Upper Canyon · Life Transitions
Selling Through a Life Change in Upper Canyon
A move driven by something bigger than real estate, handled with that in mind.
Two versions of this, and they are not alike
Upper Canyon is a 373-acre gated master-planned community on former State Trust Land, opening in 2026, planned for roughly 1,050 single-family homes plus townhomes and multifamily. Because almost everything here is either new or not yet finished, a life change lands in one of two very different places.
The first is a change that arrives partway through a build. A health event, a job that relocates a household, a family situation that makes the plan wrong. Before this is a real estate question it is a contract question, because what a purchase agreement permits before completion has money attached to it and belongs with your attorney. My part is a straight read of where you stand, help assembling what your attorney will ask for, and a plain statement of which parts are mine and which are not.
The second is a finished home that has to be sold sooner than anybody expected. That is a more ordinary sale with one unusual feature: your competition includes the builders, three of them, selling new inventory a short walk away.
Both are workable. They need different plans, and the plan gets decided before anything else does.
Questions about your move? I'm glad to help.
Selling a new home next door to the sales office
I am Amy Richardson and Savvy Realty Group is my practice at HomeSmart. Since being licensed in 2017 I have closed more than 80 sides and over $52 million, and I have had two listings under contract in under 72 hours in a balanced market.
Speed is not the point of mentioning that. Positioning is. A home competing against D.R. Horton, Pulte and Blandford inventory has to be presented as the better answer to a specific question rather than as a slightly used version of what they are offering. Yours is finished, landscaped and available now, without a delivery date. That is an argument, and it has to be made deliberately.
Eighteen years living in Ahwatukee is the other half. Buyers coming here are usually choosing new construction without leaving the village, which until now meant leaving it. Knowing what they are comparing against on the established side of Ahwatukee is how a listing gets aimed at the right person.
Preparation is unchanged whatever is behind the sale: walkthrough, complimentary staging consultation, professional photography, drone video. The approach from there is agreed together, based on what the home needs. In a home only a year or two old the trade list is usually short, which is one genuine mercy.
The general page is here, or tell me what is going on.
What gets decided first
The method itself is at how I sell a home. In this community the order changes.
- Establish which situation you are in. Under contract and not yet closed is a different problem from owning a finished home, and confusing the two wastes weeks. If it is the former, your attorney reads the agreement before I do anything.
- Then price against the builders, not only against resales. A buyer here is weighing your home against new inventory. What you have that they do not is a finished house with no delivery date, and often landscaping and window coverings already paid for.
- A short preparation list, done properly. Newer homes need little, which means the few things they do need are conspicuous. Preparation is step one.
- Photograph the community as well as the house. Buyers are partly buying the plan: a resort pool, spa, fitness center, pickleball and basketball courts, a playground, a 3.5-acre central park with South Mountain views, a botanical garden and trails.
- Written updates to whoever you name. Family, an attorney, an accountant, anyone holding a power of attorney. This page describes how I generally work and is not legal, tax or lending advice.
The other direction: landing here rather than leaving
It is worth saying, because it comes up in half these conversations. For a household changing shape, new construction here is often the answer rather than the thing being sold. D.R. Horton's homes run from 1,314 to 2,392 square feet with three to five bedrooms, in single-storey and two-storey plans, so a single-level home with a warranty and current layouts is available without leaving Ahwatukee.
For somebody coming out of a large older house with a long repair list, that trade is often exactly right: a warranty instead of a remodel, and an amenity package instead of a yard to maintain. What you give up is mature landscaping and the larger lots the older custom communities offer.
The location helps too. The development sits on Chandler Boulevard between 19th and 27th Avenues in the Ahwatukee Foothills, with the new Fire Station 74 being built on Chandler Boulevard near 19th Avenue, and Kyrene de los Cerritos Leadership Academy, Kyrene Altadeña Middle School and Desert Vista High School are the assigned schools.
If this is a planned right-sizing rather than a response to an event, downsizing in Upper Canyon covers it. If you would rather land somewhere established, Ahwatukee Retirement Village, Foothills Club West and the Foothills are the nearest alternatives.
Frequently Asked Questions
My circumstances changed before the build is finished. What now?
The first question is what your purchase agreement allows, and that is a legal question rather than an agent's opinion. I will say plainly when it needs your attorney, help you gather what they will ask for, and handle the real estate side once you know where you stand.
How do we compete with the builders selling down the street?
By being the thing they cannot offer. Your home exists now, with no delivery date, and usually with landscaping, window coverings and upgrades already in place and paid for. That is a real advantage for a buyer who needs to move, and the listing has to say it out loud.
Would a new home here suit us better than the house we are leaving?
Sometimes, and it is worth asking rather than assuming. Single-level plans, a warranty instead of a repair list and a maintained amenity package are the trade, and mature landscaping and larger lots are what you give up. I would rather walk you through both sides than sell you one.
Can this run while we are out of state?
Yes. Photography, the staging consultation, any trades and the showings all happen without you present, my transaction coordinator and I hold the dates, and everyone you name gets the same written update each week.
Upper Canyon
What life transitions looks like in Upper Canyon
The largest new residential development Ahwatukee has seen in decades, opened in 2026.
New construction in Ahwatukee, which we have not had at this scale in a long time.
- The homes
- A 373-acre gated master-planned community on former State Trust Land, planned for roughly 1,050 single-family homes plus townhomes and multifamily, around 1,500 units in total, at an estimated $300 million. Three builders are involved: D.R. Horton, Pulte Homes and Blandford Homes. D.R. Horton's homes run 1,314 to 2,392 square feet with three to five bedrooms, single and two-storey.
- Why people choose it
- Buyers who want new construction without leaving Ahwatukee, which until now has meant leaving Ahwatukee. That covers move-up buyers, relocation buyers and right-sizers who would rather have a warranty than a remodel.
- Schools people ask about
- Kyrene de los Cerritos Leadership Academy, Kyrene Altadeña Middle School and Desert Vista High School.
- Getting around
- On Chandler Boulevard between 19th and 27th Avenues in the Ahwatukee Foothills, just west of Club West. Out via Chandler Boulevard to 17th Avenue, or Liberty Lane, and less than five minutes to the Loop 202. The new Fire Station 74 is being built on Chandler Boulevard near 19th Avenue.
- Nearby
- Planned amenities include a resort pool, spa, fitness center, pickleball and basketball courts, a playground, a 3.5-acre central park with South Mountain views, a botanical garden and trails.
- The trade-off
- New build against established Ahwatukee. You gain a warranty, current layouts and the amenity package; you give up mature landscaping, settled resale history and the larger lots the older custom communities offer.
The method
How we do it in Upper Canyon
Life Transitions: keep exploring
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