RE/MAX of Boulder News

Podcast host and RE/MAX of Boulder Realtor Duane Duggan interviews our Managing Broker Todd Gullette to learn more about the Boulder County residential real estate market from January to July 2018. Is this just a "seasonal lull" or is there more to it? They discuss the state of our inventory and housing stock as well as price appreciation and interest rates. Todd also provides insight into how the market historically compares and other vital statistics he analyzes in this monthly series of video podcasts.

Our very own Duane Duggan sits down with Jessica Shanahan of Premier Lending to discuss the hot topic: How to remove Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI). PMI safeguards mortgage lenders against loan defaults when home buyers put less than 20% down. PMI is rolled into a borrower's mortgage payment, but it is possible for borrowers to take steps to reduce or remove their PMI. Can PMI be removed from a property that has only been owned for a year? Does removing PMI work with an FHA loan? Is the process the same for someone who has a conventional loan? Answers to your questions in this informative video below.

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

If you are obtaining a new loan to purchase a property, the mortgage lender will almost always require an appraisal. An appraisal is an independent opinion of the market value of the property. The appraiser is actually hired by the lender, therefore the lender is the client of the appraiser, not the purchaser. The appraisal is done to ensure that the property has enough value to cover the loan amount in the event the borrower defaults and the lender must foreclose. The less the buyer puts down, the more concerned the lender is about the property appraising for the purchase price. A $3,000 low appraisal on an FHA or VA contract, for example, could possibly kill the transaction. However, a $3,000 low appraisal on a 20% conventional loan will rarely kill

For those of you who are visiting Boulder or are new to town, here are a few interesting tidbits about our lovely city.

1. If the mountains are on your left, you are in Boulder headed north.

2. If the mountains are on your right, you are in Boulder headed south.

3. If the mountains are ahead, you are on the plains going west. Keep going straight to Boulder. You will know that you are there by the quiet beauty and crisp mountain air.

4. Boulder is approximately 5,430 feet above sea level and the population of the City of Boulder is around 108,000. The population of Boulder County is approximately 319,000.

5. The City of Boulder encompasses 28 square miles at the foot of the Flatiron Mountains.

6. If you live in Boulder, all of your

Boulder stands tall when compared with much larger metropolitan areas that excel in innovation and entrepreneurship. 

A report produced by the Boulder Economic Council compares Boulder with leading innovation centers including Silicon Valley, San Francisco, Austin, Boston, Seattle, Portland, Denver and Raleigh.  Though these metropolitan areas have a much larger population than Boulder, they were selected as peer communities following input from local focus groups and ranking reviews published by Inc., Forbes, and others.

To get a meaningful comparison, data was normalized for population size and other measures in analysis by CU-Boulder’s Leeds School of Business Research Division.  

And the news is good, according to findings published in

RE/MAX of Boulder Realtor Shelley Chittivej was born in Bangkok, Thailand and moved to the U.S. when she was three years old.  She grew up in Denver’s Washington Park neighborhood and graduated from CU-Boulder with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She clerked for three Denver District Court judges during which time she was married and had three children. Growing up in Denver and living in Boulder, Arvada, Broomfield, and Louisville, Shelley has close knowledge and familiarity of cities and neighborhoods across Boulder and Denver counties.

Shelley earned her real estate license in 1997 and eventually became an independent Realtor. Later, she bought a coffee shop in Louisville where she gained experience as an entrepreneur by creating a warm,