Predicting the future is typically reserved for roadside gypsies with crystal balls. And with good reason, the clarity, or cloudiness, of interpretation spreads wide and the facts are few. However, when playing with predictions of Phoenix, we don’t need a crystal ball to look into the future to “read the tea leaves”. The fact: Phoenix is more desirable than ever. Why? Has Pinterest really influenced us all to love the shape of a saguaro and the colors of the sunset? Perhaps. But at first glance of the low inventory of the housing market in Phoenix, it is evident the reasons are many.
Take weather for example. Yes the desert can be sweltering but when you hear the yearly viewpoint described by the Arizona State Climate Office at Arizona State University, it’s pretty idyllic: “Sunshine in Phoenix area averages 86 percent of possible, ranging from a minimum monthly average of around 78 percent in January and December to a maximum of 94 percent in June. During the winter, skies are sometimes cloudy, but sunny skies predominate and the temperatures are mild. During the spring, skies are also predominantly sunny with warm temperatures during the day and mild pleasant evenings. Beginning with June, daytime weather is hot. During July and August, there is an increase in humidity, and there is often considerable afternoon and evening cloudiness associated with cumulus clouds building up over the nearby mountains. Summer thunder showers seldom occur in the valley before evening. The autumn season, beginning during the latter part of September, is characterized by sudden changes in temperature. The change from the heat of summer to the mild winter temperatures usually occurs during October. The normal temperature change from the beginning to the end of this month is the greatest of any of the twelve months in central Arizona. By November, the mild winter season is definitely established in the Salt River Valley region.”
The ladies (and little gentlemen) of Halpern Residential took advantage of one of those sunshiney days and strolled the homes nestled along Murphy’s Bridal Path. Greatruns.com shares: “Just 5 miles north of downtown in North Phoenix, Murphy’s Bridle Path offers a pleasant, relatively shaded dirt running trail. Originally a horse trail, the path follows Central Avenue, a 2 square mile area originally developed in the late 1800s as an upscale Phoenix suburb. Some of Phoenix’s most historic homes are in this area. Olive and ash trees were added along both sides of Central Avenue with citrus trees from Southern California planted on the interior portions to make the area more attractive to new investors and homeowners.”
With no surprise, the residents of North Central Phoenix adore this “country perk in the middle of the city” and diligently preserve the feel and look. This is a great example of what can motivate someone from California, Seattle or Chicago to head to Phoenix. But we aren’t only getting buyers that are out of state, me and my family moved across the city from Mesa to North Central Phoenix just last month. With deep Gardner roots throughout Mesa and in a home we had “almost” (said by every homeowner ever) perfected to our liking, the draw to pick up and move 25 minutes Northwest was multi-faceted. On our top ten list was the Murphy Bridle Path and we were lucky enough to land at the start of the path on Central Ave and Northern Ave. My sons, Carson (12) and Calvin (9) and I typically start our morning with a jog and occasionally a detour to Karl’s Quality Bakery, a local favorite with more baked goods than you can resist! My husband, Scotty, a born and raised Mesa native, is still amazed by the proximity of incredible food; coffee shops like Cultivate, mexican food like Ladera and ice cream like Churn go in great harmony with a nightcap at Timo for a unique manhattan (old overholt rye, averna amaro, torino vermouth, black walnut bitters) that has turned into a favorite flavor of mine. Other reasons in addition to above, that made the list were:
- Trails within a five minute drive; North Mountain and Dreamy Draw
- Bike paths to Uptown Plaza and canal paths to Granada Park and Biltmore
- Three minute commute to CASA (headquarters of Halpern Residential at North&Co.)
- Downtown museums and airport ten to fifteen minutes; Arizona Science Center and Phoenix Art Museum
- Incredible people; to live here, you must be bright, you must be alive and you must be ready to connect!
- Halpern’s (a reason on it’s own!); they are living the dream (follow @themrshalpern and you’ll see their adventures) and proud to share a life they have crafted in a city they were both born and raised in
Simply put, we chose location and quality of living and took advantage of the sellers market. Jumping into the raging river of buying and selling was fast paced, yes, but scary/fearful/stressful, no. Luckily, we were armed with the most wonderful team to oversee every step of the way. After negotiating both the sale of our home (including a leaseback to allow us time to find our home without time constraints) and the purchase of our new home, Trevor orchestrated the perfect strategy and Jaci was there to implement the entire process. Now, with (almost) all boxes unpacked, our family still feels like it’s too good to be true. And although it feels (and looks) like a fairytale, we’ve yet to come across any gypsies that will predict what the real estate future will look like but based on what we’ve experienced, my guess is the desire for Phoenix will continue to rise.
Until next time, we’ll leave you with the second best resource to a crystal ball. We had the pleasure of hosting Brian North, Founder of North&Co., on Trevor’s podcast, What’s Halperning, and Brian spoke to his thoughts on what “tomorrow” looks like: