center city phoenix real estate

It's electric light parade time!

Yes, it’s that time of year. Break out the warm sweaters, knit hats, gloves and bring your thermos of hot chocolate to keep warm at this year’s APS Electric Light Parade.

This is one of those events that makes Phoenix feel like a small town to me.  It starts at 7pm some people start showing up in the afternoon  to stake out a spot.  We usually put our chairs out midday and we walk over between 6:30 and & 7:00.  When we arrive, there sit our chairs just waiting for us – like we live in Mayberry or something.  The parade starts about 7pm.  There are the usually folks selling stuff if you just must have a light parade foam finger or glowsticks shaped like Camelback Mountain.  Mostly, it’s kids and people with their kids taking in the floats.  The floats are not going to impress the Rose Bowl committee but a VW bug with lights all over it and a boom box in the trunk makes my son giggle.

My kids love staying up late, sitting in the dark before the parade begins, the fact that they are sitting in the middle of the street and, of course, the lit up cars, trucks & vans floats.

The route begins south of Bethany Home Rd on Central Ave, heads south to Camelback and east on Camelback to 7th Street turning south it ends north of Indian School Road.

I have crazy love for my little iphone and crazy love for the little apps I download from time to time.

Thanksgiving night (way past midnight) I could be found giggling to myself as I downloaded and played with my new favorite app:  Zosh ($2.99).  Zosh is not only great for a REALTOR, like me, but it’s great for clients in a real estate transaction.  As a REALTOR I can write a contract on my iphone and have my clients initial and sign the contract right there on my phone.  SERIOUSLY!!  It turns my sweet iphone into the oft-fantasized MacTablet.  The Zosh app is great for anyone who has to turn around a signature while on the go.  I can see myself using it to upload a registration form for my daughter’s next dance class in addition to many other things.  At the moment Zosh uploads only PDF files but things change quickly so keep your eyes peeled.

Zipforms ($9.99) has an iphone app too.  It’s not a consumer app but if you are a REALTOR using an iphone it’s a good tool.  It’s made great with the addition of Zosh.  Zipforms allows you to complete a “form” that will integrate into your contract forms but you can’t actually write the contract on the iphone.  Zosh lets you actually write it.

Blue Atlas 3 (Free) is a map-centric real estate search tool using Google’s real estate database.  It’s not the MLS but it’s a great way to add or eliminate properties you want your REALTOR to show you.  As a homeowner, I love to be able to see what is listed in my neighborhood, quickly and easily.

Walk Score (Free) is another big favorite of mine.  Use it to check out properties or areas you are considering (rental or purchase).  I have investors that use it to eliminate or include neighborhoods in their searches.

Zillow (Free) it’s a map-based search program that will show houses for sale and ‘zestimates’ for the nearby houses not for sale.  It uses your GPS to find your location and show you all the houses around you.  I like to use the app when I’m on vacation and curious about the gillion dollar beach houses that I’m passing by.

Trapster (Free) is many, many things.  As the name may suggest, trapster is first and foremost a speed trap alert system.  As a trapster user you can add a location to the map of a current speed trap, camera, etc.  Trapster will also show you bank, gas station, police station, fire station and school locations on the trapmap.  That’s all well and good but the ‘my trips’ function is the meat of this app for me.  The first time I used it was a long drive to Carpinteria, CA alone with my kids.  I shared the URL of my trip with Steffan and he followed along the trip with us.  We took photos along the way and sent him notes as we progressed across the desert.  It occurred to me that when starting a day of showing with my client I could open a trip and have it record our locations, we take photos of houses (or don’t – some aren’t worth the effort) and I hand my clients my iphone (or they are using their own) and they record their notes on on each house.  At the end of the day we share the URL and a record exists of what and where we ventured.  I’ve only used the ‘my trips’ function once with a client.  Their favorite part was sharing the day with family and friends who weren’t with us.

Others worth checking out: HomeFinder (using Trulia or Googlebase databases), Trulia and layar.

Happy app hunting.

Downtown phoenix truly multi-media art!

sent from my iphone

check out the Berlin Gallery at the Heard

On May 11, 2009 the US Postal Service will increase the price of stamps to .44 from the current .42.  For the philatelics among us May 11th is the day to get the latest stamp.  For the rest of us:  Buy in bulk the forever stamp between now and May 11th and save 5% on your postage.

ARMLS tech fair vendors and Hyperlinks

onboard informatics
buyer acquire
FBS FlexMLS
Arizona Republic AZ Central
Fidelity National Home Warranty
GE Supra
Listing Book
IMapp
List Hub
HomeQuest
The Wise Agent
Top Producer Systems
Send Out Cards
East Valley Tribune
Al a mode
Realtor.com
My Real Page
Academy Mortgage
Voice Pad
First American Title
Red Pear
Rebarcamp Visitymyluxuryhome.com
The Cromford Report
High-Res Media
Net Value Central

moxie girl

Speakers & Presenters

Dru Bloomfield
Jay Thompson
Nick Bastian and this one too
Jonathon Dalton
Dustin Luther
Jason Edwards

I decided to post the ARMLS Technopalooza flyer and the hyperlinks for the companies and the speakers because I NEED my hyperlinks in order to figure out who and what I’m going to spend my time on while at the Palooza.  Hope this helps some of you in the ARMLS market when figuring out your day at the Technopalooza.

This week I lost a listing.

I don’t carry a crazy number of listings in this market.  I could, but I want my listings to sell.  Inside 24 hours of taking a listing I am extremely eager to see showings, offers, hits on my virtual tours, etc.  I don’t want my listings on the market forever; frankly, I can’t afford the time or the money.  Still, it was hard to lose a listing at my client’s–not my–suggestion.  That, though, is the beauty of my listing contracts.  Either my client or I can cancel, at any time, a listing agreement with 48 hour notice.  It’s rare that I or my client have used the clause to cancel an agreement, but it happens, and it happened this week.  In this market the first 10-14 days on the market are THE days.  With our new MLS (FBS’ FlexMLS) system, re-listed properties show up as new listings (as they should) and the Sellers get the benefit of the tag: “new listing”.

It can be argued–and it frequently is–that re-starting the days on the market clock isn’t fair to the first listing agent.  Give me a break.  It’s not about the listing agent; it’s about the listing.  In our MLS, Flex gets it right.  The Agent days on market starts anew, the Cumlative Days on Market keeps tallying (unless it’s off the market for 90 days or more), but the listing shows up tagged as a “new listing” and some excitement is generated with that.  I, for one, am happy my client’s property is getting their first 10-14 days again.  While I am extremely disappointed that I didn’t get the job done, I wish the very best for my clients.  If you are in the market for a lovely home, aggressively priced in the Encanto/Palmcroft historic district, here is a link to its virtual tour.

All is not lost.  The week ended with two new listings, one contract and two new buyers.  Still…

David Foster Wallace was a man I liked very much.  I love how his brain worked and I love how it spilled onto paper.

Of course I love Barrio Cafe. What person with operative taste buds doesn’t? The last month or so I’ve tried their brunch a couple of times.  Last I saw, Barrio’s web site was billing their brunch as the “best kept secret” in Phoenix. They’re only open on Sundays for brunch – from 11-3 with a guitarist from 12-2. Pros: amazing coffee served in French press pots, tasty omelets, fantastic potatoes, salsas, sauces. Cons: the guitarist can be a little loud. If the place is busy, parking is an issue, but so far the web site’s notion that the brunch service is a secret has proven to be true. I’ve never had to wait and on my most recent visit, the place was sadly dead. I think they have their whole menu available at brunch, but their (admittedly limited) brunch offerings are quite tasty.

My brunch companion debated choosing crepes with optional lobster. He decided instead to go with something he thought was safer – huevos con chorizo. The chorizo was spicier than he was prepared for. I didn’t try it. And I admit that I was so impressed with the omelet on my last visit that I chose to go for it again on my most recent visit. I was not disappointed on my second trip. Highly recommended.

I’m a Phoenix native married to a Phoenix native raising two small Phoenix natives so sometimes I have to remind myself what I love about Phoenix during the months of June, July, August and into September. This post is as much for me as it is anyone else.

I love how completely exhausted my kids are at the end of the day. Summer days bring long play-dates, swimming and glorious early bedtimes wtih reasonable wake-up times.

I love how available my handyman is. During the summer months apparently alot of people flee this town, making my favorite handyman available for ME and those I love at virtually a moment’s notice.

I love a cold salad of fresh tomatoes, fresh corn, basil or marjoram (or anything that is thriving in my garden right now) and soft cheese. I’ve eaten this twice in the last four days and I want to eat it again now.

I love the random invitations to get out of this town and drive only a few (2-4) hours away and enjoy the cool weather of Flagstaff, Pinetop or Greer.

I love Presidential Politics – I know this reminder can only help me every four summers but I’ll take what I can get.

Anticipating my first ride on the Phoenix light rail and knowing it will be cool outside (and likely worthy of a jacket) on that fateful day.

My absolute favorite part of summer is the monsoon and the threat of a monsoon. I live nearly every day during the monsoon season thinking a storm is coming. Most days I’m wrong.