Just a month ago we shared with you our new listing and it is already closing this month. This 3br/1.75ba, 2,045sf home saw gads of praise from realtors who specialize in historic homes. The owners spent precious time and resources making certain that they honored the historic charm of the home, all while upgrading the kitchens, bathrooms, floors, plumbing and landscaping.

This beautiful home in the Del Norte Historic Neighborhood was renovated, top to bottom, preserving important historic elements, including matching new kitchen and bathroom tile to the original tile from the 1930’s.

The bathrooms have been expanded and updated, while preserving their vintage charm. The new kitchen has stainless steel appliances, a new breakfast nook with built-in seating, new A/C and heating, along with renovations to the pool and landscaping.

The unique pass-throughs between the kitchen and living room add to the already light-bathed living space. There is even a bonus room perfect for a home office. The home is close to many of downtown Phoenix’s favorite attractions: Encanto Park, golf, restaurants, inviting walking areas, and downtown entertainment.

It was no wonder that it is closing this month. We took in multiple offers within days and accepted a great offer with a quick close.

It was a nice complement to hear from agents who specialize in historic home, wanting to know how the owners pulled this one off. With most homes now being gutted and renovated with what can only be called a “uniform look”, the buyers, in particular, were excited to see what they had done. You can learn more about the importance of historic preservation at this website.

Whether looking to see what is closing this month, or what we have coming soon, always check out our listings page on this site for more photos.

We are all responsible for the state of water in Arizona. Well, maybe not if you just moved here. But, you will if you stay here. And taking responsibility is the only hope for water in Arizona.

I begin this post with that sentence, taking the serious risk that it will turn you off and you will think that I’m going to try to shame you about your life here in the desert.

I promise I won’t. Really.

After all, we are all responsible, including me. We all live in the desert and we all use water. We could all do better.

I posted this piece from Slate Magazine and one climate change denier told me I was just a preaching liberal do-gooder who wanted to look down his nose at everyone else. My response: I’m responsible, too.

The nature of responsibility, especially if we want to create change, is to look at ourselves. There are many things that I did at my home to reduce water use: drained and covered the old pool, eliminated the grass in my front yard. But there are other things that I could still do.

But, more than that, as a realtor I’ve said many times that we realtors have an ethical responsibility to our clients to think about water and energy in the desert.

How can I ethically sign you up for a 30-year mortgage for your home knowing that your house may be worth a fraction of what it could be because we have failed to take care of our sustainability future.

Again, we don’t have to completely run out of water for people and businesses to choose not to live in Arizona anymore, thus tanking the housing market and over-all economy.

Realtors and home builders should be water and energy conservation hawks, but sadly they are not.

Of course, this takes us to the tired, old false dichotomy about whether any individual can solve major problems like water conservation and climate change.

It’s just that, a false dichotomy. I won’t fix all the problems by draining my pool or recycling or driving an electric car. But I should do those things AND vote only for people who promise to dramatically reform water and energy policy in Arizona. Here’s a great scorecard map showing who cares and who does not.

It’s a simple equation. Like losing weight. Fad diets won’t do it. Only a mix of diet and exercise will do it.

So, responsibility should not be about shaming. It is about taking personal action and demanding policy action, together.

This October Shortage Update continues to see an over-all shortage, but some movement in the market in a different direction, hopefully. Active Listings are lower than last year, but up 11% over last month. Monthly sales are down 2.7% from last year, but up 3.6% from last month.Monthly Average Sales Price per Sq. Ft. is $252.19 versus $198.80 last year – up 26.9% – and up 1.1% from $249.41 last month.

According to our friends at the Cromford Report, investor buyers are dominating the market, an issue that I’ve opined is causing dramatic problems for regular people. Hopefully soon we will see some limitations on how much investment can be done in our residential neighborhoods, which were never designed for this.

Quote follows:

“More short-term twists and turns in the market are creating a confused situation. Yes, we still have very much a seller’s market with supply inadequate to meet demand.

However, the demand is increasingly dictated by investors and iBuyers rather than traditional buyers – the owner-occupiers that make up the heart of the housing market. Demand from iBuyers surged dramatically in June, July and August, but not all iBuyers behaved the same.

Opendoor increased their purchases from 66 in August 2020 to 728 in August 2021, but their buying tailed off in the second half of September. Zillow went from 34 in August 2020 to 253 in August 2021. Their purchases peaked at 90 during the second week of September but have since dropped back a little. OfferPad has been less volatile with 82 purchases in August 2020 growing to 152 in August 2021.

All the iBuyers have sold far less than they have bought, meaning there are many properties in inventory. The could mean an increase in supply over the next several weeks.

Active listing counts (excluding UCB and CCBS) are moving higher again after a lull in August. There was a rise of almost 25% during July, so the September increase of just over 11% is not as dramatic. However, the underlying trend seems to be for buyers to find a few more homes for sale, which must be a relief for them.

Demand looked strong all the way through September, but not so much at the beginning of October. (emphasis added)

Under contract counts and sales numbers suggest we may have seen the best of 2021 demand. With supply rising and demand appearing to plateau, we could possibly be in for some cooling during 4Q. But do not expect prices to fall. Indeed September pricing was significantly higher than August and brings to an end the summer lull that started in June.”

I added the emphasis above because it is clear to me, specifically from the Cromford Index, that if you are thinking to sell, we are pretty much at the high point of the market. We don’t know how long it will take to drop, but we are pretty certain things are changing.

Donn Reiner, has written many articles over the years for the Arizona Republic and others about Phoenix history and memorials.  This month, Donna reviews some of the Phoenix Church History. Or, I should say, a limited review of some of the history of the architecture of churches in Phoenix.

American history courses have stressed that this country was founded on religious freedom. And indeed over the past 240 years since our founding, the United States has seen the ebb and flow of new religious groups as well as those previously established in other countries.

Newly formed congregations often started in homes and then rented small sites until they were able to purchase land and raise the necessary funds to build their permanent structure. It would be the home that would often serve their needs for many years with additions and alterations. Sometimes these congregations would outgrow their initial home and find a place to build a larger campus. In that case, the church buildings might be sold to a new congregation of even a different faith. Other congregations divided and formed new churches that would then seek a new home. And in a few exceptions, congregations disbanded and the church languished until it was demolished or found another use.

Whatever the case may be, the church building provided a sense of place in the community and often in the memory of the public still symbolized the original faith that built it.

Perhaps you have seen a sketch of the purportedly earliest church in Phoenix constructed from branches. As Phoenix became more established, more permanent construction materials were used such as adobe, wood, stone, brick, or concrete.

Within the area labelled downtown, you can find many church buildings which date from the early part of the 20^th Century. The current sanctuary of St. Mary’s Basilica is perhaps the oldest with construction between 1903-1913. (The congregation is much older than that.)

The 1920s saw a surge of new church buildings. Historic First Presbyterian Church at Monroe and 4^th Avenue, now home to City of Grace Church, was built in 1927.  First Baptist Church, located at 3^rd Ave and Monroe, in 1929. After being vacant for a number of years, current owners have undertaken massive restoration efforts which will allow for new uses of this classic building.

The Gothic style Grace Lutheran on 3^rd St and Moreland dates from 1928.

Nearby is the First Congregational Church at 2^nd St and Willetta (a much older building housed the congregation before the current 1942 structure was built). The first Jewish synagogue at 122 E. Culver, now home to the Cutler-Plotkin Jewish Heritage Center, was built in 1921-22. Tanner Chapel A.M.E. at 8^th Street and Jefferson was built in 1929. All except the First Congregational Church are listed on the City of Phoenix Historic Property Register.

Donna Reiner is the co-author of three books on Phoenix history.

Coming Soon, specifically October 8th, will be a 2,045sf home in the Del Norte Historic Neighborhood. The owners have renovated it, top to bottom, with a new bathroom, new flooring, a new kitchen and updated bathrooms, new A/C and heating, along with plenty of renovations to the pool and landscaping.

We are taking photos this week, so I’m going to share with you now the previous photo. I just want to make certain you see this coming soon notice. The property will be listed just shy of $700,000.

The owners did a wonderful job preserving some of the most important historic elements, going so far as to match new kitchen tile in the bathrooms and kitchen to historically-accurate tile from the 1930’s, when this home was built.

So, if you want to get in and see this right away, please contact us this coming Thursday, or keep an eye on our listings page for more.

Contributed by Allison Hawley

One of many homes featured in the soon-to-be-released coffee table book, Historic Homes in the Heart of Phoenix, Frenchy Vieux is located in the Roosevelt Historic District and named for Marcellin “Frenchy” Vieux (1872-1951). A native of France, “Frenchy” Vieux emigrated to the U.S. in 1902 and became a prominent cement contractor and developer who used the tools of his trade to build his home in 1912. To this day, the stamps bearing his name can be seen on thousands of linear feet of Phoenix’s streets and sidewalks.

Featuring the expert photography of Alex Rentzis of Sparta Photo and Kevin Kaminski of Kevin Kaminski Photography, Historic Homes in the Heart of Phoenix is a high-quality coffee table book that will take you on a journey through Phoenix’s most iconic and revered historic homes. The story begins in Roosevelt, Phoenix’s first designated Historic District which, after years of abuse and neglect, is today an important and thriving part of the downtown Phoenix landscape, largely due to the efforts of former Mayor Terry Goddard, who honored us by authoring the Forward for our book.

Also featured is the ever-charming Willo Historic District, with its bungalows and tree-lined streets. Built as many little “street-car” subdivisions of modest homes, Willo is

now one of Phoenix’s largest historic districts and a delight to residents and visitors alike, as evidenced by the crowds who flock to the annual Willo Home Tour.

A cohesive and friendly neighborhood with a bit of a boho vibe, the homes of F.Q. Story are as unique as their owners in this close-knit District. As the Historic Homes in the Heart of Phoenix book came together, a common thread emerged among F.Q. Story homeowners who used words like “caretaker” and “keeper” to describe their time in the amazing homes they cherish.

The owners of the magnificent homes in the Encanto/Palmcroft Historic District delighted us with stories of the past, invoking images of days gone by when dinner guests were greeted by the sounds of a string quartet playing from a balcony high above the grand ballroom. What the guests didn’t see was each musician, instrument in hand, climbing a tall ladder to reach the balcony before commencing to entertain the guests far below their perch.

With an October 2021 release date, Historic Homes in the Heart of Phoenix is nothing short of a work of art. Our goal was to bring you a high-end book of generous size — perfect for showcasing the rich details you will find yourself pouring over again and again. We owe a debt of gratitude to each homeowner who shared their homes with us, and we are so pleased to now share them with you.

Historic Homes in the Heart of Phoenix is now available for purchase. Please order via this link and be sure to include our promo code “GYPHX10” for a 10% discount available through the month of October.

It is finally getting cool and the October happenings are rolling out.

Well, to be fair, if you think 95 degrees is hot, it is not yet cool. But, seriously, this time of year it peaks at 95 for about an hour so before and after that is much nicer, especially over night.

So, here’s our curated list of October happenings that sparked our interest. If you have suggestions for November, please share.

Phoestivus is happening! Okay, it’s obviously not going to happen in October, but I want to make certain you know two crucially important facts. First, Phoestivus is happening on December 15th and 16th. That’s two days in a row -Wednesday and Thursday. We are no longer going to host the event two Thursdays in a row. We took the opportunity of the year off to make this change which we’ve been wanting to do for a while.

Let me repeat that. Please don’t show up a week after you see that the first night of Phoestivus happened and expect to find anything more than an empty parking lot, with tumbleweeds and all.

Second, we are asking for a small $5 ticket purchase. I really, really, really did not want to do that. But the pandemic virtually eliminated our fundraising last year. Remember, this is a fundraiser for Community Food Connections, which produces the Downtown Public Market. But, be assured that your $5 goes directly to running the weekly market that you’ve come to love so much.

All Puppet Players is Back. Frankly, these guys should be paying me because I talk about their shows so much. Aw, but no. I couldn’t. They are just so funny and innovative.

Imagine a cross between the muppets and adult improve comedy –but without the uncomfortable silence you get at improve comedy. All Puppet Players is back now with their new adaptation of The Creature from the Black Lagoon.

In December, they will be back with their holiday favorite, Die Hard – A Christmas Story. Seriously, if you’ve not seen this, do it. These guys are hilarious. Leave the kids at home unless you are prepared for them to repeat some seriously adult themes around the dinner table for the rest of their childhoods.

The Art & Science of Arachnids. The Phoenix Science Museum has something for all ages, in case you need to make it up to them for that time you got a baby sitter so you could go to a puppet show; their big eyes welling up with tears as they watch you walk out the door, saying, “Why, mumsie? Why can’t we see the puppets?”

Uh, yeah. Anyway. Arachnids. They are creepy, crawlie and the art is to behold. The Art & Science of Arachnids features 3 themed cubes which hold 100 live arachnids. The Science Cube discusses arachnids that are not spiders or scorpions, deadly spiders of North America, and arachnids in medicine. The Arts Cube illustrates the connection we have with arachnids in film, literature, and music. Various flip panels allow interaction with the guests. The Culture Cube highlights arachnid folklore and mythology, arachnid conservation, and arachnids as food. Open daily

Play DTPHX Lotería to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month. Explore new places, discover local businesses, and appreciate some cool, Mexican-inspired art by playing DTPHX Lotería, Wednesday, Sept 15th – Friday, Oct. 15th. Part art walk, part game, part scavenger hunt, participating in DTPHX Lotería is an easy and fun activity for whole family. How to Play: Pick up a “tabla” (bingo-like playing card) at any participating downtown business, or from a DTPHX Ambassador. Each tabla will feature 16 downtown businesses depicted Loteria style – a colorfully-illustrated card symbolizing the location. Find the card that corresponds with the business (the artist-designed poster will be displayed in the window or on property), go inside and get your tabla stamped. Once you get at least four in a row, that’s Loteria! Players who get four across, in a row, diagonal, a two-by-two box (4 images) anywhere on the tabla get a free sticker sheet. ?Fill the entire card to get a commemorative enamel pin!? Free.

Oscar Muñoz – Invisibilia at The Phoenix Art Museum. Oscar Muñoz: Invisibilia is the first mid-career survey of Colombian artist Oscar Muñoz’s work in the United States. this exhibition will introduce U.S. audiences to a broad scope of his evolving practice. Beginning with his early, stark charcoal drawings from the late 1970s and early 1980s. The exhibition will also include approximately 50 exemplary works from his most evocative series created during the late 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s to the present day, including site-specific work, to trace the evolution of his practice. Katz Wing for Modern Art. $23.

The Match Guide to Wine event is at FOUND:RE on October 13th. I’ve been pretty open about my limited knowledge of wine. I just don’t taste those hints of raisin, chocolate and goat cheese that they claim is in a wine from a valley next to another valley that has a candy factory specializing in raisin and goat cheese chocolate bar. But I do like a nice wine tour and do my best to learn. Anywho! The Match Guide to Wine will discuss all the things that I fail to absorb about wine and offer wine tasting samples accompanied by light fare. Bottles of the wine sampled will be available for purchase with a 15% off discount. $25.

Chicano Batman will be at the Van Buren on October 24th. I’ll be honest, I’ve had it in my mind for a decade to see them in person. My problem is really just organization. I don’t keep a handy list of the bands I want to see in person. Then I’m remiss in checking calendars and, poof, I miss them. I don’t plan to do that this time. You might see me at their show. The band’s signature funky style can be attributed to their musical influences, The Beatles and Black soul musicians Curtis Mayfield and the Delfonics, according to Wikipedia. You might see me there wiggling my hips to the beats.

The Local First October Business Mixer will be at DigIt Gardens on October 13th. Frankly, its just nice to see these events happening again. DigIt is regularly a sponsor of the Phoestivus Market. So, naturally, we love them. October’s Phoenix Business Mixer is hosted by Dig It Gardens. Join Local First Arizona in a beautiful and unique venue surrounded by green plants, art, music, and positive atmosphere. Business Mixers are held on a monthly basis for LFA Members. Even non-members may join in.

I ran in to some interesting items in the news recently that I thought I’d share. In some ways, they are more of action steps than anything else. If you find any of these compelling, take action.

1) More dirty air? No thanks!
I encourage you to take action right away to tell Salt River Project that they should not go through with plans to build an 840MW (that’s a lot, folks) new, air-polluting, water-wasting, methane gas-fired power plant. Learn more about it from former SRP board member, Paul Hirt, who is speaking out against it. This will add to bad air quality and will add more CO2 to the atmosphere at a time we should be ending use of CO2.

There are a few things to keep in mind here. First, the $1 BILLION price tag does not count the cost of gas fuel, pumped here from Texas, for the next few decades. Remember when methane gas prices jumped when Texas had bad weather? Gas is a volatile fuel in terms of price and its price will only go up as fewer people transition away toward clean renewable energy. Second, Pinal county, where this facility expansion is to take place, is restricting water use and shutting down farms. But somehow sucking millions of gallons up for dirty energy is okay? Third, the price of renewables and storage is coming down so quickly, that this plant will be an expensive stranded asset by the end of the decade, burning an expensive fuel, which SRP customers will continue to pay for. If you want to some easy action steps, have a look at this web link.

2) Bravery from a Local Politician
To celebrate US Constitution Day on September 17th, come see Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer speak about the election process. Richer is best known as the Republican election official who has stood up to conspiracy theorists in his own party, who have been weaving ever-increasingly absurd theories about how the 2020 election was stolen. Richer is the type of elected official who shows the backbone to stand up to people who are abusing our electoral process for personal or political gain. He will be speaking from noon to 1pm at Phoenix College Bulpitt Auditorium.

3) Understanding the Navajo and Hopi Perspective
Imagine you own a beautiful, big plot of land. It has a stream, trees and beautiful views. You notice over just a few years that your stream has dried up, the vegetation looks sad and you can’t feed your animals on it anymore. This is what happened to Navajo and Hopi people over just a few decades of coal mining and coal plant operations in their community — for coal plants that send power hundreds of miles away to Phoenix and Tucson. It is a very real thing to them, which we have heard little about. I’ve been captivated over the last year or so in this story and telling it.

This article in Time Magazine features a woman from the Navajo Nation who can speak to this reality and who has some sage advice for us as we all over the US begin to see the real damage from years of poor planning.

4) Electric Buses
In a similar way, here is an inspiring story about how parents of children with respiratory illnesses banded together to get their school district to purchase electric busses. Electric busses don’t have the pollution problems that diesel buses do and last much longer, with fewer maintenance costs. Here’s an action step. Support Chispa AZ, the group that supported the parents. Just inspiring to see.

Other than those 120 degree days in June, we’ve been lucky with our monsoons this summer. It means your September events will be a little more bearable if they are outside. It’s not that the days will be cooler, necessarily. But it means the summer has been broken up in to smaller, more survivable bits.

At least, that’s how I get through the summer.

Now, on to our curated list of things we think look pretty fun.

The 2021 Edible Backyard Summit will be September 14th-16th. Imagine growing healthy, rich food in your own back yard, free from pesticides while creating a peaceful space for yourself. I do some gardening, but I am certain I would benefit from this annual summit. Register at the Urban Farm website for more information and prices.

The 2021 Historic Preservation Conference is coming up October 27th-29th at the Doubletree in Tempe. See this registration page for both the Historic Preservation Conference (HPC) and the Site Steward Program’s (SSP) Annual Conference. In the past, both conferences would occur at different times and locations. Now that the SSP is under the SHPO Office, we decided to bring both conferences closer together.

Drop by Build It at the Arizona Science Center. Walk through the giant cardboard castle into a world that’s waiting to be built with nothing but your wild imagination and engineering skills. Practice the principles of innovating, designing, and constructing at this engaging exhibition. From buildings to bridges (and everything in between), Guests will be able to create their own unique experience. Build the ultimate cardboard fort, design sturdy bridges, or even create your dream house—it’s completely up to you and your wild imagination. $5 plus general admission. Daily.

Get a little Wine Education at the Hidden Track Bottle Shop, September 8th from 2pm to 6pm. I’m one of those people who will happily tag along if you wanna go wine tasting. But I won’t pretend to know anything about wine. If you are like me, this may be for you. Hidden Track will feature two to four wines during education hours and will allow up to six customers into the shop at a time. This will be a maximum of a 10-minute experience, during which they will discuss the wine, region, winemaking, varietal, etc. $5. The $5 can be put towards a purchase of anything in the shop and credited as a $5 discount for any purchase of $10 or more. How much can you learn in ten minutes, though?

Try this High Vibration Gong Sound Journey Meditation. Sounds hippy dippy to you? I can see how it might. But if you’ve never tried this, it’s worth it. Healing can be achieved through gentle, natural methods such as sound and vibration. Ancient civilization and Eastern Cultures have been utilizing some of these methods for centuries, such as Sound Healing or Vibration Medicine. $30 at the Japanese Friendship Garden on September 19th at 8:45 am.

When I saw “Lerner & Loewe’s Camelot” announced for September 15th at the Phoenix Theatre, I thought of the discount trial lawyers, frankly. Different people. Shows what I know. In actuality, this is an epic story of love and betrayal, freshly reimagined, with nothing to do with suing your doctor for malpractice or whatever those other guys do. The legendary love triangle of King Arthur, Guenevere and Sir Lancelot leaps from the pages of T.H. White’s novel in Lerner and Loewe’s award-winning, soaring musical. This small cast version is ideally scaled for the more intimate theatrical experience of the Mainstage Theatre. $44 – $94.

Take the kids to see Red Herring perform their rhymed version of the classic Aesop’s Fables at the Great Arizona Puppet Theater with original music and large tabletop puppets. These timeless stories address bullying, selfishness, competition, ingenuity, and the affirmation that little beings can achieve great things. Each performance includes The Lion and the Mouse, The Tortoise and the Hare, The Owl and the Grasshopper, The Fox and the Crow, The Crow and the Pitcher, and The Stork and the Fox. This production has earned an UNIMA citation of Excellence – the highest honor in American puppetry. $8 – $12.

And for even more ideas for September, check out this poster from our friends at Old Republic Title Company.

I’m saying this as a realtor who has helped clients buy and sell properties that they use for short term rental (STR) investments: it’s long past time for us to reform STR laws.

When I was a legislator in 2016, I even voted for the law that centralized STR rules at the state level, created a structure for taxation and restricted how localities could make their own laws.

I regret that vote. At the time, I thought it was a good thing that regular people had an opportunity to make money renting out rooms in their own property and I had little concern that the Hiltons and Marriots of the world would have to forego that new yacht purchase as a result of regular people making money for a change.

I also remember at the time predicting that we would need to re-visit the new law to update it and adapt it with the times.

This is where we must squarely put the blame on Governor Ducey. I even agree with some of the most conservative members of the legislature who attempted to pass laws since then to allow localities more power to restrict STRs.

Never did I expect that the governor would resist the will of the voters, neighborhood leaders and housing experts.

Let’s review the damage that STRs have done:

1) Fewer Homes Means Higher Prices. The most damaging affect has been that STRs remove homes from the market so that families have fewer choices. Over the last decade purchases of STRs (and residential homes being turned in to long term rentals) have shrunk the over-all supply of homes to the tune of millions of homes.

Most homes come back on the market every 7-10 years. So, when you take a big chunk out of the inventory over the course of a few years, the price of the remaining homes goes up. People can’t afford to purchase a home. Older people who want to downsize don’t sell because they fear they won’t be able to afford a smaller home for what they paid for their larger home.

Let me say this as clearly as I can. Much of the housing crisis in America right now rests squarely STR investors. Millions of homes are no longer available for people because they are being used for commercial businesses. We can also look to the investors after the crash of 2008 who were buying homes 100 at a time to turn in to rental properties.

2) Damage to Neighborhoods. Healthy neighborhoods stay healthy when people know each other and respect each other. When upwards of a third of the homes in some neighborhoods are turned in to STRs, the health of the neighborhood is undermined. We’ve all heard about the parties and harm to peace and quiet. This has been particularly acute in historic neighborhoods. For an entire generation, people have been working to preserve historic homes only to find STR investors coming in with no respect for the historic beauty of the neighborhood.

3) Neighborhoods are not Commercial Zones. Have a look at this map of Sedona from 2019. This was presented to the city council and showed how many vacation rentals have been located in Sedona. According to Sedona Assistant City Manager Karen Osburn, “We never anticipated at the Capitol that someone would go into a neighbor­hood, purchase a home and basically turn it into a mini-hotel. So that’s the chal­lenge. You have a home that’s basically purchased as a business but you don’t have someone living on site, and managing it, I think you have a problem.”

4) Who is hurt the most? I spoke with a potential client once who was from Spain. He told me how the STRs in the middle of Madrid changed the entire town. The cute little corner shops nearly all closed down because the people who lived full time in those areas moved out. There was nobody left to buy groceries eery week. Similarly, when whole sections of town, which were previously affordable, are no longer affordable, the working population must move further our, or to less desirable housing.

5) Price escalation. The math is simple. The STR investor can pay quite a bit more for a home because they are making a lot of money from rentals. So, they drive prices up and families are left out –sometimes literally outside.

Have a look at this great open letter to the owners of AirBnB. As the author points out, the creator of AirBnB originally started the app because they needed a way to find people rent out a room in their expensive apartments in San Francisco. The app has moved away from just renting rooms and now has exacerbated the very problem that the founders of the company attempted to remedy.

I’m not judging, folks. I’ve use AirBnB and I’m going to re-think that.

Further, I understand the excitement of investing in a property that makes a lot of money for you and your family.

We are duty bound to work for our clients. If they want to purchase a home as an investment, we will work for them. But from here on, I will attempt to educate them about the damage that STRs do to neighborhoods and families.

I can recommend, perhaps investing instead in the growing renewable energy and battery technology industries. That’s growing and will help more than it hurts.