Condo Living

There are some definite benefits to condo living.  Common areas are kept up by the HOA, exterior repairs are taken care of by the association, and condo's are generally convenient to city centers.

However, there are few disadvantages.  For instance, if you live on the first floor and the new family who moves in upstairs like the Roos:

(Courtesy: www.GoComics.com)

Until next time,

Craig Turley
NMLS 08917
480-385-1422

If you are in the market for a condo or a new home, contact Craig to discuss the many options which may be available to you.  Condo mortgage financing may have stricter lending guidelines than other single family properties.  

US home prices increase, led by Arizona and California housing markets

U.S. house prices rose 0.7 percent from January to February according to data released this week by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).  FHFA said this was the fifth consecutive time its seasonally adjusted Home Price Index (HPI) had risen more than a half-point from one month to the next.  

Monthly prices have not declined since January 2012.

House prices have now increased 7.1 percent over the last 12 months to a level last seen in October 2004.  The HPI is now 12.5 percent below the peak it reached in April 2007.

(source:  FHFA)

According to Dataquick, the median price for new and existing houses and condominiums in Southern California jumped to $345,500, up 23.4 percent from the same period last year and the highest since reaching $348,000 in July 2008.  The median price was up $24,500 or 8% in one month due to tight supply and higher demand.

Meanwhile, Arizona home prices continue to rise due to demand and tight inventories.  According to Corelogic statistics, year on year sales in the Phoenix metro market continue to lead the nationwide housing recovery, recording a 20.8% year on year home price index (HPI) increase year on year for the month ending February, 2013.  

Please feel free to contact me with specific questions related to the housing and mortgage markets in California and Arizona.  

Every situation is different!

Until Next Time,

Craig Turley
NMLS 08917

Are you in the market for a mortgage in California or Arizona?  If so, contact Craig to receive a free no hassle mortgage quote today. Competitive rates, closings in less than 30 days, and 20 years of experience that matters in a tight lending environment.

Coach Frosty

Best read of 2013.    

Uniquely Memorable
by Chuck Culpepper

He sometimes halted practice to have players spend five minutes gazing beyond the giant evergreens to Mount Rainier. He sometimes halted practice to have players go to other sporting fields and cheer on, say, the soccer team. He always halted two-a-day practices in August and instructed players to go help freshmen move into dormitories.

Did you know one of the most remarkable American coaches died on Friday? Did you know that Frosty Westering, who had 32 seasons at Pacific Lutheran without a losing record in any, who never mentioned playoffs or titles to his players but won four national championships and four runner-up finishes on two levels, died at 85 surrounded by his considerable family? Please know. Please, please know.

An airline pilot wrote to the university president. He wrote because the Pacific Lutheran presence on his airplane had taken a routine day and whipped it up into memorable. He wrote because Westering insisted his players respect other people's work. He wrote because that respect included rapt attention to the flight attendants, which in turn included a phenomenal sound that came when the players clicked their seat belts in unison.

He wrote because at the destination gate, the college football players had held back and lined up on two sides in a "go" tunnel so they could give high-fives to disembarking crew.

A janitor wrote to the university president. He wrote because when he came upon Pacific Lutheran's visiting locker room one postgame in Portland, he found the chairs lined up in impeccable order. He wrote because he found the floors and lockers completely free of the normal detritus. He found the place just about spotless.

(continue)


Until Next Time,

Craig Turley
NMLS 80917
480-385-1422


If you you would like to keep up to date on the Arizona & California mortgage markets; and receive heads up on great stories like Coach Frosty, please subscribe here.  You won't be overwhelmed with the quantity of emails, but you may be overwhelmed by the quality.  

H/T:  Solitude Canyon Investment Advisors and Sports on Earth.