Every real estate market creates its own buyer and seller personas, or profiles. When the market is slow and prices are low, it brings out 'the wheeler-dealer' and 'the lowballer,' as well as the 'paralyzed panicker' in some buyers. But sellers aren’t immune. And in a warm or hot market climate, the rise in home prices makes some sellers wonder whether they should exercise the freedom of finally having some home equity and make a move, or if it's a better idea to stay put in hopes they can sell for more, next … [Read more...]
Metro Phoenix housing: Homebuyer revival transforms market
October 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
In a good sign of the times, real-estate agents are predicting a proliferation of for-sale signs on front lawns. The metro Phoenix housing market is shifting away from investors for the first time since the market crash, leaving more properties available for traditional buyers. And the market appears neither overstressed nor overheated, heading instead toward a more natural balance. Thousands of prospective sellers, once worried about losing money on their houses, have listed their properties after seeing … [Read more...]
What to Ask Before Choosing a Hardwood Floor
October 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
So you’ve decided to get hardwood floors. Easy enough, right? Pick a wood and be done with it. Not so fast. There are a lot of factors that will determine what kind of hardwood floor your home can accommodate, and what will look best with your existing or planned furnishings and decor. You have some basic options: solid wood and engineered wood. Solid wood is what you generally think of as a hardwood floor: thick, solid planks of wood. Engineered wood is made of a veneer layer that sits atop a core of … [Read more...]
U.S. mortgage applications dip, but purchase demand edges up
October 24, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Applications for U.S. home loans dropped slightly in the latest week as decreased refinancing activity offset a slight rise in demand for purchase loans, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity, which includes both refinancing and home purchase demand, fell 0.6 percent in the week ended Oct. 18. That followed a gain of 0.3 percent in the previous week. The figures came against the backdrop of a U.S. … [Read more...]
Smart Investments in Kitchen Cabinetry
September 17, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The kitchen is the most expensive room in the house to build. The national average cost of a kitchen remodel is $50,000, though the real cost can vary widely, depending on where you live, the scope of the project and the materials you choose. New cabinetry can take up much of that expense. Make the most of this big purchase by treating your new cabinets as an investment.Realtor Victoria Gangi offers insider tips on how to get the best return on your cabinet investment, even if you're not moving in the … [Read more...]
Is The Phoenix Housing Market Finally Back to ‘Normal’?
September 17, 2013 by Leave a Comment
With big price gains, waning investor interest and plunging foreclosure activity, the metro Phoenix housing market was looking more “normal” this summer than its been for several years, according to a new report by Arizona State University. Even the number of buyers and sellers has finally begun showing some signs of balance after two years of a chronic shortage of homes for sale. But there is still much room for improvement, particularly in the new-home market where sales rates are still less than one third … [Read more...]
Condo Boom? Market Shows Signs of a Revival
September 13, 2013 by 1 Comment
This headline rings especially true for the immediate area surrounding our offices here in old town Scottsdale. There are currently 4 projects underway within a mile radius. And with an estimated 3,000 or so units available in the next few years, there should be a good mix of baby boomers and first time buyers flooding the area. This mass influx of residents to the old town area should have a significant impact on the area's infrastructure and commerce options - and we are already seeing the beginning of it … [Read more...]
Home Prices Edge Closer To Pre-Crash Levels
August 27, 2013 by Leave a Comment
-In Arizona, we are still about 30% off pre-crash levels but those numbers are moving fast back in the right direction. Read below for further info on this trend. Home prices keep edging closer to pre-crash price levels and today's Home Price Index report from Lender Processing Services (LPS) indicates that national prices are now backwithin 15.2 percent of that peak. The index for June rose to $229,000 from 226,000 in May, an increase of 1.2 percent and is up 6.9 percent from the end of last year. The … [Read more...]
10 Safest Cities in the U.S. (hint: 2 Arizona cities made the list)
July 29, 2013 by Leave a Comment
For the first time since 2006, violent crime was on the rise last year, according to FBI data. But in some cities, violent crime remains well below national averages. AOL Real Estate recently analyzed the FBI’s report on crime to find the cities with populations of more than 200,000 that have violent crime rates “substantially” below the national average. Here are the top 10 “safe zones” that made its list: Irvine, Calif. (ninth consecutive year named safest city in the nation) Fremont, Calif. Plano, … [Read more...]
The kids aren’t buying homes: Generation Y may be holding back the housing recovery
July 25, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The number of “missing households” — that is, Americans who would be owning or renting a home now if prerecession economic trends had continued — hit 2.4 million as of March, according to an analysis of raw monthly government data by real-estate marketplace Trulia. That is down slightly from its peak of 2.6 million in 2011, but up 100,000 from the year prior. And 18- to 34-year-olds account for more than half of the missing households, according to the data. “Household formation is the most important indicator of … [Read more...]
