Las Vegas Housing News & Articles

 

 

Ratings for Green Builders Help Sales, But May Confuse Buyers. From non-profit organizations to the federal government, a variety of rating systems are now in place to help builders and consumers alike evaluate the "green score" of their home. Homes that are at least 15% more efficient can be considered "green" and can be rated so by including such features as solar panels, low-flush toilets, rainwater collection systems, and more. The main concern for home-buyers should be issues such as "how much will the improvement make over time compared to the cost?" Common items to consider are refrigerators, air conditioning units, clothes washers & dryers and dishwashers, as they are run most often. This information is based on an article in the Wall Street Journal. "Ratings Proliferate for 'Green' Builders." The Wall Street Journal 8 November, 2007: D1+.

 

Green Homes Going Mainstream from CNET news April 24, 2007

Apartment Vacancy for more than 85,000 apartment units surveyed in January was 4.64 percent, down from 4.97 percent in December. Las Vegas Review Journal 13 March 2006: 2D.

Conversions Keep LV Apartment Market Tight Condominiums and townhomes now comprise more than half the multifamily housing starts nationally, a trend that's going to drive apartment rents and occupancy rates in hot markets such as Las Vegas, a research analyst said Wednesday. Occupancy will remain tight in Las Vega as condo conversions shrink the existing apartment inventory, which dropped from more than 160,000 in early 2004 to about 154,000 at the end of 2005 according to Yieldstar. Smith, Hubble. "Conversions Keep LV Apartment Market Tight." Las Vegas Review Journal 25 Februaru 2006: 1D+.

High Demand, Rising Costs for Land Average land values in Las Vegas climbed to $708,014 an acre in the third quarter of 2005. That's an 18% increase from the previous quarter and a 76% increase from a year ago, when the average price was $403,534 an acre. "There's concern over the lack of developable land so they're willing to pay premiums," said Brian Gordon of Applied Analysis. "High Demand, Rising Costs for Land" Las Vegas Review Journal 31 December 2005: 1D+.

Luxury Home Sales in Las Vegas Ken Lowman, owner and broker of Luxury Homes of Las Vegas, said the market is leveling off here, but it's not showing any signs of slowing. He consistently reports 10 to 15 sales of million-dollar homes during brisk weeks. Last week, the average price of six luxury homes sold in Las Vegas was $1.4 million. Smith, Hubble. "No End to High End in Homes" Las Vegas Review Journal 29 November 2005: D1+.

 

Housing Authority Investigation The Clark County Housing Authority spent about $1.5 million it didn't have, forcing at least 40 families to wait until the agency balances its books to get rental assistance they were promised. Carl Rowe, interim executive director for the housing authorities, said if the Section 8 program where the problem was found is not made financially solvent by early 2006, he will have to "terminate as many families (in the program) as we need to get to zero." In addition, it was found that employees weren't keeping current with duties such as evicting rule-breakers as required by law. Pratt, Timothy. "County Errors Costly to Families" Las Vegas Sun 14 November 2005: page 1+.

In the Las Vegas market, the average apartment rent last month (Sept 2005) stood at $813, a 6.1% increase from last year. Through June 2005, the average home price in the Las Vegas market had increased by 27%, according to federal mortgage regulators. The only other major Western markets where apartment rents have increased by more than 4% were both in Southern California. 10/20/2005

In September, new home closings increased 30% over the last 12 months. Including apartments converted and sold as condos, SalesTraq president Larry Murphy says we are on track to have 37,000 new home closings this year. 10/20/2005

Emerald Gardens, a 234-unit apartment complex on Harmon Ave was recently purchased. Emerald Gardens consists of 15 two-story buildings on eight acres built in 1979. 10/24/2000

Rhodes Homes Gets Approval to Build in Northern Arizona 9/23/2005

What is mixed use?

Las Vegas Housing Prices Expected to Keep Climbing One reason for the difference is because the number of building permits have decreased over the last year. When you have fewer permits-less supply- it's easier for demand to outpace it. 6/24/2005

Land Prices are Getting Rid of Mobile Homes Land prices, as you may be aware, have increased significantly in the Las Vegas area. As the plans progress for the seemingly countless number of high rise developments come to fruition, land that has provided affordable housing for so long to those in mobile home parks is now catering to those who aren't looking for affordable housing. 6/13/2005

Apartment Rents Skyrocket Rental rates have increased 5% from $750 in the first quarter of 2004, the largest jump in nearly a decade. Per sq ft, costs have increased from $0.83 to $0.88. Now, that's not as much as say, the commercial prices around the Curve (Durango and 215), but's significant. I've had several renters tell me lately that there are just no openings at apartments in the areas they want, need, or could find. 6/3/2005

Housing Still Hot in Las Vegas The Las Vegas housing market showed no signs of slowing down in April. Dennis Smith, president of Home Builders Research, said about the market, "The market is pretty good... We're seeing inventory drying up in new homes and resales look steady." 5/25/2005

Some Contractors Exempt from Having a License This week, a bill was passed allowing certain developers to be exempt from having a contractor's license. This bill was passed despite objections by the Nevada State Contractors Board 5/19/2005

Las Vegas Condo Conversion Rate Among the Highest in the United States Las Vegas has become one of the major condo conversion markets in the country with an 8 percent share of the $6.5 billion in conversion volume among 10 major metropolitan areas, a report from Marcus & Millichap Research Services shows. 4/28/2005

Conversions of Apartments to Condominiums Will Lead to Rent Hikes in the Valley According to Ms Shubinski's article, vacancies have been falling and rents have been increasing. An average rent of $768 per month at the end of 2003 has risen to $805 at the end of 2004. 3/13/2005

 

Las Vegas Home Prices Stabilize in February- according to the Las Vegas Association of Realtors, the median price os a single-family home in February was $286,000. Condos and townhomes showed a 52.5% increase in price from the same month a year ago. The North Las Vegas area north of Cheyenne and east of Decatur showed the highest sales activity and the highest median home price was $442,500 in Henderson south of Lake Mead Dr. Smith, Hubble. "Las Vegas Home Prices Stabilize in February" Las Vegas Review Journal 9 March 2005: D1.

Investors Help Increase Apartment Sales to Record Level Las Vegas apartment sales soared 163 percent in dollar volume last year with record-breaking gains reaching all segments of the market, according to Michael Belnick of RE/MAX Central Commercial Real Estate. 1/29/2005

Las Vegas Has Another Record Home Sales Year in 2004 Home Builders Research reported a record 29,248 new home sales for Las Vegas in 2004, an increase of 4,018, or 15.9 percent, from the previous year. Even more impressive, he said, was the new home permit total of 32,879, an increase of 7,666, or 30.4 percent. 1/29/2005

Home Builders Laud Guinn Land Plan With land in Las Vegas selling for $600,000 to $800,000 an acre, a representative for developers expects home buyers will welcome an innovative proposal by the governor to cut housing costs. Individuals purchasing the homes would pay only the cost of the housing unit, and not of the land. 1/29/2005

Construction Strong But Affordability at Issue Affordable rental housing will most likely start to become a bigger issue in 2005, with a loss of apartment inventory and an expected rise in rental rates. "I think basically, if you look at the economy of Las Vegas, all of the projections, with the casinos coming on board and the jobs and the unemployment rate, all those economic signs look extremely good," said Pam Banaszak, vice president of sales and marketing for Lennar Corp., a large valley homebuilder. 1/7/2005

Analyst Says Housing Will Stay Hot in 2005 Las Vegas was among the hottest housing markets in the nation last year, and it isn't expected to cool off much in 2005, a local housing expert said. 99 new homes sold for less than $100,000, down from 216 the previous year. 1/22/2005

Condo Conversions: Who is Benefiting, and Why? Developers and apartment owners are pursuing an avenue that, while not new, has reshaped the residential landscape. Apartment conversions have paved their way into Las Vegas and satisfied a necessary housing niche. 1/2005

Real Estate Industry Enjoys a Boom Year in 2004 Highlights include: Doubled Land Prices, Home Sales Reach Record Highs, William Lyon Builds First Master Planned Community in Pahrump, Focus Property Group Breaks Ground on "Providence" 1/3/2005

Median New Home Prices in Las Vegas Surge Again The median price of a new home in Las Vegas jumped to $284,755 in November, a 36.9 percent increase from the same month a year ago, a local research expert said Friday. Another record was set in the number of building permits pulled. With 1,733 in November, the permit count for the year grew to 30,959, shattering last year's 25,212. 1/8/2005

Economist Says Las Vegas Housing Market Will Not Collapse "A boom does not necessarily equate with a bubble," Rich Brown, chief economist of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., said during a conference call with reporters. "Fundamentals are going to have to catch up, and home prices are going to slow," Brown said. Home-price affordability plunged 27 percent in the Las Vegas area, said Catherine Phillips-Olsen, San Francisco region manager for the FDIC. 1/6/2005

Real Estate Tops List of 2004 in Las Vegas Neither scandal nor apparent buffoonery, the course of world events nor the obvious pronouncements of a local poll were enough to knock ridiculously out-of-control housing prices from atop its perch as the biggest story of the past year. 12/26/2004

Apartments Becoming Hot New Property in Las Vegas As many developers and entrepreneurs consider apartment-to-condo conversions the newest way to make a buck in Las Vegas, the market has been saturated with people looking for properties to buy. And buy they have, taking many apartment properties off the market in record numbers. 12/17/2004

Nevada Developers Race to Make Land Deals in Arizona Mardian's community will be about 26 miles south of the dam. Currently, it would take motorists more than an hour to make the trip from Las Vegas. "I think at this point it would be very easy to suggest that Kingman will be a bedroom community, but it's not going to be overnight. It's going to take some time," Smith said. "We're looking at the guy in Green Valley who wants to pay $30,000 to $40,000 less than they are now," said Mardian, who will begin developing his community shortly before the bypass is finished. 12/3/2004

Las Vegas Housing Outlook Called Bright Reports about the demise of the Las Vegas housing market have been "greatly exaggerated," as Mark Twain would say. With 6,000 new residents moving to Las Vegas each month for the last 10 years and a below-4 percent unemployment rate, the outlook for the housing market in 2005 remains bright, said Mike Castleman, executive vice president of Metrostudy in Ladera Ranch, Calif. "There is no bubble and this market is not crashing," Castleman said. "At the end of the day, Las Vegas is still a good market." 12/3/2004

Realtors' Survey Finds Buyers' Housing Needs Vary with Age, Location An increasing share of younger consumers rate as "very important" having their homes near high-quality schools, parks and playgrounds. Older buyers rate as "very important" having bedrooms on the main level of their homes and prefer living in and owning single-story homes, the study revealed. Among buyers who purchased a home without a desired feature, many would have paid more for it. Half of all recent home buyers report they painted the interior of their home soon after moving in. About 22% of first-time home buyers plan to remodel their kitchen within two years, compared with 11% of second-time home buyers. 11/27/2004

Las Vegas Leads Nation in Housing Appreciation Driven by an unusual number of sales in the upper price brackets, the average price of homes in Vegas rose an astounding 39.4% over the past 12 months. 11/27/2004

Property Tax Increases Will Hit Renters Hard Next year, the appraised value of my rental properties are from 96 percent to 233 percent more than last year. Taxes will force me to raise rents by hundreds of dollars. I simply cannot absorb these costs. Surely, other investors are in the same boat. 11/24/2004

Prices Retreat for New Homes in Las Vegas The median price of a new home fell to $272,930, down from nearly $279,000 in September, but still represents a year-to-year increase of $66,078, or 31.9 percent. "Prices seem to have leveled off for the time being. I still think you'll continue to see them increase in coming months," Smith said. "I think we'll be pushing the $300,000 barrier in three to four months." 11/24/2004

Housing Affordability Measure Drops in Las Vegas Valley The percentage of Las Vegans who could afford a new home dropped by almost half this year, according to a recent study. Clark County's median household income in 2003 was $45,605 according to the Census Bureau 2003 American Community Survey. 11/19/2004

Property Taxes Shock Homeowners Assessor Mark Schofield has floated a proposal to enact a 6 percent property tax cap, an issue legislators will consider in the next session. The taxable value on land increased between 20 percent and 50 percent during the yearlong period ending June 30, Clark County reports. 11/18/2004

Report Says BLM Needs to Change Approach to bring more affordable housing to Southern Nevada, a University of Nevada, Las Vegas research center reported. "You're going to start to see more and more community leaders discuss the possibility of employer subsidies," he said. "Some employers are going to have to step up the plate or workers are going to have to drive an hour and an hour and a half to get to work from Pahrump, Logandale, Overton and Arizona." 11/16/2004

Baby Boomer Growth Drives Urban Mixed-use Development The baby boomer demographic, or those born between 1946 and 1964, will account for 33 percent of total homeowner growth between 2000 and 2010. Developers are tailoring their product for the baby boomer generation - the wealthiest group of elderly in history. Nearly 45 percent of baby boomer households are interested in denser resident communities with a combination of retail, restaurants, and office spaces, according to a recent survey. 11/14/2004

Homes near airport may be purchased The eighteen homes were left out of an airport property deal in 2002, when nearly 300 homes were purchased to clear land for the construction for Terminal 3, the airport's international wing. 11/11/2004

Job Growth = Appreciation November 2004 In strong markets, households are reaping double-digit appreciation: 52 percent in Las Vegas and 38 percent in Anaheim, Calif., for example. The appreciation figures mask a country growing increasingly divided between households enjoying strong appreciation gains and those largely without. People are following the jobs, and home price appreciation is following the people.

Investors Heating Up Apartment Market "The prices for those properties, from $43,000 to $60,000 a door, is a steal when compared with California's prices" 11/5/2004

3rd Quarter 2004 Apartment Sales Sizzle Southern Nevada's population boom coupled with rising home prices, out-of-state investment money and resort expansions have resulted in a sizzling apartment market. There has been $1.575 billion worth of apartment sales year-to-date through the 3rd quarter, a 139% increase over last year. 23,900 units have sold through the 3rd quarter 2004 compared to 12,427 units in 2003. Las Vegas Business Press 11/8/2004

Developers See Condo Growth Officials see market adding up to 15,000 units in few years. Earlier this year at his annual Housing Outlook, Home Builders Research President Dennis Smith predicted a boom in conversions as an alternative to escalating single-family home prices. 10/29/2004

Pre Loan Contracts in Marriage When two people purchase a home, they are entering a partnership. Lenders don't really care if you're married, related, or just friends with the person with whom you're buying the house. They are concerned only with the actual value of the home being bought. With that in mind, what happens when one partner wants out of the deal? 11/6/2004

Purchase Delay May Be Costly The nation's 38 million renters should purchase a home now if they plan to purchase a home at all. Many potential buyers don't realize that buying a home is easier than ever before. 11/6/2004

Mortgage Insurance Deduction Falls Short The final version of the $136 billion American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 omitted a Senate-passed tax code change that would have allowed millions of home buyers to deduct their mortgage insurance premiums. 11/6/2004

Spiraling Housing Prices Convincing Many to Leave Las Vegas First-time home buyers who are having a hard time finding affordable housing in Las Vegas shouldn't throw in the towel, a real estate instructor said. 11/7/2004

Housing: Priced Out, Moving Out- Official Encourages New Home Buyers to Persevere 11/7/2004

 

Housing Market Stabilizes in September The Las Vegas Real Estate Market saw its first sales drop so far this year in September 2004. 10/25/2004

Price Increases Could Soon Level Off "There is just so much going on; look at all the construction and all that is taking place," Jesperson said. "The short-term horizon is excellent." 10/29/2004

Growing Demand Gauged for Seniors Housing Occupancy rates for the overall seniors housing industry have improved over the past 12 months and currently fall in the high-80 to low-90 percent range. November 2, 2004

Condos, Townhomes Differ Land Ownership Distinguishes Property Types. Are property taxes rising? Is there a growing demand for student housing? Are efforts being made to reform the home-buying process? 10/30/2004

Condo Units Share Main Property How is a condominium different from other properties? What affects condominium financing? 10/30/2004

Diamond in the Rough: Pulte Homes Named Master Residential Developer of 42,000-acre Coyote Springs Community 10/9/2004

Contractors Lament Effect of "Right to Repair" Law Liability insurance premiums have continued to rise 10/1/2004

Stocks Plunge; Analysts Shrug Observers Say LV Housing Sturdy Despite Sell-Off  10/6/2004

Site Consolidates Government Properties Available for Sale Agencies Sell Discounted Homes in Need of Rep air 10/2/2004 by Kenneth R Harney of the Washington Post Writers Group

Housing Prices Still Hot, But Will it Last?  Analysts Ponder the Effect of Mortgage Rates "Las Vegas had the highest appreciation (of existing houses) rate of any metropolitan statistical area in the nation year over year in second quarter 2004," Catherine Phillips-Olsen, regional manager for the FDIC in San Francisco, said Thursday. 9/25/2004

Miller Plaza Residents Won't Miss Dilapidated Apartments  The Clark County Housing Authority has decided to demolish the Miller Plaza, an aging 70-unit complex. The 61 residents of the complex will be offered rent assistance to help them find new homes. 9/25/2004

Panel Ponders How to Make Las Vegas Housing Affordable Suggestions from local housing authority officials and nonprofit organizations included increasing federal subsidies for low-income households, establishing inclusionary zoning requirements for developers and higher density zoning and setting aside parcels from BLM auctions for affordable housing. 9/28/2004

Experts Suggest Buying a House Interest rates are at a historical low. Even if the rates did go up another percent or so, compared to most time periods in history, it's still considered low. What does that mean for the 38 million renters in the U.S.? 9/20/2004

What's in a Million?  Homes that sell for seven digits becoming more common in Las Vegas Valley, but how much home are people getting?

Vegas Market, Still Hot and Steady 7/04 "Bottom falls out of Vegas Real Estate Market" is not a headline that you are likely to see any time soon even with the interest rates creeping up ever so slightly.

Gap Widens between wages, housing prices What he found is a market where the median price of a new home has more than doubled over the past decade, while household income has increased just 22 percent. 2/26/2004

Taxable Home Values on Rise Assessor wants 6 percent cap on yearly increase When property tax notices hit valley mailboxes later this month, the average homeowner can expect an 8 percent increase above last year's bill due to rapidly rising home values throughout the county, but the real sticker shock is expected to come over the next two years. 7/2/2004  Property Tax Chart

Property Taxes

Home Prices Peaking: Affordability at Issue Prices for resale and new homes continue to soar in the Las Vegas Valley, and a local housing expert said the days of entry-level home buying appear to be gone. 6/25/04

Red-Hot Housing Market Could Reach Record Sales Figures There were 13,964 new single detached homes sold this year through June, a year-to-year increase of 25.6 percent. That puts the industry on a course to sell nearly 29,000 new homes for 2004, which would shatter last year's record by 3,770 homes. Homebuilders have also secured 20,315 building permits for the year through June, a year-to-year increase of 67 percent. 7/26/2004

High Rise Building in Las Vegas

Sales of condominiums increase by 90 percent Condominium sales through June have increased 90 percent from a year ago to 3,885, Lee Barrett, president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, said Monday. "They're entry-level housing now," Barrett said of condos. "When we had a problem with construction defect litigation, we got behind on that product. None of the builders wanted to build it. I think you're going to see more of it." 7/13/2004

"Unusual" Law Can Leave Owners Out to Dry With the abundance of vacation homes and empty rentals in the Las Vegas Valley, it's not improbable that someone unwelcome might move into a house unnoticed, or even rent or "sell" the property without permission. "In general, after a certain period of time, established by statute in each state, a person occupying property legally owned by another may acquire title to that property in his own name," he said. 6/25/2004

Las Vegas Apartment Sales Soar The skyrocketing apartment sales can be attributed to roughly 8,000 units being converted to condominiums creating a negative inventory, plus an under-appreciated real estate market, Belnick says. And despite rising rents, vacancy rates continue to drop. "We think there is going to be a 6 percent increase in apartment rents by the end of this year," says Spenser Ballif, an apartment specialist with CB Richard Ellis. "We are seeing interest rates are going up while new supply is actually going down. It will mean reduced concessions with all of these free rent and move in specials going away." 5/10/2004

 

LV Apartment Vacancy Down in 2003 Apartment vacancy in Las Vegas declined to 7.6 percent at the end of last year, compared with 9.2 percent in January 2003, according to a report from CB Richard Ellis. 2/28/2004

Developers plan mall with residential units Olympia Group and Simon Property Group have announced they will jointly develop a million-square-foot mall with residential units above retail shops on Las Vegas Boulevard South between Cactus and Starr avenues. With 6,000 acres in west Henderson identified for auction by the Bureau of Land Management and the 2,000-acre Mountain's Edge community under development west of Southern Highlands, the south valley is poised to be the next hot spot for growth, she said. 5/23/2004

 

Condo Conversions Help Drive Apartment Prices Up Demand and desirability for multifamily investment are increasing in conjunction with the dramatic rise in development here, David Baird, senior adviser for Sperry Van Ness in Las Vegas, said Friday. Robust population and job growth that pushed single-family home appreciation rates to 15 percent in Las Vegas over the past several years has made the condominium market more attractive, said William Lindsay, founding partner of Pacific Coast Capital Partners in El Segundo, Calif. 6/8/2004