Pook's Message - 1/14/13

Today I have included 2 articles that discuss the current Phoenix housing market.  As you've heard from me for some time now, the market here has turned around and we continue to see considerable price increases each month.  The article titled  As Phoenix-area Home Prices Rise More Ordinary Buyers Find Opportunities comes from the ASU Center for Real Estate Theory and Practice / W.P. Carey School of Business and discusses a reduction in the number of investors in this market as a result of increasing prices.  This will come as great news to those Buyers who have found themselves competing against (and losing out to) investors.  The second article, Phoenix Continues Its Run As Strong Housing Market comes from the L.A. Times and is included to show how the Phoenix market is being discussed outside of the local area.

What I'm seeing right now is a surge in activity by both Buyers and Sellers now that we're into the new year.  Many folks waited out the month of December in anticipation of looming economic changes.  There seems to be a more positive outlook for 2013, although many of the questions that concerned consumers at the end of the year have not yet been answered.  The following stats provided by Empire Research Group may help to explain why the Phoenix metro area is doing so well...

• The number of underwater mortgages in Phoenix is decreasing more rapidly than anywhere else.
• Phoenix is one of the top 10 growing metro areas, adding 148 residents every day.
• Phoenix home prices are expected to grow 12% this year, 12% next year, and 10% in 2015, according to national housing analyst John Burns.
• Phoenix home prices in 2012 were up 19.9% from a year earlier, which was the largest percentage gain among major U.S. cities.

If you've been sitting on the fence, now may be the time to make your move!
Wishing you a great 2013!