Thanks for reading Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. This is critical data you and your Realtor need to know before touring, listing, or making a purchase offer in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend.

Summary: We’re up to 14705 listings available. Once again, there was a rise in the number properties available under $50,000 and under $100,000. There was another drop in contingent and pending units, which I am interpreting as great news for the market in general: short sales are getting processed. It’s still going to take most of a year to get through them, but it is happening. It was a busy week for title officers and the Clark County Recorders Office who processed just under a thousand closings. Month end is always a busy time for closings, and this was no exception.

Other Information: Mortgage rates are down yet again, hitting another record low for the 4 decades it’s been tracked (the number of mortgage brokers is down too). But that’s not the reason at least one economist thinks “At some point, housing becomes a compelling bargain.” Some FHA changes are coming, so if you are considering buying with an FHA loan, it may be in your best interest (ha, interest!) not to delay. We have some details of that program I mentioned earlier this week where communities and non-profits get first crack at some foreclosed homes. And CNN just discovered that HAMP isn’t the only mortgage modification program out there. Great cutting edge reporting there, I guess. And one last thing, advice from Lowe’s on how to pick a home remodeling contractor.

Available Listings: There are 12002 single family homes (up), with a median price of $153,900 (down), $81 per square foot (down), with median time on market of 77 days (unchanged). In addition, there are 2708 condominiums and townhomes (up), with a median price of $79,999 (down $1), $64 per square foot (down), and median time on market of 77 days (up). Last month we had 10925 single family homes with a median price of $159,000 and 2571 condominiums and townhomes with a median price of $74,500.

Distressed Properties: Of available listings, there are 6749 short sales (up) and 3030 bank-owned properties (up). Median price for a short sale is $124,000 (down); median price on a bank-owned home is $119,900 (down). All short sale listings must be considered at risk of becoming bank owned properties whether they are available or contingent. The 4898 non-distressed properties for sale (up) had a median price of $199,839 (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. At the beginning of August we had 6025 short sales, 2773 bank-owned properties, and 4660 non-distressed properties.

Single Family Home Prices: Of available listings, 219 under $50,000; 2121 between $50,000-$100,000; 6054 between $100,000-$200,000; 2385 between $200,000-$400,000; 626 between $400,000-$700,000; 239 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 453 over $1,000,000. August 6 there were 165 under $50,000; 1881 between $50,000-$100,000; 5469 between $100,000-$200,000; 2269 between $200,000-$400,000; 585 between $400,000-$700,000; 250 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 469 over $1,000,000.

Condo and Townhome Prices: Of available listings, 660 under $50,000; 1419 between $50,000-$100,000; 562 between $100,000-$200,000; 95 between $200,000-$400,000; 19 between $400,000-$700,000; 6 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 3 over $1,000,000. These figures exclude high-rise communities for technical reasons. Last month’s figures were 576 under $50,000; 1339 between $50,000-$100,000; 583 between $100,000-$200,000; 102 between $200,000-$400,000; 20 between $400,000-$700,000; 4 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 3 over $1,000,000.

Contingent and Pending listings: Of the 13533 properties in the process of being purchased (down), 10947 are single family homes with median price of $134,900 (unchanged); 2585 are condominiums or townhomes with median price of $65,000 (unchanged). Final negotiated sales prices are confidential until closing. Of the total, 9518 were short sale (down), 2579 were bank owned (down), and 1421 were non-distressed sales (up). Last month we had 14030 pending and contingent; 9974 were short sale, 2592 were bank owned, and 1446 were non-distressed sales.

Recently sold: 969 properties closed in the last week, 3460 in the last 30 days, and 28920 so far this year. For properties closed in the last 30 days, median time on market was 32 days (unchanged, time on market including the contingent period was 104 days). Median sales price was $123,175 (up); median list price was $124,900 (up). For single family homes, median sales price was $139,900 (up), and for condos/townhomes, it was $64,900 (unchanged). Short sales accounted for 1028 of the total, there were 1539 bank owned properties, and 882 non-distressed sales. The first week of August, median sales price was $123,000 and median list price was $124,900.

Rentals: 4072 homes, townhomes, and condos were available for rent in the Valley in the MLS system (up). Median square footage of these units is 1389 and median rent is $1100. There are 686 contingent leases waiting to be signed and 2193 leases signed in the last 30 days (down) with median rent of $1150 and median square footage of 1532.

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.