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Happy
New Year!
NOW
THAT ARIZONA IS OUR FASTEST GROWING STATE ---WHAT WILL IT MEAN
FOR SEDONA?
Let’s begin with some facts. According
to census figures for the twelve-month period ending July 1, 2006,
Nevada, after a reign of nearly two decades, has lost its crown
to Arizona as the fastest growing state in the nation. During
that period Arizona’s estimated population grew by 213,311,
an increase of 3.6 percent.
What
mainly drove this dramatic growth was the simple fact that more
people moved in from other states than left – most of them
from California. Additionally, immigrants have contributed to
the increase, along with Arizonans experiencing more than twice
as many births than deaths. (Arizona is simply a healthy place
to live!)
What
it all boils down to is this. In the old days, Arizona was
primarily a retirement haven for Midwest seniors. However,
in the last twenty-five years it has evolved into the Promised
Land for Californians seeking affordable housing, and a
brave New World of opportunity for immigrants arriving from
Mexico. Add to that the surge of out-of-state Baby Boomers
now searching for a warmer Shangri-La to retire to, and
you have Arizona’s ideal demographic success story. |
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What
does this portend for the state’s red jewel, Sedona? A smorgasbord-like
influx of new buyers who will be looking for residences ranging
from simple manufactured homes to luxurious palatial mansions.
When
will this buying tsunami begin? Most likely toward the middle
of the year. Already encouraging signs are beginning to appear.
National sales of previously owned homes rose 0.6 percent in November
following a 0.5 percent rise in October. This marks the first
back-to-back sales gains since the spring of 2005. Two other upbeat
reports show that new home sales rose 3.4 percent in November,
the third “plus” month out of the last four, while
December’s Consumer Confidence Index rose to 109.9 from
November’s 105.3.
So
if you anticipate relocating to Sedona, and have been waiting
for prices to go lower, right now is likely to be as low as they
are going to get. You can still find motivated sellers willing
to negotiate, but if you’re expecting the market to undergo
sizable reductions in the months ahead, you are probably waiting
in vain. Sedona remains a unique and desirable place to live.
Nothing can change that short of the red cliffs and buttes suddenly
vanishing.
View Sedona
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