If the biggest single cause of the depletion of capital is the ongoing drop in the value of American homes, Summit County must be faultless. Our Breckenridge real estate, Keystone condos, Blue River and Silverthorne single-family homes, and places near the water in Dillon are seeing appreciation in value even during the credit fiasco.
A few days ago, the Fed decided to make high-cost mortgages cost less, promising news for people who have been trying to get into vacation real estate in Breckenridge. Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will guarantee loans in the Silverthorne Micropolitan Area, which is Summit County, for up to $729,750. That figure is based on the area’s median home prices which are continuing to steadily increase.
Their announcement follows on the heels of the February decision of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). They raised the Summit County mortgage limits to $362,790 for a one-unit, single family home. These are the common loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA).
Credit markets throughout the nation are fretting about the real value of their securities. The contents of their portfolios—municipal bonds, student loans, home loans and more—are in question. Lenders are being forced to scrutinize borrowers. More dangerous to our nation’s economy, they are off-loading large bundles of loans into the international market.
Thankfully, we sit on past and present gold mine. Soon after the placer-gold discoveries at Idaho Springs, prospectors entered these mountains during the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush of 1859. Our town was founded to serve the hearty miners who worked the rich placer-gold deposits that were discovered along Georgia Gulch. Then hard-rock mining opened veins of gold followed by the hydraulic mining in gravel benches north of the Blue River. The characteristic gravel ridges left by the gold dredges can still be seen along the Blue River and Snake River along with the remains of a dredge still afloat in a pond off the Swan River. Our mining district is credited with the production of about one million troy-ounces of gold.
Although the mines are all but shut down today, our real estate benefits from the quaint towns and interesting stories of that time. Life in these Colorado Rocky Mountains is boosted in value by the unbeatable beauty, international culture, love of nature, and small-town fellowship. Our property values remain strong because we treasure the magnificent opportunities at our doorstep and care for our special environment.
For more information and a lively introduction to real estate in this area, contact Rick Allemang at (970) 547-1002.
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