The Tucson Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service found reasons to cheer in its July 2008 report. On the other hand, July listings under contract were at their lowest levels since July 1998.
Kimberly Clifton, this year’s president of MLS, pointed to the good news that the inventory of home listings has dropped below 8,000 for the first time since March 2008 and new listings are down by nearly 19.9 percent.
 Construction of the Ritz-Carlton at Dove Mountain in Marana continues to move toward its late 2009 opening date. In addition to the 250-room resort hotel and spa, the $500 million, 850-acre complex within the Dove Mountain master-planned community includes a 27-hole Jack Nicklaus golf course and 50,000-square-foot clubhouse complex scheduled to open in January. The complex is a collaboration among Arizona developers Cottonwood Properties and Greenbrier Southwest Corporation and the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company. |
"This is just another sign that we are continuing to see market improvement," Clifton said. "July has historically been a slower month with a decrease in sales from June 2007 to July 2007 of 21.72 percent. I am happy to report that the decrease in sales for June 2008 over July 2008 is 9.53 percent."
She said there’s been virtually no change in the median sales price, which was $199,900 in July from $200,000 in June.
The other good news, Clifton said, was Congress’ passage and President George Bush’s signing of the "Housing and Economics Act of 2008."
The July average sales price was $254,854, its lowest since July 2004 when it was $211,822.
There were just 960 listings under contract in July.
Kaman Aerospace moves to smaller space at Britannia
Kaman Aerospace Corporation, a subsidiary of Kaman Corporation of Bloomfield, Conn., signed a three-year lease for 14,459 square feet at Britannia Business Center, a 164,000-square-foot business park at 3440 E. Britannia Drive near Tucson International Airport. Kaman moved to the new location in June.
Bob Davis, Bill DiVito and Howard Kong of CB Richard Ellis represented the landlord, Britannia Tucson LLC of Tarzana, Calif.
Kaman Aerospace, which has been a tenant since 1992, operates its Electro-Optics Development Center in Tucson providing a range of specialized services, including experiment and system design, fabrication, testing, training and data analysis.
Kaman’s former 25,000-square-feet in Britannia Business Center has been absorbed by El Rio Health Center.
KB Home rolls out 5 sustainability pledges
KB Home has expanded its "My Home, My Earth" green strategy launched in 2007.
The company says its goal is to become "a leading environmentally friendly national company and to create a companywide culture of sustainability," said Jeffrey T. Metzger, KB Home president.
"We believe that the first major homebuilder to address this need comprehensively and thoughtfully, while also maintaining affordability, will have a significant competitive advantage moving forward. But we believe that our environmental effort must go well beyond marketing to consumers; it’s about making changes throughout our organization that significantly reduce waste and minimize the environmental impact of our business, simply because it is the right thing to do."
As part of its sustainability efforts, KB Home has adopted five pledges:
• Offer environmentally friendly and affordably priced homes, products and features that minimize homeowners’ carbon footprints.
• Use innovation and a process-driven approach to reduce waste and natural resource usage.
• Be an active and responsible member of the communities in which we operate.
• Be an environmental educator for all our employees, homebuyers and business partners.
• Maintain standards of transparency and corporate citizenship by publicly reporting on progress and challenges in its sustainability efforts.
Worth Noting
• Michael and Nancy Apsell leased 659 square feet of office space at 4400 E. Broadway, Suite 411, from 4400 Tower LLC, for their insurance agency. Michael Gross of Tucson Realty & Trust Co. represented the landlord in the transaction.
E-mail items for this feature to eegger@azbiz.com. Real Estate & Construction appears weekly.
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