Many of my clients have asked me to talk about what I think of the present day real estate climate.  I have hesitated to write because I find it perplexing. Although I do not find an abundance of homes on the market in the prime Foothills zip codes of 85750 and 85718, it is clearly a buyers’ market.  As a listing agent, I have found the quality of the people who visit my listings is not as good as it has been in the past few years: many do not have their homes on the market yet, or have not made the decision whether or not to call Tucson their home. The forecasts have been for prices to drop approximately 5% in 2007, but I find the 5% drop has already occurred. Time will tell if there is a further drop. The houses that are selling are the ones that are the very best in their price range and are priced aggressively.  Another factor that has hurt the market is the rising interest rates which hover close to 7%.  The good news for the Foothills zip codes is that many that work at major employers at Raytheon and U of A are ruling Oro Valley out since the commute is so long with all the I-10 interstate work going on.  Oro Valley is gorgeous and is priced lower and has been a major competitor to zip codes 85718 and 85750. June and July are the major sale months for two-story homes since they attract more families with school -age children.  One-story homes are attractive to both families and empty -nesters or second home purchasers; the months for selling for one -stories include the Winter months. I will try to keep my readers posted on our market and will continue to give you my straight-forward assessment.