We used to have some nice people living in the house next door.  However, through circumstances unknown to me, the house went through foreclosure to become an REO.  The last time we saw our neighbors was last fall when they were moving out.  As you may know we had a very harsh, long winter in our area.  During these winter months it seems that something happened in this house that no one caught - until last month. As a result, a house that should easily sell for around $300K in our market is now for sale on an auction sight for $40K minimum bid.  Too good to be true?  You be the judge!       We don't expect to have new neighbors any time soon... 06/27/2011

They predicted snow overnight but I didn't believe it.  I guess I should have.  Turns out they were right and we woke up to the gray shine of a cloud covered snowy day.  But, no worries... it'll melt!  And probably by tomorrow as our temperatures are supposed to be back up to 65 degrees tomorrow and for the rest of the week.  Yay! Laramie, Wyoming 8:00 am Wednesday, May 11, 2011   05/11/2011

Aaah, the slow pace of summer is about to arrive in Laramie, Wyoming.  Last Saturday was graduation for most of our University college graduates (Law School graduates this Saturday), with finals and the semester ending as well.  What does this mean for the Laramie residents that live here year round?  It means emptier streets, no rush hour traffic (if you'd call waiting an extra stoplight a rush hour) and less young people walking to campus loaded down with backpacks.  It also means not as many alcohol related police calls or public disturbances reported in the local newspaper.  Yes, our town is small enough that the courthouse news still lists names! Even if only 3/4 of the approximate 10,000 student population leaves for the summer, this still creates quite a noticeable drop in people... 05/10/2011

Today's post is decidedly UN-real estate oriented.  While browsing through pictures, hoping to be inspired by a regional shot, I found this memory instead.  While it was taken at Vedauwoo, a local outdoor attraction, I thought the emotion might be universal.  After hiking around the rocks and trails, I plunked the kids down for a nice serene group photo in the picnic shelter.  Obviously, the kids were unaware of the phenomenon of chipmunks and picnic areas.  Thus, they freaked when one of the little buggers scampered hopefully over for the usual dropped food.  It may not be real estate, but it was funny! 05/09/2011

After negotiations result in a contract to buy a home, a buyer has to decide.... to inspect or not inspect?  The answer... is not straightforward.                                                                           It depends on the buyers and the actual property being purchased.  Is the house 2 years old or one hundred?  (Newer does not necessarily mean better...)  Will the buyer be financially ruined if a costly problem emerges?  Or are they willing to take their chances?  Some people feel perfectly fine foregoing inspections all together. They'll just roll with whatever comes their way. Some people like to give the property a good once over themselves. While others prefer nobody but people licensed in their field come in and check out the major systems - heating, air conditioni... 05/08/2011

One of the coolest things about going to our dentist (if anything can be cool about going to the dentist!) is the flower garden by the front door.  Somehow, it is in a perfect sheltered south facing location letting it sprout up earlier and stick around longer.  Thus, I was delighted to find these beauties in bloom when I visited today.      Nature must be pretty stong willed - as from the looks of  this rocky, parched, non-nutrient rich soil, I say these blooms were never "nurtured" at all!   05/06/2011

The beautiful state of Colorado is only 25 miles south of Laramie on Highway 287.  While Colorado is known for its wilderness and majestic mountain beauty, our family likes to head that way for an escape to urban civilization. This is the sign that greats us when we arrive at the border:      It's true, Colorado is colorful, indeed!  And now with the continuing invasion of the pine beetle, Colorado, and Wyoming, too - is becoming more colorful each year.  Look closely and you'll see the burnt orange color of the dead pine trees in among the green.  Maybe not the color we want to see... but yes, it is colorful! 05/04/2011

All right you people out there with your pictures of flowers and grass, butterflies and trees... Here in Laramie, Wyoming, we are showing signs of spring as well.  Ha!  I even have evidence of it, a photo of our lilac bush, today, May 3, 2011 with....wait for it...wait for it ......... a BUD!  And by June - we may even have leaves on our trees!  Hate to brag or make other people feel bad.... but I think spring could be on its way! 05/03/2011

When I was a kid I remember going on endless country drives with my parents . Back then, I never understood the purpose and did not look forward to the boring explorations of the dusty back roads where we lived. Halfway through the drives, my brother and I usually ended up with our heads tilted askew, fast asleep. (Hmmm, maybe that was the purpose....) Now that I'm grown up with kids of my own, I realize - at least in part - what the draw might have been. Life can get a bit mundane and it can be fun to get out and just drive, playing the role of explorer. Every now and then on such a drive we are rewarded with the discovery of something novel. On this day it was this unlikely little tunnel of corregated pipe supporting the train tracks above, while letting cars safely pass underneath. T... 05/02/2011

Life is ironic, isn't it.?!  I can't tell you how many late nights I have spent in my self-assigned role of Santa, Easter Bunny and even Leprechaun quietly creeping around in the dark and cold thinking "I can't wait until I don't have to do this anymore..." Well, now, I  officially don't have to.  Our youngest, now nine years old, came to me with a box she found in a hidden place that clearly had held Easter goodies at one time.  "Mom! Tell me the truth....are you the Easter Bunny?!" I tried to lie but she clearly meant business as her bright blue eyes pierced my soul and before I knew it I had broken her heart with the truth.  Her older brothers and sister gathered around offering hugs and reassurances while she stoically tried to keep her tears from falling.  It is a moment I know has... 05/01/2011

Years ago, a friend of my parents married a girl from the south.  The kind of girl who'd never seen snow, a harsh winter, or frost in July.  She was a constant source of entertainment with her good-natured fascination of all things Wyoming.  One of the funniest things was when she finally demanded to know what was up with all the partial fences scattered across the praire by the roads. She was of course referring to the ubiquitous snow fence!  Indeed, they do look like unfinished fences built alongside roads all over the west.  The purpose?  To catch the windblown snow and get it to drift in piles away from the road.  Do they work?  Well, they certainly create drifts, as to whether or not the roads stay any clearer because of it, I don't know.  What do you think? 04/13/2011

I was startled by the oddest noise when I was walking across the parking lot this morning.  At first, I thought I was just hearing things, but . . . after I assured myself the sound was, indeed, real - I looked up and was surprised to see a formation of geese honking away and flying north through the sky!  Yes, north!  I wonder if this means that spring IS actually here.... I hope so!     04/08/2011

One of the reasons I love first time buyers is that I remember ourselves and our first home hunting experience.  Long story short, this is how we thought it worked:  Find the house you want.                                Tell the bank how much you want to borrow.  The bank gives you the loan.  You buy the house. Don't laugh...it's true!  I'd like to think that we were both reasonably intelligent people - having graduated from college and in the process of settling in to our new careers.  But obviously, I was wrong!  There are some things they just don't teach in school....LOL! Thank goodness for a very patient realtor and an awesome lender who eased us into how it really worked!  Though, I still laugh at how put off and surprised I was that the bank would tell us what they would be wil... 04/07/2011

Most people like to do a bit of their own detective work when buying or selling a home.  With all the internet resources we have at our fingertips, you'd be crazy not to!  One of the most common sources of information people here come across is the Assessed Valuation of a property from the Albany County Assessor's office.  While this is a great source for basic property data, like the probable age of the home or general square footage, it is not a reliable source for current market value.It is always difficult to convince people of this.  In an effort to illustrate why the assessed valuation may or may not be accurate,  I conducted my own analysis of 130 homes sold between September 2010 and April 2011.  For each sale, I calculated the difference between the 2010 Assessed Valuation of t... 04/05/2011

Believe it or not, here in Laramie, Wyoming, there is very little relationship between current market value and assessed valuation.  Assessed valuation is the value the county assigns to a property as a basis from which to calculate  property taxes.  Every now and then the county estimate is very close to the current market value, most of the time - it is not.Under Wyoming Statute 34-1-142, sales information is not  Public Record and must be kept confidential.  The county does recieve a statement of consideration for internal use with each property sale, but with an always changing market it is difficult to continually guage the value of homes - especially homes that haven't transferred ownership in years... I'm sure counties from all over the United states have their own methods of est... 04/05/2011

Today's topic, property taxes. Try to contain your excitement!  It seems like property taxes are usually an after thought, a number thrown in with and added to the mortgage.  However, next time you get your assessment notice for the upcoming year's taxes, you might want to pay it a little more thought.  Here's how it works in Laramie:Fair Value  X  Level of Assessment  = Assessed Valuation  X  Last Year's Mill Levy = Last Year's TaxDefinitions: Fair Value - An amount determined by the city to be the estimated fair market value of that property. It includes land and any improvements upon it. 2010 Level of Assessment = 9.5% Assess Valuation - The amount you will be taxed upon (also known as tax basis) 2010 Mill Levy = 69.00 out of 1000 (0.069) (for most in-town residential properties) Usi... 04/04/2011

I shared my first blog post on January 1, 2011.  I started blogging because of the 31 Days of January challenge.  To my surprise, I finished that and joined the Valentine Bloggers Daily Blogging Challenge for February.  Then I made it 21 days into March all on my own.  I thought I was hooked as I've heard it said that 60 days of something will make it a habit.... However, I finally just had to let a day go by without blogging.  It was consuming all my time and thoughts - not that it was a bad thing, though, as it really brought me to focus on real estate and what I wanted to learn and accomplish this year.  I just needed a break! My biggest fear was that I would never blog again and let it all slide.  But it turns out I really did just need a blogging break and I think I am ready to go ... 03/27/2011

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, Laramie is 7163 feet above sea level.  With this altitude comes cooler weather and thinner air.  Another often overlooked feature of higher elevation is the increased danger of the sun's UV rays.  Why?  There is less atmosphere above us at the higher elevations to filter out the harmful rays of the sun.                                                                          So even though the days are cooler, you can get sunburned up to three times faster.  Ironic, isn't it?!For very technical descriptions of this phenomenon you can go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultraviolet_indexhttp://www.epa.gov/sunwise/doc/what_is_uvindex.htmlTo determine the UV forecast for your area go to:  http://www.epa.gov/sunwise/uvindex.htmlOf course, we should all be... 03/21/2011

Having a good attitude about altitude is essential the higher you go above sea level.  Along with the cooler air comes thinner air and thus less oxygen.  You can't go to the store around here without seeing at least one person carrying and using a portable oxygen tank.                                                                            Just last summer a visitor from a lower elevation developed altitude sickness just hanging out here in town - before they even had a chance to go to the mountains.  I understand this is somewhat common and ideally, people who visit from lower elevations should add a few days to their plans to adjust to the thinner air, especially if they plan on being active.The point at which the Belle Fourche river flows out of Wyoming and into South Dakota is th... 03/20/2011

On the news today they said that last night and tonight the moon would look bigger than usual.  This is because tonight the moon will make its closest approach to earth in 18 years.  This event is what astronomers call a "perigean full moon."  While driving around last night we had noticed that the moon did seem unusually bright.  Now we know why! The moon was visible for a bit tonight and indeed, it was big and brilliant!  But before I could capture a shot, it dashed back behind the clouds, showing no sign of returning. I was bummed at having to resort to clip art to illustrate my post, but then I realized that we all look at the same moon, so it should be amazing where you live as well. So here's hoping that you had clear skies and a chance to see it, too! 03/19/2011