I heard about this a few days ago, but now the media has picked up on it. Randall Martin Homes, a smaller sized builder has announced that it is letting the lender take back the remaining of their vacant lots in certain communities. Surprise’s Marley Park, Avondale’s Roosevelt Park, Chandler’s Dobson Crossing and Gilbert’s Higley Park are the communities effected by this decision. Obviously, they couldn’t make their payments in the Valley’s Housing Market downturn.

Existing homeowners will not be affected, other than having a number of vacant lots throughout their neighborhoods. Randall Martin has committed to finishing any existing contracts with homes under construction, but will not be starting any new ones in those areas.

Two other builders, Turner-Dunn in Pinal County and Trend Homes Inc. in Gilbert, have had similar problems in the past two years. A private equity company purchased Trend last month and is sending it through bankruptcy reorganization. Turner-Dunn walked away from 200 unfinished homes in 2006.

- Cathryn Creno, azcentral.com

My take on this? I’m sure another builder is already in negotiations with the lender to purchase the lots at an AMAZING price. This happened out in Queen Creek a year or two ago. A number of lots we sold at pennies on the dollar from a builder who just couldn’t financially compete with the market. The result was 3,000-4,000 sq ft homes, fully loaded with every upgrade you can imagine, being offered at $250,000 starting price. Yeah, I wish I would’ve jumped on THAT opportunity! It’ll be interesting to see over the next year who capitalizes on the situation, and at what price they release the new homes. I also anticipate at minimum of 2 other builders doing the same thing this year.

Here’s another article on it.

ok guys, time to gear it up here. Just came across a SMOKIN deal in the Gilbert/Chandler area. Here’s the specs-

1750sf, 3 bed/ 2 bath, No Pool, Single Level, built in 2005, It is a Bank REO, and the Fair Market Value is anywhere from $250,000 to $300,000+. We can get it for less than $190,000.  Did I mention it’s in a gated community? It’s off of Germann and McQueen, roughly. This is a GREAT DEAL for someone as a rental, or, owner/occupy. If you are interested, give me a call and we’ll go snag it! A deal like this WILL NOT last long, so we gotta move fast!

I’ve been showing property all weekend to my relatives who are relocating down to Gilbert, AZ. They were looking for an Active Adult Community, 55+ with golfing. They love to golf, and Trilogy at Power Ranch has a beautiful coarse with very reasonable fees. We ended up making an offer on one property, which looks like it’s going to go through. However, throughout this process, we’ve come across quite a few motivated sellers who are looking to get their home sold NOW. Many of the agents I spoke with said that their clients would accept a much lower price in order to close quickly. I see some outstanding opportunities here for anyone looking to move into Trilogy. I’m shocked at the size and quality of home my clients are purchasing for less than $230,000. Every home we looked at was in excellent condition, ready to go. If you, or anyone you know, are considering purchasing in Trilogy, please contact me and I can assist in finding you a great deal.

If you haven’t heard, there’s a large baseball and sports complex opening in Gilbert, AZ. Big League Dreams was contracted by the City of Gilbert to build the complex- they are known for replicating famous stadium as fields such a Wrigley Field, Yankee Stadium, and Fenway Park. The Grand Opening is set for this coming Saturday.

"The grand opening will feature at least one major-leaguer and coach, retired Los Angeles Dodger Bill Russell, a friend of the owners.

There will be several youth and adult games during the opening, including one between police and fire officials umpired by town judges. The Gilbert Youth Soccer Association will also play at the park’s indoor soccer field, bouncy gyms will be available for kids, and the batting cages will be open for free. Adults interested in playing for a Big League Dreams league can attend “free agent” days during the next two Wednesdays at 7 p.m. at the stadium near Power and Elliot roads. Every free agent attending is promised a spot."

Apparently, the scheduled $20 Million project has turned into $40 Million due to "cost overruns", which I am unclear has to whether the Town of Gilbert is paying fully for those. They were to be splitting the cost of the complex with Big League Dreams. After the fourth year, they will be splitting revenues as well, expected to range from $500,000 to $1 Million annually. Obviously, with such an attraction, it is expected to bring in many events and sporting teams, looking to play at the fields. I’m sure there will be a nice increase in revenues for the surrounding area businesses as well, bringing many out of towners in for various sporting events.

I’m a big fan of investing in Gilbert- and this is just more reason to do so. If you’d like to read the entire article, check out the East Valley Tribune.

I just came across an article posted yesterday over at azcentral.com. Apparently RE/MAX 2000 closed down on this past Friday, leaving 350 agents and 20 salaried employees without a job right before the holidays. 13 Offices closed its doors just 2 weeks after their company Christmas Party. One agent, quoted in the article, "did not see this coming". What a nice Holiday Gift for everyone, huh? Dax Watson, the attorney for the owner, stated that the company just wasn’t producing enough revenues to outperform the expenses. Keep in mind, this is one ‘branch’ of RE/MAX, it’d be equivelant to a handful of McDonald’s or Arby’s closing down specific locations. It’s still pretty shocking nonetheless.

It is my opinion that to be able to stay alive in the Real Estate market, you must be able to stay flexible, and adapt to the changes in the market place. This means not only staying up with technology, but adapting to the supply/demand issues presented. Learning the foreclosure process, how to get short sales approved, and bankruptcy law is going to become common ground for any agent wishing to survive this market. Finding deals for themselves and for other investors would certainly keep many alive and going strong. However, I know for a fact that there are some agents out there who have learned this, and are doing more business now than they ever did before. That’s encouraging to know the investors and foreign buyers are flooding into our marketplace.

UPDATE- AZ Department of Real Estate is performing an Audit on RE/MAX 2000

According to Jonathon Dalton, and his data from Arizona Regional MLS, Gilbert, AZ currently has the fastest absorption rate (11.61 Months) compared to other Maricopa County cities. When you look at Chandler, Tempe, and Mesa- there’s no arguing why I focus my investing in the East Valley. Here’s Dalton’s table.

UHHH! I can’t believe I missed this one! This past 2 weeks I’ve been super busy with other aspects of my life and business- but not looking for deals too actively. I’m in the middle of developing a new database for finding deals- and most of my time and attention has gone there (well, not to mention putting up Christmas Lights!) I just started lightly ‘grazing’ the MLS and I came across this beauty.

It was listed in MLS for just under $200k. 1700+ square feet, 4 bed, 2 bath cookie cutter home. In great condition (could use a little modernizing, but definitely livable). NOT in foreclosure, but the seller was over it and just wanted it sold now. The subdivision was very popular and well established, housing many upper-tier homes (not to mention man made lakes, waterfront properties, clubhouse with pools, tennis/raquetball courts, the works). Days on market in this subdivision are some of the lowest in Gilbert due to it’s popularity. Centrally located and less than 1 mile from the I-60- it doesn’t get much better than this!

It comps for $320k.

By the time I found this little gem, it had already sold. I can’t believe I missed that one. $120k in equity, in a great neighborhood. Unbelievable. So how motivated am I to get back on track and go find some others like it? VERY. And guess what- there’s PLENTY OF THEM OUT THERE! If you’re interested in sharing in the abundance of deals- contact me or sign up for my Deal Alerts and let’s make some money! Let’s just make sure to not miss any more like this one!