Besides the real estate classifieds of The Arizona Republic and The Tribune, a number of publications can aid home shoppers. Home Buying Choises covers the entire Valley in one publicatin, and the rest offer several editions zoned to specific areas. All of them include photos of the houses. Electricity bills rise by an aerage of 150 percent in the summer, most of that attributable to air-conditioning costs.
Electricity also costs more in the summer because of the increased demand over winter usage.
Valley developers take their knocks for building so many homes with tile roofs and stucco walls, but there are advantages to such construction. The stucco usually is applied on wire mesh over insulating foam panels for added insulation from the summer heat, which helps cut utility bills. The tile roofs stand up to intense desert sun better than any other roofing surfice. Arizona housing is being built at a fantastic rate. Developments are spreading into the desert at more than an acre an hour.