Mesa Gets It, Why Doesn’t Scottsdale?

Regular readers of this blog have no doubt read about our disappointment over the lack of vision and forward-thinking regarding development. One frequent example that we have lamented about is the difficulty that the Ironwood 92 project has encountered as it attempts to make its way through the approval process. A fantastic project that has the unanimous support of the businesses … Read More

Guest Editorial: 20 Applicants for Every Vacant Apartment

By Larry Kush I recently read an article in a nationally published apartment industry report called Rent Cafe, which stated that Scottsdale” renters struggled to find an apartment in our city where they met an awful mix of high occupancy rates of 96.3%, and 20 applicants competing for every vacant apartment that on average, stayed available for just 25 days.” … Read More

Econ 101: How to Solve the Valley’s Housing Crisis

I believe that we have a pretty sophisticated readership here, a subscriber base of highly educated people. As such, I assume many of you who are reading this have taken an Economics class or two. If you haven’t, I’ll explain one very simple principle: supply versus demand. Simply put, when supply of a good or service remains steady but demand … Read More

Scottsdale Statistic Of The Day, And A Major Problem

Scottsdale recently received the dubious distinction of being among the top 10 cities in the United States for most expensive rents. “So what”, some may say.  Well, here’s why it matters. A whopping 72% of City of Scottsdale employees now live outside the city because it has become too expensive to live in the community.  That doesn’t just add to pollution and … Read More

Fallout from Zillow Catastrophe Hits Scottsdale

Last week, Zillow formally announced what could only be seen as an unmitigated corporate disaster: it’s algorithm, which had been automatically purchasing thousands of homes around the country with the intent of selling them at a higher price, had misfired in a big way. The strong majority of its algorithmic sales were for less than what they purchased the homes … Read More

Guest Editorial: Solving the Housing Crisis By Stopping NIMBYs

By Ronald Sampson Economics is a complex subject, but some aspects of it are incredibly simple. For instance, supply and demand; when supply is low and demand is high, prices will move higher. Alternatively, when you increase supply, prices drop. And with housing prices surging to incredible highs in the Valley, it seems fairly common-sense that one good way to … Read More

Guest Editorial: Scottsdale Needs to Make Inclusionary Housing Decisions

By Larry Kush In an article published by the Wall Street Journal less than two months ago, the WSJ said that the United States is millions of housing units behind current demand. In Arizona, this translates to a pre-pandemic need of 230,000 new units – roughly 50,600 in Scottsdale alone. When a spokesman for the Arizona Multihousing Association presented this … Read More

Russ Lyon Sotheby’s International Realty Presents the Top Homes in Tubac, Arizona – the Nation’s Best Small Art Town

A Rich History and Exquisite Modern Touch, These Timeless Tubac Homes Exude Western Luxury (TUBAC, Ariz.) – Recently named the winner of the Best Small Art Town National Contest for its 100 eclectic shops and world-class galleries, Tubac, Arizona has a rich history dating back more than 350-years ago. Located just 45 minutes south of Tucson and with a population … Read More

Finally Cooling Off (the Real Estate Market, Not the Weather)

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard of the real estate market going bananas here in the Valley along with much of the rest of the country. A mix of Covid incentivizing people to move away from heavily crowded areas along with economic policies and personal financial situations has lead to an influx of home buyers from other … Read More