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West University Area in Tucson Price per Square Foot

October 6, 2008

Got a call from a woman thinking about purchasing a home in the University of Arizona region in Tucson. There are many parents who consider buying a home for their child to use while going to school. So we got to talking about a few homes and local market conditions, and I figure after I’ve done all this research, I might as well share it with everyone.

The West University area in Tucson is located just where you think it’d be. West of the University of Arizona. Generally, it’s South of Speedway, between Euclid and Stone, and North of Broadway as it curves up into downtown Tucson (that includes parts of the Pie Allen and Iron Horse neighborhoods as well, but we’re not being too picky today). If there’s one thing West University has, it is charm. There’s a very distinctive style: large front patios, peaked roof lines, raised wood floors, often built somewhere around the 1920’s.

West University is also desirable in terms of location. The University of Arizona is just on the border of this neighborhood, downtown Tucson is not even a mile away, and the ever eclectic 4th Avenue has plenty of shopping and dining options, and runs through the middle of this neighborhood.

So what’s the West University market like? Do homes here hold their value?

That’s a chart of price per square foot of homes sold in West University in Tucson since 2000. Much like the rest of the market, there’s a run up in values, peaking near the end of 2006, and coming down somewhat since then. Typically, university area homes in Tucson do well in terms of retaining value as there is nearly always high demand for houses in that region. However, that doesn’t make it immune from the forces of the market in general. While there are parts of Tucson where values have plummeted, this West University area hasn’t done terribly in comparison.

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