Before You Buy a Home in Arizona

Phoenix, West Valley, Interest Rates

I was contacted by a buyer who had expressed serious interest in purchasing one of my listings. Numerous emails and phone calls over a 10 day period assured the buyer he was making a great choice for him and his family. I had held off telling the seller there was serious interest as experience had me cautious enough to know better. The buyer made an offer. I had spoken with his loan officer the prior week and felt very comfortable with his financial situation. I was prepared to present the offer to the seller I just needed one little thing. The LSR.

Here is where the happy story falls apart. Of course, had this been the summer of 2005, the buyer would have had 10 Phoenix minutes to decide while the seller was fielding offers from five other buyers.

The Arizona LSR is a Loan Status Report. It is basically a form that gets filled out by the loan officer which states how much the buyer is qualified for and if there are things hinging on the qualification (sale of another property, for example). Most good agents won’t even drive a buyer around without one. More on why later.

I call the buyer’s loan officer and leave a message. He does not get back with me that day. The next morning comes and goes, no phone call. OK, maybe he is busy, sometimes I get really busy. I call him. He is not excited. This is about to become a sad story. Two things happened during the 2 weeks the buyer was thinking. Two Very Bad Things (good movie by the way). The buyer, excited about the prospect of moving, purchased a new car to park in his new garage, and interest rates went up. A Perfect Storm (also a good movie if you are into disasters).

Lesson number one: DO NOT buy anything when shopping for a home. Nothing. I advise all my clients of this but unfortunately this one chose to have selective hearing. Lesson number two: A home is probably the largest purchase you will make. You should take your time and make the right decision. You should also know that while you are taking your time, interest rates change everyday and one little change can be enough to keep you from qualifying for the home of your dreams. OUCH.

Why won’t I show homes to people without LSR’s? This is pretty straight forward. Until the buyer knows exactly what they are qualified for, it is unfair to both of us to look at properties. It is unfair to the buyer because they might qualify for more and could be looking at homes that are larger or that have other amenities. The buyer might also qualify for less. Few things are more depressing then driving a Porsche only to find out you can afford a used Yugo. The situation is pretty unfair to the agent also. Real Estate agents are almost never paid by the buyer and almost never get paid until a successful close of escrow. By expecting an agent to show you homes without a loan approval, you are asking them to provide their services absolutely free with little hope of ever being compensated.

The moral of my story? I have strange taste in movies. OK, that is true but not the moral. If you are planning to purchase a home speak to a loan officer first. Find out exactly where you stand financially. Don’t make any purchases or do anything strange with your credit without speaking to your loan officer first. Don’t get upset with real estate agents who won’t show you homes without a loan qualification. Most of us are independent contractors, we pay huge sums of money to our brokers and to maintain our licenses, and we do not get paid unless a transaction closes.

Contact me today for more information on loan qualifications, the Phoenix and West Valley real estate market, or to talk about bad disaster movies. Tracy Thompson 623-326-0597 tracy@talktotracyhomes.com

Phoenix Homes are Heating Up

Phoenix is starting to heat up.

Air Conditioning. In Arizona, you are hard pressed to find two more important words in the middle of August and 115 degree heat. I grew up back east and really didn’t understand why anyone would wish to live in a desert. Of course, I didn’t really understand central air conditioning either. It was not until I was 24 and living in Maryland that I first experienced the wonder of central air. Window A/C was the norm growing up and having more then 2 window units in the entire house was considered a luxury.

Air conditioning in Arizona is not a luxury, it is a necessity. No matter how many ways one can say ‘it is a dry heat’, 115 degrees is hot and fatalities occur at that temperature. When selling a property in Arizona, the A/C, heat, electric, and other systems are guaranteed to be in working condition. If during the inspection period the buyer determines these items to be non-functioning, they must be repaired by the seller.

For many, April signals the month to get ready to sell your home. If you are in the preparation stages, get your air conditioning system checked now before the heat of summer causes backups with all the local contractors. If you have a home warranty, you might want to contact them first to be sure you understand what is covered prior to having your system serviced.

You can contact me, Tracy Thompson 623-326-0597 Tracy@TalkToTracyHomes.com for a list of maintenance items to be attended to before you sell your home. If you are unsure what systems are guaranteed by the purchase contract, let me know and I will help you go over the items.

How a Little Beef Jerky can make you a Hero

I've had this on my websites for quite some time, but it bears repeating here.


Let me be upfront about this. I love my family, I love my dogs, I hate beef. Haven't touched the stuff in over 25 years. No, I'm not a vegetarian, and there is a rather lengthy boring reason but suffice it to say, I just don't eat beef. That being said, I support Beef Jerky and all it stands for and here is why...

Whatever your feelings are about our involvement in Iraq, our soldiers deserve all the support they can get. Our country has an all volunteer military made up of people who make numerous sacrifices so we can all sleep safely at night. In the interest of full disclosure, along with not liking beef, I married a man who dedicated 20 years of his life to serving in the United States Air Force so I might be a bit biased.

Our soldiers overseas love beef jerky. Love it. Devour the stuff. So I have decided to use my little corner of the Internet to get the word out that our soldiers need our help. Please click any of the links below to find out how you can help a soldier by sending a care package of magazines, gum, raisins, beef jerky, and more. If you don't have the time or the resources to send a care package, how about sending an email to show your support?

Please, be a hero, take a minute today to thank a soldier. AnySoldier.com and AmericaSupportsYou.mil are great organizations. You can also check out Operation Military Care, K9 where you can find out how to make a donation to support the brave K-9 teams who are serving in a war zone.

How my Blackberry has changed my Real Estate Business – Part 2

How my Blackberry has changed my Real Estate Business – Part 2

In part 1, I whined about my cell phone service going down. In part 2, I’ll try to stop whining and explain why it was such a big deal.

During the late 1970’s Atari introduced a wildly popular video game system which my parent’s blessed my sister and me with. Pong was awesome. Shortly thereafter, Atari introduced a home computer, the Atari 400. It was an 8k system which hooked up to the TV and used cassette tapes for storage. No 11” floppies for Atari, nope, they used cassette tapes which were frequently mangled by the tape deck. Again, this was awesome. I subscribed to ‘Compute’ magazine and spent hours and hours typing their programs into my Atari so I could have something magical appear on my TV screen. Frequently, the magical thing would turn out to be a colored square that would flash changing colors. It was revolutionary. That flashing square would change many lives, mine included.

I was drunk with power. A teenager from Lakewood, Ohio was able to make a flashing colored square on her TV screen, what would they think of next? My Atari led me to the Radio Shack TRS-80, affectionately referred to as a ‘Trash 80’. IBM was developing home PC’s and word processors were somewhat affordable for the home user.

Fast-forward to the early 1990’s. Bill Gates, Compuserve, Apple PC’s. All would have a massive impact on the world. Home PC’s finally became within reach for the home user. That is, if you had a spare $3000 for the basic PC which might even include a printer. I jumped on board the home PC bandwagon, learned as much as I could about Windows (version 3.something) and never looked back.

All of his just basically established me as a huge geek. My name is Tracy and I am a huge geek. So let me just skip over the next decade and get to the point. I really do love my career. Real Estate fascinates me. All of the various nuances, the ebbs and flows of the market and the unpredictability of it all make for exciting work.

Real Estate has also allowed me to leverage my geek side by creating venues where technology allows me better serve my clients. I maintain 2 major websites (www.TalkToTracyHomes.com and www.AZHomeBuyerHelp.com) and 4 small sites. All of which combine different technologies to assist me in getting information to the masses.

I’ve had a lot of success building my business online and using the Internet to provide the best service possible to my current clients. Then I purchased a BlackBerry.

I really did spend a long time researching PDA’s. I even bought a Dell AXIM handheld. The Dell AXIM was useful, fun, and worked as expected. Where it failed for me is in not being a phone and having spotty network connections. I needed to be able to access my email 24 hours a day.

I was pushed into getting the BlackBerry when I dropped my phone for the 937th time and it decided it had had enough. The BlackBerry waved to me from the corner of the phone store and the rest is history. When I realized I could store pictures of my listing on my phone to show to prospective buyers at a moments notice, I was sold.

How I functioned before I’ll never know. Before BlackBerry, a day of appointments meant a day without email (even with my laptop, getting a wireless connection while out of the office is a roll of the dice). Now, I can schedule a day at the doctor or a trip out of town and not miss a beat. I can ever receive faxed offers on my listings on my Blackberry. One day, a few months ago, I was at a Phoenix Suns game when I was emailed by an old client who wanted to list a property. By halftime, we had worked out the details. All in email. The best part was the man sitting next to me (not my husband but the stranger on the other side of me) asked me what I was doing and when I explained to him I was listing a property for a client he became very interested. He asked for the details on the property and while he decided he didn’t want that particular home, he still has me searching for one for him.

So you can see how I panicked when my cell service failed last week. The Phoenix real estate market is flush with real estate agents. Being a step ahead of my fellow agents gives me a competitive advantage when it is time to negotiate the best deal for my clients.

If you would like more information on how to use technology to best help you buy or sell your next home, contact me today. Tracy Thompson 623-326-0597

How my Blackberry has changed my Real Estate Business – part 1

How my Blackberry has changed my Real Estate Business – part 1

This past Wednesday, my cell phone service stopped. I tried to call a client and after 4 rings got one of those fast busy signals. My first thought was there was something wrong with my client’s phone. I went so far as to email him telling him he had phone issues. Oh, was I wrong. Soon thereafter my land line starts to ring. I can tell by the caller ID it is my husband and I prepare to give him a hard time for not calling my cell (we have one of those free calls to those on the same service plans) and he informs me my phone is not working and the message says my number is not in service. This causes me to immediately panic. How many clients are going to freak when they get a message my phone is no longer in service? How can I function without my cell phone? How will I go on breathing without life support???

After a quick search, I locate a phone number for customer service and use the land line to contact them. At this point, I could easily spend the next 15 paragraphs telling you about my 2 hours on the phone with customer service resulting in them telling me my Blackberry was faulty and directing me to the nearest store for a new SIM chip. Needless to say, I am basically pulling my hair out. I am convinced I will need to enter a 12-step program if I don’t get my cell phone fix soon.

I trot down to the local store and am shocked to see it is packed. At least 15 people, all with the same panicked facial expression I am currently sporting. Oddly, most of them are just standing around, frozen in place, staring at their phones. It is as if Tom Cruise just ran through town announcing the arrival of the aliens.

I find my way to a customer service person and explain my issues with my faulty Blackberry. You can tell she is holding back a laugh. She takes a step back from her protective counter, thus creating more distance between us, and slowly says “Ma’am, when you were on the phone with customer service, didn’t they tell you one of our cell phone towers was down and nobody has service?” It is at this moment the room starts to spin and I wonder if I am about to lose consciousness.

“So there is nothing wrong with my Blackberry?”
“Nope”

In the interest of maintaining a PG-13 site, I will leave out the next hour of my day and just let you imagine what was going through my head. Eventually I returned to my office and composed email to everyone I thought might call me letting them know I was without my life support system. Using my land line, I was still able to do business and function but I just felt so lost.

Why am I sharing this? Well I guess if I wanted to defame my cell provider, I could name them here for the entire world to see, but we all have bad days and it just happened to be a bad day for them. Everyone makes mistakes and has circumstances beyond their control. I’m quite satisfied with my service and usually go for months at a time without having to contact my provider. Could they educate their customer service people to check to see if service is out in a specific area before troubleshooting the phone? Absolutely. In fact, I emailed the company, not to complain, but to suggest that this step was possibly missed during my phone call. The support person who handled my call was new. She will probably handle the next call differently.

I’m sharing this because it really hit me how dependant I am on technology and just how much of my business is cultivated because of that technology. We will get into that in part 2.

Phoenix Real Estate Pre-Qualification and Pre-Approval

One of the most important steps in the Phoenix home buying process is receiving pre-approval for a home loan. Many buyers apply for a loan and obtain approval before they find the home they want to buy. Why? The pre-approval step takes only a few hours and will save you a tremendous amount of time looking at homes that may be below what you qualify for or above what you can qualify for. Taking this step also affords you the opportunity to get to know your lender and the process he or she will take to assist you in your home purchase. To get the process started, I have added numerous loan calculators to my web site. Just plug in some simple information and you can get a snap shot of what you qualify for.

When purchasing a home in Arizona there are a variety of loan programs that are available. These different loan programs offer different rates, terms, and down payments. Many loan programs require no money down. Many individuals do not own a home simply because they don't know how easy it can be. Often times you can own a home for less than you pay in rent.

Pre-qualifying will help you in the following ways: Generally, interest rates are locked in for a set period of time. You will know in advance exactly what your payments will be on offers you choose to make and you won’t waste time considering homes you cannot afford. Pre-approval will help you in the following ways: A seller may choose to make concessions if they know that your financing is secured and you can select the best loan package without being under pressure.

Sometimes similar sounding terms can have vastly different meanings. For instance, the difference between buyers who are pre-qualified and those who are pre-approved can make a huge difference in the length of time it may take your home sale to close.

A buyer who is pre-qualified is one whose lender has determined how much he/she can borrow based only on information they have provided to the lender. Nothing has been verified to determine the buyer's true creditworthiness. The buyer must fill out a loan application and go through the lender's approval process at a later date.

When a buyer has been pre-approved, the lender has already done a credit check and verification of employment and deposit. The lender's pre-approval is actually a commitment to loan the buyer up to a certain pre-determined amount. The only thing missing is the lender's appraisal of your home to confirm its value. When seeking a pre-approval, it's important to not misrepresent the facts on your application. If a lender learns later that you've misrepresented or omitted information on your application, your pre-approval may be rescinded.

An offer from a pre-approved buyer can save days or even weeks off the closing process. In Arizona a purchase contract must be accompanied by a Loan Status Report which states at which stage of the loan process the buyer is currently.

Please keep this in mind when you are ready to make your next home purchase. There is really never a good reason not to represented by a licensed Realtor®. Copyright 2004-2006. Tracy Thompson is a member of the National Association of Realtors®, The Arizona Association of Realtors® and the Glendale Board of Realtors®. To find out more about home buying and selling, contact Tracy at 623-326-0597 or email Tracy@TalkToTracyHomes.com. Sign up for Tracy’s free weekly newsletter at www.TalkToTracyHomes.com/newsletter

Dogs

I know, this has absolutely nothing to do with the Phoenix real estate market but it's my blog and I want to talk about dogs today.

Unlike my dogs, I have that whole opposable thumbs thing going which means they have always depended on me for some basic hygiene assistance. I'll be honest, I firmly believe the dogs wager on how much they can make me look like a total idiot when I try to brush their teeth or clean their ears. Let's not even discuss trimming their nails.

Chuck (the Wiener) was pretty good about the whole grooming thing. He would put up a small fight with teeth and ears but as least he would let me do it. When Jackson (the Boxer) entered the picture, he decided it would be a lot more fun to see how much toothpaste could end up on me rather then on his teeth. Ear cleaning is out of the question and I have had 2 groomers refuse to ever do his nails again. Jackson is a true Boxer at heart and has no problem demonstrating his boxing ability when confronted with nail clippers.

All I have to do is open the drawer containing the nail clippers and toothbrush and it sends Jack in a complete frenzy. He runs around the house, jumps on the furniture, plays keep away all the while quietly laughing at my idiotic behavior while I chase him around the sofa. The general calamity causes Chuck to make a howling noise reminiscent of an Otter being crushed by a Grizzly Bear.

My desire to regain some dignity in front of my dogs has sent me on an exhaustive search for doggie dental products. Greenies were out of the question after reading about the dogs that died after using them. Both the traditional toothbrush and the rubber finger-tip brush proved to be more painful then useful. Yes, I could take them in for a proper cleaning from the vet but I was looking for daily or at least weekly care.

I found it. Yee-haw. So I’m taking time away from my chosen career to tell you about the Easy Brush. There are 2 sizes the Large Dog Toothbrush and the Small/Medium Dog Toothbrush.

It is awesome. It looks like a dog bone with a bristle end. Jack and Chuck fight over it. They behave as though I gave them a t-bone steak. Absolutely amazing. I don’t know if it is the way the toothpaste tastes or what, but they love it. Just give it to your dog for about 2 minutes every other day and they brush their own teeth. Very cool. One caveat; the first few times both dogs had bleeding gums. The package instructions warn of this and tell you to keep a close eye on the pup when he is chewing.

The worst part of the toothbrush is trying to get it away from the dogs at the end of the 2 minute brushing. Both Chuck and Jack grab the bone and let me chase them around the house. Possibly this is their way of ensuring I still lose my dignity when taking care of doggie hygiene.

I’ve dedicated a section of my website to pets. Check it out. I have tips for moving and reducing the stress on your pet. There is also a section where you can submit a picture of your pet to be posted on my site. I also post sale and discount offers from major retailers so you can keep up with the latest pet trends.

If you would like to see your pet online, email me or visit my website http://www.AZHomeBuyerHelp.com for more information.

Do You Need a Home Inspection?

Before You Buy Phoenix Real Estate

Do you really need to have a home inspection before buying? In a word, yes. Most homebuyers take into consideration what the cost of paying the home’s mortgage, taxes and utilities will be, but fail to factor in home repairs and maintenance. A home with many defects that is selling for a low price may be a great value for a homebuyer who is very handy and has the time and money to make the needed improvements.

On the other hand, buying a home that requires a lot of repairs may be a big problem. Do you have the ability, the finances, and the resources to make repairs? Are you prepared to spend from a few hours to what might be weeks without air conditioning or even plumbing? A proper home inspection can help warn you of potential problems before they happen.


Your REALTOR should explain the purchase process, make and negotiate the offer and prepare contracts. Once the contract has been accepted your Realtor will assist you in making arrangements for your home inspection. In Arizona, most contracts only allow 10 days for you to obtain all necessary inspections. Plan on attending the inspection and ask question while it is going on. Don’t be afraid to speak up if you don’t understand something. This will soon be your new home and you should feel good about your purchase.

Some of the things the inspector will be looking for include; Foundations: Look for cracks or water seepage, Insulation: Look for condition, adequate rating for climate, Doors and Windows: Look for loose or tight fits, condition of locks, condition of weather stripping, Roof: Look for age, conditions of flashing, pooling water, buckled shingles, or loose gutters and downspouts, Ceilings, walls, and moldings: Look for loose pieces, drywall that is pulling away, Electrical: Look for condition of fuse box/circuit breakers, number of outlets in each room, Plumbing: Look for poor water pressure, banging pipes, rust spots or corrosion that indicate leaks, sufficient insulation, Water Heater: Look for age, size adequate for house, speed of recovery, energy rating.

That’s not even half the list, but I think you get my point. A home inspection is a crucial component of the home buying process. Now you can complete your home purchase with confidence about the condition of the property and all its equipment and systems. From the inspection, you will have learned many things about your new home, and will want to keep that information for future reference.

To find out more about home buying and selling and Phoenix real estate, contact Tracy Thompson at 623-326-0597 or email Tracy@TalkToTracyHomes.com. http://www.TalkToTracyHomes.com or http://www.TalkToTracyHomes.com

Are there available Investment Properties in Phoenix?

The Phoenix Real Estate Investment Market

Last summer I could count on at least one phone call per day from an out-of-state investor who either found me online or had been referred to me from another investor. Almost all of the calls had the same theme: Do you have any occupied investment properties? Do you have any new builds? Easy questions to answer one year ago: No, and No. For good measure I would also let the caller know about the difficulty in finding a tenant and even if one could be found, don’t even think about cash flow.

What a difference a year makes. Today on the Arizona Multiple Listing Service there are multi-unit properties available, most are correctly priced and with a little effort should cash flow nicely. I am able to find numerous tenant occupied properties which might not exactly cash flow but with steady appreciation are positioned to be solid investments. As a matter of fact, there are enough investment properties in Phoenix, El Mirage, Glendale, and Avondale that I can send a daily email to interested clients with new listings. If you would like to receive this list, visit my website or email me Tracy@TalkToTracyHomes.com.

New Builds are an interesting market at the moment. I’ve always been a proponent of builders putting restrictions on non-owner occupants. There were some developments with over half of the homes available for rent last year. Situations such as this caused almost all of the Phoenix new home builders to put one and two year owner-occupied only restrictions on their sub-divisions. Investors were outraged and agents were frustrated but in the end decisions such as these usually prove to be prudent.

This year we are looking at a different market. Phoenix area builders have started to again offer co-broke fees to agents and rebates and incentives to buyers. This has created a double-positive situation for the buyer. Buyer’s can once again bring their REALTOR with them to purchase a new build giving the buyer the protection they deserve. Last year many of the builders removed any compensation for buyer’s agents causing the buyer to be unrepresented or creating a situation where a kindly REALTOR was expected to work for free. While I love my chosen profession, not receiving compensation for services rendered can be a bitter pill to swallow.

Arizona new home builders are also offering some very attractive rebates and incentives for buyers. Pools, patios, upgraded flooring, and landscaping packages are just a few of the promotions hitting my email this week. I keep a list of upcoming developments and the incentives being offered. Feel free to sign-up on my site, call 623-326-0597, or email me to receive updates.

Some Phoenix new home builders are even allowing a limited number of out-of-state buyers. I have found the list of builder changes daily with supply and demand but it is possible to buy a new build home as an investment property. Visit the section on investment properties at my web site http://www.AZHomeBuyerHelp.com for more information.

Phoenix, West Valley Commercial Growth

West Valley Commercial Growth

Having lived in the West Valley of Phoenix for the past eight years, I am easily excited whenever I see any construction having the potential of being a future restaurant or shop. Not that I wasn’t fond of the neighborhood dairy or egg ranch. Actually, I miss having a working farm just down the street where I could purchase fresh produce. I’m just a little relieved at the prospect of quality dining and shopping without having to drive to Scottsdale.

The Southwest corner of 99th Ave and McDowell is to be the new home of Gateway Crossing. Prospective tenants include Claim Jumper, Islands Fine Burgers and Drinks, Paradise Bakery & Café, Best Buy, Chipotle, Rumbi Island Grill, and more. The first phase is to be completed in early 2007.

At Dysart and McDowell ground has broken on Pei Wei, NYPD Pizza and (I cannot wait) Sprouts. I cannot hold my breath much longer waiting for AJ’s to set up shop in the Far West Valley so I will have to be satisfied with Sprouts. Across the street on the northwest corner, a Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar is set to be built. Over the years, I enjoyed many a wing at BW3 in Ohio and am really looking forward to having one close to home.

As I hear (and can confirm) of more shopping/dining opportunities, I’ll post them here and on my website at AZHomeBuyerHelp.com. If you know of a new development in the area, drop me an email and let me know.

Phoenix Real Estate Market Review

According to the experts the bubble is popping, or the bubble popped, or there is no bubble, or the bubble is going to pop next week. My head is spinning and about to pop. So much speculation, so little hard facts.

I did some digging. I wanted actual facts and statistics. Days on market, houses sold, price. Just some basics so I could get a better idea of what is really going on.

First let's look at the past 3 years;

January 2004 - 5103 homes sold - $253,139 average list price
January 2005 - 6584 homes sold - $307,705 average list price
January 2006 - 5245 homes sold - $409, 109 average list price

February 2004 - 6099 homes sold - $244,717 average list price
February 2005 - 7720 homes sold - $321,777 average list price
February 2006 - 5883 homes sold - Not yet available


These figures are for the Phoenix Metro Area. I have a full analysis of the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service (ARMLS) figures for the Glendale/West Maricopa Board of REALTORS available on my web site.

The Phoenix Housing Market Letter Publisher RL Brown, released February's issue stating "Resale "freefall" may be imminent for owners who wait too long to sell", "Over-expectations by sellers are contributing to the booming rehab market," and, "Market times will continue to move up until sellers reposition their pricing to market."

I don't think there can be too much emphasis on "Over-expectations by sellers". Last summer was the exception, not the norm. In many ways, this year is looking like 2003, a normal, stable real estate market. Almost every seller I encounter is struggling with selling because they might lose on another $100,000 in equity if they hang on another few months.

Crystal Balls have not been found to be spot on in their ability to analyze the real estate market. Even if I had one, it would not do me much good. All I can do is take the information I gather and use it the best way possible.

I have not had the time to pull all the figures but I have to assume there is a direct relation between the increase in homes for sale with the population and an increase in home being built. I'm looking forward to analyzing the percentages to get a better picture of what this really means.

If you are planning to sell, I do believe sooner is better then later. For buyers, prices will continue to rise though not at the rate we saw in 2005. That being said, sooner is better then later for you too.

To receive all the market report data or to sign up for the West Valley Real Estate Digest, visit my websites www.AZHomeBuyerHelp.com and www.TalkToTracyHomes.com

Need Remodeling Help?

Here is a step by step guide to help you hire a quality home improvement contractor.

Before talking to any contractors the first thing to do is create a budget for the project. Without a budget you will be flying blind and may end up over spending. Having a tight budget will also help you make decisions about what kind of fixtures, and materials to purchase. Most products have a wide price range and having a budget will help keep you in line when making buying decisions.

After you have your budget dialed in get three written estimates from three different contractors. Be sure the estimate is complete; getting a “written” estimate on the back of a business card is not a sign of a good contractor. Getting three estimates will enable you to compare prices from different contractors. Reliableremodeler.com is a great service that will help you get free estimates from quality contractors for free.

Take the time to talk with each contractor and get a feel for which one you will be most comfortable working with and having in your home. Be sure and pay attention to things like who shows up on time and who is prepared to talk about your project. If a contractor shows up late to your appointment chances are they will show up late when working on your project.

While you are in the process of selecting a contractor it is a good idea to make sure they have the proper license, insurance, and bonding. All three of these items are in place to protect homeowners. Working with a contractor who isn’t licensed or doesn’t have the proper insurance might come back to haunt you. A good contractor will show you copies of these documents when they present your written estimate.

The next step is to check the references of the contractor you are leaning towards selecting. Be sure to ask specific questions about their experience with the contractor. “Did the contractor show up on time?” “Did the contractor clean up after themselves?” If you want to be more aggressive you can ask the contractor for the names and numbers of their last three jobs and call those instead of their handpicked references. This will provide a more realistic overview of the contractors daily work habits and skills.

The last step is to select your contractor and have them provide you a timeline for the completion of the project. Having a timeline will help ensure your project is completed in a timely manner.

For more tips on preparing your home for sale, visit Tracy Thompson online at TalkToTracyHomes.com or AZHomeBuyerHelp.com

Do You Have an Extra $5 Million?

The sale of a DC Ranch home for $9.5 million ranks as the third highest ever in the Valley. The almost 11,000 square foot home is located on a 2 acre parcel in Silverleaf. The two top home sales in the Valley were a 2001 house for $10.5 million and a 2005 estate for $11.4 million. Both properties are located in Paradise Valley,

The MLS currently lists 113 properties priced $5 million and above. The most expensive being a $19.9 million estate located on 10 acres with approximately 25,000 square feet of living space. I have posted the listing on my site just in case you are interested in making a record-breaking home purchase.

Now if you find yourself not being able to afford much over say $6 million rest assured. There are 41 homes available today in the $5-$6 million range. There are even a few over 10,000 square feet. Many of these properties are still in various stages of the construction process allowing the buyer to make customizations. All of these properties are able to be viewed by qualified buyers.

Investment Opportunities

I currently have 3 properties that are great investment opportunities


2 West Phoenix 4-plexes
New Roof, New A/C, Fresh Paint. Own 8 units for residential financing. Fully rented. See also 3135 W. Almeria. To be sold together. Parking lot and landscaping in progress.
More Information http://www.InvestorRentals.com

Glendale Town House
Spacious 3 bedroom home is located in a great looking complex shaded with Pecan trees. The community features a playground and community pool. Within walking distance of schools shopping and transportation. New flooring, appliances and hot water heater. Don't pass up this great property. More Photos http://www.AZHomeBuyerHelp.com

Buckeye is positioned for greatness.

I had the opportunity to visit Tartesso this past weekend. Tartesso is the first of the ‘Road to Nowhere’ sub divisions. All I can say is WOW. I was so impressed with the amount of infrastructure already in place. Many roads are in and the entrance looks to be close to completion. Houses in Tartesso will start at $225,000. The average price for a new home in metro Phoenix was nearly $250,000 in January, according to R.L. Brown, who publishes the Phoenix Housing Market Letter. Tartesso, sitting west of the White Tank Mountains on 12,000 acres, has been approved for 40,000 homes.

Tartesso's main thoroughfare will be Sun Valley Parkway, which historically has been called the "Road to Nowhere" after development dreams turned sour in the 1980s. Developers are ready to fill the 160 square miles of desert with 300,000 new homes in one of the last large pieces of undeveloped land in the metro area. Buckeye's Sun Valley area will be metro Phoenix's next big growth corridor. Planners are projecting that 500,000 to nearly 1 million people will move to the area in the next 40 years.

More development along the Sun Valley Parkway is on the way. Stardust Development is partnering with Sterling Centre Corp. to build Tartesso Town Center, a 3.5 million-square-foot project planned for the entrance to the community. Developer El Dorado Holdings is partnering with Sonoran West Properties to develop Douglas Ranch, the state's biggest planned development. Douglas Ranch will cover 35,000 acres, more than twice the size of Manhattan. Douglas Ranch will eventually have 84,000 homes, 250,000 residents, four freeway interchanges, and dozens of office parks and malls.

Pulte bought or bought options on several parcels of land totaling about 4,100 acres east of the Sun Valley Parkway between Missouri and Northern avenues. Pulte will build one of its all-ages Anthem communities there. Pulte is building Sun City Festival in the northern part of the Sun Valley area. Pulte also is developing property in Tartesso.

I’ve posted pictures and information on builders and floor plans on my website.