Home Prices Fall to Record Lows in AZ

Author: admin | November 25, 2008

10 cities indexed, Phoenix is at the top of the newest list of home prices falling to all time record lows. Phoenix comes in with a 12-month loss down 31.9%. Las Vegas was the next city in line with the worst plummet at 31.3%. In fact, In Las Vegas, about half of the homes on the market are now bank owned. Unfortunately, I don’t have the stats for Arizona.

With these stats out on the table, experts say these are bound to get worse so why isn’t the government doing something about this instead of bailing out corporate America (car dealers and mortgage companies). How much worse is it going to get before it can get better and how much worse will the housing market get before the government will intervene?

 

 

Topics: Etc., Foreclosures | No Comments »

What House Can You Really Afford?

Author: admin | October 24, 2008

So many of us want a bigger home than we can really afford. Why get yourself into a payment that you’re going to struggle to pay or sacrafice other things to make your mortgage?

Here’s a few tools to help figure out what kind of house you can really afford as well as some other helpful tools:

Topics: Mortgages | No Comments »

Ahwatukee Losing It’s Value Same as Other Cities

Author: admin | September 16, 2008

Ahwatukee as locals refer to it but is actually an area in Phoenix, Arizona is losing value just the same as any other city and there are just as many homes if not more on the market! I drive through Equestrian Estate on Equestrian and can count 5-6 homes alone in a radius of 1/2 mile - 1 mile for sale! It’s no suprise though because these homes aren’t cheap but these big homes that are possibly viewed as over-priced anyway just aren’t selling. We’re talking 1/2 mil to mil. dollar homes sitting, waiting, and owners are anxious to sell.

Ahwatukee also has a nice Adult Community that has become quite affordable since the housing market has dropped. For those 55 years and over, you can enjoy an affordable duplex (side-by-side), a patio  home or a single family style home. Convenience and entertainment in Ahwatukee for the adult community include the Ahwatukee Recreation Center (for some residents in the adult community), several golf courses and the Senior Center.

Ahwatukee is definitely not limited to the adult community, it’s a very nice area to raise a family. There are affordable housing options for families. There are a lot of apartment complexes turned condos, single family homes, apartments and townhouses for rent and sale in the Ahwatukee area. If you are in the market to buy a home in Ahwatukee, this might be the time to do so to get a great home for a great value.  

Facts and things to know about Ahwatukee:

 

Topics: Cities in Arizona | 2 Comments »

Foreclosure Listings and Foreclosure Auctions in Arizona

Author: admin | August 26, 2008

Looking to take advantage of the foreclosures in Arizona? Find auctions for Maricopa County foreclosures listings, Pinal County foreclosure listings, and more. You can get a free 7-day trial to see a listing for these counties in Arizona along with all other Arizona counties. There are many other websites that have listings for auctions on foreclosures for homes in Arizona.

There is a foreclosure auction coming up September 6th at the Phoenix Convention Center. You must register. Register online (membership is free) or go to the Phoenix convention center where registration begins at 8am and the auction starts at 930am. Want to see the homes first? The open house dates are 8/23, 8/24, and 8/30. Want more information? Call 1-800-793-6107.

Topics: Foreclosures | No Comments »

Negotiating a Lease

Author: admin | August 26, 2008

When sometone in real estate talks about negotiating a lease, one would automatically assume a lease for a home. Well I think I may have talked about this before on this blog, I’m talking about cell tower lease negotiations. Those individuals who have land that wireless providers see as premium space for cell tower placement have quite a bit of room to negotiate and there are companies out there who can help these land owners negotiate and get what they deserve. These same companies can help those with lease renewals and any necessary ammendments along the way.  

If you think about it, wireless carriers and their service has become very competitive. They all offer the same service, cell phone service. They all seem to offer the same features, internet, picture mail, texting, and video. So what’s left? Coverage. How great is their coverage? Do they cover the area in which you live? Is the reception great? These wireless providers have to negotiate space in which they can place these cell towers to provide their customers with the great reception.

There’s also a lot of debate with cell towers going up in neighborhoods. So, those who own property or those who can create a disguise for cell towers is another way to capitalize on wireless companies. In doing research for this blog posting, I found a very cool and very interesting YouTube video on the disguise of cell towers. See the video here:

 

If you are a land owner and you feel that your area could use more cell towers to provide better coverage for your cell phone service, you might want to look for a company who can help you with cell tower lease negotiations.

 

 

Topics: Etc. | No Comments »

Appraisals - Adding Value to Your Home

Author: admin | August 22, 2008

Here’s a list of things you can do to add value to your home to help lift the appraisal value:

  • Just the overall condition of the home, both inside and outside will help. Keep your home well maintained.
  • Little things like pulling weeds, touching up paint on your doors and the mailbox, cleaning your windows. Little things like this can help the appearance of your home to appraise at a higher dollar amount.
  • If your backyard is nothing but dirt, maybe you want to think about seeding it or putting in a bit of sod and rock. Buyers love finished backyards.
  • Repaint all walls and doors inside the home. This will give your home a fresh and clean look.
  • Add additional value to the home with patios, garages, fireplace, decks, porches, etc.
  • Buyers like love convenience. Add nice storage units to the garage and closets. You can also add pull out shelves for the kitchen. You can buy these pull out shelves for the kitchen at your local hardware store.

Overall, it doesn’t have to take a lot of money to add value to your home for the appraisal value. If you haven’t maintained a well-kept home and you want to put your home on the market, it might be worth it for you to have a maid service come in and do a deep cleaning service to give your home that extra special touch of clean!

 

Topics: Selling Your Home | No Comments »

Arizona Department of Real Estate

Author: admin | August 18, 2008

Did you know that you can contact the Arizona Department of Real Estate to file a complaint when someone has violated the real estate laws or the Commisioner’s laws. Perhaps you’ve been a victim for construction defects on your new home or maybe during the closing of your house there was a problem with the loan, interest rate, or escrow, or you feel there is an issue with the title or homeowners insurance. These are all legitimate reasons to file a claim with the Arizona Department of Real Estate.

The Department of Real Estate will investigate issues that are related. Most complaints are:

  • Subdivisions that are illegal
  • Forgery during the sales process
  • Activity during the home building process that is not licensed.
  • Dishonest dealings

The Arizona Department of Real Estate also has a public data base available to you to search for information such as brokers and sales backgrounds like employment history and any disciplinary actions, see if a company is registered with the Real Estate licensing website to process online transactions, development records, etc.

If you would like more information or think you need to file a claim, contact the Arizona Department of Real Estate by emailing them at investigations@azre.gov.

Topics: Consumer Rights | No Comments »

Illegal Immigrants and Drop Houses in Arizona Cities

Author: admin | August 13, 2008

Sherrif Joe Arpaio is on a new mission. He’s cracking down on drop houses in Arizona. Thinking about moving to Arizona and don’t know what a drop house is? A drop house is a home used for the purpose of housing illegal immigrants until they can “pay up” to the smugglers who got them into the country illegally of course.

The Phoenix Metro area is said to have about 1, 000 drop houses. Interesting enough after researching this a bit online, I found a map of known drop houses in the Phoenix Metro area.   

Far too often, the illegal immigration is fueling crimes of Arizona. About 90% of illegal drugs come from South of the border, physical abuse and rapes are taking place in drop houses, armed gangs who run these drop houses have given Phoenix the kidnapping capital of the nation.  When a drop house is discovered, the conditions that the illegal aliens are forced to live in are appauling. These illegal immigrants also contribute to the gangs and they have to gain a “legal” identity so they are stealing identities.

Here is a list of signs to watch for in your neighborhood:

  • Minimal daytime activity but a lot of busy activity at night.
  • Out of state license plates coming and going.
  • Sounds of gunfire coming from the house.
  • Trash not being taken out but being left out back to pile up.
  • U-Hauls and other large trucks or SUV’s coming and going and unloading into a garage or other concealed area.
  • Boarded windows and doors.
  • Foul odors coming from the home.

Should you suspect a drop house in your neighborhood, you are asked to call 602.876.4154. Don’t be fooled. A drop house can be in any neighborhood, even the nicest ones. Have additional questions or concerns, you can always contact the sherrif’s department.

Topics: Etc. | No Comments »

A Different Kind of Real Estate in AZ

Author: admin | August 5, 2008

Ever wonder or think about the cellular industry and the mass amounts of cell towers that are in place? Strategically placed around Arizona and the rest of the U.S. as well as the world so you can catch a cell phone signal everywhere you go, or so you hope, right? Well cell tower land is a different kind of real estate or at least one that you wouldn’t necessarily think of when someone talks about “real estate”.

Well, cell tower landlord services is something that can be very profitable for the landlords. To those who own the land that cellular phone companies wish to purchase or lease, they must approach the owner of the land and make the offer.

Since the cell phone market continues to move forward with better technolgy, better phones, and more advanced with the things a cell phone can actually do, it’s so important for the cell phone companies to place these towers in all types of areas whether it be the city or the very rural areas. The pricing and the quality of service is what is most competitive when it comes to selecting a cell phone company.

There are many sites that can explain this type of business to you if you are interested in getting started as a landlord for cell tower sites.

Topics: Etc. | No Comments »

Arizona Residential Tenant and Landlord Act

Author: admin | August 4, 2008

If you are a renter or landlord in the state of Arizona, you may want to familiarize yourself with the Arizona Residential Tenant and Landlord Act. You can find specifics on the Arizona Secretary of State website under the A.R.S. Title 33, Chapter 10. The most important things covered under this act for tenants is that the landlord must keep the premisies in a fit and habitable conditions. This includes maintaining all plumbing, electrical, heating, and air conditioning. Living in Arizona, should your air conditioning compressor go out your landlord is required to fix it right away so the dwelling is habitable. Same goes for the heating unit during the winter. Other things that fall into this act are:

  • Running water and reasonable hot water at all times
  • Maintaining trash recepticles
  • Keeping up with repairs that are necessary

You can read the entire Act for more information on the website referenced above or click here.

Topics: Consumer Rights | 1 Comment »

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