I depart tomorrow for our annual Colorado Association of Realtors Convention in Denver. 
I have attended 18 out of the last 19 years. I must admit I don’t enjoy the event nearly as much since they moved it from the Broadmoor Resort in Colorado Springs. The setting, the service and the splendor of the Broadmoor are far more impressive than the downtown area of Denver. Though today’s room rates at the Broadmoor are slightly higher than the host hotel in Denver, I doubt the overall savings amounts to much.
The Broadmoor Resort, Colorado Springs
There is simply no comparison between the Sheraton Downtown Denver and the Broadmoor Resort, but, like many things in real estate, change is inevitable and I drive an extra hour now to attend the CAR Convention in downtown Denver. Okay, I’ve stated my complaint, one shared by many of my fellow Realtors that looked forward to three days each fall at the Broadmoor.
I am excited about a number of things at this year’s convention. I will be presenting the real estate report for Southwest Colorado to my fellow Realtors and gaining more detailed insights into the market conditions along the Front Range and other parts of our state. I will meet up with a number of good brokers from across the state that I have known and networked with over the last 20 years. I will learn what new trends the national home builders are incorporating into their new developments and what new energy saving ideas are being applied to residential properties. I will also see what new technologies are being introduced to make our firm more efficient and effective for our clients and customers and, as always, I will learn what new government regulations are about to be enacted that will impact our industry.
There are a number of changes going into effect in 2014, especially related to real estate financing. It will be much more difficult for Sellers to provide financing to home buyers. Under the new regulations, private, Seller-Financing arrangements will have to follow the same guidelines used by regional and national banks. This, in my opinion is another move by the banking lobby to limit competition. Seller financing has been an important part of the home-buying equation for many years and the latest new regulations may send this option to the trash heap. I will report more on this topic as well as the most important new information I gather during the next three days at the convention. Thanks for reading. Mike
