Denver December Days

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with loved ones and are still feeling full of love, laughter and maybe even a little bit of stuffing and turkey. It seems like this every year, we have such a great holiday and you blink and then it is already December and Christmas is right around the corner. The days have definitely gotten colder and the snow is starting to make itself known to the city but that doesn’t mean it is time to hibernate down for the winter. The great thing about living in a state that is known for it’s semi-mild winters is we like to plan fun activities to do in the winter rather than just stay cooped up until spring comes around again. My husband and I have a family house in the mountains that we love to spend time at with our daughter. We love to ski/snowboard, snowshoe and of course, get a few good runs in on the sledding hill (I don’t think that ever gets old does it?). When we aren’t up in the mountains we like to spend time with friends and family going to some of the many fun-filled attractions found in Denver and surrounding areas. Make sure to get your family out of the house this December and enjoy some of the amazing things going on in our amazing city! Below is a list of just a few of the happenings going on, be sure to check some out, dress warm and bring a warm beverage to some, you might need it!

Parade of Lights – Downtown Denver – Dec. 4th & 5th

This is really the big kickoff for all the seasonal festivities in Denver with the parade of lights. The parade includes giant balloons, floats, dance troops and of course, a marching band or a few who walk a 2-mile route. Whether you are at the start of the parade or the finish, you are sure to be wowed by this spectacular show.

Zoo Lights – Denver Zoo – Dec. 4th – Jan. 3rd

I am a true believer that the zoo is a good place to go no matter the season and what is better than adding a beautiful display of lights while you see animals and drink a hot cocoa? Get tickets early on their website and take the family for this fun adventure.

Blossoms of Light –Denver Botanic Gardens – Nov. 27th – Jan. 2nd

The gardens don’t close down when the weather gets cold, yes many plants are gone for the season the greenhouse still has plenty of beautiful life sprouting throughout the cold season. For the holidays, the gardens string millions of beautifully colored lights in the gardens, making a magical winter wonderland for visitors to enjoy and marvel at.

Holiday Flea – Denver, 4400 Fox. St – Dec. 3rd-Dec. 6th

You may have been to the Denver Flea before, a wonderful contemporary market place showcasing the best of the best retailers and makers who speak to the Colorado lifestyle. Well, in honor of the holidays, they have decided to have a special flea just for the occasion and you don’t want to miss out especially if you want to eat some good food, have some delicious drinks and buy your holiday presents too!

Vail Snow Daze – Vail Village – Dec. 11th-Dec. 13th

We all like to get away to the mountains during the winter time and Vail is inviting all ski and snowboarders to stop in for their Snow Daze which consists of free concerts, a street fair for the books and a tree lighting ceremony.

There are 31 days in December and only so many days before the new year, make sure to make the most of it with the people who mean most to you by getting involved and enjoying all the incredible activities.

Stay warm!

Littleton, the 2nd Best Small City in the United States

We always knew that living in Colorado has its perks and the country keeps recognizing this wonderful state and the amazing cities in it as great places to live. Recently, Wallethub named Littleton, CO the 2nd best small city in the whole United States. Out of the 1,268 small cities on this list, Colorado found itself with 16 cities on the list, not surprising at all!

Littleton was chosen because of its affordable housing costs, home-ownership rates are high, education and health care are sound, cost-of-living is reasonable and last but certainly not least quality of life is ranked very high on the positive side. If you’ve ever been to Littleton you know everything about the above statement is true and then some.

If you read my previous article about “coming soon” in real estate have I got some good news for you, I have a “coming soon” property that is located in this 2nd best small city in the United States. Want to know more? Give me a call today and let’s chat about this new exciting property I will be putting on the market for my wonderful clients and if you think it fits what you are looking for, let’s take a drive over to Littleton and check it out. 

             Listing Price $449,000  | Photos By: Noah Berg Photography

Happy Thanksgiving

I just wanted to take a quick moment and say thank you to all my clients, my partners, my employees and of course, my family for making this year another amazing one for the books. Without you all, I couldn’t do all of the jobs I love or help out people in a way that makes me truly happy. Being a mother, a wife, a real estate agent and a business partner are things I feel blessed to call myself each day and I only hope to keep doing these things and growing in all aspects of my life.

I hope you and your family have a safe and happy Thanksgiving, and if you need a few dessert recipe ideas or family fun activity ideas, I have put together a list of some food and fun to try!

Recipes –

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchens/apple-pumpkin-pecan-pie.html

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/229952/sweet-potato-cupcakes-with-toasted-marshmallow-frosting/?internalSource=rotd&referringId=977&referringContentType=recipe%20hub

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/245169/pumpkin-cannoli/?internalSource=staff%20pick&referringId=977&referringContentType=recipe%20hub

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/46395/applesauce-bars/?internalSource=recipe%20hub&referringId=977&referringContentType=recipe%20hub

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/no-pan-pear-pie-recipe.html

Things to do with the Family –

·      Take a walk with your family

·      Play touch football

·      Board games

·      Treasure hunt

·      Memory sharing

·      I love my family because…

·      Make a family tree

Have a blessed Thanksgiving! 

What I am Thankful for

“Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.” - Guillaume Apollinaire

 With Thanksgiving just around the corner, I wanted to take this time and talk about some of the things I am most thankful for this year. Every year around this time I like to sit down and dwell on the past year looking at both the good things that have happened and the not-so good things. Everyone has to go through ups and downs every year and it is good to put the bad things to rest and embrace the good things. I feel truly blessed each day to do a job I love and have a wonderful family that supports me. I have read a few articles lately on gratitude and there are studies done which have proven the more gratitude you show in your life to loved ones and others the better you feel about yourself and the happier you will be. That may get a “duh” response from some of you, but think about it, most of your parents have been teaching you to say “thank you” since you could talk and little did they know they were prepping you for a life of happiness and sincere gratitude shown to others.

I am very much looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with family and friends and would encourage each and every one of you to sit down and compile a list of the things you are thankful for each and every day. Like the quote says, sometimes it is important to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.

Today I am thankful for:

·      God

·      My family & friends

·      My wonderful husband and my precious daughter

·      My careers and the wonderful partners and employees who I get to work with daily

·      My amazing clients

·      Meeting new clients and friends through all the work and volunteering I do

·      Coffee (hey, I am thankful in the morning for this!)

·      The mountains

.     My beautiful home 

Take some time today and make sure to tell those you care about how thankful you are for them, it will make their day and it will leave you feeling more happy for the rest of your day.

Thanks for reading, I am thankful for you all.

"Coming Soon" Creates Bigger Boom

If there is something I know about selling property it is that when you first get a new property you want to get it out on the market with a lot of hype around it as a new listing. If you drive around town you can see this type of advertising excitement used on new stores or restaurants that say “opening soon” or “new owner”. In real estate, we like to post a “coming soon” sign in front of properties that are to be put on the market in a timely fashion or even write about them before they go on the market to get potential buyers excited and have them start doing their research on the property.

Another way I cause a stir about new properties even before the information is released to the public is by marketing my listings as “coming soon” to other agents as well before putting the property into the MLS. If other agents know what their clients are looking for, and I go to them with a lead on a potential property, then more agents will actively look for my properties in the future as well as want to work with me again.

A study was recently done in Chicago where they took the number of properties that had been advertised as “coming soon” versus properties that did not saw the properties with “coming soon” selling after 28 days on the market versus houses not which sold after 42 days on the market.

These kind of studies continue to show that before it is time to list your property to the public and put it in the MLS, you should marketing the property as “coming soon” to build hype around the new arrival to the market. Like I mentioned before, many companies and business owners use this same tactic when it comes to building excitement over a new business or launch and here I am doing the same thing for my clients and their “coming soon” property.

If you are thinking it is time to put your house on the market then let me be the Realtor to get the ball rolling and get people and agents interested in your place with a “coming soon” announcement. Or if you are starting to look for a house but want help finding houses before they have even hit the market, give me a call and let’s grab coffee and discuss finding your “coming soon” home and making it your forever home.