las vegas: Southern Nevada resales up in April - 05/09/09 11:09 AM
There is some optimism in the dry desert air that the Las Vegas real estate market is hitting bottom. At long last. Perhaps. It's still too early, though, to go into any definitive announcements about that. The patient's vital signs do remain quite mixed, that's why.In any case, 3,198 single-family homes were closed in April, as was reported by GLVAR, or Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors. In the year-to-year comparison that adds up to a big leap of over 78% and on a month-to-month basis it translates into a solid 7% gain from March. These numbers warm a lot of hearts in … (6 comments)

las vegas: More Las Vegas homes go underwater - 05/07/09 11:30 AM
Home values are still falling nationally. More in some areas and less in others, but they still seem to be in retreat. People who bought property in the last five years or so are in real danger of being underwater. Or upside down. That's when the balance on the underlying mortgage is higher than the home's value. Those who put nothing or very little down are most vulnerable.
Zillow.com, a prominent real estate website, just released a report on the first quarter of 2009 according to which 21.9% of all homeowners nationwide are now taking a bath. It was 17.6% in … (2 comments)

las vegas: Short sale can bite the borrower later on - 05/05/09 08:57 AM
They have become one way out of an untenable jam for many homeowners who can't make their mortgage payments in this tough real estate market. In a short sale a lender will allow the homeowner to sell the property for less than what the loan balance is. It often means the matter is over and done with, once the sale is closed. At least that's what the borrower is aiming at.
Mortgage lenders can go after the now former homeowner later for the unpaid portion if they choose to, as long as the loan documents and state laws support that. Frequently … (8 comments)

las vegas: Mountains's Edge Las Vegas tops national list of master-planned communities - 05/02/09 02:32 PM
Who would have thought such a list even existed in this real estate market? Especially since the new home segment is having major trouble in moving inventory almost everywhere, including here in Southern Nevada. But it's true. Robert Charles Lesser & Co., a housing advisory firm, is behind the study that keeps track of home sales in master-planned communities nationwide and then ranks them. Mountain's Edge claimed the high spot on the best-selling list with 879 houses sold in 2008, although overall sales there went down by 49%. It's somewhat surprising that even that many properties were closed there considering all … (6 comments)

las vegas: MGM Mirage's CityCenter project gets new life - 04/30/09 11:41 AM
It has been a tough few months for the Las Vegas casino operator. It has been using all its creative means to stay out of the clutches of bankruptcy. The economy has been very unkind to it, and the rest of the Southern Nevada's gaming firms. Not only that, but the slumping real estate market here has weakened the city's overall viability. To top it all off, it was recently sued by Dubai World, the 50-50 joint venture partner on CityCenter, for alleged project mismanagement.
A new page was just turned on the development, however. MGM Mirage and Dubai World have … (4 comments)

las vegas: Las Vegas new home sales anemic in March - 04/23/09 10:12 AM
It sure isn't pretty. Southern Nevada home builders have a hard time finding buyers for their product, even with aggressive incentives like discounted mortgage rates and upgrade packages. It obviously is disheartening for them to watch the resale segment, specifically the lower end of it, crank out contract after contract into escrow.Home Builders Research, a Las Vegas valley industry observer, says that there were 491 new home sales in March, which adds up to 1,132 for the year's first quarter. That is a 61% drop from last year. So, the bleeding continues and the end to that appears to be way out there.
Namely because … (2 comments)

las vegas: Summerlin luxury condominium development back on track - 04/18/09 10:55 AM
These types of news items are rare today. Las Vegas real estate has been wallowing in a slump for a while, longer than many would like to admit. Lately, though, it has shown some encouraging signs that it still does have a pulse. Record-low mortgage rates have kept it in the game, as have steadily declining home values. The best action right now is in the lower end of the market segment where many first-time buyers and smart investors are having a field day.
And then there is a surprise announcement that a mid-rise luxury condo project in Summerlin is back … (2 comments)

las vegas: Home builders more confident about housing - 04/16/09 10:33 AM
After having endured a long stretch of dismal news, home builders are now feeling more optimistic about the state of the real estate market. The National Association of Home Builders, or NAHB, and Wells Fargo together periodically compile an industry survey called The Housing Market Index. It's based on how builders feel about single-family home sales, their outlook for sales six months out and the number of prospective buyers.
Looking at the latest index in April from purely numbers point of view, it jumped over 50%, climbing to 14 from a meager 9, the old mark. When the survey was started … (10 comments)

las vegas: Las Vegas near top of list for bargain properties - 04/14/09 02:25 PM
It's not easy but Sin City is doing all it can to turn the tide on the bad hand it has been dealt over the past few years regarding the housing market. It has steadily occupied high rankings on many mortgage- and real estate-related lists that no one really wants to be on. But now Vegas is on one that is going make it look a little better. And give everyone in the valley real hope as far as the future of the housing market goes.
The Top 10 Bargain Markets list is out and Las Vegas is third on it. FHFA, … (10 comments)

las vegas: UNLVino is right around the corner again - 04/11/09 08:57 AM
The spring classic is served up in a matter of days. The Harrah College of Hotel Administration at UNLV and Southern Wine & Spirits of Nevada are joining forces once again to stage a grand wine tasting event for the fermented grape juice aficionados and winemakers alike. The sip fest is actually celebrating its 35th anniversary this year, having become a great local hospitality-related tradition.
The best part, well maybe the second best part then, is that this is actually a money raising event, the proceeds going to the UNLV hotel college to fund scholarships. In addition, it is a three-credit … (4 comments)

las vegas: LV existing home sales increase in March - 04/09/09 11:48 AM
The spring real estate season kicked off nicely last month, with resales again showing strong numbers. That has been the direction of this segment of the market for a good stretch now.  
All in all, 2,980 single-family houses were closed then that translates to a serious jump of 30% from February, as was reported by Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, or GLVAR. The figure is double of that from March of 2008. As has been the pattern recently, distressed sales dominated the statistics and most of them were in the lower end of the market where first-time buyers and … (4 comments)

las vegas: BPOs stoke controversy within the real estate industry - 04/03/09 06:28 AM
BPO, or broker price opinion, is a vehicle used by real estate agents to assess home values. Over the years it has become sort of a competitor to an official appraisal that mortgage lenders still rely on when underwriting loans. BPO can be a dependable gauge although it is less scientific than an appraisal. And it is much cheaper, costing around $50 each while a standard appraisal runs into the hundreds.  
With foreclosures and short sales playing now a large role in the housing market BPOs have become widely used. Mortgage lenders like them in these situations because they can … (15 comments)

las vegas: Jumbo mortgage making a meaningful comeback - 04/01/09 09:16 AM
The current home loan landscape has been largely very unkind to those who were out to purchase a house using a jumbo vehicle or to homeowners who wanted to refinance an expensive property. In simple terms, when the loan amount goes above the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac conforming limit it becomes a jumbo because the mandate of the above two agencies bans them from buying these high-priced loans on the secondary market. Generally the limit varies between $417,000, for areas considered general, and goes all the way up to $729,750 for high-cost regions. Las Vegas cut-off point today is $417,000.
… (6 comments)

las vegas: Canadians drawn to Las Vegas real estate - 03/30/09 01:07 AM
Southern Nevada housing market has recently been through plenty of agony. Despite low mortgage interest rates sales of single-family houses, condominiums and townhomes have been slow, especially in the middle and upper ends of the price scale. Sinking values have attracted first-time buyers and real estate investors to rummage through the bulging inventory in the lower end of the marketplace and grab property, often foreclosures, at huge discounts. Sin City's housing supply is still way too high and needs to come down further to give the market a chance for recovery.
One group that has been moderately active in the past … (6 comments)

las vegas: Improving housing demand should remain top priority - 03/22/09 10:45 PM
Many different initiatives have been introduced over the past several months to revive the still-reeling real estate market, a key ingredient to our economy's well-being. Mortgage rates are near record lows thanks largely to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the government continuing to buy mortgage-backed securities on the secondary market. Home prices have come down to match those we had before the recent boom got going. But obviously more is needed.
One sector that would have a nice favorable impact on the demand side, without costing the taxpayer a dime, is the immigrants. For instance, every year 85,000 H1B visas are … (4 comments)

las vegas: Mortgage approval hinges on an acceptable appraisal more than ever - 03/14/09 11:43 AM
As if there already weren't enough roadblocks to qualify for a home loan. Most of the past mortgage programs have vanished into thin air in the aftermath of this still percolating real estate meltdown. Besides, down payment requirements have increased, FICO score standards are higher, PMI firms are pulling out of markets and so it goes.
Then there is the all-important appraisal. It's hard to get an accurate one when there are very few, if any, comparables in the immediate neighborhood to use. Homes are just not selling like they once were and this is the most reliable yardstick appraisers have … (6 comments)

las vegas: Cosmopolitan Las Vegas back in the spotlight - 03/12/09 02:40 PM
Just a week or so ago Cosmopolitan was the focus of discussions between Deutsche Bank, the current owner of the troubled resort, and MGM Mirage over the Las Vegas casino developer's potential involvement in managing it, possibly even becoming a part owner. These talks collapsed, though. But it didn't take long for a new party to emerge with a genuine interest in the project.  
Hilton Hotels Corp. is currently busy at work on plans to launch a new hotel brand called Denizen Hotels. The product is going to be conveniently modern with global appeal that is complimented with a local … (3 comments)

las vegas: LV resales a bright spot in February housing update - 03/10/09 10:20 AM
Despite the traditionally slow stretch of the real estate season Southern Nevada existing homes sales showed the same workmanlike consistency they have been doing for months. Namely that the statistics are way better from the same month one year ago, as was reported by GLVAR, or the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.2,288 homes were sold last month, which adds up to a 108% leap from February of 2008. And to stay on the positive track, it amounts to a 2.9% increase from January. These are the types of numbers that eventually will lift the housing market here in Las Vegas up from the dark … (4 comments)

las vegas: Real estate market perking up in troubled areas - 03/07/09 02:26 PM
Anyone can live with these types of headlines. The other kind - like those about mortgage approvals being hard to get, price declines, foreclosures - have been dominant for too long. Yes, the positive ones give consumers a dose of optimism that the housing market isn't dead after all. That it has the capacity to work thorough its imbalances and eventually start on the road to recovery.  
Let's throw in some interesting stats. First American CoreLogic put together a bunch of numbers on home sales at ZIP codes in metropolitan areas with at least 10,000 households. Each city only got one … (4 comments)

las vegas: MGM Mirage's CityCenter loan talks dissolve - 03/05/09 09:32 AM
The credit markets everywhere are in a pretty bad shape and the CityCenter project going up on the Strip is acutely feeling the pain. Apparently the negotiations between MGM Mirage and its partner Dubai World on one side of the table and Deutsche Bank on the other over a loan arrangement have collapsed.
The German bank was willing to lend around $1.2 billion to enable the project to complete against equity and debt shares in it, but the two sides failed to reach an agreement. The Cosmopolitan resort being constructed next door to the CityCenter and now owned by Deutsche Bank … (6 comments)