Eileen Schreiber, ABR, EcoBroker, Flagstaff, AZ

Sometime in late August, I received a request for information from my website (www.TheFlagstffWebsite.com) . Happily I can report that this is not an unusual occurance. The unusual part is turning the requests into closed sales.

This gentleman had already relocated to Flagstaff but had not purchased a home. He traveled between two places and was eager to find something..... soon.

Like most Buyers today, he had scoured my website and had a list of favorites. Bacisally, he needed me to be his key. We met. We looked. He wrote a contract!

That was in early September. We repeated this ceremony eight times. Yes, eight. We engaged in the alternate ceremony - look but no contract - many more times than that.

I was sure this man was a Buyer. He was qualified, had the downpayment, already had to live in Flagstaff because of his work. But each time his contracts were accepted, he backed out. Each. Time.

Not being shy, I told him at around contract 6 or 7 that a WOMAN had to make the decision for him, and I was about to become that woman! He laughed heartily, sheepishly agreed, and backed out of contract 7 or 8.

The hard part was receiving a call from a Realtor who held an open house at a property he visited. He submitted my name and told her he really liked the home. It seemed to suit his needs perfectly! I believe that was also somewhere between 6 and 8 and I had to dash her hopes.

Without becoming an armchair psychologist, I also have to report that I met his parents. His mother had been a highly successful Realtor in her day, but was now elderly. At contract 5 I truly wondered if he was taking out his mother issues on our... realtionship. Take that, mom. You won't close THIS sale...

My "Buyer" is now renting. I keep in touch with him and told him point blank (in a very lighthearted wway) that I'd find him and do some type of non-traceable harm if he bought a property without me. :) He promised he'd call me when he was ready.

I'm not holding my breath.

In Flagstaff, Two Single Family Homes Sold, and One condominium sold.

The following information was taken from the Northern Arizona Multiple Listing Service and is only as reliable as our service!

Average Price: $315,000

High Price: $370,000

Low Price: $260,000

Median Price: $215,000

Avg Price per Square Foot: $186.27

Average List to Sell Price 96.94%

Average Days on Market: 84

In addition, one Condominium Sold. 1270 SF, 3 BR, 2BA for $215,000

(If you read this yesterday, sorry about the re-post. Deleted it by accident)

Recent articles in the Arizona Daily Sun by Joe Ferguson report that

Flagstaff is going to the Twos.

One of our more popular eatery/drinkeries, The Beaver Street Brewery, is planning on building a second Brewery, not that far away from the first. As of this writing, the plans to build the second brewery have not yet been approved by our City Council.

For the Full Story

In another story reported by Joe Ferguson, a modified version of Walmart's traditional SUPER Supercenter has been approved for East Flagstaff. While the original concept included a 212,000 sf Supercenter and a two-story parking garage, the approved Supercenter will be 114,00 sf with a parking lot.

For the Full Story

While opinions of adding another Brewery and another Walmart are strong and varied, I will look at news of economic expansion in a time of a National Recession with hopeful eyes.

A few weeks ago I received a phonecall from a gentleman in Tucson. He and his wife had just sold a second home. They had cash to spend - up to about One Million. Could I help them find a home in Flagstaff?

Are you KIDDING ME?

This wonderful couple had a strong idea of their needs and desires. They were a pleasure. So we three and the dog set about to view Flagstaff properties.

Although they had provided me a list of top choices, there was a property not on their list that I knew I HAD to show them.

I took them to the property I had in mind. They loved it. They adored it. They furnished it on the spot, choosing which pieces they would bring and which would stay home.

I escorted them to my office where we wrote our cash offer. Yes, it was low - but today, a low offer for a home priced at $975,000 is welcomed with a song, dance and hallelujah, given the painfully few sales we have had in Flagstaff in that price range.

The Sellers countered. The Sellers' pressing problem was that their accountant was out of town, and with the brand new idea of doing a 1031 exchange perking happily in their heads, the Sellers were not sure EXACTLY what they could agree upon as a bottom line.

My Buyers had three days to respond, day three being the day the accountant returned. Although they pooh-poohed the Sellers' counter price and were primed to negotiate, they wanted the house! And they had CASH!

Then, the unthinkable occurred. The unimaginable. Can you guess?

Unable to find their 1031 exchange property, the Sellers took their home off the market. In a flash, the dream home of my Buyers was gone.

My Buyers were literally devastated. They had not only furnished this home but they had planned the next five years of holidays with the kids and grandkids. They built the dog a new dog run and smelled the beautiful moist air around them at sunrise for years to come.

However, we have a happy ending. My Buyers called me to let me know that they found a great home in SANTA FE, a home that, as of our last phonecall, was still on the market during inspection period.

The Sugar Hangover. A Story.

The Sugar Hangover.

First, I have to tell you that I have a housemate. We share a beautiful home backing the forest and our dogs are best friends. He has a girlfriend. They belong to the category of strange people who don't watch their weight, eat whatever they want, and therefore do unfathomable things. They bake trays of brownies and top them with chocolate icing. They buy sweets and leave them in the house.

My housemate learned the rules pretty quickly . If it's chocolate and he leaves it in the pantry, at some unsuspecting moment I will find myself circling like a vulture and inevitably I will strike. It's not known how long the prey will sit untouched before I strike. But I will.

He doesn't care if I snarf down his sweets. But I do. A Lot. So, like any good male who is capable of being trained by female neurosis, he keeps most of that shit in his room.

However, he can't keep ice cream in his room. Or the chocolate syrup he uses with the ice cream. Or that half of a tray of leftover brownies covered in chocolate betty crocker icing baked lovingly by his girlfriend.

I realize that sugar is poison. I have known this for years and have seen its effects quite clearly on my body. When I eat sugar, I bloat up like a balloon. It's that simple - the fat grows around my belly and I jiggle. I won't ever feel like I'm eating too much and will often have that hard to explain feeling that is not really hunger. It's called a craving.

Knowing that sugar is a poison doesn't make it taste any worse. Honestly, I love sugar. Chocolate chip cookies are the preferred form - the most perfect embodiment of sugar and fat, and little bites of milk chocoloate (read, a bag of Hershey kisses ) or anything similar, comes after.

I am writing this with a whopping sugar hangover. A sugar hangover feels like an alcohol hangover without the "I've been hit by a truck and can't get up" feeling. Foggy, woozy, nauseous to a degree, my body is off kilter and wierded out, working furiously to digest this poison and get my insulin levels back to normal.

Last night, after a day of eating pretty well, playing tennis and working out at Crossfit, I found myself face to face with that leftover tray of brownies. In the past, I have practiced ‘ruin the food' techniques to ensure I don't snarf. That can be shoving it all down the disposal, mixing whatever it is with whatever else is leftover that's gross, or just running it outside to the garbage can.

I thought about all of it. I did. But OK... c'mon... it's not healthy to TOTALLY sacrifice my love of sugar, is it? Isn't that just totally perfectionist and completely irretreivably neurotic? Just one bite..

On the morning after a half of a tray of chocolate brownies smothered in chocolate icing, I am inspired to write this story as an opening to anyone who suffers the same addictions. PLEASE COMMENT! SHARE YOUR SUGAR STORY! I have to say, BOY DID THEY TASTE GREAT! No regrets... unless I find myself scavenging sugar for days while my body tries to normalize. I have been there before.. and that is a possibility I have yet to face.

Cheers! - Eileen