Sedona:Any chance home sale prices lower now due to low sales? (Phoenix: hotels, camp)
Flagstaff-SedonaCoconino County
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Some are OK, and not much to worry about, some aren't....but they are ALWAYS something to be aware of, because mother nature occasional likes to rearrange the furniture
....Unusually torrential weather will cause some washes to overflow far from the normal patterns, we have had a few storms in the past few years that have dropped 3-4 inches of rain IN ONE HOUR....Several homes in the Verde Valley area had water in the garage etc, that never did before... Stationary storms that hover over a given area can cause sheet flooding in areas one would never think there was never a possibility of flooding. Construction upstream can also change the flow patterns, or a dam of debris can restrict flow in washes and storm drains....and cause them to spill their banks. Best thing to do is to get a copy of the flood report/map and find out how many acres are drained by the wash...it should get a good initial indication of the flow seen in recent years. Check the property disclosures, ask your Realtor and neighbors what they know about that particular wash , ask the flood control dept if they have had any recent reports of problems with flooding along that particular wash. Hope that helps!
If anyone is still checking this....two more questions...
1. Vagrants? example: When looking over some homes for sale in the hills behind the Safeway shopping plaza in West Sedona there are hiking trails at the base of the coffee pot rock, thunder mtn. etc. with homes near the base...towards evening we noticed what looked like a transient, homeless or travelin' eccentric (?) heading up into the wild. He was very grungy, dirty, w/long tangled hair and our impression was he was going up there to spend the night/camp. We saw this type again in another nearby area behind a very nice neighborhood near nightfall.
Is this a possible problem in the area? Are there safety issues? Also, we had been told by a resident that a major fire in Sedona a few years ago was started by these types of campers. Is it just a part of the great outdoors and not a common problem or ??
2. Rats? Ok...I know it's the desert and accept that scorpians, snakes as well as the wonderful wildlife as expected and natural. But a resident said that rats are a problem and that its not a good idea for example to put out bird seed as it draws rats. What critters are actually a real pest problem?
In answer to your first question, vagrants are a fact of life in Sedona. However, it is often hard to distinguish between an actual vagrant and the dreadlocked, new age, wannabe hippie types that either live here or are traveling through. I have never been accosted by a homeless person nor have I heard of them being considered a major source of trouble in Sedona. Petty theft and burglary do occur here, but it is difficult to say whether it can be attributed to the homeless instead of run of the mill thieves, bored teenagers or your friendly neighborhood drug addict.
As far as pests, rats and roaches are what you will encounter most. Rats love to get into your attic spaces or junk filled garage. Not leaving out bird seed is a great idea. Another thing that draws rats are citrus trees; they love to feast on the unpicked fruit.
Roaches and the desert go hand in hand. Walk outside at night during the summer and you will see them running around everywhere. They range in size from one inch to three or four inches long. Occasionally they will get into your home. You can hire an exterminator and pay them treat your property on a monthly basis. Or you can do what I have done. Go out and buy some Ortho Home Defense, spray it around the foundation of your house and all along the baseboards inside. I may find 2 roaches a year in my place, and when I do find them, they are usually dead.
Scorpions; never found one in my house, never seen one in the wild. Snakes; only snake I have seen was dead, flattened by my car tire when I backed out of my garage. The snake was about 3 inches long. You may see much larger snakes when out on hiking trails but no one I know has ever found one in or around their home.
Because of the climate in AZ, there are vagrants and drifters all over the state. People do camp/live in the National Forests. Sedona attracts all kinds, including hippie-ish vagrants and drifters.
There are a few caves in the red rocks behind the neighborhood you mentioned that have been "occupied" over the years. I have never found any of these people to be offensive or caustic...just very odd and a little stinky...Call the local police station if you would like more info...they are generally quite forthright with answering questions such as this. Most area stations will tell you that the most common complaint they have from area residents is "dog at large" or domestic violence.
Pack Rats or roof rats can be a problem, and cleanliness does not necessarily mean you won't wind up with them in your attic or crawl space. They are much more prevalent in the Phoenix/Tucson Metro areas and infestations in this area are by no means a common occurence. I have had a rattlesnake in my garage, scorpions in my house and garden and black widow spiders are plentiful. Mice chew through electrical wires from time to time. Roaches are indeed a fact of life in AZ, as they are in much of the country. Here, they are attracted by water and congregate in moist areas. Even if you never see them inside, you will see them at night in lush landscaping areas (like golf courses or irrigated properties), utility boxes, well houses, etc. I would say they are the biggest pest problem in the area besides mice.
I see there "is" only one Buyer's Broker listed in Sedona area. They/he appears to write a column in the Redrock paper regularly. But how do they get their info/permission for places to show you, or how does it works I don't know. If they contact the real estate company that has the listing and make arrangements w/them to show you...couldn't I do that myself? Not sure understand how they work. Commissions? who gets what or what? But not bothered with this as not sure would use that source.
I have no specific knowledge of this particular company in Sedona, but if they are in fact a true Buyer's Only Agent, then the way it works is that you retain them to represent you and only you. They will not act as a dual agent representing both buyer and seller. As a rule, since they are buyer's agents, they will not take listings to sell property. Since they are licensed real estate agents, they have access to the multiple listings and can show you any available property. Commissions are really dependent on what each agent is seeking to get out of the deal.
While it is true that you can call about any listing you see and have the agent representing the seller show it to you, the first question out of there mouth is always "Who is your real estate agent?" If you tell them you don't have one, then they start the pressure to let them represent you also. This of course allows them to collect commissions on both ends of the deal.
I used an exclusive Buyer's Only agent in California for two real estate transactions and was very pleased with the results. They showed me everything that was available in my price range and often times I saw property that hadn't even hit the multiple listing yet. It was a far cry from traditional agents that I have dealt with that seemed only interested in pushing property that they represented or were represented by others in their office.
As I said, I have no knowledge of how this specific firm operates in Sedona. It could be as I described or not. But I don't think you should be reluctant to at least speak with them to see how they do business if you are trying to find a real estate agent.
Hi Hapi-
Thanks for the validation.....I figured I would just leave the good doctor alone....no wonder he got a divorce!
"Goodbye California" is right in that TRUE buyers agents work in an office that have NO listings...though I am curious how a TRUE buyers broker would know about available property that is not in the MLS....for they claim to have no relations with sellers.
Buyer Brokers can show you all listings, but you will most likely have to sign a contract where you agree to pay them no matter what home you buy, listed or unlisted....but that is not necessarily a bad thing, when you spend 6 or 7 figures, it is nice to have good advice from a competent source....I have heard to many horror stories from people who have bought a home that was FSBO....
Since all listings belong to the broker, the broker of any given office represents all the sellers in their current listing inventory....and so do the agents in that office. Therefore, to be a true buyers broker, the broker and agent can take NO listings....I mean NONE.
As I said before, any agent can act and DOES act as a buyers broker, so long as the listing you want to purchase is not in that agents office.
80% of all transactions are what we call co-broke.... One office represents the seller, another represents the buyer....so 80% of all RE buyers are working with a buyers broker by default anyways. It is a subject I would be happy to delve into in great detail with you, but this is not the venue and I much prefer to talk rather than type! Government regs that are intended to make real estate agency easy for a consumer to understand, unfortunately, make it more confusing. Good thing it is an election year...HA!
Yes, you can do it yourself, you would need to call each agent that has a property listed to see it, just as your buyers broker would....but you would have no benefit of local knowledge. And then, yes, all the sellers agents may ask why you dont have representation and want you to work with them......It is difficult for us to understand why someone would make it so hard on themsleves to find a home by calling a multitude of agents.
You are much better to chose one person you are comfortable with, that you feel you can trust and work with them to the fruition of the sale....that is one reason why people are asked "who is your agent." ...your doing a whole lot of unessary work that we can do for you very quickly.
Also, if you have a contract with another agent to represent you as a buyer, you could potentially be obligated to pay two commissions..another reason we ask " who is your agent." Of course the other reason is...well,we just plum want your business!
Also- sometimes listing contracts will have a provision in them that the commissions are reduced in an in-house sale or if an agent lists and sells their own listing. We often dont get the commissions on both ends of the deal, because the other side or a portion of it is, "thrown into the pot," to make the deal fly.
So, I would not shy away from a listing you like just because it is listed by your agent or an agent in their office....in that case the agent has a fiduciary duty to you and the seller. The agent is required to disclose all known material facts to you the buyer and to the seller. I have done many, many in-house sales and sold many of my own listings and sometimes it is extremely beneficial to win-win negotiations because the agent knows what are the hot buttons for both parties and can more easily solve problems without an additional ego getting in the way.
Hope that helps and again, many, many thanks for the validation of the facts as they are. I sure do appreciate it! Take care and drop a line if you need anything else
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