Meet The Forkenbrock Group

Should You Sell Your Rental Property in Mesa or Keep Renting It Out? For landlords sitting on a Mesa rental property, the sell-or-hold decision has gotten more complicated as rates and rents have both shifted. Here is what the actual numbers show, plus the tax details that too often get overlooked until it is too late to plan around them. Whether a Mesa rental is still cash flow positive depends heavily on when and at what price it was purchased. Mesa is generally considered an appreciation-driven rental market, with average single-family cap rates around 3.8 percent, and some recent investor analyses show a negative median monthly cash flow on properties purchased at today's prices and financed at current rates. Owners who bought years ago at a lower basis, or who own the property free and clear, are in a very different position than someone financing a purchase at today's price and rate. Mesa's rental market itself has been described as healthy but not hot, with average rent across all property types running somewhat below the national average, tightening inventory, and relatively stable pricing through 2026. Single-family home rents have generally trended higher than the citywide apartment average, but rent growth has been modest rather than dramatic over the past year. If you do decide to sell, tax exposure deserves attention well before closing. A rental sale generally triggers two separate taxes: depreciation claimed over the years of ownership is recaptured at a rate of up to 25 percent, and the remaining long-term gain is taxed at 0, 15, or 20 percent depending on your total taxable income, with an additional 3.8 percent net investment income tax possible for higher earners. A CPA can model your actual liability based on your specific purchase price, depreciation taken, and income. A 1031 exchange is worth exploring if you want to stay invested in real estate while deferring these taxes. It allows an investor to defer capital gains and depreciation recapture by reinvesting sale proceeds into another qualifying investment property, but it requires identifying a replacement property within 45 days of the sale and completing the purchase within a set timeline, so it needs to be planned before the original sale closes, not decided afterward. Common signs it might be time to sell include negative or break-even monthly cash flow with little prospect of improvement, a property that has appreciated significantly and could fund a larger or better-performing investment, rising maintenance needs on an aging property, or simply no longer wanting the responsibilities of being a landlord. Whether to sell or hold ultimately depends on your personal financial goals and how the property fits into your broader portfolio. A property with strong appreciation but weak cash flow may be worth holding for long-term equity growth, while the same property may be a clear sell for someone who needs current income. Running the numbers on both paths, including taxes, is the only way to compare them accurately. If you are weighing whether to sell your Mesa rental property, I would be glad to pull current market data and walk through the numbers on both paths with you. Dawn Forkenbrock, Mesa Realtor w/ Real Broker

Encanterra Country Club: What It’s Really Like Living in Queen Creek's Top Golf & Resort Community Encanterra is one of the names that comes up constantly when people talk about Queen Creek's best communities, but what is it actually like to live there? Here is a real look at the location, amenities, pricing, and who it fits best. Encanterra sits in Queen Creek, Arizona, in Pinal County near Combs and Gantzel roads, in the 85140 and 85142 zip codes. The gated community offers views of the San Tan and Superstition Mountains and sits close to Queen Creek's shopping, dining, and Banner Ironwood Medical Center. A common misconception is that Encanterra is strictly a 55 and older community. In reality, it includes both. The Country Club side, centered on the golf course, welcomes residents of all ages, while a separate Trilogy by Shea Homes neighborhood within the same master plan is age-restricted to residents 55 and older. Both sections share access to the community's resort-style amenities, though the specific clubhouse and program mix can differ by section. You also do not have to join the golf club to live there. HOA dues cover the community's general upkeep and shared common areas, but access to the golf course and full country club privileges requires a separate country club membership with its own initiation fee and monthly dues. Buyers who want to play the course regularly should budget for club membership as a cost distinct from the HOA. On pricing, recent listings have ranged from roughly $415,000 for smaller floor plans up to $900,000 or more for larger homes on premium golf course or lake lots, with many homes trading in the $500,000 to $700,000 range. Pricing depends heavily on home size, lot location, and whether the home backs the golf course or a water feature. HOA dues at Encanterra generally run about $1,478 to $1,918 per quarter, which works out to roughly $490 to $640 a month, varying by section and home type. Dues typically cover items such as street maintenance and common area landscaping, and in some sections sewer service, separate from any golf or country club membership fees. Encanterra is served by the J.O. Combs Unified School District, with Ellsworth Elementary School, J.O. Combs Middle School, and Combs High School as the assigned schools for the all-ages section of the community. Confirming the assigned school for a specific address is worth doing, since boundaries can vary within larger master-planned areas. Curious what living in Encanterra is really like for your specific situation, whether that is the golf lifestyle, the 55 and older section, or both? I would love to walk the community with you and compare current listings. Dawn Forkenbrock, Queen Creek Realtor w/ Real Broker

Top 5 Upgrades That Deliver the Highest ROI for Gilbert & Chandler Sellers Not every dollar spent preparing a home for sale comes back the same way. The 2025 Cost vs. Value Report, published annually by Zonda Media, breaks down exactly which projects pay for themselves in the Phoenix market, and which ones do not. Here are the five worth prioritizing before you list in Gilbert or Chandler. Garage door replacement tops the list. It costs an average of $5,033 in the Phoenix market and returns $12,495 in resale value, a cost recouped of 248.3 percent, the highest of any project tracked. Most Gilbert and Chandler homes present the garage door as the most prominent feature of the front elevation, since front doors are often set back behind a courtyard or covered entry, which is a big part of why this project performs so well. Steel entry door replacement comes in second, costing $2,394 and returning $4,645, or 194.1 percent. Like the garage door, it sits at the intersection of low cost and high visibility, and a fresh, well-fitted front door signals a well-cared-for home before a buyer even walks inside. Manufactured stone veneer ranks third, costing $12,190 and returning $19,613, or 160.9 percent, a return that runs especially strong in Southwestern markets thanks to how well the material pairs with the stucco, tile, and desert-toned architecture common throughout Gilbert and Chandler. Vinyl siding replacement ranks fourth, costing $15,343 and returning $19,828, or 129.2 percent, a strong return where it applies even though it is less common on Arizona's stucco-dominant homes. Rounding out the top five, a minor midrange kitchen remodel, refacing cabinets, updating hardware, replacing countertops, and installing a modern range or cooktop, costs $28,333 and returns $30,899, or 109.1 percent. It is the only interior project in the Phoenix top five, and it works because it is targeted rather than a full gut renovation. Not every project pays back the same way. Nationally, a major upscale kitchen remodel typically returns well under half its cost, and a primary suite addition or large room addition often returns even less. These can still be worthwhile for a homeowner planning to enjoy the space for years, but they are better justified by lifestyle value than resale math, and over-improving relative to a home's neighborhood tends to backfire regardless of the price tag. Ready to find out which of these projects makes the most sense for your specific Gilbert or Chandler home before you list? I would love to walk through it with you. Dawn Forkenbrock, East Valley Realtor w/ Real Broker