The Dealmaker: 1/31/2017

An expanded Scottsdale Civic Center Mall with better downtown access is proposed. “The proposed plan would expand green space in the main center of the mall, make the Civic Center area more visible and accessible from downtown Scottsdale, and create a more alluring entertainment venue… A draft master plan… was unveiled Jan. 25 in a public meeting, with many of the 50 residents attending generally voicing approval of the proposed changes.” Details at AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2knptWu

Construction on Scottsdale luxury apartments finished. “Construction was completed on a  278-unit luxury apartment complex, The TOMSCOT, which is located in Scottsdale near Thomas and Scottsdale Roads, according to an announcement by The Weitz Company.” Read about it and see it at AZRE. http://bit.ly/2knh0mc

Controversial purchase of Gilbert land to build charter school is approved. Does American Leadership Academy “belong… on a prime piece of real estate… long envisioned as the future home of a major office complex”? Would building it there — as one resident argued — “undermine… the town’s general plan and its long-term goal of broadening the tax base”? For “Mayor Jenn Daniels and three other council members,” the answers would apparently be “yes” to the first question and “no” to the second, as they “voted to approve the controversial annexation, despite their misgivings.” More on this in East Valley Tribune. http://bit.ly/2kd6nzE

Proposed apartments prompt concern, anger in Surprise.  And what has folks so up in “arms,” so to speak? Are they freaking out because developers plan to call the complex something like “Trump Ridge” or “Executive Order Meadows” or “Travel Ban Village”? No, these folks aren’t “Trumpetized” (to borrow a Phil Riske phrase). AZCentral reports, “Panic shook [the]… neighborhood… when residents [learned of] a ‘high-density’ apartment complex [that] could be coming to an 11-acre dirt lot behind their community [at the NE corner of Reems and Waddell].” Click through to learn what the concerns are and why “the developer and rental experts say some of [them] are misguided.” http://bit.ly/2kObaL6

Pending home sales end year on high note. “The National Association of Realtors®… said its Pending Home Sales Index… increased to 109.0 in December from 107.3 the previous month.” More on the “1.6 percent” uptick and what NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun has to say about it, in Mortgage News Daily. http://bit.ly/2kOcrSf

Pollack: Adjectives that describe the economy. In what could be considered a Monday Morning Quarterback “sneak,” this week’s installment surprises with a pop quiz that asks readers to choose words that best characterize “Real GDP in the 4th quarter.” Plus, these ‘Snapshots’: U.S.: Leading Indicators, Consumer Sentiment, New & Existing Home Sales. AZ: Hotel Occupancy Levels – Statewide & Greater Phoenix. http://bit.ly/2jzkPjG

Dealmaker BONUS: Critter Cities: Phoenix among Top 10 cities for pest infestations. Is it rats, roaches, termites, bedbugs or some other creepy things that earn the Valley of the Sun a spot on this “ignominious list?” Find out in this Realtor.com report, which is based on data from American Housing Survey, Orkin, Terminix, Eastern Arizona Courier, and Hartz.—> http://bit.ly/2kMrBEu

Cameron’s $5M + deals of the day – http://bit.ly/2jvNi9V