Arizona Real Estate Informer

New-home sales fall 17.3% in 2006

An estimated 1.06 million new single-family homes were sold in 2006, down about 17.3 percent compared to 2005, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported today. More...

Surprise plan for trails, parks nearly finished

Surprise is nearing completion of master plans for a trail system and future parks that should better guide development and ensure ample green space for the growing city. The master plans will be the first of their kind for the city, Community & Recreation Services Director Mark Coronado said. More...

Estrella Falls likely to be open-air

When Westcor submits plans for Estrella Falls, expect to see designs for the regional mall to stray from the traditional, indoor shopping centers. The success of SanTan Village in Gilbert is creating a push to have an outdoor model for Goodyear's Estrella Falls, said Garrett Newland, assistant vice president of development for Westcor. More...

Riggs lines omit northern Seville

One of the most contentious disputes in recent years in the Chandler Unified School District ended Wednesday night at an unusually lengthy meeting of the district's governing board. The attendance boundaries for Riggs Elementary, scheduled to open in south Gilbert for the 2007-08 school year, will not include the northern sector of the Seville development despite a concerted, monthlong effort by residents to sell the district and board on an alternate plan. More...

Housing glut gives buyers upper hand

Amid a continuing glut of homes for sale in most of the country, buyers should have plenty of choices and lots of bargaining power in the spring selling season - typically the busiest time of the year. More...

Better days are forecast, but at a cost

Metropolitan Phoenix's ailing home-building business got a prescription for a return to health Thursday, but some of the medicine may be hard to swallow. Analysts RL Brown and Greg Burger told a crowd of about 1,300 housing and development professionals at the Desert Ridge Marriott that Phoenix's new-home market will get better after this year. But that is expected to happen only if builders get serious about such things as reducing speculative-home inventory and prices and making a bigger commitment to service. More...

New-home sales fall 17.3% in 2006

An estimated 1.06 million new single-family homes were sold in 2006, down about 17.3 percent compared to 2005, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development reported today. More...

Surprise plan for trails, parks nearly finished

Surprise is nearing completion of master plans for a trail system and future parks that should better guide development and ensure ample green space for the growing city. The master plans will be the first of their kind for the city, Community & Recreation Services Director Mark Coronado said. More...

Housing news still bad, Realtors say

WASHINGTON — After a five-year boom, the nation's housing market cooled considerably in 2006, with existing-home sales falling by the largest amount in 17 years.  While the worst may be over, the rebound could be slow in coming, analysts said, given a continuing huge backlog of unsold homes that will keep downward pressure on prices, particularly in former boom areas. More...

Estrella Falls likely to be open-air

When Westcor submits plans for Estrella Falls, expect to see designs for the regional mall to stray from the traditional, indoor shopping centers. The success of SanTan Village in Gilbert is creating a push to have an outdoor model for Goodyear's Estrella Falls, said Garrett Newland, assistant vice president of development for Westcor. More...