Why so few upgrades/remodels in Phoenix? (Scottsdale, Chandler: 2013, to rent)

[JTW2013]

We looked in the East Valley in the range of $275K to $350K. When I was looking at houses, I was surprised at how many builder grade kitchens I saw. I also saw many houses with new stainless appliances and granite countertops installed over the builder grade cabinets with the bathrooms left exactly as the they were built. After seeing our appraisal I can understand why it's not worth investing much in upgrades and a pool.

Do people in Phoenix move to a new house instead of trying to upgrade their house? (speaking generally, of course) I can understand that mentality when new construction was reasonably close in but all of the new construction we saw either far out or had tiny little backyards. Do you think the mentality will change now that new construction means a longer commute?

We'd like to stay where we are and if we stay we want to upgrade the house a little bit to help us enjoy living here more but maybe it's a huge waste of money and we should just build a little bit more equity and then move up to something else.

[Ponderosa]

We always moved. It was not only the style and trends, but as our income rose, we moved to bigger houses in nicer neighborhoods. That was always further out. I think that was pretty common based on the friends and people we know. Eventually, we got to where we are and moving now is unlikely. But now, we really don't care about upgrades and trends much any more, so I guess our house will be dated if/when we ever sell it. Upgrades never pay back what you put in them anyway unless its DIY.

[DetroitN8V]

I looked at quite a few upgraded houses but also a lot of original ones. I ended up buying a builder basic house (with the exception of the yard and pool) and upgraded the interior as I wanted. I think it was a sound investment. In my neighborhood, basic houses sit on the market for a bit and upgraded ones get snatched up very quickly, even at a significant premium.

[JTW2013]

In the close in suburbs, with good schools in the Chicago area, many houses have been remodeled with new kitchens and bathrooms. There isn't much new construction of SFHs so people upgrade by remodeling or buying a house that is remodeled.

The other thing I noticed was the price was almost completely driven by square footage instead of the amenities of the house. The more expensive houses we looked at were bigger, not fancier.

One thing that struck me when looking at houses in person and online was how many people had personalized the house by those little sayings on the wall. I'm not a fan of that. But now I see that's a cheap way of personalizing a house that isn't mean to be anything more than a transitory place.

Do you think this mentality will change in Phoenix now that the newer houses are so far out?

[DetroitN8V]

I think that may just be true for the areas in which you looked. I can only speak to Scottsdale, but finishes most certainly drive the price, in addition to size.

[Java Jolt]

Originally Posted by JTW2013

We looked in the East Valley in the range of $275K to $350K. When I was looking at houses, I was surprised at how many builder grade kitchens I saw. I also saw many houses with new stainless appliances and granite countertops installed over the builder grade cabinets with the bathrooms left exactly as the they were built. After seeing our appraisal I can understand why it's not worth investing much in upgrades and a pool.

Do people in Phoenix move to a new house instead of trying to upgrade their house? (speaking generally, of course) I can understand that mentality when new construction was reasonably close in but all of the new construction we saw either far out or had tiny little backyards. Do you think the mentality will change now that new construction means a longer commute?

We'd like to stay where we are and if we stay we want to upgrade the house a little bit to help us enjoy living here more but maybe it's a huge waste of money and we should just build a little bit more equity and then move up to something else.

From my experience in dealing with contractors I'd rather buy new with everything as is than be stuck in an older home and have to hassle with remodels, upgrades, repairs and whatnot.

Maybe one reason you don't see many upgrades is all the extra expense involved, and the aggravation with so many shady contractors out there.

I'm not implying all contractors are shady but there seem to be a good supply of them here who are crooked and unreliable.

Besides there is no guarantee a remodel increases the value of a home.

[JTW2013]

Originally Posted by DetroitN8V

I think that may just be true for the areas in which you looked. I can only speak to Scottsdale, but finishes most certainly drive the price, in addition to size.

Interesting. We didn't look in Scottsdale because North Scottsdale is too far from my office.

Is there still new construction in the nicer parts of Scottsdale? Or is there a premium to living in the older areas thus making it worthwhile to invest in remodeling an older home?

In Chandler and Gilbert, I can see how people could easily just move out a little farther to find something newer and nicer and still be in the same school district and town. Although it seems like there is a limit to how far people can go out in Gilbert and Chandler. The newer things now are really really out there, at least IMHO.

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by JTW2013

Interesting. We didn't look in Scottsdale because North Scottsdale is too far from my office.

Is there still new construction in the nicer parts of Scottsdale? Or is there a premium to living in the older areas thus making it worthwhile to invest in remodeling an older home?

In Chandler and Gilbert, I can see how people could easily just move out a little farther to find something newer and nicer and still be in the same school district and town. Although it seems like there is a limit to how far people can go out in Gilbert and Chandler. The newer things now are really really out there, at least IMHO.

There is still much of north Scottsdale that is undeveloped or slowly getting more developed, but it's way up there IMO. For some, that's value in itself and because of the demand for that, land prices are not cheap. For the most part though, if you want to live in a fairly central part of Scottsdale, you're subject to the existing housing stock and are either buying something dated and remodeling or paying a premium for a house that's already done. I don't think people that value that location would consider the exurbs just to get a new house.

[asufan]

Originally Posted by JTW2013

Interesting. We didn't look in Scottsdale because North Scottsdale is too far from my office.

Is there still new construction in the nicer parts of Scottsdale? Or is there a premium to living in the older areas thus making it worthwhile to invest in remodeling an older home?

In Chandler and Gilbert, I can see how people could easily just move out a little farther to find something newer and nicer and still be in the same school district and town. Although it seems like there is a limit to how far people can go out in Gilbert and Chandler. The newer things now are really really out there, at least IMHO.

Your price point is way too low for a remodeled home in the nicer parts of Chandler and Gilbert. I can find plenty of remodeled properties, but not in the $ range you are looking.

[JTW2013]

Originally Posted by asufan

Your price point is way too low for a remodeled home in the nicer parts of Chandler and Gilbert. I can find plenty of remodeled properties, but not in the $ range you are looking.

What would be the price range for a remodeled home? We intentionally kept our range low. It's based only on my income because my DH will need to find a job here and we don't want to make any assumptions about what he's going to make and we still own a house here in Chicago that we will need to rent or sell.

Were these remodeled homes builder grade to begin with? The higher priced homes I see online were bigger and in more exclusive neighborhoods and probably came with higher end fixtures when they were built.

ETA the big difference in prices in Ocotillo seems to be driven entirely by square footage and the part of Ocotillo not updates in the house. In the older parts, I don't see houses that looked to have been dealer grade that have been updated and now sell for what a house sells for in the newer neighborhoods.