Click to enlarge supply price range

The April Market Report, with the help of our friends at the Cromford Report, is here for your viewing pleasure.

First, the supply price range:

When they examine the number of active single family listings by price range, they can clearly see the long term shortage of affordable homes, the adequate supply in the mid-range and the glut of luxury homes for sale.

To put that another way, from $400,000 upwards we have more active listings than we have seen in the last 6 years, so buyers have plenty of choice and therefore negotiating power.

However, below $200,000 we have a chronic shortage of homes available for purchase, and there is precious little to rent too. Here sellers have most of the negotiating power.

Click to enlarge demand price range.

Now, let’s look at the demand price range:

From $225,000 to $600,000 we have far more listings under contract that at this time last year. We also see very strong growth for the sector from $800,000 to $1 million.

From $175,000 to $225,000 and from $1.5 million to $2 million we have moderate increases in listings under contract of between 10% and 15%. For the sector from $1.5 to $2 million this goes a little way to mitigating the increase in supply.

In plain English, th shortage of supply means the market under $175,000 is much smaller than last year, showing there is no lack of buyer interest. Below $125,000 there is not much for sale and buyer interest is lower than last year too.

So, what does the April Market Report mean for you?

1. If you are looking for a home between $200,000 and $600,000 expect languid growth in the number of listings compared to last year, yet a strong increase in the number of those homes that are pending or under contract.
2. If you are looking to sell a home between $200,000 and $600,000, expect to sell quickly if you price right.

To build the right strategy for you, call us at 602-456-9388 and we can help.

Phoenix’s Historic Downtown Baptist Church is getting the long overdue resurrection is so desperately needs. The church, affectionately dubbed “The Monroe Abbey”, is transforming into a new hub of bustling active space for downtowners and visitors to enjoy.

“This was finished in 1929, just before the depression. It was a big church; 1,400 or more were here for services. It was designed for chorale singing and mass choirs,” former Arizona Attorney General and First Baptist Church advocate, Terry Goddard, explains.

In 1968 The First Baptist Congregation held its final church service at the 3^rd Avenue Church, and relocated to its new facilities on Glendale Avenue, leaving the building vacant.

In 1982 the Church is added to the National Register of Historic Places.

In 1984,the sanctuary went up in flames and burned for two days, causing the roof to collapse completely.

In 1992 the Church is declared a hazard and was set for demolition.  Saved from the wrecking ball by Terry Goddard and other local heroes.

Although the fire left the church in disrepair, the open-air cathedral has had a renaissance of nature over the last twenty years with an unruly “secret garden”, zillions of birds, and about thousands bees making the space their home.

Architects at Jones Studio along with Patry Building Co are taking on the heavy lifting to transform the Abbey into a multi-tenant, mixed-use space while keeping both the integrity of the structure and working the majestic beauty of the natural growth into the development.

The new four-story space will be activated with a black box theatre, restaurant, office space, gallery and even a speakeasy. There’s even enough space in the center courtyard for performances and events.

Join us on April 21^st for tours inside the palatial property with Katherine Patry as well as a special update on the Welnick Bros. development just down the street.

As always, please RSVP below.

Date: Thursday, April 21^st
Time: 5:30PM – 7:30PM
Location: Monroe Street Abbey: 302 W. Monroe St.
RSVP: Click Here
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Thanks again to Tim Bishop, Ryan Jerrell and Jessica Brining for hosting a beautiful event at DIG IT Urban Garden. The weather was perfect, the lighting was elegant and everybody had a great time.

March is looking to be another great event. Satisfy your curiosity this month as we explore Phoenix’s finest oddities shop, Curious Nature, at their new home on Camelback and Central.

Oddities, curiosities and eclectic collections fill every inch of space at Curious Nature making it one of the most interesting shops you’ll ever step into. Specimen jars and jawbones line the display shelves while walls hold pinned moths, butterflies, and mounted animal heads. Owner Mason Conway modeled the shop after history’s iconic cabinet of curiosity, (also called “wonder rooms”), where extraordinary objects tell a visual story of the wonders of the natural world.

Conway has always been a fan of the Victorian Era and began collecting at a young age, “Collecting natural specimens was a very popular hobby at that time, and I was looking for a new career path. The opportunity to open the shop presented itself, so I jumped at the chance.”

Conway’s contacts in the collectors world affords him opportunities to bring in great pieces by local artists like Heather Grimes Dream Wings jewelry collection, which works with 100% harm-free wings, bones and snakeskins to create incredible necklaces sold in store.

Mason’s passion for sharing his knowledge with others encouraged him to launch his own business. With the new space, Conway’s now able to expand the class sizes for etymology and taxidermy, which sells out quickly! Next up is a class on Taxidermy with rats in early April.

As Conway puts it, “I just wanted to share the things I love with Phoenix. I love teaching and I love learning. This is a great opportunity to share my interest in the beauty of science and nature in a unique way. It’s like a museum, but you can take it home with you. I encourage people to pick things up and touch them.”

Meet Mason and the crew of Curious Nature this March with us and enjoy tours and small bites till 7:30PM. As always, RSVP below.

Date: Thursday, March 24th
Time: 5:30PM – 7:30PM
Host: Curious Nature: 5032 N. Central Ave., Phoenix, 85012
Note: Free to attend, free raffle ticket at entry!

RSVP HERE

From the City regarding its compost facility operator:

The City of Phoenix has issued its Compost Facility Operator RFP!

This RFP will select a qualified contractor to operate the city’s future 110,000-ton compost facility, which is scheduled to open in late 2016.  The successful proposer will operate and maintain the compost facility and sell the products generated at the facility.  

The RFP is posted at this link.  The pre-proposal meeting will be held at 2:30 p.m. on March 11, 2016 at the city’s 27th Avenue Transfer Station in Phoenix.

All questions about this RFP must be directed to the robyn.skramstad@phoenix.gov.

I’m a big fan of composting. I like the idea that I’m keeping the nutrients from my yard in my yard, or that I’m adding to the health of my yard by composting much of the food that I buy.

In Phoenix, you need to think more about heat and moisture than in other parts of the country.

Of course, the big news about getting a compost facility operator is that it could lead to more composting services for those of you who don’t have the time, room or inclination to do your own composting.

This issue does not necessarily impact home sales or purchases. You don’t for instance, need to have a compost pile inspection from a licensed compost pile inspector. But, if you have a compost pile and you are selling a home, you’ll want to make it look attractive.

I such a nerd about this stuff, that I made a video about composting about 8 years ago. Well, not so much that I’d want to be a compost facility operator.

So, while you are waiting for the next season of Game of Thrones to come on here’s something you can watch. In the video, I cover three different types of compost systems that I’ve used and the results that I’ve had.

As for the movie, I’d like to thank all of the people who made this production possible: the director, the key grip, assistant key grip, the stage hands and union lighting guys…

We’ve had clients ask us, “How much clutter is too much clutter?” when it comes to preparing their homes for sale.

The quick answer is that buyers need to imagine their stuff in your home. If you have too much clutter on the walls, on surfaces or on the floor, they can’t do that.

Is there a house around those dolls?

My realtor friend –or a friend who is also a realtor– Leif Swanson has a snarky little website called uglyhousephotos.com where he documents some of the worst cases.

You can get lost looking at some of the worse atrocities. And, if case you think we are picking on just doll owners, here’s a great example of how this lover of all things “rock poster” may have shaved thousands off the sale of the home.

Rock out.

So, all fun aside, what should you do? We often find ourselves telling folks to remove about 50% of what you have on each shelf. This may not apply to you if you are a minimalist with that one vase on an otherwise empty book shelf. But, we find that most folks could benefit from this rule.

If you are not moving before you list, consider getting storage for that extra stuff. Or, take an opportunity to purge those things that just don’t speak to you anymore. The purge might help your eventual move, anyway.

If you are moving before the sale, we suggest you leave just enough things in the house to help demonstrate how each room could be used. Say, for instance, a bed with a night stand and some flowers –nothing else.

For the most part, keep it simple and you will be fine. Of course we are happy to do a tour of your home to give you advice. Don’t worry. We won’t judge your clutter. We have it in our homes, too!

If you need help building a strategy around your sale or purchase, please contact us at 602-456-9388.

You refer, we donate. Call me today to find out how we can support your favorite charity. We appreciate your referrals!

We’ve been seeing some shifting in the central Phoenix market recently, so I figured we might check in early with the Cromford Report for a Central Phoenix Market Update.

Anecdotally, we’ve seen listings starting to sell more quickly. We expect that as we go in to the high season for home sales –February through June.

Central Phoenix Active Listings

The end of 2015 was a little slow for our folks listing properties. It was to the point where we were advising prospective sellers to hold off and watch. We are seeing better activity, so we are encouraging those folks to list now, rather than later.

Cromford confirms what we are seeing in our central phoenix market update. See how the active listings in CenPho zip codes dropped quickly at the end of last year, but they are rebounding now.

What I find interesting is how the Cromford Index responds quickly to that. We see that little dip in the pink line on the index. That corresponds to the increased number of listings –the greater the number of listings, the less of a seller’s market it is.

To be precise, there are a lot of factors that go in to the Cromford Index. It is proprietary, so I don’t know all of them. But some have been explained to me, and inventory is one of them.

Regardless, and despite the small drop, I find it interesting that we are still at a higher point on the index that almost any time last year.

So, what does that mean? Well, I take it to mean that if folks continue to list, we could see a turn in the Cromford Index. However, if the preponderance of people listing get a little greedy and price above market, then sales of well-priced homes will continue to be robust.

If you need help building a strategy around your sale or purchase, please contact us at 602-456-9388.

You refer, we donate. Call me today to find out how we can support your favorite charity. We appreciate your referrals!

One of our local business leader-type friends here in Phoenix, Andrew Kolikoff has started a new academy called Mentor Mash.

This academy is designed as a tool for those who need a business mentor.

He’s set up an impressive support network:

• Local First – they are strategically reaching their membership on our behalf!
• The Phoenix Hispanic Chamber of Commerce – they are doing the same
• The Arizona Commerce Authority – we’re in their newsletter
• The City of Phoenix Economic Development Department
• The Maricopa County Women’s Education and Entrepreneur Center
• The Hive (Phoenix Public Library System’s Startup Support Group)
• Right now we have almost 75 registered businesses, 3 Paid sponsors and all the above supportive organizations involved.

Have a look at his site and judge for yourself!

WPA Building Rendering

Some of you have been following along as we have worked to save the WPA building at the state fairgrounds.

Seems the fairground board is bent on tearing down another historic building in Phoenix. They believe that they will make more money for the fair by renting tent space on the land where the building used to be.

We believe, and have shown, that this is not true. We already have parties who are interested to rent all or part of the renovated building. But the fair board is not willing to wait that long.

I understand their frustration. The Arizona Legislature has been sweeping money from their ticket sales for years to “balance” the budget. This has left the fair with nothing for renovation, let alone long-term planning.

Current WPA Buildling

In 2014, when the fair board was about to tear the building down, some of us found a way to halt the demolition. The fair board gave us a year. In that time, we have come up with tens of thousands of dollars in commitments to repair the building.

But now we are told that the time is running out. The fair board plans to demolish in April, unless we raise $100,000 to at least repair the roof. However, they have resisted our efforts to get architects in to the building to assess what it would take to repair the roof.

We need your support to save this piece of Arizona heritage. Please contribute whatever you can to the Arizona Preservation Foundation for the WPA building.

Some on the Fair Board are fearful that a bunch of historic preservationists will come along and alter the grounds such that they will never be able to host a fair again. I think I can speak for folks in the preservation community when I say that this is not the case. Our state fair, which is unique in so many ways, has the room for preservation while maintaining our annual state fair –our heritage.

There is common ground here, as large as the Veteran’s Colosseum.

SAVE the DATE: Thursday, March 10, 2016

Artlink, City of Phoenix, Downtown Phoenix Inc., and Hance Park Conservancy invite you to the “Art d’Core Gala”

NEW Co-Host and Venue!

Y’all know that the arts is an economic driver, especially in downtown Phoenix. Art is a big reason why so many people want to live in Cenpho.

I plan to be there!

Held under–and among–the stars in Hance Park, this fourth annual celebration spotlights the significant contribution that arts and culture plays in creating a dynamic urban core.

The Art d’Core Gala is hosted by Artlink Inc., the City of Phoenix, Downtown Phoenix Inc., and Hance Park Conservancy. The festivities will include music and dancing; fabulous food and drink; a special toast by Mayor Greg Stanton; and an eye-popping virtual tour of the Hance Park Master Plan.

Please RSVP Here