Existing-Home Sales Constrained by Tight Supply in May, Prices Continue to Gain

 Limited supplies of housing inventory held back existing-home sales in May, but sales maintained a strong lead over year-ago levels and home prices are on a sustained uptrend in all regions, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.
Total existing-home sales, which are completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, declined 1.5 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.55 million in May from 4.62 million in April, but are 9.6 percent above the 4.15 million-unit pace in May 2011.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said inventory shortages in certain areas have been building all year. “The slight pullback in monthly home sales is more likely due to supply constraints rather than softening demand.

MLS #: 4489967 Listed by: Sunbelt Realty & Business Advi

10785 E HERITAGE CT 1608 Scottsdale, AZ 85255 $1,690,000 Private 2 + acre lot in gated Upper Canyon of Silverleaf Country Club. Surrounded by the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, the lot has spectacular mountain, golf, and city light views. Large building envelope (38,598 sf) requires minimal site prep to build. Cul-de-sac lot with neighboring homes valued at more than $8 million. This lot offers UNOBSTRUCTED VIEWS!! Survey has been completed and site plan is available under the documents tab. Marcia Anderson Sunbelt Realty 10605 N Hayden Rd #G120 Scottsdale, AZ 85260 480-560-0450 marciaanderson6@yahoo.com http://www.MarciaAndersonRealtor.com Property Characteristics: Apx Total Acres: 2.09 Existing Land Use: Residential Lot Residential Acreage Zoned Presently: Single Family

March Pending Home Sales Rise, Market Recovering

Pending home sales increased in March and are well above a year ago, another signal the housing market is recovering, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contract signings, rose 4.1 percent to 101.4 in March from an upwardly revised 97.4 in February and is 12.8 percent above March 2011 when it was 89.9. The data reflects contracts but not closings.
The index is now at the highest level since April 2010 when it reached 111.3.

Upbeat findings for Arizona housing market

Metro Phoenix home prices are up. Fewer inexpensive homes are for sale, and the number of pending foreclosures is down.
The positive housing-market update comes from Arizona State University's newest real-estate report.
It's the first monthly housing analysis from Mike Orr, who was recently named director of the Center for Real Estate Theory and Practice for ASU's W.P. Carey School of Business.
Single-family home prices overall in the Phoenix area have been moving up since they reached a low point in September," Orr said in his debut monthly housing report.
"Also, looking forward, I expect a declining trend in foreclosures."
Orr also publishes a daily online analysis of Phoenix-area housing indicators called the "Cromford Report."
The median price of all home sales, including new homes, reached $120,500 in January of this year, Orr reports. That compares with $113,166 a year earlier.
The average price per square foot of Valley houses has climbed 3 percent since last year.
There were approximately 8,000 new and used homes sold in January, up from 7,500 in January 2011.
Orr said investors have snatched up the oversupply of homes for sale under $300,000.
"Many people think there's a glut of homes the banks are hiding somewhere, and that may be the case in other markets, but not here in the Phoenix area," he said.
"We've gone through so many foreclosures that the system has been working itself out for about five years."
In January, there were 2,450 single-family foreclosures in both Maricopa and Pinal counties, compared with 4,200 during January 2011, according to the ASU report.
The supply of homes listed for sale in metro Phoenix is down 42 percent from a year earlier.


Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/business/realestate/articles/2012/02/23/20120223report-upbeat-findings-arizona-housing-market.html#ixzz1oGssJWfa

by Catherine Reagor - Feb. 23, 2012 06:35 PM
The Arizona Republic | azcentral.com

 

 

Foreclosures hit 4-year low in Phoenix metro area

New data indicate that the number of Phoenix-area homes taken back by lenders in January fell to its lowest level since early 2008.
Last month, there were 2,263 foreclosures, or trustee sales, in the region, according to real estate   research firm Information Market. Pre-foreclosures, also known as notice of trustee sales, fell to 2,932, the lowest level since the summer of 2007.
A year ago, both foreclosures and pre-foreclosures were double what they are now. The number of pending foreclosures is one-third of what it was a year ago. Only 15,000 active foreclosures are making their way through the process now.
Some housing analysts continue to talk about shadow inventory, characterized as essentially unexpected foreclosures that will hit the market just as it begins to recover. But that phenomenon can't be tracked now.
Tom Ruff, analyst with Information Market, tracks notice of trustee  sales, trustee sales and homes sold at the foreclosure auction daily. He said he sees no sign of a shadow-inventory problem in metro Phoenix.
The region's mortgage-delinquency rate has also fallen during the past year, meaning fewer homeowners are falling behind on their payments. Some market watchers say banks just aren't moving on many foreclosures and are not reporting all the loans borrowers are missing payments on, but lenders deny this.
So going by the numbers and word of lenders, it looks like the worst of metro Phoenix's foreclosure crisis is behind it.
Economic barometer
The southeastern corner of 25th Street and Camelback became a Christmas-tree lot in the mid-1980s during an office-construction boom in metro Phoenix, and the first Esplanade tower went up west of it. Then came the real-estate crash of 1990. The lot at 25th Street remained empty except around the holidays.
As the Phoenix office market rebounded in the mid-1990s, the lot was developed into a shopping center with an athletics store and two popular eateries, the Hard Rock Cafe and Marco Polo Supper Club.
But then came the slight downturn from the dot.com bubble, and by 2003, the center's stores and both restaurants had closed. Developer Donald Trump proposed a high-rise resort for the corner during the boom in 2005 but walked away from the project in 2006.
Last year, Alliance Residential bought the lot out of foreclosure.
The firm is building a 270-unit upscale-apartment complex there.

by Catherine Reagor - Feb. 3, 2012 02:39 PM
The Arizona Republic

 

Top 5 Reasons to Buy a Home in 2012

 

The American dream of homeownership is a very feasible aspiration for 2012.

                                                                                                                                                               
There are many benefits of owning a home. Yet some first-time buyers are skeptical of purchasing with the uncertainty surrounding the housing market.
The uncertainty many reference when speaking about the housing market involves a specific date when home values will increase. Since no one can pinpoint this date, the word uncertainty (when paired with the housing market) often reveals a negative connotation.
There are some factors we can be certain about in this housing market such as home values rebounding. This is true; the housing market often moves in cycles.
It’s safe to assume that many Americans harbored the same uncertainty during the George H. W. Bush administration in the early 1990s when the national homeownership rate fell from its previous historic high of 64.4 percent in 1980 to a low of 64.1 percent in 1991.
In the 1960s Lyndon Johnson illustrated a correlation between homeownership and accountability by stating “owning a home can increase responsibility and stake out a man’s place in his community…The man who owns a home has something to be proud of and reason to protect and preserve it.”
This statement is still true more than 50 years later. There are many reasons to take pride in homeownership such as:

• Appreciation – Buying a home now (at the current rates) can almost ensure your home’s appreciation in the future. Mortgage rates are near historic lows and home prices in many parts of the country are down. This is the perfect recipe for home appreciation. Additionally, many foreclosed homes are available for a fraction of the original cost. This can translate to a higher profit if you decide to sell once the market rebounds.

• Property Tax Deductions – For income tax purposes, real estate property taxes for a vacation home and first home are fully deductible. The IRS (Publication 530) provides detailed tax information for first-time buyers that may answer many questions about what deductions homeowners are eligible for.

• Preferential Tax Treatment – If you own your home for more than a year and receive more profit than the allowable exclusion after the sale of your home, the profit will be considered a capital asset. Capital assets are given preferential tax treatment.

• Equity Building – Many factors such as credit qualification, loan flexibility, and annual percentage rate (APR) contribute to the final decision of what type of mortgage loan best fits your goals. Yet, a new trend being used by some homeowners is to actually add money to their monthly payment to decrease the principal balance of their loans at a much faster pace. This trend is called equity building. Equity builders usually select a home loan with a lower interest rate (and a shorter term loan such as a 15-year fixed) to help build equity faster. This rapid payment process allows borrowers to:

• Pay off the principal balance faster
• Lock in near-record-low interest rates
• Shorten the length of their home loan
• Own their home faster
• Pay substantially less mortgage interest

Equity building is a beneficial trend that’s becoming more and more popular with fiscally responsible homeowners. Also, home equity is the largest single source of household wealth for most Americans.

• Pride – Homeownership offers many benefits to many different types of people. For some homeowners, playing your music as loud as you want and painting the walls the color of your choice is a perk. For me, homeownership will permit me to build an NBA regulation size basketball court on my own property. For my coworker Joel Jarvi, home ownership may allow him to build the indoor slide of his dreams. No matter who you are, homeownership is a purchase, commitment, and journey that’s sure to bring you pride.

Furthermore, when the uncertainty surrounding the housing market fades and the market rebounds, homeownership may in fact transform that pride to profit through a home sale

by Jonathan Slappeyon January 6, 2012 in Home Buying