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By Ken Asher, on October 28th, 2011
The Colorado Springs housing market, like many other communities around the country, has taken its lumps in recent years: falling home prices, rising numbers of foreclosures and a construction slowdown.
But the city’s housing market will stage a turnaround in 2012 and become one of the nation’s best, according to a national forecast by Builder Magazine.
The Springs ranks No. 7 on Builder’s Top 20 list of healthiest markets the magazine is projecting for next year. Builder publishes its Top 20 list twice a year — once for the current year and another that looks ahead — in conjunction with parent company Hanley Wood, a real estate media and information services firm. Their projections use Moody’s Economy.com data, which focus on jobs, price appreciation, population growth and other factors that drive housing.
The Department of Defense’s major presence in the Colorado Springs area — which includes Fort Carson, Peterson Air Force Base and Schriever Air Force Base — will serve as a catalyst for the local housing market, Builder suggests.
“There’s light at the end of the housing market tunnel in Colorado Springs,” according to Builder. “The three biggest employers here, by far, are military bases, and the fourth biggest is the Air Force Academy. The return of troops from Afghanistan may further stimulate the housing market.”
Builder says Moody’s expects Springs-area home prices to climb 2.6 percent next year, while job growth will increase 1.4 percent, numbers of households will rise 1.8 percent and median incomes will jump 2.9 percent.
Those pluses come on the heels of a mixed-year for Springs housing, Builder says; in July, the magazine notes, year-over-year homes sales were up, the inventory of homes for sale was down and the local foreclosure picture had improved. However, prices have been down this year.
Builder’s outlook, which includes the new home and resale markets in the Springs, differs markedly from one presented earlier this month by the Southern Colorado Economic Forum. The forum’s forecast for 2012 suggests the Colorado Springs economy will fall back into a recession with the rest of the nation — citing, in part, a weak housing market that hasn’t recovered.
Still, being put in the national spotlight by Builder can only help the market, some local industry officials say.
John Cassiani, the incoming board president for the Housing and Building Association of Colorado Springs, said he sees the No. 7 ranking as a recognition of some positive factors: troops are on their way back to Fort Carson, the city maintains a strong defense and aerospace industry and the Springs never saw the volatile housing price swings that Phoenix, Las Vegas and other cities experienced in recent years.
Other positives for the new home and resale markets include rock-bottom mortgage rates and low prices. Some builders continue to offer incentives, such as free landscaping and finished basements, Cassiani said.
But Cassiani acknowledged local single-family home construction next year probably will only match the pace of this year, and won’t increase until 2013. The area still has to work its way through a backlog of distressed properties — foreclosures and short sales — that pose competition for homebuilders, he said.
Construction of apartments, however, should continue to increase next year; apartment vacancy rates have plunged to nine-year lows in recent quarters, and several multi-family construction projects are either under way or planned.
Of other Colorado communities included in Builder’s healthiest housing market outlook, Fort Collins-Loveland ranked No. 2 in the nation, while Denver was No. 10 and Greeley came in at No. 20.
Minneapolis-St. Paul was No. 1 in the magazine’s forecast for 2012.
By Rich Laden
THE GAZETTE
By Ken Asher, on September 12th, 2011
If you find yourself with PCS orders to Fort Carson or your already stationed at Fort Carson you may have considered buying a home with interest rates being so low under 4% as of this writing.
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 5 Piece Master Bath
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By Ken Asher, on August 26th, 2011
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By Ken Asher, on March 30th, 2011
Fort Carson will be home to a 2,700 soldier aviation brigade, congressional sources confirmed Monday.
Army leaders briefed Colorado’s congressional delegation Monday morning on the move, which would push the post’s population of GIs to nearly 30,000 and bring an estimated $240 million in military construction to the Pikes Peak region.
“It’s official: Fort Carson will be getting a new combat aviation brigade,” Colorado’s Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Udall said in a statement. The brigade will be established in 2013 and ready for combat by 2014, Udall’s office said.
The new 113-helicopter unit will be the Army’s 13th combat aviation brigade.
Colorado Springs Republican U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn said construction money could start flowing to Fort Carson within months to improve Butts Army Airfield and build a headquarters and barracks for the unit.
Lamborn said getting cash for the unit will be relatively easy despite congressional budget worries because addressing a helicopter shortfall is an Army priority.
“This is money that’s essential to make sure our soldiers are better trained and better equipped,” he said.
The brigade would bring hundreds of civilian jobs, such as contractors for aircraft maintenance, high-tech weapons and training simulators.
Outside Fort Carson’s gates the impact will be huge, said Fred Crowley, an economist with the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.
“We’ll pick up 2,100 or 2,200 civilian jobs as result of military jobs,” he said.
Using an Army formula for population growth, the move could bring 7,000 people to the Pikes Peak region, including the new soldiers and their families.
The Army has been studying Fort Carson as a home for the helicopter brigade since last year. Last month, the Pentagon confirmed that Fort Carson was a favorite to land the brigade.
But tension increased with a three-week delay in the Pentagon’s announcement.
Fort Carson leaders have worked for years to get more helicopters on the post. In Afghanistan, helicopters are a prime mode of transit and supply, creating an argument that soldiers need to train with helicopters in Colorado to get ready for war.
Helicopters are heavily used in Afghanistan because they are immune from the roadside bombs that insurgents use to target convoys.
Brig. Gen. James Doty, Fort Carson’s commander, said earlier this month that the area’s high altitude terrain makes it a perfect place for helicopter crews to prepare for combat.
Udall said adding the helicopter brigade at Fort Carson will “save lives and improve our fighting capability” by allowing soldiers to train with helicopters.
Fort Carson leaders hadn’t been formally notified of the move Monday afternoon and wouldn’t comment.
The additional troops will balloon Fort Carson’s population of soldiers to a level unseen since World War II.
The move comes as the Defense Department embarks on a five-year austerity plan, designed to carve $78 billion from Pentagon spending through measures including troop-level cuts from the Army and Marine Corps.
Groups opposed to the new unit at Fort Carson point to the budget as a reason Monday’s decision is a bad one.
“I don’t understand how, if they’re cutting forces, they need another combat aviation brigade,” said Bill Sulzman, who headed the group “Stop the Whop Whop.”
While the helicopter brigade did have opponents, the region’s overwhelming support for the military was key in landing the unit for, said Brian Binn, president of military affairs for the Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce.
“They have seen it across the board for how our community takes care of military members at all of our five military bases,” Binn said.
Since his election in November, Gov. John Hickenlooper has said repeatedly that all of Colorado should recognized the impact of the military on its economy.
“This is an important step in our continuing work to brand Colorado as a place where military support and investment are welcome,” he said in an email to The Gazette.
TOM ROEDER
THE GAZETTE
Reporter John Schroyer contributed to this article.
5
By Ken Asher, on February 5th, 2011
Fort Carson is one step away from growing by 2,800 soldiers — a move that would push the post’s population to levels unseen since World War II.
The Army announced Friday that Fort Carson is its preferred location for a planned brigade of helicopters. A final decision on whether the post gets the brigade with its 120 helicopters is expected within 30 days.
The additional soldiers would push the post’s population of GIs to almost 30,000 and bring another surge of military construction to the Pikes Peak region, with $300 million or more spent to house the new unit.
The brigade would be formed at Fort Carson in 2013 and would also bring hundreds of civilian jobs, because the helicopter unit would require contractors for aircraft maintenance, high-tech weapons and training simulators.
“This is excellent news,” said U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, a Colorado Springs Republican who sits on the House Armed Services Committee. “It’s a big boost for the whole community.”
Lamborn said getting additional money for a new brigade — which would be the Army’s 13th aviation brigade — could still prove troublesome amid budget tightening, but said he expects few problems getting appropriations for the unit through Congress.
The Army has planned a series of cuts to other programs but has maintained that increasing its aviation capability is a top priority.
Fort Carson leaders have worked for years to get more helicopters on the post. In Afghanistan, where most of the post’s combat soldiers have headed in recent years, helicopters are a prime mode of transit and supply, creating an argument that soldiers need to train with helicopters in Colorado to get ready for war.
Brig. Gen. James Doty, Fort Carson’s commander, said the area’s high altitude and tortuous landscape makes it a perfect place for helicopter crews to prepare for combat.
While the community will notice more noise, Doty said they’ll also see “significant positive economic impact,” if the brigade comes to town.
In addition to the soldiers, the troops will bring as many as 4,000 family members to Colorado Springs. With less than 30 percent of the troops living on post, that will create a demand for scores of houses and apartments.
The brigade would also mean the post’s construction boom — $2 billion since 2005 — would continue, said Brian Binn, president of military affairs for the Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce.
“We were at a point where most of the military construction was coming to an end,” Binn said. “The aviation brigade will help to keep the construction piece on Fort Carson up and running.”
Colorado Springs has seen a military boom in recent years, with the 4th Infantry Division and other, smaller units coming to town.
The post has doubled in size since 2003, going from 13,500 troops to about 27,000 — creating hundreds of local construction jobs building everything from offices to barracks. Defense Department spending now accounts for 40 percent of the economy in the Pikes Peak region, economists estimate.
Colorado Springs Mayor Lionel Rivera said he and other leaders have lobbied the Army for the helicopter unit at every opportunity. He said the city’s military-friendly climate is a key selling point.
“It’s a testament to this community and how much we support the military,” Rivera said. “The Pentagon knows when they put a unit here in Colorado Springs, it will be taken care of by this community.”
Not everyone is happy with the prospect of more helicopters at Fort Carson.
Bill Sulzman, a Colorado Springs activist, is leading a “Stop the Whop Whop” campaign to block the Army move.
He said he’s worried that the serenity of the community will be disturbed by increased helicopter training.
“I’m very disappointed,” Sulzman said. “I would like for this thing not to happen.”
TOM ROEDER
THE GAZETTE
AVIATION BRIGADE AT FORT CARSON
The Army will decide within 30 days whether it will put a brigade of helicopters at Fort Carson.
Here’s what the brigade would bring:
• 120 helicopters, including CH-47 Chinooks, UH-60 Black Hawks, OH-58 Kiowas and AH-64 Apaches.
• 2,800 soldiers, including pilots, mechanics, medics and a slew of specialists in other fields.
• About 4,000 family members.
• $300 million in construction to improve Butts Army Airfield on the post.
• An unknown number of civilian jobs, probably in the hundreds, from construction workers to weapons technicians.
Growth at Fort Carson
The population of the post has doubled since 2003. Here’s a look at the number of soldiers assigned to the post in recent years.
Post population in 2003: 13,500 soldiers
Post population in 2008: 18,500 soldiers
Post population in 2011: 27,000 soldiers
Projected population in 2013: 30,000 soldiers
Homes Near Fort Carson
By Ken Asher, on January 2nd, 2011
 A lot of military people at Fort Carson and soldiers pcsing to the Mountain Post have been taking advantage of the distressed housing market in the area. With all the foreclosures and bank owned homes on the market and interest rates at all time historical lows, currently around 4.57% it has become an affordable option to own a home for a lot of military people that normally would not not consider owning a home.
If your pcsing to the area or your already stationed at Fort Carson and you have thought about taking advantage of the local housing market then feel free to contact Ken Asher (719) 930-7817 to answer any question you may have. If your a first time home buyer there are programs to to help you get into a home without any money out of your pocket.
Click to Search foreclosures and bank owned homes
By Ken Asher, on October 27th, 2010
Local apartments continued to be fairly well occupied in the third quarter, a report shows.
The vacancy rate for Colorado Springs-area apartments stood at 6.6 percent in the third quarter — up slightly from 6.2 percent at midyear, according to Apartment Insights, an online research company that surveys complexes of 50 units or more.
The latest vacancy rate was down sharply from 7.8 percent in the third quarter of 2009 and 9.2 percent in the same quarter of 2008.
Additional troops who have come to Fort Carson, increased demand by homeowners who have lost their houses to foreclosure and tighter borrowing requirements that have thwarted some potential homebuyers have translated into a steady demand for apartments, industry experts have said.
Demand was strongest for rental units in apartment complexes and buildings constructed after 1980, said Doug Carter, an Apartment Insights partner and a broker with the Springs office of national real estate firm Sperry Van Ness.
But the report also shows the vacancy rate for older apartments slipped to 7.6 percent, down from 10 percent in late 2008 — indicating the weak economy is prompting many renters to seek cheaper rental units.
Rents averaged $707 a month in the third quarter, up from $699 in the second quarter and $695 in the third quarter of 2009, according to Apartment Insights.
RICH LADEN
THE GAZETTE
By Ken Asher, on September 12th, 2010
has told Colorado congressional offices that Fort Carson is one of two finalists to house a 2,700-soldier aviation brigade.
The Army will make its final decision on where the unit will go as soon as next year after environmental assessments at the bases, said staffers for Colorado’s Democratic Sens. Mark Udall and Michael Bennet and Colorado Springs Republican Rep. Doug Lamborn.
Fort Carson is competing with Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Wash.
While Fort Carson’s chance to get the brigade has been rumored for months, the latest step includes one key finding — that the post doesn’t need to add land to its Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site near Trinidad to train the helicopter crews.
“The Army has expressly said that the current acreage will work,” Lamborn said in a phone interview Friday.
The Army sparked a firestorm of opposition with its proposal to add 100,000 acres to the 235,000-acre Piñon Canyon site, and a demand for more land as part of the aviation brigade discussions would likely scuttle any deal.
The Army wants to add the additional helicopter brigade to its ranks by 2013 and a final decision on where it will be based will likely come in 2011 after a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement is completed.
That process includes a lengthy public comment period and will review how adding the extra soldiers and aircraft will impact the environment.
Joint Base Lewis-McChord will be a formidable opponent for Fort Carson in the helicopter quest. The Washington base offers similar opportunities for mountain training and possesses the 327,000-acre Yakima Training Center range 150 miles east of the post.
Washington also has one of the nation’s most powerful congressional delegations, including Tacoma’s Democratic Rep. Norm Dicks, who as chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee holds great sway over Army spending.
Joint Base Lewis-McChord and Fort Carson are the only Army posts with combat divisions that lack major aviation units.
TOM ROEDER
THE GAZETTE
By Ken Asher, on September 8th, 2010
PCSing to Fort Carson and need to find a place to live. You may want to consider buying a home. Interest rates are at historic all time lows. Right now now you can get a VA loan with an interest rate at 4.25 %. You can get a 5 year VA ARM at 3.25%. Buying a home near Fort Fort Carson is a very affordable option. We can get you into a home without any money out of your pocket.
Search homes near Fort Carson
Feel free to call or contact Ken Asher (719) 930-7817 if you have any questions.
By Ken Asher, on May 6th, 2010
The Tax Credit may be over as of April 30, 2010 but if you were in the military and served overseas in 2010 the Tax Credit has been extended to you until April 30, 2011. If your a first time home buyer or you haven’t owned a home in the past three years you qualify for the $8,000.00. That’s FREE money in your pocket that you don’t have to pay back.
We can help you find your next home near Fort Carson or the surrounding area
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