Phoenix MLS:  What is an Appraisal?

Understanding what an appraisal is, and how it is done can help maximize the appraised property's value. 

Appraisers typically do the following when appraising a home or residential property (as compared to a business).  First, they research the property anyone can get from public records regarding the year the home was built, and sometimes by what builder, the size of the home measured usually in square feet, and the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, and how large the yard is.  This, along with knowing what neighborhood the home is located, gives them a base of knowledge.

Next, an appraiser will gather and compare other homes similar to the subject.  Usually, the appraiser will look for three or more homes within a one mile radius, and that have sold within the past six months.  Of course there are occasions where they have to reach outside these generalized boundaries or close them in because they get too few or too many homes.  With in the Phoenix MLS, real estate can range from being tightly built, to large cotton or citrus farms that are a mile square themselves.  These three or more homes then are the "Comps" or Comparable Properties that the appraiser will use to compare your home, or the subject property against. 

Last comes a field inspection.  For the subject property, the appraiser is going to walk the perimeter of the exterior then walk the interior.  He will be noting both the good, bad and ugly.  Hopefully, your subject home in Phoenix, Ahwatukee, Chandler or Gilbert will be the nicest in the neighborhood.  The appraiser will also be photographing the outside of the property, possibly the inside and probably the street scene.

What to do when the appraiser makes his appointment to visit your home?  Appraisers are human and although they try to work as objectively as possible, I know they can be positively or negatively influenced even if subliminally influenced by what they see and hear.  So, clean up your property putting away offensive looking items.  Mow the grass, they look at that.  Straighten up and clean the inside of the home as well.  Everything will help the appraisal. 

Last, and this is important.  If you received an offer for your home higher than you, after considerable research, determine the home's worth, you will have to justify this to the appraiser.  Again, the appraiser thinks he is objective and 90% of what he records and compares is objective, but if you know positive things about your home that his "comps" may not have, type a list and leave it for him, or even hand it to him.  Some of these items in the Phoenix area may include whether your home is on a preserve or against a golf course where his other comps are not.  Be sure to let him know if and how much your "lot premium" was you paid.  Or if you have just rehabilitated your home, make sure he knows how much all the new items were.   He will not want or ask for receipts, but a list with an estimate if, say you put $50,000 of upgrades in your home, could just bring the appraisal in at the price you accepted.

Phoenix MLS: Selling your home in a buyer's market

Is it a buyer's market? We've all read it; more homes on the market and homes remaining on the market longer. But prices are in conflict. I've read an equal number of reports that prices are down, vs. prices are holding and in some areas even rising. So if you're interested in selling your home, even if prices are holding, you might ask, "How will I get my house to sell knowing there is a lot of competition?"

There is no stock answer, but you certainly can improve your odds. It’s a fair adage to say that really nice looking and functioning homes, priced fairly, will always sell. They will. Understand we are just talking about family home buyers, not investor buyers, not bottom dwellers, not the home buyer who is looking to pinch pennies and is looking for a "fix-up". Okay, so we are going to market your home to the average, two adult and 2.3 child family.

First, especially with a lot of competition this make believe family is going to be looking for a house that is "move-in" ready. The less they have to do, to picture themselves living and enjoying your house, the better chance you have that they will make you an offer. Understand that sentence. You want to get your home into condition that a buyer says to himself, "all I have to do is move in the furniture". The Phoenix MLS is loaded with homes these days so the more your home looks like it came out of Homes and Gardens magazine, the more the buyer is going to like it.

So, whether you live in Phoenix, Ahwatukee, Chandler, Gilbert or Tempe, or some other part of the country do the following. 1) Stand across the street and look at your home with a buyer's eye. What looks great and what doesn't. Correct/change all that doesn't including the yard, walkway, front door, front door hardware, roof, gutters, driveway, garage door. Whatever needs painting, have painted. Whatever needs fixing, or cleaning, or landscaped, just do it. 2) Walk the side and rear yards. Is there a broken down tool shed? Remove it! Does the rear patio or porch need painting, paint it. Are the rear and side yards mowed, watered, looking great? If not, you know what to do.

Now lets walk through the home using the front door. Stop, and register what your first impression is. Is your eye drawn to paint that is not neutral? Are there any dings in the walls? The experts here in the southwest, especially Phoenix and Ahwatukee, say even though painting is expensive, it will pay you back in getting your home sold more quickly. Repair all minor flaws. Even if your eyes were not drawn to them, buyer's eyes will be. That was they easy part. Now take down all family photos, or family art work. Buyer's want to picture there own family here, not yours. Now, de-clutter, de-clutter, de-clutter! Remove all excess, non used items. Rent a storage space and pack them up and put them away ready for your own move. Also, if you are going to list your home with me in the Phoenix, MLS, pack or sell excess furniture so your rooms will look open and comfortable. Last, clean the kitchen, refrigerator, and bathroom and make them like brand new as best you can.

If you do these things, where ever your home is, Phoenix, or Chandler or Ahwatukee, it will get more attention than the competition.

Phoenix MLS: Preparing your home for an Open House

First see my article, Phoenix MLS: Selling your home in a buyer's market. Walk your home, clean, paint and de-clutter. Pay special attention to the kitchen, including the inside of the refrigerator, (yes, people open up your frig.) and the bathrooms. They say, here in the Valley of the Sun, including Phoenix, Chandler, and Ahwatukee, that "woman look carefully at the kitchen and bathrooms", "and men look at the garage and the yard."

I can not tell you the times I have shown homes with a garage that looked like a pack rat's nest. Throw it out, have a garage sale, however you do it, get rid of it, and organize, organize, organize.

From the outside in. If there are any oil stains on the drive, remove them and generally hose down or sweep the drive including the garage and outdoor patios. If it’s the season, and here in Phoenix if I'm going to put your home up on the Phoenix MLS, I want to see bright fresh flowers in the front yard. They can be in movable pots and you can take them with you. (If you are taking them, make sure this is clearly stated in the Phoenix MLS or the purchase offer.)

Continue with the outside by picking up any toys or other extraneous objects, and putting away (after using) all lawn equipment including mowers, rakes, shovels, etc.

Pets, like dogs or cats. Remove them for the day even if they are the nicest creatures in Phoenix, Ahwatukee, Chandler or Gilbert. They don't work for guests at an open house, and distract them from the business at hand, that of buying your house! Make sure all snakes, lizards, pet spiders, and fish etc. are well confined.

Open all blinds and drapes and for the day take off sun protective screens if they can be. The object here is to let as much indirect sunlight in as possible to make your home look bright, cheery and inviting.` Turn on additional lamps and lights while temporarily increasing the wattage to 100 watts if your lamps are rated for the same. If not, put the highest wattage rated bulb you can in as many lights as you can.

Remove excess clutter, vacuum, and clean, especially, again, the bathrooms and kitchen. Don't forget to make the beds, all of them, even juniors. Lock away all of your valuables. A special note. In all the years I have been in the business of buying, selling and investing in real estate, I have never had things stolen during an open house. That said, better safe than sorry, and do NOT ever tempt as in leaving money around.

If you hired an agent to put you in the Phoenix MLS, and he or she is hosting the open house, make arrangements to be away the days of the open house. Allow the agent to do their job, sell your house. That is what they do. If you are holding the open house, whether or not you have an agent and are listed on the Phoenix MLS, answer any questions, point out up to three features you absolutely love about the house or neighborhood, great schools is especially good, then let the folks wander. They want to look at your house, not become best friends.

Follow this advice in Phoenix, Chandler, Ahwatukee, Gilbert or Mesa or anywhere in the country and you'll do just fine selling your home in a "down market".

Province:  An Over 55 Active Adult Community

It’s a state of mind

Community – Technology – Health – Safety  The Province community is designed for the modern, active, adult, 55 years of age or better.  Physically we are 640 acres, one square mile, one third of which is set aside as open space including green belts, walking trails, and water ways all over looking the Estrella Mountains.

Province homes include 15 models of well laid out floor plans to accommodate any lifestyle.  The floor plans range from 1100 to over 2800 square feet.  The inside of each individual home is uniquely designed to your specifications using the help of our creative staff at the Engle Homes Design Center. 

Our community is completely safety minded being fenced and gated, with a single entry which is manned 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  There are also roving guards on staff that drives the community 24 hours a day.

The Province community is designed to accommodate an active, indoor and outdoor lifestyle.  The choices of recreational and learning activities are seemingly endless.  We have over 5000 square feet of resort style outdoor pool with a spa on a lush, green peninsula surrounded by a lake and stream.  An outdoor amphitheater, also surrounded by water, is used for intimate concert settings.  We have lighted outdoor activity courts for tennis, basketball, bocce, and horseshoes.  Our walkers enjoy the five mile walking trail that meanders around the community but within the gated boundaries. 

The Province Village Center is the star of the Province community.  It features an indoor 25 meter, lined, lap pool, saunas and steam rooms in each locker area and a fully equipped gym with trainers available.  Also in the Village Center is a billiard room, a poker room, sewing room, arts and crafts room, and music room with piano.  Topping it off is a computer rooms with 15 computers all available from 5:30 AM through 10:00 o'clock PM.  The library is kept current with all of the latest best sellers and there is a large area television room suitable for super bowl type events. 

Come visit us soon, to see just how active we 55 and betters can be!

Phoenix MLS: Professional Home Inspections, Who cares?

You should care, whether you're the buyer, seller or investor. In Arizona real estate, Professional Home Inspectors are licensed and certified. They have to pass a rigorous course of work at an accredited school, then must work on the job for a minimum number of inspections working directly with a Licensed home inspector after sitting for their state exam.

Professional inspectors usually are hired by the buyer and inspect the home that was purchased using an agent who found the home on the Phoenix MLS. The home could be in Ahwatukee, Chandler, Gilbert or Phoenix, or any other part of Arizona. If the buyer indeed used a Realtor they most likely wrote the offer on the standard Arizona Offer to Purchase agreement. The standard agreement allows for a 10 day inspection period commencing the day after the last counter offer signature was completed.

During the inspection period the buyer has the opportunity to inspect virtually all the systems of a house and can thereby determine if the house has any problems serious enough to ask the owner to repair or replace an item or simply fix something. It is during this 10 day period, the buyer in almost every circumstance should hire a Professional home inspector. In Arizona, including Phoenix, real estate inspectors have a standard form they fill out on every home they inspect. The form allows for inspections of the exterior including cracks, the roof, plumbing, kitchens and appliances, the HVAC system, wiring he can see, like in the attic, other electrical items like whether each outlet works and whether or not there are GCFI Circuits close to water areas like sinks and tubs.

Important: The inspector records all of his/her observations, writes them in the standard report, and including taking pictures, leaves a copy with the buyer. The seller by law is also entitled to a copy even though the buyer is probably paying the inspector. With this information and any other information gathered during the inspection period, the buyer has one and only one chance to ask the seller to make repairs or accept the house as is (the default) or cancel the contract in writing and receive their earnest deposit back. This request is usually done on a form called the Buyer's Inspection Notice and Seller's Response.

Although it is not a checked box option, I also include for my buyer clients, an amount of money the seller can simply pay to the buyer in lieu of making any repairs at all. This has the advantage of the buyer being able to oversee all of the repairs, rather than risking that the seller make all the requested and accepted repairs with a minimum of quality.

In any event, hiring a Professional Home Inspector is imperative to getting the home you really thought you were buying.

Phoenix MLS: Investing in Ahwatukee Phoenix Real Estate

Ahwatukee was once described to me as "the poor man's Scottsdale". I've lived in both Scottsdale and Ahwatukee and although "poor man's" does not quite fit the bill, the fact is you are able to get much more for your money in Ahwatukee. Further, that Ahwatukee is giving back an equal or better return on property values than Scottsdale.

Ahwatukee is closer to the airport and the downtown area for both working and recreation and we never have to deal with the traffic on 101. We have easy access to the Phoenix Suns, the Arizona Diamondbacks and even the Cardinals in the Glendale arena.

With investing you have to address renting a property, renters and rental income. Current rents in Scottsdale are higher on average than in Ahwatukee, and vacancy rates almost the same. So for a lower rent someone can move to Ahwatukee, enjoy all the conveniences and schools of the Kyrene School District, including fine dining, and easier access to the downtown area.

My "go-to" guy for investment loans is Reg Gustin of Sun American Mortgage. Google his name and you'll see the kind of expert he is. He also gives seminars on investing generally, so give him a call and talk with him about any investment questions. He can be reached at 480-467-1082.

In Ahwatukee, you simply get more home for the money, an attractive lifestyle where you are surrounded by mountains, great schools, and have access to the largest city park in the world,

South Mountain.

Need access to the Phoenix MLS? Go to www.valuerealtyhomes.com

Phoenix MLS: All Arizona real estate buyers should read this

Kiss Your Landlord Goodbye! I'm writing this at the end of August, 2006. Information changes but this article has some good stuff in it about first time home buyer's buying from the Phoenix MLS or any Phoenix real estate for that matter. Last year at this time, I don't think a new home buyer had a chance in heck of buying a house. The investors literally invaded the Valley of the Sun including Phoenix, Ahwatukee, Chandler and Gilbert and bought everything in sight. Even legitimate home buyers had a hard time buying.

Homes one year ago had an average listing life of 14 days. Now it's more like 14 months. Okay, I was exaggerating a little; it's more like about 75 days. And this is good news for first time home buyers. Other good news is that the lending industry is creating more affordable loans that should more than make up for the slightly higher interest rates. And I was just quoted 6.51% which in historical terms is great! And there is no pressure to raise the rates soon so think hard about buying a new home.

We in the industry are all watching the market right now. There are lots of homes on the market, and their average listing life is longer, that's true. It causes lots of buyer hesitation because they think the market will force home pricing down in the Phoenix Real Estate market. Pigs are fed, Hogs are slaughtered is an old stock market term. It means when you think it’s a good time to buy, like right now, buy! By the time you see signs that the stock market or the Phoenix real estate market has bottomed out, it will have already have started back up, and you will have lost an opportunity. The first sign that the buyer's market is ending is that each month now more homes are being sold than the previous month. The market is leveling out as I type.

Home buyers who make an effort can get a ton of help right now.

Homes for Arizonans: Must be first time home buyers. Call Arizona Housing Department: 602-771-1000 or go to www.housing.az.com

Fannie Mae's "My Community Mortgage" Offered by most major lenders: Can use non-traditional sources of income like income from boarders.

Home in Five First Time Home Buyer's Program. Grants for up to 5% of closing costs or down payment. Offered through the Industrial Development Authority of Phoenix and Maricopa County. Call 602-262-6606 or 602-506-7294

Lender breaks on mortgage insurance: A few lenders offer loans to first time home buyers that don't require mortgage insurance if they take classes for home buying counseling. The following groups offer counseling: Community Housing Resources: 602-631-9780; Neighborhood Housing Services: 602-258-1659; Housing for Mesa: 480-649-1335; Fannie Mae Phoenix Partnership: 1-800-732-6643; Consumer Credit Counseling Service: 1-800-308-2227; Chicanos Por La Casa: 602-257-0700; Community Services of Arizona: 623-435-2255.

Phoenix MLS: Closing Costs, How not to pay any!

Closing costs? You mean I have to pay MORE money than I offered. Yes indeed, most of the time. Closing costs are all those fees, and impounds paid at C.O.E., close of escrow that are not part of the purchase price of the house. Fees can vary somewhat, so we can't give you solid numbers here. But if you are buying the home yourself, without the help of an agent who found the home on the Phoenix MLS, or you are using an agent you can and should negotiate closing costs. Almost every item is negotiable. But once you have signed that Offer to Purchase agreement, unless you can get the other party to sign an addendum, all costs and to whom, will be paid as designated in the agreement.

By C.O.E. you should have determined that everyone on both sides of the transaction has performed the way they were obligated to perform. If you have any disagreements, make sure they are brought up and satisfied prior to your signing any further documents.

What are some of the typical items grouped as Closing Costs?

Agent's commission: This is typically 3-7% of the sales price, and usually, but not always, paid by the seller. If you were the seller, you already negotiated this with the Listing Broker's agent.

• Taxes: The seller must pay up to the day of closing, the buyer begins paying them as of the day of closing. These will be prorated for each party at closing.
• Homeowner's Insurance: If the lender requires that they pay this, they will ask for six months or a year's premium at C.O.E. Other times, the lender will allow the buyer to pay this on his own. Speak to your loan officer if you are borrowing money. If you are paying cash, this will not be a line item.
• Assessments and Liens: All of these must be paid at C.O.E. in order for the Title company to issue what is called a "clear" title. Usually the seller would pay all of these.
• Escrow fees: These are the fees charged by the escrow company for its services. Typically, these are split equally by buyer and seller but remember, everything is negotiable.
• Title Insurance: The buyer almost always pays for the Title Insurance that protects the lender. The seller usually pays for the Title Insurance that covers the new owner's interests in the property.
• Inspection Fees: Some home inspectors will allow the buyer to pay this fee at C.O.E. Others want this paid at the time of inspection.
• Pest Inspection: Again, either paid at the time of inspection or at C.O.E.
• Deed Recording Fees: The Fee usually the county charges to record the new deed and release the old one.
• Loan Fee: These are all of the fees your lender is charging you to give you a loan.
• Home Warranty Fees: If a home warranty is ordered, C.O.E. is when it is initially paid, usually.
• Document Preparation Fees: This is a fee usually charged by the Lender.

Others that may come up, depending on the circumstances.

Secret. If you don't want to pay any fees, negotiate them in the Purchase Contract. One common way to accomplish most of this is to raise the price of your offer above what you are willing to pay for the real estate, by an amount equal to the closing fees, up to a limit possibly imposed by your lender. Then ask the seller to pay all the fees. Any good Phoenix real estate will know how to do this.

Phoenix MLS: Ahwatukee, Phoenix, Arizona Is there a better time to buy than right now?

Ahwatukee comprises zip codes 85044, 85045, and 85048. Bounded on the west by Interstate 10, the south by the Gila Indian Reservation and the north and west by South Mountain and you have Ahwatukee, land of Cull de Sacs.

On arriving back in the valley after a two year transfer to the Midwest, I set up camp in an apartment in North Scottsdale. After exhaustive searching of the Phoenix MLS, and months of looking at open houses, I found my dream house in North Scottsdale. It wasn't a mansion, or very expensive for that matter, but the location, size and floor plan worked wonderfully. For two years I enjoyed living in North Scottsdale visiting the wide range of restaurants, easy to reach great hikes in the Mc Dowels, and I was close to central Scottsdale for cultural activities.

Then I met my current wife who lived in Ahwatukee. I not only had to learn how to spell it but I had to learn how to say it without laughing. Ah-wa-too-ke. She owned a home in Ahwatukee that she didn't want to give up. After long distance dating, we finally combined homes in Ahwatukee, me selling my home on the Phoenix MLS.

I can't and would not say a negative word about N. Scottsdale. Its truly a great place to live and to raise children. I did find and still find a more lay back attitude in Ahwatukee which is soothing to my nerves. We in Ahwatukee don't have quite the number of restaurants as N. Scottsdale has, but they are coming, and combining the restaurants of Chandler, and Tempe, AZ we are getting up there in about the same square mileage.

Although interest rates are up slightly from a year ago, they remain at historically low levels making Ahwatukee still a great buy! Its true homes are on the market substantially longer than a year ago in the Phoenix real estate market, and there are more of them, it is also true that sales are picking up, and more homes are sold each month. I think this demonstrates that the buyer's market of today will be a level market very shortly. Further, that any price eroding has happened and those buyers waiting for a crash, or even are waiting so they don't feel like they over paid should not wait any longer. The bottom of the Phoenix real estate market has arrived.

The buyer of today in Ahwatukee has a ton of homes to choose from, at very competitive mortgage rates and pricing, I think, is standing fast. Now is the time to get out and see what's available in our land of cull de sacs. Should the market turn up, you can bet prices will follow. Jump in while the water is still warm.

Phoenix MLS: 13 steps in buying a house in Phoenix

This article will apply to homes purchased in Phoenix, Ahwatukee, Chandler, Gilbert or anywhere in Arizona. Other states may work things differently.

Interview real estate agents and find one that meets your needs, and you feel you can have and ongoing relationship with. You will be calling them even after you purchase a home. After you choose an agent, you will sit down with them and discuss your home requirement needs, wants, and ability to financially purchase. If you haven't already done so, ask your agent for three lender references and fill out three applications. In order to compare apples with apples, ask each lender for a "Good Faith Estimate" and compare them. You can only compare them if you request the same type of loan, for the same amount of money for the same terms, i.e; 30 year term loan, for $210,000.

I always pick three homes I think my buyer clients have conveyed to me that are "close" to what they are looking for. I try to tell them these are just trial visits so I can ask a thousand questions to define better what they are looking for in Phoenix from the MLS, or Chandler, Ahwatukee or Gilbert, AZ. Once we get through this process, then the agent working for the buyer can narrow down the search and show homes more honed in to the buyer's wants and needs.

Once a buyer finds a home they like, if they are working with an agent who has been showing them homes on the Phoenix MLS, they write a standard Arizona Offer to Purchase Contract. During this time he or she will take you through the contract a paragraph at a time to explain the meaning of each paragraph. Particularly important will be the "contingency" paragraphs any of which would allow you to get out of the contract should one of the contingencies not be fulfilled. After agreeing on a purchase price and signing the agreement to purchase, your agent will present the offer to the seller's agent and possibly the seller's themselves.

The Seller then has three options. Accept the offer, give a counter offer, or decline the offer without a counter agreement. If there is a counter offer, you and your agent will decide on the next course of action, and again you would have three options, accept, offer another counter, or reject the counter, and so on.

Once accepted, your agent will open escrow usually with the earnest deposit you agreed to offer as good faith that you were going through with the sale. The Escrow Company is a neutral third party that will receive and disburse all funds and documents according to the instructions given to them.

Contingency Periods. Contingencies allow for something to happen within a period of time, and when that thing does occur, you may have the option of being released from the contract getting your full earnest deposit back. Some of the contingency periods include: Receipt and acceptance of the Seller's Property Disclosure Statements, Approval of a Preliminary Title report, Loan Approval including an appraisal of the property, Physical and Pest Inspections of the property. After all contingencies have been fulfilled, you only have to get Home Owner's Insurance, any down payment funds (cashiers check or money wire transfer), and then close escrow.

Easy, you just bought a home!

Phoenix MLS: What is escrow? Why do I need it? Where in Phoenix do I find one?

First, I am a real estate agent, not an escrow officer. If you have a home listed on the Phoenix MLS system, ask your realtor to call and use, Joe Bartley, of Fidelity National Title. His number is 480-346-7007. Now, I will tell you what I know and what I think you should know.

An Escrow company provides a service for the public including a means of protecting both documents and money or funds. They are a neutral third party that buyers, sellers, mortgage companies and investors use to hold and transfer funds and documents as needed, especially in a real estate sale/purchase or other transfer.

Most parties involved in a transaction want a neutral third party, an Escrow company, to provide the assurance that no monies or funds or property will change hands until all instructions are carried out and have been followed. Consider the alternative. Would a buyer ever want a seller to hold his earnest deposit of up to thousands of dollars, hoping that it will be applied as agreed upon. No, we want someone not partial to the transaction to hold the earnest deposit, and the mortgage company wants to wire the money to the Escrow Company to distribute to the seller and the buyers as agreed.

Who chooses the escrow company? In a real estate transaction, in Arizona, especially Phoenix, Chandler, Ahwatukee, and Gilbert, the escrow company is usually a joint agreement between the buyer and seller. Historically, the buyer has chosen the escrow company because its his earnest deposit that is initially being held by a third party. In many cases, however, especially when an investor has a long relationship with an Escrow company or officer, he/she may request a particular company. In my real estate business, located in Phoenix but representing the entire Valley of the Sun, I recommend to my buyers that they choose the Escrow and title company.

Where do you find a reputable escrow company. Most real estate agents know several local Escrow companies especially in Phoenix or Chandler. Lenders also are familiar with Escrow Companies and can recommend several to you. You can also find them on the internet, and yellow pages under Real Estate Escrow, Escrow or Real Estate title Insurance, since in Arizona most Escrow Companies are also Title Companies.

1. Pricing:  Right now the competition among builders for a limited amount of buyers means they are dropping the price by giving heavy buying incentives like discounts from the base prices, free upgrades from flooring to even pools in some cases.  So look around, find the area you want to live, and then find a real estate agent who will give you a rebate at closing.  I have been doing that for years.
2. Simplified Financing:  Many builders are not even charging closing costs right now.  And you have the added advantage of one-stop shopping.  Through the builders preferred lender, you can wrap any upgrades not paid for by the builder into your single mortgage payment, even a pool!
3. Floor Plan Option:  Most builders offer a wide range of floor plans so they have one that suits almost anyone's needs.  Additionally, the sales office specifically tailor a home to your personal requests.
4. Colors and Finishes:  .  Each home is no longer a cookie cutter home. In almost all cases you can choose the interior colors, front door, and color scheme on the outside.  Inside you have choices of appliances, cabinets, flooring and even insulation types
5. Modern, New Appliances:  Consider for a moment that you will automatically be getting brand new appliances, dishwasher, oven, microwave, washer and dryer, the works, all sparkling and brand new.
6. Materials:  Your builder will be using the latest technological material to build your home to our climate.  In almost all cases, painting is a thing of the past, required rarely because of new materials.
7. Energy Efficiency:  Your builder will offer you a high level of energy efficient items such as two pane windows and modern insulation to help keep your home cool during the warm summers.
8. New Home Warranty:  New home owners are guaranteed at least 1 year on everything, and 10-20 years on foundations and structure, and sometimes 5 years for major systems like heating, ventilating and Air conditioning systems.
9. Increased life of your living space:  Everything in a pre-owned home has a shorter life expectancy due to day-to-day maintenance, mold, and regular deterioration .  A new home maximizes this life expectancy, since it’s all brand new.
10.  Buying a new home right now just makes good sense! Search for your new home today on Phoenix MLS!