At Urbburb we’re skilled at making and helping you manage the tough decisions when selling your home so a quick call to our listing specialists will quickly bring you up to speed. But if you want a few ideas to work on before you call, here are some concepts to tweak your selling campaign:

5 Cheap and Easy Fixes Before You List Your Home

Selling to a younger buyer: houzz/Younger Buyer

On the importance of home staging: The home-staging cheat sheet

Quick paint fixes: House Paint Ideas To Help Your Home Sell

And the smartest and best idea of all:  Contact UrbBurb

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There are many opinions of what’s in store for this coming year. The Wall Street Journal starts their 5-part take in today’s article, Housing Issues to Watch in 2013:

Home prices finally hit a bottom in 2012, well ahead of many predictions that called for continued price drops this year.

Prices were up 6% from one year ago in October, according to CoreLogic CLGX -0.15%, putting them on track for their best year since 2005. Housing starts, which hit a bottom three years ago, ramped up to their highest level in four years. Sales of new homes are running around 20% of last year’s levels, while existing home sales are up around 10%. Continued declines in homes listed for sale—particularly foreclosures—explain much of the improving price picture.

So will 2013 be the year of recovery or relapse? Evidence points more strongly to a continued rebound, albeit one that still has considerable headwinds and that varies from one market to another. This week, we’ll offer five areas of focus for 2013.

The post Forecasting the real estate trends for 2013 appeared first on UrbBurb blog.

Actually it was developed as a tourism attraction in the Taihang Mountains in Linzhou, China. Chinese tourist officials in Linzhou are hoping that this massive spiral stairs, with its birds-eye view, will give a unique experience within the mountain range. The staircase is so tall it is said that when the wind can blow it as much as 3 foot in each direction, an experience that is certainly not for the easily intimidated.

Check out other wild commercial and residential spiral staircases from around the world:

The Most Terrifying Spiral Staircases On Earth
101 Dizzying Spiral Staircases & Twisted Architectural Art Photos

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The Phoenix City Council last week approved city staff to begin negotiations and enter into contracts to facilitate Arizona State University’s development of the Arizona Center for Law and Society on city-controlled property in downtown Phoenix.

ASU proposes to develop the Arizona Center for Law and Society on approximately three-quarters of a block of city property bounded by Polk, Taylor, First and Second streets.

The Downtown Devil has its opinion on what it would like to see taken into consideration as ASU and the City of Phoenix moves forward with the design and density of the newly proposed ASU Center of Law: Opinion: ASU, build the law school – but only if you reach for the sky.

Update: I just pulled this article – Phoenix gives ASU $12 million to move law school downtown – showing that the City of Phoenix is serious about getting ASU to build the campus in downtown Phoenix as opposed to building on the ASU Tempe campus. It’s a smart move for Phoenix – not only for the cachet of having the Center for Law downtown but also to promote increased population density in the area. The area extending from the downtown core to the Roosevelt Row is ripe for development and resurgence but only if the City of Phoenix pushes aggressively (and gets a little looser with zoning and cash incentives) and provides the justification for developers to consider it as a viable commercial and residential growth area.

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Hundreds of Phoenix-area farmers have faced nuisance and zoning violations after neighbors have complained about smelly coops or clucking hens. Often complainants feel poultry poses a health risk or just doesn’t belong near residences — claims chicken owners vehemently dispute.

Similar cases across the Valley highlight the code-enforcement headache cities face as a result of a national movement toward urban agriculture. A push for locally raised, environmentally sustainable foods is clashing with more traditional expectations of how neighborhoods should sound, look and smell.

…Cities have approached the chicken-farming trend with varying degrees of resistance and acceptance. Proponents of the chickens say several cities, including Phoenix, Tempe and Scottsdale, have relatively friendly ordinances, meaning they don’t prohibit the practice outright in residential areas. Other cities, such as Chandler and Glendale, take a far more restrictive approach. Both cities ban chickens in many neighborhoods, with exceptions for those with more rural or agricultural-type zoning overlays. But nearly every city bans roosters outright or implicitly because their crows would violate most any noise ordinance — and rattle neighbors hoping to sleep in on a Saturday morning.

…Although city officials don’t encourage or try to combat urban chicken farming, their goal is to get neighbors to communicate and compromise. Owners can often avoid citations by simply moving a coop to a different part of their backyard or making other adjustments.

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With the modified version of the Home Affordable Refinance Program — or HARP 2.0 — now in full swing, the Arizona Department of Housing launched a marketing campaign this week with a New Jersey-based company to help get the word out to eligible homeowners statewide.

…About 75 percent of Arizona homeowners have a Freddie or Fannie loan, Daniel Romm, an ADOH spokesman, told me Wednesday. According to a report from Zillow Inc. last month, about 45 percent of mortgaged homes in just metro Phoenix alone were underwater in the third quarter, although it’s unclear how many of those were Fannie or Freddie loans.

The idea is to maximize the number of HARP refinance closings in Arizona and simultaneously open the door for homeowners to take advantage of additional incentives under the ADOH’s Save Our Home AZ program, Romm said. That program gives foreclosure prevention assistance, and is funded through the $268 million that the Obama administration allocated to Arizona in early 2010 as part of the “Hardest-Hit-Funds,” which aids homeowners in states that were hardest hit by the recession and housing crash.

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The experienced people here at Urbburb believe that our years of driving the streets, researching the markets, crunching the numbers and visiting countless listings gives us the unique edge to make any buyer purchase a perfect fit for their budget and ideas of lifestyle and an easier daily routine. Experienced agents that listen carefully, conduct the market research and target only the best-fit listings save countless hours, stress and expense when finding the right home for your needs. This is obviously true for anyone buying from out-of-state but is just as true for local buyers as well. Considering there are no out-of-pocket expense for buyers (fees are paid at closing from the listing agent proceeds) it still amazes us that buyers would risk the time and effort of going it on their own. The likelihood of saving money on a transaction is near nil (the listing agent and/or the seller will financially benefit – not you) and the great unknown of appraisals, inspections, escrow procedures, mortgage contracts and the thousand little things that transpire during a transaction will land squarely in your lap with no one to help you out.

Or….Urbburb will take care of everything. Efficiently. On our time. On our dime.

Zillow also has their take on why buyers should work with agents in their blog post: 3 Reasons Why Buyers Shouldn’t Go It Alone:

You need someone to interpret all that information

Yes, there’s a ton of information out there for the general public, but all that data is meaningless if you can’t interpret it or predict how it might affect your investment.

It’s the agent’s job to know the market

Trying to buy or sell a home is practically a part-time job, one that requires its own expertise.

You can’t afford to make a mistake

Years ago, people who bought homes could usually expect a slow but steady increase in their investment over many years. That was OK, because homeowners were in it for the long haul. Life was simpler then. People stayed in their jobs until retirement. They wanted to establish roots in their community.

Fast-forward to today. If nothing else, the past five years have shown us how volatile the real estate market has become. Prices went up and up and up, then crashed, and are now moving back up. The equity many people counted on was wiped out and, depending on when they bought, might never come back. At the same time, job security has become a thing of the past. Few people, especially those younger than 40, plan to retire with the companies they’re currently employed by. We’re a highly mobile society.

The post Do you really want to sift through the hype and details? appeared first on UrbBurb blog.

There was a bizarre kidnapping and a daring escape that happened in the South Bay. Authorities say a handyman was threatened, beaten, and forced to do repair work for several hours.

….San Jose police descended on the Chevron station after the handyman escaped and called 911. The clerk says officers drew their weapons as the two kidnapping suspects nervously shopped for snacks.

The ordeal lasted nearly seven hours inside a home on Caldwell court in Morgan Hill. Authorities say the handyman was lured to the home, beaten and forced to do repair work on household appliances on Monday.

“Pretty much told, ‘Hey, we’re going to kill you if you don’t do what we tell you. We want you to fix these things around the house.’ Out of fear of the unknown and of what’s going to happen to him…,” said Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Sgt. Jose Cardoza.

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In 2011, the Phoenix metro area welcomed a 41% increase in new construction, totaling $5.3 billion in new starts for both residential and non-residential building projects. “In the case of markets that were categorized by the housing boom and bust, that [construction] correction has already occurred,” explains Robert Murray, vice president of economic affairs at McGraw-Hill Construction, a New York City-based construction data firm. “Now areas like Phoenix are in the process of seeing an upturn in new structures – that aren’t even necessarily housing.”In Phoenix, that construction spending jump comes in part from a new $5 billion Intel semiconductor manufacturing facility for which $1.5 billion worth of building began last year. The up-and-coming facility, located outside of city limits in nearby Chandler, Ariz., helped thrust the Phoenix Metropolitan Statistical Area into the No. 8 spot on Forbes’ list of the American Cities with the Most New Construction.

The post Cities With the Most New Construction appeared first on UrbBurb blog.

From GPEC doubles down in bid to recruit California companies:

GPEC is offering free air fare and hotel rooms to 100 California CEOs and business owners in technology, medical and other high-wage sectors to come look at Phoenix area locations for relocations and expansions.
The program was originally for the first 50, but GPEC said demand is high and they are expanding the program.

“The response to the California 50 program has been overwhelming,” said GPEC CEO Barry Broome.

The Arizona business recruitment group launched the program after California voters approved tax increases on the wealthy, increased sales taxes and eliminated some tax benefits for multi-state companies.

image: Lees Ferry Anglers

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Interior design with your inner hipster is hot. It’s ironic and your friends will never understand because they can’t get past their mainstream Pottery Barn catalog design ideas. You are different and you know that there are better ways to feel superior than to spend thousands on an overpriced armoire. You do not have to go dumpster diving or visit an art gallery to outfit your home in a way that tells the world that you are a hipster and you don’t care who knows it.

The post Hot tips for the hipster home appeared first on UrbBurb blog.

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“Every single thing about housing is flashing green,” he said in an interview with CNBC-TV on Friday. “There’s not one thing that’s flashing red.” Household formation is up, housing inventory is down, and housing affordability is at an all-time high, he said.

Mr. Dimon also noted that while the much-ballyhooed “shadow inventory” of properties that could one day become foreclosures is high, that shadow inventory is declining at a time that banks are getting smarter about foreclosure alternatives such as short sales, where a homeowner is allowed to sell his or her home for less than the amount owed.

Housing isn’t going to recover in the absence of a strong economy, he said. “But if we get the economy going, housing has clearly turned,” he said. If housing construction moved back to a more normal level of around 1.4 million new units being built every year—something he said would have to happen “soon” given demographic trends—then housing could begin creating many more jobs.

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Check out Zillow’s recent article “Six Ways to Make Your Apartment More Secure” on securing your apartment. From checking locks and detectors to keeping your exposure to a minimum, take these steps and you’ll have a sound sleep in your short-term digs.

The post Apartment security in our crazy world appeared first on UrbBurb blog.

Keep downtown Phoenix vibrant and growing. First Friday has grown well beyond its roots as a urban art gallery experience into a full-fledged urban circus with all the sites and sounds of an street market in full swing. It’s a blast to experience and if you get weary of the scene outside you can now find elbow space in the many new bar and restaurants that dot the streetscape.

The post KISS map for First Friday appeared first on UrbBurb blog.

Home prices continue upward trend in August:

Home prices in August rose across a broad swath of large American cities, adding further evidence that a housing recovery is taking shape.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index for the 20 largest metropolitan areas in the country rose 0.9% from July and 2% from August 2011. It was the fifth consecutive month-over-month increase and the third consecutive year-over-year bump.

Nineteen areas tracked by the index posted gains over July and 17 posted year-over-year increases.

The closely tracked index showed home prices down 29.3% from their July 2006 peak. By comparison, prices are down about 0.3% from January 2009, when President Obama took office, indicating most of the declines occurred during the previous administration.

The recovery since 2009 has been marked by a long bottom. Real estate initially improved in 2009 and 2010, with help from federal tax credits for buyers, but then dipped again after those incentives expired. The gains this year have been fueled by a low inventory of homes for sale, record-low interest rates and expectations that prices will not drop much further — a combination many economists predict will continue to fuel improvement.

“In a lot of these markets we are going to continue to see these price increases,” said Jed Kolko, chief economist and head of analytics for real estate website Trulia.

10 Cities With The Hottest Housing Markets:

Relying Trulia’s 2012 price monitor, 24/7 Wall St. identified the ten cities with the biggest increases in asking prices between Sept. 2011 and Sept. 2012. Trulia also provided month-over-month changes in asking home prices and year-over-year changes in asking rent from September, as well as Construction starts for the first half of the year. Corelogic also provided us with foreclosure rates, which originally came from RealtyTrac. 24/7 Wall St. also reviewed data from Fiserv about home price projections and decline from peak to the first quarter of 2012. All ranks for all data we included in our analysis are out of the 100 largest metropolitan regions as measured by Trulia.

Phoenix – #1 housing market
> Year-over-year home price change: 23.8%
> Year-over-year-rent price growth: 2.1% (53rd largest increase)
> Foreclosure rate per 1,000: 23.1 (12th highest)
> Median asking price/ sq. ft.: $88.07 (26th lowest)

Through September, home prices in Phoenix have risen by more than 23% year-over-year, faster than in any other city in the nation. Price gains in the area, though, have not coincided with a dramatic growth in the number of available homes for sale, as home construction was still at just 41.9% of its pre-recession pace. A portion of these gains may be due to heavy buying by Wall Street, as companies look to buy properties in Phoenix at a discount, rather than people looking to move to the area. A Bloomberg Businessweek report noted that investors were buyers in nearly 40% of August transactions in Maricopa County, in which Phoenix is located. But despite all the activity by large investors in the Phoenix housing market, rental prices have only risen 2.1% year-over-year.

Surging builder confidence suggests fewer “deals” for buyers in 2013:

Home values have been on a slow, steady rise since October 2011 and the market’s frontline soldiers — home builders — have taken notice. Amid rising prices and a tightening supply, the nation’s homebuilders are showing more confidence in the U.S. housing market than at any time in the last 6 years.

For buyers of new construction, the “best deals” in housing may be gone with 2012.

…Low home prices, shrinking home inventory and a rush of prospective buyers have fueled the gains. Builders project sales over the next 6 months to return to pre-recession levels. Buyer foot traffic is already at multi-year highs.

The post BounceBack: tracking national market news appeared first on UrbBurb blog.

But what of those talented few that can take a standard holiday activity and take a process to unimaginable heights of skill. Take a look at Ray Villafane’s incredible pumpkin carving expertise and you may never feel worthy of picking up a carving set again.

Ray Villafane Studios  (check out the pumpkin gallery)

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Forecasting a 112% increase for housing starts between 2011 and 2014 sounds pretty aggressive. But it’s not really, say David Shulman and Jerry Nickelburg, senior economists with UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, which recently released its latest projections for the economies in the U.S. and California over the next few years.

Shulman estimates that national starts will increase by nearly 25% in 2012 to 763,000, and then grow by more than 70% over the next two years to exceed 1.3 million in 2014, of which more than 400,000 starts will be multifamily.

The economists note, though, that their estimates for 2014 are relatively conservative, given that conventional wisdom has long been that the U.S. needs to build 1.5 million housing units annually to keep pace with population growth and replacements. What Anderson is actually predicting, says Shulman, is movement from “depression level” starts in 2011 (612,000 units) and “recession level” starts this year, to “what’s been the 20-year normal” in 2014.

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