Hot: 90% off at Hobby Lobby

I heard that Hobby Lobby has their remaining Christmas

merchandise 90% off!

Habitat for Humanity ReSTORE

One of my new favorite stores. Recycle, Reuse, Resell.
This store is open to the public and ran by volunteers for Habitat for Humanity.

Save on cabinets, doors, lighting fixtures,
electrical, plumbing supplies, paint, floor tile,
carpet and more! Usually at 50-70% below retail!

You can make purchases or donations to help support the Pikes Peak Habitat for Humanity.

This is one of the ways I contribute to the local economy.

Check it out here.

Falcon's Nest Subdivision Real Estate Report

Falcons Nest is located in the Northgate area and is in the District 20 School District.

Elementary School: Antelope Trails Elementary

Middle School: Challenger

High School: Pine Creek

Homes in Falcons Nest are:

Close to: Memorial Hospital

Close to: The Promenade Shops at Briargate

Zip Code: 80921

Great views of Pikes Peak

Close to: Pikes Peak Community College

Close to: Gleneagle Golf Course

Recap of Home sales and listings:

• Homes sold in the past 6 months: 8
• Average sales price: $266,681
• Homes currently listed: 5
• Average Listing Price: $265,340

This Colorado Springs Real Estate report contains information on Single Family homes in the Falcons Nest subdivision.

This information is taken from the Pikes Peak Realtor Services Corp and is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

Market Today

Mortgage Bonds have continued to improve today by increasing up 47bp. Remember, when mortgage bonds increase rates decrease. Today was also one of those rare days when stocks finished higher as well, and we also saw the ongoing disconnect between the 10-yr Note and mortgage bonds continue as the 10-yr went into the red dropping 34bp. With not a lot of economic reports released today this reduction in interest rates is due to the government’s buying program for mortgage backed securities while the stock market benefited from news that a deal was struck between congressional leaders and the Bush Administration to offer the Big 3 automakers up to a $15 Billion bridge loan package in an effort to keep them out of bankruptcy. Rates are very low now and are dropping, now near best levels in 3 years. So if you are looking to purchase or refinance, get your loan together now.

Interest Rates at 4.5% ?????

Are interest rates really going down to 4.5%? Not actually, and maybe not. The Treasury Department is strongly considering a plan to intervene directly in the mortgage industry to dramatically force down rates and stimulate the moribund housing market, according to sources familiar with the proposal.
Under the initiative, the Treasury would offer to buy securities that finance newly issued loans for home purchases, according to the sources. But to participate in the government's program, mortgage lenders would have to set exceptionally low interest rates, for instance, no more than 4.5 percent for traditional, 30-year fixed-rate loans.
Borrowers would have to meet standards set by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or the Federal Housing Administrations that include documenting their income, sources said. Fannie and Freddie were put under government control in September. The Treasury plan would not apply to refinances.
See the full story at the Washington Post.

Week in Review Colorado Springs Properties

MONDAY, December 1st The National Bureau of Economic Research announced today that the United States economy entered into recession in December 2007. The Bureau is recognized as the official source for dating the onset on recession in the U.S. Given payroll declines in every month so far this year, the recession comes as no surprise to many economists who believe it will last at least through the first half of 2009 and prove to be the worst downturn since WWII. The ISM manufacturing index fell to 36.2% in November from a level of 38.9% in October. The downward spiral in the manufacturing sector index is consistent with severe contraction not only in manufacturing activity but in the economy as a whole. The outlook is for more of the same until later next year. Construction spending fell 1.2% in October, more than an expected decline of 0.9%. However, the previous two months were upwardly revised to show a three-month annualized gain of 4.8%. Construction spending is 4.6% lower on the year, keeping in line with the downward trend that has been in place for over 2 years.

TUESDAY, December 2nd Treasuries benefited from a flight-to-safety bid Tuesday amid corporate news that indicated worsening economic conditions and along with them, lower inflation. Also, anticipation that the Fed will begin purchasing Treasuries in substantial quantities as a less conventional policy response to unlock credit flows supported the bid. In late trading the 10-year note was up 19/32 to 109-13/32 to yield 2.67%.

WEDNESDAY, December 3rd The MBA mortgage applications index surged 112.1% to 857.7% for the week ending November 28. The jump in applications was related to a half point decline in fixed mortgage rates. The purchase index was up 38.0% on the week but remains 22.2% below its year ago level. The refinance index soared over 200% last week and was up 37.7% from last year. It took awhile, but it appears as though mortgage rates finally have responded to the prolonged rally in the bond market. Like the official announcement that we are indeed in a recession, the conclusion of the Fed's beige book that economic activity weakened across all Federal Reserve Banking Districts in late October and November comes as no surprise. The Fed's survey confirmed declines in manufacturing, construction, retail and auto sales, consumer spending, employment and residential and commercial real estate activity. Lending activity contracted as standards tightened. Inflation eased significantly because of falling energy prices. This broad based and dismal assessment of the economy suggests the Fed will continue to lower rates and use whatever means available to them to help promote moderate economic growth over time.

THURSDAY, December 4th Long-term fixed mortgage rates tumbled almost a half-point after the Fed said last week that it would buy $500 billion in securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Fed will also buy another $100 billion in direct debt issued by the GSEs. 30-year fixed rate mortgages averaged 5.53% this week compared to 5.97% last week according to Freddie Mac's mortgage market survey. Economists at Freddie Mac noted that mortgage applications doubled in the past week with refinancing applications almost tripling in response to the steep rate decline in rates.

FRIDAY, December 5th The economy shed 533,000 jobs in November, much worse than an expected decline of 325,000. Moreover, downward revisions in the previous two months resulted in net loss of 199,000 more jobs. The unemployment rate rose to 6.7% last month from 6.5% in October. Payroll declines are accelerating. Two-thirds of the 1.9 million jobs lost so far this year were in the last three months. The outlook remains grim. Expect the economy to remain mired in recession through most of 2009.

Stock Market Close for the Week

Index Latest A Week Ago Change DJIA 8635.42 8829.04 -193.62 or -2.19% NASDAQ 1509.31 1535.57 -26.26 or -1.71%

WEEK IN ADVANCE

With downside risks to the economy mounting, any talk of additional government stimulus will grab the attention of market players, economists and analysts. Data flows are light and toward the end of the week. The Treasury will sell more debt in the coming week and supply concerns could boost yields somewhat from multi-decade lows.

Key Interest Rates Latest 6 Mos Ago 1 Yr Ago Prime Rate 4.00 5.00 7.50 Fed Discount 1.25 2.25 5.00 Fed Funds 1.00 1.99 4.55 11th District COF 3.125 3.111 4.233 10-Year Note 2.70 3.98 3.97 30-Year Treasury Bond 3.13 4.68 4.43 30-Yr Fixed (FHLMC) 5.53 6.09 5.96 15-Yr Fixed (FHLMC) 5.33 5.65 5.65 1-Yr Adj (FHLMC) 5.02 5.06 5.46 6-Mo Libor (FNMA) 2.59125 2.91063 4.91000 Sources: IBC' s Money Fund Report; Bank Rate Monitor; Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco

Upward pressure on interest rates Downward pressure on interest rates No pressure to change interest rates News worthy

Colorado Springs Properties: The Feds to the Rescue

Here they come to save the day!!!

Stocks traded much higher today on news that Citigroup will be the next big bank being bailed out by the US Government. The plan includes guaranteeing up to $306 Billion worth of bad mortgage-related loans and investments against losses and injecting another $20 billion in capital from the $700 Billion TARP bailout program. In return, the government gets $7 Billion in preferred shares paying an 8% dividend and stock warrants for 254 Million common shares at a strike price of $10.61. Citigroup must also modify their distressed mortgages to help borrowers avoid foreclosure and are barred from paying more than one cent per share in quarterly dividends for three years. The government is at least starting to learn from their earlier mistakes by placing restrictions on Citigroup’s executive compensation and bonuses. This is an enormous financial commitment by the US Government, but over time this deal could be a profitable one for taxpayers.

Also helping Stocks move higher today, was the talks of a larger than expected stimulus plan by the Obama administration, which could top $1 Trillion. There was another dismal Existing Home Sales report, which failed to provide any boost for bond prices as traders were expecting another bad report.

With all of the action in the stock market lately, surprisingly the bond market has had little reaction. Since November 5^th it has just hovered right around the floor of support at the 200 day moving average. Today was not much different with it ending 25bp lower at the last few minutes of trading. Most lenders have been adjusting their rates by only .125% over the last week. So we will remain in a float pattern for now as I am still expecting rates to fall lower over the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned for more as the market changes.

FDIC plan could help 1.5 million keep homes:

WASHINGTON - Publicly breaking with the Bush administration's official stance, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. proposed Friday to use $24 billion in government funding to help 1.5 million American households avoid foreclosure. See full story.

Colorado Springs Properties: Economic Week In Review

Economic Highlights for the Week Ending November 21, 2008

MONDAY, November 17th Disrupted credit flows continue to play havoc with the markets and economy. The Fed stands ready to take additional steps if necessary to relieve market strains and economic challenges. A half-point rate cut is widely expected at the next FOMC meeting, December 16, though its effectiveness is reduced by the Fed's measures to pump liquidity into the banking system.

TUESDAY, November 18th The NAHB housing market index fell to a reading of 9 in November from a level of 14 in October. Needless to say, the single digit level of the index is an unprecedented low for homebuilder confidence. Exceptionally weak homebuilder sentiment related to due to a weak economy and tight credit suggest that housing market conditions have further to fall before reaching the nadir. The NAR reported that the median existing home price fell 2.5% from Q2 to Q3 in the second largest quarterly decline since the downturn started. Median prices are 8.9% below their level one year ago and off 12.9% from their 2005 peak. CA, AZ, NV and FL again were the states reporting the largest price declines. The producer price index fell 2.8% in October in its biggest monthly decline on record. The drop was led by a 12.8% decline in energy prices last month. Excluding food and energy prices, the core PPI was up 0.4% in October and 4.4% over the last year. Earlier price pressures, working through the pipeline, are pushing the core rate higher but they are dissipating fast which will lead to more moderate core PPI gains.

WEDNESDAY, November 19th The consumer price index fell 1.0% in October after a flat September. The CPI is up 3.7% over the last year but down 4.4% in the last three months as a result of falling prices for energy, housing, transportation and apparel. Excluding food and energy, the core CPI declined 0.1% on the month but id up 2.2% on the year. Weakened economic conditions are exerting significant downward pressure on prices. The MBA mortgage applications index fell 6.2% to 398.6% for the week ending November 14. Total mortgage applications are now 41.5% below their year ago level and continue to trend lower. A 12.6% decline in purchase applications caused the overall, weekly decline. Refinance applications actually increased 2.6% on a downtick in rates last week. New residential construction starts fell again in October as weakened fundamentals continue to disrupt the housing market. Housing starts declined 4.5% last month to an annual rate of 791,000 units. This was the lowest level of new home construction starts since January 1991. Total housing starts have fallen 28.0% over the past year and are now 65.2% below their January 2006 peak.

THURSDAY, November 20th Jobless claims jumped 27k to 542k for the week ending November 15. This is a new cyclical peak in unemployment claims and their highest level since July 1992. Large increases in jobless claims over the last two weeks indicate rapidly deteriorating labor market conditions with a faster pace of layoffs and extremely weak hiring. Mortgage rates eased further for the third consecutive week amid signs of much lower inflation and weak economic activity. 30-year fixed rate mortgages averaged 6.04% this week compared to 6.14% last week according to Freddie Mac's mortgage market survey.

FRIDAY, November 21st

Stock Market Close for the Week

Index Latest A Week Ago Change DJIA 8046.42 8497.31 -450.89 or -5.30% NASDAQ 1384.35 1516.85 -132.50 or -8.73%

WEEK IN ADVANCE

The holiday shortened week is packed with economic data and monthly Treasury auctions. New and existing home sales and personal income and outlays highlight. The markets will likely be more tuned into the announcement of Obama’s economic team, Monday and other financial and credit market news.

Key Interest Rates Latest 6 Mos Ago 1 Yr Ago Prime Rate 4.00 5.00 7.50 Fed Discount 1.25 2.25 5.00 Fed Funds 1.00 1.96 4.51 11th District COF 2.769 3.280 4.383 10-Year Note 3.20 3.84 4.04 30-Year Treasury Bond 3.69 4.57 4.46 30-Yr Fixed (FHLMC) 6.04 5.98 6.20 15-Yr Fixed (FHLMC) 5.73 5.55 5.83 1-Yr Adj (FHLMC) 5.29 5.24 5.42 6-Mo Libor (FNMA) 3.12125 2.96500 4.80625 Sources: IBC' s Money Fund Report; Bank Rate Monitor; Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco

Colorado Springs Properties Home Prices: Now for the Good News

Colorado Springs: #6 on Smart Money Magazines 25 Cities Ready to Rebound!
When the headlines about the housing market are apocalyptic, the last thing a homeowner wants to do is sell. But a funny thing happened to Jeff and Jennifer Boyd when they put their three-bedroom house in Philadelphia’s Graduate Hospital district on the market this summer: They turned a profit. Just 45 days after the listing went up, a buyer snapped up the property for $555,000—$29,000 more than the Boyds paid in 2006. “We were pretty hesitant, knowing what the market is like,” says Jeff. “But a few weeks later, it was gone.”
Here’s a surefire way to start an argument: Suggest that the housing market has reached bottom. To be sure, the near-term outlook is still grim, and nobody is forecasting a rapid nationwide rebound. But there are signs that the overbuilding and speculative pricing that inflated the bubble are working their way through the system. In October 2005, near the peak of the boom, the median sales price for a U.S. home reached 7.3 times per capita income; by this May it had fallen to 5.7, in line with historical norms. Nationally, the rate of decline in sales is slowing, and in some regions sales numbers have actually perked up. “The indicators are starting to look better,” says Adam York, an economic analyst with Wachovia.
Why the disconnect? For starters, the national sales figures that get so much attention—and remain depressing—are brought down by boom-and-bust markets like Las Vegas, Miami and Phoenix. David Berson, chief economist with mortgage insurance firm The PMI Group, says that if hard-hit states like California, Arizona, Nevada and Florida are taken out of the statistical mix, the picture is much more promising. According to PMI’s “risk index,” which estimates the odds of prices falling in a given market, at least 65 percent of the nation’s 386 metro areas have less than a 10 percent chance of seeing lower prices two years from now. What’s more, the government’s sweeping bailout of the financial sector could boost the housing market by making borrowing easier for buyers.
We dug into those numbers as well as other forecasts and analysis to determine which markets are in the best shape for a rebound? We also talked with housing experts to learn which kinds of neighborhoods and suburbs are thriving. Our search led us to 25 metropolitan areas that look particularly promising, and there are more than a few surprises. Here, we profile seven of the best-looking markets; for the full list of 25, see November’s issue of SmartMoney magazine.
Denver was #9 on the list of 25 cities ready to rebound.

Information obtained from SmartMoney Magazine by Brad Reagan and Elizabeth O'Brien

Veterans Day

What a great day to remember our rich heritage.

Veterans Day is an annual American holiday honoring military veterans. Both a federal holiday and a state holiday in all states, it is usually observed on November 11. However, if it occurs on a Sunday then the following Monday is designated for holiday leave, and if it occurs Saturday then either Saturday or Friday may be so designated. It is also celebrated as Armistice Day or Remembrance Day in other parts of the world, falling on November 11, the anniversary of the signing of the Armistice that ended World War I. (Major hostilities of World War I were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918 with the German signing of the Armistice.)
The holiday is commonly printed as Veteran's Day or Veterans' Day in calendars and advertisements. While these spellings are grammatically acceptable, the United States government has declared that the attributive (no apostrophe) rather than the possessive case is the official spelling.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veterans_Day