Summary: The number of available listings dropped again to 15835. While one might think this was a side effect of the court ruling preventing most Bank of America foreclosures in Nevada, the number of foreclosed homes available did go up. The year-over-year rise in the number of listings available is quite remarkable. No wonder prices went down. The number of contingent and pending listings did jump to over 12,000 this week — hopefully a sign of future closed sales. Even better news: we had almost 2000 fewer contingent short sales than last February. Time on market for recently closed homes continues to go up; prices are continuing to slide. We have less than two months supply of rental housing available in the MLS: we need more investors so we can maintain a supply of affordable rentals.

Other Information: Las Vegas is using $10.4 million in federal dollars to help out one area in the Northwest: the plan is to buy and rehab 56 vacant homes; 40 will be sold and 16 maintained as low-income rental homes. For those keeping score, that comes to an average of $185,700 per home. A national real estate analyst says that the outlook for Vegas apartments is good.

Utah has joined Nevada in saying that Bank of America’s ReconTrust unit can’t legally foreclose in the state, but they’ve taken the matter to Federal court. It will be interesting to see how they rule. In an unrelated bankruptcy case, MERS has been found not to have standing to foreclose. The fact is that illegal foreclosures are going on all over the country. Thankfully, fewer people are behind on their mortgages, but foreclosures are still at record levels. Foreclosures did rise in Nevada.

For those of you who are really into the economics of housing, here’s an interesting article on why prices on new listings are down. Interest rates are back down to 5%. A controversy is brewing: CoreLogic has accused the NAR of inflating the number of homes it says have been sold; the NAR disagrees. Remember, I take all these figures from our local MLS — which is run by our local affiliate of the NAR. I cannot track every For Sale By Owner home, and I depend on closing statistics from the MLS and local title companies.

Available Listings: There are 13039 single family homes (down), with a median price of $136,900 (up), $74 per square foot (unchanged), with median time on market of 109 days (unchanged). In addition, there are 2799 condominiums and townhomes (down), with a median price of $66,000 (up), $59 per square foot (unchanged), and median time on market of 103 days (up). Last year we had 8963 single family homes  with a median price of $174,900 and 1937 condominiums and townhomes  with a median price of $79,950.

Distressed Properties: Of available listings, there are 7830 short sales (up) and 3048 bank-owned properties (down). Median price for a short sale is $114,900 (unchanged); median price on a bank-owned home is $104,500 (down). All short sale listings must be considered at risk of becoming bank owned properties whether they are available or contingent. The 4953 non-distressed properties for sale (down) had a median price of $175,000 (up). 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. In February of 2010, there were 4977 short sales, 1780 bank-owned properties, and 4117 non-distressed properties available.

Single Family Home Prices: Of available listings, 380 under $50,000; 3338 between $50,000-$100,000; 6214 between $100,000-$200,000; 2146 between $200,000-$400,000; 550 between $400,000-$700,000; 203 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 391 over $1,000,000. A year ago it was 150 under $50,000; 1270 between $50,000-$100,000; 4110 between $100,000-$200,000; 2158 between $200,000-$400,000; 671 between $400,000-$700,000; 230 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 512 over $1,000,000.

Condo and Townhome Prices: Of available listings, 840 under $50,000; 1420 between $50,000-$100,000; 491 between $100,000-$200,000; 83 between $200,000-$400,000; 13 between $400,000-$700,000; 4 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 2 over $1,000,000. Last February there were 406 under $50,000; 873 between $50,000-$100,000; 534 between $100,000-$200,000; 128 between $200,000-$400,000; 27 between $400,000-$700,000; 8 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 3 over $1,000,000.

Contingent and Pending Listings: Of the 12064 properties in the process of being purchased (up), 9861 are single family homes with median price of $129,900 (unchanged); 2204 are condominiums or townhomes with median price of $60,000 (unchanged). Final negotiated sales prices are confidential until closing. Of the total, 7708 were short sale (up), 2872 were bank owned (up), and 1479 were non-distressed sales (up). Last year we had 14439: 9684 short sale, 3251 bank owned, and 1490 were non-distressed properties.

Recently Sold: 658 properties closed this week, 3438 in the last 30 days, and 4797 so far this year. For properties closed in the last 30 days, median time on market was 51 days (up, time on market including the contingent period was 130 days). Median sales price was $110,000 (down); median list price was $114,500 (down). For single family homes, median sales price was $125,000 (unchanged), and for condos/townhomes, it was $59,830 (down). Short sales accounted for 931 of the total, there were 1760 bank owned properties, and 747 non-distressed sales. One year ago, median sales price was $122,500 and median list price was $121,152.

Rentals: 3919 homes, townhomes, and condos were available for rent in the Valley in the MLS system (down). Median square footage of these units is 1367 and median rent is $1095. There are 902 contingent leases waiting to be signed and 2253 leases signed in the last 30 days (up) with median rent of $1100 (unchanged) and median square footage of 1502.

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.

Welcome to Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. Touring, listing, or making a purchase offer in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend? Read this first!

Summary: At 14937 available units, we’re at crunch time: does that number continue to go up by 200-300 every week, or does it level off and stay here for a while? While median price is dropping, price per square foot is not. It looks like people who didn’t buy before the home buyer tax credit expired have been rewarded with greater selection at lower prices. Contingent and pending listings are up for the first time in many weeks, which does mean we have buyers getting properties under contract. The number of contingent short sales is still going down, and that is a good thing in the long run.

Other Information: The Las Vegas Sun reports that “more people are moving away than usual,” but it’s still worth noting that over 4600 people transferred their drivers licenses into Nevada. If you applied for the home buyer’s tax credit, make sure that you qualify and filled everything out correctly; the IRS is checking! October 1 new rules go into effect concerning what Realtors can and can’t do regarding your mortgage, but as far as I am concerned the real news is that your mortgage professional will have to be federally licensed. Let’s see if the big banks have to play by those rules. There’s a new federal program for owners of “underwater” homes to refinance, but as nearly as I can tell it won’t help many in Las Vegas. Here’s an economist who suggests that “but it is very unlikely that there will be a strong rebound in housing starts with a near record number of vacant housing units.” Here’s another economist‘s Foreclosure Crisis Update (short version, it’s not over yet). Fannie Mae is going to be cracking down on servicers that delay filing foreclosure against homeowners who don’t pay, so expect a rise in bank owned properties within 4-6 months. And two important pieces for buyers: fix your credit first and why short sales take so long.

Available Listings: There are 12188 single family homes (up), with a median price of $152,000 (down), $81 per square foot (unchanged), with median time on market of 79 days (up). In addition, there are 2748 condominiums and townhomes (up), with a median price of $70,000 (down), $64 per square foot (unchanged), and median time on market of 76 days (down).

Distressed Properties: Of available listings, there are 6857 short sales (up) and 3101 bank-owned properties (up). Median price for a short sale is $121,000 (down); median price on a bank-owned home is $120,000 (up). All short sale listings must be considered at risk of becoming bank owned properties whether they are available or contingent. The 4942 non-distressed properties for sale (up) had a median price of $199,000 (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, 229 under $50,000; 2277 between $50,000-$100,000; 6183 between $100,000-$200,000; 2367 between $200,000-$400,000; 618 between $400,000-$700,000; 242 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 461 over $1,000,000.

Condo and Townhome Prices: Of available listings, 646 under $50,000; 1461 between $50,000-$100,000; 572 between $100,000-$200,000; 95 between $200,000-$400,000; 18 between $400,000-$700,000; 6 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 3 over $1,000,000.

Contingent and Pending listings: Of the 13613 properties in the process of being purchased (up), 11010 are single family homes with median price of $134,900 (unchanged); 2602 are condominiums or townhomes with median price of $64,425 (down). Final negotiated sales prices are confidential until closing. Of the total, 9481 were short sale (down), 2646 were bank owned (up), and 1472 were non-distressed sales (up).

Recently sold: 413 properties closed in the last week, 3290 in the last 30 days, and 29418 so far this year. For properties closed in the last 30 days, median time on market was 33 days (up, time on market including the contingent period was 108 days). Median sales price was $125,000 (up); median list price was $125,000 (up). For single family homes, median sales price was $140,000 (up), and for condos/townhomes, it was $64,000 (down). Short sales accounted for 984 of the total, there were 1443 bank owned properties, and 852 non-distressed sales.

Rentals: 4093 homes, townhomes, and condos were available for rent in the Valley in the MLS system (up). Median square footage of these units is 1382 and median rent is $1100. There are 723 contingent leases waiting to be signed and 2160 leases signed in the last 30 days (down) with median rent of $1150 and median square footage of 1537.

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.