Real Estate Information

This Week at Copper
July 30 - August 12
Welcome to Copper,
Summer can be the best time of year to share with family and friends at Copper! Please enjoy all of Copper’s summer activities, as well as Fridays at Copper, Woodward at Copper Barn sessions and two great cycling events for two great causes - the Courage Classic, raising money for the Children’s Hospital and the Copper Triangle, working with the Davis Phinney foundations to raise funds for Parkinson’s Disease research.

Courage Classic, July 30 – Aug. 2
The 21st annual Children's Hospital Courage Classic returns to Copper Mountain for three consecutive, fun-filled days of cycling over three Rocky Mountain passes at the height of summer. About two thousand riders hit the roads from Leadville to Summit County and back, for a 157-mile ride, encompassing backcountry roads, challenging climbs and as always, picturesque views, all in an effort to raise money for The Children’s Hospital in Denver. To donate to the cause or for more information, visit www.couragetours.com.

Copper Triangle Bicycle Tour, August 7
The famous Copper Triangle has long been considered one of Colorado’s classic alpine road rides. Graced with 78 miles of breathtaking scenery, gorgeous roads and three challenging climbs (including Fremont Pass, Tennessee Pass and Vail Pass), the Copper Triangle exemplifies cycling in the Colorado Rockies. The 2010 ride works in partnership with the Davis Phinney Foundation to raise funds for Parkinson’s disease research. For more detailed Copper Triangle info, visit www.coppertriangle.com

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Fridays at Copper (F AC)
This summer, FAC stands for Fridays at Copper, and it also stands for Free. Copper's FAC includes free music, free movies and free activities. Ok, the activities are almost free – just spend $30 in the Village on Fridays and you get free tickets to the village activities, from bungee to bumper boats. The free music starts at 6 p.m., the free movies start around Dusk!

Friday, July 30
 Friday Night Street Party – Enjoy free live music by Angie Stevens and the Beautiful Wreck, a Denver-based band playing Indie, Americana and Folk Rock.
 Burning Stones Outdoor Theater – A free showing of Breaking Away (PG), the 1979 Academy Award winning, light-hearted and heartwarming tale with Dennis Quaid, all about cycling.
Friday, August 6
 Friday Night Street Party – Enjoy free live music by The Matt Clark Band, playing Rock, Reggae and Blues, this week at Mulligan’s Irish Pub.
 Burning Stones Outdoor Theater – In celebration of the Copper Triangle, enjoy a classic cycling epic, American Flyers (PG-13), about a bicycle race across the Rocky Mountains.

Woodward at Copper
Make sure to check out Woodward at Copper, the first indoor & outdoor ski and snowboard camp on the planet with a focus on terrain park and pipe progression, for those looking to progress their terrain park and pipe skills in the off-season. Starting August 5, the Barn is open Thursdays through Sundays, for the 2, 4 and 6pm One Hit Wonder Sessions, Drop-In Sessions, Barn Privates and Skate/BMX only sessions, as well as Saturdays & Sundays for Barn Only Camp Days. Check out the new Woodward at Copper blog here: www.woodwardatcopper.com/site/blog/. To sign up for a session, call a Copper Mountain Vacation Specialist at 866.534.7444, the Barn at 970.968.3400 or visit  www.WoodwardatCopper.com.
www.CopperColorado.com

There is a lot of confusion and misinformation about what a contact management system is.  It really depends upon how you use it.

If you just want to have a single place for your names and addresses, something like Outlook would work well for you.  At its most basic level, you could even use Excel or 3x5 cards.  This basic functionality speaks to knowing contact information but not addressing interaction with the contact.

If you want something to help you communicate with your contacts, you need a product that has a function that lets you know when you need to call, email or mail contacts.   You might think Outlook does this but it really doesn’t.  If you are out with the flu for a week and come back to work, you would have to go back to each day that you missed to find out who to call, email, etc.  If you called a contact and they were out of town for a few days, you would have to keep track of them on paper as a reminder to call when they got back.

Act, a real contact management system, takes care of this with its Task List.  This is a list of all the contacts that you need to call, meet, email, mail, etc until you have addressed them.  They stay on your list until you have checked them off as complete.  So if you go away for a week, when you come back, you pick up right where you left off.

In my opinion, this interaction with contacts is the entire basis for having a contact management system.  So if it does not have this facility, it is a “contact filing system”.

Therefore, Outlook, Chaos and SharperAgent are contact filing systems.  ACT is the only contact management system that is available and affordable for individuals and small businesses.

Environmental & Real Estate Headlines...from EcoBroker, February 2009 Newsletter

Stimulus Package Sets Aside Money for Consumers
How could the stimulus package boost green technology? Money for weatherization and energy efficiency improvements are two areas where homeowners may benefit from the stimulus package. Read more...

Could Your Business be “Green Certified?”
Is there an authority that certifies a company as green? The wheels are in motion, says Andrea Green, president of Globally Green Consulting of Los Angeles. According to Green in a recent Los Angeles Times article, green business certifications are “just getting going.” Read how your business could become green certified soon.

Does Cutting Costs Override Green Business Travel?
Green business travel is a mid-level priority for some companies but, for now, the high costs of green travel is still a deterrent, according to a new survey by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) and KDS (an e-commerce software provider for corporate travel and expense). “The survey, which canvassed 300 travel managers and business travelers worldwide, finds that greener travel options such as high speed rail are suffering in the recession as organizations prioritize cost-saving over sustainability.” Read the entire article here.

NAHB National Green Building Standard™ Earns Approval
The National Green Building Standard™ for all residential construction work including single-family homes, apartments and condos, land development and remodeling and renovation was approved recently by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The approval signals a new era for the nation’s builders, remodelers and developers and also provides an extra measure of reassurance for home buyers, said Joe Robson, a home builder in Tulsa, Okla., and chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). A more expansive third-party rating system opens up more opportunities for homebuilders and remodelers to achieve green certification. Read the entire article here.

Lattes in Hot Water Conservation?
You may count yourself among the concerned regarding our planet’s water conservation but has that ever led you to ponder how many gallons are used to create your morning latte? “It’s just a few ingredients,” you say. But have you considered what’s required to make and distribute all the ingredients? And the cup? And the lid? And the sleeve? Find out how many gallons of water it takes to make one latte here.

More Headlines:

High-Tech and Green Lobbies Have Obama's Ear

Five Good Ways to Get Green Power Into Your Home

Will the Stimulus Benefit Homeowners and Buyers?

Washington Report: Non-Repayable Tax Credit

Washington Post and Trulia Announce Real Estate Partnership

Another exciting week end is in store for Summit County, Colorado.  The county and particularly the Town of Frisco welcomes the annual Corvette’s on the Rockies rally. 

Friday the 23 features a Gymkhana Rally in Breckenridge called “Funkana” and a pit crew challenge in the Beaver Run parking area.  On Saturday, the cars will compete in the Keystone Convention Center in a closed circuit rally.  The week end finishes with a concourse on Main Street in Frisco where the proud owners will compete for show honors. 

Stop by the Keller Williams Top of the Rockies  office for a cold drink while you are touring the automobiles.  It is a great weekend and a good excuse to come up and enjoy the best of the Colorado mountains.

There have been a lot of emails going around regarding the law of attractions (see previous blog on Mind Movies).  This is a very strong concept, if you believe in the law of attractions you can achieve anything you want.  Basically it comes down to what ever you throw out into the universe you receive.  If you send out negative or conflicting emotions and dreams you will receive negative and conflicting realities.  Think of your thoughts as vibrations sent into the universe.  The key is to open your hart and ask for what you really want,  then send your positive vibrations into the universe.  I think that doing this helps you focus on what you want and this in turn brings your dreams to reality.  This goes along with the saying that emotions are like muscles, the ones you use get stronger and the ones you don’t get weaker.  Which emotions do you use the most?  Are the emotions you use the most the ones you want to be strong and dominant?  Practice using the emotions that you would like to be the strongest and replacing the negative emotions with positive feelings.  Answer this blog and let us know if this works for you. 

http://www.powerlawofattraction.com/ build grow

So, if one of your dreams is owning a Colorado Mountain home, in Summit County, picture the home, the setting, the view, how you will use the home and the feelings all this produces.  Send these feelings (vibrations) into the universe and continually bring up these positive vibrations up and sent them out.  You may be amazed how well this works.  Answer this blog and let us know if this works for you.

Buyers, Sellers Rank Real Estate Companies.  Being part of a great company like Keller Williams in this day and age is a matter of pride for me.  Keller Williams’ philosophy of Win-Win or no deal is something I believed strongly in.  The link below from Realtor Magazine proves that our beliefs are what the client wants.  Our office in Summit County service’s the ski areas of Breckenridge, Keystone, Copper Mountain and Arapahoe Basin and the towns of Frisco, Silverthorne, Dillon, Leadville, Alma, Fairplay and Kremmling with caring and knowledge.  Please contact us if we can help with any real estate questions.

http://www.realtor.org/rmodaily.nsf/pages/News2009073101

I'm often asked if this is a good time to buy a home. Some clients are concerned that home prices may fall further than they have already. They are assuming that the best course of action is to wait for the bottom in the market and then buy. The problem with this approach is that you don't know where the bottom is until you see it in the rear view mirror, meaning until you've missed it!

Home prices are one factor in determining your cost of ownership, but so are interest rates and financing availability. Even though interest rates have gone up in the last six months, they are still near historic lows. Since your monthly mortgage payment is a combination of paying down your principal and paying the interest owed, if home prices come down a little further but interest rates go up, it could cost you even more to service a mortgage on an identical home!

While a home is a major investment, it is also the center of your personal life. It's important to live in a home that reflects your taste and values, yet is within your financial "comfort zone." To that end, it may be more important to lock in today's relatively low interest rates and low home prices, rather than to hope for a further break in prices in the future.

Please give us a call here at Keller Williams Top of the Rockies if we can be of any assistance in determining how much home you can afford in today's market.  Our office number is 970.368.7000.

Frisco

Historic Park and Museum with schoolhouse, jail, and chapel to walk through and imagine how it was for the settlers. 2^nd & Main 970-668-3428

 Historic walk.  Pick up a map at the information center.  300 Main St. 970-668-5547

Visit the seven parks in Frisco, bring a picnic and play with most parks offering tables and grills

Hike from Frisco on one of many trails including Rainbow Lake, Ten Mile, Mason Town, the recreation path to Breckenridge, Dillon, or Copper Mountain.  Visit the information center for a detailed map. 300 Main St. 970 668-5547

View the art of glass blowing at GatherHouse Glassblowing Studio & Gallery.  110 2^nd Ave 970-485-2909

Visit “What’s Needling U” for a knitting session on Wednesdays from 2pm-4pm.  279 Main St.  970-668-0381

 Take a trip on our fee bus the Summit Stage and get a great look at the County.  View the schedule at www.summitstage.com

Go fishing in Ten Mile Creek or Lake Dillon

Kids Story Hour at the Frisco Library on Wednesdays. County Commons on Park One Blvd. 970-668-5555

Stroll down Main Street and do a little window shopping in our unique shops.

Homebuyers that were under contract to purchase a home by April 30 now get three additional months to close in order to qualify for the homebuyer tax credit; thanks to the U.S. Congress’ amendment and approval of the tax credit bill.

Extending the deadline to September 30 ensures homebuyers can take advantage of the tax credit by allowing lenders to catch up on the huge volume of loan applications waiting to be processed.
However, this extension only pertains to qualified homebuyers with existing contracts who for some reason weren't able to close the deal before June 30, 2010 –  sorry, those who were not under contract on or before April 30, 2010 are not eligible to receive the tax credit.