Below are several other reports about the state of the Greater Phoenix real estate market.

November Homes Sales Data: An Overview of the Greater Phoenix Market.
Short Sale Pre-Foreclosure Real Estate Market Overview in Greater Phoenix
Residential Lender Owned Property Market in Greater Phoenix

Here is a full review and account of the Medlock Historic District and homes for sale.

As noted a few weeks ago we’ve started doing some videos all of which you can see in the Phoenix Market Trends video section.

So far there are just 10 videos covering topics like:

1. An architectural masterpiece by Vernon Swaback

2. A home for sale in East Mesa

3. How a dirty grimy condo was turned into a wonderful home

4. Joanna & Maggie talking about loans.

The video about is talks about some thing to avoid when buying a home and getting a loan.  They are common mistakes so please watch the video to help prevent you loosing out on a house because of some silly action.

We’ve got plenty of ideas, but we’re taking it slow and trying to improve the quality.  Soon we’ll be doing interviews and featuring central Phoenix properties and locations.

We’ve got 18 of the 35 Historic Phoenix neighborhoods covered in detail at PMT.   From some of the first far out suburbs like Medlock Place and Windsor square to the prestegious districts like Encanto-Palmcroft and Los Olivos.

The pages include a history of the district, a map and homes for sale plus related links.  We’ve put much work into this and the remaining neighborhoods should be covered by the rest of the year.

For those of you looking to either learn about the districts and or buy a home there, you’ll enjoy the history and easy access to home currently on the market.  Start exploring the Historic Neighborhoods of Phoenix.

Over at Phoenix Market Trends we put up a lot of market reports, about 6-12 per month from an overview of Greater Phoenix to more specific reports.

The most recent Greater Phoenix housing market report shows sales are strong in Greater Phoenix.  They are down a bit, but for this time of year the numbers are quite nice.

Since this weblog focuses on the urban core we encourage you to read housing reports at Phoenix Market Trends for a wider view of the Phoenix market.

And this is what I thought of: (and I guess this is a perspective of a total control freak) I would do a lot of work on my own before I could make a commitment to work with one person.

1. I would visit the town at least twice before. I would drive around as much as possible looking for “hints”

2. I would read  online whatever possible about the best places to live there. Especially places that would allow me the lifestyle I want to have.

3. I would talk to people: (online friends, people in the town, strangers met randomly, bartenders, waiters…. Realtors too.  : ) because the best place can really mean different things to everyone.
i.e.  Gilbert was chosen once  as one of the 3 best places to live in Metro Phoenix. (Phoenix Magazine)
However: Forbes magazine has chosen the city as one of the most boring in USA.

4. I would check criminal stats and compare them to other places in the town.

5. I would google everything.

6. I think I would rather rent for 3-6 months to get a better feel and in the meantime I would read  the  real estate contract and addenda and ask my agent for explanation of things that are not clear to me. A good agent should be very happy to explain everything in the details and make sure that there is not one thing that you don’t understand.

While interviewing an agent I would  slice him and dice him and watch for red flags like:

“this is a safe area”,  “there is no crime here”, “It is a quiet neighborhood” “trust me..”, ” trust me,  everything will be all right, just sign the dotted line please”  “maybe you want to check out the South part of town, there are many Polish people there” …nnnope…  “this is a perfect time to buy a house” … I have developed an allergic reaction to such cliches; a perfect time to buy a house is when I want to buy a house. Except when I need to participate in a bidding war. As I recall “a perfect time to buy a house” was also in 2005.

7. I would talk to couple Realtors, I would give each of them a chance to impress me. I would look for honesty, modesty;
I could not stand if someone had  a huge ego, (it rather hurts negotiations)

I would look for an ability to handle stressful situation , having things under control, and I would like to have a feeling that I am the most important person for her while she is working with me.

I would like her to LISTEN , really LISTEN to me, because there must be nothing more frustrating than someone trying to shape you according to their vision.

That is just like a hair stylist who will cut your hair according to what they like, not how you want it.

HOWEVER… HOWEVER.. as a Realtor I need to say- it happens to me ALL THE TIME: a new client says: I have to have such and such .. and they purchase a completely different property..

8.  Definitely I would like the Realtor to show me few places before I would make the commitment.
I would like to check if they annoy me or answer all my questions in a satisfactory manner. If the agent opens a home for me,  than walks in front of me “to show me the home” and talks all the time…

I would fire her this very minute.
I think people need to have a little more faith in the others intellectual capabilities: I don’t need anyone to show me:  “…and here is the bathroom and here is the kitchen  and here is the doggie door” ….  believe me: I see it!!!!

Writing this I realized how much trust you must have in someone who represents you…

We need to eliminate the unnecessary stress from our lives.

I hear too often: I don’t like my Realtor.

Ok, than make the decision fast; work with someone whom – on top of all those other  very important things-   you like!

A buyer with an excellent credit score received a letter of denial from an underwriter, because he didn’t know about it.

Well, how would you know?

It is about the mattress money.  The gift. The money that we have been saving.. just not necessarily in  the bank account.

When it comes to home financing, the guidelines are really strict now.When you apply for a loan, and you already have the dream home under contract there must be a certain amount in your bank account- (the amount depends on your future mortgage payment) -and this will be one of the lender’s conditions to underwrite the loan. In most cases it is not the additional money that creates the issue, but WHERE IS CAME FROM AND- what sometimes may be essential-  HOW LONG IT HAS BEEN IN YOUR ACCOUNT.

They simple want to make sure there is no money laundering or another investor involved in your home purchase if this is a program that does not allow it. So in order to avoid any problems during the purchase process  it is important to prepare for it ahead of time, and talk to a good loan officer few months before a home purchase.

If you need to deposit additional money be ready to document the source, and make sure that it is deposited at least 2 months before applying for a loan, so it is SEASONED.

If it is not- the lender can tell you: come back later.

Than the home you already imagined yourself living in- may be gone.

Termite treatment usually costs several hundred dollars, however, if you own a home that is maximum 5 years old,  there is a chance someone else will cover the expense.

If the home was treated before or during the construction, it will still be under a warranty, and you may simply call the general contractor or contact the State of Arizona Office of Pest Management  ( 602-255-3664; 1 800-223-0618 ).  They will look up for you who did the treatment originally so you know whom to call.

More information on the website.

But now i think that freedom can be learned if this is our priority,
if we have the strong SENSE OF FREEDOM;
or we can become enslaved more and more by people and things and circumstances
and our thinking narrows down. Some people like to be enslaved. It gives them a feeling they are needed.

I have never met a person who would be totally free.

There is always something somewhere keeping us from enjoying it.
The areas of life where we are not free are the very same places where the obstacles to  harmony and happiness are.

It must be  a lonely road to  total freedom.
perhaps it is a goal impossible to reach.
perhaps we don’t really want total freedom,
Every time we are more free we gave up something else.
If ” freedom is just another word for having nothing to lose”
than being totally free would mean to be dead.
When we are alive we always have something to lose.

Maybe I never met anyone who is totally free because freedom is a process…
We encounter new situations and people every day -
are we free in relation to them or do they control us?

The road to freedom means to  me :
letting go of one mind conditioning after another, one after another,
but i am creating also more conditioning in my mind along the way,
and each time it happens, I see that,
but it is so hard to let some of them go,
(those that make me me?)
it seems that i will give up myself if I do,
that I will feel bad- or is it the simple reason that I am not ready?

Freedom is a state of mind. Freedom is relative. But it is never total.
no matter what we do, there is usually a system we are entangled in.
Even if we think we have chosen an alternative route or live unconventional life.
After all don’t we search for more freedom when we think it will make us happier?
Not just for the sake of it?

Joanna Zajusz

originally posted on PMT