Archives

April 2008

Move to the Mountain Empire of Southern Arizona

Posted at 3:52 PM, Apr. 18, 2008

Wait no longer! Our weather can never be any better - and real estate in this area has never been more attractive. Our inventory of homes is at the highest level I have ever seen so there are lots of choices for the discriminating buyer. Also, most of the homes are newer or recently upgraded. The Mountain Empire is the high desert grassland between Patagonia and Elgin Arizona. Situated at altitudes ranging from about 4,000' MSL to 5,500' MSL, the area enjoys almost universally good weather and clear skies. Seldom is there a day above 100 in the summer or in the 30's in the winter. The annual rainfall is about 18" which produces beautiful spring wildflowers and tall native grasses in the summer. A growing wine industry brings tourists from near and far and they and the locals support 10 restaurants so you will never go hungry. Tucson International Airport is only 45 minutes from the Sonoita Crossroads affording easy travel to destinations within the USA and overseas. (I have checked my bag from here to Kenya.) So, come take a look. I think you will agree that this is the perfect place to move to for a second home or for retirement. See you soon!

Sonoita WebCam

Posted at 3:44 PM, Apr. 1, 2008

Finally! Having started this project back in September, I now have my webcam up and running. So, anytime you want to see what it looks like in the Mountain Empire, just go to www.SonoitaProperties.com and look at the live image above the current weather. Oh, by the way, after sunset, the image is basic black....

First Quarter 2008 Sonoita Real Estate Market

Posted at 3:27 PM, Apr. 1, 2008

The angst of the first quarter of a slow year has been slightly, but not much, over-played. There was certainly a lack of buyers coming through the doors of real estate offices in this area, but there were 23 closings. Admittedly, several of the homes had been in escrow since the end of 2007. What is more telling is the fact that there are only 6 properties in escrow at this time; Five of these are lots (3 of which are in Rain Valley) and the other is a home in Patagonia. Now for the numbers: Total sales for the first quarter of this year were $6.2MM versus $7.4MM for 2007. This represents a drop of 17%. Total sales for the month of March were $3.1MM consisting of 5 land transactions and 6 home sales, two of which were in escrow last year. The market is not strong and not yet normal, but it could be worse!