Robin's Rendition

Dear Mr Negotiator...

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 19:29:35 -0600

Dear Mr. Negotiator,

It was a pleasure working with you recently. I enjoyed our conversations and our exciting games of phone tag. It was so much fun anticipating whether or not you would accept the offer that the Buyer brought to your bank. We had such spirited conversations as I tried to explain the values of the neighboring homes and how much repair work was needed for the home being sold.

If you remember, throughout our relationship I spent hours trying to satisfy your demands. I took photographs and sent them to you and filled out all the paperwork you requested. I even managed to get the buyer to come up $2500 on an offer that really was above market value to begin with. I bent over backwards trying to please you. I really thought we had something together, but in the end you rejected me.

"Not enough" were your exact words if I remember correctly. Market value is market value, Darling. I can't believe you don't see that!! I was on the MLS today and I saw that you've listed your home with another agent, and at a cheaper price. The offer I presented you with was $137,500, but you are now offering your wares to the public at $125,000. That is so sad. To think you could have had so much more with me!! You could have avoided foreclosure costs but you would have none of it. If you must be stubborn, then go ahead and pay the price.

Quite frankly, I too have moved on. I found another negotiator who works as a partner with me. He listens to what I say about market value and seems to have a good head on his shoulders. Does he give me everything I want? No, but he is kind and knows how to compromise. He is very reasonable too. In fact, we closed our first deal together today and you know what? We BOTH got paid. Isn't that how a good relationship is supposed to be?

I do wish you the best with your new agent. I know she won't get you as good a deal as I was offering, but then again, some guys don't know what they had until they lose it.

I'll see you around...

Your Realtor

Real Estate License for Sale!

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:01:44 -0600

"We need an agent who can think outside of the box," the voice on the other end of the phone tells me. This sounds good at first. I love helping my clients get deals done by being creative. However, I soon discover that these are code words for, "We need an agent to help us with an underhanded deal (or two or three)."

Really! When did my real estate license go up for sale?!! Especially to the lowest common denominator. As a professional would it even make sense to risk my entire livelihood for a quick couple thousand dollars? Not in my opinion. Unlike the media portrayal of real estate agents, I am finding that I am very busy. A lot of people still need real estate agents, especially those who are actually able to make things happen as opposed to sitting around hoping for a windfall deal.

It seems that today's real estate market has bred not only a crop of competent, very professional agents, but has also produced alonside them a batch of scam artists looking to take advantage of not only the public but the banks (which hurts the public in the long run). Being on the Internet, I get many calls from folks who need my help, but I'm also a magnet for the unscrupulous types who want to use my license to legitimize their shady operations. Quite frankly, a jail cell is the box that I'm trying to think outside of here.

RED FLAGS

Here are some Red Flags that tip me off to the fact that I am being asked to compromise my license (and that of my Broker) in order for someone else to make a quick buck.

1) The seller is not aware of what is going on. This should be kind of obvious, but many companies who specialize in helping people out of foreclosure basically do all the work for the seller and have them sign things as necessary. Some people are so overwhelmed by the financial difficulties they are experiencing that they will grasp at any straw to get them out of their situation. I won't be involved with any transaction where everything is not disclosed in writing and the seller is not made aware of the possible tax or legal ramifications of what they are doing.

2) The bank has approved everything but they need an agent to "get the commissions out" - True story, folks. If the bank has already approved a deal, then they have addressed whether or not commissions will be paid, how much and to whom. If commissions are still up in the air, then the bank probably hasn't approved the deal. And if they have, why would the parties involved want to bring someone else in to take a chunk of their payoffs? Common sense here, folks...

3) The identity of the end buyer is concealed - Otherwise known as a double closing, this is illegal in many places. Everything is required to be on the HUD (Settlement Statement) at closing. Now there are legitimate companies whose goal is to purchase low and sell to another end buyer, but if they are legitimate they reveal that not only in the HUD, but in disclosure statements and possibly even in the contract that the seller signs and the bank sees.

4) Everytime you ask a question, things get more convoluted - If I ask questions and the more I ask the more questions I have, a red flag goes up. Granted, on some complicated deals it takes some time to get all the facts straight, but the person trying to talk me into working with him had better have a handle on what is going on and be able to explain it to me. Stammering and round-about answers don't go over well with me.

These are just a few that I've thought of. Feel free to add your own red flags in the comments below. I think I'll keep my real estate license for now. Being a single parent, I could really use the income it helps me produce!

Find Out How Much Education Your REALTOR Has

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:14:45 -0600

Recently in Arizona, the Department of Real Estate has made it possible for the public to find out how much continuing education a real estate agent has, along with other information previously available, like how many complaints or disciplinary action an agent has against him or her.

Agents, if you're in Arizona, it might be a good time to update your education on the Department of Real Estate's Website. Consumers, see the video below to see how to check up on your agent or follow the link to read about Continuing Education and REALTORS.

Arizona Election Video

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 23:35:53 -0500

There are two propositions on the Arizona ballot this year that will effect homeowners. Here's my take on how to vote to best protect your property values.

Arizona Proposition 100 - Protect Our Homes Initiative

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:08:53 -0500

One of the things that every Buyer considers when purchasing a home is real estate taxes. After all, that can add a sizable amount to your monthly payment, between $100 and $300 per month for most Tucson homes. Real estate taxes are assessed annually and paid in two installments, one in April and the other in October. However, if Arizona follows the example of many other states with transfer taxes, homeowners in Arizona may soon be experiencing what amounts to double taxation.

What is Proposition 100 About?

Proposition 100 addresses the possibility of an additional transfer tax being assessed anytime a property is transferred, whether it be by sale or simply transferring the property from one party to another, such as one family member deeding the property to another family member with no money exchanging hands. The effect of Proposition 100, if it passes, will be to amend the Arizona Constitution to state that no new real property sale or transfer taxes can be created or imposed.

Read More about Proposition 100 and Arizona's Possible new Transfer Tax

My Listings are Selling - Tucson Real Estate Market - October 2008

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 19:30:36 -0500

Happy Fall, everybody!! While we normally back off in terms of real estate sales at this time of year, 2008 is proving to be the exception to the rule, at least in Tucson, AZ. There are deals to be had and buyers seem to be more interested in getting a good deal than in listening to the doom and gloom in the media. Yes, consumers are feeling the crunch, but for some, lower home prices help make living more affordable during these tighter times. I have had three out of four listings receive contracts within the last two weeks and am wondering if other agents are experiencing the same thing.

If you'd like to see the numbers for the Tucson Real Estate market, please view Tucson Real Estate Market Report - October 2008. Agents, what are you experiencing in your markets?

Woman Shoots Herself Into Mortgage Forgiveness

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 16:24:49 -0500

I have decided to label 2008 the Year of Fear. There is so much uncertainty in the economic marketplace, the real estate market and in the employment sector of our economy that a lot of people are either responding in fear or are hesitant about what to do next.

One woman who did not hesitate pulled the trigger on herself. Addie Polk of Akron, Ohio was apparently overwhelmed by the fact that she could not make her payments and was going to be foreclosed on and she shot herself as sheriffs were trying to serve her the foreclosure notice for the 30th time. Keep reading at http://www.robinsrendition.com/short-sales/woman-shoots-herself-into-mortgage-forgiveness/.

Tucson AZ Real Estate Market Report - September 2008

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 21:19:20 -0500

Like the rest of the country, the Tucson Real Estate market has taken its share of lumps over the last year or so. However, we have been seeing a reduction in inventory over the past nine months, which is the first step towards a recovery. Will we continue this trend or will national economic woes along with the ongoing foreclosures have an ill effect on our market? Let's look at the numbers.

Note: These numbers are from August 2008 so we do not yet know what effect the current shenanigans on Wall Street will have on our local home buyers and sellers.

Home Sales Volume and Home Sales Units

As is typical for the current market, both Home Sales Volume and Home Sales Units are less in August of 2008 than they were in Tucson in August of 2007. We are still seeing the gap being closed in home sales units while the gap in the volume has increased. Why? A lot of our sales are short sales and foreclosures and even homeowners whose homes don't fall into those categories are being affected by those numbers. So basically the price of homes is lower than the price last year so even if we sold exactly the same amount of homes, the volume would be lower.

Home Sales units decreased year over year by 17%, a slight improvement over July's numbers of a 20% decrease comparing to 2007. Compared to last month (July 2008) we see a decrease of 4.4% which is not bad for this time of year. Typically things slow down from July to August.

Median and Average Sales prices

The median and average sales prices, while typically not telling the whole story, are actually very interesting to me this month. Our median sales price in July of 2008 was $199,900, down from $217,000 the year before. In August, the median sales price plummeted to $185,000. This tells us that more lower priced homes sold than higher priced ones this month. This makes sense when you consider that so many of our sales are foreclosures and short sales. As a result, our average sales priced dipped to $238,504 in August of 2008, a 13% decrease from last year.

Pending Contracts

Well, we certainly improved in the Pending Contracts this month as opposed to last month in Tucson. We had an 8.5% decrease in pending contracts from last month, again keeping in line with the trend of real estate slowing down at the end of the summer into the fall months. However, it was only a 14% decrease year over year, whereas last month the decrease was 46% year over year. We are headed in the right direction, but we are far from being out of the woods.

Active Listings and New Listings

Here in Tucson our Active listings decreased both month over month and as compared to last year, but our new listings showed a 16% increase over last month. Overall our active listings decreased by a mere 1.4%, which is negligible. In order for us to be continuing to clear inventory, that number should have been much greater considering the time of year that we are in.

I estimate that we have a 4.3 month supply of homes currently if we continue to get as many Pending and Solds as we did in August. However, using that method I am counting Pending listings which will be counted next month as Sold listings. If I calculate only using Sold listings versus Active Listings, we have an 8.6 month supply still active. I believe that number is more accurate and really reflects what sellers are experiencing out there right now.

The Great Economic Shake-Up

Anyone who has read or watched the news over the past two weeks knows that Wall Street has had an enormous shake-up with Fortune 500 companies such as Lehman Brothers claiming bankruptcy, Merrill Lynch selling itself to Bank of America, and AIG requiring $85 billion from the government to stay liquid. As of this writing, our government is hammering out the details of a $700 billion buy-out of illiquid assets (namely underperforming mortgage loans), but we have yet to see the details.

Consumer confidence is such a major factor in whether the value of our stocks go up or down and when banks are unable to unload their assets, they do not have the money to lend and the entire financial world here in the U.S. gets frozen. This happened on a much smaller scale here in Tucson and around the United States when banks such as First Magnus who were simply selling huge pools of loans as opposed to lending their own money were suddenly unable to sell their loans and were forced to stop originating new loans.

Obviously if the government bail-out does not perform as desired we could still have trouble for quite a while. Right now I am seeing an increase in cash buyers and now is a good time for them to buy since prices are low and they can be certain of being able to close the deal. If the government bail-out performs well, then we could see more loans being made and our market continuing to recover.

The numbers for this market analysis are based on August 2008 and September's numbers won't be available until next month. They won't even really reflect buyers' and sellers' reactions to what has happened in the financial world, so in terms of how our market responds to the current crisis, we won't have a very clear picture until November or December of 2008. I personally still have investors who are looking to take advantage of the current market and are even anxious to get their money out of the bank and into an investment like real estate which should increase in value over the next few years.

Tucson AZ Real Estate Market Report - August 2008

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:27:31 -0500

So how's the market? That seems to be everyone's favorite response when they find out I'm in real estate. I appreciate the question because it means that people want to know from a local expert instead of relying solely on the media for information. The market was kind of blah for the month of July, although I am personally experiencing heightened buyer activity and expect that to be reflected in the numbers in the next two to three months.

Home Sales Volume and Home Sales Units

As usual, I will compare home sales volume and homes sales units by those same categories a year ago and a month ago so you get more of a feel for how things are moving instead of simply a snapshot in time. Things are getting interesting in this category. We are still seeing a decrease since last year, 24% and 20% respectively. And month over month, those numbers declined by 9.5% and 8.6%. The interesting part is that last year, month over month the numbers declined by 22% and 14% respectively. So while July's sales volume tends to dip a little compared to June, our dip this year was less than our dip last year. That's encouraging, but not as a stand-alone figure.

What I find to be more encouraging is that our annual percentage change in the month of June 2008 compared to June 2007 was 34% and 25% in these categories. Now that you're sure I've lost my mind or that I took one of those "Realtor Optimism" pills, let me explain. If you read my market report from last month (Tucson Market Experiences a Hiccup - July 2008), you remember that our numbers dipped suddenly after months of steady improvement. So I am happy to see that our numbers have come back into a respectable range again instead of matching last month's numbers. I am hopeful that overall we will continue to make steady progress and our market will be solid once again.

Median and Average Sales Prices

The median and average sales prices of Tucson homes actually stayed almost exactly the same as they were last month. If you are a regular to my analyses, then you know that I don't put a lot of stock in these numbers because they can be skewed by larger numbers of homes at either end of the price spectrum being sold at any given time. However, it's nice to consider the numbers as part of the greater picture.

Pending Contracts

There were 11 more homes in July of 2008 as opposed to June of 2008 that went "Pending". A pending contract means that all contingencies have been removed and the parties are just waiting for the closing date to roll around. This is a mere 1% increase, which is negligible. The annual change is actually a 45% decrease. Even with fewer listings on the market, we are going to need the pending contracts to increase (as well as the home sales volume) in order to keep us moving forward. I mentioned last month that we are seeing increased difficulties and decreased cooperation from banks. This month I am working with a bank that seems to be motivated to get my short sale closed. If more banks become like-minded, short sales will remain attractive and things will keep moving. It's a patchwork out there, though. Some banks are great, while others seem to be trying to lose money!

Active Listings and New Listings

We still see movement in a positive direction in the Active Listings and New Listings categories. For example, there were 20% fewer New listings in July than there were in June. As compared to July of last year, the decrease was 39%. However, we must compare these numbers with others to get the full picture. Even though new listings are decreasing, if listings are remaining on the market for longer, we could still have an extremely high inventory. That's why we also look at Active listings. That category decreased 3% month over month, but a little over 9% as compared to last year. This is good, but it hasn't caught up with our home sales volume and pending contracts numbers yet.

We're headed in the right direction, but have more work to do. For July 2008 the Home Sales Units and Pending Contracts totaled 1,905 homes. Our total Active Listings totaled 7,876 (under 8K for the first time since March, 2006). This is a four-months supply of homes, which is not terrible. For comparison, in January of 2008, using the same method of computation, we had a 5.5 month supply of homes available and in April of 2008, it was only 3.5. It will be interesting to see where the numbers head as we go into the traditionally slower fall and winter seasons.

My Analysis

I am pleased to see that our numbers did not match last month's "hiccup", but would like to see them get better. If what I am seeing out in the field is any indication, then they will. If our supply continues to drop to better match demand, we will see a more stable market. However, that will mean that fewer people are selling their homes and the flow of money in our economy will have slowed down. Ideally, it would be nice if demand would rise more to meet the supply. With the amount of investors taking advantage of current conditions, that could very well be the case. We shall see. I am very late this month in writing this analysis due to the fact that I have been working more, so the next analysis should be in just a couple of weeks. Stay tuned...

By the way, different areas of town are experiencing different market conditions right now. My analysis here is general, covering all of Tucson. However, if you are thinking of buying or selling in a particular area of town, give me a call and I would be happy to get numbers specific to your area and even your neighborhood to you. I can be reached at (520) 481-3695 or RWillis@gotucson.com.

How Banks are STILL Contributing to the Declining Market

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 14:36:46 -0500

Did you know that banks are continuing to contribute daily to the declining market? Even though they have tightened their belts in terms of loaning new money, I see them squander their investors' money on a very regular basis. Here's how:

The Short Sale

At this point, short sales are about 2/3rds of my business so I am working with them quite regularly. Time after time, I counsel my client on how to put in a good offer to the bank while also protecting their equity position in case the market continues to decline. As a basic rule of thumb, it makes a lot of sense for a bank to accept an offer that is about 10% below current market value.

The Bank's Response

For a while, banks seemed to "get it" when it came to their position in these transactions and the bank's response would be either to accept the offer as submitted or counter with a number that better met their criteria. That works because it gives the buyer an opportunity to accept the counter, counter back, or simply walk away from the transaction if the bank is trying to pull them higher than their best offer.

Lately, however, I am watching many banks reject offers outright (even at amounts that they had previously accepted on the same property). With no opportunity to respond, the buyer is left either randomly increasing their offer in hopes that the bank will accept or simply walking away. Most buyers opt for the latter.

The Money Wasting Part

On the surface, it may look like the bank is actually protecting their investors' money by employing these tactics. However, the money wasting part comes after they reject the offer. They then foreclose on the homeowner, spend around $30,000 or so on the foreclosure and turn around and list the property on the market at well below the price that my clients had offered on the short sale. This is an obvious waste of money on that particular transaction, but it gets worse!

Pushing the Market Down

Here's the bad part. When a bank or several banks perform this way repeatedly, they are effectively pushing the market down in that neighborhood. Let's say a home sells as a foreclosure at $30,000 less than the rest of the market. One house like that might not affect market values, but the problem is that this happens repeatedly. The buyer of the next short sale in that neighborhood now uses the foreclosed home as a comparable and offers even less than before. The bank rejects the offer, forecloses, and then sells at a price even lower. Can you see where this is headed? Eventually, it pulls the values down in the entire neighborhood because the gap between the price of the distressed properties and non-distressed properties is too great. To compete, even non-distressed homeowners must lower their prices.

I'm all for buyers getting the best deal and declining prices are good for that in a sense. However, with this sort of activity some buyers are leery of even making offers because they are concerned about what the value of the home will be a year from now. Fortunately in Tucson this is not happening in every neighborhood, but there are pockets where I see this and wonder when the banks are going to see the big picture.

Housing Stimulus Bill Signed - July 30, 2008

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:14:03 -0500

President George Bush put pen to paper today and signed the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. There is a lot to this bill, some good and some bad. Here are the highlights: the good, the bad and the hideously ugly...

Conforming Loan Limits

Conforming loan limits were permanently set at $417,000 or 115% of local median home price (with a $625K cap), whichever is greater. For those of us here in Tucson, that means a conforming limit of $417,000. This will allow those needing to borrow money up to that amount to do so at "normal" rates as opposed to the jumbo rates which are typically 2% higher. I consider the permanent conforming loan limits to be good.

Loan Origination Requirements

Bill HR 3221 strengthens the state run programs for loan origination licensing and requirements. We desperately need some regulation of the people who are handling our finances and advising us regarding what loans would be best so I consider this also to be part of the "good".

Homebuyer Tax Credit

Interestingly, the Homebuyer Tax Credit is less a credit and more a loan. The $7500 tax "credit" must be paid back within 15 years, making it in effect a no-interest loan. Here in Tucson most people move several times within 15 years so the unpaid portion of the credit would be paid off upon the sale of the home. Still, I have to wonder if offering people a no-interest loan is really the way to go. Aren't we in this mess because so many people were encouraged to live beyond their means in the first place??? I say this is part of the BAD.

FHA Foreclosure Rescue

In order to stop the amount of foreclosures coming onto the market, we have been given the FHA Foreclosure Rescue plan. I have to admit that I am not happy at all about the government insuring loans that were previously subprime as it puts the taxpayer in a very dangerous position. Here's how it works: the banks with subprime mortgages heading to foreclosure will voluntarily take a write-down to 85% of the appraised value. Keep in mind that the bank may be losing much more than 15% if the loan is higher than the appraised value. The FHA then turns around and gives the borrower a loan at 90% of the appraised value in exchange for 50% of all future appreciation!!

The bank that made the loan to begin with will get none of the future appreciation, but instead is left writing off the amount above 85% of the appraised value. If a bank is looking at their bottom line, they are only going to send the worst of the worst over to the government to participate in this. All of their other loans they will try to work out with the borrower or sell as short sales on the market in hopes of recapturing 90% - 100% of the appraised value.

So the government is going to be insuring not just subprime loans but the very worst subprimes. Obviously, they are hoping that sharing in 50% of the appreciation on the ones that do well will cover their losses on those people who absolutely won't pay their mortgages.

For the people who can take advantage of this program and will pay their new mortgages, it will be a way out of a very bad situation. However, I don't see how it is wise to require the taxpayers to take all the risk on these loans that aren't being paid to begin with. Uncle Sam, this is hideously UGLY.

To Learn More

If you would like a review of the key provisions of this bill and to learn more about them, please visit http://www.realtor.org/gapublic.nsf/pages/hr_3221_key_provisions?OpenDocument. I have only outlined a few of them and there are many more.

If you'd like to take advantage of the foreclosures already on the Tucson real estate market and get a steal of a deal, give me a call. I make it a practice to get the lowest price possible for my clients so they can take full advantage of the market when prices begin to rise again. My phone number is 520-481-3695.

Tucson Market Experiences a Hiccup - July 2008

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 18:01:52 -0500

For the past several months we have watched the Tucson real estate market slowly recover with the percentages of homes coming on the market decreasing (as compared to a year ago) while the percentage of pending contracts has been steadily increasing. This month, the market experienced a bit of a hiccup. Here's what is going on:

Home Sales Volume and Home Sales Units

In both of these categories we see a decrease from last year's numbers. While that is no surprise, it should be noted that month over month, both of these categories have increased. In particular, I like to keep my eye on the Home Sales Units because volume is easily affected by the price range of homes being sold and a market typically recovers from the bottom up. The great news is that this is the sixth consecutive month that homes sales units have increased while active listings are still decreasing each month.

Median and Average Sales Price

Again, both of these categories have experienced a decrease from last year in the 11-12% range. However, month-over-month, the average sale price experienced another increase (2.65%) while the median sales price went down half a percentage point.

Pending Contracts

Here is where we see our hiccup. For several months this number has increased by a greater percentage than the percentage of new and active listings coming on the market. This month (June 2008) we experienced a sharp decrease in pending contracts. It went down by 36% over the pending contracts in May and is a whopping 54% less than the pending contracts last year at this time. If this happens repeatedly, that would be very bad news for the stability of our housing market. I am hoping it is just a hiccup and that we will continue to recover slowly but surely.

Active Listings and New Listings

Both of these categories experienced a decrease over last year's numbers. New listings are down 26% from last year while active listings are down 6%. Both of these numbers are also down from last month, so the trend is continuing. If pending contracts come back up and new and active listings continue to decrease we will continue to make progress

My Analysis

It is interesting to me to see such a huge drop in the number of pending contracts here in Tucson. Particularly in the summer months, that is strange. There could be any number of reasons for this. While I don't know what agents are experiencing statistically, a couple of things that I have noticed in my own practice are as follows: First, with interest rates fluctuating, I have seen buyers become more timid as rates increase and seem to come out of the woodwork as they go back down. Historically, rates are incredibly low, but buyers are in the mindset of getting the most for their money. Secondly, many buyers are putting offers in on short sales which have a longer period between making the offer and having a pending contract. If this is a major factor in the drop in pending contracts, we can expect to see a large jump in pending contracts over the next 30-90 days, providing that these short sales culminate in successful sales.

Short sales sometimes fall apart at the end. I personally have had two buyers whose short sales fell apart in July after we had been waiting over two months for an answer from the bank. At this point in the market, banks seem to have become increasingly skittish and this could be adding to a lower pending rate. If they continue to balk and back out at the last minute on the short sales, we will have a glut of foreclosures in 60-90 days which will bring down our values, but also provide great investment opportunities for buyers.

I'll be keeping my eye on the numbers. If anyone is interested in specific numbers by zip code, please give me a call at 520-481-3695 and I can get that information to you.

Buying a Foreclosed Home

Thu, 24 Jul 2008 19:19:08 -0500

After two short sales fell apart, I had a client recently tell me that she was not going to try any more short sales, but was going to look at homes that were already foreclosed. She was experiencing the pain mentioned in What's So SHORT about a Short Sale.

Arizona is 3rd in the nation right now in foreclosures so we see our share of bank-owned or foreclosed properties. The situation is pretty extreme in the Phoenix area, although we see our share of foreclosures here in Tucson as well. So how does buying a foreclosure differ from buying any other home?

Price

Of course the first thing home buyers usually think of when they comtemplate buying a foreclosed home is that the price will be much lower than other homes on the market. This is generally true, although lenders price according to the amount of repairs needed, etc, so it is not exactly an apples to apples comparison with the move-in ready home up the street.

One interesting pricing strategy that I have seen lenders use quite successfully is what I like to call "Fire-Sale Pricing". That is, they price the home much lower than it should be even for a foreclosure and simply let the bidding begin. They get 5 or 6 offers within the first week and sell to the highest bidder. Sometimes they actually get more than they would just putting it up at a normal price. Plus they get the added bonus of selling the house quickly instead of watching it languish on the market.

Condition

Many times a foreclosed home is a lower price, but more often than not, its condition reflects that price. So if you're looking to buy a foreclosure it would be wise to have some cash set aside for repairs and/or cosmetic fix-up. People who are in a financial position to be foreclosed on don't typically have the money for repairs or home maintenance and quite frequently foreclosures have deferred maintenance issues.

At times the maintenance issues can go further into very serious problems, such as extensive mold or other unsafe conditions, so if you're buying a foreclosure make sure that you get thorough inspections and that you notify your inspector that the home is a foreclosure.

Disclosures

One of the main drawbacks to purchasing a foreclosed home is the lack of disclosure about the property. The lender is still required to disclose what they know, but the problem is that they don't usually know much of anything. In Arizona, we have a Seller's Property Disclosure Statement (SPDS) which contains all kinds of information from the kind of pipes that are in the home to whether or not it has been treated for termites and who provides electrical service to the home. If you're buying a foreclosure, you are foregoing all that information and will have to do more research yourself. That is also another reason to make sure that your inspections are thorough.

Take it or Leave It

When purchasing a foreclosure it is wise to assume that you will be buying the house As-Is. In fact, most of the foreclosed homes I've seen advertised in Tucson require that the Buyer sign an As-Is Addendum. The bank does as much repair and clean-up as they are willing to do prior to putting the home on the market and they generally take the position that they are offering the home at a discounted price to compensate for the remaining fix-up that must be completed to make the home livable.

Once the buyer has completed their inspections, they get to make the decision to go forward with the home purchase or cancel the transaction. They still have the right to ask for repairs, but their request will usually be denied. There is an exception to this 'rule' however. If there are repairs required to make the house saleable, the lender will usually complete them. If they did not, then the buyer would walk and they would have to make the repairs anyway in order to sell the house to the next guy.

I attended an inspection with a buyer this morning and we ended up in just such a scenario. The water main to the house was leaking and water could not get to the home. We could not even complete our inspection without running water. Instead of the bank telling my clients that they will have to shoulder that expense and risk their being other leaks in the plumbing, they have opted to repair the pipe and allow us to complete our inspections.

Conclusion

Buying a home that has been foreclosed can be a very good deal, particularly if you have money to invest in fixing it up. You generally end up with more in equity than the amount you spend fixing the property, particularly when you do some of the work yourself. Buying a foreclosure is much faster than a short sale because it usually only takes 2 business days for the bank to respond to your offer. This is much better than 2 months!!! Even if you're a first time homebuyer with no money for cosmetic or other repairs, a foreclosure may be within your reach with creative financing that allows you to finance the repairs based on the repaired value of the home.

It's a buyer's market and there are plenty of options for everyone who is ready to buy!

What's so SHORT about a Short Sale???

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 11:48:06 -0500

Why the SHORT in short sale? Is it the short turn-around time by the bank? Yeah-right! Is it the short tempers that are produced by the end of the transaction? Getting warmer....

A short sale is named for the fact that the bank in the transaction is agreeing to take an amount that is "short" the full amount owed. This is the only part of a short sale that is short. In fact, I can assure you that by the end of the deal, the time frame has usually been extended far beyond everyone's expectations. And with experience as my teacher, I have learned that by the end there is a high liklihood that tempers will be very short as well.

Why buy a short sale?

Well, you can save money if the deal goes through. Short sales typically are accepted at 85% to 90% of market value and when you're buying a big ticket item like a house, that's a lot of savings.

You have to remember, though, that you are pretty much buying the house as-is because the seller is usually unwilling or unable to make repairs. In Arizona you have a 10-day inspection period after the bank accepts your offer to inspect the home and you have the opportunity to walk away from the purchase at that time if you so desire.

Why pass on buying a short sale?

By far, the most painful part of the experience is the extensive wait. Buying a home is an emotional experience for 95% of the population. When you make an offer on a home being sold as a short sale, you don't know whether you get to buy the home for at least a month or two, sometimes longer. Even though the seller signs the contract, it still goes to the bank for approval and the entire deal is contingent upon that approval.

What happens if you wait for two months only to find that the bank is not going to accept your offer? That can be very difficult to deal with. While banks typically will counter, there are times when there is more than one lien holder on the property and all of those lien holders have to agree. It is not unheard of for banks to become stubborn with each other and send a home to foreclosure over a couple thousand dollars. In that case both the owner and the potential buyer are stuck in the middle. It might be interesting to note that investors suffer in this case, too. While a loss is never a good thing, the bank's job is to mitigate that loss. If they foreclose the loss is typically much greater than selling a property short.

Rosemont Copper Mine Debate Heats Up

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 18:54:55 -0500

Within 2 weeks the scoping period for the Rosemont Copper Mine ends. At that point, the environmental studies will begin and we won't hear anything from officials until spring of 2009. There has been a lot of conversation and excitement (not always in a good way) about the proposed mine from local citizens and even from our elected officials.

On May 22, 2008, Representatives Raul Grijalva and Gabrielle Giffords sent a letter to the Coronado Forest Service regarding what they believe to be the flawed scoping period that is currently in progress. As many in the public have not been aware of the process and facts were not all presented at the beginning, they requested that a complete Cine Plan of Operations be created and that the scoping process should be restarted at that point.

Additionally, our representatives pointed out that one of the Forest Service's objectives was "to grant permission to the Company to use NFS for certain activities related to the operation of the Rosemont Mine." With an objective like that, it is highly unlikely that the option of denying permission to use our public lands is even being considered. Why then are they even allowing public comment?

Here's an interesting article regarding whether or not the review is fixed: http://www.tucsonweekly.com/gbase/Currents/Content?oid=oid:108889

And from a more optimistic viewpoint, an article talking about Save the Scenic Santa Ritas and their involvement in the opposition to the mine. http://www.vailsun.com/articles/2008/06/27/news/news01.txt

If you're still interested in reading more, check out these articles published in the Tucson Citizen.

Opinion from tucson Citizen: http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/frontpage/89304.ph

Security risk of the mine: http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/frontpage/89565.php

Don't forget to send in your comments to comments-southern-coronado@fs.fed.us.

I Paid for my House - Why Can't I Get the Keys???

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 14:34:26 -0500

Why would we sign all the documents, put down all our money, and have to wait another day to receive entry into our home?

This was a question posed to me by a client recently and it is a fantastic question that deserves an answer. It doesn't make sense that you would pay for a home and have already signed the documents and still be waiting to get the keys, right?

Well, the problem here is that even though my clients put down a sizeable down payment, they were still not paying for the home in its entirety. Like many other people, they were also obtaining a mortgage loan. When you obtain a mortgage, the house is not completely paid for until the mortgage company sends the loan amount, commonly known as "funding the loan".

Funding a loan is unfortunately not as simple as pressing a button. In fact, many loan companies won't even fund on the same day that the buyers sign. They must receive the signed documents and review them for accuracy and to ensure that they have all the necessary signatures. On rare occasions buyers may have to come back in and sign the paperwork again. This is most likely to occur when dealing with Power of Attorney signatures where one person is signing for another using a Power of Attorney.

Once the bank has determined that everything is in order they will release the funds. However, it still takes about 2-4 hours to reach the title company because it must go through the federal reserve before reaching them. Once the title company receives the wired funds and matches it with the correct property, they will send funds to the seller's mortgage being paid off (if there is one) and will cut checks to the seller, real estate companies and anyone else who is being paid out of closing. They will also record the transaction with the County Assessor's office and the buyer will be the official new owner of the home!

Thank you very much for the excellent question, Amy. I wish you and Mike the best in your new home!

Tucson Real Estate Market Report- June 2008

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:57:18 -0500

Well, we have reached the dog days of summer, the time each year when I question my sanity for living in this sun scorched city. As I eagerly await the arrival of the monsoons and the cooling temperatures that they bring, I will take a minute to talk about what is going on in the Tucson Real Estate Market. I will compare numbers from May 2008 to May 2007 and will also talk a little bit about the change between the numbers from April 2008 and May 2008. My numbers are obtained from the monthly statistics published by the Tucson Association of Realtors so they don't contain statistics for homes sold that were not listed on the MLS.

Home Sales Volume and Home Sales Units

These numbers are still down substantially from last year, although the number for Home Sales Units would be the one to focus on more as lower prices this year make the decrease sharper by volume than it is just by unit. The home sales units have decreased 27.7% from May of 2007, although the month to month volume increased slightly (5.34%). So we sold a few more this month as opposed to last month, but still less than we were selling last year.

Median and Average Sales Price

These are still lower by about 10% than last year. However, I hate these categories because there is no differentiation regarding what categories of homes are selling. For example, in a month where mostly homes under $200,000 sold, these categories would be lower than in a month that saw a surge in homes selling that were valued at over $1,000,000. Until there is some clarification, these categories do not provide an accurate picture of what is going on in the real estate market.

Pending Contracts

This is an important category because it is forward looking. For example, even though last year at this time home sales volumes and units were up, the pending sales were slowing down, indicating a slowing market and problems ahead. This year, we are seeing pending contracts up by 25% from last year's numbers. As opposed to last month's numbers, the pending contracts decreased by about 4%. This is a small number, but is something to keep an eye on. Fortunately the new listings decreased by over 6% month over month so our pending sales are still outpacing our new listings on the market.

Active Listings and New Listings

Both of these categories have decreased since May of 2007. This is great news for the future because pending contracts are up. We are still making steady progress towards clearing excess inventory off our market and making the balance between buyers and sellers more even. In the meantime, it's a great time to be a buyer. Active listings decreased 12.3% from last year and 3.2% from just last month. This is a good sign for future stability.

An even better sign is that new listings have decreased by 23% from last year. This is the time of year when sellers are usually putting their homes on the market moreso than in other seasons and yet sellers don't seem to be rushing to do so this year. This will mean that as buyers continue to purchase properties, the inventory is shrinking much faster than if sellers were also getting out there and putting their homes up for sale.

My Analysis

I still hear people predicting that prices will continue to decline for a while. This may be true in other parts of the country, but I disagree with that prediction for the Tucson, Arizona real estate market. Because inventory is shrinking on a monthly basis, it is only a matter of time before prices actually start to increase. Additionally, interest rates are on the rise which makes homes less affordable even if they are lower priced. I never pressure a client to buy a home if he/she is not ready, but I am sounding the warning now: Price-wise, this is as good as it is going to get in the foreseeable future.

We have already seen foreclosures and short sales flooding the market and while they are still occurring, banks are starting to wise up and try to work with their customers to prevent those situations. This is an awesome turn of events for those who find themselves in that predicament and yet it also means that the likelihood of a flood of new foreclosed homes coming on the market is slim to none. I'll say it again. If you are thinking about buying a house in Tucson, this is as good as it gets. Get it now so you won't be looking back six months from now wishing you had taken advantage of the low point in the market.

Why Use a Realtor? Negotiations

Fri, 06 Jun 2008 19:47:05 -0500

Wow! I can't believe you got away with that! OR They said yes to everything we asked for??? These are the words that happy clients say to their Realtor when they realize that he or she just exceeded their expectations. I enjoy hearing comments like that and I constantly work to improve my game with every transaction.

For years, real estate agents were viewed almost as highly paid tour guides and they held on to the information on homes for sale like it was gold. And, well... maybe it was. But with the rise in the popularity of the Internet and the ability for average people to access information on what's for sale, agents have had to hone their craft and focus on other ways to add value to the transaction. I for one, think this is great because real estate transactions are complicated and consumers need someone in their corner fighting for them and making sure their interests are protected.

Which brings me to negotiations. One of the many reasons that you should use a Realtor is that we are expert negotiators (a lot of us are anyway). Let's take a look at the skills that an ideal agent and negotiator has that can mean thousands more in your pocket or even the difference between completing the transaction or having to walk away.

Preparing for the Negotiation

There are many opportunities for negotiation throughout the transaction, although most people think of the negotiation at the beginning as being the big one. That's not always so because things brought to light during the inspection period are cause for negotiation either as a request for repairs or possibly a reduction in price/credit for closing costs.

A good negotiator prepares in advance by knowing as much as possible about the other party. There is a lot of information that is available in terms of public records, how much a person owes on a home, etc. However, there is also very valuable information to be gained by speaking to the other party's real estate agent. In the course of casual conversation I have had many agents reveal items that were pure gold when I went to begin negotiations on behalf of my client later. On the other hand, I have found that revealing certain tidbits in my conversation about my clients can be quite helpful. The trick is to be very conscious of the picture I am creating of my client by revealing only certain details. If these are sensitive details, I get permission from my clients ahead of time and discuss how revealing them might hurt/help their position. Even non-sensitive details must be revealed very sparingly and I am surprised at how many agents seem to talk just to hear themselves talk and end up damaging their client's negotiating position.

Who are you Playing To?

With real estate transactions I am not usually talking to the person who is the decision-maker. Instead, I am speaking to that person's agent. That agent has a position as a trusted advisor to the decision-maker. Therefore, convincing him or her that something should be done or is in the best interest of the transaction is vital to having that information conveyed convincingly to the decision-maker. There is an interesting dynamic here because the agent, while not the decision-maker, has a definite financial stake in bringing the transaction to a successful close.

Often my clients give me a lot of information about why they want what we're asking for. That is very useful and I usually find their reasons to be quite valid. However, my job is to pick out the points that the other party will find most valid. This is the same tactic used by an attorney when he or she restates what the client has said but in a way that is very convincing to the judge or jury. She may not focus in on every detail that the client has revealed but only uses the very best to accomplish her purpose.

During the Negotiation

Even though everything in real estate is put into writing, the actual conversation that I have with the agent ahead of time is of extreme importance. It gives me a chance to let them know what we will be asking for and allow them to think it over. It also gives me the opportunity to give reasons for my clients' position and to expound upon the ways that this will benefit their client. It is of extreme importance to also do a lot of listening during this phase because I need to know what the thoughts/desires of the other party are so that I can craft a solution that is equitable to both parties. Sometimes giving in on one small detail will net my clients concessions that are worth thousands so listening is vital.

Giving in a Negotiation

There are times when giving in a negotiation actually produces a win. For example, a seller may agree to a couple hundred dollars worth of work in order to keep a transaction alive. Since the seller nets a lot more with a completed transaction, this is an obvious win. Or a buyer may forego repairs in order to get a credit for closing costs. Suppose this buyer has a business that specializes in those types of repairs? The closing costs are then worth more to him than having the actual repairs performed. Therefore it is a win for the buyer and the seller has avoided the time consuming process of finding qualified contractors and getting repairs done prior to close of escrow. Another win-win.

Winning at Negotiating

A negotiation is only a true win when everyone feels that he or she has gotten a good deal. There are times when a real estate transaction produces a loss for one party (such as in a short sale). However, helping that party to mitigate that loss transforms it into a win. An expert negotiator will look for ways to find benefit for all parties and that benefit does not always have to be financial.

Who do you have negotiating on your behalf?

Tucson Real Estate Market - Steady Progress May 2008

Mon, 19 May 2008 18:42:15 -0500

As we enter the prime homebuying season this year, I see a lot of small improvements in the market but no drastic changes. This is probably a healthier way to recover than suddenly having tons of buyers snapping up properties right and left. That would be exciting, but would actually add to market instability rather than cure it.

I will be comparing the numbers for April 2008 with those of April 2007, but I will also compare April 2008's numbers with those from March 2008 so that you can see how things are changing in the short term as well as the long term.

Home Sales Volume and Home Sales Units

Both of these categories have decreased since last year. However, while volume decreased by 32.76% from April '07 to April '08, home sales units decreased only 26.17%. Why? Well, the numbers indicate that these days more lower priced homes are selling than the mid-range or high priced ones. Even if we were selling the same number of units as we were last year, we would still see the volume number decreasing. Not only that, but home prices have fallen some since last year, so it naturally would take more units to make up the same volume.

That's not all bad, though. A lot of home sales are created by families "moving up" so after they sell their lower priced homes, they move into mid-range homes, etc. If the trend continues the benefit will spread to all market segments and Tucson's real estate market will grow stronger and eventually become robust once again.

Average Sales Price

The average sales priced decreased by 8.91% from April of last year to this year. That makes sense if lower priced homes are the ones selling. Additionally, the market is not as strong price-wise this year because there are so many foreclosure and short sale homes being sold. Until the short sales and foreclosures are not such a big part of the market, we can expect that this number will not be climbing.

Pending Contracts

The amount of pending contracts rose 27.11% year over year and 9.71% just from the month before. This is a very good sign and is indicative that in Tucson at least there is returning consumer confidence when it comes to the housing market. It is to be expected that more homes sell in late spring than earlier in the year, so in this category, I take more encouragement from the percentage increase from last year than I do in the percentage increase from last month.

As I have mentioned the past couple of months, as buyers come out and take advantage of the deals available in this current market, they will continue to buy up the inventory eventually taking us to a place where prices begin to increase once again.

Active Listings and New Listings

Both of these categories show significant decreases this year. Active listings decreased by 15% and new listings decreased by 21% compared to April of 2007. Month to month, active listings saw a decline of 2.37% while the decline in new listings was marginal (a mere 0.12%). The fact that new listings stayed pretty much the same during a time of year when more and more homes usually appear on the market is very telling. Sellers appear to be very aware of market conditions and only those needing to sell are doing so. That in itself bodes well for the stability of home prices.

Other factors affecting the Tucson Market

There are certainly other economic factors which affect the Tucson Market and should be considered. The economy in general has a huge impact on how much house people can afford. While interest rates remain quite low, there is instability in other portions of the market; most glaringly we are seeing huge price hikes at the gas pump. These changes affect both consumer buying power and consumer confidence and could sideline the improvements we are seeing if they go on for too long.

Additionally, the number of foreclosures and short sales can affect how long we remain in the current price trough. It is hard to say for sure how long this will continue, although I have noticed a trend where banks are becoming more realistic about current market conditions and are beginning to work things out with many borrowers, thereby allowing more of them to stay in their homes. However, we still have numerous short sales on the market and I personally am finding that I'm doing more short sales than I am normal transactions.

My Analysis

I am still cautiously optimistic. The Tucson real estate market is showing signs of a slow and steady improvement. Barring any catastrophic influences from the U.S. economy or elsewhere, I expect that we will see prices start to rise by next year at this time. It is still a fantastic time to buy, especially if you plan to own the home for 5 years or more. Even if we experience a temporary dip in prices due to economic factors, you will still come out ahead in five years by holding the property and either living there yourself and renting it out. Happy house hunting - let me know if there is any information or assistance I can give you in your search.

Home Invasion in Rita Ranch Leads to Murder

Fri, 16 May 2008 15:07:34 -0500

Although I had been hearing that there have been several home invasion attempts in the past few weeks in Rita Ranch, it has only been recently that the perpetrators were successful. Last Sunday night, they forced their way into a home and killed a 47 year old man. The rest of the family was left physically unharmed.

Unfortunately, these perpetrators have NOT yet been apprehended. Therefore, they may repeat their crime or attempt to do so in the next few weeks. Many of us who live in Rita Ranch or Vail have chosen this location due to its very low crime rate and the "family friendly" feel to our neighborhoods. For the most part we are safe here. We are experiencing a situation where a group of criminals is trying to take advantage of how relaxed we are out here regarding safety.

I encourage you all to keep an eye on whether your doors are locked. Many times it is easy to leave them unlocked if you're going in and out and I have to admit that I myself have accidentally left my front door unlocked overnight a couple of times. Also, when I walk or jog through my neighborhood I many times see garage doors left open. Home invasion robberies are a crime of opportunity. It is easier to just open an unlocked door or force your way in to a home where the homeowner has opened the door to answer it than it is to actually break into a house.

So keep yourselves and your families safe. Lock the doors, close the windows and keep an eye on who is in your neighborhood. The description of the vehicle being driven by the suspects is a "light-colored imported SUV with a broken rear window covered in plastic." To read the entire article reporting this home invasion, visit the Vail Sun website at http://www.vailsun.com/articles/2008/05/14/news/news01.txt.

Oleanders - Highly Poisonous

Wed, 14 May 2008 12:55:07 -0500

It is amazing to me as I go about showing homes how few people seem to be aware of the fact that Oleanders are highly poisonous to both humans and animals. They are found all over here in Tucson, AZ, most likely because they grow quickly and are quite hardy. Of course you have to ingest the leaves and/or branches of the plant to be poisoned, but that is a likely scenario if you're dealing with toddlers or small animals.

Oleander poisoning affects both the digestive system and the cardiac system, oftentimes leading to death. The poison is so potent that it is able to kill horses. I recommend using other shrubbery to decorate your landscape, but if you choose to use Oleanders be advised of their toxicity.

For information on common poisonous plants, click here: http://plantanswers.tamu.edu/publications/poison/poison.html

Proposed Rosemont Copper Mine - Scoping Period

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 12:40:53 -0500

There are several more hearings and open houses coming up regarding the proposed Rosemont Copper Mine in Vail, Arizona. Here are the dates and locations:

Open Houses

April 22, 2008 6-8 PM at Sahuarita High Schol Cafeteria, 350 W Sahuarita Rd, Sahuarita, AZ

April 23, 2008 6-8 PM at Elgin Elementary School Cafeteria, 293 Upper Elgin Rd, Elgin, AZ

Hearings

May 12, 2008 6-9 PM at Elgin Elementary School Cafeteria, 293 Upper Elgin Rd, Elgin, AZ

June 7, 2008 9 AM - 12 Noon at Sahuarita High School Auditorium, 350 W Sahuarita Rd, Sahuarita, AZ

June 30, 2008 6-9 PM at Rincon High School, 421 N Arcadia, Tucson, AZ

Comments

To submit comments by mail, the attress is ATTN: Rosemeont Copper Project EIS, Coronado National Forest, 300 W Congress St, Tucson, AZ 85701. By Fax, send your comments to (520) 388-8305. You can also email your comments or concerns to comments-southwestern-coronado@fs.fed.us.

The Formal Comment Period will end on July 14, 2008.

Tucson Market Recovery Continues - April 2008

Sat, 12 Apr 2008 16:25:53 -0500

For the last couple of months I have been predicting that the Tucson Real Estate Market is on its way to a recovery. The most recent numbers (March 2008) confirm that we are indeed headed in the right direction. From working in the market, I can also tell you to expect April and May numbers to be even better. On more than one occasion in the past couple of weeks I have seen buyers who waited a few days to put in their offer only to find out the house they were interested in had received an offer from another buyer. Buyers are indeed out and using their purchasing power to take advantage of today's very affordable home prices and our excess inventory will be cleared off the market in the very near future. Here are the numbers:

Home Sales Volume and Home Sales Units

We see a huge increase in both of these categories this month which is a nice contrast from the past few months. The increase was 25% and 27% respectively. So not only are more homes selling this month than last month, but there is a large difference in last spring to this spring. Considering that our major softening began in early '07, this is a good sign. We are indeed on our way to recovery and should face a more normal market as buyers and sellers regain a feeling of confidence.

Average Sales Price

The average sales price decreased by about 1%. This makes up for last month's increase of 1%. Not much is happening in terms of a change in sales price. To me, that is to be expected. Even though sales volume is up and buyers are out there, they have not cleared out enough inventory to change the supply/demand curve to make prices rise. Even if they continue buying at this pace for a few months, prices may stay somewhat static because sellers may respond and begin putting more homes on the market. It remains to be seen how sellers will respond to the market change.

Active Listings

Active listings decreased by about 2%. That is not too much of a change from last year, but is a change from the past couple of months. Could we be seeing a tentative return of seller confidence? I'm not sure yet, but am looking forward to seeing what happens over the next 30-60 days.

Pending Contracts

A huge jump in pending contracts occurred this month, with an increase in 31% over last year. So active listings are close to the same number but many more of those are being sold. We are indeed seeing our market turn around and considering how much more activity I am seeing actually working in this market, I expect to continue to see a high number like this in next month's pending contracts as well.

My Analysis

We are at the bottom of the market price-wise, from all indications. We do still have a wild card out there in that we don't know how many more foreclosures will be listed on the market. However, I am starting to see predictions that we are in the final innings of the credit crisis as well. If you are thinking about buying and were waiting for things to bottom out, this is your final chance. Prices are more likely to go up than down from here and mortgage rates may not stay this low either. I certainly don't see prices falling any more, although you may have a couple of months of them remaining fairly stable as we clear out what is left of our housing inventory here in Tucson.

If you'd like to see what's available in your area, email me at Robin.Willis@azmoves.com or give me a call at (520) 481-3695. Happy house hunting!

Rosemont Copper Mine: Pros & Cons

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 12:54:12 -0500

Last Saturday I attended the open house regarding the proposed Rosemont Copper Mine. I came away with a lot of information and a greater understanding of what is proposed and some of the concerns and questions that local residents have. My goal here is to present information without choosing sides. My readers are intelligent - you can decide for yourselves what your opinion is.

What is the Time-line?

Currently, the plan is in the Scoping Process. This is the time for the public to analyze the proposal and to make comments or raise concerns. The next step will be the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Since community concerns will be considered and addressed in this statement it is important to get your comments in prior to the end of the scoping process. The good news is that the scoping process has been extended to July 14, 2008 (previously scheduled to end on 4/18/08). Here is where you can send your comments or concerns: Team Leader/Rosemont Copper Project, Coronado National Forest Service, 300 W Congress St., Tucson, AZ 85701, fax to (520) 388-8305 or email comments-southwestern-coronado@fsfed.us.

After the scoping process is completed, the EIS will be drafted. That is expected to take place in March of 2009. At that time, there will be a period of 45 days during which the public will be able to comment.

Next the Final EIS will be released to the public. This is anticipated to occur in November of 2009. After the Final EIS is released, there will be a Record of Decision published in the Federal Register.

Why a Copper Mine?

Well, we use copper all the time. It is found in our homes, cars, coins, airplanes, etc. Since it is in high demand, it is likely that mining copper will remain a profitable venture. However, if you remember a few years ago, ASARCO had some serious financial issues after the price of copper dipped.

Economic Impact

According to Rosemont Copper, Pima County will receive $256 Million in revenue each year that the mine is in operation. That is in addition to the $29 Million in annual salaries to Arizonans employed at the mine. Since the mine is scheduled to be in operation for about 20 years, that could add up. However, the Sonoran Institute has raised concerns that the profit could be somewhat offset by a reduction in revenue due to decreased tourism.

Environmental Impact - Water

A major concern in Arizona is the availability of water. Augusta Resource Corporation, developer of Rosemont Copper, has created a plan to utilize water carefully, to do recycling on-site and even claims that they will leave the area with 5% more water available than it started with. You can read about their plans here: http://www.rosemontcopper.com/communitycommitments.asp. They did not, however, address the issue of water pollution, which frequently occurs at mining sites.

Environmental Impact - Light

Rosemont Copper Mine is slated to be a project that is operated 24 hours a day, 7 days per week and 365 days per year. With that in mind, some concerns have been raised that the amount of light may disrupt the observatory at Mt. Hopkins. This mining operation is not required to observe the Outdoor Lighting Code. However, they are voluntarily electing to comply with this code, according to their website.

Environmental Impact - Noise and Air Pollution

There is going to be some air pollution from the emissions produced by this mine. They are required to obtain a permit for the amount of pollution they will be producing. The issue of noise pollution has not been addressed so that may be a concern that could be raised during the Scoping Process. For more information on the environmental concerns which Rosemont Copper is addressing, see the following: http://www.rosemontcopper.com/advanced.asp.

Local Impact - Traffic

Rosemont Copper Mine will be using Hwy 83, which has been designated a scenic highway. There will also be a secondary access route along the west side of the property. Since there is no rail access to the site, all transporting of materials in and out of the mine will be done by truck. Augusta Resource Corporation has promised to modify Highway 83 to provide safe ingress and egress from the site. However, there was nothing mentioned about the affect on the roadway and local traffic due to the increased truck traffic along this stretch of highway.

For More Information

Coronado National Forest Supervisor's Office: Bev Everson, 300 W Congress St, Tucson, AZ 85701. Phone (520) 388-8300. Email: comments-southern-coronado@fs.fed.us.

Rosemont Copper Mine: www.rosemontcopper.com

Mining Regulations: www.fs.fed.us/geology/36cfr228a_regs.pdf

Information on the Coronado National Forest: www.fs.fed.us/r3/coronado/rosemont

Mining in Vail?

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 19:18:41 -0500

There is a proposed copper mine in the Vail, Arizona, area. This mine, Rosemont Copper Mine, has not yet been approved and comments from the public are currently being accepted. The proposed location of the mine is west of Highway 83 in the Santa Rita mountains. There were three public meetings held in rapid succession in mid-March but the public was given less than a week's notice. After public outcry and pressure from Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, another meeting has been scheduled for this Saturday (April 5, 2008) in Vail, Arizona.

It will be in the Auditorium at Cienega High School at 12775 E. Mary Ann Cleveland Way. It will be held open house style from 3 PM to 6 PM so feel free to stop by at any time during those hours to get more information and/or to express your opinion. I hope to see some of you there who live in the area and could be affected by this development. I will be there during the first hour.

If you can't make the meeting, but would like to send your comments to the Coronado Forest Service, you can write to Team Leader/Rosemont Copper project, Coronado National Forest Service, 300 W Congress St., Tucson, AZ 85701, fax to (520) 388-8305 or email comments-southwestern-coronado@fsfed.us. Make sure you do it quickly. My understanding is that the 30 day comment period started in mid-March so we really only have 2 weeks to respond in order to make our voices heard.