REAL ESTATE

From Uptown to Downtown, we cover Chandler like the sun

Real estate and Arizona’s physician shortage

BY DR. BRUCE LEVIN Arizonan Guest Writer

The United States will be facing a severe shortage of physicians – between 54,100 and 139,000 doctors – in just over a decade.

State Rep. Joanne Osborne said, “Arizona’s physician shortage is even more acute, ranking 42nd in the country for active primary care physicians, at 77.9 per 100,000 population.” At this rate, the state only meets just 44 percent of our primary physician needs, according to estimates.

Due to this severe shortage, the Osborne introduced a bill to try and tackle the shortage of homegrown talent. Money from this bill, if approved, would be used for several key initiatives, including increasing recruitment of outof-state physicians because of the shortage of medical residencies and fellowship programs in Arizona.

As a physician and Realtor, I have seen a surge of out-of-state physician residents and full-time physicians who are being heavily recruited to Arizona.

The scenario is a familiar one for me as I did this myself in 2003 when moving from the Philadelphia area. I understand that doctors’ needs are two-fold including both residential housing and a medical office. Knowing what type of office space a physician needs, including the size and number of treatment rooms, waiting room area, ADA requirements, and even sometimes additional space for more sophisticated laser and ultrasound equipment, is vital.

To help make this process easier on my clients, I also coordinate closely with commercial agents in my office to find appropriate office spaces to meet individual doctor’s needs.

Residential needs can be addressed at the same time by an agent that knows what doctors need in a home – especially now with the increase in telemedicine and the need for a proper well-equipped home office.

Other important considerations for incoming physicians include the need for prime home location near enough to reach emergency rooms, hospitals and the office for convenience and highquality patient care, as well good schools for their children, privacy away from the office, and other unique requirements of doctors and their families.

Arizona legislators are planning to hopefully build and fund more medical schools and expand existing programs and residency positions in Arizona. Until then, it’s critical to create the pathway for out-of-state physicians and residents as smooth as possible to find housing and medical office leasing space.

With Arizona, and particularly Maricopa County, being one of the fastest growing population areas in the country, certainly there is no doubt physicians in increasing numbers will be needed to fill Arizona’s severe physician shortage.

Dr. Bruce Levin is a physician and RE/ MAX Fine Properties agent. Reach him at 602-614-2767 or blevin@fineprop.com.

Intel expansion likely to heat up housing market

BY EUGENE QUACKENBUSH

Arizonan Guest Writer

Intel, the U.S.-based semiconductor chip manufacturer, recently announced big plans to invest and expand its footprint at its Chandler-based power plant. The company is dedicating $20 billion to construction for two new facilities, bringing over 21,000 job opportunities to the area. With this influx of jobs, many experts are saying the estimated three-year project will inevitably affect the residential real estate market within the East Valley.

Despite Chandler’s population of just over 250,000 people, the city has only been averaging 350 active listings per month that are on the market for a short 23 days.

Last month, the average home in Chandler was about $257 per square foot, bringing selling prices to around $564,000. Chandler has had a steady price increase within the last five years. However, with the projected job influx from Intel, the prices are predicted to increase rapidly.

Currently, Chandler ranks #11 in terms of price per square foot – behind Paradise Valley and Scottsdale – but this demand could cause a spike.

Chandler won’t be the only city in Arizona affected by this influx. The real estate market in the Phoenix Metro area is currently very competitive, and prices are at record highs.

Valley home prices are up approximately 18 percent over this time last year, and Phoenix continues to be listed as one of the cities in the U.S. with the highest year-over-year gains.

The Valley is down to an extremely low inventory with just under 12,000 homes on the market. In a regular market, we usually have a six-month supply, so the market is drastically short of a typical resale inventory.

This demand will eliminate the resale home infrastructure and will ultimately drive new residential construction sales. While these new homes will help alleviate part of the housing crisis, another issue arises: the lack of developable land.

Gilbert and Chandler are quickly reaching build-out capacity, and in the surrounding area, Mesa is the only city left with land left to develop; in far east Mesa, there are large tracts of state land that could be used for residential development.

With the inventory of homes for sale falling short, Intel will drive rental demand, but the outlook on rentals is grim. Typical rental rates used to fall around $1.45 per square foot in 2020, but rental rates have shot up in recent months, reaching about $1.75 per square foot.

Inventory has reached an all-time low, with limited rentals available in popular neighborhoods. Build-to-rent is the new trend in the Arizona market, and developers are constructing new single-family homes at a rapid pace, but the projects in the pipeline aren’t enough to support this uptick in demand.

With Intel adding demand, the real estate market will likely remain hot. We saw homes in Chandler appreciate more than 25.3 percent year over year and with all these factors considered, it will likely continue to rise.

Eugene Quackenbush is a Valley broker and founding Opendoor employee who helped create getyournest.com.