New info on market ..... if you're thinking of buying please read.!!!

Phoenix Home Sales Pick Up in January
In the Phoenix metro area, a total of 7,123 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow during January - up 3.2% from a year earlier. The number of new and resale homes that sold for less than $100,000 fell 7.3% from a year earlier, while sales between $100,000 and $200,000 increased 3.3%. Deals in the $200,000 to $600,000 range rose 9% from a year earlier, while above $800,000 sales increased 3.6 %. The median price paid in January for all new and resale houses and condos sold was $127,500 - up 7.1% from a year earlier.

Read article - TheStreet.com


'Rehab' Loans Surge in Popularity to Fix Up Properties
FHA's 203(k), also known as the FHA. rehab loan, is designed to cover not only buying the home but also renovating it. It is then paid back like a regular mortgage. A hybrid that has been around for more than 30 years, the loan program has recently surged in popularity. "We're seeing an explosive grown in these loans," said Ed Brehm, the branch manager of the Point Pleasant office of Prospect Mortgage, one of the country's largest processors of 203(k) loans. The demand is being fueled by the numbers of bank-owned properties, he said, "but also from clients who can no longer get home equity loans."
Read article - New York Times