Colossal Cave Mountain Park is just the place to go if you want to enjoy some of Southern Arizona’s natural beauty or if you want to spend quality time with your family! Abundant in wildlife, Colossal Cave Mountain Park is a natural sanctuary to hundreds of species of birds, reptiles, mammals and infinite butterflies, beetles, moths and numerous other invertebrates! Some of the mammals that can be spotted in the park include Pack Rats, Spotted Skunks, Ringtails, Foxes, Bobcats, Raccoons, and Mountain Lions and of course, bats…hundreds of bats!

One of the reasons Colossal Cave Mountain Park is so popular with everyone is because of its remarkable diversity in such a small area. The reason for such variety in flora-fauna and wildlife can be attributed to the Park’s location. Situated in the Sonoran-Chihuahuan transition zone[/tag], the park has a large number of desert species that can’t be found anywhere else in the entire Tucson valley.

Fortunately for us, the Park is riding high along a path that has been witness to transitions of time from ancient to contemporary with respect to plants and wildlife. Over the centuries, flora and fauna population have migrated in response to the multi-layered changes in the climate, further enriching the flora of the Park.

According to the official website of the Colossal Cave Mountain Park, today the park’s plant list accounts for almost one thousand species of wildflowers, trees, shrubs, cacti and the famous desert spring blooms!

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Technorati Tags: Colossal Cave Mountain Park, Colossal Cave, Tucson

Good Morning everyone, the Tucson Association of Realtors, (TAR), has released the Tucson Housing Market sales statistics for June 2007. Here is a summary of the important points:

Sales Analysis

Average and Median Sales Price Increases
Average and median sales price both increased in June 2007. Average sales price jumped to $298,477 - up 9.05% from June 2006 and up more than $17,000 from last month! Median sales price also rose $5,500 from May 2007.

Active Listings Continue Declining
Active listings have been falling slowly since April 2007, reversing the increases we saw between January and April of this year. The number of active listings is now lower than it was at the start of 2007.

Days on Market Rises Again
Average time on market continues to fluctuate month-to-month, with 64 days being the average time for June 2007, up three days from May 2007.

Compared to the Tucson housing statistics from May 2007, June figures are very similar. The Days on Market (DOM) continues to hover around the same level, this month clocking in at 64 days. Median sales price rose to $229,000 from $223,500 in May. The number of active listings declined for the second straight month from 9,721 in May to 8,665 in June.

I think the most telling statistic, however, is Tucson’s Total Unit Sales in June 2007. Located on page 3 of the Tucson Housing Market June 2007 Statistics report, we see that the total number of sales for June 2007 was 1,226 units. The reason this is such an important factor is that historically the summer months have been the busiest few months of the year. Tucson, however, has hovered at nearly the same total unit sales level for the past four months, just around 1,300 units, which could indicate a slight stagnation in sales. The total unit sales for 2006 show much the same trend on the same graph and I believe Tucson’s July Housing report will be very telling in the status of the Tucson housing market.

As I wrote in my previous post (Tucson May 2007 Housing Report), median prices continued to rise. I believe this may occur another month or two before the summer season cools off. A large part of the decreased number of active and new listings in the market can be attributed to two things:

• unrealistic sellers who had their property overpriced
• the number of “feeler” sellers trying to see if they could still fetch high prices that were around a few years ago

So there you have it, Tucson real estate news for June 2007. If you have any questions or are in the market for a home in Tucson please feel free to contact me on my Tucson Real Estate website!

Technorati Tags: Tucson Association of Realtors, Days on Market, Tucson’s Total Unit Sales in June 2007, Tucson’s July Housing, Tucson real estate news for June 2007, Tucson Real Estate

This topic has been on my mind the past several months. When the housing market exploded a few years ago and homebuyers squeezed into homes with Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMs) with seductive initial interest rates, I said to myself, “In 2 or 3 years when those ARMs come due, there are going to be a lot of unhappy people.”

The recent follies in the sub-prime mortgage market were an omen of trouble on the horizon and in a few more months that trouble will burst onto the mortgage scene with reckless abandon. According to this latest article from CNN.com more than 600,000 homeowners will be affected by the resetting mortgage rates.

“Delinquency rates will probably peak by the end of the year,” said Doug Duncan, chief economist for the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), “and foreclosures in 2008.”

Lenders approved many borrowers who had little chance of being able to afford the payments two and three years out. They approved applications without any proof of income or assets (”liar loans”) and others that barely could make the low teaser-rate payments. Some borrowers chose interest-only ARMs, which left the principal of the loan untouched.

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Technorati Tags: Adjustable Rate Mortgages, ARMs, sub-prime mortgage

Since the start of 2007 there have been 2 deaths and 9 near deaths by drowning in Tucson. In just the past week there has been one death and 2 near drownings: 1-year old Daniela Parra drowned in an above ground pool in her backyard while friends and family were inside. A two-year old girl slipped past adults and nearly drowned in a backyard pool while other children were swimming. And a 5-year-old girl nearly drowned while swimming with adults and children. Every year we see heart-breaking stories like these that could be easily prevented and I thought it would be prudent to go over Arizona state pool laws for everyone.

In 1991 Arizona Revised Statutes (A.R.S) § 33-1681 was passed, requiring enclosures around pool areas. This is an Arizona state law but each city or county may implement additional, more restrictive laws. Check your local laws here. Here are the basics of the statute (from Arizona Department of Health Services - Residential Pool Safety Notice):

• Entirely enclose the pool area,
• Be at least 5 feet high,
• Not have openings, handholds, or footholds that can be used to climb the barrier,
• Have no openings through which an object 4 inches in diameter can pass,
• Be at least 20 inches from the water’s edge, and
• Prevent direct access from the house to the pool.

If the wall of the residence forms part of the pool enclosure, there must be:

• A barrier at least 4 feet high between the residence and the pool, or
• A motorized safety pool cover that requires a key switch and meets the American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) standards in F1346-91 (www.astm.org), or
• Self-latching devices on all doors with direct access to the pool, and
• Self-latching devices at least 54 inches above the floor on all emergency or rescue windows with direct access to the pool or pool area, and
• For all other openable windows with access to the pool or pool area, screwed in place wire more than 4 inches, or self-latching devices at least 54 inches above the floor.

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For a neat piece of Tucson history and a nostalgic fieldtrip of the mind, stop by the Fox Tucson Theatre in downtown Tucson. Located on Congress Street just west of Stone Avenue (17 West Congress), the Fox Tucson Theatre sports a glittering “FOX” marquee that takes us back to the 1930s when it was the hoppin’ place in town. A brief excerpt from the Fox Tucson Theatre website:

“For 44 years the theatre showed films primarily, but also offered occasional live entertainment until it closed in 1974. The Fox Tucson Theatre is one of a dwindling number of historic theatres still in existence in the United States and is the finest example of its kind in Arizona. In light of this exceptional status, is has been designated as a Nationally significant building on the National Register of Historic Places.”

I remember driving back and forth past this place for several years wondering when (and if) they were ever going to finish the restoration project everyone kept chattering about. In June 2002 they mounted the current marquee (a replica of the original that was destroyed as it was being taken down in 1986, 12 years after the Theatre closed) and had a re-lighting ceremony that was pretty neat to signal the beginning of the restoration project. Work continued for the next 3 1/2 years until New Year’s Eve 2005 when the offical Grand Re-Opening took place.

Currently the theatre is used for a variety of performances including such as screening old Hollywood movies, ballet performances, and various musical performances.
A few recent events of note include:

• Bollywood at the Fox
• World Aid’s Today 2006
• Puro Mexicano Film Festival
• Stephen King’s Desperation World Premiere

I stopped by the Theatre last weekend to catch 7:30pm showing of “Casablanca“, the first time I had watched it, and the Theatre was stunning. Walking under the marquee and into the lobby the Southwestern Art Deco theme is immediately evident with the funky edged ceiling accents and polished steel chandeliers and sconces. The auditorium seats over eleven hundred people on two tiers and has a beautiful mosaic-like painting on it’s ceiling that I found fascinating to look at. After the movie was over and people were shuffling out I was definitely thankful I had decided to visit.

The Fox Tucson Theatre is a great piece of Tucson history and everyone should try to stop by for an event. Like I noted above, the Theatre is used in a multitude of ways and is also available for weddings and receptions! For more neat history, a performance schedule, and reservation inquiries, visit the Fox Tucson Theatre website.

Technorati Tags: Tucson history, Fox Tucson Theatre, Bollywood at the Fox, Puro Mexicano Film Festival, Stephen King, Casablanca, Southwestern Art Deco