Saint George Utah Flood Zones…and more

Well admittedly its be a few years since Saint George Utah has had to worry about flooding in the desert. That does not mean its not something to be concerned about.

Washington County Utah…late 2004 we experienced a series of storms that left both the Virgin River and the Santa Clara River with serious flooding issues. Follow this link to view the photos posted on the City of Saint George’s website.

http://www.sgcity.org/flood2005/flood2005a.php

As a Realtor that is licensed in both California and Utah. I have a pretty good idea the amount of, and extent of, true disclosures that should be afforded the home buyer here in Utah. That includes the surrounding land, not just the home itself.

For Instance: in Ca. they have what is know as “The Nature Hazard Zone Disclosure Statement”…it gives the buyer of a property notification if the subject property your interested in, is located in or near: A.) Flood Zone B.) Near an Airport fight path C.) Down Stream from a possible Dam failure D.) In a high fire zone, or last but not least E.) in a Earthquake Zone (i.e. on a fault).

While each and all of these conditions exist here in Southern Utah, good luck getting the average Realtor to bring it up voluntarily…

THERE IS NO “ZONE DISCLOSURE” HERE IN UTAH. It is still very much “Buyer Beware”

My service is meant to help navigated this very under considered aspect of home buying in Southern Utah. Click here to View some of Utah’s known envirmental issues.

If you looking for a good Realtor that will help protect your best interest…not just their bottom line. Then you need to send me an email stating your needs, and I will make contact with 24 hours. SGHomes@msn.com

Southern Utah Real Estate Referral Service for Buyers

Southern Utah Real Estate Referrals At No Cost To You!

 As a Licensed Utah Realtor with the Washington County Board of Realtors, I can help refer you to the best agent for your specific needs. Thus helping you make your Southern Utah Home purchase as painless as possible

 As most know, some agents specialize in very specific market niches…the agent that does high end Saint George Homes , probably won’t know much about first time home buyers issues…similarly your Southern Utah Realtor who specializes in Southern Utah Golf Properties won’t know much about Saint George Foreclosures.

 As a longtime resident of Saint George Utah, and a Realtor for over 10 years, I can help you avoid the mistake of starting with the wrong agent…and there are a lot out there.

 If you would like to send me an email at SGHomes@msn.com with your needs, I can help get the ball rolling.

 In the interim if you would like to view live MLS information from the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system go to my website www.SaintGeorgeHomes.net and you can view all MLS listing on our MLS system…not some third party vendor with minimal data and no photo’s

 If I can help please email me SGHomes@msn.com

Saint George Utah Real Estate Market Statistics, Listings and Conditions

O.K. I have found a way to give out the most current and active MLS activity reports straight from the Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system, for all of Saint George Utah and the greater Washington County…

The spreadsheet to the right has all listings classes and their respective numbers of currently active listings, pending listings and sold listings for all the greater Saint George area.

New-home sales declined 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 342,000 units in May. Meanwhile, the number of new homes for sale fell 2.3 percent to 292,000, which is a 10.2-month supply at the current sales pace.

Regionally, the decline in new-home sales was entirely focused on the South, where sales fell 8.5 percent for the month. Meanwhile, sales of new homes gained 1.3 percent in the West and posted double-digit gains of 28.6 percent and 18.6 percent in the Northeast and Midwest, respectively.

All of that being said… its 6/29/09…I keep these live links posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 29, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 80 Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 159 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/29/09 thru 6/29/09.
• 1,534 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 299 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.

Southern Utah Real Estate Listings, Links, and Market Conditions

Well, the Nation Association of Realtors just came out with some new numbers regarding housing inventory… NAR chief economist, expected an improvement. “Historically low mortgage interest rates clearly drew buyers into the market, and housing remains very affordable even with a recent uptick in rates,” he said. “First-time buyers also are being drawn off the sidelines by the $8,000 tax credit, which is helping to absorb inventory. However, the increase in sales is less than expected because poor appraisals are stalling transactions. Pending home sales indicated much stronger activity, but some contracts are falling through from faulty valuations that keep buyers from getting a loan.”

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage edged up to 4.86 percent in May from a record low 4.81 percent in April; the rate was 6.04 percent in May 2008. Last week, Freddie Mac reported the 30-year fixed at 5.38 percent; data collection began in 1971.

Total housing inventory at the end of May fell 3.5 percent to 3.80 million existing homes available for sale, which represents a 9.6-month supply² at the current sales pace, down from a 10.1-month supply in April.

All of that being said… its 6/26/09…I keep these live links posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 23, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 80 Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 159 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/26/09 thru 6/26/09.
• 1,534 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 299 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.

Southern Utah Real Estate Links, Listings, And Market Conditions

We actually sold 10 more homes in May 2009, 369 units sold, than the year to date prior…May 2008, 359 units sold. As the home affordability index holds steady at historically high levels due to cheap interest rates, and very motivated sellers most buyers understand this is a buying opportunity of a life time.

“Once the fiscal policy of this administration takes hold…our interest rates are going to skyrocket. At which point if you don’t already own a home, good luck getting a home loan.” J.P. Yeager Realtor. That is pretty much the general opinion of the different Realtors that I have spoken with.

Buyer competition for REO’s & Short Sales in April and May intensified significantly. During this period, several of our Short Sale listings received multiple offers, which often resulted in sales prices that exceeded the seller’s asking price. Our team’s sub $350k REO & Short Sale inventory has been all but depleted… That being said, we anticipate continued buying opportunities based on the number of homes that will be sold at trustee’s sales over the next 30-60 days.

All of that being said… its 6/23/09…I keep these live links posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 23, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 8 1Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 159 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/23/09 thru 6/23/09.
• 1,532 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 299 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.

Looking to Start Over ???

Top 10 Places to Start Over
Some parts of the United States have been less affected than others by the economic downturn.

“If people are looking for a job and they’re in Detroit, they’re in the wrong place. They need to be considering geographic mobility,” says Ernie Goss, professor of economics at Creighton University in Omaha.

BusinessWeek magazine, with help from staffing firm Manpower, has examined job opportunities all across the country, ranking metropolitan areas based on the percentage of companies planning to hire in the third quarter.

Here are the top 10 places it identified as offering the best opportunities for anyone looking for a fresh start:

1. Anchorage, Alaska
2. Provo-Orem, Utah
3. Kennewick-Richland-Pasco, Wash.
4. Yakima, Wash.
5. Omaha, Neb.-Council Bluffs, Iowa
6. Richmond, Va.
7. Winston-Salem, N.C.
8. Colorado Springs
9. Amarillo, Texas
10. Washington, D.C., Arlington-Alexandria, Va., plus areas in Maryland and West Virginia( Source: BusinessWeek, Prashant Gopal 06/09/2009)

All of that being said… its  6/20/09…I keep these  live links  posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 20, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 74 Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 182 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/20/09 thru 6/20/09.
• 1,535 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 291 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.

Southern Utah Parks, Properties, and Deductions

Zion National Park to Offer Three Fee-Free Weekends – Zion National Park will be offering free entry into the park on the weekends of June 20-21, July 18-19, and August 15-16, 2009. The $25 entrance fee will be waived for those days only. The fee waivers apply only to entrance fees and do not include fees for camping, reservations, backcountry permits and tours.

New passenger vehicle purchases may offer tax deductions on 2009 tax returns According to Kris Braunberger, partner with HintonBurdick CPAs & Advisors, “The Internal Revenue Service recently announced that taxpayers who buy a new passenger vehicle maybe able to deduct state and local sales and excise taxes on their 2009 tax returns.” “For those thinking about buying a new car this year, this deduction may give them a little more drive to make their purchase this year,” said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. “This deduction enables taxpayers to buy now and get cash back later on their tax returns.” The tax break is part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

Here are seven things you should know about this new deduction:

1. State and local sales taxes paid on up to $49,500 of the purchase price of each qualifying vehicle is deductible.

2. Qualified motor vehicles generally include new (not used) cars, light trucks, motor homes and motorcycles.

3. Purchases must occur after Feb. 16, 2009, and before Jan. 1, 2010.

4. This deduction can be taken regardless of whether or not you itemize other deductions on your tax return.

5. Taxpayers will claim this deduction when filing their 2009 federal income tax return.|

6. The amount of the deduction is phased out for taxpayers whose modified adjusted gross income is between $125,000 and $135,000 for individual filers and between $250,000 and $260,000 for joint filers.

7. The deduction may not be taken on 2008 tax returns.

Consumers who are considering buying a new car may find that this tax incentive means there may have never been a better time to buy.”

All of that being said… its  6/19/09…I keep these  live links  posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 19, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 74 Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 182 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/19/09 thru 6/19/09.
• 1,535 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 291 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.

Another Strange Transaction…

Well it’s been a busy week on many fronts…one of my more interesting transactions has come to an end… Mr. Buyer is looking for an REO property with a multi car garage. OK. Found it…the home was built in 2004. There is an existing tax I.D. on the property, the home has been lived in from 2004 to present. It sits in a neighborhood that has $500k – $700k homes all around.

When I went to the city of Saint George to check and see if the property had a permit pulled for what looked like a commercial paint booth in this eight car, 2,000 sq. ft. garage, not only was there not a permit for the paint booth, there was never a Certificate of Occupancy given to the home by the city of Saint George.

When I approached the city about the fact that there was indeed a home on this lot, ( a big home 5,000 sq. ft.) the person at the desk down in the city permit and zoning office, huffed at me that there was nothing that she could do. I then asked how you have a file on a home under construction that only has a pass on final electrical and nothing else?…its hooked up to city sewer, gets city power, pays the city property taxes and yet, its not there issue. Wow! Finally got the CO, only to have the lender change the terms on the loan that the Buyer was going to use…

That being the short version of some of the strange variables that happens in any given transaction…bottom line is exercise you’re Due Diligence

All of that being said… its  6/18/09…I keep these  live links  posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 18, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 74 Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 182 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/18/09 thru 6/18/09.
• 1,535 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 291 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.

Utah’s “Home Run Grant” is Going, Going…

Well it looks like Utah’s “Home Run Grants” are going, going, …158 grants left, and there gone!

Ever since being signed into law in mid-March, the state’s “Home Run” housing grant program has been committed to the distribution of more than 1,400 grants of $6,000 each to Utah state residents purchasing newly constructed, never-occupied, single-family homes and or condos / townhomes.

The demand has far exceeded expectations to the point that the Utah Housing Corp., which administers the grants, anticipates the $10 million one-time federal stimulus money funding the program will be gone by week’s end. A check of the corporation’s Web site late Tuesday showed only 158 grants remaining.

As a means to eat through the unsold new housing inventory in the state of Utah, it looks like about 84% of the grants awarded have gone to buyers of homes priced between $100,000 and $299,999. This according to the most recent Utah Housing Corp. data that was updated June 5.

All of that being said… its  6/11/09…I keep these  live links  posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 11, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 70 Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 188 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/11/09 thru 6/11/09.
• 1,527 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 284 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.

Housing Inventory Continues to Drop…

As I had mentioned in one of my more recent postings, Saint George’s MLS  inventory has been steadily decreasing over the past few months. Well as it turns out were not alone. I ran across this article in the Wall Street Journal while doing my morning reading…

“The supply of homes available for sale in 28 major metropolitan areas at the end of May was down 3.9% from a month earlier, according to figures compiled by ZipRealty Inc., a real-estate brokerage firm based in Emeryville, Calif. The ZipRealty data cover all single-family homes, condominiums and town houses listed on local multiple-listing services in metro areas where the firm operates. On a national basis over the past 25 years, inventories typically have shown little change in May from April levels, according to Zelman & Associates, a research firm.

Compared with the year-earlier month, the May inventory in the 28 metro areas was down 24%. The National Association of Realtors says about four million homes were listed for sale nationwide at the end of April. That was down about 11% from a year earlier.” Please follow this link to view WSJ Story and Graphs

All of that being said… its  6/10/09…I keep these  live links  posted for the different search criteria that I receive the most requests for.

• Southern Utah Foreclosures
• Southern Utah Adult Communities
• Southern Utah Golf Homes
• Washington City Utah Homes & Condos
• Santa Clara Utah Homes & Condos
• Southern Utah Horse Property
• Washington County Board Of Realtors Hot Sheet

This last handy little link will pull you into The Washington Country Board of Realtors MLS system. From there you can see the newest MLS listings on the WCBR MLS system as well as all price reductions…Knowledge is Power!

As of today June 10, 2009 there are currently on the Washington County Board of Realtors MLS system…

• 68 Active Southern Utah Foreclosures in Saint George Utah on the WCBR MLS system
• 179 Closed Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condo’s in St George Utah, on MLS from 5/10/09 thru 6/10/09.
• 1,527 Active Single Family Homes & Condo’s in the Greater Saint George area of Southern Utah on WCBR MLS
• 287 Southern Utah Single Family Homes & Condos in the Greater Saint George area currently under contract or “pending”

In any event its off to Twitter…I have few Twitter names, and here are two: StGeorgeHomes or EquityStGeorge. I post these same stats there if you would like to get…”Just The Fact’s” Till Tomorrow. Saint George Homes.