Investor Central

Welcome to the premier resource for Las Vegas investors looking to generate wealth through real estate. Whether you already own a property and need management help or you need assistance to get started, you have found the right place.

Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Home Prices Rise in October; Las Vegas Leads Nation with 27.1 Percent Annual Gain

According to The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index, U.S. home prices rose in October from the previous year at the fastest pace since February 2006. Among the nation, Las Vegas led in annualized gains with its 27.1 percent increase. All 20 cities in the index showed a year-over-year gain, demonstrating a price advance in roughly half of U.S. homes. Although price gains slowed in most U.S. cities from September to October, prices are still strong for the year as a whole, reflecting the housing market recovery and how it has helped to drive economic growth over the past year.

Read more at the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/home-prices-rise-october-las-vegas-leads-nation-271-percent-annual-gain
Photo: CHUCK BURTON
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Las Vegas Neighborhoods are Gaining More Elbow Room

The Las Vegas market is on its way to upgrading future homes to larger lot sizes. During the housing bubble, builders had to put several homes within one acre, creating small lots in order to fend off against rising land prices. Today, land prices are more reasonable in that they are giving builders and buyers a bit more breathing room. Although it's too early to predict how land-planning processes will effectively change, there are certainly many hazards associated with small-lot homes that the city hopes to resolve during the planning of future neighborhoods.

Read the article to learn about the hazards associated with small lots:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/las-vegas-neighborhoods-are-gaining-more-elbow-room

Photo: JEFF SCHIELD
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Friday, December 20, 2013

Job Growth Drives Mortgage Rate Jump

According to Freddie Mac, the beginning of December saw a jump in mortgage rates to 4.46% from 4.29% on 30-year fixed loans. Experts cite job creation as the primary reason for the spike. As stated by Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac's chief economist, "Private companies added 215,000 new jobs in November according to the ADP employment report" and "revisions added 54,000 jobs in the prior month." Moreover, new home sales surged 25% in the month of October.

As the economy gains ground, interest rates will also follow the trend.

Check out the article:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/12/05/real_estate/mortgage-rate-rise/index.html


Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Thursday, December 19, 2013

New-home Sales Surge 25% in October

A report released by the U.S. government's Commerce Department in early December says that new-home sales are surging, as the seasonally adjusted annual rate for new single family home sales reached its highest level in six months. Total sales rose nearly 22% from the previous year, and experienced a 25.4% increase in annual sales rate. Even with this impressive jump, the rate still remains less than half that of the housing bubble peak when annual rates had topped 1 million in 2006.
Experts suggest that this year's stock mark gains may be a primary factor in driving the housing market, as well as buyer motivation that has resulted from easier financing.

Read more at the article:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/12/04/news/economy/home-sales/index.html

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Monday, December 16, 2013

Ticor Title November 2013 Market Condition Report

According to Ticor Title's most recent market report, there were 2,592 Single Family, Condo and Townhome closed transactions for the month of November.  Resales made up 71.32% of the total transactions (1,850 resales), while short sales made up 21.6% (560 transactions) and REOs made up 7.0% (182 transactions).
  • 1,124 Cash Purchases (down by 265 from October)
  • 799 Conventional Financing (down by 155 from October)
  • 433 FHA Financing (down by 94 from October)
  • 186 VA Financing (up by 3 from October)
Source: TICORTITLE.com

Friday, December 13, 2013

Henderson Could Get 1,100 New Homes, Including a Senior Community

A proposed Henderson master-planned community is finally gaining some ground according to a new article published yesterday. The 2,200-acre Cadence project proposed by LandWell Co. is set between Boulder Highway and Lake Mead Parkway. Located in downtown Henderson, Cadence is close to retail centers and freeways, as well as several manufacturing plants.
LandWell is in the process of working out deals with potential homebuilders. If successful, the deals would bring 1,100 new homes to the valley. Homebuilder Lennar Corp. is partnering with Woodside Homes to develop 18 acres that will include an age-restricted senior community of almost 1,000 homes. A construction start date has yet to be confirmed, and these plans are still liable to change. LandWell also plans to build 119 single-family homes at Cadence, and the Henderson Planning Commission is scheduled to consider this proposal on January 16.

Read more at the article:
http://www.vegasinc.com/business/real-estate/2013/dec/12/henderson-could-get-1100-new-homes-including-senio/
Photo: ELI SEGALL
Source: VEGASINC. com

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Las Vegas Deemed a Top Destination for Tourists in 2014

In its fourth year publishing an article for top travel destinations in the United States, Lonely Planet has placed Las Vegas as number eight on its list of "Top 10 U.S. travel destinations for 2014". This list includes tips for travelers on must-see attractions, and some further insight as to why these destinations were worthy enough to make this year's cut.

See what Lonely Planet finds special about the Las Vegas scene:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/usa/travel-tips-and-articles/top-10-us-travel-destinations-for-2014

Photo: BRIAN JONES
Source: LONELYPLANET.com

Thursday, December 5, 2013

Was My Home a Good Investment?

CNN Money offers a convenient tool that allows you to quickly determine the annual and total return percentages on your home. The calculator compares these numbers with return data for average U.S. home prices, stocks, and bonds. Take a look if you'd like to make a quick calculation on your investment(s)!

Visit the calculator at the link below:
http://money.cnn.com/calculator/pf/home-rate-of-return/?iid=TL_Links

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Highest and Lowest Property Taxes in America

According to a new residential property tax study from the Tax Policy Center, 60% of counties across the United States as a whole reported average property tax burdens between $500-$1,500 a year between the years 2007 and 2011. The most expensive county, Westchester in New York, holds property tax estimates of about $9,647 a year, while counties where homeowners pay the lowest annual property taxes (below $250 a year) are found mostly in Alabama and Louisiana.

Interested in knowing where Clark County fits in among the research? Click the link or image below to view CNN's interactive map for a closer look at Nevada's most populated county.

Link to the article:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/11/25/pf/taxes/property-taxes/index.html

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, November 26, 2013

For Las Vegas Homebuilders, 2013 Called ‘Year of Recovery’

Although Las Vegas home construction businesses have experienced a slowdown in sales during the past few months, the conditions we are seeing now are still far better than those of 2012. Approximately 6,236 new homes have been sold this year up through October, up 44 percent from the same period last year.
“As we close out 2013, in our opinion, it will be remembered as ‘the year of recovery,’” Home Builders Research President Dennis Smith said in his latest report. “Things are going in the right direction, but there is still a long path ahead for everyone to feel a sense of comfort. ”

Read more at the article:
http://www.vegasinc.com/business/2013/nov/25/las-vegas-homebuilders-2013-called-year-recovery/
Photo: Steve Marcus
Source: VEGASINC.com

Friday, November 22, 2013

Ticor Title October Market Report

Below is Ticor Title's Market Condition Report for the month of October. There were a total of 3,114 closed transactions for the month, which included all Single Family Home, Condo, and Townhome transactions. Click on the image for a better view of the entire report!

Source: TICORTITLE.com

Thursday, November 21, 2013

5 Things to Know about Home Security Systems

Keep your own home, as well as your valuable investment homes safe from potential burglars! The best way to do this is to know your available options in order to determine what might work for you. Here are the 5 things you should know about home security systems:
  1. New players mean fresh options - Did you know that cable and Internet providers now offer home security systems? Plenty of these systems now being offered are simple to install and lack any up-front frees.
  2. Your phone can help keep you safe - Many home security companies now offer a mobile app at a very small cost that can be useful in addition to your monthly plan. These apps allow you to use your smartphone or tablet from any distance in order to control your alarm system, view alerts, turn off false alarms, etc.
  3. Someone must call the cops - Some firms do not offer services that alert the police when an alarm is triggered. Although it is not generally recommended to have a non-monitoring security plan, if you do happen to fall under this category, making that call will be the determining factor as to whether or not you will receive the protection you need in the case of an emergency.
  4. Customer service is the key - Experts say that national firms such as ADT "are only as good as the dealer in your area", so be sure to check out local reviews and find a dealer that will provide you with 24/7 support!
  5. The pros aren't your only choice - About 80% of homeowners do not have a home security service. If you fall within this group, there are still steps to take on your own that can better protect yourself and your valuables. Trimming shrubbery that may shelter a person trying to hide, placing security company stickers around your home, and installing an automated light dimmer switch when your property is vacant (which may be especially useful for rental properties) are among some of the recommended tips to dissuade burglars from targeting your home.
For more details, check out the article:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/10/01/real_estate/home-security-systems.moneymag/index.html

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Friday, November 15, 2013

Data Show Nevada's Housing Bust Second Only to California

Reports from the U.S. Census Bureau show that Nevada's housing crash topped those of every state nationwide, with the exception of California. Clark County itself was among the worst in regards to value decline, ranking number 5 among the nation's biggest counties. Nevada's median home value plummeted to a near 40 percent from 2007 to 2012, which translates to a $99,400 drop, second only to California's $102,600 drop. Although recent data on value reports will come to locals as no surprise, industry experts describe these rankings as cautionary reminders in the midst of 2013's local median price jump of 30 percent.

Read more at the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/data-show-nevadas-housing-bust-second-only-california

Photo: THINKSTOCK.com
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Home Prices Continue to Climb

Although the month-over-month gain slowed for the fourth straight month, the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index increased 12.8% from a year earlier. This is reportedly the largest 12-month gain since February 2006. Although the pace of increases is slowing down, recovery in the housing market continues to strengthen, particularly aided by recent drops in foreclosed homes and national unemployment rate.

Read more at the following link:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/10/29/news/economy/home-prices/index.html

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Should Real Estate Investors Incorporate?

Just like the Virginia investor mentioned in this CNN article, many property investors share the same question on whether to incorporate. Although there are benefits to incorporating, as well as benefits in setting up a limited liability company (LLC) to hold your properties, such a decision is dependent upon various personal factors.
Regardless, the first thing any investor should be concerned about is getting their property insured. A homeowners insurance policy provides substantial asset protection, which is why we strongly advise this protection to all of our owners with investment properties. When seeking out an agent to manage your investment assets, the agent's significant knowledge of state rental laws and the local market should also be a top priority as such knowledge can help to avoid many potential issues!

See what the article has to say:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/10/18/pf/expert/real-estate-investing.moneymag/index.html

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Friday, November 8, 2013

Sales of Homes, Land Continue to Soar in Summerlin

Summerlin, the largest master-planned community in the Las Vegas Valley, is experiencing rapid growth as land and home sales continue to climb across the community. In its recent report, Summerlin developer Howard Hughes Corp. posted a $7.3 million dollar profit, up from a loss of $49.4 million at this time last year. Aside from residential property, developers are also constructing the Shops at Summerlin, a 1.6 million square-foot retail and office complex near Red Rock Resort. The Shops at Summerlin are expected to open in fall 2014.

Link to the article:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/nov/07/sales-homes-land-continue-soar-summerlin/

Photo: STEVE MARCUS
Source: VEGASINC.com

Thursday, November 7, 2013

September Bucks Forebodings of Decelerating Price Gains

Home price gains continued to climb at a strong pace in September, defying recent predictions forecasting a falloff in home price increases over the next year. In its monthly Home Price Index report, CoreLogic recorded a 12 percent annual gain across the nation for the month of September. As such, September represented the 19th straight monthly year-over-year increase, bringing the index to its highest point since May 2008.
Nevada found itself in the leading spot for home price gains, with a 25.3 percent price increase. The Silver State was promptly followed by other states in the West, including California with a 22.5 percent gain and Arizona at a reported gain of 14.6 percent.

Check out the article for more on the story:
Source: DSNEWS.com

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Desert Now, but Henderson’s Bermuda Road Corridor is Ripe for Development

Developers are targeting southwest Henderson with plans to build throughout the well-located chunks of desert in the Bermuda Road corridor region. The area here is mostly raw land, aside from some homes and commercial properties such as the M Resort and a Las Vegas Valley Water District facility. The region itself has seen many failed efforts in regards to land development, but many developers still see the untapped potential that Las Vegas' own "Bermuda Triangle" has to offer. This year, ambitious developers are hoping to turn around these lost development efforts and make something out of the empty land surrounding Bermuda Road. One project is now under construction, at least one other is on the drawing board, and a third project is also in the works.

Click the link below for in-depth information on the upcoming projects:
Source: VEGASINC.com

Friday, November 1, 2013

Investors Still Finding Ample Opportunities in Distressed Market

According to a recent report from RealtyTrac, residential properties sold at a faster pace in September indicating that the market is still ripe for investor activity.

“The housing market continues to skew in favor of investors, particularly deep-pocketed institutional investors, and other buyers paying with cash,” said Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac. “The availability of distressed inventory also makes a difference. For example, institutional investor purchases have rebounded in Las Vegas corresponding to a recent rebound in foreclosure activity there."

Thursday, October 31, 2013

September 2013 SFR Sales Report

Below is Ticor Title's September 2013 sales report for Single Family Residential homes in Clark County. Although SFR sale prices continue to rise in the southern Nevada housing market, these prices are still significantly lower than they were before the market collapsed.

 Click on the image for a larger view.
Source: TICORTITLE.com

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Mortgage Rates Fell on the Lousy Jobs Report & Competition

Mortgage rates are finally experiencing a drop, as demonstrated below with the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage graph. This will come as a relief for many homeowners and prospective buyers. With lower mortgage rates, homeowners who have been waiting to refinance can now do so in order to increase their disposable income and encourage economic growth. First-time homebuyers can also take the leap from apartment to home while lower mortgage rates are within their reach. Increased first-time home buyer activity results in a higher consumption of goods, and given that consumption accounts for 70% of the U.S. economy, this will further stimulate economic growth.

Read more at the article linked below:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/mortgage-rates-fell-lousy-jobs-224903378.html

Source: FINANCE.YAHOO.com

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Not all Real Estate Investors are Fleeing Las Vegas Housing Market

Although some Wall Street investors have started to pull back, lessening their willingness to purchase properties in the Las Vegas market, overall investor appetite is actually still growing statewide. Last month was the first since January 2012 that home prices fell from the previous month, and smaller buyer investors are still in on the action, continuing to snap up these affordable homes and subsequently turning them into rental properties.

Read more at the following link:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/oct/23/not-all-real-estate-investors-are-fleeing-las-vega/?_ga=1.63735215.1044074921.1381245745

Source: VEGASINC.com

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Sales of Previously Owned U.S. Homes Fall in September

Nationwide sales of previously owned homes fell for the first time in three months this past September reaching a drop of 1.9 percent, according to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors. It has been noted that would-be buyers were discouraged by rising prices and mortgage rates after an almost four-year high in previously owned home sales. The rise in home prices climbed 11.7 percent, pushing housing affordability to an almost five-year low.

Read more at the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/sales-previously-owned-us-homes-fall-september

Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, October 17, 2013

House Flipping Remains Fruitful in Las Vegas, if Not Elsewhere

Nevada had 1,014 single-family home flips in the third quarter, showing that the nationwide slowdown in house flipping isn't nearly as prevalent in the Silver State. Nationally, house flipping fell 35 percent from the second quarter as reported by RealtyTrac. Whereas in Nevada, third quarter house flips were down 16 percent from the second quarter, but fell only 1 percent from a year ago.
As such, flipping remains as a profitable business in the Las Vegas Valley where house flippers gained an average profit of $53,503 per deal in the third quarter.

Link to the article:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/oct/16/house-flipping-remains-lucrative-las-vegas-drops-a/?_ga=1.93685149.1044074921.1381245745

Source: VEGASINC.com

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Las Vegas Housing Market Returns to Life

Although it experienced a substantial crash when the housing market took a turn for the worst, water is again cascading down the artificial waterfall at Lake Las Vegas. This residential real-estate development that went bust during the real-estate crisis is now selling newly built homes again at a normalizing rate. Watch the video below for more info.

Link to website:
http://live.wsj.com/video/las-vegas-housing-market-returns-to-life/236B17D4-6340-4DD7-A86C-BFB1C010FFF4.html#!236B17D4-6340-4DD7-A86C-BFB1C010FFF4

Source: LIVE.WSJ.com

Friday, October 11, 2013

Delivering a New Downtown: How Two Generations of Las Vegas Leaders are Reshaping the Heart of the City

If you'd like to acquaint yourself with the many stories behind the revitalization of downtown Las Vegas, we've found an in-depth presentation just for you. This LVRJ presentation takes readers through ten chapters of progression, starting from "A desire for downtown" all the way to "Happiness delivered". Discover all of the improvements we've made so far, along with all of the efforts that are still happening today in order to rejuvenate the core of our famous city.

Find the incredible series-of-events style report at the link below:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/downtown

Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Las Vegas Now Topping Neighboring Cities in Economic Recovery, Report Notes

After lagging for quite some time in the area of economic recovery, Las Vegas led the 10-city Intermountain West region in housing-price gains, with a jump of 6.5 percent in the second quarter. Measures were further determined by job growth, according to the report from public policy nonprofit Brookings Mountain West.

“Just as Las Vegas had an outsized boom, it also had an outsized bust,” said Kenan Fikri, research analyst with Brookings' Metropolitan Policy Program. “Indicators in Las Vegas are uniformly headed in the right direction.”

Read more at the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/las-vegas-now-topping-neighboring-cities-economic-recovery-report-notes

Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Run of Rising Las Vegas Home Prices Reaches an End

After two years of recovery and gradual prices gains in the Las Vegas housing market, things are beginning to cool off just a bit. According to a new GLVAR report, the median price of previously owned single-family homes sold last month was at $180,000, up 28.6 percent from 2012 and down 1.1 percent from this year in August. Home prices and sales are expected to slow and stabilize further as we head into winter, when transactions are known to slow during the holiday season.
This article also notes that buyers are presently ignoring more listings as overconfident homeowners attempt to sell for higher prices. GLVAR reports that 6,330 single-family homes were up for sale last month without having received any offers. This is a 13 percent increase from August, and a 61 percent increase form just a year ago. Although investors have played a major role in recovering the Las Vegas housing market by purchasing cheap homes in bulk, they are now scaling back on local buys as many sellers attempt to land heightened sale prices.

Check out the article:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/oct/08/run-rising-las-vegas-home-prices-reaches-end/?_ga=1.56469931.1044074921.1381245745

Photo: BRIDGET MAGNUS
Source: VEGASINC.com

Friday, October 4, 2013

What will Your Mortgage Payment be?

Need to quickly calculate a mortgage payment? CNN Money provides a useful and easy-to-use tool on their website to do just that.

Simply follow the link below and input your data to calculate any mortgage payment:
http://money.cnn.com/calculator/real_estate/mortgage-payment/
Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

FHA will Keep Lending During Shutdown

Although the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) originally stated that it would stop working on applications for loans guaranteed by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) if the government were to shutdown, HUD retracted its statement over the weekend and said it will continue processing loans "in order to support the health and stability of the U.S. mortgage market. Given this, applications for all government-backed mortgages will continue to be processed during the shutdown, but a limited number of FHA staff will be available to underwrite and approve these new loans.

Follow the link below for more info:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/09/30/real_estate/mortgage-shutdown/index.html

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Friday, September 27, 2013

Report: Majority of August Home Sales were Cash Purchases

This past Wednesday, research firm RealtyTrac reported that 62 percent of all August sales in Nevada were cash purchases. The vast majority of these purchases were made by investors, who are responsible for sustaining a high level of cash and investment sales in our local housing market. Comparatively in this same month, 45 percent of all home sales on the national level were made via cash purchases.

Read the article for more information:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/report-majority-august-home-sales-were-cash-purchases
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, September 26, 2013

More People Attracted to Urban Lifestyle as Downtown Beautification Continues

As of late, downtown Las Vegas has been receiving a lot of attention from stake-holding businesses and prospective homebuyers. Locals have rediscovered the downtown area as the city revives and renovates buildings and homes. Most are calling downtown's revitalization a "unique urban living experience" that celebrates homes and buildings with original features and distinctive architectural styles. The revitalization project also includes making roadways more pedestrian and bicycle friendly, with improvements to sidewalks and surrounding landscape quality.
A decade ago, people had to be convinced by the idea of moving downtown. Now with visible revitalization in place, people are now more eager than ever to explore the area and call it home. The revitalization of downtown businesses and neighborhoods has pushed buyers to purchase historic homes in the area with the intent to restore or remodel them. Also with growing demand to live downtown, restoration efforts have extended to the high-rise scene as investors buy rundown apartment buildings and breathe new life into them, encouraging further growth in the area.
The first phase of the city's $30 million beautification project will encompass the area from Las Vegas Boulevard to the south and east, Main Street to the west, and Stewart Avenue to the North. It is set to begin construction in early 2014.

Check out more info on the downtown revitalization projects:
Photo: JAY ABRAMSON
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

BLM Slates Auction to Sell 28 Local Parcels Totaling 440 Acres

As the economy improves in Southern Nevada, homebuilders in search of land for new development are looking to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to open new areas for housing. BLM has officially scheduled an auction on January 16 to sell 28 local parcels totaling at 440 acres. The auction will include a 248-acre region in northeast Las Vegas that is likely to entice many local homebuilders and master-plan developers.

Read more at the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/blm-slates-auction-sell-28-local-parcels-totaling-440-acres
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.COM

Friday, September 20, 2013

Las Vegas among Cheapest US Cities for Home Rentals

Kiplinger, a financial news publisher, released a report ranking Las Vegas as the second-most affordable big city in the country for home renters. The Las Vegas Valley has the largest renter population and rental vacancy rate, as well as the highest income among renters of the 10 markets listed in the report.
Raleigh, N.C. is the only city in the report that placed ahead of Las Vegas because of its very low average rent of $640 and its affordable cost of living (7.4 percent below the national average). Las Vegas comparatively has an average monthly rent of $776 with a cost of living that is 0.1% below the national average.

Link to the article:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/sep/16/las-vegas-among-cheapest-us-cities-home-rentals/

Source: VEGASINC.com

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Local Home Construction Business has Best Month this Year

According to a recent report from Las Vegas-based Home Builders Research, the Valley's local home construction business had its best month of the year in August. This has been largely attributed to climbing sales prices, in which the median sales price of August's closings was $266,389, up 31 percent from last year. Builders have subsequently sold 5,027 homes this year through August, up 60 percent from the same period last year. New home construction plans are also continuing at a strong pace, as Builders gathered 673 new home permits just last month.

Link to the article:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/sep/16/local-home-construction-business-has-best-month-ye/
Source: VEGASINC.com

Thursday, September 12, 2013

Las Vegas Housing Numbers Show New Signs of Stability, Report Says

Equilibrium is the key word in this news article, which suggests that the local Nevada housing market is still in attempts to reach a place of stability. Housing indicators, such as homes for sale and purchases with cash, are easing closer to the "normal" mark, according to the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

Check out the article for housing statistics and some detailed market info:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/las-vegas-housing-numbers-show-new-signs-stability-report-says

Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Can Investors Make Good on Housing Bets?

As most of us have already been made aware, investor activity has recently slowed on the market due to rising home prices and a more limited inventory of distressed properties. Now, the focus of buyers who purchased distressed properties in bulk is the challenge of making their investments worthwhile.

According to a CNBC report, investors made up 16 percent of home buyers in June, a drop from 22 percent in February. Colony Capital's Justin Chang stated, "What you're seeing in housing overall is a bit of a pause as the market digests what's happening. We are in the early days of a long recovery."

Read more at the following link:

http://realtormag.realtor.org/daily-news/2013/09/05/can-investors-make-good-housing-bets

Source: REALTORMAG.REALTOR.org

Saturday, September 7, 2013

Rising Rates Prompt Cash Buyers to Act

On top of being attributed to the slowdown in pending home sales, it looks as if high mortgage rates may also be an underlying factor for the increase in cash purchases across the national housing market. According to RealtyTrac's recent report, about 40 percent of residential property sales were all-cash transactions. RealtyTrac's VP, Daren Blomquists, suggests that rising rates could be leading to a higher percentage of cash purchases, while "some non-cash buyers can no longer afford to buy, particularly in high-priced markets."

Read more at the article:
http://www.dsnews.com/articles/rising-rates-prompting-action-from-cash-buyers-2013-08-29

Graph: REALTYTRAC.com
Source: DSNEWS.com

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Las Vegas Leads All Cities with 24.9 Percent Home-Price Gain

According to The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index, U.S. home prices rose 12.1 percent in June 2013 from a year earlier, and the 24.9 percent gain in Las Vegas led among all 20 cities. The report released last Tuesday showed that all cities included in the home price index posted gains from the previous month and compared with a year ago.

Check out the article for more info:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/las-vegas-leads-all-cities-249-percent-home-price-gain
REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

New Large-Scale Master Plan Proposed for Las Vegas

From the article:
A partnership wants to give Las Vegas its first new large-scale master plan since the recession. But the site being eyed has a cloudy history, and the state of the market could give it an unclear future.
The Olympia Cos., in partnership with New York investment groups Stonehill Capital Management and Spectrum Group Management, are looking to build out the 1,700-acre master plan at U.S. Highway 95 and Kyle Canyon Road that Focus Property Group was set to develop in 2007 before foreclosure scratched the idea.
Read more at the following link:
Photo: JEFF SCHEID
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Friday, August 30, 2013

New-Home Sales Healthier in Las Vegas than Rest of U.S.

Although new-home sales are still well below their pre-recession norms, they have been rising quite notably in the Las Vegas Valley market. In our local market, Las Vegas new-home sales have jumped up nearly 41 percent in July from just one year ago. This is largely attributed to the dwindling inventory of resales available through foreclosure and short sale.
On the other hand, the Commerce Department reported that the annual rate of U.S. new-home sales has dropped 13.4 percent in total, as most Americas cut back sharply on their new home purchases in July.

Read more at the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/new-home-sales-healthier-las-vegas-rest-us

Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

3 Las Vegas Planned Communities Among Top in Nation for Home Sales

The 3,500-acre Mountain's Edge development in the southwest valley, the 1,200-acre Providence community in northwest Las Vegas, and Summerlin with its 22,500 acres are all at the forefront of leading communities across the country. According to a new report from real estate advisory firm RCLCO, home sales at Mountain's Edge place third-best across the country, with Providence and Summerlin in the fifth and ninth positions.

Check out the article for more details:
Photo: STEVE MARCUS
Source: VEGASINC.com

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Another Month, Another Rise in Las Vegas Home Values

Las Vegas Valley home values are outpacing most of the country with a sturdy rise in local home prices. According to a new report from housing data firm Zillow, the median home value in July was $151,600, up 31 percent from just a year earlier. Among the 30 markets tracked in this report, Las Vegas' year-to-year growth rate was second-place to Sacramento's 33 percent price jump. Zillow also reported that national home values have risen to $161,600 as the median value, indicating an increase of 6 percent over the past year.

Link to the article:
Photo: STEVE MARCUS
Source: VEGASINC.com

Monday, August 19, 2013

Mortgage Closing Costs Up 6% This Year

According to a recent survey by Bankrate.com, closing costs averaged $2,402 over the past year, up 6% from 2012. On the other hand, mortgage rates were near record lows for most of this year. This allowed lenders a steady flow of customers who sought to purchase new loans or refinance existing ones.
Now as mortgage rates rise, the pool of customers seeking loans is beginning to shrink. Speculators belive that lenders will likely begin to discount their closing costs in order to continue attracting customers.

Link to the article:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/08/06/real_estate/closing-costs/index.html?section=money_realestate&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fmoney_realestate+%28Real+Estate%29

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Thursday, August 15, 2013

Small Home Repair Jobs with a Big Payoff

As the article states, "Maintaining a home is like eating a healthy diet. Everyone knows there's a whole list of things that should be done, but nobody really wants to spend the weekend painting the guest room, snaking out a slow sink drain, or cleaning out the gutters."

But there are some ways around this. A few of the smartest upkeep projects you can do for your home require less time than it would take to make yourself a quick dinner on the grill. You also won't need to hire a handyman, as these jobs are both quick and effortless. There are tasks to increase efficiency, make things last, and maximize the beauty and comfort of your home.

Find out how to make your house more comfortable, efficient, and beautiful:

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, August 13, 2013

Another Report Confirms Nevada Leads U.S. in Home Price Gains

According to a recent home report released by CoreLogic, U.S. home prices surged 11.9 percent in June from a year earlier. Overall, home prices climbed on an annual basis in 48 states, demonstrating stronger demand amid a tight supply of homes for sale. With an annual gain of 26.5 percent, Nevada led first among all states across the country.

For more info on the report:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/another-report-confirms-nevada-leads-us-home-price-gains
Photo: MIKE GROLL
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Monday, August 12, 2013

Inspirada Outlines Plans for 30 Acres of Parks

Construction on more than 30 acres of parks, including two community parks and one neighborhood, is set to begin at the southwest Henderson housing project in early 2014. Inspirada Builders LLC announced their construction plans this past Thursday, two days after Henderson City Council approved a major modification to the development agreement for 1,600 acres of the project.
Inspirada Builders will construct the parks at an estimated cost of more than $20 million and then subsequently donate the completed parks to the city of Henderson, which will fully operate and maintain them. Inspirada Builders released a statement along with their announcement, which asserted that this approval will represent "a significant milestone for the community." The Inspirada community currently houses more than 2,500 residents.

Read more on the announcement:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/inspirada-outlines-plans-30-acres-parks

Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Housing Markets Where Cash is King

"If you want to buy a house in Nevada you better bring cash," states this recent article from CNN Money. Although not entirely true, 58% of total June sales in Nevada were made in all-cash, according to RealtyTrac. That's quite a convincing percentage!
But it's not just Nevada that is seeing a heavy surge of cash-only deals, various states across the country have also been affected. Vermont, the highest of them all, recorded its all-cash deals for the month of June at an astounding 80% of total sales.

Nationwide, cash deals made up 30% of total home sales in June.

Check out the article for more stats:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/07/25/real_estate/cash-home-sales/index.html?section=money_realestate&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fmoney_realestate+%28Real+Estate%29

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Monday, August 5, 2013

Strip Condo Market Makes Comeback

The Las Vegas Strip real estate market has gained momentum over the past six months, with a sales frenzy occurring in the high-rise condominium market that lines Las Vegas Boulevard. In this six-month time period, 206 condos going for as much as $400,000 each closed after fewer than 60 days on the market. This demonstrates our overall move into what may be referred to as a tight market.
Investors continue to dominate over suburban buyers, making up almost 60 percent of purchases. Whereas on the Strip, just 15-25 percent of buyers are investors. Most of the cash buyers from CityCenter's Veer Towers (pictured below) purchased their property as a vacation home, rather than a place to rent out for cash flow.

Read more on the story:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/strip-condo-market-makes-comeback

Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Regents Approve Plans to go Forward with Apartment-style Campus Housing

Big news for all prospective and ongoing UNLV students has hit the local Vegas newspapers. A tentative agreement for Midtown Park, a $175 million apartment-style dormitory project at UNLV, has been approved by Nevada's higher education leaders this past Friday. UNLV supporters believe that Midtown Park will help revitalize the area around campus, which had come under hard times in recent years. The apartment-style dorms are scheduled to open in fall 2015. Below is the concept image for Midtown Park, provided by UNLV.

Read more about the newly approved dormitory project:
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2013/jul/26/regents-approve-plans-go-forward-apartment-style-c/


Source: LASVEGASSUN.com

Monday, July 29, 2013

Demand for New Homes in Southern Nevada Eases in June

From the article:
Sales of new homes began slowing last month in Southern Nevada amid scorching heat and rising interest rates. But overall, the home construction market has been far more robust this year than during the same period in 2012, a new report shows. Local homebuilders sold 3,618 new houses from January through June, up 75 percent from a year earlier, according to Las Vegas-based Home Builders Research. The median price of June's sales was $266,921, up 37 percent from June 2012.
Read more at the following link:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/jul/22/demand-new-homes-southern-nevada-eases-june/

Source: VEGASINC.com

Thursday, July 25, 2013

U.S. New Home Sales Jump to Highest Level in Five Years

According to a recent Commerce Department report, the housing recovery is strengthening as new home sales gain momentum across the country. In June, Americans swiped up new homes at the fastest pace in five years, with an overall rise of 38 percent in the past 12 months.
As quoted in the article, economist Jonathan Basile said in a note to his clients, "There's an awful lot of headroom for more gains in new-home sales once the job market recovers more fully."

Read more at the link below:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/us-new-home-sales-jump-highest-level-five-years

Photo: JEFF SCHEID
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Home Resales Down in Las Vegas, GLVAR Reports

Along with investor activity in the LV Valley, home resales across the U.S. are also in decline. According to the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, resales in Las Vegas have declined both month to month and year over year. Sales agents have attributed this slump in local resales to a decline in foreclosures since 2011. Despite this slip in the resales category, overall U.S. home sales have increased 15.2 percent from a year ago, propelled by both job gains and low mortgage rates.

Link to the article:


Photo: JEFF SCHEID
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Monday, July 22, 2013

House Flipping Slows in Las Vegas as Bargains Disappear

A new report from research firm RealtyTrac shows that Nevada had a 34 percent decline in housing flips compared to the first six months of 2012. Whereas from a national perspective, the volume of housing flips rose 19 percent in total over this time period.
Although flipping remains profitable in most markets, it has certainly slowed in regions where there are fewer distressed bargains for sale. In Las Vegas, there is a particularly fewer amount of homes listed for sale in part from heavy investor activity, as many cheap houses have already been purchased in bulk and have subsequently been turned into rentals throughout the valley. Overall, it is now a difficult to buy a home in Vegas, whether you want to flip it or just live in it.

Check out the article to read more on RealtyTrac's report:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/jul/19/house-flipping-slows-las-vegas-bargains-disappear/

Source: VEGASINC.com

Friday, July 19, 2013

Mortgage Rates Reach Highest Level in 2 Years

The graph below is a visual demonstration provided by Freddie Mac, one of the two major government-sponsored mortgage financing companies. It shows us that 30-year mortgage rates have rose to their highest level in nearly two years, increasing from 3.40% to 4.51% in a time span of just three months. While the average rate for a 30-year loan has climbed to 4.51%, the average mortgage rate for a 15-year fixed loan hit 3.53% according to the data.

Check out the article for more info:
http://money.cnn.com/2013/07/11/real_estate/mortgage-rate-rise/index.html?section=money_realestate&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fmoney_realestate+%28Real+Estate%29

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Rising Interest Rates Cast Shadow over Valley's Housing Market

Rising home prices are less of an issue as buyers are focused more on the Las Vegas Valley's heightened interest rates. According to a June survey administered by real estate website Trulia, rising interest rates have surpassed increasing home prices as the #1 worry among housing consumers.

Read more at the following article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/economy/rising-interest-rates-cast-shadow-over-valleys-housing-market


Photo: SAMANTHA CLEMENS
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Was Your Home a Good Investment?

Check out CNN Money's mortgage calculator to find out. Just make the correct adjustments to align with your investment.

Find the calculator here: http://cnnmon.ie/13iXXLF

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Survey Shows RE/MAX #1 Name in Real Estate

Click on the image below to view the official RE/MAX press release. The referenced surveys were conducted between the end of last year and the beginning of this year.

Source: REMAX.com

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Median Single-family Home Price in Las Vegas Continues to Rise

The Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors released statistics today showing that existing home prices continue to rise as the supply of houses available has also increased. Although the median existing local home price of $175,000 is still a long way from our peak of $315,000 in June 2006, this slow but steady climb is paving out a positive path for the Las Vegas housing market.

Link to the article for more info:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/housing/median-single-family-home-price-las-vegas-continues-rise


Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Monday, July 8, 2013

Thinking of Buying or Selling?

Here are the latest predictions on how rising mortgage rates may affect you as an investor.
From the article:
Institutional buyers are likely to slow the pace of their distress-sale home purchases if interest rates rise and other investments become more attractive. Whether they also dump the properties they have already purchased or hang onto them would depend on the demand for single-family-home rental properties. 
“I think the major equity players, like Blackstone (Group), that brought volume purchases to the real estate industry will retreat from the purchase of individual homes,” said Owen Beitsch, senior principal of Real Estate Research Consultants of Orlando. “This asset class is simply much too management-intensive, and the spread between cost and return is decreasing.” 
John Tuccillo, chief economist for Florida Realtors, said he expects the pace of investor purchases to slow “during the next year or so.” He added that, while he doesn’t expect equity funds to sell off their newly acquired houses, he figures they will cut back on picking up new ones. 
Diminished demand for investment houses would put pressure on prices to fall, though areas with low inventory would more easily handle an increase in available properties without prices tanking.
Read more at the following link:
http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2013/jul/05/thinking-buying-or-selling-heres-how-rising-mortga/

Photography: STEVE MARCUS
Source: VEGASINC.com