From the monthly archives:

November 2008

Huge Home Interest Rate Drop

by Dru Bloomfield on November 30, 2008

I’ve been in California for the Thanksgiving holidays, spending some special time with family and relaxing quite a bit. Today, we are heading back home and with a deadline or two, I’m up early getting caught up on the news.

Did you know that there was a home interest rate drop of 1% on Friday? This is huge!

The Federal Reserve’s announcement Tuesday that it would spend $600 billion to buy up mortgage-backed securities sent interest rates plummeting roughly 1 percentage point, the biggest single-day drop in years.

I picked up the news that Paying for home just got cheaper from AZCentral, and the example they used will catch buyers attention:

….required monthly payments on a 30-year fixed-rate loan for $200,000 decreased to $1,135 from $1,264 when the interest rate dropped to 5.5 percent from 6.5 percent.

That’s a savings of $129 a month, which equals $1,548 a year, or $46,440 over the term of the loan.

And while the lenders interviewed for the article didn’t necessarily agree on the impact that this interest rate reduction would have, I do believe that there are buyers who have been waiting and watching the market trying to time their entry or re-entry into the home ownership market. First-time home buyers are in a very good situation right now. No home to sell. $7500 federal tax credit loan. Many homes to choose from. If someone if purchasing today in Scottsdale with the intention to own their home for an extended period of time, now might be a good time to research the market, especially if they have any type of home fix-up and repairs skills.

My inquiries for home evaluations have picked up this weekend. And buyers continue to fly into town, looking for good values. The homes are out there, and financing them just got a little bit easier.

1 Comments

Can a blog really do this? Friends re-united after 50 years

by Dru Bloomfield on November 24, 2008

Byron and Dorothy Bloomfield by Dru Bloomfield - At Home in Scottsdale

I got a call on Friday from a gentleman, Richard Waterhouse. He said he had an old friend named Byron Bloomfield that he’d been trying reconnect with. Said he’d been trying to find him on the Internet, and asked me if I know how many Byron Bloomfield’s there were in the United States. He said he’d read a post of mine mentioning Byron, and the Byron he knew was an architect, too.

Mr. Waterhouse had a lovely British accent, and sounded like he might be of the same generation as my father-in-law, who was born in the 1920′s. Richard asked if I’d married Byron’s son, and if I knew how to get a hold of Byron. He wanted to know if Byron was still alive, where he lived, what kind of house he lived in, and more. In this suspicious age we live in, I was getting a bit nervous giving out information. Richard said he and Byron had worked together and been friends in Washington DC almost 50 years ago. He asked me if I would give him Byron’s phone number.

I paused. Oddly, we were disconnected at that point.

It took a couple tries, but I got Richard back on the line. I’d already convinced myself that it was OK to give him Byron’s phone number. I realized that this earlier generation was the one that left their doors unlocked and did business with a handshake, so what harm could a simple phone call do. My father-in-law always had the option of hanging up.

I shared the phone number, wished him luck, and walked into my lunch appointment.

An hour later, I was back in my car, checking my voice mail, listening to Dorothy, my mother-in-law, thanking me wholeheartedly for giving Dick their phone number. She said that he’d already called and that they’d had a lovely conversation, which had made their day. That they couldn’t believe that they’d been reunited after 50 years.

Yesterday, my husband made his weekly call to check in with his folks, and they were still savoring the call from a long lost friend.

Who would have thought that a simple post, from the heart, written late last year, could have created this reunion?

A Very Special House – It’s Called a “Home”

Wow.

1 Comments

Freddie Mac Foreclosures on Hold for the Holidays

by Dru Bloomfield on November 23, 2008

: Image by respres via Flickr

Everyone can take a breath. Locally, Aimee Ghimire just reported this news which will hopefully take some of the pressure off home owners, in specific situations, who are behind on their mortgage payments. Take a look at the full article, Foreclosures suspends all foreclosures, for more details on who may benefit from this reprieve.

A foreclosure break for the holidays. Freddie is announcing a suspension to all foreclosure activity from the day before Thanksgiving to January 9, 2009. Here is what Freddie has on its website:Arizona Mortgage Guru, Nov 2008

2 Comments

Scottsdale Real Estate Market Update

by Dru Bloomfield on November 22, 2008

Altos Research’s Market Action Index is a proprietary calculation that gives you an idea of the real estate market and whether it favor buyers or sellers. In their metric, an index of 30 or more is a seller’s market.

North Scottsdale

In North Scottsdale, all areas are still tilted in favor of the buyer. For now, the zip code to watch is 85266 since activity has been increasing steadily throughout the year. This new zip code encompasses the areas of the city that are north of Jomax, west of Pima Road, and south Cave Creek and Carefree. On the map below, the area is highlighted in darker yellow.
View Larger Map

Mid-Scottsdale

In central Scottsdale, the market is improving for sellers in the 85254 and 85258 zip codes. The area in 85254 is unique in that homes have a Scottsdale address, while actually residing and receiving services from the City of Phoenix. The communities that primarily comprise 85258 are McCormick, Gainey and Scottsdale Ranches. On the map above, these two zip codes are noted in orange and turquoise.

South Scottsdale

Once again, the area in zip code 85257 is showing that the area is rebounding more quickly than others in the southern part of the city. The red area in the map shows the location of these homes, with excellent freeway access and close proxmity to the university and airport.

The data goes to show you that real estate is really local. Even in the cases of declining markets, you can find desirable neighborhoods where homes hold value well and sell quickly, while contradicting the general trends of the larger area. For now though, it is safe to say that our real estate market still favors buyers, and that some areas of Scottsdale may recover more quickly than others. Let’s hope that these positive trends continue toward a more balanced market continue.

Have a great weekend!

1 Comments

What’s really going on with real estate in South Scottsdale?

by Dru Bloomfield on November 21, 2008

I have this preoccupation with South Scottsdale real estate, in particular single family homes with the 85257 zip code. I’m seeing small signs of recovery. Slim. Fleeting. Possibly even imaginary. None the less, I do believe that home prices in this zip code will stabilize and recover more quickly than other areas of Scottsdale.

Reasons for Optimism

Price

The area within the 85257 zip code has the most affordable homes in Scottsdale. Most qualify for FHA financing, and first time home buyers have been purchasing here. Investors are also beginning to see options that provide for a positive cash flow when renting.

Location

Close proximity to ASU and Sky Harbor Airport. Close to the night life of downtown Scottsdale, too.

Neighborhoods

Many of the neighborhoods in South Scottsdale have a strong sense of community, with a blend of long-term and newer owners.

Recreation

With the Indian Bend wash running through the zip code, access for biking, running, and walking are close by. Fishing in the city lakes is available. So is a nearby skate park. And the new Senior Center is another draw for some resident. The zoo and desert botanical gardens are also a 10 minutes drive.

Transportation

The free trolley runs in and around this southern most zip code in Scottsdale. Some use it to get to work, or to downtown Scottsdale, or even to connect to the Tempe transportation system.

Shopping

Old Town Scottsdale, Fashion Square, and the new Tempe Marketplace provide a unique blend of established and new shopping options and are within easy driving distance.

Schools

Scottsdale public schools are among the best in the state. Several elementary schools, Supai Middle School, and Coronado High School, all reside in the 85257 zip code. Scottsdale community college is nearby, as is Arizona State University.

Home Prices Today

To give you a better idea of the current state of the market, I put together the following series of charts.

Comparing Median Home List Prices in Scottsdale to 85257

Median home listing price in Scottsdale is currently about $775,000, while in this southern zip code of Scottsdale, it’s closer to $260,000.

Comparing Average Days on Market in Scottsdale to 85257

As a whole, it’s taking much longer to sell a home in Scottsdale, somewhere in the range of 175 days, while in 85257, the days on market has stayed in the 100-110 day range for over six months.

Median Homes Prices by Price Range

To see if any one price range of homes was doing better than another, I broke down the list pricing into quartiles, and you can see that home prices have been falling steadily in all price ranges.

Days on Market by Price Range

I did the same breakdown again for average days on market. Most price ranges have tracked in a similar manner, with some variations during the year. At this point, the lowest price housing has been on the market, the fewest number of days, averaging about 95 days since the first of September.

Scottsdale 85257’s Most Expensive Homes

Scottsdale 85257′s most expensive homes are now listed at a median price of just under $350,000. Average days to sell has been steadily increasing to an average of 120 days.

Scottsdale 85257’s Mid to Higher Priced Homes

Scottsdale 85257′s second quartile of mid to higher price homes (the 2nd quartile) homes are clearly dropping in price while taking significantly long to sell. Median price of these homes is now approximately $280,000, while increasing to a high of 135 days on market and recently dropping back to an average of 120 days.

Scottsdale 85257’s Lower to Mid Priced Homes

Listing prices are also dropping steadily in Scottsdale 85257 homes priced in the 3rd quartile. Median listing price here is $240,000. Average number of days to sell has increased to an average of approximately 112 days.

Scottsdale 85257’s Lowest Priced Homes

Median price in the lowest priced quadrant are now under $200,000 for the first time in a very long time. The really good news is that days on market is dropping too, and this number has been under 100 days since late summer.

Positive Changes for South Scottsdale

So as I shared earlier, there’s a glimmer of hope. It’s difficult to say when we will see pricing stabilize, but I would suspect that it come sooner for these entry level homes in South Scottsdale, than it will in other parts of the city. This southernmost area has so much going for it. It will be much easier for a positive change in the market to occur here, so we will need to keep an eye on this area and report back in a couple months.

In the meantime, if you have any questions, please leave a comment or call.

0 Comments

Ford Ironman Arizona 2008 – Tempe, Arizona

by Dru Bloomfield on November 21, 2008

The Ironman Triathalon will be in Tempe this weekend, so if you’d like to get out and watch this exciting (and grueling) event, you’ll want to know a few details.

DATE: November 23, 2008

START: 6:45 a.m. with staggered age starting 15 minutes later

LOCATION: City of Tempe, Tempe Beach Park will serve as the ‘race hub’

DISTANCES:

2.4-mile swim – one loop of Tempe Town Lake starting to east of Mill Avenue Bridge heading east to Rural Road and back to Tempe Beach Park west of Mill Avenue Bridge
112-mile bike – starts at Tempe Beach Park and proceeds out Beeline Highway to Shea Boulevard, before turning around and returning to Mill Avenue. This loop is completed three times.
26.2-mile run – starts at Tempe Beach Park and proceeds in and around the lake on and between Priest Drive and Rural Road. Three loops here too.

CUTOFF TIMES: Swim Cutoff: 9:20 a.m., Bike Cutoff: 5:30 p.m., Run Cutoff: Midnight

ATHLETES: Roughly 2,100 athletes from 30 countries and 47 states as of press time

AT STAKE: 80 qualifying spots to the 2009 Ford Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii as well as a $75,000 pro prize purse

ROAD CLOSURES: Rio Salado Parkway, Mill Avenue Bridge, plus lanes of quite a few other roads in Tempe and Scottsdale, and limited access to Beeline Highway -check the Spectator Guide out for the more details. If do need to get to Tempe on Sunday, the recommended access routes are Priest Drive, the 101, the 202, or University Avenue.

Did you know that the first Ironman Triathalon was first conceived by a group of Navy Seal in 1978, to determine who was most fit?

Some of the heroes. Amazing.

1 Comments

← Previous Entries