Getting Better
Last month I commented on the amount of new construction I saw on my summer vacation to Colorado, Seattle and San Francisco. While Sedona does not have the same vibrant real estate market as those two large metropolitan areas, there’s still a lot happening in our little town. The former Lomacasi Resort at the mouth of Oak Creek Canyon sold last month for just over $4M and what a beautiful piece of property it is with lots of mature trees and creek frontage; if the new owners decide to redevelop the property then it should be a stellar addition to our hospitality offerings.
Speaking of hospitality, the new Marriott Courtyard hotel at the western gateway to town, next to the high school, is advertising for staff and looks to be within a month or so of opening. This part of town is where most of the growth and new construction is taking place as it’s the only area where there are larger parcels of vacant land on which to build anything of much size. There’s also a new 6,000+ square foot office building in front of city hall coming to completion and the City of Sedona just purchased the former Board of Realtors office on the east side of them – presumably for future expansion.
Further east still, the new CVS drugstore at SR 89A and Airport Road also appears to be close to opening with “Now Hiring” signs out and the curb cuts and landscaping going in as I write. It doesn’t appear as if it will impact the neighbors’ views too much so that was a good compromise between competing interests. Just down the hill at the corner of SR 89A and Brewer Road, Coldwell Banker is also getting ready to do a major interior remodel after 30 years in business at this location. All of these developments speak highly of people’s confidence in our local economy and if The City’s transport study comes up with some good ideas we should be able to mitigate the impact on travel times around town.
Another bright spot in the local real estate market is vacant, residential land sales which have been underperforming for years. This last three month period has seen a total of 43 sales in Sedona and another 13 in The Village of Oakcreek – the strongest performance since before the “crash” in 2006; price increases should follow if inventory continues to be absorbed at this healthy pace.
This month’s Real Estate Review was written by Andrew Brearley….
