The Dealmaker: 5/17/2018

Jordan Rose, Rose Law Group founder and president, moderating upcoming Valley Partnership panel on labor shortages. WHEN: Tomorrow! May 18, at the Friday Morning Valley Partnership Breakfast. WHAT: How the labor shortage is impacting the real estate industry. WHO: Jackie Elliott, President of Arizona Central College; Mike Greenawalt, Vice President of Rosendin Electric; DanHaag, Senior Vice President/Chief Administrative Officer of Sundt Construction, with Jordan Rose moderating. HOW: More info on TOMORROW’s event in Rose Law Group Reporter.  http://bit.ly/2KyvKsq

Jordan Rose to be recognized for prestigious NAWBO Business Impact Award. Congratulations to Jordan Rose who, along with Julie Witenstein (Arizona Sunrays) and Anna Sepic (AMS REnatus Investing), has been selected as a nominee for the National Association of Women Business Owners’ prestigious Business Impact Award. Honors will be presented at the June 13 Annual Desert Diamonds Awards Gala. Further event info and more about NAWBO in Rose Law Group Reporter. http://bit.ly/2Iswhe4

Phoenix real estate in April: Sales down 9%, inventory down 26% YoY. CalculatedRISK’s Bill McBride is back with a housing-market update for April — the “eighteenth consecutive month with a YoY decrease in inventory.” But wait! Were sales really down 9%? Or did they actually RISE 4%? Bill ponders the questions in a RELATED follow-up piece aptly titled “Phoenix real estate in April: Sales down 9% or up 4%?” —> http://bit.ly/2Gr0sAJ

Who killed the deal to sell your house? It was an inside job. “The real-estate agent had been showing a mansion… for several months with no success. Priced at around $10 million, the Hamptons shingle-style property boasted seven bedrooms and a swimming pool with a spa. Prospective buyers would seem enamored but never be heard from again.” Then the seller got “a call from another agent.” It was about the housekeeper. WSJ via Realtor.com® http://bit.ly/2KwGGGb

Analysis: Navajo, Cochise, Maricopa counties have the highest foreclosure rates for first quarter. “One in 417 properties in Navajo County started the foreclosure process during the first quarter of the year — the highest foreclosure rate in Arizona…” Get a county-by-county rundown and access ATTOM Data Solutions’ full analysis at Arizona Business Daily. http://bit.ly/2IqZLNF

Building products — averaging  $80,566 per new home — under price pressure. With the help of a pie chart, three graphs, and two “fascinating” schematics, Builder’s John McManus looks at a new Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysis — “how $55 billion in annual building materials expenses roll up and break down in the new-home market, account for a quarter of a home’s price tag, and add up to $105 billion in remodeling materials and products each year…” http://bit.ly/2La7vkB

A look inside the $60M renovation of Milwaukee Brewers’ Maryvale Park. • Mortenson Construction is construction manager • HKS is the architect • And Milwaukee Business Journal via PBJ has the renovation update along with a 40-image SLIDESHOW of overhaul progress on the spring training complex. http://bit.ly/2KAJWjN

Amazon to open giant warehouse in Tucson, plans to hire more than 1,500 people. “Luring the company [to the area] began eight months ago and land at the Port of Tucson, 6701 S. Kolb Road, was identified as ideal.” Arizona Daily Starreports that the “855,000-square-foot facility will sit on several Port of Tucson parcels… Upon receipt of a certificate of occupancy, more than 94 acres will be annexed into the City of Tucson.” READ ON: http://bit.ly/2Isxcew

Hopi Tribe asks Flagstaff, Coconino County for land transfer support. “It’s the latest effort by the tribe to acquire nearly 150,000 acres of state trust land south of Interstate 40 and east of Flagstaff that is interspersed in a checkerboard pattern with about 160,000 acres that the federal government already holds in trust for the Hopi. The state lands were promised to the tribe in a 1996 agreement… But so far, the Arizona State Land Department hasn’t taken the action outlined in the 1996 agreement…” Arizona Daily Sun. http://bit.ly/2Kz3i9g

Anonymous complaints close down two businesses in Arivaca, angering residents. “Controversies in the remote southern Arizona town of Arivaca usually involve the U.S.-Mexico border, located 11 miles away over mesquite-covered hills. But recently, it’s been Pima County’s zoning ordinances — and an anonymous local tipster — that have upset a motley collection of birdwatchers, off-gridders, retired veterans, and aging draft dodgers.” Phoenix New Times. http://bit.ly/2IuijII

Maricopa council adopts preliminary budget with increased revenue, expenditures. “Overall, the city can expect to generate just over $42 million in revenue for the upcoming fiscal year — which us up from the $38.7 million received last year.” And Maricopa Monitor reports that this increase doesn’t include “revenue streams” from the “new developments at Edison Point and the Wells Shopping Center.” So no wonder Interim City Manager Trisha Sorensen says “the budget is at a healthy place.” http://bit.ly/2rOqOas 

Flagstaff Council opts for bond to fast-track Lone Tree railroad overpass. “The reasons: It would be cheaper than pay-as-you-go financing and construction could start as early as five years after voters approve the bonds.” Yeah, but it’s not like Dealmaker readers really care about the construction of some overpass in Flag, right?… What’s that?… You’re saying it’s estimated to cost upwards of $72 million!… Well, in that case, here’s the story from Arizona Daily Sun: http://bit.ly/2k5G3IH