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.

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Where Economy is Headed in 2014

Some important predictions to note - mortgage rates are expected to remain below average in the coming year and the unemployment rate should drop below 7 percent.

Link to video source:
http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2013/12/30/n-cmr-2014-economic-forecast.cnnmoney?iid=EL

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Friday, February 21, 2014

Mortgage Rates Creep Down Toward 4%

Mortgage rates have been sinking slightly every week so far this year! CNN Money suspects that the days of rock-bottom mortgage interest rates may not be numbered. On the week of Feb. 6, Freddie Mac reported that rates dropped 0.09 percent to 4.23% for a 30-year fixed mortgage. The year started at a 4.53% mortgage rate that has crept down with the continuation of 2014, with a total fall accumulating at 0.3%.

Check out the article for more info:

Source: CNN.MONEY.com

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Las Vegas Poised for an Apartment Boom

According to research from Spence Ballif, a senior vice president at a local real estate brokerage, Southern Nevada is on the road to gaining 3,000 multifamily rental units in 2014. After a 20-year low of 370 units in 2013, this predicted increase is staggering.
As one might guess, the prospect of developing so many apartment units is a risky endeavor. A principal with LV analysis firm RCG Economics, John Raestrepo, told the LVRJ that developers will need to "position themselves properly" and "understand the underlying economics" in order to avoid disaster. Although the local economy is livening up again, job and wage growth is still relatively weak and the market is sensitive, so prices must be set accordingly.
Raestrepo also commented that investors see the potential in the "green shoots" (or signs) of economic recovery, with particular interest in financing high-end, Class A properties.

Read more at the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/las-vegas-poised-apartment-boom

Photo: JEFF SCHEID
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, February 13, 2014

Las Vegas Investor Outlook

Las Vegas continues to see incredible growth across all real estate sectors.  January 2014 prices increased 23.3% year over year versus January 2013 prices! That's an incredible year over year jump. We are also seeing a larger share of our resale market taken up by "traditional" sales versus "distressed sales". This means fewer short sales and bank foreclosures and more regular folks who now have the equity to sell their homes. 

Topping all that off, we've received great news in our commercial markets as that area has started to recover and recoup losses during the great recession. Cunningham Group now offers commercial services for our investors. If you are looking to invest in commercial space, reach out to us. Also please subscribe to our investor blog here at www.vegasvalleyinvestors.com.

Cut the Cost of Home Maintenance

This list mentions six ways to "upgrade to lower costs", meaning if you want to make home improvements, but still want to spend less than the normal cost - these solutions may be right for you. CNN Money claims that these six imitations will look realistic enough to boost your home's appearance, calling them "a new breed of manufactured products" now available at specialty shops and home centers. The list of upgrades includes fiber-cement sliding, cellular PVC trim, quartz countertops, solid vinyl fencing, fiberglass entry doors, and clad windows. The article also mentions the benefits of repainting the right way (yes, there are less sufficient ways to do it).

Check out the article for info on these money-saving upgrade alternatives:
http://money.cnn.com/gallery/real_estate/2014/02/05/home-maintenance.moneymag/index.html

Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Las Vegas’ Home Prices up 23.3 Percent from January ‘13, Report Shows

Southern Nevada is ringing in the New Year with steady home prices, indicating the return of a fairly healthy housing market. In January, the median price of an existing single-family home was $185,000 according to GLVAR. This was up from $150,000 (23.3 percent) in January of the previous year.
The local market is also seeing traditional sales increases while backing away from that of distressed sales. In 2012, 37 percent of all home sales were traditional. This figure marked up to 62 percent in all of 2013. Investor activity indicated by cash sales showed a slight decrease from its 59.5 percent peak in February 2013 to a more stable 46.3 percent in January 2014.

Link to the article:
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/las-vegas-home-prices-233-percent-january-13-report-shows
Photo: JEFF SCHEID
Source: REVIEWJOURNAL.com

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Top 10 Cities People Are Moving To

Last but not certainly not least, Las Vegas has made it's way onto Penske Truck Rental's list of the top 10 cities Americans are moving to. After four years of annual reports, this is the first year Las Vegas has appeared on Penske's list!
Those moving to Las Vegas are finding great deals on homes now that the real estate market and local economy are making a comeback after experiencing the foreclosure crisis at its worst. Aside from real estate, the Las Vegas economy offers plentiful gaming, tourism, and conventions to prospective residents.

View the Top 10 cities here:
http://money.cnn.com/gallery/real_estate/2014/01/27/cities-moving/10.html

Photo: BRIAN JONES
Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Home Prices: Your Local Forecast

CoreLogic Case-Shiller expects to see moderate gains in home prices for the 12 months through September. Their Southern Nevada forecast is shown below. Check out CNN Money's home price forecast tool for yourself to view updated housing forecasts for nearly 400 tracked markets.

Link to the market forecast tool:
http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/homepricedata/
Source: MONEY.CNN.com

Monday, February 3, 2014

Move Out Walkthroughs

One of our most important roles is handling move-out inspections once our residents vacate our managed rental properties. The process is much more complex than you might think. Obviously we have a high standard on the way the properties should be left and we always verify that the tenants have done a good detail job cleaning the property, cleaned the carpets, and fix any other damages or landscaping issues. Yet, we still have to do other things like verify utilities have been paid, make sure the appliances left in the house are the same ones we gave them (yeah sometimes they get switched out), and look for maintenance issues that might not be tenant caused. Sometimes we find water damage that needs repair or showers and tile that need grouting or caulking. A move out walkthrough is not just checking for security deposit issues, it's also doing a good housekeeping check on our clients' investments. Avoiding regular maintenance items like caulking and grouting showers can lead to thousands in costly repairs later if there is a breach of water into the surrounding drywall.