…One of the safest places on earth. So far, we’ve had only eight cases of COVID-19 in Archuleta County, and to my knowledge, none of them have required hospitalization. There have been no new cases in the past couple of weeks. At the moment, we have three hardware stores, two grocery stores, and Walmart open. Most of the restaurants are open for take-out. Some of the restrictions were recently relaxed, and I was able to get a haircut. Hooray!
Last Monday, the governor allowed us Realtors to start showing homes again. We’ve seen that there’s some pent-up demand, and I’ve had lots of showings over the past week. I put a home on the market last Monday and so far I’ve had a half dozen showings and three offers.
The new norm is that potential buyers drive behind me in their own car, and I talk to them on the phone as we drive along, telling them about Pagosa and the benefits of living here. Everyone wears masks and gloves when we are in a home. The buyers are not allowed to touch anything inside. I disinfect all the doorknobs and light switches on our way out.
The weather here is gorgeous now – warmer than normal with temperatures averaging in the mid-70s. It has been extremely dry, and we need rain badly. The river is running full bore, and the spring runoff will finish up earlier than usual this year. Of course, there probably won’t be any commercial rafting this year due to social distancing.
We won’t be doing any fishing in the rivers for awhile due to high water. It’s only lakes and ponds for now. Fortunately, I have my own trout pond, and I’ve been fishing almost every day. I fly fish, and lately the Woolly Bugger seems to be the fly of choice. Most of the trout I catch in my pond are in the 14”-18” range.
Yesterday I hooked into a big one when I didn’t have my fly rod in my hands. The trout pulled my pole out of the rowboat and into the pond. I tried to row after it to catch the rod, but the fish took off. I tried to follow the floating fly line, but then my chocolate Lab jumped in the water to join the chase and got tangled up in the line. The bottom line is the fish got away, but it was a fun experience.
I’ve also been turkey hunting up the valley. So far, the turkeys are winning. I’ve come close on a couple of occasions, but no cigar.
Now for the latest real estate news. The good news is that total sales are still up 10% over last year at this time. This is due to a strong first quarter, and lots of sales that closed in April that were already under contract before the virus took hold. Now for the bad new – new contracts in April were almost non-existent, and pending sales have plummeted. The stats for next month will reflect our new reality. I do expect sales to pick up in May, but they will be softer than last year. It’s too early to tell whether prices will be affected. We’ll know more a month from now.
So long for now. Be safe. Wear your mask. Wash your hands. Hopefully the world will improve sooner rather than later. Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers out there!
GRI, CRS
2011 & 2014 Realtor of the Year
Phone (970) 731-4065
Fax (970) 731-4068
Cell (970) 946-3856
Email: [email protected]
