Sun and Fun

One of my brothers is here from Michigan on a visit (the other ones already live here:-), and while I was working yesterday (another closing, yeah!), they all went out golfing for the day at Fort Carson. The course at Fort Carson is open to the public, and the only one to my knowledge that has a GPS system in the golf carts to help you plan a perfect approach shot with the right club. Golf in March is not the same as golf in June. The ball rolls further, and grass is brown. But it was in the mid 60's (not any one's score from what I heard), bright sunshine (they got burnt a little), and all in all, a great way to spend an unseasonably warm spring day. It was so warm I decided to turn the sprinkler system on, there is no rain in sight, overnight lows are above freezing, and the little bit of snow that fell on Friday did not do much.
St Patrick's Day today is going to be another beauty, over 70, and then tomorrow we go up and do some spring skiing. Time for serious sun screen and lighter jackets for sure!
The market seems to be picking up, my closing yesterday was on a townhome in Monument that only lasted a week on the market, and I had another listing go under contract last week that was less than 2 weeks on market. property that is in good shape and priced well is definitely selling!
Got questions about living in Colorado Springs? Call me at 719-590-4768 or 888-568-6784!

Only in Colorado Springs. Yesterday we woke up with snow on the ground from a little overnight snow shower, and I went golfing in 60+ degree weather in the afternoon. I had never played any of the of the military courses here, and had an opportunity to play the Silver Spruce at Peterson AFB. It was very nice, and the air traffic of the Colorado Springs Airport was a fun distraction from time to time. While I did not hit very well, we managed to get 18 holes in on the twilight special, and it was good exercise, if my sore muscles are any measure of that!
Speaking of Peterson (and Shriever), this morning's paper covered the new base housing projects going on at both. Shriever will finally have a couple of hundred homes, and Peterson will end up with around 600 after tearing down some, building some and renovating some.

While March is not the prettiest month of the year in Colorado Springs, it does offer some of the greatest variety in the weather, and Pikes Peak is always a bright white against the blue skies. The grass will be brown for a little while yet, although it has been above freezing overnight for at least a few nights, so maybe it will start to green up a little? The weather has taken a decidedly springtime turn, and we have been enjoying the 60+ degree days. I even hit a bucket of golf balls this week, in hopes of actually getting some time to golf this year. Pine Creek Golf course seemed fairly busy.

This shot was taken a block or 2 from the golf course, about a month ago, at the park in front of Mt View Elementary in Pine Creek.

What an odd week this has been in the financial markets. While everyone who is anyone in Washington says they want lower mortgage rates, whatever they seem to do about it, keeps pushing them up instead of down. While low 6's is not bad by historical standards, we were in the mid 5's only last week, and it makes a difference. Since most people are payment constrained, the difference between 5.5% and 6.5% is the difference between a $300,000 loan and a $269,000 loan, when budgeting roughly $1700 for a PI house payment. At 7.5%, it drops all the way down to $244,000. In our market, that can make a huge difference in the choices a buyer has. I for one am in favor of low interest rates :-)
Tuesday we had our monthly sales meeting, and this month was hosted by the Colorado Springs Country Club. They have a membership drive underway, and I was impressed at how affordable the packages seem to be. They have a family full golf membership (they have an 18 hole golf course, tennis, pool, restaurant, etc) for $9500 initiation plus monthly dues, which by local standards is very cheap (Flying Horse for instance is $38,000 for initiation). We also have a special program whereby we can take our clients for an orientation, and they can receive a voucher for a round of golf! If this sounds good, give me a call (719-590-4768) and we'll set it up.
The other guest presentation was by the Banning Lewis Ranch, and although I have covered this topic before, it once again hit home how important this new development will be in this city. Please give me a call if you'd like a tour of this fantastic new concept community, it is going to be big, really big!

Fall is my favorite month for golfing in Colorado Springs. Not because they aerate the courses, sand the greens and other obnoxious things, but because they are aren't as busy. I had a chance to take advantage of the afternoon special yesterday at Pine Creek. Admittedly the weather was looking a little sketchy, and we did have to take a rain / lightening delay before we finished our 18, but it played pretty fast even with the delay, and was both fun and really pretty. I will be the first to admit that we lost more golf balls than holes that we parred between us, but it was still great fun to be out.

Golfing in Colorado is sort of a unique experience. Today we got a late start on the season, with a little warmup on the par 3 course at Cherokee Ridge Golf Course (http://www.cherokeeridgegolfcourse.com/), and it reminded me of a couple of things. For starters, there is a reason many golf courses offer afternoon specials (although not this one). The thunderstorms were brewing by 3pm today to the west, though we were never in any real hurry because of it. The second thing is, that although the ball flies further at altitude, I think the golfer tends to tire out a bit quicker, especially when walking. At least I do, although I will readily confess to being less than 100% fit. The third thing is, no matter how bad you golf, being outside with a great view of the mountains and some blue sky and fresh air in your face is always a good thing. Holly and I had lots of fun, and after a few shots that I liked out of the afternoon, I'll want to get back out sooner as opposed to later!