U.S. economists' insights on markets win Nobel

Three American economists were awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Science on Monday for theoretical work that demonstrated the importance — and the limitations — of the idea that markets for assets such as stocks and housing are too efficient for most investors and policymakers to outsmart.

Eugene Fama and Lars Peter Hansen of the University of Chicago, along with Yale's Robert Shiller, received the award from the Stockholm-based Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on Monday.

Read more...U.S. economists' insights on markets win Nobel

American Realty buys Phoenix-based Cole Real Estate Investments for $7B

The board of Phoenix-based Cole Real Estate Investments has worked out its differences with American Realty Capital Properties and agreed to be purchased for more than $7 billion.

Shareholders of both companies still need to approve the deal.

The combined company will become one of the nation’s biggest landlords, with 3,732 commercial properties totaling 100 million square feet of space. Combined, the two real estate investment trusts have 600 tenants that include Walgreen Co., CVS Caremark, Citizens Bank, Home Depot and FedEx.

Read more...American Realty buys Phoenix-based Cole Real Estate Investments for $7B

Metro Phoenix housing: Homebuyer revival transforms market

In a good sign of the times, real-estate agents are predicting a proliferation of for-sale signs on front lawns.

The metro Phoenix housing market is shifting away from investors for the first time since the market crash, leaving more properties available for traditional buyers. And the market appears neither overstressed nor overheated, heading instead toward a more natural balance.

Thousands of prospective sellers, once worried about losing money on their houses, have listed their properties after seeing prices skyrocket over the past two years.

Read more...Metro Phoenix housing: Homebuyer revival transforms market

Property tax bills indicate signs of easing

Most Maricopa County homeowners saw slight relief on their property taxes this year. But the overall decline wasn’t as steep as the drop in the value of their houses, continuing a pattern that has held true for six years, according to an Arizona Republic analysis.

The lower tax bills generally were the result of moderate cuts in school tax rates and special-district taxing rates, along with a final year of lower property values on which the taxes were based. But exceptions abound because of the county’s confusing array of taxing districts.

Read more...Property tax bills indicate signs of easing

Wickenburg annexation plan could double size of town

The quiet, cowboy town of Wickenburg could one day double its population if it annexes 2,186 acres slated for development.

The town of 6,500 has been working with property owner M3 Companies for about two years on an annexation plan that would add a master-planned community with up to 3,129 new housing units. The Yavapai County Board of Supervisors already has approved the development, which is on county land.

Read more...Wickenburg annexation plan could double size of town

Council considers strategies to perk up McDowell area

Scottsdale collected more tax revenue from McDowell Road businesses in 2012 compared to 2010.

But don’t expect revenue to bounce back to the glory days.

The City Council, in a study session Oct. 8, delved into strategies to reawaken the 3-mile McDowell corridor, which has struggled after the closing of Los Arcos Mall and the loss of long-standing car dealerships.

The tax revenue collected from McDowell Road businesses increased to $4.7 million in 2012, up from $3.7 million in 2010.

Read more...Council considers strategies to perk up McDowell area

Stock brokers coax a tough crowd: Millennials

Online brokerages are trying to convince a generation of young investors, scared off by their parents' harrowing experiences with stocks, that's it's safe for them to play.

Several leading online brokerages, including TD Ameritrade and Fidelity Investments, are testing new technologies and tools designed in part to appeal to members of the Millennial generation. Millennials, also known as Generation Y, are people born from 1981 on up until 2000.

Read more...Stock brokers coax a tough crowd: Millennials

Metro Phoenix bankruptcies dip at weakest pace in two years

Consumers have steadily improved their finances over the past couple of years, but two new reports this week indicate that the trend might be ending.

Valley bankruptcies decreased in September but at the weakest pace in more than two years, and the proportion of consumer loans that were delinquent nationally rose slightly in the second quarter.

“A leveling off in delinquency rates was inevitable after a four-year downward trend that saw consumers reduce debt and dramatically improve their personal balance sheets,” said James Chessen, chief economist for the American Bankers Association, which released the delinquency figures.

Read more...Metro Phoenix bankruptcies dip at weakest pace in two years

5 Shea Homes projects approaching completion

Shea Homes is in the final stages of completing five West Valley communities, the builder said.

Five communities in Buckeye, Litchfield Park and Peoria have more than 30 homes and vacant lots available for purchase at “outstanding prices,” Shea homes said.

Shea is selling vacant lots and homes that are available for a quick move-in, company officials said.

Read more...5 Shea Homes projects approaching completion

GoDaddy founder buys Centerpoint on Mill

GoDaddy founder Bob Parsons is the new owner of Centerpoint on Mill mixed-use development.

Parson’s Mill Avenue Retail group paid Scottsdale-based DMB $38.5 million for the 22-acre project, considered an anchor for downtown Tempe.

Parsons has been on a real estate buying spree since making more than $900 million off the sale of Scottsdale-based GoDaddy in 2011. He also owns shopping centers in Scottsdale’s Grayhawk and McDowell Mountain Ranch communities and in Glendale’s Arrowhead development.

Read more...GoDaddy founder buys Centerpoint on Mill

Scottsdale Galleria sells for nearly $69 million

The Scottsdale Galleria, once an iconic shopping center, has sold for almost $69 million.

Los Angeles-based investors Stockdale Capital Partners and Oaktree Capital Management bought the 537,110-square-foot property now known as the Galleria Corporate Centre.

The Arizona Republic reported in June Stockdale’s Managing Partner Steven Yari was acquiring the Galleria.

Read more...Scottsdale Galleria sells for nearly $69 million

Irgens Acquires 31-Acre Site at Chandler Airport Center | AZRE Magazine

Irgens has acquired 31 acres of improved development-ready land located at the NWC of Cooper and Germann roads, just south of the San Tan 202 Loop freeway. The site, in the heart of the Chandler Airport Center named Ascend at Chandler Airport Center calls for nearly 400,000 SF of Class-A office and flex space when fully built-out. The ownership entity, Chandler Development Partners, LLC, (sponsored by Irgens) closed on the transaction on October 15 — its second in the Chandler market in 2013.

“With its premier location in one of the Valley’s most active business corridors, connectivity to the region, and progressive design concepts, Ascend at Chandler Airport Center is a lead competitor for the region’s next corporate headquarters and presents a high-profile opportunity for build-to-suit corporate users in the Southeast Valley.” said Jason Meszaros, Vice President and Arizona Market Manager for Irgens.

Read more...Irgens Acquires 31-Acre Site at Chandler Airport Center | AZRE Magazine

NFL threatens to move Super Bowl events from Glendale

National Football League executives are disturbed by Glendale’s perceived lack of support for the 2015 Super Bowl and warn that without a serious attitude adjustment, they’ll move all non-game events to other Valley cities.

In that scenario, Super Bowl XLIX would still be played at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, but that would be the only signature event associated with the game staged in the city.

League executives already have assigned the popular fan-oriented NFL Experience to Phoenix.

Read more...NFL threatens to move Super Bowl events from Glendale

Phoenix builder offers homebuyers way to earn down payment

A new residential neighborhood in south Phoenix is offering an unusual way to help first-time homebuyers purchase a home.

Tierra Vista, a Bellago Homes subdivision near Roeser Road and Montezuma Street, offers a sweat-equity program in which homeowners can paint the interior of their house in exchange for money toward their down payment.

Rebecca Hidalgo, Integrity All Star Realty designated broker, said this program is a Federal Housing Administration loan that allows homeowners to paint the inside and outside of the house and landscape.

Read more...Phoenix builder offers homebuyers way to earn down payment

Developers Jump on Colorado's Senior Housing Surge - Senior Housing News

Colorado is known for attracting people with active lifestyles and retirees are no exception, prompting developers to gear up for a growing senior population by adding thousands of units of 55+ and senior housing to the state’s existing inventory—far above national construction levels.

The second quarter of 2013 logged 8,840 units of various types of senior housing and care planned and under development in Colorado ranging from age-restricted, for-sale homes to skilled nursing, according to market research firm The Highland Group. Nationally, construction vs. inventory stood at 2.8% as of the second quarter of 2013, according to data from the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry.

Read more...Developers Jump on Colorado's Senior Housing Surge - Senior Housing News

SkySong’s ownership structure changes as 1 partner opts out

SkySong, the Arizona State University Scottsdale Innovation Center, has a new ownership structure after one partner wanted out of the project.

Holualoa Cos., a Tucson-based real-estate investment firm, has replaced USAA Real Estate Co., which sold its share in the partnership. The ownership structure now includes the ASU Foundation, Plaza Cos. and Holualoa.

Sharon Ballenger, USAA Real Estate spokeswoman, couldn’t be reached for comment. The firm’s website does list SkySong’s two office buildings, SkySong I and II, as sold. SkySong is on the southeastern corner of Scottsdale and McDowell roads.

Read more...SkySong’s ownership structure changes as 1 partner opts out

Economic forecast rosy, analysts tell businesses

In Arizona, it’s starting to feel like 2005 in some ways, at least according to some economists.

The state’s economy, along with the nation and the world, appear to have settled some of the thorniest problems that have pulled down the economy in years past, a trio of economists told nearly 1,000 business leaders gathered Friday for the annual outlook breakfast held by the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce.

Read more...Economic forecast rosy, analysts tell businesses

Net-zero energy home prototypes emerging in Valley

One of Austin Trautman’s heroes is Joseph Eichler, a midcentury California developer who brought beautiful architecture to the masses.

Eichler, however, didn’t bear the burden of knowing how energy inefficient all those expansive glass walls, skylights and atriums could be.

Trautman, an environmentalist with a degree in kinesiology from Arizona State University, does.

Read more...Net-zero energy home prototypes emerging in Valley

Group expands BofA lawsuit

Bank of America Corp. keeps foreclosed houses in Tucson’s minority neighborhoods in poorer condition than foreclosures in predominantly White areas, a national advocacy group said Wednesday.

The Washington, D.C.-based National Fair Housing Alliance made that claim in expanding a complaint it filed last year with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Read more...Group expands BofA lawsuit

13 Phoenix historical homes on endangered list

A downtown duplex that was the site of an unsolved double murder in 1931. A crumbling, rare Queen Anne Victorian that predates Arizona statehood. An isolated farmstead on the edge of Phoenix.

What do these properties have in common? They all appear on the 2013 “enDangered Dozen Historic Places List,” released by the Phoenix Historic Neighborhoods Coalition. Prone to vandalism, the elements or the wrecking ball — sometimes all three — these neglected homes are at the highest risk of disappearing in the near future, the group’s president, Will Novak, said.

Read more...13 Phoenix historical homes on endangered list

SkySong’s ownership structure changes as 1 partner opts out

SkySong, the Arizona State University Scottsdale Innovation Center, has a new ownership structure after one partner wanted out of the project.

Holualoa Cos., a Tucson-based real-estate investment firm, has replaced USAA Real Estate Co., which sold its share in the partnership. The ownership structure now includes the ASU Foundation, Plaza Cos. and Holualoa.

Sharon Ballenger, USAA Real Estate spokeswoman, couldn’t be reached for comment. The firm’s website does list SkySong’s two office buildings, SkySong I and II, as sold. SkySong is on the southeastern corner of Scottsdale and McDowell roads.

Read more...SkySong’s ownership structure changes as 1 partner opts out

Northeast Valley communities attracting senior-living facilities

Marilyn and Ray Stuckwisch are within weeks of starting a new chapter in their lives.

Marilyn, 76, and Ray, 86, are looking forward to moving into the Phoenix Arcadia area’s MorningStar senior-living community.

It is one of at least six assisted-living centers being built in Greater Phoenix, according to the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry,or NIC, which tracks licensed senior-living properties of at least 25 units in the nation’s 31 largest metro markets.

Read more...Northeast Valley communities attracting senior-living facilities

For a Yellen Fed, Smooth Transition Will Be Tall Order - WSJ.com

The handoff at the Federal Reserve from Ben Bernanke to Janet Yellen, the president's presumptive pick for the post, will be the trickiest since Paul Volcker took over amid the double-digit inflation of 1979.

Sure, Alan Greenspan was hit by a stock-market crash two months after he was sworn in. Yet he inherited an economy in which unemployment was low and inflation was falling.

Read more...For a Yellen Fed, Smooth Transition Will Be Tall Order - WSJ.com

Property-tax bills may dip for many

The total property-tax levy for all taxing districts in Maricopa County is down by $29 million this year, though some county taxpayers’ 2013 bills will not be any less than last year’s when they land in the mailbox this month.

The county Board of Supervisors cut the county’s projected property-tax revenue by $33 million. However, that revenue decline is offset slightly by tax increases in other districts imposing levies for things like K-12 schools, community colleges and public amenities, Treasurer Charles “Hos” Hoskins said.

Read more...Property-tax bills may dip for many

Metro Phoenix housing market's turnaround creates new issues

More than 100,000 houses stood vacant across metro Phoenix barely three years ago — roughly one of every 10. Today, it’s more like one out of every 100.

Where have all the empty houses gone? Abandoned properties pockmarked virtually every neighborhood in the region in 2010, when the housing crisis peaked.

Many communities had dozens. These were the foreclosure houses, with the stark notices in the windows. Some were boarded up, with brown lawns or green pools. On the fringes of the metro area, brand-new houses sat empty — the result of a massive building boom gone bust. Rattled buyers had backed out of contracts, and hundreds of other new houses built on spec didn’t sell.

Read more...Metro Phoenix housing market's turnaround creates new issues

Paradise Valley divided on planned senior living center

Paradise Valley prides itself as a residential community marked by low-density, high-priced homes and resort amenities.

Now, the town is entertaining the possibility of adding a new land-use designation that would allow senior-living centers. The possibility is proving highly divisive, as many longtime residents argue the move as a threat to the town’s character.

With a population of 12,820 and a median age of 51, the backlash is coming from the very demographic these new facilities would eventually serve.

Read more...Paradise Valley divided on planned senior living center