(This article first appeared in the April 2016 print edition of the South Mountain District News)

The average sales price of existing homes continued to rise throughout Laveen and the South Mountain areas of Phoenix during the first quarter of 2016, which ended March 31.

Compared with the same time period in 2015, prices for existing homes sold during the first quarter were up nearly 9 percent in Laveen’s 85339 ZIP Code, while prices in 85040 were up nearly 16 percent. Home prices in 85041 were up just over 14 percent and ZIP code 85042 saw the largest increase in sales price with a 20 percent bump over 2015.

Realtor Jeffrey Hale with Turf Realty said multiple factors are influencing the local housing market.

“Laveen and South Mountain have very affordable houses.  These areas attract many first-time home buyers and with all of the down-payment assistance programs available, it becomes easy to purchase a home,” he said. “As long as these programs continue and expand, there will be more demand for the houses in our community.”

In general, the number of homes listed in each area was up over a year ago and the number of days it took to sell was down. The exceptions were in 85041, which showed a nearly 8 percent decrease in the number of active listings when compared with first-quarter 2015, and 85042, which had a nearly 9 percent reduction in listings for the time period.

The figures, compiled by Laveen Realtor Sam Lawmaster with Realty One, are based on information from the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service. ARMLS tracks active listings, homes sold, sales prices, length of time on market and other variables that are input by local Realtors.

“Home prices have been rising fairly consistently throughout the Valley over the past year,” Lawmaster said. “The available inventory of homes for sale is low, leading to shorter days on the market for homes that are priced well. Interest rates are still near historic lows, providing some good opportunities for buyers.”

Hale agrees that the market is in a good place for buyers, but sellers are seeing some nice increases in their home prices which might prompt them to sell and purchase a larger home.  “Many people who purchased homes within the last few years are seeing the value of their home rise quite a bit,” he said. “If the economy continues to improve, it will allow them to sell their homes and use the equity to upgrade their situation. “

Hale concludes with two other factors that are influencing the local market specifically: a high demand for rental houses and the construction of the South Mountain Freeway.

“We receive many calls a day from people asking if we have houses available for rent.  This demand has attracted some of the large investors back to the area.  They won’t be buying the more expensive houses, but they will push up the values of the homes in price ranges under $180,000 which will in turn push the entire market up,” Hale said.

With the freeway, Hale said that now people can actually see the dirt being moved, they will understand that it’s right around the corner and will want to move to an area that suddenly has quick access to all parts of the Valley.

Here is a breakout for local ZIP codes:

85339

From January 1 to March 31 of this year, 181 homes were sold in the 85339 area, a slight decrease of 3.2 percent compared with the 187 homes sold during the same three months in 2015. Homes selling for $160,000-$179,999 showed the highest number of closed purchases with 44 homes sold.

Listings for 85339 were up during the quarter this year with 500 active listings during the period compared with 469 a year ago, a 6.6 percent increase with 31 additional listings in 2016. More than 140 properties were listed at between $200,000 and $249,999, making it one of the largest price categories. Homes were on the market 25 percent fewer days in 2016, with an average listing time of 66 days.

85040

There were 80 homes sold in this ZIP code during the first quarter of 2016, up 11 percent over the 72 homes sold during the same time in 2015. The $140,000-$159,999 price range had one of the largest numbers of sales this year with 19 closed transactions in the quarter.

There were 168 actively listed homes for sale so far in 2016 compared with 154 year-to-date in 2015, a 9.1 percent increase. The $140,000-$159,999 price category had 27 listings, making it one of the largest overall listing categories. The number of days on the market dropped slightly by 1.8 percent reflecting a 54 listing time compared with 2015.

85041

The number of homes sold for first-quarter 2016 totaled 189, up .5 percent over 2015 which had 188 homes sold during the same time period. The $160,000-$179,999 price category had one of the largest numbers of homes sales this year with 46 completed transactions.

Listings were down 7.7 percent in 85041 with 417 active properties for sale in 2016 through the end of March compared with 452 properties during first-quarter 2015. With 87 homes for sale, the $160,000-$179,999 price bracket saw one of the greatest numbers of properties listed.  In comparison to this period a year ago, the number of days on the market was 70 days, down 2.8 percent.

85042

There were 138 homes sold in first-quarter 2016 compared with 119 a year ago, an increase of 16 percent over the 119 sold in first-quarter 2015. The $200,000-$249,999 price bracket reported one of the highest numbers of completed sales this year at 32 completed purchases.

Active listings dropped from 325 in the first-quarter of 2015 to 297 in the first-quarter of this year, an 8.6 percent decrease. With 65 houses for sale, the $200,000-$249,999 price category showed one of the highest numbers of properties listed. Compared to the same period last year, the cumulative days on market for active residential listings in 85042 was 66 days, a drop of 12 percent.

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About a dozen local businesses donated time and services to Laveen’s first Back to School Backpack Drive and Family Fun Night on July 26 at the Laveen Education Center.

Participants at the event received certificates for free haircuts for children ages 5-12 with the donation of a new backpack.  There was a free bounce house, live music, free water and free snacks.

About 50 backpacks were donated and will be distributed by the Laveen Elementary School District to needy children. Families came with blankets and chairs and stayed for while, enjoying free water and snacks while the children got temporary tattoos, danced and bounced.

About 50 backpacks were donated and will be distributed by the Laveen Elementary School District officials to needy children during the first weeks of school.

Sponsoring businesses included: A Child’s Joy, Cesar’s Graphics, Comfy Pets of AZ, DJ Ant with Big Boiz Entertainment, Dollar Storage, Ellaments Salon, Kathy Does Kake, Scooptacular and Turf Realty.

The post Laveen Village Voice: Backpack drive gets 50 donations appeared first on Laveen Business Directory.

When the Loop 202 South Mountain Freeway project links Laveen to the rest of the Valley, local Realtors predict an uptick in Laveen home prices, which were some of the state’s most devastated after the housing market collapse in 2007.

“The 202 South Mountain Freeway will offer new growth opportunities for Laveen and the surrounding areas,” predicts Sam Lawmaster, a Laveen Realtor for ReMax. “Having access to I-10 will make Laveen more connected to the rest of the Phoenix metro area and may potentially have a positive home value impact on many of the properties around the area.”

But just how much of a boost will it be? About 10 years ago, people were trying to outbid each other to purchase Valley homes, and Laveen was one of the areas riding high on those soaring prices. When the bubble burst in 2007, local homeowners were hit hard and suffered drastic declines in home prices.

“One can never be sure how any event will affect real estate,” says Doyle Perry, owner of Black Belt Realty. “There have been way too many surprises.  But, a general rule is that more traffic and convenience means more demand for housing.”

Last year the median price for a home in Laveen was $175,000. The median is the point where half the homes sell for more and half sell for less. Compared with 10 years ago at the height of the housing market, prices are still down 29 percent when adjusted for inflation. However, prices in 2014 were up about 8 percent from the previous year, and overall prices are up about 22 percent over the past five years, even adjusted for inflation.

Jeffrey Hale, co-owner at Turf Realty, is sure the freeway will be help prices, but he cautions that there are other factors to consider, such as the national housing market and interest rates to name two.

“I am certain it won’t hurt our values, and I believe that it will help,” Hale acknowledges, “but it will be too hard to measure the exact impact it has among all of the other factors influencing value.”

For example, Hale said that if property values were to see an immediate 10 percent rise once the freeway opened in 2020, then that would be an easy correlation.

“But that won’t happen,” Hale said. “Values rose when the freeway was approved. They will rise when construction begins. They will rise as we get closer to completion and the connecting arterial roadways are completed. They will rise as the freeway opens, and they will continue to rise as commercial businesses invest along the freeway corridor.”

There are some other points, too. Perry said that because the route is in the western area of Laveen, it won’t change downtown commute patterns for residents living east of 51^st Avenue. “It won’t have the impact that it would have if it helped us get downtown,” he said, “But, it comes under the heading of every little bit helps.”

Hale added that while the roadway is being built over the next five years, there also will be an increase in the number of investors who sell their inventory and swap out renters for homeowners.

Census statistics show that about 75 percent of Laveen residents currently own their homes. Lawmaster said that neighborhoods with high percentages of owner-occupied homes tend to be more stable in value. “For owners, it means a tax deduction; it means pride of ownership. And usually homeowners want to retain the resale value of their home, so they have an incentive to keep up with maintenance and take care of their home.”

But as Hale said before, Laveen isn’t isolated from outside economic influences.

“There will be natural and historical market adjustments that influence values,” Hale said. “There will also be larger state and national economies at play, which will affect our local market.  With all of the other factors affecting home worth, it will be hard to calculate the exact impact the freeway itself has in raising our property values.”

So the consensus is that the freeway will definitely help but the significance of a longterm positive impact will be difficult to predict.

“Yes, it will increase demand for housing in Laveen,” Perry says.  “No, it will not be dramatic.  And to the disappointment of many, with a freeway interchange, Laveen is becoming less and less of a village.”

The print version of this article appears in the June edition of the South Mountain District News.

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