Fountain Hills, AZ

Fountain Hills Arizona is a great place to raise a family, retire, relax, or have a 2nd home. A lot of Fountain Hills prospects ask how our market is doing in relation to others around the valley. Below are a few statistics about the current market in Fountain Hills Arizona.

Fountain Hills Values still show a slight downward trend as shown in the report, but starting to level off. This is a big reason that a lot of Buyers and Canadian 2nd home seekers have been making a move on Fountain Hills Arizona Real Estate within the past few months.

A Few others items we see about Fountain Hills Real Estate are the following:

• There are Currently about 38 Bank Owned Listings in Fountain Hills (view fountain hills arizona bank owned homes here)
  
• There are approximately 242 properties with a Notice of Trustee's Sale Scheduled (In Foreclosure)
• Sales Per Month have started an upward trend as shown in the Graph

With the Prices starting to level off and home sales picking up home buyers are making their move into the market. Home Building Lots in Fountain Hills are even gaining interest as values have come down slightly and you can even find a few foreclosure and bank owned pieces at a GREAT Bargain. With the new Bashas and Shopping Center finished in the center of town and other great additions - Fountain Hills continues to be a Great Place To Be!

You can now Search Fountain Hills Homes, Condos, and Land/Lots on our Interactive MLS Map at www.vipAZhomes.com

Today I had a fellow business owner stop in my office to see how things were going. He has an mid to upper range designer flooring business. We started chatting about how slow things were and he told me a story about a client that he had given a quote to for carpeting in their home. He had quoted this client a price based on 98 yards of carpet and had given the client a nice discount in the quote. The client called him and said "well I measured and I came up with 90 sq. yds". My friend said I will be happy to come over and show you how and why we came up with 98 sq. yds. The client then replied that this was not necessary but still only wanted to be charged for 90 sq. yds.

Now I am not a large real estate company and my fellow flooring company neighbor is not a large company either, between the two of us we have 2500 Sq. Ft. of space. We fall into the class of what we all know as the small business owner. I spoke with another agent today about how difficult it is trying to put a deal together with the majority of the buyers that we are now encountering that want the deal on top of the deal. After getting a firm rejection from the seller, be it the lender or homeowner that received the unrealistic offer, the bottom line response is, "well there is always the next one" having learned nothing from this offer or the previous one that have been submitted. Yes I know many agents would say "perhaps I am not the right agent for you" etc., etc. I could not agree more with you, but I have just spent countless hours with this client and in today's market its not like there is "another one coming around the corner". But what bothers me more than anything is this new buyer attitude and often they verbalize it with no apology "I want a steal".

Now please don't get me wrong, a buyer has every reason to want a deal right now and I respect that and frankly if I were in this market to buy right now I would want the same thing. I know the tables have turned from the boom years, but lately I am seeing and hearing about this new "culture" of buyers wanting something for nothing beyond what I consider to be "reasonable". We all work hard to make a living especially in this market, driving buyers to see some 30 or more properties and putting in offers that are unrealistic is not only time consuming, but what I find most frustrating is they don't want to hear what you have to say, could care less about the statistics, and just does'nt seem to want your expert advice.

Well I don't know how long this deep recession is going to go on, or how many of us are going to still be around on the other side, but I miss the good old days when it was a "win win" for everyone.

In today's home selling market it helps to have a competitive edge.

Your home needs to stand out not only in the buyer's mind; it must somehow touch an emotional cord. It must make them feel that they want to call home.

Buyers are looking for a house that they can make into their home.

They need to fall in love. To fall in love they must be attracted to the house.

Houses are made of sticks and stones. They are not personal.

Homes are made of people, memories and emotions. They are very personal.

That's why it is so important to prepare your house to sell. It involves

1. giving the buyers the opportunity to create their own vision about how they could live in the house by depersonalizing the house

2. making the rooms look larger

3. making the buyer feel confident about the condition of the house.

The more effort you put into the preparation, the more it will pay off.

Depersonalizing the house involves having a minimum number of personal items displayed on walls and tables. This "minimalization "allows a buyer to feel more at home rather than feeling as if they are intruding. When "less is more" it is easier for buyers to visually and emotionally place their own possessions in the house.

Today's buyers have so many choices they know they can expect more for their money.

They want to feel that they are getting as much house as possible for their money.

Making a house feel larger can be accomplished by creating an uncluttered, open environment... Rooms that are stuffed with furniture do not feel cozy to the buyer. They feel smaller.

Dark walls, although in vogue, can also make a room feel smaller.

If there is no open wall space and floor space, the house will feel smaller.

Buyers expect a home and property in well maintained condition. No ifs, ands or buts. They expect roofs to be in good condition, air-conditioners to be properly functioning and all mechanical, electrical and plumbing to be in good working condition. In most cases they expect warranties.

Buyers want to feel secure in their home. They want to feel secure their purchase.

Home buyers today have the stress of getting a loan. They do not want the stress of worrying that they will have unexpected expenses after they move into the house.

And especially in Fountain Hills, home buyers want a feeling of open space. They want to see the outside from the inside.

To sell your home today you will need to romance the buyer.

For a printer-friendly version of this blog and "Secrets of Stagers" click here!