Well here we are in the Month of December and almost Christmas. November was a good month and  continued what I felt would happen in the last quarter of the year. I feel we have reached the bottom of the market in Tucson. October and November are showing improvement and December should be about the same as November which should finish out the year on a positive note.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

Everything shows improvement except the listings under contract went below 2000 units which gives me some concern. A large percentage of this number is Short Sale and REO homes which may be due to the Holidays coming up and people want to wait until January. I know I have a buyer that is thinking that way. I really think we are in a break out position as far as Tucson is concerned. Our Inventory has been very steady and we are not getting a large number of homes for sale. If you stop to think about that, you will see that not many homes will go on the market because most of the Sellers will owe more than what the home is worth today, so we do not see that upward or downward movement of Sellers to Buyers as in years past.

Now here is another thought. The people that lost their homes two years or more ago, and who have cleaned up their credit except for the Short Sale of their home, are entering the time frame where they may qualify for a FHA Loan. It will be available for those who can qualify. If you are in this part of your life and still want to purchase, start checking with a good Lender. As time goes by the numbers will increase and the inventory will go down as prices start back up, I hope at a modest increase. We do not need another 2005.

If our wonderful Government would only get their act together we might see National Improvement, which would bring people back to Arizona again, because we have a great place to live. All we need is a great place to work and Great Schools and we would all be better off. I know we all have our different opinions, but I ask you how good has this Administration been for you? They had it all for two years and squandered it all, for most of us. You do not create jobs by taxing and spending. You create jobs by helping businesses grow and hire which is not where we are today. Tax, tax and spend, spend(with money we do not have) on things that should not have the priority that was done.

Our freedoms are being taken and we just sit and argue about who is right. We must start reducing our countries expenditures to get back to a balanced budget. We now are a society of what I want, I want it today, even if I have to pay for many years. What happened to just plain CASH. No cash, no buy. I know credit is great, but manage it well within your means. You do need some credit to buy a home. No Credit, you may not be able to buy, but manage that credit well.

I guess one of these days I need to write a Blog about what I feel. I know it will cause some to not like me, but that is OK, as we should all be able to express our opinions. I spent 21 years in the Air Force and never worried about, was I liked. My job needed to be done and all I expected was RESPECT. Follow the Rules and we all get along. If you are paid for eight hours of work, give eight hours of work. Be on time, and by all means do your job right, so someone does not have to fix your mess. Your mess costs your employer and I question why you are still there!

I want to wish all my readers a MERRY CHRISTMAS and a Happy New Year. Make 2012 the best year of your life, and help anyone that you can, as so many are hurting. My small church in Vail, Grace Fellowship, takes this as their, shall we say Mission. They have partnered with many, to help others. They want to help the Vail Community and schools, so others may be able to get back on their feet.

I hope you noticed that I was not politically correct and wishing you Happy Holidays as I believe in the greatest history book out there which is the Holy Bible. What was good for our forefathers should still be good for us. Why are the few allowed to dictate to the many. There is space for each of our beliefs, so don’t try to shut down the other person.

Again Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night

I think October was good month with all the statistics looking better. I still believe we will hit bottom before the end of the year. Prices and Interest rates are at all time lows and we are seeing more calls to look at properties. Total units Sold did come down but Listings under Contract went up a small amount.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

Well, September has come and gone and now we are in the last quarter of the year. Is my prediction of hitting the bottom and starting back up going to happen? To be very honest I question that, but I am still seeing signs of a small housing recovery in many areas of the US which will eventually filter down to Tucson. I am not talking new homes but Resale homes in Tucson. Our Inventory continues to go down over the last six months which means we are keeping up with the homes coming on the market.

Again we have had some changes that were not for the good, but the changes were small. Sales of homes over $500,000 numbers are still dropping. This has more effect on the Average Sales price than the Median, but our Median did drop almost $5000 from August which surprises me as Sales were down by just 42. This next month will probably be key to our recovery for the last quarter.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

Again I have seen some good statistics on spending which can work its way into housing. Interest rates are still at all time lows, but do not expect them to stay this low for much more than six months.

Jobs are still the prime factor of when we will really start out of this terrible spot we are all in. If you have a good job that is safe, you better be very thankful, as you are part of the lucky ones. I think a lot of our lives could change if we just looked at our Tax Code, Taxes and OIL. WHY, when we sit on more of the worlds reserves do we continue to buy from other countries? Do not believe what is said by the administration that we only have 2% of the world reserves, as the statement is flatly false, based on our own governments statistics. Just another scare tactic to stop us from drilling. We have the technology to drill and protect the environment but we do not create the jobs in that area and produce much cheaper Oil for the US, that the money stays in the US.

Call me at 240-7130 if I can help you with a owner occupied home, or you want to buy investment homes. We have a Lender right here in Tucson that will allow, I believe up to 10 homes, that the Lender keeps in their portfolio.

Have a safe Halloween.

Our Average and Median Sales prices went down again, but I really attribute this to more lower priced homes selling than higher priced homes. I will have to look at last months statistics to see how many higher priced homes sold. I may have to quote that number to show how it affects the Average and Median Sales prices.

I did look this up and I feel I am right as there were only 24 homes that closed above $500,000 in August as compared to 52 in July. I will add these numbers to our table and watch this statistic also. This will have a bigger factor in the Average Sales Price and a small factor in the Median Sales Price.

Total units Sold was 18 less sales than the previous month, still OK. Active listings has continued down over the last 7 months, which is also OK. Listings under Contract went back up from a low in July, which is OK. Average for, Tucson Days on Market, dropped 3 days, which is OK.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

All in all I would not call August a bad month, but a good solid average month, for where we are. I am still thinking this last quarter of 2011 will see us start to level out and price and sales pick up slightly.

I keep track of Notices of Sale, which become Short Sales or Foreclosures, and the number that was in the paper was much higher than my count (838). I did not keep the article but I know my number was lower. I am just looking at Residential and that may be the difference in the numbers, but not sure. Next month I will start posting my count so we all can see how the Notices of Sale are affecting our Tucson Market. These number are for Pima County and include areas not in the Tucson Metro Area, but should be a good way to measure where we are and how soon we might start out of the bottom.

With prices where they are, and interest rates hovering around 4.5%, I can not stress how important the next few months are if you are ready to purchase. Why not call me to discuss what to do. Call me on my cell at 240-7130.

Well here we are again. We just got our Debt Ceiling increased and some Spending cuts in the out years. That is not what we need. We need cuts in spending now to stop this upward spiral that will cost all of us for many rears to come. We as the public can not operate this way because we can not print money. We need comprehensive tax reform that cuts out subsidies, reduces tax rates, eliminate capital gains tax, and the death tax. I am sure I left some things out but we need to have a solid plan so businesses know what to expect 10 years from now. These are the Businesses that are going to hire our Millions of unemployed.

This Administration took their eye off the ball and worked only on Heath Care. I am sure there are many that think this was a great thing and in ways it is, but there is so much tax law in this Bill that it will all come out after this current President is gone. The cost to all of us will be so much higher than projected that I really hurt when I think what is coming down the pike. I will be retired when the sh…hits the fan and it will if this program remains. We need smaller government that works for us not their political future.

Now the July statistics. We are again just in a holding pattern but not going down. What has gone down is the interest rate. We are under 4.5% for the moment and you need to act soon as it will probably stay under 5% for a few months. Some of the important numbers are down some but that has changed each month for this past year. I am still looking at a more stable market in the last quarter.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you may find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

I have had a great month and I hope this shows up for all of our Real Estate community and we really get up for that last quarter of 2011.

If I can help you do call me at 240-7130. We sell Real Estate and my son David does East side Property Management. David and I also do Short Sales for Owners who are underwater. Call us.

The numbers for June did some minor adjustments that seem good to me. I am getting concerned about our Economy cooling. We are not generating enough jobs to get the economy moving and I really do not see it happening soon. Our Government seems to be stuck on political sides. The Government needs to stop spending on really stupid projects. The current Administration said they would keep unemployment below 7%. How is that working out for everyone. They pushed Healthcare through and now premiums are going up and I know this is going to really hurt better than 50% of our population. The Healthcare Bill cost time to get people back to work as Congress did nothing to really help get people back to work. The Democrats controlled both the Senate and the House and they could not take time to do the mandatory budget and now we are fighting over our debt limit because of all the spending. We need to bite the bullet and get this done.

We need a complete rewrite of the Tax Code and get rid of the special tax breaks, such as Ethanol. We need to start producing oil from the fields that are ready to go. Our President has caused all of us to pay more for gas and food because HE STOPPED the permitting and production in the Gulf after the BP disaster. By the way an accident is not reason to stop all production. We should be putting people to work generating oil so our prices could go down.

I am so disenchanted by the current administrations claims that they are doing things that will help, but it is just small things that are not generating many jobs. He speaks one thing, but does something else.

My wife and I are reading “The Obama Nation” which was written before he was elected. I feel the author has done a lot of research and the book scares me. I believe Obama has lied or deflected his answers so he would not have to disclose his associations with many unsavory people. He really is a Chicago Politician. He pulled the wool over a lot of people’s eyes. I just hope the voting public listens to what he says and then what he does.

I still think that Tucson will see prices stabilizing the last quarter of this year. Our Inventory is still going down each month since January. I still have some fear the Banks will start foreclosing on more of the properties that they have delayed the process on. I know they are doing it as I have one they have delayed each month for over six months.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.
* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

Total Units Sold has also increased each month since January. We did have a drop of 76 units for June in Listings under Contract but this number has been going up and down since January also.

If our Economy could get a boost from our Government finally getting something done we could see a marked improvement. I believe OIL could be a game changer but with our current President it will not happen soon. He has us by the throat and most do not see it. How is he working out for you and your family and friends?

Call me if You need help buying as now is the time if you can do it. Call me on my cell at 520-240-7130.

How fast the time has been flying by for me, but yet still dragging for all of us in our Economy. This latest hurt to all of us is Gas!! OPEC seems to get enjoyment in keeping the Global Economy in turmoil as shown by their recent decision yesterday to keep the same production, as it will keep prices up. Many wanted to reduce production so it would push prices up even more. Up for me, is more money spent on Gas and of course the extra costs we see in food, clothing and things associated with higher gas such as Airline fares.

We are sitting on vast resources of Oil but our current Administration has no desire to allow more permits or speed up the process in obtaining the permits to Drill for Oil. Alaska sits on a huge deposit in just a small area but all I hear is we will not allow it because of what it might do to the natural environment of the whole area. They do not want to drill in the whole area, just a very small part which is less than 100 miles from an existing pipeline (I think the number is around 75 miles). Why do we have to put up with these lame excuses because of this current Administration?

The permits could be granted with much oversight which I really do not think the Oil Companies will have trouble complying with, as long as it makes sense. And that is one of the problems as to what makes sense. In my Air Force career I found a lot of people who had common sense and were not highly educated, and then I found many educated people who had no common sense. Lots of book learning, but just did not know how to apply what they knew. ACCIDENTS do happen, and they are accidents and not the norm.

I have seen more highly educated people who do not know how to run a company trying to tell us how to run our Economy, but look where we are right now. Just get out of the way and stop spending money that we do not have and let the small businesses pave the way. Make it easy at all levels to get a business going and stop putting roadblocks in front of them. Let them earn a real profit that is not taxed to the limits. These roadblocks exist from the Federal Government, State Government all the way down to the City level. Lets get smarter and stop sending jobs overseas and put more Americans back to work.

There is much more I would like to say but I won’t for now. Our Real Estate Economy depends on many things and I hate to see the problems we are all experiencing at this time. Take money away, and we stop buying many things and Housing is really one of the major contributors to our Economy. Look at all the tradespeople involved in building a home. What about all the things that go into the home after it has been finished. Appliances, furniture and landscaping and much more. Where does that come from? People who have jobs making those products or services.

We have seen some more drop in the Average and Median Sales Prices but all it takes is more lower priced homes selling and it will push these numbers down. The Active listing Inventory has come down and Units Sold had a good positive number. I am still optimistic that we will see our Housing Market leveling out around the 1st of October .

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

I just read an article today that said foreclosure filings notices for Pima County were down but actual foreclosures were up some. The number did not really surprise me and I do see some good coming soon. My only fear is the Lenders holding back on the actual Foreclosure, which will lengthens the time to get out of the large numbers we have seen. I am still sitting on a listing I have had for 18 months and they just keep postponing the actual Foreclosure. WHY? It has been Vacant all that time.

RIGHT NOW prices are very low and interest rates are still under 5%. The more you wait, the bigger chance both will go up. I can not believe the monthly payment and home you can get today. Why not call me and discuss what you might be able to do. Call me at (520) 240-7130.

What a difference a month makes. I hate to make too many predictions but I feel by the end of the 3rd Quarter, Tucson will be on its way to healing our local Housing Market. Will we be out of the woods? No, but I think we will see the market leveling and possibly a lower inventory that will cause prices to reverse the downward trend. So many home sellers would be upside down if they tried to sell right now so they will not put their home on the market for a while. At the same time I have seen a slowing of Foreclosure Notices being recorded.

The Foreclosure Notices have decreased, but is that due to fewer people in trouble or the Banks letting it slide while they extract themselves from Court actions that have happened all over the US. The inventory of REO’s has slowed, but I can attest that is due to the Banks not completing the Foreclosure after the 91st day. I have one that has been extended at least five times with no Contract, and the only reason I can see is the problems the Banks had with Robo signers. I am not sure why this should affect Tucson or Arizona as we are a Deed of Trust State which does not require a Court action as do many of the Eastern States who operate under Mortgages. What ever the reason, it has slowed the recordings of Notices. Fewer Notices, fewer REO’s from Foreclosure and fewer Short Sales. As this part of the inventory shrinks and the sellers that are upside down do not try to sell, the Inventory gets smaller and the number of buyers wanting to buy gets larger, we will see prices starting to increase.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

Our State, but mostly in the Phoenix area, has seen its more than fair share of Foreclosures. We are just one of a few States that really got in trouble. But what about those other States that they can sell today and move to Tucson. This too will increase that buyer pool that will help push our prices back up. What is back up? Do not expect large or fast increases, but we will start to dig our way back out of the hole. I hope to see a 3%-5% increase each year for the time coming. This was the norm for many years. Some areas of Tucson did better but this steady increase is much better for our community.

The other point, if you think you will wait, is interest rates. THEY will go back up, and I think sooner than later. I again expect by the end of the 3rd quarter rates will be above 5.5% and probably closer to 6%. Our National economy is really in the tank and there are some good signs, but as long as Congress spends more than is brought in, we are in trouble. With our divided government we will not make much headway to improve our lives. We need a change!!

I personally have been busy and I thank the good Lord for that, but I have time to do more. If I can help you, call me. Use my website www.BarryFotheringham.com to gain access to our MLS as much as you want. If you are a renter use www.AbilityRentalHomes.com to find that rental. If you are a renter, why not see what you can buy instead of renting. It is much closer than you think. Call Elaine DeTour-Spronken at NOVA Home Loans at 520-202-5343 to see what you can do. She is excellent and I have used her for years for my clients. She is very Service orientated and will give you straight answers.

Since I have not had time to really say what I feel and think I have kept my posts short, but this should help you see what is coming in the next six months to a year.

Why not call me and get ready to buy?

I can not believe so much time has gone by since I looked at the statistics below. I have been very busy showing property and trying to get Escrows to close. Let the Buyer beware!!

If you are doing a contract that is an as-is, do not expect to get much done on repairs. Make your price reflect the repairs in your initial contract and be sure you have the funds to do the necessary ones. If you are buying an REO with FNMA, DO NOT expect them to pay anything that they have not agreed to in their addendum. They will walk you down to closing and not pay for anything that is not called out in the Appraisal.

And speaking of appraisals… I just had one that we provided the appraiser a proposal to replace 30 broken and missing roof tiles, and fix roof due to water stain on front roof exterior. The appraiser did not write it up and said they do not have to do roof certs anymore. That was a $1200 repair. Let the Buyer Beware!!

We had a number of closings in March, but some of the other statistics did not hold up to improvement. BUT just wait, as that will change. I see maybe six more months of small decreases and then upward movement. Interest rates and housing prices will start up so I suggest you have purchased by December so you can lock in payments that are lower than renting. This will probably be the lowest pricing you will see for a number of years. When demand picks up the new homes will still be more expensive for about six months into 2012 and then they will get closer, but higher.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

If you have the ability to get going on your home purchase, call me soon so you can get into your own Home before rates change and they will.

What a difference a month makes. Everything went in the correct direction and I am praying that it starts a trend. I am seeing it in the properties I am showing and the properties that are going under contract during March. I have been very busy, which is great, but tiring.

Interest rates have gone back down below 5% which is also good, but I would not count on it staying there. Markets will be in a turmoil because of happenings in Japan and Lybia. Gas prices are up for what reason I do not understand except, it again is the speculators driving the prices up.

I am short on time so I will give you the new table and try to write another blog next week if time permits.

The figures on this table are subject to change due to late reportings and corrections. These changes are reflected in the next months statisical blog post after we receive the updated information. For this reason you will find inconsistencies if you compare the data on multiple tables.

* Closed during the month.
** For the current month (not the total listing under contract)

If I can help you Buy or Sell call me. I can do Short Sales, sell you a HUD Foreclosed home or just a regular Foreclosure (REO). Call me at 520-240-7130.