No Crown for Vegas: Back in December, Clark County approved the Crown project, which would have been the second tallest structure on the Strip. This week, “Company officials said the recent upheaval in the world financial market caused the plans to be scrapped.” Furthermore, they will stop making payments towards purchasing the land for the project.

The truth about foreclosures: Just because the bank owns it and wants to not own it anymore doesn’t make it a bargain automatically. Buyers still need to do their research, Realtors still need to be aware of market conditions and advise buyers accordingly, and everyone needs to be aware that it takes patience to deal both with the bank and the problems that may arise.

Didn’t I already say this? Tony’s tips for curb appeal on foreclosure sales may be intended for REO agents (who are experienced listing agents or the bank would never call them) and investors who have purchased property from banks (see above). But they still hold true for Joe and Jane Average as they try to sell their home.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Licensee: I bet there’s at least one Realtor that lives in your neighborhood. Heck, there’s at least 3 on my block! Odds are very good that there’s a Realtor or two that takes a vested interest in your neighborhood, even if she lives miles away. She sends newsletters, she knows every house that’s been available for the last year, she goes door to door, maybe she goes to HOA meetings and organizes neighborhood garage sales. Well, she probably does genuinely like the neighborhood — particularly if she chooses to live there! — but the truth is she would like your business too. It’s a win-win situation, because chances are she knows and can highlight the great things about the neighborhood and the homes in it better than any agent in the area.

Lies, Foreclosures, and Gratuitous References to Adult Parties: The Hopps of Florida weren’t the only people making money off the real estate bubble — in fact, I think you could argue that if their actions involved securities, the SEC would be investigating them for “pump and dump“. In fact, many areas had somebody involved in the same sorts of schemes, where homes were bought for no-money-down, taking mortgages for more than the purchase price, and hoping to get out quickly. The Hopps might have been nothing more than a footnote if it weren’t for that one party making the news. The moral? I don’t know, defraud people and corporations as much as you like, as long as everybody keeps their clothes on?

I normally talk general econ over there, but….: Tim Iocono has some things to point out regarding the relationship of real estate holdings to overall net worth of American households.

I won’t bore you with the various conflicting stories I have seen this week regarding the state of the real estate markets. They range from “things will deteriorate for at least another year or three” to “we should see a bottom in the next 6 months” to “we are bottoming now” to “what are you talking about prices have already started to rise again in some places.” But you know how Tip O’Neill said “all politics is local”? Well all real estate is too. And locally, supply is declining. Sometimes when I do “floor duty” (answering real estate inquiries at the office for people who do not have Realtors), the phone rings regularly with people who want to buy. Econ 101 says that when supply declines and demand remains steady — or rises — prices go up.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.