Lake Havasu Lifestyle

Saturday, September 26th is the big day here in Lake Havasu City for the amazing Fire Truck Tug and Family Safety Day.  The Fire Truck Tug, is exactly what it sounds like: a tug of war.  Teams will compete to see who can pull the fire truck 10 feet in the shortest amount of time.  Competing teams will be co-ed as well as all male and all female.  Each team will be using their brute strength to impress and entertain you while raising funds for the Special Olympics.  The fire truck to be used for the event is from our own great Lake Havasu City Fire Department.
 
Family Safety Day will be held at Rotary Community Park between 9am and 1pm.  As the name implies, this is a day in which families can have a lot of fun while learning more about safety.  There will be booths on hand with information about safety in vaious areas of your lives.  There will even be a place where you can have your child's car seat checked for safety.
 
The day will include airbrushed tattoos, a bounce house, crafts and prizes.  There will also be skate board competitions at the skate park.

*****All funds raised by the Fire Truck Tug will be donated to the Special Olympics*****

Competition forms can be found at the Aquatic/Community Center.  Registration must be notarized in order to participate.  For more information about the event or participation, call Janice Brown at 453-8686.  I hope to see you there!

Donna Ball, Always on the Ball with your Lake Havasu real estate needs 

The 4th of July is always a fun time in Lake Havasu City.  This year, Lake Havasu will be celebrating the birth of our nation with a 3-day festival.

Where: London Bridge Beach Park (next to the dog park), beginning today at 1:00 pm
When: Friday (today), Saturday and Sunday
Hours: 1:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Admission: Free

The 4th of July Lake Havasu Festival will feature live 70s rock music performed by Classic Old School and Badd Apple.  A DJ will also be on hand to play 70s classic rock.  Vendors will be on hand with a variety of wares. B oats and all-terrain vechiles will be on display.  The festival also includes a food court and Beer Gardens.

There will be a 20 minute fireworks show tonight and tomorrow night.

For more information, please visit the 4th of July Lake Havasu Festival website.

If you are visiting our fair city this weekend, remember fireworks are illegal in Arizona.

Donna Ball, Always on the Ball with Lake Havasu real estate

If you are looking for a tax credit, Lake Havasu City may just be the place for you to invest your dollars while receiving a tax credit from the state of Arizona.  Arizona residents have been given a great opportunity to help their community and to receive a tax credit.

Instead of raising taxes to help support extra-curricular school activites, the great state of Arizona is giving its residents a tax credit.  Arizona's tax law (A.R.S. 43-1089.01) allows residents to deduct up to $400 when supporting school activities.

What an innovative idea!  Instead of raising taxes to help support our schools, Arizona gives its residents a tax break.  Remember, there is a big difference between a tax deduction and a tax credit.  A tax credit is always dollar-for-dollar, which is much more beneficial to you.  At tax time, if you file jointly and owe $400 in taxes, after your tax credit is applied, you will owe ZIP!

Your donation to the Lake Havasu Unified School District extracurricular activity programs and character educations programs today, becomes your tax credit tomorrow.

You can donate any amount you wish, large or small, and the State of Arizona will match you dollar-for-dollar at tax time in the form of a tax credit.

    * $200 maximum for those filing individually
    * $400 maximum for those filing jointly

Lake Havasu High School's athletic department is saying "thank you" to all who donate the maximum tax credit allowed with a family pass to all Lake Havasu High's 2009 - 2010 athletic events.  You can donate to the athletic department or towards a scholarship for an individual athlete (not your child). 

For all of you lucky enough to live in our great city, take advantage of this great tax credit because it benefits our students, community and you.  For those of you who do not live in our beautiful sunny state, maybe it is time to think about a move!

Learn more about the Tax Credit at Contribution Online Form: http://www.havasu.k12.az.us.  For more information, you may also speak to Jackie Taylor at the Lake Havasu Unified School District office by calling (928) 505-6917.  Last year, the district raised more than $544,000 for school activities through the tax credit program.

Donna Ball, On the Ball About Lake Havau Real Estate

A few weeks ago, I posted a blog entitled Seize the Day – Lake Havasu Opportunities Won’t Last Forever.  At that time, I did not realize that there would be a Part 2.  But, after reading the latest real estate news, I found that there was good reason to write a Part 2, or "the rest of the story" (for all the Paul Harvey fans).

There is much happening on the real estate front.  So, deciding what to post today was rather difficult.  I decided to post what I believe is the most urgent news and disappearing opportunities for Lake Havasu home buyers:

* Interest Rates are UP!
* First-Time Home Buyers Tax Credit - Time is Running Out

Interest Rates are UP

* Wall Street affects Main Street once again - Treasury Yield Bonds are causing interest rates to rise.
* Interest rates have jumped in the past 3 weeks from all-time lows to today's current rates.

~April rates were as low as 4.75%
~May rates were as low as 4.91%
~Today's Arizona rates are 5.375% - 5.875%

In my first Seize the Day post, I made the following statement: "seize the day – take advantage of the opportunity to get the lowest interest rates in 40 years!"

o Unfortunately, that day may already have passed.
o Rates are still lower than last year's rates (6.5%).
o Following a quick rise in rates, many times there is a fall back.  However it is very unlikely that rates will fall below 5%.
o Higher interest rates mean higher mortgage payments.
o Higher interest rates mean qualifying for a lower sales price.
o Buyers have lost more than $13,000 in purchasing power in less that two weeks.

First-Time Home Buyers Tax Credit - Time is Running Out

* Escrow must close on or before November 30, 2009 to qualify for the tax credit.
* Loan processing times have, in some cases, increased due to underwriter scrutiny.  Don't wait too long.

Tax Credit Advantages

o Dollar-for-dollar credit.
o Any unused portion will be refunded to the taxpayer.
o Can be used as a down payment and/or to pay certain loan fess when using FHA financing.

Seize the day – the opportunities to buy Lake Havasu real estate at today’s affordable prices will change.

* Today's median price is $153,000  while, in 2008, the median price was $255,000.
* Today's median price is $153,000, up $3,000 from a month ago.

Seize the day – the opportunities to choose from a large inventory of homes in Lake Havasu will disappear.

* Lake Havasu continues to see a drop in the number of homes on the market.
* April 2009 Inventory: 1,022 homes
* May 2009 Inventory: 969 homes
* Today's Inventory: 934 homes

Seize the day – the opportunity to take advantage of today’s buyer's market will not last forever.

* The market is stabilizing nationally.
* The market is stabilizing locally.
* The economy is expected to recover in the fourth quarter.
* The foreclosure rates are still extremely high, but the numbers are beginning to decrease.
* The real estate market is expected to make a full recovery by 2011.
* As the market stabilizes, inventory will decrease.
* As the market stabilizes, home sales prices will increase.

It is time to forget the doom and gloom.  It is time to seize the day.

Donna Ball, Always on the Ball with Lake Havasu real estate

Related Articles:
Lake Havasu is Getting Hot – Real Estate Sales Up Again
Getting Off the Fence – Home Sales Up in Lake Havasu
Lake Havasu Association of Realtor Stats for May 2009

The weather is not the only thing getting hot in Lake Havasu City.  So is the Lake Havasu real estate market!  April saw a 40% increase of sales over those in April of 2008.  In addition, there are about 320 homes that are reported under contract.  Closed sales for 2009 are fast approaching the "500 homes sold" mark.
 
Sales activity began to change in Lake Havasu around October of last year.  Since then, sales have consistently been on the upswing over sales activity in 2008.  Every month this year has also seen an increase in sales over each prior month.

    * January 2009: 79 homes sold in Lake Havasu; a 29.5% increase from 2008, when only 61 homes sold.
    * February 2009: 93 homes sold in Lake Havasu; a 7% decline from 2008, when 100 homes sold.
    * March 2009: 137 homes sold in Lake Havasu; a 31.7% increase from 2008, when 104 homes sold.
    * April 2009: 140 homes sold in Lake Havasu; a 40% increase from 2008 , when 100 homes sold.
 
According to the Lake Havasu Association of Realtors database, there are 1004 residential properties available on the market in Lake Havasu City.  This would indicate that the excess supply of homes is beginning to dwindle.  Only 87 of those currently for sale are listed as foreclosed properties.  There are approximately 265 homes under the median home prices of $153,050.
 
Inventory is decreasing.  The foreclosure market is declining.  Sales are up.  Things are getting hot here in Havasu!

Donna Ball is "Always On the Ball" with all your Lake Havasu real estate needs!

Many of Lake Havasu's streets will be resurfaced in the next two weeks.  In fact, over 10 miles of the city's streets will be resurfaced beginning next Tuesday (May 5th).  If your street is scheduled for resurfacing, you should have already received an advance notice from the City.  A second notice will be sent 24 hours before the resurfacing work begins on your street.
 
Resurfacing streets means delayed travel for all of us, so add a little extra time for any commutes you are planning in the next two weeks.  There are over 425 miles of streets in Lake Havasu City, so planning an alternate route should not be too difficult if you are familiar with the city.
 
All of the streets being resurfaced will be open to traffic.  Construction zones will be marked, so look for the signs.  Slow down in construction zones, as some lanes may be closed and access may be restricted.  Be on the lookout for the construction guys with flags.  They will be assisting you in navigating our streets safely.
 
Resurfacing our streets may be a little annoying when traveling, but it keeps our long term traveling much safer and more pleasant.  In addition, it keeps property values up.  So, take a deep breath, slow down a little and enjoy the positive side of our street improvements.
 
Questions regarding construction zones are being directed to Harry Brown at (928) 855-3377.

Donna Ball, Always "On the Ball" with your Lake Havasu real estate needs!