Real Estate Update from Durango, CO. May 2011.

Hi all,

Spring is in full swing in Durango and we welcome all the beautiful flowers blooming all over town. Real Estate activity continues to buzz, demand for properties appears stronger than last year and inventories are slowly decreasing especially in town. There are particular areas of our market where the opportunities to purchase at a great price have never been better. Affordability is offering opportunity as well as historic low interest rates (conventional loan for 30-year fix mortgage is at 4.7%), so it is a great time to buy.

If you own property in La Plata County, you have received or you will be receiving a Notice of Valuation from our County Assessor’s office. This valuation is used to determine your property taxes for the next two years.

The Assessor’s Office looks only at sales that occurred during the “assessment period.” The current assessment period is July 1, 2008, through June 30, 2010. The county will not consider what is currently listed in your neighborhoods, nor are they allowed to take into account what your property is listed for right now.

Once the valuation process is complete, the county mails everyone a Notice of Valuation. Once you have received your Notice of Valuation, you’ll have the chance to appeal your valuation if you believe it is incorrect. Your Notice of Valuation will contain a form to fill out if you want to protest. If you are going to appeal your valuation, you must file your appeal no later than June 1.

If you have further questions about your property, please don’t hesitate to call me. I have access to real estate sold data, and I would love to help in any way that I can.

Here is a link with currently listed REO properties in La Plata County:

Click here to see the listings

Here is a snap of the local statistics:

La Plata County reports a 19.2% increase in sold transactions. The largest increase was in the category of single family homes in Durango with a 59.1% increase year to date, the average price of single family home increased to $500,688. Durango condo/townhome sales decreased 23.6% and average price sold decrease 8.8% to the average price of $255,739. Bayfield Rural home sales is up 46%, but the average price is down 23%; there are many bank repos in Bayfield, which are dragging the values down.

MLS statistics YTD ending April 2011
Residential	10 # Sold	11 #Sold	% Change	10 Total Volume	11 Total Volume	% Change	10 Sold Avg Price	11 Sold Avg Price	% Change	10 Avg Days on the market	11 Avg Days on the market	# of Homes for sale
City of Durango, Homes	22	35	59.1%	$8,855,103	$17,524,100	97.9%	$402,504	$500,688	24.4%	270	163	127
Durango, ALL Townhome/Condo	55	42	-23.6%	$15,426,250	$10,741,071	-30.4%	$280,477	$255,739	-8.8%	276	234	191
Durango Rural, Homes	60	42	-30.0%	$26,349,852	$13,834,600	-47.5%	$439,164	$329,395	-25.0%	208	212	385
City of Bayfield, Homes	13	7	-46.2%	$3,016,905	$1,395,600	-53.7%	$232,069	$199,371	-14.1%	252	113	42
Bayfield Rural, Homes	13	19	46.2%	$4,576,900	$5,105,451	11.5%	$352,069	$268,707	-23.7%	229	171	124
Durango Resort Area, Homes	1	9	800.0%	$1,300,000	$5,536,800	325.9%	$1,300,000	$615,200	-52.7%	230	519	43
Durango Resort Area, Townhome/Condo	21	18	-14.3%	$8,656,577	$5,729,750	-33.8%	$412,232	$318,319	-22.8%	456	506	153
La Plata County, total	192	189	-1.6%	$70,508,137	$63,428,212	-10.0%	$367,229	$342,855	-6.6%	272	248	1117
Land	10 # Sold	11 #Sold	% Change	10 Total Volume	11 Total Volume	% Change	10 Sold Avg Price	11 Sold Avg Price	% Change	10 Avg Days on the market	11 Avg Days on the market	# of Lots for sale
La Plata County, total	26	31	19.2%	$3,565,151	$10,557,300	196.1%	$137,121	$340,558	148.4%	299	477	744

NEWS YOU CAN USE:

1) Existing-Home Sales Rise in Most States in First Quarter

RISMEDIA, May 12, 2011— Existing-home sales continued to recover in the first quarter with gains recorded in 49 states and the District of Columbia, while 22 percent of the available metropolitan areas saw prices rise from a year ago, according to the latest survey by the National Association of REALTORS®.

Total state existing-home sales—including single-family and condo—rose 8.3 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.14 million in the first quarter from 4.75 million in the fourth quarter, and are only 0.8 percent below a 5.18 million pace during the same period in 2010. Click here to continue reading.

2) Property values, tax revenue dive

Many locals’ homes are worth less this year, but it may not mean lower taxes. Durango HeraldProperty value notices from the La Plata County Assessor’s Office have begun to appear in local property owners’ mailboxes. For some who saw big drops in value on the notice, it could mean a reduction in property tax assessments over the next two years. But getting excited at the prospect could be premature as some taxing authorities already have begun preparing constituents for a possible tax hike to offset the revenue losses.

“Everybody will be affected more or less,” said County Assessor Craig Larson. Though the values of some types of properties held steady, others took “big hits,” Larson said. Some waterfront homes and irrigated farmland saw little change in the values, or even increases. Home values in Durango also held strong, Larson said. But undeveloped land and properties around Durango Mountain Resort, Bayfield and in rural areas took hard hits.In addition, that could mean painful revenue shortfalls for local taxing authorities in some cases, Larson said. Please click here to read the entire article.

I look forward in hearing from you and assisting you in your sale or purchase of a home or property in La Plata County.

Gabi Bergstrom

Broker Associate

Durango, CO