BUY!   BUY!!   BUY!!!

What can I say? That’s my attempt at seeing the Glass Half Full in Today’s Real Estate Market!

Happy “Late” New Year to you all, in fact Happy Valentines Day!  Hopefully you’ll be getting this before Valentines Day!

The real estate market has continued the momentum of the last quarter, and started the New Year with an encouraging BANG of activity. WE ARE THE BUSIEST WE’VE EVER BEEN!!!

But My Oh My... What a difference a year can make IN PRICES!

A Year Ago, I would NOT have said there would be Multiple Sales in Vista Royale in the $300,000’s AND LAND SALES OF UNDER $100,000!!!  A 4.25 ACRE LOT SOLD FOR $57,000 IN DEC. 2009!!!

After reviewing my notes from the last newsletter, although it would be unfair to you to just “cut and paste” the same comments, the reality is, much of what we called out in our last newsletter remains the same in the current market condition with a few minor adjustments. 

The overall Wickenburg market saw a slight decline in sales in 2009 (89) over 2008 (95).  However, the percentage of foreclosures as compared to Total Sales has increased 35% in 2009!!!

 I might stick my neck out to summarize this and say that I do not believe that we have hit the bottom.  I think there will be more foreclosures on the horizon which will continue to put downward pressure on the normal seller forcing them to compete with foreclosure prices.  Unfortunately, the appraisers that lenders would use, if someone were to buy a home, are now being forced to use foreclosures as a sale comp because they are more and more frequent.

The economic and political circumstances, that I referred to in our last newsletter, continue to play a factor in today’s market including the Stimulus packages, the massive new Federal Budget and continued high unemployment. 

However, perhaps the scariest unknown in the Real Estate market is looming in the future. Virtually all pundits believe interest rates will be shooting up significantly and in the very near future.  The current interest rates of 5% and below have been falsely subsidized by the Government using Stimulus money to BUY THE BONDS THAT WERE PUT TO AUCTION!  When that money runs out, and it is going to very soon, the REAL buyers of those bonds are going to demand a higher return for their investment…Thus Higher Interest Rates!!!    Let’s hope that they don’t go up so high that we are left with all CASH BUYERS, because even they are feeling the pinch.  So between the Interest rates possibly rising, and the First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit still in place, and the New NON First Time Homebuyer  Tax Credit of up to $6500,  I suspect that this spring will continue to be an Active Buyer’s Market.  And those who remain “On the Fence” about buying a home, may want to make up their minds SOONER rather than LATER.

If any of you have ANY questions or comments about the market, this Newsletter, or the weather, J

PLEASE DON’T EVER HESITATE TO CALL!

Single Family Home Sales in Wickenburg:

            The numbers in ( ) represent the number of foreclosures.

                                                            12 Months Ending                   12 Months Ending

                                                                 12/31/2008                                12/31/2009

0 - $400,000                                                   75    (2)                              77    (32)

401,000 – 600,000                                         10                                         7

602,000 – 1 Mil                                                7                                         4    (1)

Over 1 Million                                                             3                                         1

            Totals                                                  95                                       89

The biggest recent change has been in Land/Lot sales.   The majority of the sales in 2009 occurred at the end of the year, and so far that momentum has carried over into 2010.

                                    12 Months Ending                   12 Months Ending       YTD

                                        12/31/2008                                12/31/2009            2010

Total Land/Lot Sales               20                                            12 (1)                 6  (2)