July 10, 2009 by donna.

It is very fortunate that Sabino Mountain is located minutes from Canyon View Elementary and Esperero Middle School, and it is only a 15 minute drive to Catalina Foothills High School. Catalina Foothills-District 16 Schools rate as the best in the state and they have the highest test scores in Tucson. These schools are fairly new, have smaller class sizes than the norm and are located in spectacular Foothills settings. Until last year, the children at Sabino Mountain were forced to attend the Tucson United School District Schools and open enrollment was not an option. I believe the change in policy allowing for the open- enrollment to Catalina Foothills Schools has increased the attractiveness of our community, and therefore, has increased the number of sales in Sabino Mountain.

Catalina Foothills - District 16 administrators have made it clear it wants more students open-enrolled to increase its tax funding. Since many Sabino Mountain parents now open-enroll their children in Catalina Foothills schools, it is likely that it is easy to form car pools since Catalina Foothills Schools do not offer busing to our neighborhood. Additionally to serve working parents and to keep active kids busy, Catalina Foothills after-school programs are inexpensive and excellent.

No longer does Sabino Mountain have to take a back - seat to other Catalina Foothills neighborhoods due to it being districted for TUSD. This is great for all of us; the home values increased the day open-enrollment became possible a little over a year ago. It is no longer a secret; the word is out and most real estate agents that are well-versed pass this information on to their clients that have school-aged children.

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July 6, 2009 by donna.

It goes to show that reasonably priced homes are selling in Sabino Mountain. 4326 N Sunset Cliff Drive, a 2,074 square foot one-story Monterey-built home closed escrow the end of June for $323,500.

There are only a few more that are reasonably priced. I certainly hope that all of the homes listed for sale in Sabino Mountain that are over-priced either reduce the price of their homes or take them off the market. Many over-priced listings just bring the overall value of the homes of the community down. After all, it is a supply and demand issue and having too many homes on the market decreases the demand.

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July 2, 2009 by donna.

Here are the 6 homes that have sold during the first half of the year:
$370,000 2,684 square ft, Monterey 2 story
$375,000 2,236 square ft, Pepper-Viner 1 story
$383,500 2,936 square ft, Monterey, 2 story (Short Sale)
$418,000 2,708 square ft, Pepper-Viner 2 story
$1,000,000 3,398 square ft, TRS custom-built, ridge-top home-builder’s home
$1,250,000 3,923 square ft, custom-built, ridge-top –home sold by me.

There are 2 under contract, both located on Sunset Cliff Dr., built by Monterey:
one list -priced at 335K that is a one-story 2,074 square foot home; the other is list- priced at a range price of 390-410K and is a two-story home that is 2,904 square feet. Final sales prices will be posted once they close escrow.

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July 2, 2009 by donna.

There were two ridge-top homes on Quail Canyon that were priced at $1,299,000 and $1,335,000 that expired the end of June. The owners did not renew their listing contracts. This is good for Sabino Mountain! It is never good for a community to have too many homes for sale with most that are listed for sale at prices that are higher than fair market value.

For the first six months of the year the sales have been good at Sabino Mountain versus other Foothills communities, but with most that are now listed for sale being priced above the market, it is unlikely that many will sell for the rest of the year. Of course, there will be others who will decide to list their homes for sale in the future, and as long as they list their homes at fair market value, they will likely sell!

I still see a few for sale at fair market value and they can be found on Boulder Canyon and Black Rock Drive. There is one smaller Pepper-Viner home listed for sale on Saddle View that is priced well, but it needs work.

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July 1, 2009 by donna.

Yesterday 4192 N Sunset Cliff Drive closed escrow with a final sales price of $370,000. This model-perfect home is a Monterey, two-story home with 2,684 square feet. It has a delightful spa in the back and it was a former model that is filled with many luxurious upgrades. What a tremendous deal! The previous owners paid $525,000 in July 2006 near the peak of the market. A job transfer brought the Sellers back to Scottsdale where they figured the prices were even better there than here, so all and all, they made out. I am happy for them!! It is great when Sellers who lose out here, make a net gain someplace else!

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