Arizona’s Finest Real Estate Blog!

Thu 9 Aug 2007

Buyers are looking for Incentives

Posted by leforce1 under General
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Right now Home Builders are offering really lucrative incentives, to bring the Buyers out of the woodwork. Whether it’s an offering of paying property taxes, insurance or other upgrades, Builders are getting really creative.
Home Builders have been hit the hardest. With rising mortgage delinquencies, lenders are highly cautious. Home prices across the country are falling and inventory levels for Builders is excessively high. Homes that are finished are sitting empty for months, while the Builders cash is tied up in their inventory. Want a pool? Need a basement finished? Like the feel of granite counter tops? Builders are not easily giving up the fight to get people into their homes.

Home Sellers are also jumping on the bandwagon to sell their single family homes. They are offering lots of sweet incentives. Want the garage finished? Want the carpet replaced? Want the patio enclosed? Want the price slashed? Just let me know what will make this home more sellable.

The Name of the Game right now is “EXTREMES”.

Builders and Home Sellers are looking for all type of incentives to attract Buyers. And this is happening in almost every market in the country.

Economist agrees that incentives are likely to only GET BETTER. Home Sellers are in a better position to slash prices than the Builder, while the Home Builder is more inclined to offer incentives. The Buyers expectations should not stop there, everyone that is involved with the transaction, should be working on their behalf to make sure they are getting the best deal. Its really is in everyone’s best interest to make sure this happens.

Buyers should be looking for a Realtor that is aggressive and not afraid to look for incentives and negotiate terms that are beneficial to the Buyer. Things that the typical Buyer would not think of, the Alpha Agent is thinking about in their sleep.

It’s a Buyers Market. The incentives are there. - Rick LeForce

Sun 29 Jul 2007

Gilbert – It’s a great Place to buy a Home

Posted by leforce1 under General
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Located in the Phoenix metro area’s southeast corner, Gilbert, Arizona has quietly become one of the fastest growing communities in the nation, attracting roughly 1000 new residents every month. With steady expansion over the past two decades, and a population approaching 200,000, Gilbert has managed to sustain its small town southwest charm, while promoting its strong economy and growing high-tech sector. The city’s careful approach to development has also produced a number of attractive residential areas and planned communities, where parks, man-made lakes, and equestrian trails create breathing space in a thriving semi-urban setting.

Purchasing a home is the first realistic step to building and producing financial freedom. Of course, if it’s your very first home, you are probably having an abundant amount of questions and information you feel that you must ingest, to be able to make a profitable decision. Questions like…
1)     What type of down payment will be required?
2)     What will my monthly payments be? Will there be fees at the last minute?
3)     How do I get qualified? And will my credit be good enough to qualify?
4)     How do I find a trustworthy lender?
5)     Who will represent my best interests?

Best news about the Gilbert community is that with the slow down in housing demands, Buyers are experiencing some big breaks from Residential Resale’s and Builders. So it really is a great time to buy in Gilbert.

Conveniently search the MLS

http://www.personalizedhomesearch.com

Sun 29 Jul 2007

Home Buyers have More Negotiating Power

Posted by leforce1 under General
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Home Buyers have more negotiating power Phoenix Metro Area Home Sales continue to be in a slump. This includes communities such as Ahwatukee, Cave Creek, Chandler, Gilbert, Glendale, Goodyear, Higley, Mesa, Peoria, Queen Creek, Scottsdale, Surprise and Tempe. Buyers now have the best advantages, and are in a unique position of negotiating with sellers and builders that are sitting with inventory that has been on the market for quite a while.

Just because a home has been on the market for a substantial amount of time, only increases the urgency for the seller to negotiate more reasonably. Negotiating is the name of the game. A strong Buyers Agent knows how to negotiate for the best price, most perks and options. Aggressive negotiations involve saving the Buyer money on closing costs, credits for improvements and repairs, and additional perks (upgraded appliances, spas, etc). Condos and Town homes require HOA fees, if the seller prepays for a year, this would be and additional perk. Land packages and estates have loads of hidden perks that can be valuable to the buyer, and just a given for the seller. Home Repairs are always open to negotiations.

If a Buyers Agent is really working on your behalf, they won’t just leave the Home Inspection process to the professionals. They will inspect, document and discuss repairs and improvements with the Buyer. So basically all of these items and more are open for negotiation. Most likely the seller or builder is so relieved to see an offer they jump at the chance to either make a counter offer of cash at closing, or write the improvements into the contract. Things that a buyer would never dream of asking for, the creative Buyers Agent will identify, explore and seize the opportunity. These Buyers Agents have closed so many deals that the process is almost second nature to them. The superior Buyers Agent utilizes a successful, repeatable formula to serve their clients needs.Conveniently search the MLS

http://www.personalizedhomesearch.com

Sun 29 Jul 2007

Phoenix Metro Area and the Home Buyers Edge

Posted by leforce1 under General
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The slowdown of demand and high home inventories are giving Buyers the edge.
If the reports of home sales prices are making you cautious about buying a home, you will be pleasantly surprised that it’s a great time to start looking. More homes are on the market then there are buyers, creating a buyers market.

In 2006 homes were selling easily at full asking price shortly after the listing, and multiple offers were plentiful. Right now there are about 30-35% more homes on the market from last year, but these homes are sitting on the market longer with few if any offers.
With all the market changes; buyers have more leverage, especially when it comes to finding real sweet deals. Buyers are being enticed with various seller and builder incentives, perks and upgrades.

Builders have a lot to loose if they have too much tied up in inventory. Houses that are sitting without offers are making the builders really uncomfortable, and that makes them even more willing to work with buyers to negotiate great deals. Financing, upgrades and other packages are being offered that in the last year were unheard of.
There are a lot of homes that are on the market that can easily be taken off by the seller. But if the seller is in the position of having to relocate, or other financial burdens, they are probably willing to compete for the deal. This includes more improvements, money back to the buyer, etc.

The typical home buyer right now has their most leverage. An experienced Buyers Agent will know where the deals are and be able to negotiate more favorably on the Buyers behalf. A good Buyers Agent won’t be afraid; they are educated to the many leverage tactics that can ensure the most money for your dollar.

So if you are waiting for the home market to bottom out, best bet is to recognize the writing on the wall. Toss you hat in the ring and start looking for the homes of your dreams. Right now you have nothing to loose, especially if you are looking for a deal.

Conveniently search the MLS
http://www.personalizedhomesearch.com

Sun 29 Jul 2007

Buying a home in a Phoenix Metro Area Community

Posted by leforce1 under General
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If you are thinking about buying a home in any of the Greater Phoenix Metro Area Communities; (Ahwatukee, Cave Creek, Chandler, Gilbert, Glendale, Goodyear, Higley, Mesa, Peoria. Queen Creek, Scottsdale, Surprise, Tempe), consider what each community has to offer, if it’s conveniently located to your job, and how well each cities responds to its communities needs. If you have a growing family, make sure the school district responds quickly to population growth. If you are looking to retire, make sure there are plentiful facilities that support a strong retirement lifestyle.

The majority of experts still believe that the Phoenix Metro Area homes are still the most reasonably priced in the nation. With the current real estate slow down, buyers are few and sellers are motivated.

Once you have identified the area where you want to buy, open houses viewing may be time consuming, but is a great way to inspect the properties. However with the power of the internet, website searches provide maximum exposure to homes, with little time invested. So that’s usually the first place buyer’s start.

Most buyers and sellers make their decisions based on a combination of emotions, experience and knowledge. The wealthiest people in the world utilize a Real Estate Agent, and for good reason. An experienced agent is worth their weight in gold.

Real Estate agents specialize in knowing the market facts for the specific area, what the pros and cons are for the investment area, and what pitfalls the buyer should be looking for based on statistics. Their specialty is based on more than experience; it also includes networking, canvassing, research, prior buyer’s experiences, in-depth knowledge of what buyers expectations vs reality, continued education and good old fashioned hard work.

Resale home inventory and time on the market is quite high at this time. It’s good to be able to read between the lines as to just how motivated the seller is, and what they are willing to do to ensure the sale.

That’s where the strong Buyers Agent comes in handy. They are highly sensitive to the Buyers needs, and will take the time to carefully determine your needs, affordability of property, growth spurts and property specifications. They will go out of their way to work on your behalf to ensure the deal is in your best interest. You will be kept informed and educated in the buying process. Surprises will be few, and timing will be convenient. You will be informed, and prepared for each real estate cycle.

Conveniently search the MLS.
http://www.personalizedhomesearch.com

Fri 9 Mar 2007

Welcome North Valley Networkers!

Posted by leforce1 under General , Business&Networking
1 Comment

Hello everybody from the Tuesday morning North Valley meeting! I wanted to keep some money in everyone’s pocket so I set up a blog on this site so that we could brainstorm quickly on some important ideas for our group. Blogging on this site will also help my SEO a little bit so I really appreciate having your input about our group on this site and look forward to putting in 110% on helping everyone in the group grow their business. Personally I have learned something from each of you my fellow self-employed business professionals and I feel this sites blog will help with group communication when we are all working so hard on our individual businesses and on living even more rewarding and enjoyable lifestyles!

This year a lot of Jennifer’s and my goals for my business are really grand, however our top business priorities really are focused and committed to enjoying more quality time with our family on even better vacations and doing things that are outside of our career in real estate which sometimes can be very demanding.
If I could challenge my fellow members to one thing this month; if you are like me (love to work ), it would be to take more quality VACATIONS and DAY TRIPS this year. If you are already doing that share some of your ideas with the group on good get-a-ways even if it is even a day. THINK OF WRITING DOWN ON PAPER AND PUTTING IT UP ON A WALL SOME WHERE OF SOMETHING YOU WOULD REALLY LOVE TO DO, SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE VERY REWARDING. Then put it in your schedule book and go do it.
Relaxation and leisure time are so important for self-employed business owners and the people important to them; friends and family.

I’d like to hear from you on this subject and also we look forward to a lot of fun and interesting topics on this site pertaining to our meeting and follow-up conversations and observations to our group conversations in “cyber business space ”

-Rick LeForce

Let’s get this going!

Sun 12 Nov 2006

Current Market Inventory Level of Homes on Market -Rick LeForce

Posted by leforce1 under Market Updates
1 Comment

Today the market inventory level of homes on the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is 47,951 homes in the Active and Active w/ Contingency status. Home levels have stayed around this figure for at least 90 days now and we have fortunately pulled away from the 50,000 homes on the market level of inventory.

We hope to keep you informed on a regular weekly basis in this thread to what market inventory levels are. If you have specific questions about inventory levels in certain neighborhoods, communities, or subdivisions for us; blog away and we’ll certainly respond to your inquiries or item of interest.
We hope to start a lively forum where related to subject matter and topics pertaining to homes and real estate, and here from you!

Best Regards,

Rick LeForce

1st USA Realty Professionals Inc.

4835 E. Cactus Rd. #102

Scottsdale, AZ 85254

Cell (480)560-4310 -24/7 Service

e-mail: Rick@personalizedhomesearch.com

www.personalizedhomesearch.com

Arizona’s Finest Real Estate Blog!

Buyers are looking for Incentives

Gilbert – It’s a great Place to buy a Home

Home Buyers have More Negotiating Power

Phoenix Metro Area and the Home Buyers Edge

Buying a home in a Phoenix Metro Area Community

Welcome North Valley Networkers!

Current Market Inventory Level of Homes on Market -Rick LeForce

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