We did not do too badly, especially compared to many other parts of the country. Here is a quick, easy read, recap.

The debt situation was a problem for residential and commercial markets. Lenders were being told by the government to lend more but federal regulators were telling lenders to keep higher cash margins.

Residential sales in higher price brackets were slow. The $8000 federal government’s first-time homebuyer tax credit did nothing but bring future sales forward. That combined with low interest rates created most home sales.

Colorado had a record 12,468 home foreclosure filings in the third quarter, according to the Colorado Division of Housing and more home foreclosures will occur in 2010 as adjustable-rate mortgages come due.

Sales of high-end homes at price points above $600,000 should be about the same or slightly improve in Denver for 2010.

In the commercial real estate arena, most tenants stayed put because of instability in the job market and the overall economy.

There were few sales of office buildings and strip centers with property values down and most brokers advised property owners not to sell unless absolutely mandatory.

2010 should be a challenge for commercial real estate as many loans come due this year.

Fewer than 5% (10,000) of homeowners who completed trial periods as of October had their mortgage payments permanently lowered to more affordable levels. It appears the Obama administration’s mortgage relief plan may be stalled do to bureaucratic factors.

Only one in three homeowners who have signed up for the Obama administration’s program plan have actually sent back the necessary paperwork.

The program was does not appear to be working and foreclosures continue to rise. More than 14% of homeowners with a mortgage are either late on their payments or in foreclosure.

The program provides financial incentives for mortgage companies and investors to reduce loan payments to affordable levels for financially troubled borrowers. But it often provides little relief to borrowers who have lost their jobs or who owe far more than their homes are worth.

Obama administration officials said they are working with state and local groups to assist borrowers with the paperwork.

Mortgage industry executives say homeowners simply are not complying with the program’s requirements, despite their best efforts to reach out.