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        <title>The Latest Issue In Phoenix</title>
        <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/</link>
        <description>The Latest Issue is not only a blog focusing on Central Phoenix, but also an exploration of the science of real estate, living and eating in urban Central Phoenix.</description>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/the-end-of-mortgage-debt-relief-act-of-2007-its-influence-on-phoenix-homeowners.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/the-end-of-mortgage-debt-relief-act-of-2007-its-influence-on-phoenix-homeowners.html</link>
            <author>service@inphoenix.com (Farlon Bond)</author>
            <title>The End of Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007: Its influence on Phoenix Homeowners</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
The Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 has ended on December 31, 2012. If you presently owe more on your home than the original value, then you’re facing the difficulty of losing your precious home to foreclosure. You may also think that a short sale is a suitable solution to your Phoenix housing problems. Before taking out a home mortgage loan, you should consider how much you can afford to buy your house. This way, you’ll be able to manage with the payments and avoid facing foreclosure.


The Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 – What it does for the homeowners


Homeowners who lose their precious home to foreclosure or short sale sell their home for less than the present mortgage balance with the consent of the lender. For example, if your home goes in the hands of the lender in a foreclosure, the lender will sell the property in due course. Now, if you owe $250,000 during foreclosure and your lender sells it for $150,000, then the lender can demand you to pay the rest of the amount. In this case, it is equal to $100,000. The Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 enables to subtract the taxes that will be due for the forgiven debt.


End of Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 – Its effect on underwater homeowners


The underwater homeowners such as the ones who’ll face foreclosure or think about a short sale, with the end of the Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007, will be on the hook for paying tax. The tax will be paid on any deficit balance that exists when any one of these situations take place.


Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 – Securing your financial future 


Read on to know about some circumstances that may be applicable to your present financial situation. This will enable you to have a better understanding of how the Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 can still help you. 


You owe your lender more than the price of your home – Millions of homeowners had seen the price of their homes falling. Thus, if you’re one amongst them, then the Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 can be a possible help for you. Selling your home is the immediate solution that comes to your mind though you’ll have to find the difference between the amount at which you sell your home and your outstanding mortgage balance. If you’re delinquent on your home mortgage loan or are struggling through a sea of financial crisis, then a short sale or another foreclosure can help you.


You are going to face foreclosure – If you forget to make a single mortgage payment, then you are in a default state according to the terms of your home mortgage loan. Now, if you’re not able to cope up with the payments, your lender will start the foreclosure procedure. Since very less homeowners can overcome such problems, your best gamble is to let the process continue till foreclosure ends before 2012. If foreclosure can be predicted, then the Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 can allow you to gain profit by letting it take place before December 31, 2012.


You can try to negotiate for a short sale – Short sales do not occur suddenly. There are lots of things you need to consider for a short sale to take place successfully. The short sale generally takes 4-6 months or more than that to occur. So, if you’re engaged with a Phoenix short sale agent to sell your home short, you may take advantage of the Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007. 


The Mortgage Debt Relief Act of 2007 had done lots of good for the homeowners. It has also helped many Phoenix homeowners who faced personal as well as housing difficulties. Do not let this opportunity go away. So, if you’re working with a Phoenix foreclosure or short sale agent at present, see that you do not lose the possibility to avoid tax liability.
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            <pubDate>Mon, 21 Jan 2013 20:33:52 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/the-phoenix-housing-market-is-it-going-to-face-a-serious-supply-problem.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/the-phoenix-housing-market-is-it-going-to-face-a-serious-supply-problem.html</link>
            <author>service@inphoenix.com (Farlon Bond)</author>
            <title>The Phoenix Housing Market – Is It Going To Face A Serious Supply Problem? </title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Just like the temperatures shoot up during summer, the housing market in Phoenix is exceptionally hot at the present moment. According to the housing reports issued in the month of September, Phoenix has been voted as the best performing metro in the country, where the prices of real estate properties rose by 35% as compared to the same month in the year 2011. 


If you aren’t a resident of Phoenix, you need not worry as this is not just happening in only one part of the town as there are some other states like Arizona that are going through such positive economic growth. T


he reason behind this growth in the real estate market has been the decrease in the foreclosure re-sales. In the year 2011, 50% of the home sales were foreclosed properties that were put on resale by the lenders. Calculating ‘how much house can I afford’ is pretty important before taking out a home mortgage loan so that you may choose the best loan in the Phoenix market.


Is the market heading towards a chronic supply issue in the near future?


If you’re a resident of the metro Phoenix, the good news is that the home values are still going through an upswing by more than almost 45% in the month of November and the foreclosures and short sales are gradually drying up.


However, ironically, this subjects us to the bad news that the Valley might be heading towards a chronic problem with regards to the supply issues. The latest housing market stated that the surge in the median home prices continued since November, 2011 and this too climbed by about 4.5% from the last month to $165,000.


Do the woes of the Phoenix residents end here?


After reading through the above mentioned statistics, if you feel that the woes of the Phoenix residents end here, you’re probably mistaken. The price surge has been driven by low supply of homes that can be put on sale in the Phoenix market. For instance, there are no such new listings that are coming in the Phoenix real estate market. 


The short sales have been down by 75% compared to the same time of the last year. As there is a slight improvement in the market, it seems that there are many people who have decided to stay in their homes and appraise its value in order to let the values move up. 


While the investor trend seems to be fading away, the supply problem will certainly persist. Unless there are some new home builders who can start off with construction of new properties, this supply problem may not come to an end. However, reports suggest that the supply might yet again dip in the first few months of 2013 and there will also be a rise in the number of distressed properties that once flooded the market.
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            <pubDate>Tue, 15 Jan 2013 08:17:11 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/s.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/s.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>Things To Lookout For When Buying REO Properties</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Foreclosed properties, or those now owned by the lender are still around, though not as many and most don't tend to stick around on the market once they are released for sale, which could be a few months to over a year after the house was vacated and foreclosed.


Here are a few questions to investigate about a home. 


1. How old is the home. Older homes tend to have certain issues that come about as a result of age and many of these are exacerbated during the former owners distressed period. Also certain times in the real estate market, like boom times, the quality of construction and materials is usually lower. Learn about the specific issues that can come up and address them as you do your inspection.


2. Has the home been vacant for long? REO homes can be vacant for many months or some have been vacant for 1-3 years and as most of us know, vacant home tend to deteriorate faster. Be sure to talk to neighbors who may know more about how long the home's been vacant and pay more attention to some of mechanical items that degrade when not used: like galvanized pipes in historic homes or sewer pipes.


3. What is missing? Some of REO properties have been vandalized either by former owners, vagrants or others who don't respect other's property. This is common. I've seen missing pipes and discreetly removed wiring. The key word in the last sentence is discretely. Sometimes what is missing is not apparent, like when a pipe was cut in attic and when the water was turned on the kitchen flooded.


4. How does the home look? What is missing or broken. Was is the deferred maintenance. Distressed properties don't, usually, get the attention they need and when paint starts peeling or the like the deterioration speeds up.
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            <pubDate>Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:59:48 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/urban-bike-to-roosevelt.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/urban-bike-to-roosevelt.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>Urban Bike To Roosevelt</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
On a rather hot January day, my bike went into the back of my TT - yes, it fits, and we drove down to one my properties in North Central Phoenix where the car was left. Instead of riding through the mountain preserve like I usually do I drove around it. The fact is that taking the same route over and over simply bores me after a while. That goes even from driving the same streets. That's usually a signal to move.


The weather was perfect and the sun blazing enough to drive people en masse to the local parks and the streets. I was surprised how busy it was.





(photo: Artur)


All downtown Phoenix parks were filled with people enjoying the city life, the weather, the dry summer grass that makes the parks look like wheat fields in the late summer. 


It's a great site so see so many people in the Central city parks which used to be so empty. The progress in downtown Phoenix has been amazing. I'm sure ASU has much to do with it, as did the light rail, the many other improvements made by so many people, including all the historic home owners who have made their homes so desirable to so many by making sure they have modern amenities and historic charm.


6 hours of riding and a burnt head were enough for this lazy Sunday. Urban cycling is nice and always interesting in Central Phoenix. Just do it.
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            <pubDate>Mon, 30 Jan 2012 10:58:57 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/phoenix-trolley.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/phoenix-trolley.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>The Phoenix Trolley Museum</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
The Phoenix Light Rail may seem new, but its really a rebirth of a mode of transportation which used to exist in Phoenix. Central Phoenix used to have an extensive trolley system which was removed with the advent of the automobile. It's too bad that that happened, but at lease some people had the foresight and fortitude to preserve what was left. This was done by The Phoenix Trolley project.


The Phoenix Trolley project was started in 1975 by a group of individuals who purchased one of the last remaining bodies of an original Phoenix Streetcar. The project became a Museum and was established as a 501(c)3 Nonprofit Corporation in 1978. Since that time, a Car Barn has been constructed, and Streetcar #116 has been partially restored and made operational. One additional car has been obtained by the Museum and we now have two Streetcars in various stages of restoration: our Flagship #116, and its sister car #504 (#108).  

- Phoenix Trolley Museum




It's well worth a visit not only to learn some history, but also to view how beautiful these machines were.


Where: 25 W. Culver St., Phoenix, AZ, 85004 The Phoenix Trolley Museum
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:38:24 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/a-video-of-ro-ho-en-japanese-friendship-garden-in-downtown-phoenix.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/a-video-of-ro-ho-en-japanese-friendship-garden-in-downtown-phoenix.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>A Video Of Ro Ho En Japanese Friendship Garden In Downtown Phoenix</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Phoenix is lucky to have so many active people looking after it and most of us are lucky to have them and the resulting beautiful city that Phoenix is becoming after so many decades of wrong. Unfortunately past residents destroyed what would have made this city truly cosmopolitan: for instance Japanese flower growers in south Phoenix or China down in the warehouse district or the dozens of magnificent historic homes and icons of modernism that have been liquidated.


None the less what is left is, for the most, part, being preserved and often re-purposed. Urban life in Phoenix compared to just a decade or two ago is much better. The boom helped. 


One of those gems is the magnificent Japanese Friendship garden in downtown Phoenix. It is a 3.5 acre garden surrounded by another park and the Roosevelt Historic District. 


Once you enter it the notice of the city is gone and the magnificent landscape presents itself. It's best experienced a bit at a time, step by step along the walking path. The rock, bushes, trees, fish all fit in perfectly as do the fallen leaves in the fall and the seemingly random groups of Koi in the pond. 


 




The video above is my recent visit to the garden. My last trip was last year. The trees are more mature and it's all fallen or grown into place. 


Where: The Japanese Friendship Garden 1125 North 3rd Ave. Phoenix, Arizona




RO HO EN | Japanese Garden in Phoenix official website


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            <pubDate>Fri, 09 Dec 2011 08:52:32 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/11-important-things-to-ask-an-hoa.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/11-important-things-to-ask-an-hoa.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>11 Important Things to Ask An HOA</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
1. What percentage of the condo units are owner occupied. The more renters the less stable the complex.


2. What are the CC&amp;R’s Get a copy of the rules and regulations which can have an impact on your future value and lifestyele.


3. Copy of the association's financial and reserves. Are they stable, or in the red.


4. What are the current and past assessments and are they keeping up with inflation: is there enough to cover repairs now an those larger ones in the future.


5. What do they maintain. What is included in the fee and what do you have to pay.


6. What have been the special assessments over the last 5 years. You want to know what money has been collected and spent on.


7. What is the turnover. A high turnover may be a sign of trouble.


8. Is the project in litigation?


9. Is the developer reputable. This is more important with newer complexes.


10. Is there more then one association. Some areas have a community hoa and master planned hoa and maybe others, each with their own rules and fees.


11. Are rentals allowed. Life changes and you don’t want to be caught of guard having to hold a vacant unit while you take a job in another state.
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            <pubDate>Thu, 08 Dec 2011 12:01:26 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/all-things-considered-in-phoenix-in-december.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/all-things-considered-in-phoenix-in-december.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>All Things Considered In Phoenix In December</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
I used to post lots of photos on Flickr mostly for hosting photos, but now I know that for seo purposes it's better to host your own images, so I have not been to flickr in a while.


Lately I've seen may photographers moving their online portfolios over to 500px, so I checked it out. 500px is simply awesome. The presentation is great, the quality of photos, overall, is awesome and it's easy to use and easy to search for photos. 


NPR connotes this as the 'Age of the Planets'


I don't know how many of you have pondered how significant this is. Forever, that we know of, we've know of stars. All those little spots in the sky are stars like or similar to our own sun, but they are not planets. Lately we've seen proof of planets beyond our solar system and planets that may be habitable for life as we know it, meaning that life may and, considering how strong the forces of life are, it probably does exist there in some form. I'm speculating of course about the life, but it seems obvious and rather significant that it is not only we that are so lucky to be alive. It means that much of what we may know is really nothing compared to the knowledge out there.


Phoenix Home Sales Data


Over at phoenixmarkettrends.com we have published several reports about the housing market. Here are a few that might interest you.


November 2011 Home Sales Overview


Shadow Inventory


The influence of investors on the Phoenix market.


These are just a few of the recent reports.


Investment Frustrations


With the market supply tightening up, it is increasingly more difficult to purchase investment properties. There simply are few good choices or anything good is bombarded with offers and hitting the really low end is nearly depressing. A few days ago we hit the pavement looking for some 3-4 unit properties under $80,000 in need of repair.


What we saw was sheer destruction. Most of these properties were probably fine before going back to the bank. Once vacant many have been literally stripped and burned. We saw 2 that had massive fires and all had some or all the copper pipes removed and in many cases copper electrical wiring removed with just the plastic casing left behind. 


Doors wide open, or missing doors, missing window and vagrants. 2 such properties were in historic Glendale which is supposed to attract visitors. I'm simply going to start avoiding these properties, many of which are overpriced anyways. 


In fact, with some properties, the reo companies should be paying someone to take the properties off their hands.


What a novel idea? It makes sense in many situations with some caveats of course.
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            <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 10:20:33 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/fall-colors-video-of-north-central-phoenix.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/fall-colors-video-of-north-central-phoenix.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>Fall Colors Video Of North Central Phoenix</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Fall in Central Phoenix is warm and beautiful with lots of colors from all sorts of trees. A drive on Central Avenue or a run under the canoppy of Ash trees along Murphy's Bridle Path is almost magical, so is the crinkle of leaves under the foot or bicycle tire and the smell of flora of fall.


Below is a short video of what you can see now while in Central Phoenix.


#fall-colors-video#


I like the music too. It's bursting and vibrant just like the colors: bassy, clean and inspiring.


Instead of watching the video, get on your bike and see these colors and leaves live, crunch them under you wheels and smell them as the aroma fills the air.
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            <pubDate>Thu, 01 Dec 2011 08:04:38 -0700</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/examples-of-phoenix-historic-homes.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.inphoenix.com/blog/examples-of-phoenix-historic-homes.html</link>
            <author>artur@inphoenix.com (Artur Ciesielski)</author>
            <title>Examples Of Phoenix Historic Homes</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
The historic district of Phoenix are really special as are the homes. We've put together a short video presentation of the types of historic homes you can view in some of the 35 district through out Central Phoenix. 


#historic-phoenix-homes-video#
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            <pubDate>Wed, 30 Nov 2011 13:51:56 -0700</pubDate>
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