The market is good. We have nearly twice as many homes on the market as at this time last year, but prices continue to be strong. Buyers have choices. Sellers are retaining value. What could be better?                        MLS StatisticsMedian PriceAverage PriceHomes SoldJanuary 2007$345,000$409,96778December 2006$299,500$362,64888January 2006$305,000$398,31473Multiple-listing-service data is for single family, townhomes, condos and manufactured homes with Flagstaff, Arizona mailing addresses. "MLS" data is based upon information from the Northern Arizona Association of Realtors® and is deemed reliable for sales reported to the association, but is not guaranteed and does not include all sales in the market area. 02/11/2007

02/10/2007

The Flagstaff City Council voted last night to approve the proposal to designate the Old Town area of Flagstaff (generally between Thorpe and Wheeler Parks) as an historic district.  The "second reading" and likely final approval will happen at the Flagstaff City Council meeting on February 20.   The designation will place certain height and other restrictions on buildings in the area.  If you want to comment about this, contact a city council member in the next 13 days! 02/07/2007

Last week, I was able to attend the annual "Sellabration" event of the top 3% of real estate agents in the country -- the Certified Residential Specialists. I came back Saturday and have been implementing the ideas I picked up. What a great event! One of the ideas was to use Active Rain. I hope others find my posts interesting and useful.Ok, I haven't been working all the time since I got back. I also took my birthday off (Monday) and went for a hike at the Grand Canyon. One of the benefits of living in Flagstaff is that you live only 90 miles from one of the greatest wonders in the world. 02/07/2007

City Council Workship and Hearing on establishment of historic district in residential areas between Thorpe and Wheeler parks.Monday, February 5, 4 p.m. Work Session -- public commentTuesday, February 6, 6 p.m. 02/04/2007

February 1-28: 21st Annual Flagstaff Winterfest is a month-long festival celebrating the liveliness of the winter season with events and activities that offer something for everyone. Visit the Chamber web site for more information on all of the events: www.flagstaffchamber.comFebruary 2: Grand Canyon Guitar Society presents classical guitarist Jerome DuCharme. Federated Community Church, 400 W. Aspen, 7:30 p.m.February 2: First Friday Art Walk, The Artists Gallery, 17 N. San Francisco St., 6:30-9:00 p.m. Meet local artists, shop at downtown galleries, and enjoy fine art, live music, and refreshments.February 9: Black History Month Program, Cogdill Recreation Center, 301 S. Paseo Del Flag, 6:00-8:00 p.m., free. The achievements and contributions of African Americans are featured through ... 02/04/2007

Flagstaff is a great little city in Northern Arizona -- about 2.5 hours north of Phoenix. We're at 7000 feet in elevation, so we have one of the best four-season climates. Total population is between 60,000 and 70,000, depending upon which adjacent unincorporated areas you'd like to include in the count. We're the home of Northern Arizona University, and the Flagstaff Medical Center, which make us much more "metropolitan" than many cities of our size. We're also 40 minutes from the lower, warmer Sedona Red Rocks area and 90 minutes one of the "Seven Wonders of the World" -- the Grand Canyon. You can learn a lot about our great city at the Flagstaff Info/Links page of my website: http://BestFlagstaffHomes.com 02/04/2007

The table below should dispel any notion that the bottom fell out of the Flagstaff real estate market in 2006. Given the market news we've heard from other parts of the country, where prices did fall, it also explains why CNNMoney.com identified Flagstaff as one of the hottest markets in the country. What did happen, however, is that our rate of price increases declined compared to 2004 and 2005, and sellers experienced real competition in marketing most homes while buyers had opportunities to choose among competing homes in our average price ranges for the first time in more than two years.  In some ways, the statistics seem in conflict with the basic laws of economics - the number of units sold declined, yet prices went up. This is Flagstaff's version of what national housing economis... 02/04/2007