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Tucson City Council to consider legal action over University of Arizona dorm plan. Does the U of A have “legal authority to ignore local zoning laws” for a “proposed multi-story dorm” that is not “in the university’s planning boundaries”? That’s the “issue” that the city is trying to sort out, according to Arizona Daily Star. In addition to legal concerns, Councilman Kozachik “worries” that “the project could unlock a floodgate of new student housing proposals trickling into residential areas surrounding campus.” http://bit.ly/2qcBstI
New home sales contract sharply in April. Quite a bit of “new home sales” info in today’s Dealmaker, and we kick it all off with this report from Mortgage News Daily’s Jann Swanson who charts out April’s 11.4 percent dive and breaks down the data by region (the “West took the biggest hit”). http://bit.ly/2qcwqxq
New home prices are falling — so why are there fewer sales? “[P]rices fell a little in April, by about 3% from March… They were also down nearly 3.8% from April 2016. But they weren’t low enough to make much of a difference for most cash-strapped buyers.” Senior Economist Joseph Kirchner fills in the blanks on this ‘beyond the budget’ bind — at Realtor.com®. http://bit.ly/2qkzNNP
New home sales need to double to hit historic norms, economists say. Trulia’s Ralph McLaughlin: “In April, new home sales made up about 11.9% of all home sales, which is less than half of the historical average…” Still, Zillow Chief Economist Svenja Gudell is unfazed: “After soundly beating expectations in every month to start 2017, it’s not very surprising to see new home sales come back to Earth…” However, Kelsey Ramírez notes in her HousingWIre report that “not all economists say the drop is positive or even normal…” For their takes, tap to it –> http://bit.ly/2qgZteR
Rapid rise in rents coming to a halt? That’s the assessment from ATTOM Data Senior VP Daren Blomquist who observes, “We do see several bellwether markets where rents were basically flat or even fell on average…” Find out where at REALTORMag. (Plus, access the National Real Estate Investor report, “Single-Family Rents Remain Strong — For Now.”) http://bit.ly/2qkz3Iw
Survey: Rising rates won’t stop young buyers. That’s REALTORMag’s main takeaway from the “latest Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices quarterly Homeowner Sentiment Survey,” which we mentioned in yesterday’s Dealmaker. Click through for survey highlights, and also see what Berkshire Hathaway HomeService President and CEO, Gino Blefari, has to say about millennials and their “sense of urgency” in “locking in a low mortgage rate now.” http://bit.ly/2qcMHlX
Construction jobs show an overall net gain of 5,700 for the year. AZBEX’s Rolland Murphy hammers out the state’s hard hat job data — from Yuma to Flag, Tucson to Phoenix and points in between — from a report published by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity. http://bit.ly/2qPFaIk
As a supplement to the Dealmaker, we thought you might enjoy these articles!
Casa Grande transit study open for public comment. “[T]he city has been interested in studying a transit system for some time, as the population continued to grow. Now, with major economic development projects on the horizon, the time is optimal… The study will determine if Casa Grande is ready for its own public transportation system, and, if so, what types of services are needed.” PinalCentral. http://bit.ly/2qWOxV1
Officials hope new Mayo Clinic medical school in Scottsdale will help ease state’s doctor shortage. “‘[Keeping doctors within Arizona is] a long standing problem… Getting the individuals who train here, who go to medical school here, to stay here’… The school plans to open in July.” Cronkite News has a sneak peek of a few of the school’s features, including a photo of the “cadaver labs set up with touch-screen technology.” http://bit.ly/2rRtuTN
Phoenix moves to enact new rules for lobbyists after Republic report. “Almost four months ago,The Republic reported that a high-profile law firm had violated the city’s [‘useless,’ ‘toothless,’ ‘unenforceable,’ flawed] lobbying ordinance and filed falsified documents to make it appear it had complied… The City Council voted 9-0 Tuesday to amend the city’s lobbying ordinance so those who don’t comply… can face sanctions, including fines of up to $2,500, suspension from lobbying and possible jail time…” http://bit.ly/2qWXz6n
Trump’s first budget draws praise, pans from Arizona lawmakers. “The White House said its proposed $4.09 trillion budget shows ‘respect for the people who pay the bills.’” However, it’s not getting much respect from many who ‘make the bills.’ Here’s a sampling: Rep. Paul Gosar: “Kudos… for reducing bureaucratic blight”; Sen. John McCain: “[D]efense increase… ‘inadequate’”; Arizona Democrats: “A dangerous plan… a slap in the face.” Many more reactions from lawmakers in Cronkite News. http://bit.ly/2qc40Uh
Renewable energy powers jobs for almost 10 million people. “[That’s up] 1.1 percent [in 2016] from 2015… with China, Brazil, the U.S., India, Japan and Germany the leading job markets.” Power through to Bloomberg for more highlights from the International Renewable Energy Agency’s report. http://bit.ly/2qcyp4x
If you bought $100 of bitcoin 7 years ago, you’d be sitting on $75 million now. (But the way things have been going lately, it seems that amount would barely enough to weather one or two ransomware hits!) “The cryptocurrency has many doubters as it continues to be associated with criminal activity, but it has still seen a stunning rally.” Seven years ago, the coins “were worth around 0.003 cents each.” Monday, “Bitcoin was trading as high as $2,251.61.” Head to CNBC for “an in-depth look at the factors driving bitcoin.” http://bit.ly/2qkxGd1
Newsmaker BONUS: BAH, HUMP BUG! – No Christmas tree atop Camelback Mountain, panel advises. “The Phoenix Sonoran Preserves and Mountain Parks/Preserves Committee will give its recommendation to the Parks and Recreation Board ‘to uphold the existing policy that prohibits people leaving items behind on city trails and trail summits, and not to make an exception for a holiday tree on Camelback Mountain.’” AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2rAOmlc
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