Happy Labor Day Weekend!
Did you know that the first Labor Day celebration was a parade in New York City back in September of 1882? Peter Maguire, a carpenter, and Matthew McGuire, a machinist, suggested a holiday honoring the working people of our country. In 1887, Oregon became the first state to recognize the holiday and then in 1894, President Grover Cleveland signed a bill declaring the first Monday in September as an official national holiday.
Today, Labor Day has become the unofficial end to the carefree and nostalgic days of summer. Our children go back to school, football season commences and for those of us raised in the South, the white shoes get packed away! The easy going days give way to the routines and schedules of busy families and jam-packed calendars. Just a blink of the eye will take you from "sandy beaches" to "happy holidays" this time of the year! Yesterday I noticed in our local warehouse store that Christmas decorations were already on the shelves and the "unofficial" end of summer is not until Monday!
If you are looking for things to do this holiday weekend, check out your Chamber of Commerce website. Locally, try http://www.scottsdalecvb.com/, http://www.visitphoenix.com/, or http://www.arizonaguide.com/. These are great resources anytime of the year & wherever your travels take you!
Friday, September 4, 2009
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Credit for First-time Homebuyers
It's hard to believe that the Labor Day weekend is around the corner and summer is almost over! Having said that, in the Valley of the Sun it will be "officially" over with the passing of the holiday weekend but we still have a couple more months of summer to endure! I'm looking forward to the return of comfortable "summer" nights when I can sit on my patio and enjoy the delight of Arizona sunsets!
With the passing of the Summer 2009, I have another passing/deadline to remind you of! The "First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit" is scheduled to end on November 29, 2009. There are bills in both the House & Senate to extend this deadline and there is talk of increasing the credit. I am all for extending the deadline. I think that this has been a huge boost to real estate and in getting the inventory moving but I'm not for increasing the credit. What would the incentive be to buy now if you think that the credit will increase in 6 months? Also, it hardly seems fair to the wonderful first-time buyers whom I have had the privileged to work with this summer to find out that the credit might have been greater had they waited. Maybe a better solution, one that would encourage everyone to consider home ownership or "moving up", would be to extend the deadline and offer a tax credit to all home buyers.
Thoughts?
With the passing of the Summer 2009, I have another passing/deadline to remind you of! The "First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit" is scheduled to end on November 29, 2009. There are bills in both the House & Senate to extend this deadline and there is talk of increasing the credit. I am all for extending the deadline. I think that this has been a huge boost to real estate and in getting the inventory moving but I'm not for increasing the credit. What would the incentive be to buy now if you think that the credit will increase in 6 months? Also, it hardly seems fair to the wonderful first-time buyers whom I have had the privileged to work with this summer to find out that the credit might have been greater had they waited. Maybe a better solution, one that would encourage everyone to consider home ownership or "moving up", would be to extend the deadline and offer a tax credit to all home buyers.
Thoughts?
Sunday, July 19, 2009
It's Hot in Arizona!
It's hot in Arizona!
I'm not talking about the local economy & real estate markets although "The Arizona Republic" did report last week that the market had possibly "bottomed". (See the link for the full article: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/2009/07/16/20090716biz-saleindex0716.html.) Although sales are not as "hot" as in the 2005/2006 days, the inventories are decreasing & things are looking brighter.
No, I'm talking about 115 degree temperatures and showing properties to brave, brave souls looking for homes! You work differently when it's that "warm"! For one, you find yourself carrying an igloo cooler loaded with ice and bottles of water. You think that you are prepared but then you realize if you really had it together, you would have packed cold, wet washcloths, as well! Then there's the whole bank-owned property scenario....there's never any electricity on so it's double-hot inside & you find yourself using property flyers for fans! Or how about the loosening standards of business dress? Personally, I think swim suits are a great idea & then we could try out the backyard pools as we toured from home to home!
This would be July & August in the desert! Eventually the wild, hot winds of the monsoons will give way to the gentle breezes of autumn and we will all remember why we live here! A little bit of summer is not a bad price to pay....of course, it's November when we realize it!
Stay cool!
I'm not talking about the local economy & real estate markets although "The Arizona Republic" did report last week that the market had possibly "bottomed". (See the link for the full article: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/2009/07/16/20090716biz-saleindex0716.html.) Although sales are not as "hot" as in the 2005/2006 days, the inventories are decreasing & things are looking brighter.
No, I'm talking about 115 degree temperatures and showing properties to brave, brave souls looking for homes! You work differently when it's that "warm"! For one, you find yourself carrying an igloo cooler loaded with ice and bottles of water. You think that you are prepared but then you realize if you really had it together, you would have packed cold, wet washcloths, as well! Then there's the whole bank-owned property scenario....there's never any electricity on so it's double-hot inside & you find yourself using property flyers for fans! Or how about the loosening standards of business dress? Personally, I think swim suits are a great idea & then we could try out the backyard pools as we toured from home to home!
This would be July & August in the desert! Eventually the wild, hot winds of the monsoons will give way to the gentle breezes of autumn and we will all remember why we live here! A little bit of summer is not a bad price to pay....of course, it's November when we realize it!
Stay cool!
Saturday, July 4, 2009
July 4th
Welcome to my to blog! I'm excited to have it set up and look forward to sharing great information about the Phoenix housing market via this site!
The local market continues to grow stronger. I've been working with Buyers in the FHA market (purchase price less than $346,500) & I must say that the market has definitely turned around in that area. I am seeing limited inventories and multiple offers on properties. I think that much of the improvement can be credited to first time home buyers taking advantage of historically low interest rates & the $8000 tax credit, which expires at the end of November. There's also a lot of investor activity going on...in some areas, properties are selling for less than they can be built - easy cash flow if you want rental properties. Statistics put the Phoenix market at a 3 1/2 month inventory. Unbelievable!
The luxury market continues to struggle. The availability of jumbo loans is just not there. Home buyers in that market really have to go back to the mindset of 20% down to buy a house. There are terrific opportunities for those who want to "move up". The overall amount of inventory for Scottsdale is at 7 1/2 months.
I have a wonderful listing in the Powderhorn Ranch neighborhood of North Scottsdale. It's a 5 bedroom beauty, located near the best of schools. I've included photos on the "slideshow". If you know of anyone looking for a great family home, please give me a call.
Happy 4th of July......Let Freedom Ring!
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