Las Vegas NV Area REO is Not Disappearing - It's Just Emerging as Another Life Form!

Renee, that's the new game in town.  They'll turn around and sell them with "owner" financing to yet another group of un-qualified buyers with a hefty down payment required and the process which we're trying to resolve will probably repeat in another 3 to 5 years.  My quote goes something like "He with the most cash wins."  Sometimes you don't have to leave the pond, just change your bait! 

Renee - I've seen this around my area too, which as you mentioned the neighbors/homeowners are happy, but the buyer's are not.  Although a majority of the "flips" are selling for top dollars because so many buyer's have given up on short sales and at this point if they want to qualify for the tax credit they need to find a standard sale.

And once again . . . the cycle continues.  Rather than having the prices come down to more affordable terms, so that average homebuyer Joe and Jane can purchase a home, the investors, et al, get them first. 

I am not sure if the investors are causing the shift. In our area, we have sheriff sales where properties in foreclosure are auctioned off to the highest bidder. What impacts whether an investor buys the property is what the banks determine as the upset price. This is the price at which they are willing to sell. Banks have decided they want to release more inventory into the system or are getting more realistic BPO's and therefore investors are buying them. We can complain about this, but any buyer is welcome to attend these sales and bid. The average buyer is not willing to accept the risk which is inherent in these sales, so an investor does accept this risk. The market value is set by what a buyer is willing to pay. At lest buyers have some other human being to negotiate with in purchasing the property and do not need to wait for months to get an answer.

Cal

Renee,

Thanks for this post. It has been thought provoking. Actually the more I think about this, this is good news. This is bringing stabilization to the marketplace. This is a good thing, not a bad thing. Yes, buyers want the best deal possible, but we have all been hearing that the affordability of homes is at the lowest it has been in years. What we all do not want is a market which continues to drop in price. This may be good for buyers, but in the long run this kind of market hurts us all. The best market is stable and slowly increases in price. What we had from 2004-2007 was out of control and in reality, not a stable market. We are returning to something more stable.

Cal

We need these kind of buyers right now... they know what they want and they have the money to make it happen.

Renee, I'm seeing that here as well. Some have gone the route of lease options. If these buyers wait, they will lose out. As the saying goes, CASH is king.....or queen. :D

This is happening here, too.  I watch the foreclosures and alert my buyers that one might be coming up, only to see it rented or rehabbed and listed at more than I expect.

The real estate wheel is being re-invented as we speak!

Renee the boat may have left the dock for those lookng for bargains.  Nobody wanted them a year ago when they were cheap.

Renee,

Flippers are returning to the Vegas housing scene, is what I hear and see. Not entirely a bad thing so long as they rehab properties first, dragging up values.

We haven't seen these buyer's in my market yet. However banks do tend to choose cash offers over 1st time home buyer financing offers.

Renee - I think this is probably good for the market. it always helps to have more buyers with money and homes in better condition to keep property values up.