Blog
N. Mark Kramoltz, JD, GRI, CIPS writes blog articles on the metro Phoenix, Arizona, national and global real estate markets. Written from his perspective as a designated broker and real estate attorney, his articles avoid the inaccuracies and vacuous industry propaganda common to most real estate writings. He also blogs about animals (mostly dogs in the military) due to his love of pets and military history.
Scottsdale Owners Save.
The city and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have reconsidered a designated flood plain area east of Scottsdale Road, from roughly Deer Valley to Happy Valley. Better flood modeling techniques and improvements in infrastructure led to FEMA dropping the...
Do You Have That Sinking Feeling?
According to the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation, Florida has more sinkholes than any other state. The Florida Geological Survey noted that, "[s]ince the entire state is underlain by carbonate rocks, sinkholes could theoretically form anywhere." To illustrate...
Public Transit Proximity Matters.
The America THINKS survey found that 83% of all Americans were as or more interested in living near accessible public transportation than they were 5 years ago, including 76% of Americans living in rural areas. This desire to live near public transportation has...
The New No. 1 Counter Choice.
The most popular counter top material U.S. remodelers say they’re using is quartz, followed by granite. In 2015, 89% of National Kitchen and Bath Association members said they used quartz in their kitchen remodeling projects. Obviously that means the popularity of...
Low Hazard Risk County Home Sales Increasing Twice as Fast.
In a study, 3,000 U.S. counties were indexed based on risk of six natural hazards - such as earthquakes, floods, hail, and hurricane storm surge. The research showed that median home prices in the first 6 months of 2016 are up 9.5% from the same time period 10 years...
Closing Costs – Who Pays and How Much? Part 3.
HOA Related. If there is a homeowners association, the dues - whenever collected (monthly, annually, etc.) will be prorated between buyer and seller. If there is a transfer fee charged by the HOA, it is a negotiable item under the AAR contract, so either party may...
Foreign Buyers Pay More.
Foreign buyers pay nearly twice as much for a U.S. home when compared to the overall U.S. average house price, according to NAR’s 2015 Profile of Home Buying Activity of International Clients. That indicates that a large number of the homes bought by global buyers are...
“Boomerang” Buyers Returning Slowly.
Americans who lost their home to foreclosure are slow to return to home ownership. About 1.9 million of the 3.1 million home owners who were foreclosed on between 2007 and 2013 have passed the 7 year mark, the typical time required to sufficiently improve a credit...
Number of U.S. Purchases Abroad Explodes.
Perhaps because of property value increases here and the strength of the U.S. Dollar, more and more U.S. homeowners are looking to purchase in other countries (sales have increased 233%). The countries that generated the most interest were Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica,...