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Don't love skiing/snowboarding? Check out these winter activities

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Perhaps you’re not into downhill pursuits (skiing or snowboarding), you didn’t reserve a day on the slopes this strange, pandemic-riddled season or you’re simply in the mood for another sort of adventure.

Don’t worry; winter thrills come in many forms around Colorado. Breckenridge offers a ton of ideas that we share below:

Snowmobiling 

Attention, motorheads. If you love the feeling of a powerful machine doing most of the work for you and steering its purring engine through pine forests, aspen groves, blanketed valley floors, powder fields, and ridgelines, snowmobiling is a must-do. In and around Breckenridge,  Good Times Adventures offers two-hour guided tours through the Swan River Valley, over Georgia Pass, and the Continental Divide. Also, Breckenridge Snowmobile and Colorado Snowmobile rent rigs for unguided exploration on Vail Pass and surrounding areas and High Country Snowmobile has an in-town meeting point with tours on the north side of Summit County.

Sledding 

A go-to favorite among families everywhere, the 2020-21 winter welcomes a brand new sledding hub – Runway Sledding Hill on the north end of the Airport Road parking lot. The place is not on many people’s radar just yet, so there’s plenty of room to spread out and send it. On the other side of town lies Breck’s core sledding hill, Carter Park, where dozens of sledders can always be found sailing down the park’s open hillside and across the soccer field below at potentially high speeds. The crowds can get thick here, so be sure to wear your face covering and mind the six-foot physical distancing guidelines. Yes, you have to slog up the hill on foot with your sled in order to come down, but the urge to one-up your last descent will power you for hours on either hill. Sleds can be purchased at City Market or Breckenridge Market and there’s usually a few left behind at the base of the hill for public use. 

Ice Skating 

On the south end of town, Stephen C. Ice Arena is home to many a nail-biting hockey game starring players of all ages, but throughout the day, the indoor and outdoor rinks present peaceful gliding grounds. Admission and skate rentals start around $10 for kids breckenridgerecreation.com.

Fat Biking

Bundle up and get ready to ramp up your heart rate, because pedaling on the snow with one of these big but surprising lightweight bikes brings a surge of adrenaline all its own. It’s no secret that Breckenridge is home to some of the world’s best bike trails and there’s no reason why snowpack should keep anyone from exploring on two wheels year-round. Several ski and bike shops in town rent fat bikes, including Alpine Sports, Avalanche Sports, and Ridden, the latter of which also offers guided fat bike tours. The best option for your first foray into fat biking is Gold Run Nordic Center, which rents fat bikes starting at $15 per hour and offers a variety of beautiful trails to explore. The groomed bike path between Breckenridge and Frisco is also a great option for newbies. Be sure to wear a helmet (a ski helmet works great) wherever you ride and be mindful of staying on designated fat bike routes, as the trails are also shared with Nordic skiers and snowshoers.  

Dog Sledding 

The experience of zipping across a winter wonderland pulled by a team of Siberian Huskies can only be described as otherworldly. Good Times Adventures offers six-mile tours through the striking, snow-covered expanses of the Swan River Valley. Guests get a chance to ride in the dogsled as well as actually run the dogs (the part where you get to yell, “Mush!”). What do you wear for this sort of thing, you’re wondering? Think Eskimo. Tours are $140 per person and must be booked in advance. 

Snowshoeing

Simply imagine hiking with big shoes on. The beauty of snowshoeing, other than that it’s basically only slightly more challenging than walking, is that it can take you anywhere. The miles upon miles of trails in and around Breckenridge are fair game. Both the Breckenridge Nordic Center and Gold Run Nordic Center rent snowshoes of all sizes and are home to miles of snowshoe-specific routes. Several shops in town also rent snowshoes, including Carvers, Avalanche Sports, and Charter Sports.

Horse-drawn Sleigh Rides

You roll into town and your inner soundtrack is instantly filled with  “Dashing Through the Snow.” We get it. Live the dream and line up a romantic, scenic, or big sleigh ride through the White River National Forest outside of Breck at Golden Horseshoe Sleigh Rides or head up around the ski resort with views of the twinkling town below with Breckenridge Stables.

Snowmobiling 

Attention, motorheads. If you love the feeling of a powerful machine doing most of the work for you and steering its purring engine through pine forests, aspen groves, blanketed valley floors, powder fields, and ridgelines, snowmobiling is a must-do. In and around Breckenridge,  Good Times Adventures offers two-hour guided tours through the Swan River Valley, over Georgia Pass, and the Continental Divide. Also, Breckenridge Snowmobile and Colorado Snowmobile rent rigs for unguided exploration on Vail Pass and surrounding areas and High Country Snowmobile has an in-town meeting point with tours on the north side of Summit County.

Nordic Skiing

BRECKENRIDGE NORDIC CENTER

Enjoy a fun cross-country skiing and snowshoeing day on their trail where experts can teach and guide you through the Breckenridge mountains. Ski rentals and multiple-day passes, allow you to save money. Their company even provides man-made snow for early-season skiing! breckenridgenordic.com 

GOLDRUN NORDIC CENTER 

Scenic vistas and friendly service just 3 miles north of Main Street. Explore groomed and natural ski, snowshoe, and fat bike trails serviced from a beautiful public clubhouse. goldrunnordic.com

And if none of this seems appealing maybe just grabbing a book and enjoying views of the great outdoors is another great way to enjoy a day off of the slopes too!

Get more inspiration at Mtntownmagazine.com

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Increased Buyer Urgency Expected Amid Rising Mortgage Rates

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Despite various forecasts surrounding mortgage rates, the bottom line is that they are bound to tick up this year, leaving many wondering what this could mean for the housing market.

“Higher mortgage rates are one reason why we will move from an incredibly hot housing market to one that’s strong, but instead of having ten bidders at every open house, you get two or three buyers that are interested,” said Michael Fratantoni, chief economist at the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), in a recent interview with MarketWatch.

“Our forecast has that rising to about 4% by the end of 2022,” he said. “That’s certainly higher than we are today, but historically speaking, that is still a very attractive mortgage rate.”

Based on recent Freddie Mac data, 30-year mortgage rates climbed to 3.22% by Jan. 6, maintaining their upward trajectory that experts expect to carry on throughout the year.

The increase in rates will likely push more buyers into the market in search of the best deal they can get before rates get too high, according to a recently released survey conducted by Redfin.

After surveying 1,500 U.S. residents, 47% of house hunters said they would feel more urgency to buy a home if mortgage rates rose above 3.5%, according to Redfin.

While MBA’s predictions of 4% have been on the higher end of predictions in recent months, Redfin Chief Economist, Daryl Fairweather, expects rates to hit about 3.6% by the end of 2022.

“Mortgage rates increasing will make home-buying less affordable,” Fairweather said in a press release. “Over time, that will put the brakes on demand and put an end to double digit annual price growth. But in the short term, this increase will light a fire under homebuyers and make for an extremely competitive January.”

Improvements in the broader economy will help drive rates up this year, according to Fratantoni, who noted the gradual drop in unemployment and demand for workers would persist throughout 2022.

According to recent data from the U.S. Labor Department, unemployment declined to 3.9% in December, with the U.S. economy adding about 6.4 million more jobs last month than at the end of 2020.

The nation still needs 3.6 million jobs to hit pre-pandemic levels.

“We still have almost 11 million job openings in the economy and this tremendous demand for workers,” Fratantoni says, adding that unemployment will probably hit 3.5% by the end of the year with strong wage growth.

Another metric people are paying attention to is inflation, which he suggested CORE inflation to stay elevated longer than pundits and experts anticipated, which will also add upward pressure on rates.

In their December meeting, the Fed indicated that they expect to implement three interest rate hikes in 2022 and accelerate their tapering—cutting back on asset purchases.

While forecasts point toward rates climbing in 2022, Fratantoni also weighed the idea that rates could dip during the year, especially with the recent outbreak of the Omicron variant at the tail end of 2021 and the possibility of a newer variant still up in the air.

He acknowledged the possibility of a short-term drop in rates, leading to a brief uptick in refinancing activity. Still, Franantoni indicated that each variant appears to have less of an economic impact.

“We’ve gotten to a level of comfort with at least prior to Omicron,” he added. “I think we’re moving through that in this case as well. We now have a set of tools to use to deal with challenges around public health concerns that we could use again if a new variant were to pop up.”

Another possible outcome that Fratantoni threw out suggested that rates could climb faster than anticipated, which he said could happen if elevated inflation doesn’t cool off.

“The Fed may really have to stomp on the breaks as opposed to gently tapping them,” Franantoni says. “We could see the rate path move even higher and faster than we have in our baseline forecast.”

With higher rates on the horizon, concerns surrounding affordability issues—particularly among younger, first-time buyers—have mounted, especially when coupled with home prices that surged in 2021.

“2021 had eye-popping home price growth,” Fratantoni says. “Frankly, if that continues too much longer, we’re going to run away from the first-time buyers that we’re really counting on to supply demand in this market,” he says.

While home prices will continue to grow in 2022, Fratantoni indicated that the appreciation wouldn’t match the degree that the industry saw last year, dropping from record-level, double-digit growth to 6% or 7% growth.

Fratantoni expects buyer demand to remain strong despite rising rates and home prices.

“The job market is going to be booming, and we’re going to see the unemployment rate get as low as it was in February 2020,” he said, adding that a demographic push from millennials will also play a part in keeping the market moving.

“The largest single cohort, the millennial generation, are reaching peak home-buying age,” Fratantoni continued. “That is going to generate a tremendous amount of demand because you have a bunch of young folks in their early 30s looking to establish their households right now.”

Given the pace of new construction, he said additional inventory this year would cool bidding wars in the market and provide a more favorable experience for first-time buyers despite rising prices and rates.

“They might get to look at a couple of properties and have more than a few minutes to think about how to make that offer, so I think the process of buying for that first-time buyer should be more pleasant this year even though the ultimate price may be higher given what has happened to home prices.”

Keep reading.

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Where are Millennials Buying Homes?

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Millennials are now the largest group of homebuyers in the U.S., ahead of older Gen Xers and baby boomers.

Despite the pandemic delaying some millennials’ homebuying, they are still eagerly buying homes in the hot housing market.

LendingTree analyzed mortgage its own mortgage offers to millennials across the nation’s 50 largest metros in 2021 to learn where they were buying homes. Here’s what we found:

Key findings:

Denver, Seattle, and Boston are the mostpopular cities for millennial homebuyers. In Denver, 63.63% of mortgages were offered to millennials. In Seattle and Boston, the percentages were 61.35% and 61.08%, respectively.

  • Miami, Jacksonville, and Tampa are the leastpopular cities among millennial homebuyers. Across these three Florida metros, an average of only 46.54% of mortgages were offered to millennials.

  • Millennial homebuyers are the youngestin Indianapolis, Salt Lake City, and Phoenix (average age of 31.79). They’re oldest in San Francisco, New York and San Jose (average age 33.51 years).

  • San Jose, San Francisco, and Seattle require millennials to put down the largestdown payments (average $104,896). Down payments are smallest for millennial buyers in St. Louis, Memphis, Tenn., and Oklahoma City (average $30,551).

The takeaway:

“Though they often have less money at their disposal than members of older generations like Gen Xers and baby boomers do, millennials aren’t shying away from home buying. In fact, they make up the largest share of homebuyers in many of the nation’s largest metros. As they continue to get older, get married and start families, the homeownership rate among millennials is likely to rise even further.” 
-Jacob Channel, senior economic analyst at LendingTree

Learn more on RISMedia.

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This Pandemic Home Trend Couldn’t Survive 2021

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In the early days of the pandemic, everyone wanted a home with a pool. (Within months of March 2020, pool manufacturers reported seeing orders surge by as much as 200 percent.)

Come on, what better way to ride out quarantine than with a blue water escape right in your own backyard? But, according to Thumbtack’s end of year bi-annual report, this trend took a serious dive by the end of 2021.

According to their findings, above-ground swimming pool installations are down 92 percent and in-ground swimming pool installations are also down 32 percent over the last three months of the year (and down overall compared to 2020). Thumbtack also reported a spike in swimming pool removals—up 59 percent compared to the previous year.

So, what gives? And what are homeowners coveting instead?

David Steckel, home expert for Thumbtack, says that the dip in pool popularity could come down to decisions about how people envision their backyard space. For example, homeowners who were once really jonesing to add a pool—or who bought a home with one already installed—may have concluded that it’s not worth the backyard square footage required to fit one in. “This new work, live and play from home world we’re living in means that usable square footage is gold,” Steckel says. And since the average size of an inground pool is 400 square feet, plus a three to four-foot walkway around the perimeter and a fence, he adds that that’s a lot of real estate that families could otherwise devote to trampolines, entertaining and other outdoor activities in their backyard.

In addition, people living in a cooler climates might find the costs associated with a pool to be high, considering there are only a few months out of the year in which it’s useable. Per Steckel, it’s approximately $80 to $200 per month for weekly pool cleaning services, $150 to $1,200 annually for repairs and $75 to $350 per year for inspections. And let’s not forget the rising costs of chlorine, which is now estimated to set you back about $300 to $800 per year.

Steckel also points to a generational gap. Of the seven million homes sold in 2021, more than half went to millennial buyers. And since millennials typically have younger families and might consider pools a danger, that could be another reason for the trend reversal.

So, what’s a good alternative if pools are no longer on your wish list? Hot tubs and spas are currently trending (up 44 percent over the last three months, per Thumbtack’s data) mainly because you can use them in colder climates and year-round. They’re also far more cost effective than a pool and require significantly less maintenance, typically about $75 a month, according to Steckel.

Still, as with all things home-related, he says that trends like this tend to be cyclical. “In some real estate cycles, having a pool negatively affects resale value whereas in others, pools seem to reduce the time a home is on the market.”

In the meantime, we’ll be Googling hot tub ideas…

Read more on PureWow.

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6 Homebuying and Mortgage Tips for Retirees

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Sure, your grandma and grandpa may have stayed put once they left the workforce, but you likely have other plans. Now more than ever, it seems retirees are on the move—and buying new homes.

About 18% of homebuyers were younger baby boomers (aged 56 to 65) in 2021. And older boomers (aged 66 to 74) scooped up an additional 14% of the market during the same period, according to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors®.

Buying a new home is a logistical and financial challenge no matter your age (or how many times you’ve done it). But our mortgage and lending system can be especially challenging for retirees to navigate, simply because lenders prioritize income.

To help, we reached out to real estate professionals for tips on how retirees can find their golden years dream home, land a great mortgage, and still have plenty left in the bank for whatever surprises life delivers.

1. Think local

For the most part, retirees who are relocating aren’t looking to move across town but to an entirely different area (usually one with better weather). With that in mind, always work with a real estate professional in your new home state.

“There are a lot of different rules and costs state by state,” says Rachel Lester, an agent with Keller Williams Main Line Realty in Villanova, PA. “And the lending and real estate laws can really differ. You need to make sure the person you’re working with is aware of local transfer taxes and closing costs.”

Also, prioritize working with a local lender, especially in states with rigid contract dates. You also want to make sure your lender is available by phone seven days a week. So beware of lenders you find on the internet, who may offer only 1-800 numbers and limited office hours.

2. Watch your debt-to-income ratio

When you retire, your lack of income may scare some lenders. But if you’re on top of your debt-to-income ratio, you’ll look a lot more financially stable.

“To qualify, your debt-to-income ratio should be lower than 36%,” says Warner Quiroga, president and owner of Prestige Home Buyers in Brentwood, NY. “Debt-to-income is calculated by looking at current expenses, such as car payments, credit cards, student loans, and housing expenses, versus what money you have coming in.”

3. Get creative with your mortgage

Landing a fantastic 30-year mortgage with a low interest rate isn’t so easy when you’ve left the job market and no longer have a steady income.

“But don’t let anyone tell you it is too late in life to buy a home,” says John W. Mallett, founder and president of MainStreet Mortgage, in Thousand Oaks, CA.

Instead, find a professional fluent in many types of mortgages.

“You should consider asset depletion, which entails using savings as income,” says Mallett. “You could also use qualified savings as income, such as an IRA or 401(k).”

Another option is a reverse mortgage, which got a bad rap for many years but can actually be a useful tool for retirees.

“Reverse mortgages require a larger down payment than conventional loans,” says Mallett. “However, you have the option to make no payments, interest-only payments, fully amortized payments, or anything in between. So while reverse mortgages can be complex, you will know if it’s right for you once you understand how they are structured.”

4. Reconsider risk calculations

If you’ve made it to retirement, your likely used to taking risks and thinking long term, especially when it comes to investments. But Todd Huettner, president of Huettner Capital, a mortgage lender in Denver, urges you to adjust just how much risk you’re willing to take when it comes to buying a new home.

“A person’s financial risk jumps to the highest point after retirement and remains very high for another decade,” notes Huettner. “Without the ability to replenish losses with income, any low returns on investments or unplanned withdrawals from a retirement account will severely reduce the amount of money you can safely withdraw in the future.”

With that in mind, Huettner advises pursuing a fixed-rate mortgage rather than an adjustable-rate mortgage, so you don’t risk everything you saved for retirement on variables outside your control, such as interest rates.

5. Crunch the numbers

People live well into their 90s today, so it’s easy to see why many retirees gravitate toward the tried-and-true 30-year mortgage. But before settling on a standard loan term, carefully weigh the costs and benefits of each mortgage term.

A 15-year loan usually has a lower interest rate but requires a bigger monthly payment. On the other hand, a 30-year mortgage comes with a higher interest rate but your monthly payments will be lower.

So look at the total amount in your retirement accounts and calculate the interest you’ll make in savings over 15 versus 30 years. And compare the results to the corresponding mortgage rates and payments for the same time period.

“If you’re taking money from an investment that returns 7% when the rate on the 30-year mortgage is 3.5%, then I would strongly consider the 30-year,” says Huettner. “The difference can be tens of thousands of dollars in additional savings.”

6. Reduce housing costs

Just because a lender is willing to give you a large loan, it doesn’t mean you should take it.

So while it may be tempting to buy a bigger, more lavish house, retirees should really look at their potential health care costs, advises Anthony Martin, CEO and founder of Choice Mutual in Reno, NV.

“If you’re relying on a pension, Social Security benefits, and other retirement accounts for your income, then you want to ensure your mortgage isn’t going to be too expensive,” says Martin. “Narrow your monthly housing costs—which should also include property taxes, interest, and insurance—to 20% to 25% of your income.”

You want to avoid digging too deeply into your nest egg or using a large portion of your retirement fund to pay for a mortgage since it may leave you with little money for unexpected expenses.

Learn more on Realtor.com

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