Arizona's Hundred-Year Answer to a Thirsty Future
It is fair to ask whether it’s wise to buy a home in Arizona when the state's apparently running out of water. With the Colorado River in the headlines so often, it’s a common refrain. But surprisingly, according to the Arizona Department of Water Resources, the state uses less water today than it did in 1957, when only a fraction of today’s population lived here. This is largely because farms, which still use about 72% of the state’s water, have cut back by farming fewer acres and using methods like laser-leveled fields that spread irrigation water more evenly.
In a 7% Market, Home Builders Are Selling Stability
There's some supposedly sage advice that says "marry the house, date the rate." The idea is to buy the home you love now and refinance when rates drop. This is the type of thinking that gets good people into bad marriages.
A New Construction Home for Every Season
Right now, some of the best deals in the valley are coming from builders, and there's a plain reason why. Unlike an individual seller, who can simply wait for a better market, builders have finished homes sitting empty, and every month one goes unsold costs them, so they compete for buyers in ways a single homeowner rarely will. For you, that most often means a lower monthly payment, which is the benefit almost every buyer feels first. What it solves beyond that depends on who you are and what's standing between you and the home you want.