We read. Boy, do we read! Keeping ourselves AND our clients up-do-date is job in and of itself, and this week, we’re going to share with you the “best of the web” when it comes to real estate. We’re delighted to call Ridgway, Colorado home, but our neighbors on Montrose, Ouray and Telluride – and even beyond – all crave to be “on the pulse” of what’s happening and when it happening. Here’s some good, quick reading to take you into your weekend:

Math Smiles on Move Up Buyers (MSNBC.com)
We loved this article that echoes our sentiment that a down market is one of the most favorable times to buy – especially if you’re looking to trade-up into a larger home! 

Making the Most of Your First Time Home Buyer’s Credit (InvestorLoft.com)
An invaluable resource, this article provides some excellent tips for how buyers can make the most of the $8,000 first time home buyer credit. How to identify discounts, search an analysis tools, mortgage rate resources and more.

Forbes Luxury Housing Index (Forbes.com)
Forbes tracks on a weekly basis the prices in the 500 most expensive neighborhoods by zip code. Interesting reading! A quick place to have a gander at the nation’s biggest gainers and losers in home value on a week by week basis.

Mortgage Fees are Up (Marketwatch.com)
Sure, rates are low…but what most buyer don’t think of are the fees that go along with these historically low rates. An eye-opening read, indeed!

How the Fed Cuts Impact Rates (Bankrate.com) 
We think this is a great visual demonstration that shows how Fed rate reductions have affected mortgage rates in the past five months.