The Gazette: More Colorado Springs building permits issued in wake of fire

The Gazette in Colorado Springs reports this week that 200 homes destroyed in the Waldo Canyon fire are an track to be rebuilt.

Ryan Handy says:

"Eleven months after the fire destroyed 347 homes in Mountain Shadows, the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department has issued 176 rebuilding permits for homes in the northwest neighborhood that was ravaged by the fire on June 26.

The majority of those new permits were issued to homeowners returning to the neighborhood, but some were issued to new residents and others were given to contractors for "spec" houses, said Bob Cutter, president of Colorado Springs Together, a nonprofit fire recovery group."

Read more: http://gazette.com/more-colorado-springs-building-permits-issued-in-wake-of-fire/article/1501313

Hot market: Fire serves to reignite Westside construction, home buying

This home is just one example of how Mountain Shadows is rebounding from the Waldo Canyon fire, with Realtors able to sell homes and lots quickly, and customers happy about joining the neighborhood despite the still-visible fire scars.

The Colorado Springs Business Journal said last week that the Waldo Canyon fire has "reignited" westside construction.

"“This is the first time in a lot of years that people have been able to have new construction on the Westside,” said Dean Weissman, a Realtor with The Platinum Group. “The market over there — it’s extremely hot.”

The west side of Interstate 25 has been built out for at least 10 years, Weissman said. And most of the real estate nestled into the hillsides is more than 20 years old.

The fire destroyed a wide variety of homes in Mountain Shadows, but the average price of the burned houses was above $350,000. Some homeowners have decided to rebuild with their insurance money and stay.

Others, for emotional or financial reasons, opted to sell their lots and move on, Patterson said."

Read more: http://csbj.com/2013/05/10/hot-market-fire-serves-to-reignite-westside-construction-home-buying/ 

CSBJ: Strong real estate market has brokerages beefing up

In the Colorado Springs business journal, Amanda Miller says that the real estate business is strong in Colorado Springs.

"Local real estate brokerages are hiring.

ERA Shields has hired more than 20 real estate agents and support staff members in the past year. RE/MAX Properties has added 16 since January. Prudential Rocky Mountain Realtors has bumped its staff from seven agents to nine.

Some of the hires are seasoned real estate professionals simply moving from one brokerage to another. But many are new to the industry.

The reason behind all the hiring activity is simple — the real estate business is strong and it looks like it will continue getting stronger, said Toby Schifsky, director of real estate education for Kaplan Professional Schools.

“We stand at the front door of the industry,” Schifsky said. “And we really started seeing enrollment increase last year.”"

Read more: http://csbj.com/2013/05/10/strong-real-estate-market-has-brokerages-beefing-up/