Just for fun …

The Virginia Association of REALTORs gets it. It’s one of the few associations around that have adopted blogging as a communication vehicle. And as part of the effort to build traffic, Ben Martin has initiated the first annual Blog Brawl - a contest where you pick your favorite blog in a March Madness-style setup.

I survived the first round but now am facing the reality in the Round of 32 of facing Agent Genius, a multi-author blog founded by Benn Rosales and Lani Anglin.

There’s no way for me to speak badly of Benn and Lani, especially since I’m also one of the contributors there. I’m sure the fact no kids will go near their house on Halloween to trick or treat is mere coincidence. Or the odd lack of stray animals anywhere nearby. And I’m certain the “I (Club) Baby Harp Seals” bumper sticker on Benn’s car was placed there by some prankster.

But, should you find it in your heart to vote for a humble beagle and his owner in a battle against corporate America, we’d be very appreciative.

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Inventory has crept up as expected by a net of approximately 200 homes here in the Phoenix real estate market. Sales of single-family detached homes in Maricopa County also improved over last week’s update, up to 2,727 over the past 30 days. The result is an absorption rate of 14.55 months, over a month less than last week’s figure.

As mentioned earlier, the bank owned market is the fastest moving with a 5.95-month supply of homes. And short sales also have been moving slightly better than the overall market, with 286 sales against an inventory of 3,879 homes for a 13.6-month supply.

Sun City remains the strongest market in the Valley with less than an 8-month supply, followed by Ahwatukee (8.50) and Tempe at (9.08).

As always click on any of the below markers for details on a particular city or town here in the Phoenix real estate market. And also as always, all data is provided by the Arizona Regional MLS and is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

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If you’ve been following the weekly absorption rate report for the Phoenix real estate market, you know that a 5- to 6-month supply of homes equates to a balanced real estate market where neither sellers nor buyers hold the upper hand. There’s neither an oversupply or excessive demand for homes.

Most buyers perceive bank owned homes as the ultimate deal and believe the bank will take almost whatever is offered to get the homes off their books. That assumption also is based on the overall Phoenix real estate market being fairly soft.

But when it comes to REO properties, that’s not the case. Sales are accelerating in the bank owned arena to the point where there’s now a 5.95-month supply of homes based on the latest figures (593 sales the past 30 days against 3,533 active listings.)

It’s a balanced market.

In addition, according to the Arizona Regional MLS data bank owned homes are selling at approximately 95-96% of list price. This doesn’t include any seller incentives but those are far less common in the REO area than overall. Banks tend to negotiate price and don’t as a rule give credits (rules do have exceptions, however.)

This dovetails nicely into another NAR Code of Ethics nightmare question on Trulia Voices this morning - what should someone offer on a bank owned home? Make your best offer up front based on what you’re willing to spend. If you get the house, great. If not, accept that someone else was willing to pay more and move on.

Full absorption figures to follow shortly.

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Reading the newspapers and listening to the television it may not seem readily apparent that homes are still selling. But they are.  It sometimes may seem you are the only party interested in a property. You’re probably not.

Another of my buyers had a house bought out from under them; they’re the fourth in the past month to six weeks to have this happen. The builder dropped their prices on Friday. By Monday, the house they were focusing on already had been sold.

If you’re looking to buy real estate here in Phoenix, you need to know there are others who are looking as well. When there’s a reduction in price the natural assumption is there will be more. And there just may be. But there also may be buyers waiting for the price point reached, not the next one in line.

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