This Newsflash is our response to frequent questions from clients who wonder if the information they have read or heard on the residential market is accurate. We give you the raw data, just the facts, with a short opinion in the last paragraph. 

Market Data:  The Kepple Group provides an individual city breakdown because real estate is local and overall market averages can be misleading.  Caution, data from smaller cities varies greatly from month to month because of the limited number of transactions.

Phoenix

• Annual Appreciation: -8.3% (Values are dropping/increasing at this rate.)
• Recent Appreciation Trend: -2.0% (The drop/increase in value is getting better or worse at this rate.)
• 4,625 Active Homes Listed For Sale: 47.87% Short Sales, 16.54% Foreclosures & 35.59% Normal Sale.
• 1,894 Homes Sold Monthly: 24.18% Short Sales, 47.94% Foreclosure, & 27.88% Normal Sale. 

Scottsdale

• Annual Appreciation: -5.0%
• Recent Appreciation Trend: -5.0%
• 1,979 Active Homes Listed For Sale: 25.42% Short Sales, 6.06% Foreclosures & 68.52% Normal Sale.
• 397 Average Homes Sold Monthly: 22.25% Short Sales, 25.53% Foreclosure, & 52.22% Normal Sale. 

Paradise Valley/Cave Creek/Fountain Hills 

• Annual Appreciation: -12.6%, -2.0%, +1.7%
• Recent Appreciation Trend: -14.1%, +5.8%, -7.6%

Mesa/Glendale/Peoria

• Annual Appreciation: -14.3%, -14.9%, -4.6%
• Recent Appreciation Trend: -6.6%, -2.6%, -0.4%

Overall Market Data (Data from Maricopa, Pinal and Yavapai County)

• Annual Appreciation: -6.4%
• Annual Sales: +21.0%
• Active Listings: -39.0% (Inventory has decreased/increased at this rate.)
• Average Days On Market: 120 days
• Average Active Listing Price is $135.35/Sq.Ft. vs Sold Price of $82.28/Sq.Ft. (Price reductions of 39.21% are normally made before the home sells.)

Other Cities & Data:  The above data is provided by the Cromford Report, the leading authority on residential market data.  If you are interested in data from additional cities email jkepple@thekepplegroup.com 

Opinion Segment:  Although data shows us prices will continue to decline in the near future, there is one positive sign that cannot be overlooked. Inventory is about 27% lower than normal (active listings are down significantly) which may lead to some price relief if the inventory stays this low. The prediction made in our last newsflash for luxury cities has been proven correct; prices have begun to drop due to the depressed values in other neighboring cities.  Be wary of any forecasts over a year because there is no clear trend in the data. 

Do not let the market discourage you, there are plenty of proven solutions if you are upside down, looking for deals, and/or great investments.  The current environment presents unique challenges so make sure you are represented by the right real estate company. 


Please feel free to reach out with your real estate needs and questions,

This property is now back on the market!!  Call us today for more information! 480-626-7465

Yesterday Realtytrac announced that the national foreclosure rate has dropped to a 40 month low.  to read click here  While this is positive news it can be misleading and here is why...

There is still a massive amount of distressed inventory on the market as well as defaulted loans which are in the banks back log.    The government has conveyed to the banks that they need to do everything possible to prevent the home to going to foreclosure and becoming a bank owned property.  Therefore they are doing everything in their power to short sale properities, do deed in lieu of foreclosure as well as selling them at trustee sale which will make the number of foreclosures drop.  Though not only are they now looking at more and different ways of liquidating these distressed assets though when they implemented these strategies it now takes them longer to actually become a bank owned property.  We are in that lagtime right now.  There will be more foreclosures hitting the market in the next 18 months.

With that said we actually need inventory right now.  As of May 9th we had roughly 28,000 active listings in our MLS, which is down from roughly 39,000 as of January 1, 2011.  Which is good, as supply goes down prices tend to go up.  The demand in our marketplace right now is through the roof as we have 22,000 homes in our MLS in pending status as of May 9th, which again is is up dramatically from January 1, 2011.

In summary it appears that everything is headed in the right direction and prices are rebounding in certain areas.  Our real estate market is a simple supply and demand market and right now it is safe to say we are in a sellers market.   There will be more inventory coming in the next year though I feel that will be our last go around of our massive amount of distressed inventory in our Phoenix Arizona Metro Real Estate Market. 

Check out the below article from Inman news, showing two Valley cities in the top 5 for top place where it is cheaper to buy than rent.  Another clue that the real estate in the Valley is undervalued.  Right now is the time to buy and if you already own a home, time to INVEST!

Cheaper to buy than to rent in 72% of largest U.S. cities

Despite the rising number of renters across the country, it is cheaper to buy a home rather than rent one in 72 percent of the 50 largest cities in the U.S., according to an index released by real estate search and marketing site Trulia.

"Since the start of the 'Great Recession,' many former homeowners have flooded the rental market. Following the principles of supply and demand, renting has become relatively more expensive than buying in most markets," said Pete Flint, CEO and co-founder of Trulia, in a statement.

"Though necessary for achieving true economic recovery, stricter bank lending practices have also further aggravated the struggling housing market in the short term. Even highly qualified homebuyers face intense scrutiny on their income, savings, existing debt and credit history before they can get a mortgage loan."

Trulia's rent vs. buy index compares the median list price with the median rent on two-bedroom apartments, condominiums and townhomes listed on Trulia.com as of Jan. 10, 2011.

A price-to-rent ratio of 1 to 15 means that it's much cheaper to buy than to rent in a particular city. A ratio between 16 and 20 means that it's more expensive to rent than to buy, but, depending on the family's situation, buying could "make financial sense," the site said. Any ratio above 20 indicates that owning is much more costly than renting in a city.

In 36 out of 50 of the country's most populous cities, buying a two-bedroom home is less expensive than renting one. These cities include many areas that have been hit hard by foreclosures, such as Las Vegas, Phoenix and Fresno, Calif.

Top 10 cities to buy vs. rent:

Source: Trulia

In 10 cities, renting is cheaper, but buying might make more financial sense, according to Trulia. These cities include Los Angeles, Boston, and Fort Worth, Texas.

The index considers the total cost of homeownership compared to the total cost of renting. Calculations for the total cost of homeownership include mortgage principal and interest, property taxes, hazard insurance, closing costs at time of purchase, homeowners association dues, and private mortgage insurance. The homeownership cost calculation also includes tax advantages from mortgage interest, property tax and closing-cost deductions.

Calculations for total rental cost include rent and renters insurance.

The total cost of homeownership was highest, compared to the cost to rent, in New York; Seattle; Kansas City, Mo.; and San Francisco.

Top 10 cities to rent vs. buy:

Source: Trulia

"Although owning a home is relatively more affordable in most cities, market conditions have caused an interesting demographic swap between traditional renters and buyers," said Tara-Nicholle Nelson, consumer educator for Trulia, in a statement. Nelson is also an Inman news columnist.

"For example, lifelong renters are seizing the opportunity to become homeowners while affordability is high. At the same time, a growing number of longtime homeowners are finding themselves tenants -- some by choice and others by necessity."

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The Arizona Real Estate Market Statistics remained fairly stable this week, as expected.

The number of active listings on the market remained steady at a healthy 33,000 listings.  Though the number of homes sold the last 30 days is still at it's 2010 peak at 8,600 homes sold.  The number which is grossly skewed is the number of homes pending.  We finally saw that number drop, though only 300, to just over 22,000.  This is the first time this number has dropped in over a month as we are continually breaking new records for the number of homes pending.  The reason for this is the number of short sales which are pending, as these homes take much longer to close.  My opinion is don't look at the number of homes pending as it is grossly skewed.  The accurate number to look at is the number of homes sold in the last 30 days.  This number is a real number and just because a home is in a pending status doesn't mean it is going to close, especially a short sale. 

Overall, other than the pending numbers and days on market it appears we are in a fairly healthy market.  Homes under 400K are in a sellers market, it is the Arizona Luxury Home market which prices will continue to fall.  We will continue to see the amount of bank owned homes fall throughout the year as banks are now looking to other alternatives in the liquidation of these defaulted assets, one of which is aiding the seller in the short sale of the home.  For more short sale information visit www.removenegativeequity.com

Click here to view the 2009-2010 market data graph chart.