Benjamin Plumbing

I am finally getting started again on renovating my Tucson Mountain house, after giving up in dismay for 18 months. The granite counters are being cut this week, the tile is going in Thursday, and I've bought my new kitchen sink and faucet.

I bought the last two items at Benjamin Plumbing Supply. This place is way more fun than Home Depot! A locally-owned business since 1950, it's located between Fourth Avenue and downtown.

The stuff they carry is absolutely delightful.

How about a purple glass vessel sink? Agate faucet handles?

A shocking orange and black sink and countertop combination?

My favorite is the bronze sink that looks like fabric draped over a bowl and spilling off the counter. Check it out.

November Residential Sale Statistics

The Tucson Association of Realtors has finally released the residential sales statistics for November.

759 properties sold last month. This is better than the low for the year, 683 in September, but it's 23% below November 2006.

The average sale price in November 2007 was $269,968, which is 2.9% higher than October 2007 and 0.9% higher that November 2006 (not 1.72% higher as stated in the Sales Snapshot on page 2).

The median sale price also remains stable.
November 2006: $218,000.
October 2007: $210,000.
November 2007: $213,000.

The problem of excessive listings continues.
November 2006: 9,238.
October 2007: 9,313.
November 2007: 9,234.

At least this is lower than 10,387, the all-time high number of listings reached in April 2007, so we're going in the right direction.

Like weather, the real estate market is local. Houses are selling if they are in good locations and have the features buyers want (garage, AC, open floor plan, big updated kitchen, closet space and landscaping). Of course, the seller has to be sure the house is priced right, easy to show and in excellent condition. It's a good time to buy a house.

My Supervisor When I Was a Hydrologist

September 1, 2005

To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing to express my complete satisfaction with the services provided by Donna Moulton for representing me in the sale of my former residence in Tucson, Arizona. Donna first provided me with a fair and reasonable estimate of the market price for my residence. Because I had not personally occupied the residence for some time, she also took responsibility for coordinating and supervising minor repairs and improvements that substantially increased the selling price of the residence, at no additional commission. After the improvements, the house was listed for one week and I received two offers, both for more than the asking price. Without her honest recommendations and support, I am sure I would have received a reduced price for the residence.
I strongly recommend Donna as a real estate agent because she will provide an honest assessment of the market value of the property and has the marketing resources and know-how to promote the sale.

Sincerely,

Gary R. Walter, Ph.D.
San Antonio, Texas

The Plan to Freeze ARM Rates

The Bush administration recently announced a plan that would allow the interest rate on some sub-prime adjustable rate mortgages (ARMs) to be refinanced or frozen for five years. Like so many things this administration does, the plan is based on unfounded hopes, and the consequences have not been thoroughly evaluated.

In the next two and a half years, the interest rate on as many as 1.8 million sub-prime owner-occupied ARMs will increase. The Bush administration estimates that nearly two-thirds of those borrowers were able make their payments with the low introductory interest rate, but will be unable to afford the increased rate.

Under the administration’s proposal, only borrowers with FICO scores under 660 who face an increase in monthly payments of greater than 10% will be eligible for the program. Borrowers who are behind on their payments, who have other mortgages that prevent renegotiation of the ARM, and borrowers with ARMs that have already increased from the initial “teaser” interest rate will not benefit.

The plan is supported by the American Securitization Forum, the companies that issue mortgage backed securities, as well as investors and loan servicers.

Consumer advocates and Standard and Poor’s rating agency are skeptical.

The administration estimates the program will provide debt relief for up to 1.2 million borrowers. The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) states that perhaps only 145,000 borrowers will qualify. CRL notes that the plan is only a set of voluntary guidelines for mortgage servicers. If lenders decide that will be more advantageous to them to foreclose, they are under no obligation to renegotiate home loans.

In this market, I don’t think lenders will be eager to foreclose and take possession of houses with negative equity. However, lenders will be concerned about lawsuits from the investors who bought these mortgages with the expectation that the interest rate will increase to a profitable level within the next two years.

Standard and Poor’s stated that freezing interest rates on ARMs could discourage investment in mortgage backed securities, which will make the home loan credit crunch worse.

I think this idea is short-sighted grandstanding. It just delays the inevitable. Wage increases have not kept up with inflation, and it’s unlikely that trend will reverse within the next five years. If borrowers are unable to absorb a few hundred dollars increase in their mortgage payment now, it is unlikely they will be able to afford the increase five years from now.

The other big problem with this plan is that it is so unfair to the millions of people who don’t meet its very narrow guidelines.

Tucson Green News Magazine

Tucson Green News Magazine is a free, two month old newspaper intended to bring together Tucsonans who want to live in greater harmony with the planet. The November issue contains articles about a group of bicycle recyclers, the energy-efficient features of Amory Park del Sol, bamboo farming, biodiesel, organic cotton, book reviews, a calendar of events and lots more.

My friend and house buying and selling client, Mary Sisson Eibs, writes the Desert Gardening column. In the current issue, she discusses composting. Mary also writes beautifully illustrated articles for Tucson Lifestyle.

You can pick up Tucson Green News Magazine at health food stores, coffee shops and most of the commercial establishments where tree huggers congregate. Distribution of the new issue starts on the 15th of the month and takes three days.

Fourth Avenue Street Fair

The Fourth Avenue Winter Street Fair is this Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and takes place between East Ninth Street and University Blvd. along North Fourth Avenue. Free to the public, the Fourth Avenue Street Fair brings together 400 arts and crafts booths, 35 food vendors, 3 stages, street musicians, food, jugglers, street performers, kids entertainment, face painting, balloons and tons of other fun activities, and then packs them into three days of celebration.

Among the fine art available are the fascinating photographs of my good bud and home buying and selling client, John Villinski. John specializes in close ups of mysterious objects like the car shown here. He also has images of landscapes, desert plants, minerals and much more. His works are still affordable, even to novice art collectors. You can buy one now and be able to say you knew him before he became famous, as I have no doubt he will be before long. You could also pick up some of his original greeting cards. Check out the amazing things on his web site, and then go meet him and buy his wares at booth 660 on the east side of North Fourth Avenue between East Fourth and Fifth Streets.

Home Value and Schools

In the December issue of DesertLeaf, the free magazine about Catalina Foothills living, is an article about how proximity to a school affects property values in Tucson. Chad A. Hartley, AICP, looked at average dollar per square foot sale price of single family houses sold in 2006 in eleven submarket areas in the greater Tucson area, and compared that to the $/sf sale price of houses within one quarter mile of a school.

The average sale price in the entire metro Tucson area was on average $10/sf less for houses located within a quarter mile of any type of school. The largest impact was in Northeast/Tanque Verde, where houses near schools sold for $20/sf less. The lowest impact was seen in Central/West Tucson, where houses near schools sold for only $1/sf less than the average house in that area.

Hartley suggested that one possible explanation could be that schools tend to be located on busy streets. Prospective buyers may also be concerned about kids hanging around and causing mischief before or after school. The study did not evaluate whether the price effect was greater near high schools.