Jim Sexton, owner and designated Broker for John Hall & Associates, gives a quick update for the past month, February 2011.

Highlights:

• Over 7000 sales recorded in February, 2nd highest February.
• Prices are stable, compared to January.
• REO’s and Short Sales still make up the majority of the market.
• Pending sales are up 13%
• Listings are down 5%
• New government regulations may hamper the already tedious short sale process.

Please listen to Jim’s quick overview, and read his more detailed assessment here: Phoenix Real Estate Market Report

Recent posts on the Phoenix and Scottsdale real estate markets:

How do home sales in Scottsdale compare to Greater Phoenix?

Phoenix vs. Scottsdale Real Estate Appreciation

Lots of good info that validates some of my experience with lender owned properties over the past month, plus brings to light some additional encouraging news about our local real estate market.

• Phoenix area home sales are up.
• Foreclosure sales are down.
• Foreclosure notices are up.
• Pending trustee sales are being postponed.
• Foreclosures now appear to be being released onto the market in a staged manner.
• Banks are checking on home occupancy prior to foreclosure, and if occupied, attempting to work with occupant.
• Also, the price per square foot for pending foreclosures is now higher than those recently sold.

And, directly from Tom’s report:

In our 25 years of compiling data, we have always considered March a bellwether month. March will normally tell you how the summer will trend all the way through August. Don’t ask me why, it’s just one of those things you notice after 25 years. March is telling us sales volume is up and continuing to climb, the rate at which median home prices are falling is declining, clearly signaling prices are approaching their much anticipated bottom.

I highly recommend reading the whole report.

(Originally posted at Click2AZ.com.)

I’ve included the full slide show, and invite you to take a look.

Highlights for the Phoenix area resale market include:

1. Seven straight months where number of home sales surpassed 2007.
2. The number of 2008 homes sales surpassed 2007 by almost 10%.
3. Results from the second half of 2008 showed significant improvement over the first half of the year.
4. Sales increases are definitely being fueled by dramatic price decreases, especially in the second half of the year.
5. Bank-owned properties are a significant portion (approximately 33%) of the homes sales.
6. Bank-owned properties are priced much lower than owner sold homes, and are selling at a faster rate.

I’m in the process of looking into home sales individual cities around the valley, and will be sharing some of those highlights.  The results have been surprising and may signal some significant opportunity for buyers who have been waiting on the sidelines, looking for the bottom.

Once associated with the company, I discovered a culture of volunteerism that was not readily apparent from the outside.  Jim Sexton, our broker is very involved at a professional and REALTOR association level.  He hosts an annual golf fundraiser for the the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) that has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.  And he is not alone, I’ve found many others in the company who contribute to society and their communities in countless and unseen ways.

Sometimes though, a person’s contributions are highlighted publicly, today I’d like you to know about Reita Hutson, who is a Realtor with the company in Scottsdale.  Later this month, she will honor at the National Association of REALTORS (NAR) convention in Orlando, as one of five winners of its Good Neighbor Awards.

The Arizona Republic ran an article Friday, and I think you will enjoy reading more about Reita and her contributions to our world:  Gabriel, Lost Boys led by their angel.  She’s also featured on the cover of this month’s NAR magazine, Reita Hutson: Meet the Smile Maker

Congratulations, Reita.  You inspire us.

I missed it seeing the article, but one of the parents from my son’s Challenger Little League team brought a copy to the game Saturday afternoon.  Thank you, Brad Taft.