Leaving Phoenix, should I sell my house? - Arizona (AZ) - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

gigi927 · 10-13-2006, 06:30 PM

movin on...I am pretty familiar with Buenavante. we looked at living there a couple of years back. I will run some comps for you this weekend and PM you. I read an article today that stated the AZ real estate market will continue to downturn probably until summer of 2008. Of course, you can find articles that say just about anything, but I wanted to share that with you. Personally, I would not sell in this market if it can be avoided!

movin'on · 10-14-2006, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gigi927

movin on...I am pretty familiar with Buenavante. we looked at living there a couple of years back. I will run some comps for you this weekend and PM you. I read an article today that stated the AZ real estate market will continue to downturn probably until summer of 2008. Of course, you can find articles that say just about anything, but I wanted to share that with you. Personally, I would not sell in this market if it can be avoided!

Thank you so much. I know that values climbed here astronomically since 2003, and I have a feeling they've dropped. I have no idea how much though. I am reluctant to close the door forever on this place, not because I like it in the Phoenix metro area, but I do like my house.

I plan to move to the Pacific NW, but am concerned about adapting to the weather. At least if I had this house, I'd know I had someplace to visit in the sun, if things ever really got bad up that way. I won't make the same mistake twice (by that I mean buying a house within the first month of moving somewhere). I would just rent for a year and see how things go before making a huge commitment.

gigi927 · 10-15-2006, 07:24 PM

I PM'ed you the data..hope it helps!

Steve97415 · 10-18-2006, 01:49 AM

Should you sell? Well, you can always put it on the market. You don't have to accept any offers, but you can take advantage of serendipity if a good opportunity comes along...or even a mediocre opportunity if things aren't looking that bright.
Don't get too twirked about what the theoretical paper value of your home was a year ago compared to today -- that's perceived value, not real value. Losing equity seems like a disaster in the long run, but figured in over the life of your home-owning decades, it's just a blip on the screen. Your home's value is whatever buyers are willing to pay for it. If you're selling out to move overseas or into a nursing home, that's one thing. If you're making a lateral move to another sagging market, it's probably just a wash. I was in Walnut Creek over the weekend and it looks like homes values are starting to come down there as well, so who knows? Sometimes you just gotta follow your star...

movin'on · 10-22-2006, 02:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve97415

Should you sell? Well, you can always put it on the market. You don't have to accept any offers, but you can take advantage of serendipity if a good opportunity comes along...or even a mediocre opportunity if things aren't looking that bright.
Don't get too twirked about what the theoretical paper value of your home was a year ago compared to today -- that's perceived value, not real value. Losing equity seems like a disaster in the long run, but figured in over the life of your home-owning decades, it's just a blip on the screen. Your home's value is whatever buyers are willing to pay for it. If you're selling out to move overseas or into a nursing home, that's one thing. If you're making a lateral move to another sagging market, it's probably just a wash. I was in Walnut Creek over the weekend and it looks like homes values are starting to come down there as well, so who knows? Sometimes you just gotta follow your star...

Walnut Creek, CA? Hmmm, I used to live over that way. Starting to come down. Hey, my house hasn't dropped yet, so maybe I can sell mine fast and pick up a deal there!

In all seriousness, I bought a house there in 1999 at the price it sold for in 1990. Within four years, it doubled. If those original owners would have hung in there...

Truth is, if the value would stay constant here, I'd just leave and go up north your way and explore the area. But I just don't know. If I really don't want to stay here and it hasn't dropped yet, maybe that star is just around the corner

Afterburn · 10-30-2006, 08:06 AM

New to these boards, but happy to find them! I live in NW Glendale, and am not familiar with the exact area your home is located in, but I'd guess just like almost any other area here, your home value has appreciated quite substantially in the past few years.

I will say this since you mentioned you may want to rent your home out - it is very difficult being an out-of-state landlord. I've done it, and was horrified at how my custom home was treated (this particular home was in a gated community out near Temecula, CA). We even used a reputable rental agent, the tenants were checked out thru credit bureaus, etc., but bottom line is, they trashed the house. We had 3 separate tenants over a 2 1/2 year period, had to go thru the eviction process with both the first and second ones, and lost out on several months' rent during both of these lengthy processes. And our renter's insurance did not nearly cover the cost of the damages to the carpeting, wood floors, counter surfaces, landscaping, etc.

We ultimately sold the house after 3 years, but for much less money than we could have gotten had we sold it when we initially moved out-of-state (due to job transfer). We had always thought we would be able to 'move back' to our home, so that's why we kept it initially - hindsight would have come in handy here!

My advice to you is be extremely careful when you consider becoming an out-of-state landlord. And I'm not sure about this, because your house is older and may have a grandfather clause attached to it, but if you don't have a pool fence, you may be required to put one up before renting the house out. All this type of stuff needs to be checked out during your decision-making process.

alvins_house_for_sale_az · 11-01-2006, 07:54 PM

Hi, there. I think you should go where you want and maybe you will find some happiness. My wife and I are currently selling our home and it has been about 2 months and so far we had a couple of interests but no purchase. Hopeefully someone out there will be interested in a very nice home in Gilbert, AZ. Any luck?

opinionated · 07-13-2007, 05:00 PM

I am sorry you have not enjoyed your stay here, but I can understand why. I am a woman who moved here alone six years ago, and this is the most unusual environment/culture that I have lived in and it can be difficult to adjust to. The owner of the retirement mobile home community where I live told me two weeks before the date she wanted me to move out (7/7/07) that she had sold the home I was living in. That did not give me time to save money for a deposit on a new place or to look for a rental. I did not argue with her that legally she had to give me 30 days, because I wanted to get my deposit back and didn't want to make her angry.

I have a faith-based non-profit that I do volunteer work in, and If you wanted to think about my house sitting your home short term until you find a buyer or a trusted renter, I could provide you with excellent referrences from local ministers and business owners. If you don't feel comfortable with that, I can understand since you don't know me

Talk to me

Magnum Mike · 07-13-2007, 05:21 PM

Selling versus renting your house.. I think it's best to get advice from a professional financial adviser or an attorney on this matter, not that there's anything wrong with getting opinions from posters here, the fact of the matter is, it's not a good idea to rely solely on advice from posters here who don't know you.

From what you mentioned about your property, I would sell it, I woldn't rent it out and have to deal with the headaches landlords have to deal with if something goes wrong.