtown Greeley. The neighboring buildings include a warehouse at 827 Seventh St. and George’s Repair Shop, 825 Seventh St. As planned, the county will convert the land under the buildings into parking.
- $4.4 million. Value of a grant that the town of Wellington received to renovate portions of its downtown district. The money, from state and federal sources, will be used for infrastructure repairs and updates along Cleveland Avenue.
- $21.7 million. Price that investors paid for a 32-unit apartment complex near downtown Boulder. Located at 949 Marine St., the apartments include a total of 56 bedrooms.
- 100,000. Square footage that AtmosZero Inc., a company that makes steam boilers based on heat pump technology, plans to lease at the Forge – a business campus located in southwest Loveland at the former Hewlett-Packard complex. AtmosZero currently operates a facility at Colorado State University’s Powerhouse facility at 430 N. College Ave. in Fort Collins, and plans to keep its presence at the CSU facility.
- 40. Number of workers that Northern Beef Products Inc. plans to employ at a new production facility that it plans to build in east Greeley, near the Greeley-Weld County Airport. The company wants to construct a 12,047-square-foot facility, where it can process and package beef. The new building is planned for a 4.4-acre lot at 3341 C St.
- $7.7 million. Price that the Archdiocese of Denver paid to buy a 44.1-acre parcel in Johnstown. The diocese wants to build a 450-student Catholic high school on the site. Development plans for the campus include a chapel, athletic field, and gymnasium.
- $230 million. Estimated amount that Colorado State University plans to spend on expansion of its Veterinary Health and Education Complex in central Fort Collins. The project, which started under construction this spring, is expected to be finished by the fall of 2026. Plans include more classroom space for veterinary students, a new primary-care center, and a teaching hospital for routine and urgent care. CSU hopes the expanded facilities can accommodate up to 120 additional veterinary medicine students.
- $14.35 million. Price that an Idaho-based convenience store chain paid to buy two existing convenience store sites in Kersey. The new owners bought the properties at 103 Hill St. and 115 W. Hill St., neighboring locations near the interchange of U.S. Highway 34 and Weld County Road 53.
- $12.3 million. Combined price that two homebuilding companies recently paid to buy development ground in Johnstown. DR Horton Inc. paid $7.1 million for 20 acres located near the intersection of East Larimer County Road 18 and South Larimer County Road 3E, where it plans to build about 80 single-family houses. Journey Homes spent $5.2 million for 20 acres along Larimer County Road 16, with plans for building 378 units of multi-family housing.