The members of the new board have eagerly read your responses to the recent survey (if you didn’t fill it out, there is another copy in this issue). First, thank you to those who paid their $25 annual dues. If you haven’t sent your payment in, please consider doing so today. So far, 33 percent of the homes have paid. Let’s try to raise that number in the 70’s. Anne Taylor, the new treasurer, is updating the Foxridge mailing list. You should receive a postcard soon with your correct information.

There are many important questions emerging from the survey responses, which included:

• Where are the $25 dues spend?
• The cost of publishing Foxtales
• How you request architectural and landscaping changes
• Moving away from "nit picky" covenant enforcement
• Plans to "spiff up" the entrances

Let me start with the easy ones. The entrances are being worked on this month. The old Foxridge sign on the bricks at the Quebec entrance will be cleaned off. Rusty Sun’s sign will get a makeover to deal with the peeling. And we are waiting for the construction of County Line Road to be completed before we can make a decision about that entrance into our community. However, cleaning up the Niagara entrance can certainly be done in the meantime. Perhaps you would like to help? We would welcome your participation.

Foxtales is envisioned as a vital communication link to build our neighborhood. We think it is money well spent if it informs and bonds our community. As you might imagine, putting together each edition takes time and effort. The Board is hoping to establish reliable deadlines so advertisers and community members can count on Foxtales. We are looking at two cost-saving measures: e-mailing Foxtales and cutting back to five issues per year.

Spring is the busy time for home projects, landscaping and painting. Foxtales might be published in May, June and July to keep homeowners updated about covenant issues that arise during this time. To maintain the appearance of an organized and homogenous community, any exterior change should be approved. Simply, sketch the location of any new project such as a shed, fence, retaining wall, etc., and include detail about the types of materials that you will use.

If you are painting, send paint chips or samples. We ask that you send your request to the board 30-45 days ahead of any construction or painting and we are willing to work with you. Our paid architectural control person, Terry Riester, will contact you after receiving your request. We are trying to cut down on the 7:00 A.M. "the concrete truck will be here at 9:00 A.M." phone calls. The purpose of this step is not to question your taste, but to look out for your neighbors and others in the community. Have you installed an air conditioner compressor under your neighbor’s bedroom window? Are you building a dog run that reminds neighbors of Alcatraz? Are you planning to paint your house Bronco colors? If you are refused permission, which is very rare, you may appeal the decision to the Board at the next Board meeting.

People are surprisingly passionate about their trash and pick up day. We have trash cans sitting curbside several days each week. The Board is encouraging homeowners to consider Pro Disposal (303-791-3827). They offer a Monday pickup. More details on Pro Disposal are included in this issue of Foxtales. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a common trash day? Less noise, wear and tear on the streets and fewer days of cans sitting curbside throughout the neighborhood.

Covenant enforcement is a difficult and tough job. The surveys indicate that homeowners want enforcement, but there are differing opinions about what amount or level of enforcement. This is where we need you. Take care of your lawn and house for the community’s sake. Does your house improve the look of your street? Weeds, long grass, cars parked on rocks and Christmas lights that are still up all detract from the integrity and beauty of our neighborhood. Take care of your home and your neighbors, then we can spend our time planning activities to enhance our community rather than chasing down weed violators and people who leave out their trash cans.

We hope to see you at our next meeting (6/19, 7:00 PM @Homestead Elementary) as the meetings are always open for you to attend. We welcome community members who want to offer an opinion, ask a question, express a concern or more importantly, work with us to maintain our neighborhood as a great place to live. KB

By Bob Bardwell, FIA Board of Directors

The Foxridge GID is, essentially, a taxing district that was approved by the Foxridge homeowners several years ago. The initial purpose was to provide for funding for perimeter fence replacement. Please take a look at your annual property tax statement and you will see a line item for Foxridge GID, usually around $50 to $60. We are one of only three districts within Arapahoe County. The GID has a board of Directors, which are the Arapahoe County Commissioners. The Foxridge Homeowners Association submits expenditures to be covered by the GID funds.

An important distinction with these expenditures is the fact that they must be improvements on county right of way areas. For example, the improvements at the entrances on Mineral/Quebec and Otero/Holly were paid for by GID funds, as were the perimeter fences that are part of the county right of way. However, the walking paths and greenbelts in our neighborhood that are part of the South Suburban do not qualify for GID expenditures.

On the radar screen for possible future GID expenditures will be improvements to the neighborhood entrance at County Line/Niagara. Obviously, final plans and decisions on the improvements to County Line Road will have a substantial impact on our plans.

We invite you to attend a meeting of the homeowners association with ideas for future expenditures of GID funds.

Monday pickup. Recycle cans, glass, newspaper and plastic 1 & 2. Prices:

0 - 24% FR homes: $11.50 trash, $13.00 trash and recycle

25 - 49%: $10.75 trash, $12.00 trash and recycle

50 - 100%: $9.75 trash, $10.75 trash and recycle

Foxridge Swim and Racquet Club Membership. $250.00. Call 303-770-2213 for information.

Babysitting, Pet Sitting, Pet Walking: call Lindsay Nolz, 13, 303-773-2243

Babysitting, Pet Sitting:Alexandra Scott, 13 yrs. old, call 303-779-1210

Pet Sitting, House Sitting: call Sam Gonzales, 303-741-3075

Pet Sitting, House Sitting: call David Vasquez, 303-770-6583.

Terry Riester, FIA
6723 E. Long Ave.
Englewood, CO 80112
Questions? Call 303-773-3162

Thanks to Foxridge resident Andy Galassi, you can now read Foxtales on the world wide web at the following URL: http://foxridge.homestead.com

By Kathy M. Irvin, Certified Residential Appraiser and Foxridge Resident

In most cases, you can request cancellation of PMI when your conventional mortgage balance is 80 percent of the value of the home and the lender must remove it when the loan balance reached 78 percent. This assumes you have a good payment history, there are no other loans on the home and the loan is not in the "high risk" category. These percentages are based on the sale price of the home when purchased or the appraised value at the time the home was refinanced. These specific rules apply to loans made on or after July 29, 1999. However, for most loans made before this date, you can still remove mortgage insurance when your equity reaches 20-25 percent of the loan balance. This applies to conventional loans only, not to FHA or VA loan.

The problems is that it can take from 8-10-12 or more years for a home to reach these levels by relying only on the equity increase from monthly payments. However, thanks to an increasing market such as we have enjoyed in the Denver area during the past decade, you could quickly have sufficient equity to meet PMI cancellation requirements.

For example, a $200,000 home purchased with a 30-year $180,000 loan (90 percent loan-to-value) at an interest rate of seven percent would take about 8-1/2 years to reach the 20 percent equity threshold based on the original purchase price. However, if the home increases in value at the rate of only five percent annually, it would reach the 20 percent mark in two years. For a 95 percent loan, the waiting period would be cut from nearly 11 years to less than three.

In order to request early cancellation of PMI, you must document that the value of your home has increased sufficiently to meet the 20-25 percent equity threshold. This means getting an appraisal of your home to present to your lender. Most appraisers will do a search of recent sales in the neighborhood and give you their opinion whether is looks advisable for you to proceed.

Considering the fees you can save instead of waiting for the mandatory removal of PMI, the cost of an appraisal is quickly covered. Even better, if these fees were paid in advance, you might be entitled to a refund of the unearned portion of the PMI premium.

For those who live outside Foxridge and have renters in your Foxridge property, please indicate the address of the property this dues payment applies to:

Help maintain our neighborhood. If you have paid your year 2000 voluntary FIA homeowner’s dues of $25, thank you! If you have not, please consider making your payment today!

Foxridge Improvement Association

2000 Projected Budget
Income