At least one expert thinks that housing prices here in the Valley are starting to stablize.

While prices did not rise in October, they were remarkably close to September levels, Larry Murphy of Las Vegas-based SalesTraq said.

New home median prices slid less than $4,000 to $249,000 and existing home prices dipped just $2,000 to $184,000.

New construction has almost halted, with only 329 new permits issued.  Builders just can’t afford to compete with the short sale and REO sales that often go for under $100 per square foot. However, I do have one beef with his figures:  

Murphy estimates there are about 15,000 REO properties in Las Vegas, including a majority of the vacant homes on the market for sale. With roughly 2,000 foreclosure sales a month, it would take seven months to go through the current supply, assuming no more REOs come on to the market.

We’ve talked about these sorts of numbers before.  Only about a third ot the homes on the market are bank owned right now, roughly 7500  of the 21,000 houses, condos, and townhomes in the MLS system.  Those are of course all vacant.  For there to really be 15,000 REO properties means that banks are prepared to put an additional 7500 homes on the market at the drop of a hat, quashing his recovery theory in the process. I personally just don’t find that credible.