Chocolate purveyors from around the country gather together in Glendale to create an annual festival of chocolate delights. The award-winning event is a celebration of not only chocolate but the arts and romance as well. Among the festival’s most unique eats and attractions are chocolate covered bacon and [...]]]>

Chocolate purveyors from around the country gather together in Glendale to create an annual festival of chocolate delights. The award-winning event is a celebration of not only chocolate but the arts and romance as well. Among the festival’s most unique eats and attractions are chocolate covered bacon and chocolate twinkies available to munch on while being wooed by a Romance novel cover model, trying your hand at some Plein Air painting or enjoying other activities, geared toward families and young children, including face painting and horse-drawn carriage rides. Sponsored by Cerreta Fine Chocolates, the Cerreta’s factory will be open and offering tours all weekend. This year’s Glendale Chocolate Affaire has food and fun for everyone during February 3-5, 2012.

Median list prices nationwide have risen 4.05 percent on a year-over-year basis, according to November housing data of 146 metro areas from Realtor.com. Fewer cities are reporting year-over-year list price declines, “suggesting a growing optimism on the part of sellers about 2012 market conditions,” according to [...]]]> Daily Real Estate News | Thursday, December 22, 2011

Median list prices nationwide have risen 4.05 percent on a year-over-year basis, according to November housing data of 146 metro areas from Realtor.com. Fewer cities are reporting year-over-year list price declines, “suggesting a growing optimism on the part of sellers about 2012 market conditions,” according to Realtor.com.

So where have prices risen the most in the last month? The following are the 10 cities that saw the largest median list price increases from October to November.

1. Central Fla.-Regional Statistical Area

Year-over-year increase: 14.27 percent

Median list price: $169,000

2. Phoenix-Mesa, Ariz.

Month-to-month increase: 4.46 percent

Year-over-year increase: 10.54 percent

Median list price: $164,700

3. Miami, Fla.

Year-over-year increase: 29.50 percent

Median list price: $259,000

4. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.

Year-over-year decrease: -2.50 percent

Median list price: $144,200

5. New York, N.Y.

Year-over-year decrease: -2.57 percent

Median list price: $379,000

6. Fort Myers-Cape Coral, Fla.

Year-over-year increase: 21.63 percent

Median list price: $224,900

7. Iowa City, Iowa

Year-over-year increase: 3.02 percent

Median list price: $204,900

8. Tucson, Ariz.

Month-to-month increase: 2.41 percent

Year-over-year increase: 2.41 percent

Median list price: $174,000

9. Sarasota-Bradenton, Fla.

Year-over-year increase: 16.56 percent

Median list price: $240,000

10. West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, Fla.

Year-over-year increase: 15.26 percent

Median list price: $219,000

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey for REALTOR® Magazine’s Daily News

Read the article at Realtor.org.

CNN Money

Florida’s cities were some of the hardest hit by the housing bust, but now they are leading the charge back. Of Realtor.com’s top 10 turnaround towns, eight are in the Sunshine State.

Phoenix – Median home price: $129,000

After five years of a brutal post-bubble price correction, Phoenix is rising from [...]]]>

CNN Money

Florida’s cities were some of the hardest hit by the housing bust, but now they are leading the charge back. Of Realtor.com’s top 10 turnaround towns, eight are in the Sunshine State.

Phoenix – Median home price: $129,000

After five years of a brutal post-bubble price correction, Phoenix is rising from the dead.

“We have jobs,” said Tanya Marchiol of Team Investments, a local real estate investing firm. “Not a lot of big markets like us that went through the bubble have so many jobs.”

The unemployment rate in the metro area fell to 7.7% in November, a 1.1 percentage point improvement from 2010 and better than the national rate of 8.2%.

Home sales have been picking up, thanks to rock-bottom foreclosure bargains. During the fourth quarter, homes sold 27% faster than they did during the same period in 2010, according to Realtor.com.

A four-bedroom, two-bath house in good condition is currently listed for under $80,000, a significant discount from the $200,000 or so it would have fetched during the 2006 peak, said Marchiol.

Even with sales volume and home prices solidifying, Phoenix buyers are not likely to become overnight real estate millionaires. Over the next five years, forecasting firm Fiserv expects local prices to rise at a steady but paltry 2.4% annual average rate.

Read the article at CNN Money.

Chicago continued to hold onto the No. 1 spot for most searched for real estate market at Realtor.com in November. What other markets did potential home buyers have their eyes on last month? Realtor.com releases its top search ranking from November based on 146 metro areas.

You don’t joke around about lobster mac & cheese. “Baked Campanelle pasta and fresh Lobster meat, tossed in a Mascarpone, Havarti and Grana Padano cream sauce, topped with Panko bread crumbs and grated white cheddar.” The Capital Grille also boasts wines from South [...]]]>

You don’t joke around about lobster mac & cheese. “Baked Campanelle pasta and fresh Lobster meat, tossed in a Mascarpone, Havarti and Grana Padano cream sauce, topped with Panko bread crumbs and grated white cheddar.” The Capital Grille also boasts wines from South America to Germany, critically acclaimed dry aged steaks, seafood flown in fresh from both coasts and house-made ice cream.

Whether you’re a child at heart or you have children with too much energy, indoor go kart racing is a great way to beat the heat in an exciting way. At K1 Speed, any age can race if you’re at [...]]]>

Whether you’re a child at heart or you have children with too much energy, indoor go kart racing is a great way to beat the heat in an exciting way. At K1 Speed, any age can race if you’re at least 4 feet tall but there may be different height or age requirements at some of AZ’s other indoor go kart racing establishments. Company parties are great opportunities to beat your coworkers in a friendly go kart race or you can invite a group of friends to race with you for your birthday, other special occasions, or just on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The cars are electric, not gas, so there aren’t noxious exhaust fumes and they can reach speeds up to 45mph! Data of racers’ final positions and max speeds are tracked so you can always tell with unequivocal proof that you were the winner!

Downtown Phoenix hosts a plethora of eclectic dining options. Cheuvront Restaurant & Wine Bar has an extensive cheese menu in addition to its lunch and evening menus. The wait staff can help you put together a perfect pairing of cheese and [...]]]>

Downtown Phoenix hosts a plethora of eclectic dining options. Cheuvront Restaurant & Wine Bar has an extensive cheese menu in addition to its lunch and evening menus. The wait staff can help you put together a perfect pairing of cheese and wine from the also extensive wine list. Great food for a romantic dinner or quick bite before an evening show at Herberger Theater.

From Chinese investors flocking to California to Canadian snowbirds heading to Arizona, international home buyers are offering a growing niche for more real estate professionals.

But which places are international investors targeting in their home search? Point2Homes.com evaluated where buyers from overseas are looking online to [...]]]> Daily Real Estate News | Friday, December 16, 2011

From Chinese investors flocking to California to Canadian snowbirds heading to Arizona, international home buyers are offering a growing niche for more real estate professionals.

But which places are international investors targeting in their home search? Point2Homes.com evaluated where buyers from overseas are looking online to gauge possible current and future home-purchasing patterns.

Canadian investors have a growing appetite for U.S. real estate, Point2 finds. Canadian investors made up 91.89 percent of the overall international traffic to Arizona listings, 75.90 percent to Hawaii, 73.92 percent to Michigan, 70.55 percent to Nevada, and 65.05 percent to California.

Las Vegas had the highest overall international traffic online among U.S. cities, with Canadians serving as the leading source of traffic there at 70.47 percent, followed by 5.28 percent of the traffic coming from UK residents and 2.19 percent from France.

The top 10 cities for international traffic online by international buyers in the third quarter are:

1. Las Vegas, Nev.

2. Orlando, Fla.

3. Kissimmee, Fla.

4. Detroit, Mich.

5. Pompano-Beach, Fla.

6. Miami, Fla.

7. Mesa, Ariz.

8. Davenport, Fla.

9. Phoenix

10. Indio, Calif.

Overall, Florida emerged as the top state attracting international traffic online for the third-quarter, according to Point2.

Read the article at Realtor.org.

Pike Research estimates the market for bringing energy efficient to commercial buildings will increase to $100 billion by 2017.

Companies doing retrofits — as well as property managers — are promoting the cost savings and other benefits of energy efficient buildings.  President Obama is making [...]]]> Daily Real Estate News | Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Pike Research estimates the market for bringing energy efficient to commercial buildings will increase to $100 billion by 2017.

Companies doing retrofits — as well as property managers — are promoting the cost savings and other benefits of energy efficient buildings.  President Obama is making a renewed pitch for his green buildings initiative, with an additional $4 billion pledged for energy retrofits.

The government has been a leader in making its buildings green, using its long-time horizon to make the energy investments pay for themselves.  However, the private sector will need to see a return on investment in the two-year time frame, not the six to 20 years the government will wait.

Even though increased energy efficiency can pay dividends in lower energy costs, it has yet to prove its value in rents and resale, according to Eric Bloom of Pike Research.  He adds that while there is plenty of anecdotal evidence about the energy efficiency and desirability of green building, “there still isn’t enough data to factor the added value of green into appraisal and lending processes.”

There is a push to establish the value of green building.  The Department of Energy and the Appraisal Foundation want energy performance to be considered and is training appraisers how to do it.

Read the article at Realtor.org.

New-home construction and building permits — a future gauge of construction — surged last month, slowly helping to pull the new-home market out of one of its worst years for home building.

Builders broke ground on more homes in November, a 9.3 percent increase over October, [...]]]> Daily Real Estate News | Tuesday, December 20, 2011

New-home construction and building permits — a future gauge of construction — surged last month, slowly helping to pull the new-home market out of one of its worst years for home building.

Builders broke ground on more homes in November, a 9.3 percent increase over October, reaching the highest level since April 2010, the Commerce Department reported Tuesday. Year-over-year, new-home starts were up 24.3 percent in November.

Home construction increased to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 685,000 homes in November. However, while it’s an improvement, the rate is still below the 1.2 million home pace that economists consider healthy for the new-home sector.

November’s increase was mostly driven by construction of multi-family homes with at least two units, which soared 25.3 percent in November. Construction of single-family homes increased 2.3 percent for the month.

Building permits jumped 5.7 percent in November, the highest increase since March 2010, with the increase mostly driven by apartment construction permits.
Builders Feeling More Confident

Meanwhile, for the third consecutive month, builder confidence in the new-home market continued to edge up, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for December. The index is at its highest point since May 2010.

While the index reached 21 in December, it is still far below 50, a reading which indicates more builders view conditions as good rather than poor. The index hasn’t reached that point since the housing boom in April 2006.

“While builder confidence remains low, the consistent gains registered over the past several months are an indication that pockets of recovery are slowly starting to emerge in scattered housing markets,” Bob Nielsen, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, said in a statement. “However, the difficulties that both builders and buyers continue to experience in accessing credit for new homes are holding back potential sales even in areas where economic conditions are improving.”

Read the article at Realtor.org.