Nature Lover's Oasis

 

Welcome to your sweet desert paradise. An extraordinarily beautiful 0.37 acre of mature trees and exotic cactus specimens. 

The sellers have spent almost 30 years lovingly cultivating a bird sanctuary and exotic cactus garden, so all you need to do is settle into a chair on the porch or at your dining room table and watch the fascinating nature show.

Three bedrooms and two baths.

So much character in the open beam ceilings, stone fireplace, antiqued kitchen cabinets, Saltillo and talavera tile.

300 square foot bonus room, shown as Activity Room in the floor plan, has wall AC and is not included in 1,560 square feet of house.

The floor plan is here.

What could you do with a 1,000 square foot shed? Shown as Stables in the floor plan, it has a concrete floor, and lots of partitioned areas. The previous owner raised birds here! The two car garage is a rare treat in Tucson.

So much privacy behind the mature trees in your fully fenced yard. Close to hiking and biking in the wild and wonderful Tucson Mountain Park. Sold to a happy family for $142,340 on April 26, 2017.

Cassia in the Wind

Watching my feathery cassia whip around in the wind like a sea weed in the tide is fascinating to me. And the spicy fragrance of its pretty yellow flowers is a sign of spring. 

January Residential Sales Statistics

The January Residential Sales Statistics from the Tucson Association of Realtors are here. A surprisingly high number of sales occurred in November, when buyers usually go into hibernation. By December, the number of sales were similar to the previous December. The November frenzy may have been driven by the 10% down payment assistance program, which is now out of money. What a deal that was.

Last month, the median sale price in Tucson was $184,000, which is 8.3% higher than January 2016, but 3% lower than the spike to $190,000 in June 2016. 

There were 1,093 home sales last month, a 13.6% increase from January 2016. Last month there were only 3,777 properties for sale in Tucson. This is 26% lower than the previous January. 

So, when supply (listings) is low and demand (sales) is high, the home sale prices should go up, right? For the time being, that is true. We are seeing many properties selling with multiple offers. However, with the November buyer frenzy being cut short in December, and the generous down payment assistance funds dried up, and mortgage interest rates increasing, I wonder if we might start to see the market level off. Not crash, but stabilize to a more normal annual price appreciation of 3%. 

Nothing can be predicted with certainty in these changing times. Too many moving parts. 

Best of the Foothills and Central Tucson

You will be enchanted by this elegant, exquisite, extraordinary foothills home. Two bedrooms and two baths. 

Granite counters, mesquite shelves and high end stainless appliances in kitchen. The hand-made Mexican floor tiles are positively eye-candy. Remote-control gas insert in the stone-faced fireplace. 

If you never have enough room for your wardrobe, you will be won over by the palatial master closet with custom storage.

The guest room has a lovely Murphy bed, built-in desk and sliding door to the generous north-facing covered porch. 

Can't beat the location, near Rillito River Walk, St. Phillip's Plaza Farmer's Market, Trader Joe's. Half way between U of A and the upscale shopping and dining in and near La Encantada. 

End unit near pool and guest parking. The interactive floor plan is here. Sold March 3, 2017 for $212,500..

Is It Smart to Have Smart Devices?

The very skillful saleswoman at Verizon convinced me to buy a pair of light bulbs that I can control from my phone. I never installed them, because once I got home, I wondered why I needed to be able to turn on the lights when I'm not home, or even when I'm in the driveway. This saleswoman loved the smart light bulbs she had at home, and demonstrated how she could turn them off and on using her phone. She said her husband was at home, and I asked if he would be freaked out by her playing with the lights. She happily said he was used to it.

Today the New York Times has an article stating that home computers can be compromised by hackers who access smart devices like thermostats, light bulbs and televisions. Obviously, this could be really bad. One suggested work around is to have the smart devices on a separate network from the home computer. Another solution is to avoid smart devices.

Oro Valley Home for under $200,000

Sparkling clean and freshly painted in neutral colors. Turn-key ready so you can enjoy a relaxing lifestyle. 

Three bedrooms and two baths. Popular split floor plan provides privacy for master suite. Tile throughout. 

Sliding door from sunny eat-in kitchen to back porch. Recessed lighting. Kitchen is open to the dining area, which shares high ceiling with the living room. Cozy fireplace. 

Mature trees on a corner lot in the middle of the neighborhood. 

Low HOA fee includes community pool & spa. 

Access to a walking path along Canada del Oro River is just a few short blocks away. 

It's under half a mile to Canada del Oro Riverfront Park, with picnic ramadas, tables and grills, tennis and basketball courts, shaded playground and more. 

You may be eligible for down payment assistance and mortgage interest credit. Call for more information. Sold on February 22, 2017 for $166,335. We learned during the inspection period that the house needed roof repairs, termite treatment, and polybutylene plumbing replaced, hence the low price.  

Buyer Must Give a Reason for Cancelling Purchase Contract

A new Purchase Contract will be used for home sales in Arizona, effective February 1. While I am not sure the new "as is" condition is for the best (see next post), I do like the requirement that buyers give a reason for cancelling a contract. If the buyer does not give a written reason for cancelling the contract, he will forfeit his earnest money to the seller.

When a buyer gets a house under contract, he has what many agents call a 10 day "free look". The buyer can hire home inspectors, and investigate anything he wants, including building permits, flood plain status, sewer connection, zoning compliance, nearby development plans, schools, etc. This is called due diligence.

Currently, if the due diligence produces something that is unacceptable to the buyer, he can cancel the contract during the inspection period without explanation and get his earnest money back.

If fairness to the seller, the buyer should not be making shot gun offers on several houses without disclosing this to the seller. The buyer should not decide that he can't afford the house or he'd rather buy a different house. He should make a serious, good faith offer, and should only cancel the contract if he learns something new during the inspection period.

Sometimes one of my buyers is interested in a house that was under contract with a different buyer, but the first buyer cancelled the contract and the deal fell through (DFT). Sometimes the DFT was due to something unrelated to the property and my buyer's interest in it. The most common reason for a DFT is the first buyer couldn't get financing. However, if the DFT occurred because of a material fact, like a structural crack or lack of building permits, having that information will affect whether my buyer wants the house, what he should pay, and whether he can get financing.

Unfortunately, when I call a listing agent to ask why the previous sale DFTed, the agent often says he doesn't know; the buyer just flaked out. Now that the buyer is required to give a reason for cancelling, the listing agent can't claim they don't know what happened.

By the way, the seller and listing agent are required by state law and the Realtor Code of Ethics to disclose any material fact that they learn from a buyer's due diligence.