Just a quick quote for the lowballers. From the Arizona Republic:
Resales taking a tumble
“Home sales are plunging in metropolitan Phoenix, even as record numbers of people decide to put their houses on the market.”
“For now, the median sales price is holding firm. But with the number of for-sale signs dotting yards across the Valley, no one expects that to last.”
“”Buyers think, ‘Why should I buy today? It will be less expensive in a month or three weeks.’ Every listing agent I talk to is getting ridiculous lowball offers,” said Diane Watson, a Realty Executives agent in north Scottsdale.”
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Most buyers would use the same word to describe asking prices.. Ridiculous ..
Actually my word would be get the f* outta here…..
I was in AZ in the 90’s when the RE market was at the bottom. The housing market out there has no economy to support it. There is only retirees and housing with a little finance.
Watch when it goes south there, because it really hits bottom hard.
Btw the runup in the last 3 years is due mostly to CA equity looking for investments. As we have all learned, last year about 40% of buyers were investors. I would wager that in PHX it is much higher and with about 40% of 2005 loans being ARMs, well watch the market out there collapse.
My brother in law has spoken to a few people at ASU about the RE market out there (he is a visiting prof this semester) they attribute the runup to the CA folks and many high end developments.
As for this article, notice the same platitudes being offered by the RE people. Soft landing etc.
Only retirees?? Ahhh, wrong.
I live in AZ, a native New Jerseyan who fled the ridiculous North Jersey housing prices in the mid ’90s so that I could afford a nice house and start a family, like most of my neighbors, who are all in the mid 30s, early 40s. Sure, there are retirees, but those “snowbirds” only make up a fraction of our population and when the temperatures rise, they’re outta here, back to Colorado or the Midwest for the summer.
Retirees, move over
Census ranks Arizona No. 5 for large youth population
Jon Kamman
The Arizona Republic
Jan. 7, 2006 12:00 AM
America’s population is aging, but Arizona’s isn’t, Census Bureau data indicated Friday.
Estimates of states’ adult and under-18 populations in 2005 ranked Arizona as fifth-youngest, a jump from 10th in the 2000 census.
The state grew no younger but maintained the same proportion of children, 26.6 percent, for the period. At the same time, the aging of the 1946-64 baby boom generation sent the nation’s under-18 percentage nearly 1 point lower, to 24.8 percent. advertisement
Arizona’s relative youthfulness contradicts a commonly held image that seniors make up a disproportionate share of the state. Although a retirement mecca, the state also has a robust birth rate, a steady influx of young families with children, and a flow of young-adult immigrants. The new estimates say nearly 1.6 million of Arizona’s 5.9 million people are minors.
Utah ranked first in young people, at 30.1 percent. Maine was last, at 21 percent.
A state’s economic vitality depends in part on having a young, adaptable workforce, but businesses also need the experience of older workers, said Don Wehbey, senior economist for the Department of Economic Security.
AZ Dude,
I meant to say your economy is based on senior citizens and housing and a little bit of banking. I was not inferring that the state was demographically old. I wrote it before my morning coffee. BTW,I have a sister that lives in Tucson.
No offense taken at calling us “Zonies” old…I do take offense at being called a dude, though; I prefer AZ babe. ;)
I live in Gilbert. Tucson? Now that’s a bunch of old people!
AZ Babe,
My bad! ;) I like the PHX area much better than Tucson. I have often thought of moving out there.
The Valley is beautiful; you should check it out. I miss New York City and was seriously considering moving back to North Jersey, but I found this blog and it snapped me back to reality. I have a beautiful 2400 square foot house with a pool, hot tub, on a cul-de-sac, in a great town, with great schools that my kids walk to, and my property taxes just went up to $1,600 a year! Yes, a year; not a month. ;)
Move West, son….you can fly back East and visit family anytime.
AZ Babe,
The schools are my biggest worry. You are saying Gilbert has good schools? I am glad to hear that. My sister’s kids are in one of the few decent schools in Tucson.
AZ,
Is the light rail making it to Gilbert?
We are actually zoned for the Chandler school district because we live on the border of Gilbert and Chandler, but the Gilbert schools are great, too. The public school we attend is run like a charter school, the kids wear uniforms every day, which I love; makes it a lot easier to get them ready in the morning.
I’m not sure about the light rail making its way to Gilbert.
BTW, Gilbert was the fastest growing city in the country in 2004; not sure where it stands now, but it seems to have slowed down a bit.
I am planning to visit PHX, AZ at the end of the month. I will look into your area. I presume you belong to a HOA. How are those fees? (Watch out you may end up with me as a neighbor)
Are you on CAP water or the reservoirs. When Tucson switched to CAP it wrecked their pipes.
Maybe I’ll visit Taliesen West while i’m out there.
Funny you mentioned HOA fees because my husband and I were just talking about how little they’ve increased since we built this house 10 years ago. We pay $40 a month and we live in a beautiful development.
As far as water, I have no idea! I’ll look into it, though. I do know that we don’t have any problems with our pipes, though.
I’ve actually never been to Tailsen West; it’s way north, but it’s on my to-do list one of these days. If you do go up that way, you should make a trip to go to Jerome. It’s an old copper mining town, art galleries all over, brothels still standing, although no longer working. ;) It’s a fun, really beautiful place to visit, and the views are breathtaking because it’s way up in the mountains.
Been to Jerome, and loved the view.
You can see all of Sedona and Mt. Humphreys on top of the Mogollon Rim. Spectacular! Actually, I have been all over AZ except the SW corner. It is a beautiful state. I even went to Biospere when it first opened. Strangely enough, I ran into the tour director in the Shoprite in Byram NJ, she was wearing her old Biosphere sweatshirt.
I actually got kicked out of Taliesen West one time because I argued with them over visitor hours. See they have “Summer hours” and we were there in the beginning of June, well Summer to them is when the temperature goes up. FYI the last tour is at noon.
Sierra Vista, Arcosanti, Yuma and Tombstone are on my to-do list
Oh yeah, forgot Slide Rock State Park.
LOWBALL
Bababababababa BOYCOTT HOUSES
Boooooooyaaaaaaa
Bob
Water might possibly be expensive in AZ.. during a drought… but it’s STILL CHEAPER THAN IN BUFFALO!!!
http://www.libertyguys.org/articles/detail.asp?ArtID=1347
Over 40% of all water supplied to Buffalo _leaks out of the pipe system_, and folks pay those high prices despite living in between two of the largest fresh water supplies ON THE PLANET…
Yay stupid corrupt taxland!!