Arizona’s historic reliance on home-building and construction jobs make economic recovery a slower proposition. Conventional wisdom holds that we will not return to those heady days, and the job base must diversify. Why care about Arizona housing if you live and work elsewhere? As global commerce and finance are increasingly interrelated and interdependent, we can’t ignore the fact that domestic issues have impact beyond artificial borders. When those regions hit most hard by the housing bubble recovery, the entire country will benefit.
A well-respected local economist, Marshall Vest of the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona, sees glimmers of hope in some recent home pricing data for the State. While values continued to drop in the third quarter, a multiyear trend of declines in Maricopa and Pinal Counties may be seeing a reversal. The potential bottoming out may also be related to a drying up of available inventory at the lowest price point. Lastly, Vest points to an apparent recovery of home values in Southern California as a ‘good leading indicator’ for our region.
And today, from a national perspective Jim Cramer posits, Has housing finally bottomed? His conclusion, supported by diminishing inventory and a belief in job creation, is that it may just have.
For more detail, read the Arizona Daily Star’s November 30th article, AZ housing market may have hit bottom. You may also be interested in PICOR’s related post, Arizona’s slow housing recovery and the multifamily impact.
Barbi Reuter, RPA oversees PICOR’s operations, research, finance and new media activities, liaises with the global services platform provided through the Cushman & Wakefield Alliance, and serves as Associate Broker. One of 13 company Principals, she is active in industry and community leadership, through such organizations as Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW), Greater Tucson Leadership, Arizona Town Hall, and board work for the Tucson Girls Chorus and PICOR Charitable Foundation. 
Photo credits: Mesquite Homes, Lyn Sims Photography
