February 23, 2006

Tucson's housing sizzle now fizzling


Ever been to Tucson? What happened to this sleepy little cow town's housing market was an absolute joke. There are no jobs in Tucson folks. Except the usual suspect - people selling houses to other people.

Not anymore.

Side comment - one day I'd love the media to write a housing story and not immediately call the head of the local realtor board, or the president of the MLS. Call a freaking homeseller. Call an economist. Call someone who can speak the truth without getting fired for gods sake.

After a year of Tucsonans rushing to sell their homes to take advantage of soaring profits, it's now a buyers' market. More Tucson-area homes were on the market last month than at any time in the past nine years, new numbers show.

There were 6,499 homes listed for sale on the Tucson Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service in January, an 87.3 percent increase over January 2005. And the number is going up fast: January's figure represents an increase of 1,042 homes over December, according to MLS statistics.

The jump in the number of homes listed even surprised Paul Olson, president of the Multiple Listing Service and owner of Vantage Point Realty.

"We knew it was going to increase, but we had no idea it was going to double," Olson said. "Sellers are getting a little more anxious."

There's no clear explanation for the jump, Olson said. Last year's real estate boom lured hundreds of new agents into the market. Individual homeowners may be trying — only too late — to cash in on a heated market.

The high inventory may be caused by investors dumping their inventory, said John Strobeck, a Tucson housing analyst who reviews sales transactions from the Pima County Recorder's Office.

9 comments:

41cadillac said...

"Speculative Buying"

Chief Executive Robert Toll said in a statement that speculative buying had propelled demand for new homes to unsustainable levels in many markets last year.

"We are now on the other side of that slope," he said. "Speculative demand has ceased, and speculators are now putting their homes back on the market. The result has been more supply than demand in some regions."

Anonymous said...

The Sunbelt listings are growing all over the Sunbelt.

QUESTION: In the sunbelt areas from Florida to Arizona to California what is the "HOT" listing time?

I know that in the MIDWEST it is April and May. IS what we are seeing in the Sunbelt a harbinger of what is to come in the northern climes in April and May? A FLOOD OF LISTINGS?

Will the SH*T really hit the fan then as far as the housing bubble is concerned?

Rob Dawg said...

Tuscon -used- to be a nice place. Tuscon suffer the manure syndrome.

The manure syndrome:
5lbs of manure in a 5lb sack sells for a premium in the best garden shops. 10lbs in the same sack is called a mess that needs to be cleaned up.

Anonymous said...

Please define "cornflake"

Anonymous said...

Robert Coté said...

"Tuscon -used- to be a nice place. Tuscon suffer the manure syndrome.

"The manure syndrome:
5lbs of manure in a 5lb sack sells for a premium in the best garden shops. 10lbs in the same sack is called a mess that needs to be cleaned up."

Ten or more years ago, Dolly Parton won a Grammy (or some other award), and rushed up to the podium to accept it. On the journey, her boops popped out of her dress, causing a flurry of excitement in the audience while she shoved them back into place. When she got to the microphone, her matter-of-fact comment was (here I paraphrase): "Daddy always told me never to stuff ten pounds of potatos into a five-pound sack."

Anonymous said...

This is a shame. Tucson used to be a great little city.

I've got a feeling the smaller towns will suffer a bit more from the effects of the downturn than the larger ones.

Abandoned, rotting buildings stand out more in a smaller town.

Anonymous said...

For the ignorant:

its spelled TUCSON not TUSCON....

Anonymous said...

Hint #9 for . Bathrooms Sell Homes: Check and repair caulking in bathtubs and showers. Make the room sparkle!

Anonymous said...

I lived in Tucson from 1989-1998. What a sh#thole. I would move to Hell before ever going back to Tucson.