DAILY TOP 5

Apartment searches recently reached their seasonal peak for the summer, and Scottsdale stands out as the most attractive city in Arizona for renters. That’s according to RentCafe’s midyear renter engagement report, which looked at current and historic search volume and interest, as well as change in overall availability. RentCafe used that data to create what it calls a “REnT Score” — a renter engagement tool based on millions of website interactions. Scottsdale ranks

A new ranking of America’s fastest-growing affordable suburbs is giving a better idea of just how influential the Phoenix Metro is on the national stage. Four Metro Phoenix suburbs — Maricopa (#9), Buckeye (#15), San Tan Valley (#16), and Goodyear (#26) — rank among the fastest-growing and most affordable suburbs with home values under $500,000. Using data from Zillow and the U.S. Census Bureau, the study highlights suburbs with strong population growth and home

PHOENIX – An Arizona-based conservation group is suing the state’s water resources director over concerns about a large housing development in Cochise County. The Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit against Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) Director Tom Buschatzke on Aug. 4, citing concerns that the city of Benson’s groundwater supply is below the standard for new housing as required under state law. At the center of the complaint

For quite some time now, just about every story about the housing market in the Valley of the Sun has been about prices going up, with almost no end in sight. But, recent numbers show that’s finally changing — a bit. The median home price in the Valley has been going down this summer and could continue on that trajectory going forward. Why? It has to do with classic supply and demand, and metro Phoenix realtor Camille Hartmetz says for the first time

U.S. commercial property prices posted consecutive year-over-year gains in June and July, marking the first such two-month stretch since mid-2022, according to MSCI. The data suggests that sentiment across the sector may be shifting after several years of broad declines. MSCI’s RCA CPPI National All-Property Index rose 0.9% in July compared with the same month in 2024, and

Phoenix ranks fifth nationally among the markets with the largest share of the top 100 industrial leases in the first half of 2025, according to a new report from CBRE. Phoenix had four of the top 100 leases, totaling 2.2 million square feet, with 24.4 percent of its transactions being renewals in the first half of 2025. “Given Arizona’s business-friendly environment, deep and diverse labor base

Buckeye is the latest fast-growing Valley city looking to ramp up employment opportunities closer to town, with plans for a major industrial employment corridor in the works. On Aug. 26 Buckeye City Council will discuss a request to annex over 1,900 acres of agricultural land near Verrado Way and MC85 to lay the framework to turn the area into an industrial hub housing advanced

Consumers are increasingly concerned about the state of the economy, and that is affecting yet another real estate sector — student housing. Rent growth in the sector slowed to just 0.9% in July across 200 colleges surveyed by Yardi. The average advertised asking rent fell to $905 per bed, a 1.4% decrease from the $918 peak in March “as operators struggle to lease remaining

Mortgage interest rates have stayed flat this week. The average 30-year fixed rate hasn’t changed at all and is 12 basis points higher than this time last year. This could leave potential home buyers wondering, “Is this a good time to buy a house?” Now could be a good time to buy, as far as interest rates go, because experts don’t expect rates to plummet before the end of the year

Millions of square feet of new commercial development could rise in north Phoenix. The city of Phoenix is pursuing a development agreement with Minnesota-based real estate developer Mortenson for a site of prime desert land formerly eyed by the Phoenix Coyotes for a proposed hockey arena. In June, Mortenson placed the winning bid in an Arizona State Trust land auction, paying $136 million for the 217.16-acre site located west of North

Buckeye is the latest fast-growing Valley city looking to ramp up employment opportunities closer to town, with plans for a major industrial employment corridor in the works. On Aug. 26 Buckeye City Council will discuss a request to annex over 1,900 acres of agricultural land near Verrado Way and MC85 to lay the framework to turn the area into an industrial hub housing advanced manufacturers, data centers, battery storage facilities and other similar users

Developers following population growth are building rentable houses in these areas. Once a niche segment of the housing market, build-to-rent developments of townhouses and single-family houses have rapidly gained traction across the United States, with the Sun Belt emerging as a clear epicenter of growth. Fueled by population growth and the availability of land in these areas, as well as the escalating cost of homeownership, demand for build-to-rent

The U.S. government has struck a deal with Intel Corp. to take a nearly 10% equity stake in the company, the White House and the California-based chipmaker announced Friday. Under terms of the deal, the U.S. government is agreeing to invest $8.9 billion for 433.3 million shares of Intel’s stock at $20.47 per share, equating to a 9.9% stake in the chipmaker, according to a company release. “As the only semiconductor company that does leading

Phoenix has seen labor growth expand so far in 2025, while job growth and housing permits face headwinds, according to an analysis from the Eller Business Research Center. Exhibit 1 presents current Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler MSA economic indicators. In June, the non-seasonally adjusted civilian labor force within the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler MSA (Phoenix MSA) grew by a notable 1.8% compared to the previous year, reaching a total of 2.8 million individuals

Eight cities in metro Phoenix are among the top 10 municipalities nationwide with the strongest economic growth. An Aug. 20 study released by Coworking Cafe shows the Valley saw an incomparable surge in economic growth between 2019 and 2023, with eight locations in the top 10 across three population sizes. During that time, the metro had a 25.8% increase in roadway miles, GDP grew

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell hinted Friday that the central bank may cut interest rates in September — a shift that could give the housing market a much-needed boost. At a symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Powell warned of persistent inflation and said the labor market could weaken further. “The balance of risks appears to be shifting,” Powell said. “While the labor market appears

Commercial property sales in the $5 million to $25 million range are showing resilience in 2025, and one sector in particular is defying expectations. According to Green Street’s latest analysis, overall deal volume in this price bracket rose 3.5% in the first half of the year, climbing from $43.7 billion in 2024 to $45.24 billion. But it was office

What looked like an alarming trend of rising Arizona layoff announcements has eased considerably over the past month. Two statewide employers reported layoffs totaling more than 100 people over the 31 days through Aug. 17, down from seven large-scale layoff announcements over the previous 30 days. But the larger of the two announcements, a cut of 1,467 positions by Southwest

Another prominent Valley office building has traded hands. Arizona real estate investor David McHenry has closed on the purchase of a two-story property at 8700 S. Price Road for $7.26 million, according to an Aug. 20 announcement. The 132,000-square-foot building, which was once home to Arizona tech giant Avnet Inc., is located within the tech-focused,

Once a niche segment of the housing market, build-to-rent developments of townhouses and single-family houses have rapidly gained traction across the United States, with the Sun Belt emerging as a clear epicenter of growth. Fueled by population growth and the availability of land in these areas, as well as the escalating cost of homeownership, demand for build-to-rent

Commercial real estate investors are facing a complex environment as persistent uncertainty around Treasury yields clouds key decisions about deals, valuations and capital strategies. Ivy Zelman, founder of Zelman & Walker, addressed this uncertainty in a wide-ranging discussion with Willy Walker, CEO of Walker & Dunlop, about housing sector fundamentals and their broader implications

America’s housing shortage grew to an all-time high of 4.7 million units, according to a new Zillow® analysis of recently released Census data. This deepening housing deficit remains the prime driver of the nation’s housing affordability crisis. In Metro Phoenix, the housing shortage hit 98,703 in 2023, an analysis shows. Construction boomed in response to high demand and price growth during

The developer of a $650 million project to build Arizona’s tallest tower won’t break ground in 2025, after all. Originally projected to break ground during the second quarter, the project is getting pushed back to potentially break ground in downtown Phoenix by the back half of 2026. Aspirant Development, developer of the Astra, is still working on finalizing

Smaller commercial real estate transactions are showing signs of renewed strength, even as overall activity remained below the market’s peak three years ago. According to data from Green Street, sales of properties priced between $5 million and $25 million totaled $45.24 billion in the first half, a 3.5% increase from $43.7 billion during the same period in 2024. While deal