Durango Unemployment Less Than Most Western Mountain Towns

[jazzlover]

I think both lenders and borrowers are desperate not to turn a paper loss into a real one by selling at lower prices. Fact is, most anybody who bought a home in western Colorado since around 2005-2006 is probably upside down right now--and the market really hasn't started to steeply decline just yet. I think people are holding on more out of wishful thinking than anything else. When it becomes readily apparent (probably within 6 months or so) that there is no grand turnaround coming in the markets, I think people will finally start to cut prices to get out from under their properties. Those cuts will accelerate as the lenders begin to force people to sell when they start foreclosing on non-performing loans that they have been sitting on in hopes of a turnaround.

As to renting out properties, most second-home owners are loathe to rent out their fancy "precious" second home to the working stiffs--besides the fact that most working folks wouldn't want to pay the utilities on one of those McMansion ****boxes. wanneroo is absolutely right about the overbuilding.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

I think people are holding on more out of wishful thinking than anything else. When it becomes readily apparent (probably within 6 months or so) that there is no grand turnaround coming in the markets, I think people will finally start to cut prices to get out from under their properties. Those cuts will accelerate as the lenders begin to force people to sell when they start foreclosing on non-performing loans that they have been sitting on in hopes of a turnaround.

A friend of mine who's a broker in coastal Florida told me the same thing about the market down there. I can see if you're living in a place and you can make the payments some hesitance to unload just because you're upside down but how long would you want to pay taxes and upkeep on a second home that's upside down?

[Lane Laizzn]

Well.......I'm an unemployed corporate paralegal (in Denver) with other professional background, seeking work in Durango. The dialogue about Durango's employment environment is similar to the one in Aspen: The Have's and those who serve the Have's but live elsewhere. But living in Denver is not peachy either right now. I fell in love with Durango a long time ago, so I guess I'll stay optimistic that I'll find legal work in Durango.........and even a decent place to live there. Should I take off my rose-colored glasses?! Wait! Those came off after 9/11 and the telecom layoff.

[parfleche]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

Wouldn't that mean that rents should be falling significantly? I assume many of these are second homes so wouldn't the owners be looking to generate some cash by renting them out? Is that happening?

look in the rentals in the Durango Herald they go on and on,some asking 2,000 per mo and higher. These people are in over their heads forever till they finally walk,many have if you check the public notices the foreclosures are a mile long. when a lot of your town and county are owned by part time out of staters loosing their jobs you realize you never had a real economy. I recently did some work near hillcrest golfcoures for a rich out of stater and only 2 houses on a culdesac were occupied out of 9 plus foundations overgrown with weeds before the developers abandoned it. only an idiot or super rich idiot would buy here. lucky I bought my little Victorian 4 br shack many years ago for less than some new cars many years ago or I would have to leave too

[Colorado Rambler]

Here's an excerpt from a column by Luke Miller in a recent edition of the Durango Herald:

Over the last year, the overall cost of living in the region has increased nearly 3 percent.

Over the last year, utility costs have remained constant, transportation costs have increased more than 20 percent, health-care expenses are up 8 percent, and miscellaneous goods and services are up 7 percent.

In the last six months alone, the cost of groceries has increased 7 percent.

Since late 2008, the cost of shelter (aggregating home ownership and rental rates) has dropped 10 percent.

While the Federal Reserve has been trying to support the U.S. economy with a loose monetary policy, signs of inflation are popping up all around the world.

Consider that world food costs are up more than 25 percent in the last year, and are cited as a reason for many of the recent uprisings in the Middle East. Further, we are seeing signs of decreasing wages, decreasing home prices, and increasing food and energy prices across the nation.

As I have mentioned before, in my opinion, 2011 and 2012 will be very challenging economic years for the United States, Colorado and right here in La Plata County.

[Colorado Rambler]

Oh, and I did a quick perusal of the classifieds in the Herald. Houses for rent average $1,286.00/month. Then I checked the employment ads. Not all gave a starting salary, but of those that did, the average was $10.80/hour or $1,729/month BEFORE taxes. This is an admittedly unscientific sampling, but it does give an idea of the current situation in Durango. If you want to move there, be prepared to find a place to camp outside of town.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by Colorado Rambler

Oh, and I did a quick perusal of the classifieds in the Herald. Houses for rent average $1,286.00/month. Then I checked the employment ads. Not all gave a starting salary, but of those that did, the average was $10.80/hour or $1,729/month BEFORE taxes. This is an admittedly unscientific sampling, but it does give an idea of the current situation in Durango. If you want to move there, be prepared to find a place to camp outside of town.

The average household has more than one wage earner. If you have two people making $10.80 an hour then a $1,286 home rent is within normal guidelines. Keep in mind that your wage sampling probably included a bunch of min. wage jobs held by young people living with parents, renting a room in someone's house, or sharing an apartment. There are other housing options for a single person moving into the area than renting a whole house or camping outside of town.