Real estate titan, former Senate candidate Wil Cardon dies; his character brought forth by Jordan Rose, founder and president, Rose Law Group.“Businessman Wil Cardon, who took on Jeff Flake for the open U.S. Senate seat in 2012 and ran for secretary of state two years later, has passed away… He was 46… ‘The only thing that can ease tears at a moment like this is remembering Wil’s smile that was as wide as Arizona, especially when it came to our five children,’” his family said in a statement. — Arizona Capitol Times. Jordan Rose: “Our prayers are with the Cardon family. Wil was a great friend and client. He was the friendliest person I have ever met. He always said you should leave the situation better than you find it. He actually lived those words every day.” Much more on the kind of person Wil Cardon was, here: http://bit.ly/2xGVfAx
Cullum Homes’ 1st cottage debuts in the Village at Silverleaf. “The two-story home, custom-designed by Oz Architect’s Don Ziebell, mirrors the style of the Silverleaf Clubhouse… This Cottage is 3,133 square-feet and includes four bedrooms and 4.5 baths.” http://bit.ly/2xrHqXl
Phase I Gladden Farms closed out with final sale to Meritage Homes this week. “Meritage Homes recently closed on the last two blocks at Gladden Farms [in northern Marana] in Phase I for $1.82 million ($24,000 per lot). Blocks 7 and 13 sold platted for 76 homesites by Crown West Realty (Dean Wingert member) the developer.” Real Estate Daily News. http://bit.ly/2wXcu3q
Plans for Challenger Space Center facility in Peoria emerge. “The former Arizona Challenger Space Center building will soon house Peoria Unified School District’s medical, engineering and technology program… The district is expected to take ownership in of the former Space Center in October with the building anticipated to open for students by the 2018-19 school year.” YourWestValley. http://bit.ly/2xrlkEt
Listening In: Tusayan, Stilo press ahead, even without USFS approval. “[T]he Forest Service’s decision… to reject the town’s application for utility easements on two national forest roads… halted development by Stilo and also meant the town wouldn’t get 20 acres of… land it was expecting to use for affordable housing, because that land was tied to easement approval. But now, nearly a year and a half after losing the easement bid, the town is moving ahead on two fronts to advance both commercial and residential development without any need for federal approval.” Arizona Daily Sun. http://bit.ly/2wDd7iY
‘HARDEST HIT FUND’ HIT HARD – Damning report finds state agencies wasted millions meant for struggling homeowners. “[T]he Office of the Special Inspector General… found that the all 19 of the state housing finance agencies that participated in the Hardest Hit Fund collectively wasted $3 million on items like barbecues, steak and seafood dinners, gift cards, flowers, gym memberships, employee bonuses, litigation, celebrations, and cars, instead of using the money to help struggling borrowers.” And if you’re wondering if Arizona is among those states… yes, it is. HousingWire. http://bit.ly/2wMPQeP
Why incentivize when there’s nothing to buy? Recent reports from Marcus & Millichap and ABI Multifamily, along with an “announcement by Fannie Mae about its debt-to-income ratio,” all have AZBEX’s Roland Murphy wondering: “[E]ven if Millennials want to move into homeownership, and they’re actually getting some incentive to do so from major institutions, does it actually matter if there’s nothing for them to buy, and how long will they be willing/able to wait if forces continue to keep them from getting what they want?” http://bit.ly/2vxNJaH
The renter budget: Most and least costly cities. “Renters’ budgets are being stretched in many [major] cities — but some more than others, according to a new study by GOBankingRates.” Which Arizona city is listed among the top five LEAST-COSTLY? Find out, plus access the full study at RISMedia. http://bit.ly/2vDO3DX
The List: Phoenix has the size, Tempe the desire to be Valley’s top office market. “[Phoenix Business Journal] asked three prominent commercial real estate deal makers — Ralph Cashen, president of Cashen Realty Advisors; John Bonnell, managing director of JLL; and Jeff Hartland, senior managing director at Cushman & Wakefield — if they were given financing to build a big office building in the Valley where they would build.” –> http://bit.ly/2wcmR2J
Chinese Cultural Center market closes amid fight over renovations. “[The Super L Ranch Market] is the latest storefront to close down at the location after the property was sold to a new owner, True North Companies [which] plans to renovate the property… In response to the threat, community members have called for the space to be classified as a historic building. However, this is not a simple request.” AZCentral. http://bit.ly/2wcIkbE
HISTORIC IMPROVEMENTS – Sedona Council gives $20K to preserve landmarks. “The recipients [under the ‘2016-17 Historic Preservation small grant program’] were required to provide a matching share equal to the amount of the grant award up to $10,000. The program resulted in approximately $45,000 in improvements — $20,000 from the city and the rest from the applicants.” Red Rock News. http://bit.ly/2iDFN5w
Fountain Hills Town Council facing dissent. “Several speakers at the [Aug. 15 Town Council] meeting, both in call to the public and agenda items, called out the council for perceived unresponsiveness and focus on a personal political agenda. Two of the speakers are in fact council appointees to the [P&Z] Commission.” Fountain Hills Times reports that main Issues surround the “town’s political culture of secrecy, misguided spending, the culture of cronyism and faintheartedness in doing what is best for the town.” http://bit.ly/2iDHvUB
Prescott primary election season wraps up this week. “Ballots include three candidates for mayor, and six for the three open City Council seats… In addition, voters will decide… Proposition 442 — the city’s bid to extend its Alternate Expenditure Limitation (Home Rule Option) for four more years,” [and] “Proposition 443 — the ballot measure asking for a 0.75-percent increase in the city’s sales tax…” The Daily Courier. http://bit.ly/2xrBEVG
HUMAN CONTACT: WHAT’S OLD IS ‘NEW’ AGAIN – Maricopa says new overpass technology is working well. “Construction for the State Route 347 overpass project is now in full swing. With that, the city of Maricopa is trying to find ways to make a complicated process simplified. They created the overpass hotline [with a live person], and so far, city officials think the implementation of this technology [in addition to a ‘tracker website’] has greatly benefited the community.” Maricopa Monitor. http://bit.ly/2wXebOv
U.S. mortgage rates drop again, hit 2017 low mark. “The 30-year fixed mortgage averaged 3.86 percent for the week ending Aug. 24, down from 3.89 percent the previous week. A year ago, mortgage rates stood at 3.43 percent.” Dayton Business Journal. http://bit.ly/2wMvAdv
Dealmaker BONUS: The new gated community: More land, fewer neighbors. “For some homeowners, the ideal gated community isn’t one with loads of country-club amenities. It is one where the prime amenity is the land itself, with large lots, privacy and great views that don’t include the neighbors. In regions that lack zoning laws, proponents of such communities say that they can help insulate affluent homeowners, and their property values, from hodgepodge rural development.” The Wall Street Journal. http://bit.ly/2wDh9rN
Dealmaker BONUS: Mayweather vs. McGregor: Who delivers the real estate knockout? In “one of the most highly anticipated fights of all time,” Floyd Mayweather Jr. defeated UFC star Conor McGregor in a 10th-round TKO on Saturday night. “But when it comes to their luxury homes, which fighter reigns supreme?” WATCH at Realtor. com®. http://bit.ly/2wDxmND
The good and bad news about cancer in Arizona. “Arizona has the third lowest cancer rate in the nation behind New Mexico and Nevada.” But as Senior Reporter/Writer Phil Riske notes in his report for Rose Law Group Reporter, “Several findings*… are cited as factors in the state’s low cancer rate, and they are not good news.” http://bit.ly/2wMydvR
How America turned this Arizona border town into a police state. The Week columnist Shikha Dalmia travels to the town of Arivaca, an “unincorporated hamlet of 700 people about 11 miles from the Mexican border,” where residents say that “the current level of enforcement… makes their town, and many like theirs, feel like occupied territories where law-abiding U.S. citizens are treated like criminals and enemies.” http://bit.ly/2wiVvpY
[IN-DEPTH] CAP-California water deal that Arizona nixed provokes ongoing conflict. “A newly disclosed memo from [2015], written by a [Central Arizona Project] attorney, characterized the proposal as a sale of some of Arizona’s Colorado River water to the giant, six-county Metropolitan Water District in Southern California.” While the proposed sale “never happened,” it is now a “flash point in a controversy pitting Arizona’s top water agency against Central Arizona Project.” Arizona Daily Star. http://bit.ly/2wXc4dm
Arizonans say Confederate Capitol Mall Monument should be kept. “A statewide survey of likely Arizona 2018 General Election voters revealed that nearly 62% of voters believe that the memorial to Confederate Soldiers on the Arizona Capitol Mall should be kept. The results are derived from the same survey that showed President Trump with a 41.8% approval rating and 56.8% opposition to a pardon of Sheriff Joe Arpaio.” Get a full breakdown of the survey at Arizona Daily Independent. http://bit.ly/2wX9iVQ
Are some of Trump’s key Cabinet members thinking about abandoning him? “In separate, jaw-dropping comments that made news over the weekend, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson appeared to distance themselves from the president on his response to the Charlottesville violence and, perhaps, in general.” The Washington Post. http://bit.ly/2vlRQKK
