Gary and Claudia Scott - Scottsdale, AZ Real Estate

The Bottom? I suppose your guess is as good as mine. The only way to know if you have ‘hit’ the bottom in the real estate market is when it begins to rise again. There definitley has been a boost in sales as many of the foreclosures and short sale properties are selling. Even new homes sales are increasing slightly. The interest rates remain historically low, the inventory is shrinking and first time home buyers cashing in on the opportunity to own by taking advantage of the first time home buyer $8,000 tax credit. This sounds good and we are definitely moving in the right direction but the recovery will probably be slow.

So what are the real estate ‘goo-roos’ and ‘experts’ saying?

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said May 5th that the economy appeared to be stabilizing, but warned that a real recovery is still months away.

The Cromford Report: stats report “Current Pending sales are the highest ever recorded-let’s say that again the HIGHEST EVER RECORDED yes that includes 2004 and 2005.”

A May 2009 ASU study indicates that there is a glimmer of hope that house prices are getting close to the bottom.

The good news is that many of the short sales and foreclosures are finally being removed from the market which is slowly encouraging non-stressed property owners to begin to list their homes for sale. Bottom or bottom line, due to the drop in home values over the past year+, it is still a good time to purchase a property here in the Valley of the Sun.

Search the local Scottsdale and greater Phoenix area real estate listings

Gary and Claudia Scott, realtors

Location, location location. Finally Scottsdale Arizona is once again affordable..

Of the 5,800+ listings currently available in Scottsdale 1,566 are priced over million dollars while only 128 are priced below one hundred thousand with the majority of 4200+ properties priced between. There is a great variety of options in this prestigious city from modest condo to multi million dollar mansion, there is something for everyone. This market now provides an excellent opportunity for that snowbird to actually purchase a property rather than rent during the desirable high season.

There are currently 768 properties in escrow and a total of 827 have closed escrow since Jan 1, 2009. The volume of properties in escrow continues to increase as more buyers are entering the market. Many of the more reasonably priced properties are being purchased. The inventory is remains high compared to the traditional market average-there are some excellent opportunities available.

This is a snapshot of the MLS for Scottsdale AZ real estate sales statistics for March 28, 2009:

Saarch the MLS for properties for sale in Scottsdale AZ

Scottsdale Arizona a town of affluence and golf courses. Many people thought this upscale area would be immune to the foreclosure epidemic spreading across the country. However, the numbers prove differently.  Although there are not as many distressed properties as other citiies, Scottsdale does have is share of forclosure problems.

The local Scottsdale Arizona residential real estate tax records indicate that a total of 2,031 homes are in foreclosure and scheduled for auction in Scottsdale from March 24, 2009 and on.  Note: that not all homes in foreclsure are listied for sale in the MLS.   The MLS (March 24, 2009) has a total of 5,925 active listings of these 1,172 are short sale/lender owned/foreclosure properties. The asking price of MLS distressed properties in Scottsdale ranges from $49,900 to $3,495,000! A buyer has a wide selection to choose from!

Here are the Scottsale tax record auction foreclosure properties by zip code:

Scottsdale by zip code: Total 2,031 properties
      Schdeuled Residential Real Estate Auctions     

Search the Scottsdale MLS by zip code:
South Scottsdale 85250
South Scottsdale 85251
South Scottsdale 85257
North Scottsdale 85254
North Scottsdale 85255
North Scottsdale 85258
North Scottsdale 85259
North Scottsdale 85260
North Scottsdale 85262
North Scottsdale 85266

Dinner, dancing, a dance contest and a costume contest provided a pleasant evening of entertainment for all who participated. The Arizona Wing of the Commemorative Air Force hosted “A night in the 40’s Big Band Dance” last night in the Arizona Wing Hanger Museum at Falcon Field in Mesa, Arizona.

The open hanger and mild temps are perfect for the evening of fun. The B-17 Sentimental Journey among other WWII aircraft and memorabilia provided the backdrop for this nostalgic event. I must admit that I was not here in the 1940’s (close though) but a celebration of the sacrifices of the military and a reflection of era is a tribute to the men and women who preserved the way for us today.

The US Marines opened the event by proudly presented the flag for the National Anthem.

Early entertainment provided musical melodies including Ballroom, Latin, Swing, and Country from the war years performed by the Kathy Donald Jazz Ensemble. Brownies and coffee for dessert topped of a great dinner provided by Taylor Rays.

The costumes were amazing and some of the military uniforms were actually donned by those who proudly wore them in the 40’s. The costume contest is always a fun spectacle as the variety and originality are quite vast. From Rosie the Riveter and Carmen Miranda to the ‘All American Family’ & a variety of armed forces uniforms - all who participated were dressed to reflect the era. The ‘All American Family’ won this year. Not everyone who dressed in the flavor of the era joined in the contest. So, the friends we went with decided that next year we should also join in the fun and dress for the occasion…..we have a year to figure out what or who we want to be and then search for just the right clothes! Photos to follow next year :-)

The Sun Lakes Big Band performed a wide selection of Big Band Music from the war years including Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller among others. It was fun to dance and equally as much fun to watch the dancers. Our group concluded we may want to look in to group dance lessons so that we felt more comfortable dancing to some of the swing music. That should to be fun!

There were 2 dance contests. One for those 15-40 and the second for those 41 and older. It is amazing how talented both groups were! Even with our dance lessons, I don’t think we could compete with these couples. We will be quite content to sit and watch the contests again next year.

It may take a while for some of those catchy tunes to leave my brain! “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.”, "I'll Be With You In Apple Blossom Time", “Chattanooga Choo Choo”, “Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree”….

Watch for the dates of this annual event next year!
Arizona is a great place to live and play!

See more photo on our flicker account http://www.flickr.com/photos/garyandclaudia-scott/

Scottsdale and Paradise Valley MLS real estate statistics for all property types sold in February 2009:

• Total of 168 single family homes sold in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley

· Total of 156 single family homes in Scottsdale

· Total of 23 single family homes sold in South Scottsdale

· Total of 133 single family homes in North Scottsdale

· Total of 83 patio homes, townhomes and condos sold in Scottsdale and Paradise Valley

· Total of 77 patio homes, townhomes and condos sold in South Scottsdale

· Total of 34 patio homes, townhomes and condos sold in South Scottsdale

· Total of 43 patio homes, townhomes and condos sold in North Scottsdale

The Numbers by Zip code

Search the MLS for properties by zip code:

• • South Scottsdale 85250
  • South Scottsdale 85251
  • South Scottsdale 85257
  • North Scottsdale 85254
  • North Scottsdale 85255
  • North Scottsdale 85258
  • North Scottsdale 85259
  • North Scottsdale 85260
  • Paradise Valley 85253