THE CURSE OF THE DECADE HOW COVID-19 IS SLOWING PHOENIX METRO MULTI-FAMILY DEAL CLOSURES
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hen the novel coronavirus was first reported in the US, there was not much panic or threat. As the virus slowly and surely crept in and spread to a better part of the country, states and the federal government rushed to implement public health measures to put the coronavirus pandemic situation under control. By the beginning of March, almost the whole of the US was under lockdown. That meant that no businesses were operating unless for those that offer essential services. The effects of the pandemic were felt in every aspect of the US economy, including in the housing market. Although in early April, Valley housing experts stated that it was somewhat early to predict how the curse of the decade would impact the housing market in the US. On the other hand, Arizona real estate experts were contending to head into the uncertain economic situation claiming that the Phoenix metropolitan housing market was well-positioned to face the storm.
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Mark Stapp, the executive director at The Center for Real Estate Theory & Practice at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University, commented that “It is very early in this process… Only in the last two weeks has there been any data to show any profound effect. You are starting to see Escrows cancel --We have about 30 days to see how this is going to play out here. The reality here is it is going to have profound impacts. It will pull things up short for quite a while. How long this lasts, and the financial ramification and how the federal government deals with it will play a ma jor role.” Before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Phoenix housing was progressing pretty well since the beginning of the year, sending an implication on the wellbeing of the housing market and promising better days ahead. When the pandemic was reported in the country, and its effects slowly spread, the narrative changed. Operations suddenly stopped temporarily as the stay-home directives took effect. Mr. Stapp states, “It is not a complete shutdown, but the agents I have spoken to say they are beginning
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