Las Vegas Nevada supports landlords and protect them instead of tenants, unlike other states as in California or New York. Need help evicting your tenants not paying you rent? Contact  702-455-4099  the Constable's Office in Las Vegas to file a '5 day pay or quit notice'. Here in Clark County courts are only open 4 days a week. During the Notice process the tenant has the opportunity to pay his balance in full. If they do, the notice is terminated and the tenancy continues .

Constable's Office
302 E. Carson Ave 5th Floor
Las Vegas, NV 89155
702-455-4099/FAX 702-385-2436
Hrs: 8:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m. (M-F)
First Thursday of each month, offices closes @3:00 p.m.   Steps to Eviction

• Must visit in person to Constable's office to file '5 day notice'
• Fee is $46 plus $2/mile
• Then file eviction notice with Justice Court $49
• Constable's office will perform lockout $42 plus $4/mile

Below is the website referring to more details about the eviction process and WHEN to take action.   http://www.property-mgmt.com/csp/sys/atlas/frontend/CurOwnEvictions1.csp

Now that you are an owner of your home did you know you can set up a Trust as a good way to protect your assets during your life? It can provide financial security for your children and your spouse. The probate process is avoided for assets put into the trust and eliminate or reduce estate taxes for your beneficiaries, which can be as high as 30%.

The following steps will help you determine what type of trust is best for you.  I would recommend contacting an CPA. I partner with A&M Enterprise, Anne Petty, to help my clients setup trusts for their homes. Feel free to contact her directly at  702-870-4252 . If you have specific questions call me at  702-212-2288 .

Step 1

Investigate types of trusts. A "living trust" is one in which assets are used and controlled by you during your lifetime and are distributed when you die as directed by the trust.

Step 2

Unlike a living trust, a "testamentary trust" takes effect when you die. It is usually tied to a will and can help eliminate or reduce estate taxes for your beneficiaries. A testamentary trust does not avoid probate.

Step 3

Set up the trust once you have determined the type you need. Determine who you want as your trustee (the person responsible for ensuring that the terms of the trust agreement are carried out).

Step 4

Consult with your bank, attorney or certified financial adviser.

Step 5

Obtain the appropriate documents from your adviser (or purchase a software program to assist you) and complete them to set up the trust.

Step 6

Fund a living trust. Identify which assets to include in your living trust. These are the assets over which you have control and wish to control during your lifetime.

Step 7

Change the titles of these assets; you'll be putting them in the name of your trust.

Today's topic is on foreclosures and liens. HOA lien is not removed as the result of a foreclosure. This is because the recordation of the lien references the CC&Rs which are dated prior to the date of the foreclosure so they are considered to have superior status.  HOA liens are konw as Super Liens. Once a bank has taken possession of a proeprty through foreclosure it is considered the legal owner and must follow legal requirements to convey title to a buyer. Clearing the status of liens is one of those requirements. Thus the bank will bring all outstanding liens current before transfer of the property. Repayment of HOA liens only go back 6 months. If a year has passed before the bank takes possession, the HOA will only recomver six months of back payemtns. The rest is written off as a business expense. So will the HOA take the owner to collections to recover any extra debt not paid by the bank? So far there are no cases of this happening. In a foreclosure the bank gets the house. So far they haven't tried to get anything more from the seller either.

After I complete a real estate transaction I find it difficult to keep constant contact with all of my clients. Email is the best communication vehicle; the least time consuming and the most economical. One of the services I provide after closing is referring vendors and partners whom I trust to help people in the areas of taxes, setting up trusts to protect assets, repairman (everyone needs a good one) and more.

Letting people know an CPA is able to amend our taxes for the past 3 years can potentially bring new found money to families who really need it.

Setting up trusts and protecting a homeowner's assets prevent our homes from going to probate court in the case of unforeseen events. Planning ahead is one of the key to success.

Hiring a reliable repairman will help save lots of money for small maintenance jobs. Did you know homeowners who are selling their homes can add a home warranty without cost while the house is listed on the market for sale? It's a feature negotiated between your Realtor and Home Warranty companies on your behalf therefore hire a Realtor and find out all the benefits of proper representation!

For all of your real estate needs in Las Vegas contact xlu2006@kw.com!

My name is Xiao-Qing Lu, pronounced Shall-Ching, an CEO of my real estate business at Keller Williams Realty Las Vegas. The current economic conditions, rising rates of unemployment, and depressed home values in many markets point to continued increase in mortgage defaults, short sales, and sales of foreclosed and REO properties.

This letter serves as a resource for you navigating through the options available to homeowners, including refinancing, loan modification, lender workout, short sale, and doing nothing and walking away.

Additionally my team and I have put together a FREE seminar and would like to take this opportunity to personally invite you to join us. It will be held the 2^nd Thursday of every month at 5:30pm. We will have Attorneys and Realtors present to answer any questions you have for FREE.

Options For Home Owners

Option 1: Loan Modification  The loss mitigation department of your mortgage company may make arrangements with you to pay some of the back payments now and the balance within a certain time period. A typical example - You owe $9,000 in back payments, attorneys' fees, etc. Your mortgage company may accept $4,500 now and $750 per month for the next 6 months.. A loan modification is a permanent change to your mortgage that may lower your payments and the delinquent payments may be added to the mortgage balance. A loan modification is easier to arrange prior to the mortgage company filing a notice of default.

Option 2: Refinance Arranging new financing will depend on your income, credit report, value of your home and the amount of your equity. If you're not sure of the value of your home give me a call. I would be glad to help and off course there's no obligation. If you attempt to refinance or modify your loan, you should always have a backup plan available to you.

Option 3: Chapter 13 Bankruptcy  Filing bankruptcy will postpone a property foreclosure sale date. Immediately after filing a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, homeowner must file a repayment plan with the courts. This plan has to show that you have sufficient monthly income to pay basic living expenses. In addition your income must be sufficient to resume making monthly mortgage payments. All past due amounts are usually spread out between 24 and 60 months. A Bankruptcy attorney charges between $1,000 to $2,000.

Option 4: Short Sale Your HomeThis is probably the most underutilized option available to you. The market is very active and right now there are more buyers than there are homes for them to buy. If you have recently been served with a foreclosure lawsuit you still have enough time to sell your home which will provide you and your family the greatest opportunity for a fresh start. If you owe more than your home is worth a "short sale" may be an option. In this case I can take care of all of the paperwork, marketing your home, and negotiate with the lender on your behalf.  If saving your house seems unlikely, you should call me as soon as possible. Because of the time sensitive nature of your situation, this is not a time to do it alone.

Option 5: Let Your Home Be Sold On the Courthouse Steps By far, the worst option available to you! Many people feel "I have no equity, let the bank take it", but homes that are sold on the courthouse steps typically sell between 50% and 70% of their fair market value. Moreover, if a bank suffers a loss due to the pending foreclosure action against you, they also have an option. They can file a deficiency judgment against you and pursue you for the amount of their loss.

If I can be of any assistance please do not hesitate to contact me at  702-212-2288 .

Best Regards,

Xiao-Qing Lu

Total number of homes available in Las Vegas today is 10,162. This includes single family homes, condos, and townhomes. With 3,661 homes sold in the month of April, the $8,000 tax credit expired on 4/30, there are common questions now asked the curious. Will home prices start to fall? Will Banks release more homes on the market?  Will people continue to buy? No one has an exact answer. However we will know when the market starts to turn around when banks begin to help homeowners who have foreclosured and offer to help to repair their credit. Click on the link below and follow Golden1 Credit Union, a California based bank who started to help homeowners purchase their next home after recent foreclosure.   https://www.golden1.com/aboutus/mortgageassistance.aspx  

In the month of April 3,661 homes were sold. Based on the rate of aborption it will take 2.8 months for Las Vegas to consume all the available inventory.

• 43.8% of sold homes are bank owned
• 26.7% of sold homes are short sales
• 29.5% of sold homes are not distressed
• Medium single family home price is $142,000 an increase of 4.4% from March
• Medium condo prices increased slightly to $67,400
• Medium rental price remained at $1,100 at a 79% occupancy rate

To better predict what's happening in the future I'm also delving into notice of defaults (NODs) filed and number of foreclosed homes. This information is current which gives us all a better picture of what's to come. As of April month 17,122 NODs were filed; meaning 17,122 homes are behind on their payments for at least 90 days. Many homeowners are residing in the homes. As of yesterday 5/14/10, banks took back 299 homes due to foreclosure. The unknown is the pipeline of inventory from the NODs.   For further discussion or clarification feel free to email me.

Another day in my favorite profession, real estate where everyone wants to know about it, thinks they know it and few fully understand it and interpret it. I love being a Realtor, especially in Las Vegas! After few challenging transactions, I decided to take this Tuesday and Wedneday off. Intead of working 6 days a week, my goal is towards working 4 days a week. Ever read the book 'The 4 hr Week' by Tim Ferris? I'm following his guidelines to work less yet accomplish more.  Las Vegas is the only place I can think of where driving one hour away to Mt. Charleston one will see snow capped mountains, feel the cold air, see snowflakes, yes it snowed while I was there, when in the valley one hour south is 70's to 80's degree. How refreshing is it to be our own boss, take time off when I say it's time and seek no other permission (unless we have a spouse and responsibility).  Refreshing to have hobbies and a life outside of the busyness of real estate transactions. Coming back to the office the next day, really didn't miss much. Missed a meeting, missed several phone calls, missing emails. Nothing that is earth shattering. I checked today's inventory level in Las Vegas. We are back at 10,013 homes. Volume is slightly over 10,000 which is first in several weeks. For the past month or two, Las Vegas inventory has always been under 9,999 homes. Is the tax credit expiration discouraging people from buying? Are banks releasing more inventory? Are people expecting prices to fall in the next few months? No one knows for sure. One thing I do know is I love being a Realtor. For all the Realtors out there, tell our story at www.theHeartoftheMarket.com.

Realtors are special type of people. I'm not referring to short term Realtors who jumps into the market when sales are good then exits quickly as soon as they enter. Long term Realtors are persistent, strong, ethical, relationship based, excellent communicators, counselors, consultants, and leaders. We are the ones who work hard, not focusing on results but, focused on doing the right thing all the time. There are many escrows that not closed due to various reasons yet Realtors keep going. In our market today if deals do not close, it means we don't receive a paycheck. The bright side is we have an opportunity to build relationships with clients, partners and vendors. I recently have an escrow that was cancelled due to an error made by the client's CPA on 2009 taxes. As a result the buyer's loan was denied thus no deal. It is disappointing to see a deal we work hard for falls apart after 2 months, not due to our fault but the lack of due diligence of another individual. Through this challenge I've built a solid relationship with the lender, whom I would otherwise not have a 15 minute conversation. We have no control of the surprises in life, we do have control over how we feel, what we do in challenging situations.

Month 5 of the new year is just as exciting as month 1 in real estate of Las Vegas. Every 3 months the market changes; the change is the only part that stays constant. Having worked with multiple buyers in multiple price points I came to the realization that leverage comes from not from working with buyers. Instead working with sellers offer Realtors the most effective use of time. Thus I am moving forward with my business by shifting my focus on taking listings, short sales included.  Las Vegas housing inventory as of today is at 9,981 homes including condos, townhomes, single family homes. We are looking at less than 3 months of inventory to reveal that we are in a seller's market. By shifting to Listings not only will we have leverage of our time, we will be adding more inventory onto the Las Vegas market. This is important to our economy, important to buyers, buyer's agent and to the overall community.

As most people will say we are in a challenging Real Estate market. It's not an easy market for anyone involved in a transaction; buyer, seller, buyer's agent, seller's agent, banks, lenders, title/escrow officers. I focus on the positives, the possibles. After 2 to 3 months of searching for a resale home with my clients, we ended up signing a contract with a new home builder. My clients are every excited to be buying a single story home priced at $100/sqf before upgrades of their choice. There are more options than searching for a resale home, especially bank owned. Do what most people won't do. Look for other ways to find clients homes. The key is don't EVER give up. There IS a home for everyone. The job of a Realtor is to build relationships with partners, include new home Sales Associates. Talking to people is much easier than searching for homes on the MLS :)