Sonoran Hotdog in Phoenix Az

The harmonious fusion of the American-Mexican flare of the state of Arizona is due to the close proximity of the state to the country. The Mexican cuisine and good eats has been an American favorite for decades. The tortilla, burrito, tacos, the chimichanga, fajita, chili and the margarita are just some of the loved Mexican cuisine imports.

There’s an Arizona take on the Mexican dish that has been causing a buzz – the Sonoran-style or Estilo Sonora Hotdog. Over the past decade, hundreds of stores, food stalls and carts serve this American-Mexican flare in Phoenix, AZ.

The Sonoran Hotdog is not your typical hotdog with ketchup and mustard. It takes the expression “a little bit of everything” and does exactly that. The hotdog is wrapped in bacon, a heap of beans, grilled and fresh onions, tomatoes, mayonnaise, cream sauce, mustard and jalapeno salsa, some radishes, cucumbers, whole chilies and mushrooms, depends on your preference.

Take a bite into this “American take on a Mexican take of an American favorite.” Take a bite into Phoenix, Arizona.

A Mother's Day Treat at Scottsdale AZ

This Mother’s Day, surprise the most loved woman in your life with a new and exciting treat. Living in Scottsdale makes giving a treat easy because extravagant amenities and perks at reasonable prices abound. Other than the typical chocolates and flowers, why not surprise her with a relaxing spa day, a weekend getaway, a superb dining experience with the family or perhaps a whole day treat of shopping – all this in Scottsdale, Arizona.

With the numerous spas in and around Scottsdale AZ, one need not fret at fully booked or over crowded spas. Celebrate her day with rest and relaxation with full body massages, facial treatments, a mani pedi and more at the Spa at Camelback Inn, the Golden Door Spa at the Boulders or at the Eurasia Day Spa. These are just some of the many spas in Scottsdale. For more information on Spas in Scottsdale, visit http://blog.scottsdalecvb.com/category/spas/

Scottsdale is a fashionista’s delight with the largest shopping center in Southwest US. It’s right in the heart of the city of Scottsdale AZ, and known as the Scottsdale Fashion Square. Shop-till-you-drop with a wide variety of boutiques, accessory shops, retailers and art galleries. If the Scottsdale Fashion Square is not enough, head to Kierland Commons to satisfy the shopaholic in mom.

Send mom to a much needed day or two for herself with a weekend vacation. Choose from more than 70 hotels and resorts and 200 golf courses. Scottsdale offers many options. With all these first-class services and amenities, mom will surely enjoy the weekend.

If you’re in to giving her an all out blow out this Mother’s Day, how about a piece of Scottsdale real estate consisting of a beautiful home in Scottsdale. She would definitely love a place of her own, in the gorgeous city setting and the ambiance it provides. Let the Luxury Valley Homes team help you find mom that perfect house she can call home.

She deserves nothing but the best, all these and more in Scottsdale Arizona. 

Nationally, housing prices have bottomed and are on the rise. Asking prices on for-sale homes were 1.9% higher in April than one quarter ago. A 0.5% month-over-month rise in April, on top of month-over-month price increases in March and February, makes for three months in a row of rising asking prices, after adjusting for typical seasonal trends. In fact, prices have been stable or rising for the past eight months, except for a dip in December 2011. This marks a new milestone: asking prices were 0.2% higher in April than a year ago. Before April, prices were still falling year-over-year.

Not only are rising prices starting to look like a real trend: they’re also coming to a market near you — if they haven’t already. Asking prices increased year-over-year in 44 out of the 100 largest metropolitan areas, with Miami and Phoenix leading the charge.

Why these markets? One factor is job growth, which boosts housing demand. Miami, Phoenix, Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills (suburban Detroit) and Denver all saw strong employment gains in the past year. Another factor is the big price declines after the bubble, which attracted house hunters and investors searching for bargains to those markets. Most of the metros with the largest price increases in the last year had huge price declines during the bust, including Phoenix, Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills and the four Florida metros in the top ten. But among the metros with the largest price declines over the past year, only three–Sacramento, Las Vegas and Fresno–had huge overall price drops after the bubble burst.

Note: Rankings based on the year-over-year changes in asking price among the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas.

Seattleites, take heart: in the most recent quarter, most of the metros with year-over-over price declines have turned around. Prices rose quarter over quarter in 92 of the 100 largest metros, including in Seattle, Las Vegas and Atlanta.

What You Need In The Current Market

Keys To Qualify For A Home Purchase Loan: What You Need In The Current Market

With home prices having decreased significantly, rising rents and the lowest interest rates in a generation, home affordability has dramatically increased and once again makes more sense for many potential buyers.   

As a result we have seen a tremendous increase in the amount of new buyers ready to purchase a home now. However, the main question that many of them have is what do I need, in order to be able to purchase a home in the current market? This answer will vary slightly, but here are a few things that everyone will need to be able to qualify for a home purchase currently. This is a good starting point to gauge your ability to purchase now or you need to get a few things in line before you make the move. 

1)    DOCUMENTED INCOME: In the current marketplace you will need the ability to document your income. If you work a regular job where you receive hourly or salaried pay, one month’s pay stubs and your last 2 years W-2′s will suffice. If you are self-employed or receive commissions as part of your salary, then expect to have to provide your last 2 year’s full tax returns. The bottom line however is that in the current market lenders will want you to be able to document and fully prove any income you state you receive.

2)    620 Credit Score: While credit standards are still more lenient on programs such as FHA financing or VA financing for Veterans as opposed to conventional financing, the minimum is now a 620 credit score. This is a practice that many lenders have implemented and will soon be an across the board requirement. If you score is below this level, you will be best served to begin the process of evaluating and repairing your credit score, prior to being able to purchase a home.

3)    DOWN PAYMENT: While there are a select few programs that will allow for 100% financing (Veterans Administrations Loans, USDA Rural Housing), the majority of all purchase loans will now require a minimum of a 3.5% down payment for FHA financing or 5% for conventional financing. This number increases if the property is a second home or investment property. Therefore, down payment must be saved up for most buyers prior to purchasing a home, but there are many options that can help minimize that amount. 

With home buying on the rise, these are just some of the many items to consider when purchasing a home and qualifying for a home loan in the current market. 

33132 N 72nd PL Scottsdale AZ 85266 - Winfield

Located on the Northeast side of Scottsdale is the Winfield Estates Community that rests at the base of one of the most exquisite cactus and boulder-studded mountains in the southwest. Winfield offers both Scottsdale sophistication and Carefree charm.

Winfield Estates are located in the lush upper Sonoran landscape where the residents enjoy the natural wonders of the area. The boulder outcroppings are distinctive, look closely and you can see a formation that looks like a snowman and you don’t have to experience the cold weather to enjoy it. The natural wildlife is abundant with various species of colorful birds to the Arizona roadrunner that runs like a flash to get from one place to another. You’ll see the occasional coyote and other wildlife that are indigenous to the area. If you don’t see them you might hear them serenading one another at night.

Available now in Winfield is a barely lived in Sunchaser model Town Home. 

This Sunchaser floor plan boasts three full bedrooms, two bathrooms, an eat-in kitchen, breakfast bar and formal dining room. Meticously maintained home with private back yard and very low maintenance landscaping! Enjoy all the amenities that Winfield offers, with a heated community pool and spa, clubhouse with fitness center, Standing Rock cafe, walking trails and 8 lighted tennis courts. Shopping and local restaurants are close by. A video of the community and town home has been made available for your inspection.

For more information of this and other Winfield properties go to http://www.WinfieldRealEstateArizona.com

Animal Health Services for Happy Pets

Many of us animal lovers and pet enthusiasts love and care for our animal buddies so much that we look out for the welfare of our pets like we would look out for our family and loved ones. With that said, are they not already a part of the family?

Animal health care service centers are dedicated to ensuring the optimum health of every animal companion. Centers for preventative medicine, emergency, urgent care, surgery, diagnostics, reproductive services, oncology, orthopedics, dentistry, grooming, vaccinations, boarding and more exist around the Valley.

When immediate health concerns and emergency care are needed, there are a number of centers in and around Carefree AZ that provide services and products for the well being of each pet. You’ll be amazed at the top notch services and facilities provided by centers such as Animal Health Services in Cave Creek AZ, Animal Care Hospital in Phoenix AZ and Animal Medical & Surgical Center in north Scottsdale AZ. These are a few of the centers around the Valley of the Sun that are within a stone’s throw away from your home.

Animal Health Services also cater to bereavement and grief counseling through their Pet Loss Support Group meetings for children and families that deal with the loss of their beloved pets.

Moving to Carefree AZ with the whole family and animal buddies? Visit the Luxury Valley Homes website or call us at 480 595 6412 for more information on animal-friendly subdivisions and properties.

Where to Get an Animal Companion

Numerous studies over the past 25 years have shown that humans can derive health benefits from their relationships with their animal companions. Animals can reduce human stress, improve cardiovascular health, decrease loneliness and depression, and facilitate social interaction.

With all the genuine loyalty and companionship our pet pals give us, indeed we do everything we can to reciprocate the same kind of love. Let’s work hand in hand in putting an end to animal cruelty, inhumane treatment, substandard conditions that most backyard breeders and animal mills (puppy and kitty farms) operate under.

Find a trustworthy licensed kennel and make sure that the US Department of Agriculture routinely inspect the kennels. Better yet, find the nearest Animal Shelter or Animal Rescue Centers near you.

There is an estimated 5,000 community animal shelters in the United States. Shelter intakes are either from those surrendered by their owners or picked up by animal control. Around 6 million companion animals enter animal shelter every year on average with about 3.5 million of them are euthanized.

However, about 62 percent of all households in the United States have a pet and about 20 to 30 percent of cats and dogs are adopted from shelters and rescues (Source: APPA). You’ll be surprised how animals can reciprocate the kindness you give by rescuing them.

There are numerous Animal Shelter and Animal Rescue Centers in and around Carefree, Arizona such as the Hooves & Paws Animal Rescue, Four Peaks Animal Rescue, Southwest German Shepherd Rescue, and Foothills Animal Rescue. These are no-kill rescue organizations dedicated to rescuing, adopting and attending to the special needs of abandoned, abused and unwanted animals.

There are so many means of taking part and helping out in the effort of raising awareness to humane treatment to animals, proper care and breeding of animals. Be informed and ask your local Animal Rescue Center how you can do your part.

Keep posted on our blogs for more articles on animal health care, grooming and boarding services, and hospice care.

Theodore Roosevelt Dam

Here’s a fun fact for everyone. The Theodore Roosevelt Dam, located northeast of Phoenix, Arizona is 357 feet high and impounds the Salt River creating Theodore Roosevelt Lake. It is the first major reclamation project in the West. Before the dam was built, settlers would often leave during a drought season.

Since its completion in 1911, the dam has provided a reservoir of life-preserving water for central and southern Arizona and continues to play an integral role in Arizona’s growth. Without it, most of the area would be just an arid desert.

Much of the beauty of Arizona, its dynamic cities and luxury estates is a result of the storage and distribution of water, giving and preserving life in the area. The dam also serves as a source of energy for the area, generating 36 megawatts by way of a hydroelectric generator.

Take a historic tour of the Theodore Roosevelt Dam and explore this magnificent feat that is part of the making of what Central Arizona is now.

Did you know that the Valley of the Sun uses the natural Basin and Range basin-fill aquifers to store water underground that supplies groundwater to most of the population of Arizona? Look for more on this in another Luxury Valley Homes Team article.

Looking to find some gorgeous estates in the Valley? Visit the Luxury Valley Homes for more information or call us at 480 595 6412 with your real estate questions.

Spring in the Valley, Arizona

Goodbye winter, hello spring! Aside from the excitement of the baseball season, spring brings to us a kind of joy and warmth seeing almost all the plants and flowers in blossom. Spring is the transition period between the cold frosts of the winter and the heat of the summer. It is generally equated with notions of rebirth and renewal.

Because of the visual delight flowers give us, numerous visual artists find flowers and flower arrangements a good subject.

“Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature.”
~ Gerard De Nerval

Contrary to what many believe, with some parts of the Valley covered by desert land, the Valley of the Sun is still very much enriched with flora and more beautiful in springtime. Desert plants, trees and flowers are nothing like what most people have seen.

The Sonoran Desert Preserve is bountiful with desert flora. Its colors and variety is as dynamic as the people and the Valley. Scottsdale, Phoenix, Chandler, Glendale, and Paradise Valley – each of these cities offer something unique. But what’s common to all the cities of the Valley is the unquestionable hospitality and beauty matched with affordability of the real estate market.

Gorgeous homes against stunning backdrops.

For more information on Carefree real estate, visit http://www.carefreeestates.com

So you’ve decided to buy a home versus renting. What’s next? You are now in the phase of determining if a new construction home or a previously owned home would be the right choice. To help you settle this dilemma, here are some advantages and disadvantages of buying a new home versus a previously owned home.

Previously Owned Homes

Advantages

• Changes in zoning are unlikely to occur since older homes are built in established neighborhoods.
• Mature plants, trees and vegetation.
• Authentic master craftsmanship – Many older homes that are well constructed, have stood for years, decades and even centuries. The longevity of the home somehow verifies the strength of the foundation.
• Larger lot size – Land was cheaper back then. Builders used to build homes on larger lots.

Disadvantages

• Older homes may mean more maintenance if not taken care of by former owners. More maintenance equals more cost for repair.
• Updates may be necessary for some old homes like air conditioning, heating and ventilation systems; kitchen and bathroom remodeling. Again, more cost.

New Homes

Advantages

• The feeling of fulfillment of owning something brand new. It is always exciting to own something that has never been used.
• Require little or no maintenance at all.
• Most new homes are built with a builder’s warranty giving buyers assurance that the home is built well and that the builder won’t abandon the buyer after closing or if minor defects pop up.

Disadvantages

• Immature plants, trees and vegetation.
• Tract homes – Cheaper option but floor plans are the same and homes are identical.
• Newer homes are often situated farther away from downtown. That is, if you don’t mind the longer commute.

For inquiries or more information on the Arizona real estate market visit Luxury Valley Homes site or call (480) 595-6412.