Realtors in the Gila Valley worked overtime this year as they catered to a sellers market, and most say they expect 2006 to be even busier.

“Nothing has been quite like 2005,” Myrna Curtis, a sales associate from Casa Del Sol Realty, said. “The market was so hot this year, it was the best I've ever seen.” Curtis has been selling real estate for 27 years.

At least two factors contributed to what local real estate agents call a banner year for sales. The first is the price of copper, Curtis said. Copper jumped in value during 2005, evening out at more than $2 per pound. The second factor is growth, Curtis said. Promises of a copper mine opening in the Safford area and of Eastern Arizona College expanding to allow four-year degree options spurred the market this year and guaranteed a tight market next year.

According to Rachel Hinton, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker, the value of homes skyrocketed by about $50,000 since the beginning of the year.

An average home with an area of less than 2,000 square feet in a new home subdivision sold for about $127,000 during the first quarter of 2005, Hinton said. By the fourth quarter, a home with the same dimensions and in the same subdivision would sell for about $175,000, she said.

As real estate prices continue to increase, the market for the least-expensive homes is also tightening, Curtis said.

“Places that have been listed for years and years without being looked at sold this year,” she said. “Even some of my old dumps sold.”

Despite high demand on real estate, local real estate agents continue to watch the market and are careful to represent their clients' best interests, Nancy Woods, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker, said.

“There are a lot of things people selling their homes don't know,” she said. “They are not sure what they're getting into, and we come between the sellers and the buyers to make sure it works right.”

Some real estate agents in Graham and Greenlee counties and from the Globe and Willcox areas are part of a board that governs real estate transactions and Realtors' ethics. The board met Dec. 14 to install new directors. The three directors - Woods, Carla Lemen and Cindy Jensen - deal with legal issues, professional standards and education for local Realtors.

The Graham-Greenlee Board of Realtors also answers to President Jason Nichols, Vice President Barbara Claridge, Secretary Rachel Hinton and Treasurer Rebecca Smith. The officers assure buyers and sellers good transactions.

According to Woods, who is in charge of education, Realtors are required to earn 24 hours of continued education every two years.

“We need to keep on top of house inspections and other problems on the seller's end,” Woods said. “We also have to make sure things are mended on time and ready for the market.”

Whatever the price range a customer is looking at, real estate agents have to keep the buyer's interests in mind, Woods said.

“Our number one priority is the client,” she said. “They need to have someone looking out for their interests.”

Realtors at Casa Del Sol, Coldwell Bankers, SAS, Amethyst and Lucero Realty, Quail Ridge Realty in Thatcher, plus Globe and Willcox area Realtors are involved in the Graham-Greenlee Board of Realtors, Curtis said.

Contact Alysa Phillips at 428-2560 (ext. 234) or e-mail her at alysa@eacourier.com.