east valley
Volume 4 Issue 52 Mesa, AZ
July 10, 2022
Valley housing market dashing toward balance BY PAUL MARYNIAK Tribune Executive Editor
T
IN THE BIZ
he Valley’s leading analyst of the Phoenix Metro housing market is predicting the entire region could see a balanced market – with supply meeting demand – by September. Buckeye is already there and Queen Creek and Maricopa should be this week, the Cromford Report said last Friday. And Mesa and the rest of the East Valley are heading toward equilibrium because of an overall cooling in the market. “Their markets are cooling rapidly and look likely to move into the balance zone within a matter of weeks rather than months. Unless the current trends change, we could be in a buyer’s market across much of Central Arizona by the beginning of September,” Cromford said. The trend is a stunning reversal for a market that began the year – and dominated 2021 – with buyers at the mercy of bidding wars, foregoing inspections or making other concessions to sellers in a desperate effort to secure a home. While a sudden flood of new listings might be welcome by prospective buyers, the Cromford Report said they may be in for more heartache – and that sellers will be grabbing their crying towels along with them. That’s partly because home prices remain at record levels and rising interest rates appear to be dousing buyers’ interest. “In summary, prices have stopped risPublic Notices ............... page 3 © Copyright, 2022 East Valley Tribune
This 9,400-square-foot house on E. Kenwood Street in Mesa, built in 2008, recently sold for $3.5 million. The two-story home has a 413-square-foot guest house, six bedrooms, a kitchen with high-end appliances, a classical theater, a wrought-iron curved staircase and a number of other amenities. (Special to the Tribune) ing but are still much higher than last year while sales volumes are dramatically lower than last year,” it said, adding that there has been more volatility with re-sales than new homes. Stating “it is predominantly the wealthy who are involved in the market at the moment” and that “most ordinary buyers are priced out,” the Cromford Report gave a gloomy assessment of the current Valley housing market. “The last two months have been dismal for the Greater Phoenix housing market, with demand fading sharply and supply growing at one of the fastest paces we have ever witnessed,” it said two weeks ago. “Either trend would have been negative but with both coming together, we have had a very chilly wind blowing through the market. (USPS 004-616) is published weekly
Mailing Address: 1620 W. Fountainhead Pkwy., Suite 219, Tempe, AZ 85282
(480) 898-6500 Steven Strickbine, publisher Paul Maryniak, executive editor
“For many weeks, we have been looking for some convincing sign of the relaxation of one or both of these trends,” it continued. “We have not found any. Instead, over the last week, the situation has turned significantly worse, at least from a seller’s viewpoint. And it is worse from both a demand and a supply perspective.” It observed last week that the market here “hit the brakes so hard it has skidded off the road” because demand has fallen sharply while listings are skyrocketing. Realtor.com, an affiliate of the National Association of Realtors, said “Affordability will continue to remain a challenge for anyone looking to buy in the current marSubscriptions are $26 for 2 years, $14 for one year. Periodicals postage paid at Phoenix, AZ 85026.
�ee MARKET page 2 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: East Valley Tribune, 1620 W. Fountainhead Pkwy., Suite 291, Tempe, AZ 85282
This 3,973-square-foot house on E. Dower Street in Mesa recently sold for $1.3 million. The five-bedroom, four-bath home in the gated Hidden Groves community was built in 2000 and boasted walk-in closets in all bedrooms, a recent contemporary renovation of the interior, and a landscape with mature fruit trees. (Special to the Tribune)
MARKET from page 1
ket, as mortgage rates and home prices are not expected to drop this year; thankfully, they aren’t anticipated to grow as rapidly or significantly as they did earlier this year, though. “One strong positive is that the number of homes for sale is likely to increase as the year continues, meaning more options for buyers,” it continued. The Cromford Report based its predictions of the trend in the Phoenix Metro market on a variety of data it uses to compile the Cromford Market Index. The figures it arrives at each of the 17 major submarkets in the Valley indicate how close each community is to a balanced market, with numbers above 100 indicating a sellers’ market and numbers below 100 favorable for buyers. For all of 2021 and the first three months of this year, its CMI showed numbers at times exceeding 500 – indicating markets heavily tilted toward sellers as supply shriveled. But the latest CMI shows a starkly different picture, with those figures falling between 25% and 42% from the previous month in 16 Valley municipalities. The only exception is Paradise Valley, where the CMI dropped only 3% but remains heavily weighted toward sellers at
232 and ranking second only to Fountain Hills, with 254. In the West Valley, Avondale registered 176 on Cromford’s market index – well below the 799 it registered a year ago this month. Glendale is now at 161 whereas in July 2021, its CMI was 495. Peoria is listed at 136, far below the 475 index rating it had a year ago. Buckeye in the last 12 months has fallen from 396 to 100. The identical trend has emerged in the East Valley. Chandler a year ago had the fourth most favorable market for sellers at 530; now, it has the 11th most favorable sellers market at 139. Similarly, Gilbert has fallen from 490 in July 2021 to 137. Mesa has dwindled from 433 a year ago to 161. Scottsdale retains a relatively high ranking for sellers, though its position has fallen from 451 to 185 in the past year. The Cromford Report noted that a wisp of panic among people trying to sell their homes before losing any advantage in the marketplace appears to be settling down. “The brighter sign is that the number of new listings over the past seven days is down from the extreme high of the week before,” it said on June 30. “At some point the seller stampede may run out of new sellers. This is not happening yet, but at least the rate at which sell-
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ers are joining the stampede is slowing.” Still, a few days earlier, it also said, “More homes are being listed for sale than at any time since 2011.” But it added, “We are not seeing forced selling, like we experienced during the foreclosure wave of 2007 to 2011. This is people electing to sell because they fear a fall in home prices. That fear is likely to be self-fulfilling. When so many attempts to make it to the exit door ahead of everyone else, people get hurt.. “We do not pretend to know how much prices will fall in numeric or percentage terms, but the latest data suggests that it is already impossible for home prices to rise under the current market conditions,” it said. “As people get more anxious to dispose of their housing assets, price cuts are growing in number and size. The very top and bottom of the market are least affected, but the mid-range, where the vast majority of transactions occur, is experiencing a big freeze. “When a buyer’s strike and a seller’s stampede occur at the same time, the market stalls in mid-flight. A price correction becomes inevitable. The Federal Reserve has stated that they want to see a ‘reset in the housing market,’ and it looks increasingly likely that their wish will come true.”
JULY 10, 2022
Public Notice CITY OF MESA MESA, ARIZONA ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ) NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City of Mesa is seeking a qualified firm or team to act as the Construction Manager at Risk for the following: Plaza Design MCP Annex PROJECT NO.LF0497 The City of Mesa is seeking a qualified Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) to provide PreConstruction Services assistance and complete Construction Services as the CMAR for the Plaza Design MCP Annex Project. All qualified firms that are interested in providing these services are invited to submit their Statements of Qualifications (SOQ) in accordance with the requirements detailed in the Request for Qualifications (RFQ). The project proposes to renovate a portion of the Mesa City Plaza (MCP) building located at 20 East Main Street in Mesa, AZ. The goal of this project is to provide inviting meeting and gathering spaces for the community, staff, and Mesa City Council. The project scope includes: 1. Demolition of MCP’s “Annex” wing (10,500 SF) located between the 8-story portion of the structure and N Center St 2. Demolition of the “South Plaza” area (19,000 SF) located between MCP and E Main St 3. Construction of a new building having a footprint of approximately 10,000 SF 4. Construction of a new “South Plaza” gathering space 5. Associated Site, Utility, and Landscape improvements The estimated range of construction cost is $20,000,000 $25,000,000. The City anticipates starting construction in January 2023. The City has entered into a professional services contract with Adaptive Architects for the programming and design of these improvements. Adaptive Architects will have a 60% submittal prepared prior to execution of the CMAR PreConstruction Services contract. The CMAR shall work closely with and be an integral part of the project team during the design and construction phases of the project. A Pre-Submittal Conference will be held on July 13, 2022 at 8 am through Microsoft Teams. If you would like to participate, please send an email to Stephanie Gishey (stephanie.gishey@mesaaz.gov) and request an invitation. At this meeting, City staff will dis-cuss the scope of work and general contract issues and respond to questions from the attendees. Attendance at the pre-submittal conference is not mandatory and all interested firms may submit a Statement of Qualifications whether or not they attend the conference. All interested firms are encouraged to attend the Pre-Submittal Conference since City staff will not be available for meetings or to respond to individual inquiries regarding the project
EngineeringBids@mesaaz.gov .Bids must be submitted as an unencrypted PDF attachment with a maximum file size of 20MB. Please ensure that your email is smaller than this before sending. Submitted bids that are unable to be opened by City staff will not be considered for award. Bidders may request a single opportunity to verify that a test email and attachment are received and can be opened by City staff. Test emails must to be sent to EngineeringBids@mesaaz. gov. Any bid received after the time specified will be returned without any consideration. A non-mandatory Pre-Bid Conference will be held via Telephone on Wednesday, July 6, 2022 at 1:00p.m. The Conference Bridge call in is 480-535-7460, Phone Conference ID #: 517 917 83# There will not be a pre-bid review of the site. This contract shall be for furnishing all labor, materials, transportation and services for the construction and/or installation of the following work: DESTINATION AT GATEWAY (BERGE) OFFSITE PAVING AND WATERLINE WILLIAMS FIELD ROAD is located near the intersection of Signal Butte Road and Williams Field Road as outlined in the Improvement Plans for E. Williams Field Road. Improvements will include approximately 2,100 LF of arterial roadway improvements including asphalt pavement, concrete curbing, concrete sidewalk, landscaping and approximately 1170 LF of 24” DIP waterline with associated appurtenances. The Engineer’s Estimate range is $1,300,000 – 1,500,000. For all technical, contract, bidrelated, or other questions, please contact Stephanie Gishey at stephanie.Gishey@mesaaz.gov. Contact with City Employees. All firms interested in this project (including the firm’s employees, representatives, agents, lobbyists, attorneys, and subconsultants) will refrain, under penalty of disqualification, from direct or indirect contact for the purpose of influencing the selection or creating bias in the selection process with any person who may play a part in the selection process. This policy is intended to create a level playing field for all potential firms, to assure that contract decisions are made in public, and to protect the integrity of the selection process. All contact on this selection process should be addressed to the authorized representative identified above. Contractors desiring to submit proposals may purchase sets of the Bid Documents from ARC Document Solutions, LLC, at https://order.e-arc.com/arcEOC/ PWELL_Main.asp?mem=29. Click on “Go” for the Public Planroom to access plans. NOTE: In order to be placed on the Plan Holders List and to receive notifications and updates regarding this bid (such as addenda) during the bidding period, an order must be placed. The cost of each Bid Set will be no more than $36, which is non-refundable. Partial bid packages are not sold. You can view documents on-line (at
scope outside of this conference. In addition, there will not be meeting minutes or any other information published from the Pre-Submittal Conference. Contact with City Employees. All firms interested in this project (including the firm’s employees, representatives, agents, lobbyists, attorneys, and subconsultants) will refrain, under penalty of disqualification, from direct or indirect contact for the purpose of influencing the selection or creating bias in the selection process with any person who may play a part in the selection process. This policy is intended to create a level playing field for all potential firms, to assure that contract decisions are made in public, and to protect the integrity of the selection process. All contact on this selection process should be addressed to the authorized representative identified below. RFQ Lists. The RFQ is available on the City’s website at http:// mesaaz.gov/business/engineering/ construction-manager-at-risk-andjob-order-contracting-opportunities. The Statement of Qualifications shall include a one-page cover letter, plus a maximum of 10 pages to address the SOQ evaluation criteria (excluding PPVF’s and resumes but including an organization chart with key personnel and their affiliation). Resumes for each team member shall be limited to a maximum length of two pages and should be attached as an appendix to the SOQ. Minim-um font size shall be 10pt. Please provide one (1) electronic copy of the Statement of Qualifications in an unencrypted PDF format to Engineering-RFQ@ mesaaz.gov by July 21, 2022, by 2 pm. The City reserves the right to accept or reject any and all Statements of Qualifications. The City is an equal opportunity employer. Firms who wish to do business with the City of Mesa must be registered in the City of Mesa Vendor Self Service (VSS) System (ht-tp://mesaaz.gov/business/ purchasing/vendor-self-service). Questions. Questions pertaining to the Construction Manager at Risk selection process or contract issues should be directed to Stephanie Gishey of the Engineering Department at stephanie.gishey@ mesaaz.gov. BETH HUNING City Engineer ATTEST: Holly Moseley City Clerk Published: East Valley Tribune, July 3, 10, 2022 / 47639
Public Notice DESTINATION AT GATEWAY (BERGE) OFFSITE PAVING AND WATERLINE WILLIAMS FIELD ROAD COM PROJECT NO. M99-2021047 - ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that sealed bids will be received until 1:00 pm on July 21, 2022. All sealed bids will be received electronically. Bids shall be submitted to the following email:
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no cost), order Bid Sets, and access the Plan Holders List on the website at the address listed above. Please verify print lead time prior to arriving for pick-up. For a list of locations nearest you, go to www.e-arc.com. Construction and installation work shall be completed within two hundred eighty-seven (287) consecutive calendar days, beginning with the day following the starting date specified in the Notice to Proceed. Bids must be submitted on the Proposal and Schedule Form provided and be accompanied by a Bid Bond, (PERSONAL OR INDIVIDUAL BID BONDS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE) for ten percent (10%) of the total amount of the Bid, payable to BCB GROUP INVESTMENTS, LLC., as a guarantee that the contractor will enter into a contract to perform the proposal in accordance with the plans and specifications. The successful bidder will be required to execute the BCB GROUP INVESTMENTS, LLC. Contract and respective Addenda for construction within ten (10) days after formal Notice of Contact Award. Failure by bidder to properly execute the Contract and provide the required certification as specified shall be considered a breach of Contract by bidder. BCB Group Investments, LLC shall be free to terminate the Contract or, at option, release the successful bidder. Payment and Performance Bonds will be required for this Work. The successful bidder, simultaneously with the execution of the Con-tract, shall be required to furnish a Payment Bond in the amount equal to one hundred percent (100%) of the Contract Price, and a Performance Bond in an amount equal to one hundred percent (100%) of the Con-tract Price. The successful bidder shall name BCB Group Investments, LLC as obligee on both the Payment and Performance Bonds and name the City of Mesa as an additional obligee on the Performance Bond using a Dual Obligee Rider form. An approved Dual Obligee Rider Form is included in Chapter 2. The right is hereby reserved to accept or reject any or all bids or parts thereto, to waive any informalities in any proposal and reject the bids of any persons who have been delinquent or unfaithful to any contract with BCB Group Investments, LLC, or the City of Mesa. BETH HUNING City Engineer ATTEST: Holly Moseley City Clerk Published: East Valley Tribune, July 3, 10, 2022 / 47XX
JULY 10, 2022
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