Now that we’re more than halfway through the summer of 2019, it’s time to check in on our current market conditions.

This July, 8,724 new homes hit the market which is a slight decrease from the 9,090 that were listed during that same month last year. The number of active listings also dropped year over year, but only by a little over 300 homes, with there being 17,365 active listings in July of 2019 compared to the 17,695 that were on the market last year. 

The number of homes sold, meanwhile, actually rose, with 9,344 having sold this July, compared to the 8,544 homes that sold in July of 2018. This rise is also reflected in the amount of inventory available today. We currently have 1.86 months’ worth of supply. Last July, there were 2.07 months of available inventory. 

So what does all of this mean? First of all, sales are up. Not only that, but homes are selling fast. With less than two months of available inventory, we’re in a red-hot seller’s market right now. There simply aren’t enough homes to satisfy buyer demand, so smart sellers are making their move and taking advantage of these incredible conditions. 

Buyers, too, have a great opportunity before them. Interest rates are extremely low, which means purchasing power is high. This makes upsizing (or downsizing) more affordable than ever. 

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Almost every day, sellers ask me, “Should I sell my home the way it is, or should I remodel it first and then sell it?”

A survey from the National Association of Realtors looked at the costs to upgrade a property versus the recapture on the sales price. The survey showed that almost all of the improvements done recapture 75% or less of the money spent on them. A major kitchen remodel recaptures only 59% of the costs—that’s a lot of money lost!

So why do people remodel their kitchens? My hope is that they’re doing it for their own enjoyment, not for resale. Will a kitchen remodel increase the value of your property? Yes. But will it increase the value by the cost of doing the remodel? No.

There is an exception: If you’re a contractor who buys kitchen cabinets at a discount and you do the work yourself, you can build equity. But the average Joe will likely hire someone else to do their remodel, so they’re not personally making money on the remodel. In most cases, it’s better to sell the home the way it is rather than sink a lot of money into a property to remodel it and then sell it for more money.

Here’s another remodel tip: Do you want a home with a pool? That’s fine, just know that pools are expensive—even a cheap pool can cost $30,000 or more to install, and that’s not to mention all the extra amenities that people tend to purchase to go with the pool (spas, grottoes, etc.). From a financial perspective, you’d better enjoy that pool once you pay for its installation because you’re not going to recoup that cost once you go to sell your home.

Some people choose to buy a home with a pool already installed because they don’t want to spend tens of thousands of dollars to install it, only to get a small portion of that back upon resale. In general, this is the cheaper option, but don’t get hung up on this singular feature when it comes to buying a home. Pools are accessories that can always be added later.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns about today’s topic, or if you’re looking to buy or sell real estate in general, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to give you some advice!

Today we’re talking about the real estate market in May of 2019. What’s changed in the past year? We’re here today to find out.

• We had 11,028 homes come on the market for sale in May 2019 versus 10,677 homes in May 2018. That’s a 3.2% increase!
• Active inventory is up to 20,544 from 18,247 last year. That’s a 12.6% increase.
• Home sales are up to 10,488 from 10,104, a 3.8% increase.
• Our months’ supply of inventory is up from 1.81 months to 1.96 months, an 8.3% increase.

Now, a two-month supply of inventory is obviously still a seller’s market generally speaking. Inventory has gone up, but is still historically low. As for interest rates, they’ve dropped a bit recently because the stock market has been so volatile. A lot of money has been going into the bond market, pushing down these rates. This is great news for buyers because lower rates equal lower payments.

In the U.S., 10,000 people turn 55 each day. A lot of these baby boomers will be selling their homes this summer and downsizing. Summer is a great time to sell your home, as evidenced by the amount of homes on the market right now. 

In fact, more homes sell in June, July, and August than in any other time of the year. A lot of families move in the summer when kids are out of school. Arizona is one of the top states for retirement and you can take advantage of that fact by selling a home this summer while there is less competition and more homebuyers.

If you have any questions for me in the meantime, don’t hesitate to give me a call at (602) 738-9943 or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Today I’d like to give you a quick glimpse into why our team has partnered with the Phoenix Dream Center—America’s largest rescue organization for sex trafficking victims. I’ve personally been on the Phoenix Dream Center’s board of directors for many years, and now I’m leveraging this position to raise funds through my real estate career.

From now until August 31st 2019, mention this ad, and I will donate 25% of the commission on any real estate sale or purchase. So if you or anyone you know wants to buy or sell a home, now is a great opportunity to do so while also helping to give back to the community.

In addition to helping victims of sex trafficking, the Phoenix Dream Center also helps to support children who have aged out of the foster care system. These children, who are left with nowhere else to go, are taken in by the Phoenix Dream Center and given a chance to transition into adulthood without the threat of homelessness hanging over them.

If you would like to learn more about the Phoenix Dream Center or read testimonials from real people the organization has helped, click here.

And, as always, if you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Today I’ve got another great market update for you that covers the latest numbers for the Greater Phoenix area for April 2019.

10,973 homes came on the market this year versus 10,804 last year, a 1.56% increase. We also had 21,986 homes available this year versus 18,856 last year, a 16.6% increase.

This year, we had 9,662 homes sell versus 9,186 last year, a 5.2% increase. As for our months’ supply of inventory, it went up from 2.05 to 2.28, an 11.2% increase.

What are we seeing here? First, a very slight increase in new homes coming on the market to go along with a modest increase in sales. Our inventory has gone up slightly, but we’re still in a seller’s market as a whole.

What’s affecting all of this? Interest rates, mostly. Last year, rates were going up and the stock market was tanking. Between those two things, a lot of people held back and demand went down at the end of the year. Rates are lower now than they were then, but they have gone up a bit in the last few weeks.

If you know anyone who is thinking about buying a home, or you’re thinking about buying a home yourself, now would be a great time to do so while rates are still low. There’s no guarantee that they’ll stay this low in the future.

If you have any questions for me in the meantime, don’t hesitate to give me a call at (602) 738-9943 or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Today’s topic: March Madness.

No, I don’t mean basketball—I’m talking about the madness of the real estate market we saw in March of this year.

In March, 11,170 homes came on the market, as compared to the 11,560 we saw in March 2018. That’s a 4.4% decrease in new homes coming on the market for sale.

Even still, we had 22,211 homes on the market for sale, which is 16.3% more than the 19,094 active listings we had last year.

We sold 8,507 listings this March—11.9% fewer year over year.

When we looked at the month’s supply of inventory, we saw that it went up 2.61%. Last March, it only increased by 31.98%.

In summary, we have more homes on the market for sale and fewer homes that are selling, which means that the inventory has increased. At the same time, mortgage rates dropped faster in the last 60 days than they have in over a decade!

Amid these mixed indicators, we’re noticing that homes that are priced well and are in great condition are still selling very quickly in most cases. Homes that need work and are priced too high or aren’t presented correctly are obviously taking longer to sell, if they sell at all.

Right now, we’re in a normal market that seems to be in flux—some areas in the Valley are slowing down, and others are pretty hot.

If you’re curious about what your home is worth, or if you’re thinking about buying a home and you’d like some tips on how to get the best deal in our market, don’t hesitate to reach out to me at (602) 738-9943. I’d love to help.

A double transaction means you’re selling your home at the same time as you’re buying your next one. Over the last 19 years in real estate, I’ve helped hundreds of clients with double transactions.

It gets tricky because you’re handling the buying and selling processes at the same time, meaning you deal with twice as many home inspections, appraisals, and negotiations. Though it can be a complex process, it’s certainly achievable, and today we’ll be telling you how to do it.

Before doing anything, find out what your home is worth. Work with a Realtor who will provide you with a net sheet and help you find out your market value; this will give you an accurate approximation of what you’ll be walking away from the sale with.

With this amount, go to a lender and get pre-qualified; this will also show you what you should use as a down payment. With all this, you’ll know the price point you should be looking at for your next home purchase.

I suggest you find out what’s on the market before you list your own home. You should have five to seven homes that you’re interested in and can make an offer on before listing.

Next, it’s time to market your home with an aggressive agent who can get the job done. When it goes under contract, go out to the aforementioned homes you’re interested in and make an offer that’s contingent upon your own home sale. Once your own home is under contract and has passed the inspection process, it’s much easier to get your offer accepted on a purchase.

It’s a great idea to have an agent who will represent you in both the buying and selling transactions. It’d be even better if they had an escrow coordinator who can organize the timelines and deadlines of each sale, ensuring you have a smooth closing. Your agent should also be working with lenders, title companies, and so on.

There are a lot of details that need to be hammered out, but, fortunately, we have handled these sales hundreds of times. If you are interested in orchestrating a double transaction in your next sale, have any questions, or need further information, feel free to reach out to us. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

What’s the latest news from our Phoenix real estate market? Here are the statistics from February and how they compare to February of last year:

• New listings decreased 4% from 9,940 to 9,555
• Active listings increased 18.1% from 19,229 to 22,714
• Sold listings decreased 8% from 7,070 to 6,507
• The months’ supply of inventory increased by 28.3%, going from 2.72 months to 3.49 months
  
  

As you can see from our supply of inventory, we’re still in a seller’s market, but 28.3% is still a drastic jump. Aside from the rise in inventory, another statistic worth noting is that the Cromford Market Index is down 24% since last August. This means homes are still selling, but we don’t have as many bidding wars as we saw last year.

Additionally, interest rates are still low—the average rate for the 30-year fixed mortgage is around 4.25%. This makes now a great time to buy. If you wait for rates to drop, you risk getting priced out of the market if they start to rise.

If you or anyone you know is thinking about buying or selling a home or you have any other questions about our market, don’t hesitate to get in touch with me. I’d love to help you.

Affordability and mortgage rates go hand in hand. That said, their impact goes deeper than some might think.

Many are quick to point out that interest rates were once hovering around 18%, and that today's single-digit rates are incredibly low by comparison. This is true. The difference is that when rates were that high, homes were also much less expensive.

Today, prices have gone up considerably. Therefore when rates rise by even a single percent, it makes a big difference in affordability.

As mortgage rates continue to rise, we’ll begin witnessing a few key consequences with increasing frequency. For one, a large number of buyers will be priced out of the market. These buyers will be forced to either move their search into lower price ranges or stop looking altogether.

For homeowners who locked in an extremely low rate, the decision to move to another home is not one to be made lightly. These homeowners will find it difficult to rationalize buying a new home if it means accepting a much higher rate, unless they have a pressing enough reason to move.

In other words, rising rates can result in a drop of both buyer and seller activity.

With that said, rates have temporarily dipped. Now is a perfect time to enter the market if you’re interested in buying or selling before they rise once more.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Today we’ll be comparing the numbers from our January 2019 market to those of January 2018.

10,905 homes came on the market in January 2019, while 10,594 were listed in January 2018—an increase of 2.9%. We had 20,616 active listings this January, while there were 19,147 last year—a 7.7% increase.

5,466 homes sold this January compared to 6,208 last year—a 12% drop. The months’ supply of inventory increased from 3.08 last year to 3.77 this year.

The market is shifting toward a normal market. We’re leaving the times where you can put a sign in your yard and get five offers in a day. More homes will come on the market and listings will take longer to be sold. In fact, the Cromford Market Index peaked at 165 in August and is now at 131—a 20% decline over six months.

There are more buyers coming into the market because mortgage rates have dropped. If they continue to trend up, however, these buyers will likely back out again.

If you have any questions or need more information, feel free to reach out to me. I look forward to hearing from you soon.