September 20th, 2013 10:24 AM by Taydus Taydus, AHWD, CNE, CRS, GRI
Boulder is in the long process of picking itself up, and dusting off. Boulder is strong and proud. She is bruised but not beaten by the recent flood. Of all the photos I have seen, the one above moved me the most. Someone posted this on Facebook, and it is a photo from a plane as it flew over Colorado at the time Boulder was being deluged with rain. The photo is both beautiful and frightening. For those of us that live here, it felt like the rain would never end.
But it did end. And in true Colorado form the sun came out and the skies returned to the clear blue that we all know and love.
However in the wake of this horrific storm, we see the damage – the piles and piles of damaged furnishings and flooring (mostly from people’s basements) stacked up on curbs and in designated dumping areas. The downed trees and vegetation where the creeks and rivers came roaring over their banks. The dirt and debris in the roadways, and covering sidewalks and bike paths. The roadways, washed away by Mother Nature’s force.
Answer: We start over. We start rebuilding piece by piece. Everywhere I go I see that the process has already begun. People cleaning out their basements. Water mitigation trucks by the dozens. Crews working to reopen closed roads, and cleaning up the dirt and debris. Boulder is dusting off and on the road to recovery.
I do however believe that this is going to change the way we buy and sell Real Estate – at least for the short run. I am hearing different thoughts and opinions, with the general consensus being that homes located in the flood plains may take a hit in value for a while, and homes outside of the flood plain will become more in demand (thus depleting inventory and driving up home values in these areas).
Some home sellers have also been greatly affected by the flood. Their home that was on the market with no previous water damage may now have a wet basement. Potential home sellers may now be discouraged because of flood damage that occurred in their home. Here are some things to keep in mind: