Colorado REALTOR Digital Magazine October 2011 : Page 5

•Compared to the labor force peak in July 2008, the labor force is now down by more than 68,000 workers. Unemployment -Source: US Department of Labor The unemployment rate is the single best indicator of the relative economic performance of a region and by this standard the local economy is weakening, like the national economy. •Unemployment trends in Colorado, compared with the national average. •Colorado’s unemployment rate is down slightly to 8½%. •The steady unemployment rate implies that Colorado’s economy at least is growing at a trend-like pace. Real Estate Industry-Sources: Standard & Poor’s; FHFA Mortgage rates are still near historic lows, home prices are highly affordable, and many home sellers are motivated. At the same time, mortgage qualification standards are higher than they were before the recession, and many potential buyers doubt their job and income security. Given today’s incentives and deterrents for homebuyers, home sales will likely continue at a slow pace. •Colorado’s house prices are roughly in alignment with national house prices that prevailed prior to the 2000s housing debacle. •The state isn’t suffering from real estate problems seen elsewhere. •House prices in most communities have been steady, although prices in some markets like Pueblo that rose sharply have corrected sharply. •Colorado’s housing trends have been a bit more subdued compared with markets in California, Nevada, and Arizona. •The region’s home prices have weathered the soft market better than prices in many other metros. •Predictions of a second wave of foreclosure activity seem overblown, particularly because many of the unconventional loans that ignited the crisis have already been foreclosed. New Homes-Sources: US Department of Commerce; US Department of Labor The pace of new home building is down to the low levels reached in the past. New construction has fallen off by more than elsewhere in the rest of the nation, but at least has stabilized. Consumer Confidence-Source: Patty Silverstein, president and chief economist of Development Research Partners. Lack of confidence is keeping consumer spending activity at a slow pace. Even a modest increase in sales might still appear weak when adjusted for inflation, which averaged 3.8 percent in the Denver area during the first half of 2011. •Expected price increases for cotton and other commodities could mean households will continue to pay more for their essentials. •Expect retail trade sales growth in 2011 to reach a modest 5.5 percent, or 2.3 percent on an inflation-adjusted basis. SILVER        TITLE PLATINUM BRONZE page 5 | www.ColoradoREALTORS.com

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