Phoenix, Arizona: New-home lull shifts the rules - Sellers, buyers see tables turn

Boy, did this market sure turn on a dime..

Next will be the horror stories of people buying $800,000 tract homes from builders who then cut the price of the same home next door in order to move it - giving the first buyer a nice $50,000 loss before they move in.

Oh, man, is Phoenix getting ugly! And for those of you who don't live here - you'd be amazed how many $800,000 2-bed condos are still going up - those developers and would-be flippers must be freaking at this point

Real estate agent Neil Brooks was a little surprised when a home builder called him to say that one of his clients was a lucky winner in a lottery used to dole out coveted lots.

Brooks, a Century 21 agent in Scottsdale, figured it was a long shot that the client's name would be pulled with so many people shopping for new homes. Many builders instituted lotteries or waiting lists when rampant demand outstripped the supply of lots they wanted to release to buyers.

But Brooks certainly wasn't expecting another call a week later from the same builder asking if he had any more customers looking for a new home. advertisement

"The builder calls and says: 'Hey, guess what? We had another lottery. . . . Do you want to bring somebody by?' People showed up and instead of snapping them up like they have been, they said, "I'll take a pass.' That freaked out the builders."