Monday, March 19, 2007

Phoenix Real Estate Blog - No Baseball

On a serious note - Phoenix's real estate inventory - as was told to me by an industry insider today - has ballooned due to huge numbers of spec homes for sale by builders. Over 50% of the market. Woe is the home owner who needs to sell his 2 year old home. I know population is increasing - though not that fast. Time to get a deal and wait for inventories to dry up over the next few years. People make money doing what the crowd doesn't do. Beware the REO market too - that is the second shoe to drop in that market and a few others too.

Phoenix - Baseball, Retail and Returns

Spring training in the "Zone". Great weather, intimate games, families on grassy knolls, and the oh-so-tempting hot dog. Now to focus on real estate - this community is like every other growing metropolis with land - every national retailer is clamoring to be here. What drives this growth? Ans: growth. Population, jobs, housing, transit routes. Retail is the lurking secret boyfriend of all these debutants. Stronger in safety than housing, far more secure than office buildings, able to withstand a recession in a pinch. Just don't buy the dogs! Eh - too many to list - just think what happens when fads end, technology transforms industries and Sam Waltons are born.