Jessica Steele

Legacy Parc, Surprise is a gorgeous community caught elegantly between the cutting edge of urban suburbia, and the tranquility of the White Tank Mountains. Nestled between Greenway Rd on the north and Waddell Rd on the south, Legacy Parc sits just east of Sarival Rd, bordering Greenway Parc to the east.

Most residents of Legacy Parc are married, and between 20 and 40 years of age, making this a young, family-oriented community. The neighborhood is sprinkled with common play areas and loads of green belts, often filled with children and pets during the late summer evenings.

This neighborhood has a safe, friendly atmosphere, with hospitable neighbors often sitting in their garages after work, rehashing the day and good-naturedly humoring the neighborhood hounds out on their evening jaunt.

Neighbors often work together to host yard sales and other neighborhood events.

Most school-aged students in the Legacy Parc community attend public schools in the Dysart Unified School District. Alternative options are available, however, such as the recently opened Imagine Prep academy, and Montessori Children's Garden.

A Sylvan Learning Center at the Loop 303 and Greenway offers alternative tutoring and test prep options as well.

Legacy Parc is not only located close to the local schools, but quality shopping and dining are nearby as well. The new Prasada shopping centernow features an auto mall just east of the Loop 303 at Waddell as well as a new Frys shopping center just to the north at Greenway. With a Target, Ross and much more to come soon, there is no need to travel far from home. Additionally, the unique Vogue diner has been featured in Phoenix Magazine as one of the Valley's best new restaurants.

Legacy Parc is a prime location for the active young community.With easy access to the Loop 303 (one day to be a fully-functioning six-lane highway), schools, shopping, and dining close by, there is something here for everyone. Whether it be a night out at the movies, or enjoying a professional tennis match at the nearby Surprise Stadium, Legacy Parc accommodates everyone, from the most urban chic to the sports fanatic at heart.

Working with several first-time home buyers the past few months, I have became very much a part of "their world". As charming as some of the incentive programs out there are, (and as excited as some buyers get about them) whether or not they are truly valuable (to either the economy or the first-time home buyer) is highly debatable. In some ways, many Realtors and industry professionals believe that these incentives only lead to an increase in the number of future foreclosures, due to home buyers not really being able to afford their new purchase (see below for a prime industry example). In other lights, however, if these programs do their jobs, they are supposed to help an ailing economy get back on its feet, and enjoy after-work margaritas once more.

Sounds appealing when it's 110 degrees in Phoenix.

To answer the question as to whether or not the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit is doing it's job, we have to look at its area of intention. This bill was formulated to help stimulate the housing market at the lower pricing levels. In many regions, first-time home buyers account for approximately 50% of current home sales, often at the lower pricing point. This means increased activity - just as the bill intended. Some industry experts argue, however, that increased activity doesn't equal recovery - the long-term intention of the incentive. Although getting distressed properties off the market is a good and necessary first step, there absolutely must be a follow-up to the plan. Until the mid and upper-level pricing levels are stimulated as well, a full economic recovery is simply not possible.

Solutions? Some argue that although an $8,000 is great, in these difficult economic times, it simply isn't enough. Let's face it. $8,000 doesn't last long when it's all you have in your savings, and your company could down-size at any moment. Some agents suggest that a job-protection program would work wonders in this unstable economy, and make potential home buyers more willing to take the plunge. Others suggest that the tax credit be extended, potentially to up to $15,000. Further, many argue that it should include all potential buyers, and not be limited exclusively to those purchasing a home for the first time.

At any rate, first-time buyers still need to understand that even with the incentives currently out there, they still need to be fully qualified, and fully comfortable, about making their purchase. In some rural areas, where lenders utilize the USDA Rural Housing Loan extensively, it can often be difficult for buyers to purchase a home if they do not have a significant amount of earnest money and the closings costs they need without asking for seller assistance. In fact, my lender recently shared that 80% of loans in this program end up in foreclosure when the seller provides closing cost assistance. Just because it seems like a great time to buy doesn't always mean it is, and buyers should really look at the long-time picture, and not just the short-term incentives, before decided to buy in these rather tumultuous times.

Being a 5th year Spanish teacher in the secondary school system here in Arizona, as well as an active Realtor, the theme of education has always hit close to my heart. Some of my favorite information to provide to my clients is about the various school districts throughout the state, and, in particular, here in the greater Phoenix area. In fact, one of the top statements my clients with school-aged children make is, "We want to live in an area with a good school system." A strong educational system is appealing in the realm of real estate, and the district one lives in can quite often influence the odds of one's home selling at all in this particular market.

Knowing that employees of large corporations and businesses throughout the U.S. do not want to move to areas where their children will not receive a rigorous, college-bound curriculum, or where schools are under-performing, one would be lead to the conclusion that developing strong, empowered school districts would be a main priority for most communities throughout the nation. One might also conclude that in areas with a struggling real estate market, overwhelmed by the number of foreclosures inundating the market, those strong school districts may be of even greater importance. So, my question to the city of Phoenix, and, more importantly, to the state of Arizona, is why are we cutting curriculum, and our rigorous, college-prep programs and regressing back to a curriculum that more resembles that of the 1950s classroom than that of the year 2009? Not only are we selling our children short on their future, but we are further driving ourselves into a hole as far as the real estate market is concerned. Although I love my career, and the school where I teach, I can confidently say that when I have children, Phoenix will no longer be the place for me. And if it is, you can rest assured my children will not be a part of the public school system. That is, unless, some major changes are made to our current educational system.

Having traveled the globe rather extensively, and even taught for a few months abroad, I know that our children are falling far behind in the global educational system. In Spain, for example, students begin learning a second language as soon as they enter school, and often learn a third during their secondary school careers. Here in Arizona, however, schools are lucky to offer just one international language. The common German, French, and even Japanese programs so common in the Midwest are virtually extinct here in the Phoenix area. French programs are on the verge of being shut down, and with less than ideal numbers in numerous Spanish programs, several schools are looking at eliminating the upper-level Spanish courses. And this is in a state where SPANISH IS SPOKEN AND UTILIZED ON A DAILY BASIS. Almost half of the student population in many districts is of Hispanic decent! But when there is no accountability on behalf of the students to stay enrolled in these rigorous, college-prep courses, and a lack of education at the upper-management level of the district to understand the need for students to know a second language to compete in the global economy, we are fighting an uphill battle. The same goes for upper-level math and science courses at many schools. These students don't even have the opportunity to learn physics - a basic course at the Midwestern high school I am from. When parents begin to realize that their students are not getting the education they need to be successful, well-rounded adults, they leave the area. And the community, in turn, suffers.

It is important for us to fight for improvements in the state's educational system, and to become involved with our local school board, to really understand what is occurring behind the scenes. It doesn't always paint a pretty picture, and sometimes, as residents, it is that ugly picture that we need to see firsthand, so we can make our voices heard and improve education not only for our students, but for our local economy as well.

It seems that in this market, everyone wants things done quickly. This typically makes for some really "fun" transactions, as lender time frames, overwhelmed title companies, and dreadful short sale negotiations all add more time to the typical residential resale transaction. With new changes to the Truth in Lending Act, the overall timeline of the loan origination process is further extended, and affects all new clients in all 50 states with loans originating after July 30, 2009, predictably ending the typical 30-day close.

So what are the differences in this new act? There are four key parts in this new legislation that extend the length of the loan origination process. They are listed below, with a slight description of each.

1. Initial Disclosures: Initial disclosures must be provided to the borrower within three business days of when an application is received. This includes documents such as the Good Faith Estimate, and the Truth in Lending Statement.
2. Up-Front Fees: Lenders may no longer collect any up-front fees from borrowers prior to the borrower receiving the initial disclosures (mentioned above). This extends the process, as before, an appraisal could be ordered immediately. Now, this process is delayed three days. The only item that can be ordered before this time is the credit report.
3. Re-disclosures: If any changes occur to the borrower's loan program, terms, or APR, the initial disclosure package must be re-disclosed to the borrower, and received at least three days prior to the close of escrow. Any time a change occurs, the three day period starts over again, which could potentially extend the closing date several times.
4. Timing of Loan Closings: A loan closing cannot be scheduled until at least seven business days after the initial disclosures are mailed to the borrower. If re-disclosures are needed, the loan closing cannot be scheduled until at least 6 business days after the re-disclosures are mailed to the borrower.

As if the multiple-offer situation currently occurring in the Phoenix market isn't enough to drive us insane, once we actually obtain an accepted offer (a feat in and of itself), Realtors now find themselves up against the vicious battle of the home valuation. In speaking with my loan officer today, after resolving a particularly intense appraisal battle, I learned that my situation was only one of four that he has experienced in the past month. ONE of FOUR. And according to him, it isn't getting any better. And this REALTOR has QUESTIONS.

I understand that an appraisal is an opinion of a home's value. And, due to my lovely elementary teachers, I understand that an opinion is a belief that is subject to change from one individual to another. What puzzles me, however, is how two appraisers can come up with two so dramatically different appraisals. For example, a difference of $17,000!!! Further, how, if the property being appraised is located in the state of Arizona, can an appraiser in California complete an accurate home valuation??? Am I wrong to interpret this as explicitly going against the Home Valuation Code of Conduct? I thought an appraiser had to be certified in the state in which the subject property was located.

In other words, the appraiser from San Diego, who came in $17,000 UNDER the appraiser from here in Phoenix (and set us back from closing over four days), created all of this hoopla I've been battling UNNECESSARILY? Although the dispute was resolved, after being sent to the Arizona Board of Appraisers, I feel that this was unnecessary agony for my anxious first-time home buyer, and for my partner and myself.

Where, oh where, is my aspirin? Although each day is a true learning experience, sometimes I am feeling not quite up-to-par enough for yet another crazy lesson.