Good morning, Scottsdale. An Extreme Heat Watch kicks in Wednesday morning, with highs climbing from 108 today toward 111 by midweek and 110 to 114 possible, so run errands early and check on older neighbors.
- 🏠 The median Scottsdale home sold for $932,500 last month, up about 4% over the year.
- 🎂 The city turns 75 this year. A history breakfast Tuesday leans into it.
- 📅 This week: library builds, a senior job seminar, and a community chat over coffee.
- 🌃 Old Town and the arts: two new shows at SMoCA and Piper Theater Friday night.
- 🎸 Around the Valley: Bob Dylan, Jon Anderson, and a heavy metal co-bill.
Where the housing market sits
Scottsdale prices are still ticking up year over year, but homes are sitting longer than they did in the frenzy years.
Key facts (May figures):
- Median sale price: $932,500, up roughly 4% from a year ago.
- Homes sold: 563.
- New listings: 555.
- Median time on market: 76 days.
Supply and demand are running close to even: 555 homes came on the market while 563 sold. The number that tells the real story is the 76 days. A typical Scottsdale listing now takes about two and a half months to close, a slower pace than the bidding-war stretch of a few years back, even with prices still inching higher. Buyers have a little more room to think; sellers are pricing for patience.
What to watch: whether the midweek heat slows new listings into July, and where the next monthly read lands. The numbers.
The week ahead
Monday
Tuesday
- ☕ Breakfast with a side of Scottsdale History. Historian Joan Fudala walks through the people and moments that shaped the city, at Western Spirit: Scottsdale's Museum of the West on Marshall Way. 7 AM. Details.
- 💼 Job Strategies for Seniors and Retirees. A seminar for older job seekers re-entering the market, at Granite Reef Senior Center. 8:30 AM. Details.
- 🗣️ Cafécito. A free, bilingual social meetup to talk over neighborhood topics, on East Osborn Road. 10 AM. Details.
Around Scottsdale
🎂 Scottsdale is marking its 75th birthday. The city incorporated in 1951 with about 2,000 residents and now sits near 245,000. The story runs back further, to Winfield Scott's 1888 land buy and the 1894 newspaper typo that gave the place its name, then to the 1947 "West's Most Western Town" tagline that set the Old Town identity still in use today. Tuesday's history breakfast (above) is a good entry point. The full story.
🗞️ A resident Q&A; with Joan Fudala. The longtime city historian behind Tuesday's breakfast talks about how she landed on Scottsdale's past and what residents tend to get wrong about it. Read it.
🌃 Old Town & Nightlife
Bars, music, galleries, and what's on at the resorts this week. Two picks land Friday.
🎨 Summer Break @SMoCA. An after-hours evening at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art in Old Town. Friday, 6:30 PM. A cool room on a brutal week. Details.
🎶 Gaurav Gupta Live. A performance at the Virginia G. Piper Theater at the Center for the Performing Arts. Friday, 8 PM. Details.
Around the Valley
A few shows worth the drive south this week.
🎸 Bob Dylan. Arizona Financial Theatre, downtown Phoenix. Tuesday, 7 PM. He passes through the Valley rarely, and this is one of the smaller rooms he plays. Tickets.
🎹 Jon Anderson and The Band Geeks. Celebrity Theatre, Phoenix. Tuesday, 7:30 PM. The voice of Yes, performing in the round. Tickets.
🎤 ASAP Rocky. Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix. Tuesday, 7:30 PM. Tickets.
🤘 Killswitch Engage and Machine Head. Marquee Theatre, Tempe. Wednesday, 6:30 PM, with Iron Reagan and Havok opening. A heavy co-headline in a good club room. Tickets.