Anecdotes

Bike Month continues.

I've always had a soft spot for the Penny Farthing bike, but never though to it as a race bike, until I saw this rather exciting video of such a race. The race starts at about 1:15.

Being an agent who helps both buyers and sellers is rather enlightening and quite beneficial. Add to it being also a property owner, buyer and seller and you can see that we get to view it from all sides. I believe this is a benefit to us as agents and a benefit to our clients. We're all the above in any market that has been around for over the last decade. 

In this market where inventory is at a long time low it would seem that sellers have the upper hand, and for the most part they do, but imagine having to deal with choosing from several equally good offers.

Imagine each party calling you to explain their situation and motivation vying to be the one to get the home? To be that one on this property after you, as the buyer, have already put in

"I am a [R]ealtor in the East Valley.  I was looking at new listings and your 'collage' photo caught my attention! 

Do you have a special software that allows you to do that?  Do you use an expensive camera for your pictures?

Thank you in advance for sharing info!

Your photo presentation of your listing is great!"

I put in the extra effort for listings when owners put in that effort as well. Not sure about the psychology behind it: that's how it is.

We have a long list of thing that seller should do before a home goes on the market and I'm always excited when it happens. It means many things, but the result is that it will be a better listing and probably a faster sale and smoother transaction. We don't give out lists and guidance to keep

Over the last week or so we've been in the grips of another remodel. This time of a one bedroom unit in one of our triplexes. It's a really neat little property, one of my favorites, so it gets a little bit more attention then other multiplexes in our portfolio, though I try to take good care of them all since they take care of me.

A few years ago we remodeled the two bedroom unit, top to bottom, including the bedrooms and bathrooms. The one bedroom is getting a face-lift in the living room and kitchen with the bedroom and bathroom at a later time.

One of the reasons it's getting a facelift is, I like doing this stuff. Not physically, though I can do it all myself, but the design etc. and especially seeing the progress.

Since it's on my mind, the

This is a nice property: not run down. Sold for $105,000 in 2012 which is the same price as it sold for in 1990 and just slightly less than in 1983.

Such a deep price drop is one of the reasons real estate is so hot right. It's one of the reasons nearly 30% of properties are sold to investors.  At this rate you're not going to see priced like that for another 10-15 years. That last sentence was a little facetious.

Prices right now are awesome good. Yes, it's the same as in 1990 and 1983, but that's because the market over corrected. Rents did'nt drop nor did the cost of materials: quite the opposite. The population in AZ and in Greater Phoenix is significantly higher, rent ratios are really high, the price of goods and services is up, a lot and

It's almost time again for Fat Thursday - Tlusty Czwartek - a big day in the Polish community, and stuffing yourself silly with those Polish pastires called Paczki. So where can you find these: check out the listings at the bottom.  They are worh the extra few calories.

The Polish community in Phoenix which seems to be growing exponentially as people flee the cold of New Jersey, Connecticut and Chicago, to new plush homes, plenty of parking and of course the warm weather, has brought with it the paczki and every year we have several thousand people find this site because of this post. The Paczek is the king/queen of Fat Thursday. This fried dough filled with jam symbolizes this day and there are more places to get them now then ever before in

It's quite an exciting time in the Phoenix real estate market. Good things are happening, despite the continued distress in the housing market and overall economy. There are some negatives to this turn in the market and we'll get into those, but they pale in comparison to what the market went through in the last half decade. 

This is now the year 2012 and it just keeps getting better. I know for many the financial and economic situations vary. In 2008/2009 when so few properties sold, it was hard to make ends meet and our reserves were depleted, the real estate portfolio value went down, even some properties were purchased a decade ago had no equity and the near future was bleak. Some people are still in hard times, but the important thing to remember