Jul 10
9
Thanks for reading Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. Here’s the real scoop that you and your Realtor need to know before touring, listing, or making a purchase offer this weekend.
Summary: The number of properties for sale rose yet again to 12,266. We are seeing clear signs of fewer buyers now that the tax credit is over. The rise in the number of available short sales is dramatic. One obstacle to clearing the inventory of very low priced homes is that financing such properties is almost impossibly difficult. The number of properties under contract to be sold did drop slightly as more of them moved on to closing. There’s still over 14,000, and most of them are still waiting for short sales to be approved. The number of properties that closed in the last week plummeted, as most buyers (and some sellers) pushed hard to close before the end of June. While the year to date sales figures are not as high as last year, they are far above 2007 and 2008 levels.
Other Information: I’m not sure what to make of ABC’s report that “liar loans” are making a comeback. Nobody thinks it’s a good idea to sell people a house they ultimately can’t afford, but many people in Las Vegas make more money in tips than in salary! Wells Fargo is completely shutting down its sub-prime operations, so be prepared to show them lots of documents to get a mortgage. Rates are down again to a new record low, and as a result mortgage applications are up. Good news for our local economy is that hotel occupancy nationwide is up; our economy relies heavily on tourism. Another bit of good news courtesy of our reader Jacob, General Growth will very likely sell over 7 acres of land for a high-tech manufacturing facility. This will bring construction jobs now and tech manufacturing jobs for years to come. And finally, nationwide, apartment vacancy is down, and rents are up. The theory is that the economy has improved enough that people who had roommates are moving out on their own.
Available Listings: There are 9912 single family homes (up), with a median price of $164,250 (down), $84 per square foot (down), with median time on market of 72 days (up). In addition, there are 2355 condominiums and townhomes (up), with a median price of $75,000 (unchanged), $67 per square foot (unchanged), and median time on market of 63 days (up).
Distressed Properties: Of available listings, there are 5173 short sales (up) and 2525 bank-owned properties (unchanged). Median price for a short sale is $128,000 (down); median price on a bank-owned home is $123,900 (up). All short sale listings must be considered at risk of becoming bank owned properties whether they are available or contingent. The 4519 non-distressed properties for sale (up) had a median price of $215,000 (down). While many of the non-distressed properties are traditional sellers, many others were purchased fairly recently as short sale or bank owned, and then renovated by investors.
Single Family Home Prices: Of available listings, 150 under $50,000; 1475 between $50,000-$100,000; 4933 between $100,000-$200,000; 2180 between $200,000-$400,000; 591 between $400,000-$700,000; 243 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 469 over $1,000,000.
Condo and Townhome Prices: Of available listings, 487 under $50,000; 1224 between $50,000-$100,000; 545 between $100,000-$200,000; 113 between $200,000-$400,000; 19 between $400,000-$700,000; 4 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 2 over $1,000,000. These figures exclude high-rise communities for technical reasons.
Contingent and Pending listings: Of the 14775 properties in the process of being purchased (down), 11895 are single family homes with median price of $135,000 (unchanged); 2882 are condominiums or townhomes with median price of $65,000 (unchanged). Final negotiated sales prices are confidential until closing. Of the total,10632 were short sale (down), 2642 were bank owned (up), and 1491 were non-distressed sales (up). As bad as the number of contingent short sales is, it is improving.
Recently sold: Only 402 properties closed in the last week, 3967 in the last 30 days, and 22115 so far this year. For properties closed in the last 30 days, median time on market was 27 days (unchanged, time on market including the contingent period was 112 days). Median sales price was $125,000 (down); median list price was $125,023 (down). Short sales accounted for 1370 of them, there were 1542 bank owned properties, and 1049 non-distressed sales.
Rentals: 3926 homes, townhomes, and condos wereavailable for rent in the Valley in the MLS system (down). Median square footage of these units is 1375 and median rent is $1100. There are 658 contingent leases waiting to be signed and 2022 leases signed in the last 30 days with median rent of $1125 and median square footage of 1516.
Need more information or help with your real estate needs? Call me today at 702-727-7842 or email bmagnus@bridgetmagnus.com. Based on information from the Greater Las Vegas Association of REALTORS Multiple Listing Service for the date specified above. This article was written and copyright by Bridget Magnus, and is her sole property.
