Snowbird Season Laura Kelly Mance CRB, REALTOR® / President Long Realty 900 E River Rd Tucson, Arizona 85718 LMance@LongRealty.com Tis the season…..for Snowbirds. Whether they find our fair city while visiting the gem show or friends who have already nested here, they land as dependably as the Sandhill Cranes this time of year. I was on a plane full of them yesterday. (snowbirds not cranes) One tentatively asked if Tucson was home for me and what did I do here. Of course, a real estate conversation ensued. This was their second 10 day visit in the last 3 years and this year they plan to look for a longer term rental for next year. They’re considering staying for several months. I suggested they might also want to consider purchasing an “equity toe-hold: and renting it out the months they don’t use it. By the time we landed they had moved from renters to buyers. (Long Realty Buyers) Equity toe-hold is the expression I use to describe the first property a winter visitor buys here. They use it a few weeks or a few months out of the year and either rent it out as a furnished rental during the other months or don’t. They may never permanently 4 live in it but they now own property and a “position” in the market. If values go up their equity goes up and then they have more equity to help them get into their eventual dream home. No, 2007 wouldn’t have been a good time to buy an equity toe-hold property. But the horizon looks good these days and there’s no reason to believe values will drop. Job growth is good and our housing affordability is excellent. The short term furnished rental market is also strong. Timing is everything. It’s also a good time to get your SRES designation and those classes are available in the upcoming months here at Hogan School. I just shared one simple Buyer tip and I assure you that if you go through the coarse you’ll pick up dozens. It’s boomer season in Tucson and it pays to talk the talk. Also keep in mind that Open Houses shouldn’t be restricted to the weekends. When you’re vacationing in an area there isn’t much difference between Wednesday and Sunday. That’s two tips! Laura Kelly Mance is president of Long Realty. She’s a former branch manager, designated broker, relocation specialist and real estate sales person in Tucson, Arizona. ♦ © 2020 Hogan School of Real Estate Mar/Apr 2020
5 Publizr Home