Month: August 2019

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Apparently,​ this winter is going to be a real Polar Coaster!

The 2020 Farmers’ Almanac is predicting this winter “will be filled with so many ups and downs on the thermometer, it may remind you of a ‘Polar Coaster.'”

 The Farmer’s Almanac is predicting frigid temps and big powder days!

“Our extended forecast is calling for yet another freezing, frigid, and frosty winter for two-thirds of the country,” said Farmers’ Almanac editor Peter Geiger.

The guide also calls for above-normal winter precipitation over much of the United States including the Great Plains. 

The 2020 edition of the Farmers’ Almanac suggests “a memorable storm producing hefty snows for the Great Plains during the third week of January.”

The coldest stretch of the winter season should arrive during the final week of January and last through the beginning of February, according to the Farmers’ Almanac, and the worst of the cold winter conditions “will affect areas east of the Rockies all the way to the Appalachians.”

Find out more.

+ New Denver law changes restrictions on e-scooters – basically, act like you’re on a bike.

+ Is now the perfect time to buy in Denver? Here’s what one West + Main Agent has to say on ABC World News Tonight earlier this week!

+ Everything you need to know about CRUSH: RiNo Art District’s street art celebration.

+  Only 1655 new listingshit the market this week. Last week that number was 5467. We’re blaming Labor Day.

Let me know if you have questions about anything home or Real Estate related, if you’d like to get out and see some of the homes that are for sale, or if you are wondering what your home might be worth today.

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It’s Produce Festival Time!

Find out where to celebrate everything from peaches to potatoes!


As the summer cools off, there are few activities more enjoyable than perusing a farmers market.
Freshly-picked apples and even digging up your own potatoes are all yours for the taking here in Colorado. 

Mark your calendars for all of these produce-filled festivals sprouting late this summer and early fall — and get ready to road trip!
Telluride Mushroom Festival
Where: Telluride
When: August 14-18, Get all the details here.
The Lowdown: There are more uses for mushrooms than just cooking, and this festival will educate you about all of them. These versatile superfoods can be used in your garden, your kitchen and even your medicine cabinet. This year’s theme is “Healing the Mind, Healing the Planet,” and there is a full lineup of talks you can listen to regarding topics like health and wellness, sustainability and taxonomy. You can learn how to identify different types of mushrooms as well, so be prepared to surprise your friends on your next hike. And yes — you’ll learn about magic mushrooms, too.
Palisade Peach Festival
Where: Palisade
When: August 15-18, Get all the details here.
The Lowdown: This festival will make your weekend just peachy. The schedule is packed with everything from a four-course meal in a beautiful field, to a peach eating contest and even a crowning of a peach in the Biggest Peach Contest. All of the peach-inspired cuisines will keep you energized to dance the day away to all the live music at the fest. There’s even a lake where you can paddleboard or kayak — and then you’ll be hungry enough to eat plenty of desserts.
Watermelon Day
Where: Rocky Ford
When: Saturday, August 17, Get all the details here.
The Lowdown: Watermelon Day is part of the Arkansas Valley Fair, which they claim is Colorado’s “oldest continuous Fair” and had been a tradition since 1878. This means it’s time to brush up on some old-fashioned skills so you can compete in the watermelon seed-spitting and watermelon carving contests. There’s also the infamous watermelon pile, which proves extremely hard to miss. The festival is a welcomed blast to the past with its needlework display, horseshoe pitching and bingo all day long. Not intense enough for you? Well, the day ends with a demolition derby, so adrenaline-junkies are sure to get their fill of fun, too.

More festivals.
Recession a Distant Memory
Data shows significant progresspost-recession.
Open House Schedule
See some beautiful homes across the Front Range this weekend!

Copyright © 2019 West and Main Homes, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
2010 Youngfield St. Lakewood, CO. 80215

Lara Conrad Real Estate (720) 436-1123

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Mortgage Rates Hit 3-Year Low

If you are thinking about making a move, investing or refinancing, now might be a good time!

Escalating tensions over a trade war with China sent investors rushing to the relative safety of the bond market late last week.

That pushed the yield on the 10-year Treasury, which mortgage rates loosely follow, down sharply.

The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage hit 3.70% last Friday, the lowest since November 2016. That rate will likely dip even lower Monday, as bond yields continue to fall.

The drop last week meant that 8.2 million 30-year mortgage holders could likely qualify for a refinance and save at least 0.75% off of their current interest rate by doing so.

The size of that population, however, is still very sensitive to even the slightest rate moves, since so many borrowers have already refinanced to very low rates. Just a one-eighth of a point move lower could add another 1.5 million borrowers to the eligible refinance pool, and the same move in the other direction would knock 1.3 million out.

Lower rates have also increased the buying powerfor prospective homebuyers looking to purchase the average-priced home by the equivalent of 15%, meaning that they could effectively buy $45,000 ‘more house’ while still keeping their payments the same as they would have been last fall.

As affordability pressures have eased, it also appears to be putting the brakes on the home price deceleration that has been tracking since February 2018.

Rates are now incredibly favorable for both

+ What do homebuyers with kids look for when searching for a new home?

+ Give your home a mini-makeover.

+ Slow down! And watch for lower speed limits on many Denver streets.

+ Cryptocurrency, stocks, or real estate – where are investors putting their cash?

+ 2146 new listings hit the market this week – significantly fewer than last week.

Let me know if you have questions about anything home or Real Estate related, if you’d like to get out and see some of the homes that are for sale, or if you are wondering what your home might be worth today.

Open House Schedule
See some beautiful homes across the Front Range this weekend!

https://www.westandmain.co/blog/category/Listings