It is interesting to see how Toronto compares to otherOntario towns.  Clearly, while somecities have seen the vacancy rate increase over several years, in Toronto thathasn’t been the case.

Looking at stats is fun and often very enlightening. I use Clicky for tracking websites amongst others in case you’re wondering about the display below.

One of the interesting things is where are visitors coming from. This is also indicative of where many buyers and investors are from. In this snapshot we’re only focusing on U.S. and Canadian visitors over the last couple of months.  All these are individual ip addresses so repeat visitors are, for the most part, not here, nor are my visits which I block.

Besides the obvious Arizona visitors, California takes second place as is expected. Californians buy a lot of property there. Next are Canadian visitors. 11.2% of visitors are from Canada. You can see where Canadians are buying in Greater Phoenix here.

Notice how many visitors are from the colder areas of the U.S.

Start by looking at the right end of the graph below in the present where it is clear by the graph and the activity in the market that prices have stabilized and many cases are on the rise without any foreign influence: by that I mean government incentives like the tax credits we had a few years ago, which did nothing, but artificially bump the market before it corrected itself after the incentives were removed. 

Those are gone and prices are almost naturally coming back and improving. It’s good to see this finally.

We’ve just added a new feature to each listing details page, that shows similar properties to the one being viewed.

The listings are shown at the bottom of the detailed property sheet. There are 4 initial similar listings and you can easily see more, by clicking on the blue button titled ‘View all similar properties here’

I hope you find this new feature a benefit, something that will make your Phoenix homes search much easier and efficient.

I deal with a lot of tenants when leasing out my own properties and sometimes for clients who have purchased properties, but on a limited basis. Since I get to talk to a lot of potential tenants I know what they like and what turns them off. 

The basics are important, “good” neighborhood, access to jobs, shopping and freeways: the size and amount of bedrooms are all important, but those are things many apartment communities share so the competition is similar to our offerings, but there is something, amongst smaller property owners, which makes it easy to compete against and that is the condition of the units.

One of the most common themes that comes up in my conversations with potential tenants is the quality and cleanliness of other properties they have seen, both houses and apartments.

The overall assessment is that many owners don’t prepare the properties for new tenants. They leave them dirty and that turns off most good tenants. 

If your place is clean it will have an advantage over the competition. Anyway why would you want to lease out a dirty property? Some owners I’ve spoken with say that, ‘tenants will mess them up anyway’.  That is not true. It is true that if you put a dirty property up for lease then, it is likely that what you’ll get is a dirty and grimy tenant that will match your style of cleanliness. Dirty apartments attract dirty tenants. 

That means you need to get the apartment really clean, inside and out, especially in all the nooks and crannies, and get rid of any nasty smells or mildew smell that may be present. Nothing will differentiate your place like cleanliness.

By the way. The same goes when selling your home. It needs to be clean.

2011 was certainly an interesting year overall, but then again I have yet to see a year that was not. I’m not going to say too much about the year: I’ll let the numbers speak below and you can always hit the archives to read the month by month plays.

What is clear is that 2011 was a busy year, especially when you compare it to 2008 when only 58,388 properties sold. 

Take a look at how attached properties took off, especially condos and townhomes. Sales went up much more then the market overall: 2011 compared to 2008.

Lender Owned Sales

Bank owned sales were above 2010 levels, but 10K units less then 2009. 2011 was a big year for REO properties mostly because more people had confidence in the future of the economy and real estate values so these were literally scooped up.

Short Sales And Pre-Foreclosures

Short sales are one of the reasons we had fewer REO properties on the market. Many lenders prefer short sales to foreclosures for a multitude of reasons which I have covered before.

Normal Sales

The big news is that normal sales, rocked. 34,366 normal sales were recorded. That is whole bunch more then the previous years.

Trustee Notices and Trustee Sales

Notices of trustee sales or foreclosure notices were down a whole bunch compared to 103,341 in 2009 and even 2008 or 2010. Trustee sales too went down, partially because third party buyers took some of the slack. Good stuff.

New Home Sales

Not surprisingly new home sales were in the hole at 5,927 units. Look at the previous years for comparison. They did pickup toward the end of 2011 as overall inventory took a nose dive and demand grew.

But, that’s all in the past: let’s get back to the now and focus on the future.

A wonderful small neighborhood with ranch homes, palm trees, lots of character and a strong sense of community.

The Biltmore, Arcadia or the Camelback Corridor it’s not.  This area is in disputed territory, no one knows where it belongs.  Now at least it’s a bit clearer.  This is Arcadia Lite. 

While not Arcadia proper the sentiment is more toward the east then west. Arcadia Lite is bound by Campbell to Indian School and 32nd St. to 36th St.  The name has been around  while but only recently did the street signs receive that added neighborhood sign as pictured above. There are about 500 homes represented in this neighborhood. 

They are mostly ranch homes of medium size from the mid century and many remodeled homes.  While still in a transitional phase the trends are good.  Some of the homes are simply beautiful and it seems that residents care to preserve the character of the area and it’s architecture. The neighborhood is between Arcadia and the Biltmore each of which offers a lot to its residents from jobs, shopping, dining, culture and nearby the Phoenix mountains.

Home range from the mid 0,000 to near half a million.

Arcadia Lite Homes For Sale

#arcadia-lite-homes-for-sale#

An indication of the popularity of multifamily properties is the obvious lack of inventory and the activity when decent properties do hit the market. There is no doubt, small multifamily properties are popular with real estate investors. 

The 2-15 unit complexes did get hit pretty bad. There was a lot of speculation, what seems like many years ago in 2003-2007. Many of these properties shot up sky high in price and found willing buyers. Of course, as we all know, most of these came crashing down and went through the arduous short sale or REO process to new owners who often got them at mid 1980′s to mid 1990′s prices and pretty much instant awesome returns.

The larger complexes in the commercial realm never really hit on bad times. What did happen is that construction of new units went down dramatically so rental demand for what was left was pretty high. Also some of the larger complex owners were able to more easily restructure loans, though I know a few owners who, through some diligent work were able to do the same with their fourplexes, but those are rare cases.

I got a little off track, though. 

A recent report  titled ‘The Year Ahead, Real Estate’s Best Bets in 2012′ by Robert Freedman and Nichole Odijk DeMario in the Realtor magazine, indicates the following  trends.

2011

Vacancy rate: 5.4%  |  Rental rate change: 2.5%  |  Net Absorption: 238,398

2012

Vacancy rate: 4.6%  |  Rental rate change: 3.5%  |  Net Absorption: 126,621

2013

Vacancy rate: 4.5%  |  Rental rate change: 3.8%  |  Net Absorption: 102,687

They also note:

“Apartment rentals are once again expected to be the best-performing commercial sector.”

Short-term rentals (STRs) have become all the rage in cities across the country, whether they be tucked along the coastline or in a downtown high-rise overlooking the bustle of a big city. Property owners and property management groups alike are diving into the market, eager to absorb the profit potential that seems to envelope such rentals. All of that aside, there are several risks and rewards that should be taken into consideration when considering either an investment property or conversion of existing conventional rentals into short-term rentals. 

RISKS

Additional costs – It’s important to consider the added costs of upkeep and maintenance for a short-term rental. This includes utilities, regular housecleaning, etc. There may also be fees associated with STRs that aren’t applicable to standard, long-term rentals. Depending on your location, this can include Hotel Occupancy Taxes, inspection fees and additional insurance requirements.

Competition – It’s valuable to weigh potential competition. In order to stand out amongst this growing group of rentals, marketing and advertising, added amenities and an appealing environment can all add to the costs of  maintenance. Some property owners offer things like kayaks, groceries, or bicycles. And these properties are attractive to renters.

Restrictions – Because of the growing popularity, it’s important to assess whether or not your property will be at risk of bans or restrictions. Some cities are implementing total bans on STRs, whereas others are placing restrictions on rental frequency or tax reporting requirements. 

Community Risk – Some neighbors and city officials claim that transient tenants pose a threat to neighborhoods, raise the likelihood of parking issues and noise complaints and may introduce unforeseen crime to areas. 

REWARDS

Revenue Potential – This is the most obvious reward, though it should be carefully compared to the potential added costs. Some property owners claim earning 25% of their mortgage in a single night. And the capability to charge exponentially higher rates during peak rental periods can raise that number even more.

Preservation – Some property owners prefer short-term rentals because they say this type of renter is easier on a property. It also allows the property owner regular access to the property for upkeep and maintenance. This is particularly valuable for owners who have a sentiment to the property that they’re renting.

Tax Breaks – This is a sophisticated topic that requires significant research, but there can be tax breaks and deduction allowances for things like marketing, advertising, maintenance costs and large-ticket purchases associated with a designated vacation rental. 

Community Rewards – Some property owners believe that short-term rentals help increase neighboring real estate values because of the regular upkeep associated with such properties. Others also claim it helps promote tourism. 

No matter which factor is the most attractive for your interest in potentially jumping on the short-term bandwagon, it’s important to fully assess and balance all of the potential risks and rewards to fully maximize your property’s (and your profit) potential. Read the full guide here.