(Source: East Valley Tribune): Jim Walsh – A mostly pristine swath of desert studded with saguaro cactus and an undulating wash in northeast Mesa may turn into a resort-style gated community in about four years. The Mesa City Council is poised to accept the $21.1 million bid of Blandford Homes subsidiary Desert Vista 101, LLC, tomorrow, Read More…
Real Estate
Development around light rail has changed Phoenix, Tempe and Mesa
(Source: AZCentral): Catherine Reagor – Uptown Phoenix’s Camelback Road and Central Avenue area was voted the hottest intersection in the Valley. Tempe Town Lake landed State Farm’s $600 million regional hub. Mesa’s aging downtown, in the midst of a revival, has drawn new Arizona State University and Creighton University campuses. Light rail has its detractors, but it has Read More…
Club West Golf Course put up for sale
(Source: AFN): – Paul Maryniak: Three months after regaining ownership of the Club West Golf Course, Wilson Gee has put it up for sale. Gee last Friday priced the course at $1 million – making it the cheaper of the two golf courses in Arizona currently on the market and one of 32 courses on sale Read More…
How homebuyers can protect themselves from bad flips
(Source: AZCentral): Catherine Reagor – I was a certified home inspector, but I wouldn’t have recommended hiring me. The Arizona Republic sent me to a week-long class in Scottsdale for a reporting project on homebuilding. The home inspector instructor was very experienced. He quizzed us on electrical, plumbing and building basics from our textbook and took us out Read More…
Mesa project promises ‘social destination’ with eateries, shops, apartments and more
(Source: AZCentral): Catherine Reagor – Construction on a new Mesa development with retail, restaurants, offices, hotels, apartments and condominiums is scheduled to begin early next year. The project called Gallery Park is planned for 40 acres southeast of the Loop 202 and Power Road. Phoenix-based developer Vivo Partners calls its project a “lifestyle destination.” “I have friends, Read More…
Interest rates climb and metro Phoenix home prices dip
(Source: AZCentral): Catherine Reagor – Interest rates are up, and home prices are down a bit in metro Phoenix. The combination hasn’t made it easier for buyers or sellers. But housing analysts aren’t alarmed or predicting any big drops in home prices in the Valley. Other parts of the U.S., including several more expensive cities, are seeing bigger Read More…
Downtown Phoenix’s growing popularity is pricing out many residents
(Source: AZCentral): Catherine Reagor – Downtown Phoenix’s housing boom is blanketing the area with thousands of new apartments and condominiums. But the rents and prices for the new homes will shut the door on some who want to live in the area. And home prices in historic neighborhoods in and around downtown Phoenix are soaring as the Read More…
Where are Baby Boomers Retiring? Don’t Look Far
(Source: AZCentral): Catherine Reagor – Baby boomers are still moving to Arizona to retire, despite predictions they wouldn’t. Members of the huge demographic group have vowed they wouldn’t spend their leisure years the way their parents did. But census data and new rankings show they are ending up in many of the same states, and some Read More…
Microsoft Just Bought 277 Acres In Arizona
(Source: Forbes): Ellen Barber – In Arizona’s largest and most intriguing land deal for the month of August, tech giant Microsoft MSFT +0.39% spent almost $48 million to acquire 277 acres just west of Phoenix. According to Scottsdale-based RL Brown Housing Reports, the purchase consists of two parcels of land in Goodyear—154 acres and 123 acres—adjacent to the Phoenix Goodyear Read More…
Las Vegas Home Prices Not Enough to Make Kingman a Commuter Town
(Source: ReviewJournal): Eli Segall – At the northern edge of this small city, the subdivision along Win Win Avenue was supposed to have dozens of houses. Some 12 years after it got started, the failed project looks like archaeological ruins. It has roads and utility boxes but not a single house. Vacant lots are covered with Read More…