Thinking of replacing a window or door in your home? Perhaps your hot water heater is percolating and has been around a few too many years? Now is the time to consider replacement because if you have it done before December 31, you'll get a tax credit (not just a deduction) for doing so. This means you take the dollar amount right off the check you would otherwise write to Uncle Sam (or he adds it to your refund).At right -- a solar heating system control -- you don't need to get this complex to get the credit!Tax credits are available for many types of home improvements including adding insulation, replacement windows, and certain high efficiency heating and cooling equipment. See chart. The maximum amount of homeowner credit for all improvements combined is $500 during the two year pe... 07/22/2007

The Flagstaff Aquaplex is scheduled to open in late Spring or early Summer 2008 and is well under construction on the southside of the 4th Street bridge in Flagstaff. Amenities will include a multi-activity gymnasium, weight and fitness area, aerobics/dance studio, a large community meeting room with catering kitchen, an elevated walk/jog track, a babysitting room, a game area, a party room, a climbing wall, and a state of the art leisure pool that includes two indoor/outdoor body slides, current channel with over-pour for kayaking, family whirlpool, and a beautiful natatorium. Here is a floorplan:      The architect's (Barker, Rinker, Seacat) rendering of the exterior is a conceptual drawing of the exterior only, before materials were finalized. But here's the idea: This week, City Par... 07/21/2007

I've been working with Realtors, providing closing and marketing gifts, for the fifteen years that I've been in the corporate gift business.  The first week of August, I will be a member of the faculty for the National Gift Basket Conention in Orlando the first week in August.  I'll be teaching clases about how to build e-commerce websites that work.  I will also be competing against seven others for the title of "Designer of the Year."  Cross your fingers for me and wish me luck!  I will need it.  The competion for this desigination is keen as it is limited to the "best of the best" designers from the previous year's Convention.The tradeshow portion of the Convention will give me the opportunity to search for new and different products and ideas to help me better serve the Real Estate ... 07/21/2007

07/18/2007

Any members out there seeing/hearing anecdotal evidence of a market shift? I've heard from two sources that building is picking up again around town. This morning, the Wall Street Journal reports that national statistics for June "home construction unexpectedly rose, after two straight months of decline, but a plunge in building permits indicated the upturn might be short-lived."  Could the housing market get anymore confusing?While the Flagstaff real estate market rarely tracks the market in other parts of the country, I'm willing to say that on one issue there is a correlation -- the real estate market is sending mixed signals. See my post earlier this week Prices Are Falling! (A Bit) (Maybe).For real estate in Flagstaff. 07/18/2007

Cardinals Training Camp in Flagstaff The Cardinals will prepare for the regular season on the playing fields of Northern Arizona University on the dates and times below. All practices are FREE and open to the public -- and lots of fun!Date Time7/29 1:00-3:05 p.m.7/30 9:05-10:30 a.m.and 3:05-5:05 p.m.7/31 3:05-5:05 p.m.8/1 9:05-10:35 a.m. and 7:05-9 p.m. (at Lumberjack Stadium)8/2 3:05-5:05 p.m.8/3 9:05-10:30 a.m. and 3:05-5:05 p.m.8/4 11:15 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Red and White Scrimmage)8/6 9:05-10:40 a.m.and 3:05-5:05 p.m.8/7 3:05-4:55 p.m. 8/8 9:05-10:30 a.m. and 7:05-9:10 p.m. (at Lumberjack Stadium)8/9 3:05-4:55 p.m.8/10 9-10:10 a.m. (Walk Thru)8/13 3:05-5:05 p.m.8/14 3:05-5:15 p.m.8/15 9:05-10:35 a.m. and 3:05-5:00 p.m.8/16 3:05-4:55 p.m.8/17 9-10 a.m (Walk Thru)8/20 3:05-5 p.m.8/21 3:05-... 07/15/2007

Flagstaff Real Estate Market ReportThe median sales price moved up slightly, from $293,000 to $307,000. (These numbers include all types of units - single family, townhomes, condos and manufactured homes.) Wait! Didn't I just say that prices are falling? Yes, the median price of homes sold rose in June compared to May, but the price per square foot is down. In other words, people are getting larger homes for the price they paid last month and last year for comparably smaller homes. Right now, the market signals are pretty confusing, so this post to explain what I see in the Flagstaff market is fairly long.          According to statistics of the Northern Arizona Association of Realtors®, the number of homes for sale in the Flagstaff market has continued to rise - breaking the 1000 mark ... 07/14/2007

This week, the National Weather Service broached the idea of renaming the Monsoon Season to "Severe Thunder Storm Activity Season." How boring! Apparently lots of people reacted as I did because the NWS issued a statement later in the week saying they had gotten a lot of calls and letters protesting the idea. But they did not say they were giving it up. For an explanation of the monsoon season visit the NWS website.For a more sentimental reaction, see my earlier blog post.For Flagstaff real estate, contact my Team! 07/14/2007

According to statistics of the Northern Arizona Association of Realtors®, the number of homes for sale in the Flagstaff market has continued to rise - breaking the 1000 mark as we crossed into July. The pace of sales increased a bit - a total of 136 homes sold in June. This had a substantial impact on the absorption rate as of the beginning of July - reducing it to 7.4 months as compared to 9.47 months as of the beginning of June. Prices overall stayed about the same, with the median rising $14,000 over the course of the month to $307,000.  (These numbers include all types of units - single family, townhomes, condos and manufactured homes.)In summary, homes are still selling and prices have not dropped unlike in other parts of the country. We do have a larger supply of homes for sale th... 07/07/2007

San Diego. I wouldn't normally just go to San Diego for eight days. But, daughter and son-in-law were conferencing there. What a great opportunity to baby-sit the four and six year olds and drive to do it instead of fly! The drive from Flagstaff is 8-9 hours (not bad) and is mostly through desert (pretty bad -- 118 was the high that I saw on my car thermometer). A good time was had by all.And, while I was away, the business was admirably handled by my great team. I got only one phone call and one e-mail that needed response. I had four listing appointments set up when I returned. What a great team I have! Flagstaff real estate team. Thanks team!Ann Heitland of RE/MAX Peak Properties 07/06/2007

In many parts of the world, "monsoon" means disaster. In Flagstaff, it means heavenly weather. After the long-dry, and hot, Spring, somewhere around the 4th of July, the big thunderheads begin to form and most afternoons we have heavy rain showers. It started yesterday and today we're in full monsoon season. After the showers, the weather clears in time for evening hikes and barbecues. There are cool, light breezes. Morning will bring a clear sky. By mid-morning, we'll see light-fluffy clouds. Then the thunderheads will come in. The season continues until around Labor Day. High temperatures will be in the 80s, lows in the 60s, or even 50s. What a beautiful place to live! For information on Flagstaff real estate, contact Ann Heitland. There has never been a better time! 07/06/2007

Recently I had the opportunity to work on a wonderful property in Flagstaff.  As I entered the lovely cast iron artist's gate to the property all I could think was "wow"!  Unfortunately, my elated wow turned to a concerned wow as I approached and entered the home.  It was a classic case of a wonderful property with wonderful, yet busy, owners who had not done many recent updates.  It was so much fun to work with the owners who quickly bought into the idea of turning their home into a "house"- which is the essence of staging.I started with a consultation which the owner went through with a fine tooth comb (he claims to be a military man which made it easy for him to do "as he is told"!) and really began the initial staging work himself.  The owners were gracious enough to turn their home... 06/24/2007

Fire Outbreaks Remind Flagstaff - ‘Tis the SeasonThis week, I was asked, how do I know it's summer in Flagstaff? My off-the-cuff answer was: because I wake up in the morning and see an elk drinking from our bird-feeder. On further reflection, the primary reason that I know its summer is because it is fire season. Both, of course, relate to the early summer lack of moisture that precedes the rains we look forward to in later summer.  Last weekend, it was the Manning Fire. Eighteen acres of charred ruins now spread from Townsend Winona Road to the edge of a home where the fire fighters successfully held back the flames at the end of Manning Road. The Rio Rancho subdivision was set for evacuation with homeowners borrowing backhoes to dig trenches before they left and horses were moved out ... 06/24/2007

Another fun weekend in Flagstaff - Coming Up:Friday, June 22  Movies on the Square, Downtown at Heritage Square, entertainment at 6:00 p.m., movie at dusk, free. Bring blankets and chairs for an evening of family fun under the stars. Happy FeetJune 23-24 Annual Flagstaff Music Festival  at Heritage Square, 2:00-10:00 p.m., free,.  Features local talents the Foot Solejahs, Sir Harrison and the Blues Kings, The Buzzard Brothers, Ray Rossi Band, Backroads and others. A benefit for the Mary Crawley Memorial Student Aide Scholarship Fund.Sunday, June 24 Old Caves Pueblo Hike from Silver Saddle Road. Start at the Silver Saddle trailhead, 8:00-10:30 a.m., free. More info 928-526-1157 ext. 273,   .  A moderately difficult hike to explore the last Sinagua settlement. Bring hiking shoes and water... 06/21/2007

Two Important Community Forums in Flagstaff This Week:Forum on Growth, Wednesday night at the Federated Church (Aspen and Sitgreves). 7-9 p.m. This is the second forum on growth issues and is sponsored by the American Association of Univerisity Women and the League of Women Voters. A panel of community leaders will answer questions from the audience about development and growth issues in Flagstaff. Community Forum to Get to Know the Final Candidates for Flagstaff City Manager, Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m. at the Radisson Woodlands Hotel. Hear from the two finalists and ask them questions. Like this post? Subscribe to the feed for future posts: More Flagstaff Community Information 06/18/2007

Two great events in Flagstaff this weekend (plus lots of other fun). Here are the two "green" picks:The Flagstaff Sustainable Living Fair will be a grassroots event focused on community education and fun, an outreach to people of all ages. Renewable energy and sustainability developments are really important for mankind's future and they need to be kept visible. Where the science of global warming is becoming pretty well accepted, reasonable people can still disagree about when or whether energy and resource scarcity will become a problem for mankind. Teaching and demonstrating ways to reduce our demand for power and global resources can help reduce the potential for this problem, and will always be one of the most constructive things we can do for ourselves and for our descendants. The... 06/15/2007

             Here is the Flagstaff market report as included in ou client newsletter, mailed earlier this month:            The number of homes listed for sale in the Flagstaff area continued to rise during the month of May, according to statistics of the Northern Arizona Association of Realtors® Multiple-Listing Service. Nine hundred forty-seven homes were listed on MLS as of June 3, 2007. This is an increase from 739 on April 3 and 892 on May 3. The number of homes sold did not increase proportionately, thus raising the number of months a home can be expected to take to sell.  The expected length of time to sell in the overall market is substantially higher than last year (4.59 months last year compared to 9.47 months now). As I have said in past reports, the average and median prices... 06/15/2007

Interstate 17 - Proposed Alternate Routes to Flagstaff The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) is conducting preliminary studies to determine how to handle traffic on I-17 between Flagstaff and the Phoenix area. The study attempts to look decades into the future and is seeking answers to these questions: Do current and forecast conditions suggest the need for alternates to I-17? Are there feasible alternates to I-17 that can address the needs associated with current and forecast conditions? What additional planning studies, if any, should be done? Of interest to me is that the "I-17 Alternatives" prepared by ADOT for the study shows only maps of proposed new highways. Why not a railroad up the existing I-17 corridor? Is it because the Arizona Department of Transportation is real... 06/13/2007

Another great Flagstaff summer tradition begins this weekend. The 7th season of the Flagstaff Community Market, our local farmers' market, begins this Sunday, June 10 and runs each Sunday until October 7. The hours are 8:00 am to noon. The market is located downtown, south of the tracks on Phoenix Avenue, just west of Beaver Street in the large open lot.As always, the market will feature a wide range of products from local growers and producers including vegetables, fruits, herbs, eggs, cheese, baked goods, jams, salsas, fresh flowers, plants, soap, yarn and more.Special Guest: This Sunday, June 10, the market will be visited by the Moishe Mobile, a veggie-oil/solar powered short bus packed with eight young activists (all alumni of UC Santa Barbara) on its way to the Bonnaroo Arts and M... 06/09/2007

Flagstaff Historic District UpdateThis past Tuesday, the proposal to declare the residential area between Thorpe Park and downtown an historic district hit the City Council - again. This was the third time before the City Council as those of you following this thread know. The ordinance would establish certain height restrictions on new development in the neighborhood.The ordinance to establish the district was given preliminary approval by a vote of 4-2. A significant majority of residents in the area supported the ordinance by signing a petition to start the process earlier this year. A vocal minority was most of who were heard from Tuesday night. The final City Council vote is scheduled for June 19. Ann Heitland, Flagstaff real estate 06/08/2007