THE PRESERVE

The Preserve, Scottsdale, AZ

Located in North Scottsdale, the Preserve is a gated community of 143 homes built by Monterey beginning in approximately 1998.  Currently, there are 9 homes for sale.  The prices range between $898,500 and $650,900.  Two of the nine are short sales.  One is lender owned.  In 2007 the price per square foot was at a high of $287.41.  The most recent lender owned property sold for $168.68 per square foot. 

The reason I like this community is that it is small and the homes are well kept.  The HOA is not as restrictive as some.  The location is nice and quiet.  Far enough away from the craziness of Desert Ridge and the 101 as well as the new shopping at City North and Scottsdale 101, yet close enough to get there in a reasonable amount of time.  The lots are larger than most subdivisions and many have NAOS property surrounding the home(s).  A good deal of the buyers for our community are move-up buyers from the neighboring communities of Tatum Highlands or Tatum Ranch.  However, we have attracted out-of-state and Canadian buyers as well.

One of the most recent sales was an REO (bank-owned) property which sold for $516,000.  Keep in mind that the bank doesn’t care about comps, they just want their money.  The new owner is in the process of moving in and has already put some money into the house with painting, yard clean up and new carpet. The home does not have a pool and the backyard needs landscaping.  This was a steal for this buyer, but the home definitely needs work. 

The real estate market soft due in part to the fact that there are so many homes for sale in the Phoenix metropolitan area — more homes than buyers.  While there are fewer short sales and REO properties, right now most buyers are looking for those bargains.  So, if you don’t have to sell, you should wait until the marketplace gets stronger.  I don’t think we’ll ever see the craziness of 2005, but I do believe we will see some of the value come back into our homes.