| Shea Homes to develop 66 homes in exclusive community next to Ritz-Carlton resort. “The 23-acre parcel is located at the [SE] corner of Indian Bend… and Mockingbird Lane.” This BREW ‘breaking news’ piece (which is in desperate need of some paragraph breaks), calls it “a premium location to kick off its new ‘Shea Signature’ high-end housing brand.” BREW also reports that “Shea is looking for more… locations suitable for high-end housing.” More on the deal and “Azure” development here: http://bit.ly/2mtqVs7
Phoenix 14th for best metros for investment. (Up two spots from last year!) CBRE: “Phoenix continued its recent trend of year-over-year growth with investment sales surpassing $9.2 billion in 2016 — a slight increase from 2015 but a dramatic 50 percent increase from 2014… [M]arket fundamentals point toward strong investor interest in Phoenix in the years ahead.” For other highlights from the CBRE “Americas Investor Intentions Survey,” including a look at “Risk Factors“ and the “most attractive” sectors for investment, head to AZBEX. http://bit.ly/2mQQ4Z7
OFF THE RAILS – 19th Avenue residents say light rail damaging Phoenix neighborhood. “When Phoenix’s 19th Avenue light-rail extension opened last year, some residents of an adjacent neighborhood say they noticed a worrisome change.” (Some in this article’s comment section claim that the stretch along 19th Avenue has always been a problem area.) More on the neighborhood concerns and how police and transit agencies plan to respond, at AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2nSo0X3
WAIT FOR IT… WAIT FOR IT… – Pinal official says more major development projects to be announced. “[T]he 2010s… in Pinal County… will probably be looked at as the decade of manufacturing, with 2016 being the turning point.” Economic development program manager Tim Kanavel teases with this tout: “You think Attesa and Lucid and… [Dreamport Villages] put us on the map, you wait until these other [‘massive’] things are announced. Holly cow! The sky is the limit.” For the number of projects currently in the works along with targeted sectors, click to Pinal Central. (As for details on these “massive” projects, it looks like we’re going to have to wait for the announcement. But we’ll keep you posted!) http://bit.ly/2o5dHhy
The ‘New’ Solution “Fewer resales available, at higher and higher prices, mean what? Trulia chief economist Ralph McLaughlin paints a lurid picture with data points in this analysis he titles, ‘Don’t Call it a Comeback.’ He offers a contrarian take on the numbers, asserting that ‘home value recovery’ is limiting supply, opposite to the view many other observers would take, that limited inventory forces up prices.” In Builder. http://bit.ly/2mV2b8u
SPEAKING OF ‘CONTRARIAN TAKES’ – Why rising Federal Funds rates might be good for the housing market. “Much of the commentary surrounding the [Fed’s] decision… to raise the… rate by 25 basis points has been about how this is likely to increase mortgage rates, have a negative effect on home affordability, and potentially derail the still-wobbly recovery of the US housing market. Respectfully, I disagree,” writes Ten-X executive veep, Rick Sharga. Check out the “3 reasons” for Sharga’s position, in HousingWire. http://bit.ly/2nnOr9j
Economic gains spark confidence in buying, selling. “80 percent [believe] now is a good time to buy and 69 percent [believe] now is a good time to sell,” according to “the National Association of REALTORS®… Housing Opportunities and Market Experience (HOME) survey.” NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun: “Even though it is a highly polarized country, consumers for the most part have upbeat feelings about the economy right now.” RISMedia has more results from the survey — and more from Yun, including what he identifies as “constraints” that could “slow or delay some prospective buyers’ pursuit of purchasing a home.” —> http://bit.ly/2nJOopg
Existing home sales pulled back in February. “Sales of previously owned U.S. homes fell 3.7% in February from the prior month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.48 million, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday.” Get February’s ‘median sales price figures” and find out what the NAR says is creating a “bottleneck for the market,” in The Wall Street Journal. http://bit.ly/2nJMl4n
Tax overhaul threatens affordable housing deals. “Members of Congress and President Donald Trump have proposed reducing the corporate tax rate to 15% to 20% from the current 35%, dimming the allure of a credit investors… receive to offset income taxes…. In some cases, investors have walked away, opening up funding gaps in projects already in motion. Because developers already walk a financial tightrope to build low-income housing, some projects are simply failing.” The Wall Street Journal http://bit.ly/2mVgxFV
Cameron’s $5M + deals of the day – http://bit.ly/2mte7Ch
As a supplement to the Dealmaker, we thought you might enjoy these articles!
Resolution mine official calls permitting process a barrier to business. (Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents Resolution Copper.) “Nigel Steward, [a] managing director [at]… Rio Tinto, the… mining company developing the Resolution project, told a House Natural Resources subcommittee that ‘outdated, inefficient’ permitting is a “major barrier” to mining companies. ‘To date, Rio Tinto has spent over $1.3 billion on the Resolution project for permitting, studies and project shaping, the project is years away from a final permit… In other countries, this project would likely be coming to the end of the permitting process.” More coverage of Steward’s testimony in Cronkite News —> http://bit.ly/2o5pJaM
End of life bill sent to Ducey’s desk. “SB 1439… spells out it is illegal to discriminate against any health care entity because it does not provide or facilitate in… assisted suicide, euthanasia and mercy killing…. Proponents… say this is a simple extension of existing laws… But Rep. Randall Friese, D-Tucson, who is a doctor, said he believes this will actually interfere with the ability of patients and their families to work with physicians to make decisions about what treatments to seek — or refuse.” Capitol Media Services’ Howard Fischer reports, at Arizona Capitol Times. http://bit.ly/2n83BgI
Gila River Indian Community agrees to water-storage deal with Phoenix that will restore flow to Gila River. “[Gila River Indian Community Gov. Stephen Roe Lewis] remembered when the river flowed through their land, when fertile soil fed his people. His ancestors centered their culture around the river, but for decades it had been little more than a line on a map, cut off by a series of dams and droughts. Now a sequence of settlements and storage deals had started to restore flow to the river…. the river that gave the community its name.” The report at AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2ndUaxL
My Turn: How an obscure lawsuit could hurt Arizona water management; Thomas Galvin, a land use/water lawyer at Rose Law Group, comments. In this piece for AZCentral, the former director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources pulls no punches in a critique of the Central Arizona Water Conservation District and its court-case claim of “sovereign immunity.” The former director: “The district is not an arm of the state, does not have sovereign immunity, and cannot speak for the state on Lake Mead or other Colorado River matters. That’s the role of the Arizona Department of Water Resources. Period.” Thomas Galvin: “[I]t’s fascinating how an employment law case turns on the power and functions of state agencies. However, the outcome of this case could have serious ramifications for the future of water management in Arizona. We have a system that works well, directed by our governor and implemented by his staff and agencies. We should hope that Arizona’s successful record on water management is not disrupted by unintended consequences.” http://bit.ly/2n86qOM
Analeigh Tipton nude photos leak: Actress helping police find naked picture hacker; Rose Law Group litigator Sam Doncaster warns violators. Hopefully, Analeigh Tipton is recognized from her appearance on America’s Next Top Model or from her work in the movies Lucy and Crazy, Stupid Love, and NOT from the photos stolen by some hacker creep[s]. Perhaps a poor choice of words, but… here’s the dress-down from Sam Doncaster, litigation attorney at Rose Law Group who, among other things, works for clients whose privacy has been invaded by internet hackers: “Nude photo hacks jeopardize privacy. They’re also illegal. People who steal these private images face serious liability, and jail time.” See a photo of Analeigh Tipton (fully clothed) and read the statement from her attorney, at MSN. http://bit.ly/2mQUzmz |
