Nick Blog's the World!

OUTSIDE FORCES ARE STILL IMPACTING OUR NEIGHBORHOODS

Location, location, location! The three main factors, we are told, when purchasing real estate. It seems this phrase is attracting others to our neighborhoods. We are constantly being approached by developers to turn the homes on main streets into commercial properties. Buying homes is less expensive than buying an already zoned commercial property. Sometimes, the developers tie up the homes at prices which are higher than the home may be worth as a residential property but certainly less than if it was already zoned.

There are several issues with their proposal. The interior lots will now back up to commercial properties instead of another home. This may lower the value of the home. The other potential problem may result from additional traffic flowing into our neighborhoods, seeking a short cut to a main street or trying to avoid the traffic on a main street. Again, this has the potential to lower residential property values.

Another issue that I am concerned about is the 64th Street off ramp on the 101. I hope that this does not become the route of choice for those trying to avoid congestion on Scottsdale Rd. The traffic on 64th Street, south of Bell Rd is bad enough with the schools located in the area and cross access to roads leading to the Scottsdale Airport employment center. We need to keep an eye as to what the cities of Scottsdale and Phoenix plan with regards to widening streets.

Investors, in some cases, may be more aware than the average homeowner in our area as to the potential value of this location. Homes are being bought by investors, and, unfortunately, not all are being torn down and rebuilt into luxury estates. Some are getting a band aid fix and then rented out until the price appreciation kicks in. Several tenants are not good at maintaining their homes and again, this lessens the value of our neighborhood.

Bank owned properties are another source of outside influences. They don’t usually know the true value of a foreclosed property and rely on others that are in it just for a quick sale and earning a quick commission. I can think of at least one recent sale of an interior acre lot that sold in a matter of hours in the mid $400,000’s. It could have sold for at least another $100,000. Low sales affect our current and future values.

I don’t want to leave you with a totally negative and hopeless feeling. The main solution to these outside influences rests with each homeowner. We must talk up our neighborhoods, we must maintain our neighborhoods, and work with real estate professionals that know our area, have a proven track record and have a vested interest. We must communicate with each other and share our concerns. We must be a community that strives to make this area the very best place to live in the entire Valley and State