Lead abatement — the process of getting rid of the lead altogether and properly disposing of it — is an expensive proposition. However, yesterday HUD announced that they will award $13,000,000 in grants for 25 local projects including lead abatement, research, public education, and related activities.

Lead paint has not been put in American homes since 1978, but there are still a lot of homes that have lead paint contamination. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates that number at roughly 24,000,000 homes. Under federal law, the buyer of any home built before 1978 has to be warned of the possibility of lead contamination, if the seller knows about lead based pain he must disclose it (even institutional sellers like banks must sign this disclosure), and all buyers must receive this pamphlet on the dangers of lead based paint (PDF).

However, Larry Murphy, President of the company that provided the data, sees some signs for optimism. First, there are positive technical indicators if you were to put prices on a chart. Second, new homes simply can’t be built for what existing homes sell for in Vegas right now — if your  home burned to the ground, you would be better off financially buying a new place and bulldozing the old place than trying to rebuild!  And finally, there is tremendous opportunity for investors to purchase property and having positive “cash flow” — bringing in more money in rent than the property costs to maintain. While Mr. Murphy does think prices will stay near current levels for the rest of the year, he sees our market as “undervalued.”

It’s time for Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system, which now finally supports access by Macintosh users. Touring, making an offer, or listing a home in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend? Read this first!

Summary: Below, I am including year-over-year figures to show just how far our local real estate market has come. We’re not out of the woods yet, but it is better than it was! Available units are steady at 10902, still just under 11,000. Distressed sales are fairly steady, but down sharply year over year. Contingent and pending units continue to trend upwards; will they break through 15,000 in a few weeks, or will they stay steady around 14,000? Actual sold units seem to be settling in to a “new normal” of roughly 5oo per week. It doesn’t take a lot of math to see that we will be working through those 14,000 contingent units for some time, and many will never close — particularly short sales. The number of rentals available continues to decline and median rent per square foot is edging up, which is great news for investors.

Other Information: More distressed sales are expected in the next few years — Standard and Poor thinks it will take almost 3 years to clear “shadow” inventory — but can banks prove they actually hold the mortgage? At least short sales are (slowly) starting to move. Many homeowners have become pessimistic, and some Baby Boomers have decided to just stay put until property values rise again (assuming unforeseen circumstances do not force a move). The President is in town today, where he plans to unveil yet another housing help initiative to the tune of $1.5 billion in TARP funds. (and n all likelihood say nice things about Harry Reid). And just for fun, top 10 versions of “Viva Las Vegas.”

Available Listings: There are 8963 single family homes (down), with a median price of $174,900 (unchanged), $88 per square foot (unchanged), with median time on market of 91 days (up). In addition, there are 1937 condominiums and townhomes (up), with a median price of $79,950 (up), $70 per square foot (unchanged), and median time on market of 78 days (down). A year ago, we had 16406 available single family homes, 4578 condominiums and townhomes.

Distressed Properties: Of available listings, there are 4977 short sales (up) and 1780 bank-owned properties (down). Median price for a short sale is $129,000 (down); median price on a bank-owned home is $129,900 (unchanged). Short sale listings, whether available or contingent, must be considered at risk of becoming bank owned properties. The 4117 non-distressed properties for sale (down) had a median price of $245,000, unchanged. While many of the non-distressed properties are traditional sellers, many others were purchased less than 6 months ago as short sale or bank owned, and renovated by investors. A year ago, we had 6930 short sales and 7205 bank owned homes — and I was happy that number was down. Wow, what a difference a year makes.

Single Family Home Prices: Of available listings, 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. A year ago we had 282 under $50,000; 2048 between $50,000-$100,000; 7126 between $100,000-$200,000; 5120 between $200,000-$500,000; 1204 between $500,000-$1,000,000; and 808 over $1,000,000. As you can see, inventory declined at every price level.

Condo and Townhome Prices: Of available listings, 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. Last years figures were 397 under $50,000; 1608 between $50,000-$100,000; 1392 between $100,000-$200,000; 775 between $200,000-$500,000; 300 between $500,000-$1,000,000; and 169 over $1,000,000. While we still have a lot of under $50,000 condos available, all other price ranges dropped substantially. The most amazing drop is in the $500,000+ range.

Contingent and Pending listings: Of the 14439 properties in the process of being purchased (up), 11615 are single family homes with median price of $135,000 (unchanged); 2826 are condominiums or townhomes with median price of $65,000 (unchanged). Final negotiated sales prices are confidential until closing. Of those, 9684 were short sale (up), 3251 were bank owned (down), and 1490 were non-distressed sales (way up). A year ago, we had 6,200 single family homes and 1176 condos and townhomes in contingent/pending status — a little over half the current level.

Recently sold: 531 properties closed in the last week, 3147 in the last 30 days, and 4789 so far this year. For properties closed in the last 30 days, median time on market was 32 days (up, time on market including the contingent period was 104 days). Median sales price was $122,500 (up); median list price was $121,152 (up). Short sales accounted for 701 of them, there were 1792 bank owned properties, and 647 non-distressed sales.

Rentals: 4820 homes, townhomes, and condos were available for rent in the Valley in the MLS system. Median square footage of these units is 1357 and median rent is $1095. There are 809 contingent leases waiting to be signed and 2134 leases signed in the last 30 days.

Need more information or help with your real estate needs? Call me today at 702-727-7842 or email bmagnus@bridgetmagnus.com. Although this information is available to all GLVAR members through the MLS system, this article was written and copyright by Bridget Magnus, and is her sole property.

Since the President is showing up in the foreclosure capital of America, I would like to hear what he’s got to really say about the fact that mortgage delinquencies are at an all time high. With Nevada’s unemployment rate higher than the national average, what would he like to say about job creation? Because let’s face it, there is no permanent solution to the mortgage and housing problem until people have reliable jobs.

Update: Mr. Goodman has indicated that he will accept an apology from Mr. Obama, as long as it includes buying him a martini. Mr. President, Mr. Mayor takes Bombay Sapphire.

Summary: Available units dropped ever so slightly to 10927. Prices of available units are in a tight range not really reflected by the week-to-week change. I am concerned by the jump in available condos under $50,000, but many of these are just price drops from the $50,000-$100,000 range, and the median price is only down by $100. Pending and contingent sales rose over 14,000 again; it seems likely that this number will remain in a tight range just like the number of available units. It is worth noticing that over 9500 of those units are short sales and many are at risk of foreclosing before closing! More short sales are closing as a percentage of total closings, but it will still take well over a year to clear out the current contingent short sales alone, let alone any currently available short sales. Thanks to a surge in signed leases, the number of available rentals has dropped below 5000.

Other Information: The Review-Journal points out that January sales were up 17% year over year, and that 21% of existing homes sold were short sales. Unfortunately, that doesn’t make a dent in available short sales. Zillow does think we are putting in a bottom for prices this year after a further “correction,” but I think that’s only with the cooperation of the banks and the appraisers! After all, even though foreclosures were down in January month over month, they were still up year over year and a “surge” is expected. Average monthly apartment rent has declined to $766 due to a higher vacancy rate, but rental houses are still moving fast at a median rent of $1095. Those of you who are new to the area should be aware that we are in the process of rolling out Real ID compliant drivers licenses; this article tells you what you need to know and what you need to bring with you to the DMV. I wonder how many women will have a hard time producing a marriage certificate.

Available Listings: There are 9000 single family homes (down), with a median price of $174,900 (up), $88 per square foot (unchanged), with median time on market of 90 days (up). In addition, there are 1932 condominiums and townhomes (down), with a median price of $79,900 (down), $70 per square foot (unchanged), and median time on market of 81 days (up).

Distressed Properties: Of available listings, there are 4946 short sales (down) and 1817 bank-owned properties (down). Median price for a short sale is $129,500 (unchanged); median price on a bank-owned home is $129,900 (unchanged). Short sale listings, whether available or contingent, must be considered at risk of becoming bank owned properties. The 4145 non-distressed properties for sale (down) had a median price of $245,000, unchanged. While many of the non-distressed properties are traditional sellers, many others were purchased less than 6 months ago as short sale or bank owned, and renovated by investors.

Single Family Home Prices: Of available listings, 154 under $50,000; 1307 between $50,000-$100,000; 4065 between $100,000-$200,000; 2192 between $200,000-$400,000; 672 between $400,000-$700,000; 235 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 513 over $1,000,000.

Condo and Townhome Prices: Of available listings, 406 under $50,000; 887 between $50,000-$100,000; 512 between $100,000-$200,000; 128 between $200,000-$400,000; 27 between $400,000-$700,000; 9 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 3 over $1,000,000.

Contingent and Pending listings: Of the 14194 properties in the process of being purchased (up), 11405 are single family homes with median price of $135,000 (down); 2789 are condominiums or townhomes with median price of $65,000 (unchanged). Final negotiated sales prices are confidential until closing. Of those, 9518 were short sale (up), 3265 were bank owned (up), and 1393 were non-distressed sales (up).

Recently sold: 489 properties closed in the last week, 3160 in the last 30 days, and 4153 so far this year. For properties closed in the last 30 days, median time on market was 30 days (up, time on market including the contingent period was 102 days — this increase was due to a rise in the number of short sales that closed). Median sales price was $121,285 (up); median list price was $120,000 (up). Short sales accounted for 695 of them, there were 1820 bank owned properties, and 641 non-distressed sales.

Rentals: 4928 homes, townhomes, and condos were available for rent in the Valley in the MLS system. Median square footage of these units is 1362 and median rent is $1095. There are 757 contingent leases waiting to be signed and 2089 leases signed in the last 30 days.

Need more information or help with your real estate needs? Call me today at 702-727-7842 or email bmagnus@bridgetmagnus.com. Although this information is available to all GLVAR members through the MLS system, this article was written and copyright by Bridget Magnus, and is her sole property.

For the rest of you, let me back up and briefly explain what “hard money” is all about. In short, hard money is a loan it would be “hard” to get anyplace else. According to eHow, “A hard money lender is a person or institution that offers loans, usually for real estate, with low credit restrictions but high rates and fees. Hard money lenders are often considered borrowers of last resort for those who are facing foreclosures or needing loans under abnormal conditions. Due to the high prices associated with hard money lenders, they are generally not a borrower’s first choice.” Wikipedia has much more on the topic.

The Las Vegas Review Journal reports that hard money lenders are in trouble here in Nevada. They’ve been stung so hard by foreclosures that they in essence want ways around state law and state regulations. Specifically, they want the right to manage real estate without either a real estate license and the additional real estate management permit required by law (NRS 118A), and they want to over-ride a privacy law prohibiting investors from having the contact information of other investors in a given project.

While I think it is probably a good idea for investors in one project to be able to communicate with one another, I think it would be a bad idea to let these investors (particularly out-of-state investors) manage property without a license. A good property manager not only knows the law and collects the rent, she or her staff is available to handle emergencies (NRS 118A.260), her actions prevent damage or degradation of the property, and in many cases she can even add value to a property through practices that maintain a high occupancy rate. This is good both for tenants and the investors. It’s even good for the neighbors.

Sure, it will cost some money to do the job right and follow the laws that were enacted to protect all Nevadans. That’s the cost of doing business.