Anthem, Carefree, and Phoenix Market Update

According to several sources, 2009 in the greater Phoenix area had the 3rd highest number of sales over the last 9 years. Only 2004 and 2005 saw more closings for a given year. At this time, the average sales per month are 7,729. At a closer look, I see the months of inventory under $100K are less than 2 months, whereas the price range over $1,000,000 has an overwhelming 38 months of inventory. Currently, there are 41,755 on the market while at the same time last year there were 52,624. This could be due to the banks holding their inventory.
The monthly medium price shows that the market trend bottomed out on April 2009 and shows that prices have risen upward by a small percentage every month. Within the Greater Phoenix area, 46% were Banked Owned Properties, 23.6% were short sales, and 30.4% were normal transactions. Banked owned properties shows the pricing decreased 7.3 percent per SQ. FT, and short sale pricing increased 3.6% per SQ. FT.
Forecast:
Short sales and Bank Owned properties will continue to dominate the market. Actually, I would expect short sales to overtake Bank Owned properties in 2011. The high priced areas through the valley (Paradise Valley, North Scottsdale, and Carefree) lagged behind the medium price homes by about 2 years. So, expect to see an increase of bank owned properties and short sales in these areas.

Buyers Outlook:
As a qualified buyer you will enjoy the ability to pick up properties at a great price. In the price range under $200,000 there are lots of buyers so you will see multiple offers on these properties. Once you get over $350,000 there are less qualified buyers, so these may be the best deals. Buyers can still take advantage of the tax credit and low prices so why wait. Interest rates will go up so it is time to buy.

Sellers Outlook:
If you are willing and able to price your home at current Fair Market Value, there are plenty of buyers in today’s market. If you overprice your home you can expect to see it remain on the market for months to come. Clean is king and views/upgrades are a bonus in today’s market place.
If you have exhausted all options, you may want to short sale your home. There is a new government program called Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program (HAFA). HAFA is part of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). HAFA provides incentives in connection with a short sale or a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure (DIL) used to avoid foreclosure on a loan eligible for modification under the HAMP program. This program is scheduled to launch in April. Be sure to contact a Realtor with knowledge and experience in short sales.

This published in the Arizona Republic in the Broker Corner Section for the North and West Valley.