Real estate broker’s view upbeat

   Jay Gupta's livelihood is local real estate, but much of his life also has been spent helping business professionals from around the globe to connect with each other.

   Gupta, 64, is managing broker of Gloriod & Associates, a Springs residential brokerage. This year, he's serving as chairman of the Pikes Peak Association of Realtors' board of directors.

   He came to the United States in 1963 from northern India to attend college, joining a sister who was working for the Indian embassy in Washington, D.C. Three years later, Gupta graduated with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Chicago Technical College.

   He worked in management for a trio of manufacturing companies in Illinois, Ohio and Canada in the late 1960s, married his wife, Linda, in 1968 and moved to Toronto in 1971 to work for the real estate division of a large Canadian savings and loan.

   Gupta sold residential real estate during his first few years with the company and later moved into management, overseeing 10 offices with more than 260 real estate agents.

   Volunteer work he did with charities in the early 1980s inspired Gupta to create a nonprofit organization that would bring together businesspeople, civic leaders and others to share their experiences and expertise with peers in other countries.

   The organization, called the Society for Professional Resources Exchange and Development, or Spread International, spearheaded trips to India and South Africa. Meetings were conducted with foreign educators, civic leaders and business professionals during which knowledge, skills and values were exchanged, Gupta said. The group still exists and Gupta occasionally speaks about its goals, although there have been no recent trips.

   "We were building relationships with people of different countries," he said. "We helped them to understand that there is more to American dreams and American successes than just the corporate successes. (They'd talk about) family lives and personal achievements. They'd talk about personal and professional successes in life and share their values."

   In 1996, Gupta and his family moved to Colorado Springs, where his wife's parents lived. He continued his nonprofit work with Spread International and joined Gloriod & Associates in 1999.
   As Gloriod's managing broker, Gupta supervises and works with about 50 real estate agents.

   Question: How would you describe the current state of the single-family housing market?

   Answer: A housing bubble occurs periodically in local or global real estate markets. It is characterized by rapid increases in valuations of real property. . . until they reach unsustainable levels relative to incomes and other economic elements.

   Real estate bubbles are invariably followed by severe price decreases that can result in many owners holding a mortgage debt higher than the current value of the property. . . . The Colorado Springs market neither experienced the rapid increase nor the dramatic decline in home prices.

   Q: What's your forecast for 2008?

   A: The key factors that are important to a healthy housing market are low interest rates, a stable economy, low unemployment and good inventory. Unequivocally, all these ingredients are currently in place in Colorado Springs. In addition, Colorado Springs is a highly desirable city with many attractive quality of life features, and the properties are underpriced compared to the Western markets.

   Also, according to a National Association of Realtors report, there are more people with the financial capacity to buy now than in 2005. It appears that it is mainly the weaker consumer confidence that is causing consumers to wait for . . . their purchase. Considering all the factors, I expect existinghome sales to improve during the spring months and 2008 to be a better year than 2007.

   Q: What effect have rising numbers of foreclosures had on the resale market?

   A: My heart goes out to those individuals who are victims of a foreclosure. Their loss is great. In the foreclosure situation, one person's financial loss can become another person's gain. As such, foreclosure sales are drawing into the market those ready and able buyers sitting on the fence waiting for a good deal.

   Q: How much is the local housing market tied to the national economy?

   A: The impact of ups and downs in the national economy on the local economy is not always universal. Therefore, if at a given time the national economy begins to soften but it has no adverse impact on a region's local economy, then the main factor that influences the local housing market is any negative change in consumer confidence.

   Q: How has the job of a real estate agent changed, if at all, in today's market?

   A: We live in the information age where people feel they are drowning in a bottomless ocean of information. Day in and day out, new information, technology, Web sites and service options are being pushed on consumers. . . . The job of a real estate agent is increasingly becoming that of a knowledgeable and skilled counselor and a trusted adviser.

   Q: Given the current state of our market, what advice do you have for buyers and sellers?

   A: Generally speaking, a home-buying decision includes both emotional and rational elements. My advice to current buyers is to evaluate their options wisely and rationally, and be cautious of being penny-wise and poundfoolish.

   One cannot know in advance when the market will hit the bottom. . . . One needs to do a good cost and benefits analysis for making a wise decision . . . a choice between the current availability of low interest rates, great selection of properties, motivated sellers and getting settled in to enjoy the home versus waiting for prices to bottom out by a certain amount. For sellers, my advice is the same: to evaluate their options wisely and rationally. . . . In every market, but more importantly in a high inventory market, pricing is crucially important.
   Buyers buy by comparison and generally want to see only those listings that offer good value.

   CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0228 or rich.laden@gazette.com.
   Answers are edited for space and clarity.