This was too funny not so share and I used to be a blond (when I was 10).   A blind man wanders into an all girls biker bar by mistake. > > > >He finds his way to a bar stool and orders some coffee. > > > >After sitting there for a while, he yells to the bartender, > > > >"Hey, you wanna hear a blonde joke?" > > > >The bar immediately falls absolutely silent*… * > > > > > >In a very deep, husky voice, the woman next to him says, > >"Before you tell that joke, sir, I think it is only fair given that you are > >blind - that you should know five things. > > > >1. The bartender is a blonde girl with a baseball bat. > > > >2. The bouncer is a blonde girl. > > > >3. I'm a 6 foot tall, 175 lb. blonde woman with a black belt in karate. > > > >4. The woman sitting next to me is blonde and a prof... 12/11/2009

Prescott AZ RV Neighborhoods accommodate RV owners by allowing recreational vehicles to be parked at individual homes or in a lot nearby. The City of Prescott and the nearby Town of Prescott Valley has several RV (Recreational Vehicle) neighborhoods. Since Prescott is a terrific place to retire, Recreational Vehicle (RV) enthusiasts may want to move here with their RVs and many will want to park their RVs at their home. Only a few neighborhoods are RV friendly. If you are not aware, Prescott started as a mining town with the discovery of gold and it became the territorial capital of Arizona in 1864. It grew quickly after the Civil War. During that time many Victorian and Midwestern style homes were built. Prescott is known as "Everybody's Hometown" as it has a wonderfull feel of being a... 12/06/2009

When we list view properties in the area of Prescott, Arizona, Granite Mountain is a view that everyone wants to see. Williamson Valley Road, aka Yavapai County Road 5, runs north and a little west from Iron Springs Road west of Prescott. There are several upscale neighborhoods in Williamson Valley. The most notable of these are American Ranch, a gated, equestrian community, Talking Rock Ranch, a gated and guarded golf community. Williamson Valley Ranch, Mint Creek Ranch, Whispering Canyon, and Inscription Canyon Ranch are also quite nice.Here are some scenes of Granite Mountain:  The home in the photo below is adjacent to Granite Mountain is in Granite Mountain Homesites. It has its own website. This home is adjacent to The Prescott National Forest and is close as one can get to Granit... 12/05/2009

When thinking about buying or selling a house, having the right REALTOR to help you is important. But how do you find the right one? For most people the process involves trial and error, often too much error. For buyers,  often the process involves making sign calls which exposes them to many agents and they quickly find out who is responsive to thier needs. For more considerate buyers and most sellers, a referral from a trusted source often leads them to a good agent.  A large part of the population has a friend or relative who is a REALTOR, but before you hire anyone, there are certain things you need to look for specifically:Someone You're Comfortable With: There are certain professions where trust is of the utmost importance. Lawyers, doctors, and stock brokers, for instance, all mu... 11/28/2009

November 27, 2009   The Prescott AZ REO Market has changed dramatically in the last 90 days, but most people don't yet know it. Today if you asked ten random people how home sales in Prescott AZ were, I believe the typical response would be, "slow, declining, poor". But if you asked 10 Prescott REALTORS I know you would get a very different answer. Earlier this week I held two open houses for my team leader Stephanie Woods. Both houses had just come on the market the night before and both were Prescott area bank owned homes. My expectations were blown away when the first two people through these two homes submitted full price offers just hours after they came on the market! When ask, "How's the Market?" we usually are asking: Is this a buyer's market or a seller's market? Right now in P... 11/27/2009

There are 43,560 square feet in a acre; this is 4,840 square yards. You can find a conversion calculator at http://www.unitconversion.org/area/acres-to-square-foots-conversion.html If the land is a perfect square, it is 208.71 feet wide by 208.71 feet long.If the land is rectangular in shape, you would have to know at least the length of one dimension in order to figure the other. Originally, the size of an acre was approximately the amount of land an ox could plow in a day.   Today, the easiest visualization might be the sideline to sideline area of 90.75 yards of a standard american football field.  Lot sizes are commonly measured in acres or a fraction thereof.  A typical suburban residential lot would measure 0.15 - 0.50 acres.  As you move to more rural areas 5, 10, 20, 40, and 80... 11/27/2009

Every day we hear the talking heads tell us what is happening to the real estate market But its important to remember  that "All Real Estate Is Local". So how much does our local Prescott AZ market follow the rest of the country?  For the past couple of months when people ask me "How's the Market?". I've been telling them its great, I'm busy.  So I did a little more research so I can speak a little more intelligently on the subject. Lets look at the period from 9/1/09 through today 11/23/09 and compare that with the same period in 2008. Here is what we find. *Note we are looking at residential listings and sales in the Prescott Association which covers nearly all of Yavapai County. Listings: declined 14.4%  This is great because it mean sellers in Prescott have less competition and buye... 11/23/2009

I have 2 recent short sales submittedto BofA some 60 days ago and still no negotiator?? I also have a case where they approved a short sale and according to them had the foreclosure on hold while the short sale was worked but they failed to notify the attorney who foreclosed anyway! I have escalated this file to the President's office and a senior negotiator is working on rescinding this foreclosure and 45 more days have passed! BofA please tell us how we can help you approve short sales in a timely manner. 11/20/2009

  Savvy home buyers want to hit the jackpot and buy that Prescott AZ REO foreclosed home, many of which are priced under the market. When banks price REOs under the comparable sales, multiple offers are often the response. This means you could be up against stiff competition for that bank-owned home. It's not unusual for some Prescott AZ REO homes to receive 5 to 10 offers. Sometimes the bank will throw out all but two offers and then ask the selected buyers to resubmit what is called "Highest and Best" offer. Some banks simply accept the best offer. If you're wondering how you can make your offer shine above all the rest and be the winning offer, here are a few tips to help you select the right price and terms:   1) Get the Property History   Ask your buyer's agent to find out the bank... 11/19/2009

This beautiful Prescott AZ property, located in The Ranch is yours for only $625,000.  Elegant single level home on wood sub-floor with automatic ventilation fan in the crawl space. Level lot.  Wonderful curb appeal. Lovely entry. warm oak flooring. Gourmet kitchen with Cambria Quartz counters. GE Profile appliances, maple cabinets. Formal dining room. Living room with vaulted ceilings, 3-sided gas fireplace. Executive height counters in all baths. Large master bedroom with oak flooring. Interior fire sprinkler system throughout this beautiful home. Over-sized 2.5 car garage.  Level lots that extends beyond the backyard landscaping. Gorgeous views.  You won't be disappointed! 11/07/2009

For the car buff; BRING YOUR TOYS! 11 CAR GARAGE UNDER THIS HOME! Elegant main level living, absolutely gorgeous home w/views. 2 sided fireplace, luxurious master with fireplace, separate vanities, snail shower, jacuzzi garden tub, built-in ironing board. Gourmet kitchen w/island/breakfast nook w/floor to ceiling bay window. Lower level bedroom/bath/office with separate entrance. 2545 sq. ft. basement w/garage door for the toys, car collection, whatever. Backs to National Forest. TREMENDOUS VALUE At $191/sq.ft. 11/06/2009

I have noticed over the last couple of weeks that buyers are pulling the trigger. Sure they are offering low but that is the market. I have even seen some people looking for land as of late. I have a tickler file that I put buyers on. They have been getting more and more active. It is a great thing having the tickler file. It gives the buyers more power as they see what is happening in their search critieria of homes or land. They even know about their search items before I do.  I guess it goes back to why shop left overs when you can see the first things on market first. So if you are interested in getting the information first just email me and we can get you started..     07/28/2009

Let's define the masses as the biggest piece of a pie graph for whatever subject we are discussing. For our purposes we'll select Real Estate/owners of one residential home. Statistically this mass of people finds a reason to sell their home and buy a different one every 3- 6 years. In the long haul most of these people make money and eventually have a more valuable home or have refinanced cash out. Strategies notwithstanding, the masses tend to profit and real estate is historically sound. That's the good news.     In this mass of people a small percentage leads the way through the market cycles and a large percentage will lag behind what the market is doing. In simple terms "THE LEADERS" risk and profit more by anticipating the low peak and selling at the crest. The biggest part of th... 07/27/2009

Sales volume in the  distressed home market in the Prescott AZ area remained strong with 33 homes closing in the last 15 days of June.  This compares to 77 homes sold by traditional resales during the same period, about 30% of overall sales. The average price per square foot for REO and short sales was $86 and the average time to sell was 117 days compared to $117 per square foot and 159 days on market for traditional resales.    That means that distressed homes are selling at about 25% off! Short sales about 20% of sales: of the 33 homes sold, 7 were short sales (highlighted in yellow).   Short sales are starting to make up a larger percentage of the distressed home sales in the Prescott area. Are you going to make an offer on a short sale?  Read this first: 10 questions for Prescott A... 07/03/2009

Several newspapers thought that a decline in May foreclosures from April's record high was good news, but a decline off a record is not necessarily healthy.  Here's an article from the WSJ that I thought was a little more appropriate.   Here's a bleak milestone: there's been more the 1 million foreclosures filed in the U.S. so far this year, according to a count by the Center for Responsible Lending. Not all of those foreclosures will result in evictions, but the statistic offers a sobering illustration of the magnitude of the problems that still face the housing market. Some worry that the sheer volume of foreclosures could swamp the government's efforts to help underwater borrowers refinance and to modify loans of distressed homeowners. Three weeks ago, Treasury department officials e... 06/14/2009

Twenty-seven new foreclosed or short sale homes came on the market last week, up 50% from last week's 16.  These made up about one in every 5 homes being listed in the Prescott Arizona Area MLS system.   Short Sales:  12/27 are short sale listings (see yellow highlight).  Short sales are starting to make up more and more of the distressed inventory.  I think this is mainly due to the fact that more agents and homeowners are becoming familiar with the process.  And most of the new short sale listings are being priced more aggressively too.  Many of my buyers are looking at the $100 per square foot number as a goal...might work in Prescott Valley, but in Prescott, this is tough for anything of quality. Thinking about a short sale?  Read these tips to make it go as quickly as possible: How... 06/09/2009

Just like the previous week, twenty new foreclosed or short sale homes came on the market last week, about one in every 5 homes being listed in the Prescott Arizona Area MLS system.   5/20 are short sale listings (see yellow highlight). Is there a flood of foreclosures ready to hit the market?  See:  Banks to unleash a phantom inventory of foreclosures say some To get more information about any of these listings or any others in Prescott, Prescott Valley,  Chino Valley or Dewey-Humboldt areas, feel free to contact me, or you can search by MLS number, address, or lots of other ways in our Search Prescott MLS section.   Want to see what the latest sales figures are for the Prescott Az area foreclosure market?   See: Prescott area REO and short sale homes sold 5-1-09 thru 5-15-09 You can g... 05/25/2009

Many lenders, real estate agents, and home builders applauded when HUD said it would let banks and local governments offer short-term "bridge loans" to cover the down payment for first-time buyers eligible for the tax credit. The loans would have been available to applicants for federally insured mortgages such as Federal Housing Administration loans.  See:  Home builders see positive signs in market Now, Federal officials have done a 180 saying that the money cannot be used as a down payment. See:  Tax credit ineligible for down payment To many, including myself, this money should be used to for other things than the buyer's down payment.  Without any skin in the game by homebuyers, we could end up where we are today...buyers need to have equity in their homes to make prudent decisions... 05/19/2009

Activity in the distressed home market in the Prescott AZ area remains moderate with 18 homes closing in the first 15 days of May.  This compares to 42 homes sold by traditional resales during the same period. The average price per square foot for REO and short sales was $98 and the average time to sell was 115 days compared to $138 per square foot and 239 days on market for tradional resales.  You can see that the REO and short sales market in Prescott and Prescott Valley continues to move quicker and at a much lower average price. Short sales about 20% of sales: of the 19 homes sold, 4 were short sales (highlighted in yellow).  Over 1/4 of the homes sold for more than asking price (see green highlight), sold fairly quickly, and got multiple offers to get there.  This tells me that mul... 05/18/2009

The Wall Street Journal said that ZipRealty reported this week healthy year over year sales increases and signs that prices were leveling off for the Phoenix metro area. ZipRealty reported that Phoenix led the nation in the change in the number of homes listed for sale at the end of April compared with a month earlier with a drop of almost 15%.   "Banks have sped up the process for getting foreclosed homes on the market, and continue to lower prices to sell them," said Leslie Tyler, vice president and chief home hunter for ZipRealty. "The drop in days on market versus last year highlights that distressed properties in these hard hit markets are starting to move, which is a hopeful sign."   "In markets where prices have fallen the most, such as many California cities, Phoenix and Las Veg... 05/15/2009