Phoenix Metro Realty Blog

While many people are sulking in the downturn of Phoenix Real Estate, there are also many that are taking advantage of the good deals that can be found.  Yes, many are investors with money in hand to swipe up the misfortune of others, but there are also many first time buyers who are relieved to see affordable properties return to the Phoenix Real Estate market.  While prices have not seemed to have changed much over the past several months, the amount of transactions has been slowly increasing according to many of my mortgage broker contacts.  And quantity of transactions can be a quality indicator of market health to be used along with pricing.  Leverage your trusted Real Estate Agent to track activity in your areas of interest.  Having trending data will position you to be more informed when you are ready for your next Phoenix real estate purchase or sale.

For more info, email Brad@PhoenixMetroRealty.com

Former NFL player, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Roger Staubach, has sold his commercial real estate brokerage for $613 million, plus $114 million in potential performance bonuses to Jones Lang LaSalle Inc.

Dallas, TX based Staubach is one of the nation’s largest independent commercial real estate brokerage firms, specializing in office, industrial, and retail space. The company has about 1,600 employees and more than 70 offices in North America. The commercial brokerage will now operate under the Jones Lang LaSalle brand, except for Staubach Retail Services or Cypress and Staubach’s investment development business, which were not part of the transaction.

Chicago-based Jones Lang has annual revenue of $2.65 billion and more than 170 offices worldwide.

The 66-year-old Staubach stepped down last year as CEO but remained chairman of the company he founded in 1977 as part of a larger management reorganization and recapitalization. He will join the Jones Lang board as executive chairman, Americas.

Source: The Associated Press

City Council meetings are now broadcast live. Maricopa residents are now able to view the City Council meetings live on Maricopa 20.
 
Maricopa City Council meetings are held on the first and third Tuesday of each month. Work sessions, if scheduled, begin at 6:00 p.m. and the regular meeting begins at 7:00 p.m. To find out what will be on the agenda for an upcoming meeting, visit maricopa-az.gov.
 
At this time, live broadcasting is only available to Orbitel Communications customers. For questions, please contact the Office of Marketing and Communications at 520-316-6816.
 
Maricopa 20 can be accessed on Orbitel Communications, Maricopa Broadband and Qwest Communications on channel 20

Some borrowers who are struggling to pay their mortgage and are dealing with big drops in property values are avoiding their problems by committing what some call fraud – and others call smart.

These owners are using their good credit rating to buy a second home at a lower price, assuring the lender they’ll rent out the first. But what they really end up doing is walking away from the first home, leaving the lender holding the bag.

Lenders call the phenomena “buy and bail.”

In some cases, real-estate practitioners and brokers who see nothing wrong with it coach home owners through the buy-and-bail process. Some blame the phenomenon in part on lenders’ unwillingness to cut deals or restructure loans made when home prices were inflated.

“It’s just a business decision,” says Linda Caoili, a Sacramento real-estate practitioner. “If you’re upside-down $250,000, why would you keep it? It just doesn’t make sense.”

The trend may be short-lived. Under revised Fannie Mae guidelines, which could take effect next week, loan applicants who claim they will rent out their first home will have to produce supporting evidence, including an executed lease agreement. Borrowers also will have to prove that they can pay the mortgage, property taxes, and insurance for both residences. The guidelines will make an exception only for borrowers who have at least 30 percent equity in their current home.

Of course, some individuals still can qualify for that second loan because of a strong credit and cash position.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

At tonight’s City Council meeting, held at 7:00 p.m. at Global Water Center, the Council voted unanimously to award a contract to DBA Construction in the amount of $2,444,489.80 to construct a bridge over the Santa Rosa Wash on Honeycutt Road.
 
The bridge will be four lanes wide, include pedestrian sidewalks and is ADA compliant. Construction on the bridge is expected to begin in early July with an estimated completion date in January 2009.
 
“It is anticipated that Honeycutt Road will remain open during bridge development,” stated Development Services Director Brent Billingsley. “The only exception would be a short closure for the construction of the temporary bypass road.”
 
This will be the City’s first major construction project. The bridge was originally stipulated to the Tortosa development, but in order to ensure citizen safety and move the completion date forward the City took over the project.
 
Funding is $1 million from transportation DIF, $750,000 from Pinal County half-cent road tax and the remaining $750,000 is from the general fund capital reserve. 

Source: City of Maricopa