HistoricCoronadoLiving News and articles about the Coronado neighborhood relating to real estate trends, Historic Neighborhoods, and what's happening in the area
Saturday, October 10th, was a beautiful fall day when Coronado and its Council Representative, Michael Nowakowski, came together to dedicate our newest civic improvement, the Coronado Banners. These banners are meant to mark the Historic areas of Coronado Neighborhood and to slow traffic as it enters our Neighborhood.
The banners were 'parented' by 2 Coronado residents, Andrea Delgaldo and Elizabeth Compton, who secured a grant for their design, fabrication and installation. The banners replicate the bungalow logo of Coronado Neighborhood and have been placed inside the entrances to our Neighborhood - off 7th Street, McDowell Avenue, 16th Street and Thomas Street. The streets have also been striped to visually narrow the street.
City Departments of Neighborhood Services and Streets were instrumental in assisting Coronado in obtaining the cooperation necessary to install these banners and the striping, and representatives of these Departments also attended the dedication. Councilman Nowakowski spoke about Coronado's civic pride and determination to secure the installation of the banners, and Jerome Miller, head of Neighborhood Services, spoke about the many discussions his department had about the banners, which are a one-of-a-kind addition to our Neighborhood.
Coronado has once again proven that we can bring a project from conception to fruition and work with the City for the desired results.
Kudos Andrea, Elizabeth and all the Committee members and City representatives who made these banners a reality. They are a symbol of Coronado's pride in its Neighborhood and its residents.
During the recent REO conference at Ft. Worth, James Lockhart, the former director of Federal Housing Finance Authority, told the audience that Freddie Mac has 35,000 REO 'assets' and Fannie Mae has 68,000 REO 'assets' on their books. He also indicated that number is rising.
Did he give us any answers? Not really. Mr. Lockhart is more concerned with regulating the industry so that public and private sectors are separated. He insists that in the secondary market, the buyers in this market were very highly leveraged, and now we taxpayers are paying for this situation. He concluded by saying: "We need a better understanding of what the private-public sector should be"
What does the shadow inventory mean for the Phoenix area, and Historic Coronado? Since Arizona is the 3rd most heavily affected state in the foreclosure crisis, we should be seeing at 15,000 to 20,000 REOs in our market place. When will they be released? That's up to Fannie and Freddie.
In the Historic Coronado neighborhood, there are 5 active REO listings, priced from $79,900 to $129,000. There are also 10 pending listings with list prices from $27,000 to $155,000. In the 6 months from March 1, 2008 to September 28, 2008, Historic Coronado had 6 sold REOs, ranging in price from $64,900 to $321,000. Our prices are continue to drop, with more REOs on the way.
Coronado is more fortunate than many areas, because our prices have only dropped over the last year and one half, but with more REOs on the way, we will see more downward pressure on our prices. I'll be watching Fannie and Freddie news and checking on the local listings for more trends.
If you're curious about these trends, give me a call or email me.
Over the weekend, I attended the REO conference in Ft. Worth, Texas. This conference was attended by real estate agents, lenders, servicers, and attorneys from all over the country. There were over 7,000 attendees for this conference.
This was my 2nd REO conference; the first was last year in Dallas. This year's conference was 2 days, Monday and Tuesday, with 90 minute classes each day on various topics ranging from REO 101 to classes for lenders and servicers.
We filled the Ft. Worth Convention Center and also had rooms in the Omni Hotel for many of the classes and the events. This venue worked well,
What did I learn? There was so much information that I'll be posting about what I learned for a long time. Experts are predicting we will have 2 more waves of REOs, lasting into 2011, with their predictable downward trending of prices. This will require more expertise from Realtors in handling our clients REO business and on advising clients and buyers accordingly.
What does this mean for our industry? Well, more on that at a later date.
AMC is a movie theatre chain, at least in my mind. When I picked up the Realtor magazine for September, 2009, I was surprised to read about AMCs - Appraisal Management Companies. Since May, 2009. HVCC, Home Valuation Code of Conduct, requires that all conventional loan appraisals to be sold to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, be placed through a third party - an AMC. This legislation was passed to thwart lenders and mortgage brokers who were putting pressure on appraisers to 'bring in the value'. This practice was widespread and added to the implosion of housing prices in our market.
This legislation may sound good, but in practice, it's creating havoc in the industry. For one thing, appraisal prices have increased by 10 to 15%, because of the third party fees. Secondly, appraisers are being assigned on a rotating basis, not based on area expertise. So, an appraiser who is accustomed to appraising housing in North Scottsdale may be sent to appraise a small bungalow in South Phoenix. Because our Valley is so large and wide-spread, it's difficult to have a 'handle' on all areas. Appraisers are not familiar with the condition of the sold comps in a particular area; consequently, appraisals are coming in much lower than buyers and sellers anticipated.
Most importantly, many of the AMCs are owned by the lenders!! RELS,, Quantrix, Finiti are all owned, at least partially, by major lenders. How can these appraisers be impartial, and how much pressure can still be placed on the appraisers?
National Association of Realtors is proposing an 18 month moratorium on HVCC, so that these issues can be resolved. In theory, AMCs should ease the pressure on appraisers, but in fact, this is not the case. Hopefully, this issue can be resolved so that the industry can regain its footing. If buyers cannot obtain a loan, because of an improper appraisal, this dampens the buyer's enthusiasm for the process. Buyers should be encouraged in this market , since we have so much inventory. I am not advocating' anything goes'. There must be a middle ground and the current HVCC does not appear to be finding that ground.
Phoenix Art Museum is inviting its neighbors for a Festival on Saturday, August 22nd from noon to midnight. Located at Central and McDowell, in downtown Phoenix, the Art Museum showcases international exhibits and local artists. On August 22nd, the neighbors are invited to a Festival celebrating two exhibits: Art after the Chicano Movement and Locals Only.
For this day only, the Museum is offering a two-for-one admission special. When you arrive, you must present a valid drivers license and a utility bill, and you and a friend can gain admission.
There will be workshops, artist demonstrations, Latino bands and musicians, and food and drinks.
Have you ever had a door lock fall apart in your hands? My back door lock fell in pieces early this morning - about 6:30 am. Thank heavens the local Ace Hardware, Howard's Ace, at 32nd Street and Indian School Roads, opens at 7 am. It's not in our neighborhood, but it's a big and friendly Ace Hardware. When I walk in, people ask me if they can help me and they say 'hi' and mean it. I asked one of the employees if I could install a particular lock, and his answer was: "if you can use a screwdriver, you can do it". It wasn't quite that easy, but I managed, and by 8:30 am, I had a new back door lock.
Howard's Ace was an easy solution to what could have been a nasty morning.
I love my neighborhood. I was walking and jogging, this morning. Yes, I really do walk and jog, and I met 2 wonderful and different neighbors
The first woman was calling her dog and asked me if I knew of anyone looking for a dog named "Pork Chop". I told her 'no', I didn't know of anyone who had lost a dog. This kind neighbor had taken in this older, stray dog and was trying to find its owner. She had called the name on the tag, but this person indicated she had given the dog to someone else, and this someone else does not answer the phone. She is reluctant to call the Humane Society, because they will euthanize this older dog.
I told her about the Coronado listserve and how to enter her information so she could inform the Neighborhood about this apparently abandoned pet.
The next person I encountered was playing with his Jack Russell terrier and we talked about dogs and training dogs, and then we discussed 1031 Exchanges. This neighbor has a commercial lot he's attempting to sell and I explained that he could enter into a 1031 Exchange and defer the tax consequences. He was excited to learn about the Exchange.
Only in Coronado could discussions about dogs lead to listserves and 1031 Exchanges.
I am a brand new, proud and happy Grandma!! Addison Layne was born on June 11th to my son Kyle and daughter-in-law Michelle. We are all proud and happy parents and grandparents. She's a good baby with a great appetite and winning personality.
Mom is doing well, but exhausted, as all new moms are.
This picture was taken on 4th of July, which explains the onesy. We're excited to have another generation of Brennans and I can't wait to watch Addison grow up. It's rewarding to see my son and daughter-in-law interact and support Addison. The best part is: I didn't have to do anything.
I recently took a class on short sales and negotiating short sales. At the end of the class, the attendees took a test and were given a certification as Short Sale Negotiating Expert. Does this mean I’m an Expert in Short Sales? Heavens, NO!! Taking a class and receiving a certification and having on the ground experience are 2 different worlds. When I speak with other agents who are handling short sales, I’m always asking questions regarding their handling of short sales and what works for them.
In general, most Realtors are possessive of their knowledge. I’m surprised, therefore, when other agents are willing to share their expertise, especially in this newer area. These experienced agents are the SSNEs, but us newbies. I’m hoping to become that experienced agent, since I believe short sales will be the next wave of sales for this market.
The moratorium on foreclosures has prompted resales in the short sale area, and I’m convinced that short sales will assist buyers to obtain their dream homes and assist the market in lowering our inventory. HomeTelos is a division of Preston and HomeTelos is handling short sales on a pre-negotiated basis. HomeTelos will hand an agent the short sale property with a pre-negotiated price. In this way, the sellers will remain in the property, keeping up maintenance and keeping the neighborhood intact. When the buyer takes possession, it is a seamless transaction with no blight on the neighborhood and someone living in the property. This is a great advantage for everyone, including the buyer, who will not have to move in and handle curing a weedy landscape and a green pool.
I’m excited about the opportunity to help sellers transition from their current home into something more affordable for them and to keep neighborhoods intact and new buyers into our areas. What a win-win for everyone. That’s an SSNE!!
When the Big 3 banks announced they would impose a foreclosure moratorium on their pending foreclosures, I was relieved. Even though it would hurt my foreclosure business, because new foreclosures (REOs) would not be entering the market, I felt this time could be used by the lenders to triage the foreclosures: modify some of the loans, if the borrowers qualified; short sale the homes where the sellers were willing to participate in this process; and allow the other homes to enter foreclosure.
How does this affect the Coronado area? I just pulled the Cromford Report, which is a statistical analysis of areas by zip codes. In May, Coronado’s active listings have dropped to 120, with 45 sales in the month of April. This indicates a healthy 2 ½ month supply of homes, which is an improvement. However, our price per square foot on sold homes has dropped to below $60; and on active sales, our price per square foot is $100. To put this in perspective, in 2008, Coronado’s price per square foot was $170. As most of us are aware, our zip code includes many non-Historic District homes, so these figures are skewed, but this is disturbing news to residents.
Okay, so if you’re not depressed enough, while our Trustee Sales numbers are down, because of the moratorium, the Notices of Trustee Sales have climbed to 50 in the month of April. This number is as high as the February number, which was the highest Trustee Sales number in the last 12 months. Notice of Trustee Sales is the 90 day notice that the bank intends to foreclosure upon the property, unless the homeowner can sell the property or modify the loan.
Translated, as more REOs enter our marketplace, instead of trickling in over the last 3 months, they will be dumped on our area, further depressing our prices. Unless we can encourage more buyers to gobble up these REOs. I think of the old video game, Pac Man, and the figures who gobbled up the little objects. That’s what this market needs – lots of Pac Men. All of you buyers out there, I would encourage you to get into this market. You are truly needed and our prices are at new, all time lows.
Buyers are out in full force. I have a listing in the Roosevelt Historic District, at 546 W. Portland, see the picture below, and it was shown 7 times this weekend!! What does that say about buyers? They’re baacck!! Unfortunately, there were no offers on my house, but the more important thing is that buyers are in the market again.
The Fed announced their plan to buy some of the toxic assets sitting on lenders’ books. I want to read more on this plan and share some of my thoughts on it. With or without the Fed buying ‘legacy’ assets (the new term for toxic assets), buyers were energized this weekend. Hopefully, we will continue to see buyers coming into our marketplace and stopping the downward pressure on our housing stock.
If we can encourage buyers that all is not doom and gloom, and housing is a much better value than the stock market, our housing prices will become more stable. We may not see prices climb dramatically, but to see prices stabilize would be a welcome sign in this market. We are beginning to see foreclosures in the Historic area of Coronado, and this, of course, is depressing our prices.
Housing will come back; it always has. I have full confidence in our market and in our Realtors, we will survive and climb (or claw) our way out of this slump. More thoughts later.
Buyer Beware!!! Acai Berry is a very popular product making claims to assist in lowering cholesterol, helping lose weight, etc. I did some Internet research and decided to try Advanced Wellness Research’s product, with a FREE trail offer, paying only shipping and handling. What I neglected to read in the teeny, tinyy print, was that Advanced Wellness Research would charge me for the FREE home trail, after 14 days, and would continue to bill me at a monthly charge of $81.00.
What a total ripoff. I was very upset and when I called to complain, I was told that I could not return the product, since I’d already been billed for it, and I could only receive a $30.00 credit – not the entire $81.00 I had been billed.
What an expensive lesson to have learned. Anyone out there, please read the fine print and do not agree to any free trial offers. I have, hopefully, learned my lesson and I will not repeat this one.
Don’t Forget the P.F. Chang’s Rock and Roll Marathon is Today
It’s a good thing I get up early on Sunday mornings. My normal routine is to either drive or walk to Starbucks for my Sunday New York Times. The women behind the counter all know that’s all I buy on Sundays. I was really surprised when I headed west on McDowell at o’dark thirty this morning and discovered that McDowell was barricaded. There were no left turns allowed. Then I remembered: the Marathon is today.
P.F. Chang’s hosts the Phoenix Rock n Roll Marathon every year and it rolls (or runs) down McDowell Road, past our Neighborhood. The race starts from Wesley Bolin Plaza downtown Phoenix at 7:30 am for wheelchair racers and 7:40 am for racers and walkers. It’s always fun to hear the bands play as the racers run through our neighborhood. It’s like a parade – only much faster.
There is also available a ½ marathon – for those who cannot or choose not to run the entire race. This year, they are ‘wave starting’ the ½ marathoners and there’s a four hour time limit – those who do not finish within the four hours are considered done.
Conditions are almost perfect for running a marathon today. The morning temps were chilly – about 45 degrees, but it should warm up nicely for the race; into the 70s. For more information about the race, go to www.rnraz.com/race.
Phoenix Metro Light Rail makes its debut on December 27th. While I drive around the downtown area, it’s been exciting to see the trains on the tracks and watch their smooth, silent journey. The local TV program, Horizon, had a piece on the new Light Rail system and its fare kiosks, which are located at each terminal. Before boarding the train, a passenger will need to purchase a ticket. The choices are a 1 way ride for $1.25; an all day pass for $2.50; and weekly and month passes.
Also, there will be a free shuttle system from 44th St. and McDowell to the Sky Harbor Airport; buses leaving every 10 minutes and stopping at each terminal within the Airport.
To encourage new riders and to acquaint locals with the new transit system, Metro Light Rail will be free to all passengers from the date of debut, December 27th through the end of December. I encourage everyone to check out this new system and its ability to move passengers from one point to another. The Light Rail has been a long time coming for Phoenix and with our support, the City will continue its plans to expand this service into other areas of the City and its surrounding Cities, such as Glendale, Mesa, and even on the I-10 to Avondale and Goodyear!!
How does this impact Coronado, you may be asking? Since we are within walking distance of the Light Rail and on the bus routes, this added transportation venue should make a huge impact on our area and its attractiveness to urban commuters. It will certainly attract more people to consider Coronado an alternative to commuting from distant suburbs and to consider a simpler, friendlier way of living.
What a great Holiday gift to the City of Phoenix!!
The other day I had the opportunity to be interviewed by an ASU student studying urban geography. The questions she asked had to do with memory – whether where we live is a product of memory or is it a preference?
The questions were thought-provoking and insightful. I don’t have memories of living in a small house; the house I grew up in was brick, but it was located in suburban Chicago – nothing like where I live now, which is an urban area of Phoenix. Some of the questions were predictable – such as, what drew me to the area, to this particular house?
What this student had discovered was that memory has very little to do with where we live. Most of us did not grow up in the houses in which we choose to live. For almost all of us, it’s a more community centered lifestyle or a need to preserve a part of history, as most of our houses are between 60 to 90 years old.Also, it’s the ability to be engaged in a community of like-minded people, even though we are a very diverse group. She also discovered that most people may not plan on living in these houses forever, but have made the commitment to experience this smaller house lifestyle.
These questions were thought-provoking and insightful. In urban planning, wouldn’t be ideal to use some of these findings when planning communities to make them more walkable, user friendly, with community interaction as the goal, rather than a by-product.
The last question was extraordinarily interesting. If you could talk to your house and your house could talk to you, what would each of you say? My answer surprised me, but what would your answer be?
Write me and let me know how you would answer that question.
Have you ever been to an alpaca farm? I certainly hadn’t and over the weekend, while visiting my daughter in Elgin, IL., I had the opportunity to meet alpacas up close and personal. The farm was located outside of Elgin and the owners, Jill and Gordon Muirhead, were knowledgeable and gracious to the 6 of us in our group. We met the alpacas, who are docile and graceful creatures, similar to llamas, but not as large. Alpacas, like llamas, were used as pack animals in the Indes Mountains, but they are prized for their fur, which is both curly and flat.
Jill, the owner, explained how the animals are sheared and their fur is combed and carded for use in making slippers and felt hats. We then proceeded to felt our alpaca slippers. First, you make soapy water by melting Ivory soap in water, using crock pots. Then the fur is placed in a plastic bin in layers and the layers are massaged with the soapy water to form the slipper. There were many steps, but the end product is a beautiful, warm, comfy slipper which is naturally waterproof. I can’t wait to get my slippers, which I had to leave, so Jill could crochet a border. I’m sure they will be warm and luxurious.
The farmhouse in which Jill and Gordon are living, is the house in which both Gordon and his father both grew up. It was a charming, old fashioned house with a enclosed, windowed porch which overlooks the alpacas in their pasture, and a sitting room with comfy chairs and old bookcases. It was a great Midwestern experience and I highly recommend putting Rivendell Alpaca Farm on your must-see list if you’re every in the Chicago area. I’ve attached a picture of the alpacas.
What do Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase and Citimortgage all have in common? First of all, they were recipients of the bailout/rescue plan recently passed by Congress. All three of these banks have advertised they have programs in place to assist current homebuyers. Today, JP Morgan Chase placed a full page ad in the New York Times announcing their plan to assist 400,000 homeowners through Chase, WaMu and EMC, which are Chase’s recent acquisitions. Citimortgage just announced their plan to assist homeowners.
Details of these plans have not been announced. However, the FDIC under the direction of Sheila Bair, put a plan into effect after IndyMac Bank dissolved. The FDIC is working with IndyMac borrowers to lower the interest rate, extend the loan term, or defer payment on a portion of the principal, all of which can then allow these homeowners to stay in their homes and not become a foreclosure statistic.
The receding economy will not improve until we address the mortgage issue. Most homeowners, I’m convinced, want to stay in their homes. They are emotionally and financially tied to their home and their neighborhood. If the FDIC plan is working at IndyMac, why not implement the plan with all banks. In the short-term, it would appear the banks would take a hit – but in the long term, the banks would make more money. The average foreclosure costs the lender between $45,000 and $50,000. After the foreclosure, the cost per day is $150. Most listings are now on the market 120 days and more. At the end of this period, the lender is often taking a $60,000 to $100,000 hit on their investment.
The math just doesn’t make sense, but I know I’m close to the situation and I have a dog in this fight. It would appear that NAR could advocate a program closer to the FDIC program, rather than urging Congress simply to reduce interest rates. Many borrowers have interest rates in the low 5s. Lowering the interest to 5.5% would not be attractive to these borrowers. I’m interested in how B of A, Chase and Citi have addressed the value issues. I will do more research and write about my findings. More later.
Tomorrow, of course, is Election Day. The long lines for early voting might have scared away some voters. Hopefully, this is not the case for our Neighborhood. There are 2 polling places for Historic Coronado Neighborhood – 7th St. to 16th Street and Thomas Road to the I10.
For the northern portion of Coronado, you may cast your ballot at Bible Baptist Church, 2320 N. 7th Street. The Church is south of Thomas Road on the West side of the Street. The southern portion of the Neighborhood is voting at Whittier School, 2000 N. 16th St. The school is on Oak Street, and is also on the west side of the street.
Polling places are open from 6 am to 7 pm with the lightest turnout times between 10 am and 3 pm.
Remember to leave work early enough to vote, or to vote on your way to work. As we all know, this election is extremely important and each of our votes needs to be counted – regardless of your party affiliation.
The Berkshires in western Massachusetts were my choice for a vacation/cycling trip this month. What a wonderful spot to see some fantastic foliage and feel some cool temps and great cycling weather.
I admit the cycling was well beyond my expertise. I did not properly train for this trip and I found the hills intimidating, especially the downhills. I walked a great deal of the route, when I could, but the scenery was breathtaking!! One morning, I walked down a road and when I got to the corner, the view opened to a valley panorama of foliage. I could not believe I was looking at this. As I walked along the road, the view expanded to the entire valley mountainside in postcard-like colors. This, alone, was worth the trip!! The inns we stayed at were delightful and all different. On the last 2 nights, we stayed at Rookwood in Lenox, Mass., which was a Victorian bed and breakfast. The staff and owner were gracious and completely accommodating. I had a room in the attic which overlooked another Victorian home and reminded me of my attic bedroom in my parents’ house. It was a perfect fit for me.
I highly recommend the Berkshires as a get-away spot. If you’re cycling, I would also recommend that you get in shape. This tour did 30-50 miles a day, depending on your choice of rides and ability. I did not finish any ride, but I totally enjoyed the company, the views and the camaraderie. The food and inns were also wonderful. This trip gets a 4 star rating in my book
I was speaking today with a friend of mine about the current real estate meltdown. In the New York Times last week, there was an article about JPMorgan/Chase and its intention to use the bailout funds to acquire other banks – not to assist struggling homeowners. I was totally appalled when I read this and I’m still upset that the taxpayers’ money could be used to lessen competition and to help JP Morgan/Chase’s bottom line, rather than helping the homeowners it was intended to assist.
Sheila Bair, the FDIC chairman (woman) appears to be the only person in Washington who is talking about the ‘elephant in the room’; that elephant being the housing issue. It would seem that we need to stop homeowners being foreclosed upon – at least for 120 days. That might give those struggling owners a breather to assess whether they want to stay in their home or if they want to leave. Granted, the lenders would not be getting payments during this period, but most of these homeowners have stopped making payments or are only making partial payments. If Congress could give lenders some type of incentive to make short sales – such as a tax break or some other type of carrot – then more lenders would be willing to look at a short sale. Also, contained within one of the recent legislative packages, was a program to allow homeowners to refinance at 90% of the current market value of their home. If this provision was used by lenders, with little to no credit rating, since most of the homeowners have wrecked their credit because of the increase in their payments, or perhaps because they’ve lost a job or had their hours cut, this could allow the owners to refinance and stay in their homes. When Americans know what their payments on their homes will be, and whether they can afford to stay in their homes, they can make an informed choice.
There are thousands of mortgage-related people who are out of work. Why not contract these folks - at say $20 to $25 an hour – to process short sales, as well as loan modifications. This would push through the backlog of short sales and assist with loan modifications, and give these folks a paycheck, when they really need one.
This isn’t rocket science. Until the ‘elephant in the room’ is addressed, we will continue the downward spiral of falling real estate prices, more foreclosures, more unemployment and less confidence in the marketplace, which continues this spiral.
I feel much better that I’ve blogged about this. Please give me your thoughts or ideas.
I am a brand new, proud and happy Grandma!! Addison Layne was born on June 11th to my son Kyle and daughter-in-law Michelle. We are all proud and happy parents and grandparents. She's a good baby with a great appetite and winning personality.
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