Fast growing areas of the country were decimated by the 2008 housing situation. Whether it is called a bubble, recession, depression or a meltdown, the financial difficulties of this latest mess rival those of the Great Depression. Las Vegas, Miami and Phoenix are three areas that have suffered the most during this latest crisis.
There are great deals to be found in Phoenix. While many real estate brokers talk and blog about multiple offers and quickly turned over properties, most of this is nonsense. Foreclosures, according to The Arizona Republic, are not really stalling. Actually, banks are holding back foreclosures to avoid flooding the market with even more distressed properties.
Realtor Sean Bonini believes that while distressed property additions to the market have slowed, there are many more to come. The robo-signing controversy sent the foreclosure process into disarray. Banks are under great pressure to perform mortgage modifications and that is one reason that distressed properties are not entering the market at a greater rate.
According to sources like Trulia and Realtytrac, almost 64 percent of all Phoenix sales were distressed properties. This is an amazingly high number. Good investors usually do not even look at standard listed properties until they have exhausted the search for foreclosures, short sales and REOs.
The median price per square foot in Phoenix dipped below $65 last month according to Phoenix real estate experts Nuwire. $120,000 was the median home and condo sales price. Cash buyers represented over 40 per cent of all sales in Phoenix last month–an unbelievable number. Foreclosures themselves represented almost 50 per cent of housing real estate transactions last month.
The latest jobs numbers do not bode well for the Phoenix real estate market. No job growth equals negative real estate price growth as the tentacles of the 2008 recession show few signs of relaxation.
Those who have cash benefit most in this market as they can quickly make deals. Those who have large down payments and who possess superior credit can also make things happen. Those with good credit and access to FHA financing can also participate in this market. Anyone else may have serious difficulties, however, and would be advised to wait until things improve, although that scenario may be years in the future.
