Friday Figures: Las Vegas Real Estate Report for 8/13/2010

Here we are with another edition of Friday Figures! All information from the GLVAR MLS system. This is the no-nonsense data you and your Realtor need to know before touring, listing, or making a purchase offer in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend.

Summary: It’s no surprise that available units are up, yet again, to 13,832. Nor is it surprising that median price on those units is slipping just a little, mostly on non-distressed properties. Pending and contingent properties stopped dropping, and now sit a little over 14,000. The number of contingent short sales continues to ever so slowly go down, and that is a very good thing for the long term. Closings have settled into their mid-month lull (Pro-tip: if you can close on your home mid-month, it will make your mortgage and title people happy and things are likely to run more smoothly). List price and final sales price on closed units remain very close to one another; this is not a time for low-ball offers if you really want the property.

Other Information: Last week Fannie wanted more money from the Feds? This week it was Freddie’s turn. The NAR assures us that home prices are “firming” nationally, but even NAR’s Chief Economist Lawrence Yun “urged caution on interpreting price data.” And remember that locally, there are several communities with problematic Kitec plumbing fittings. It’s an estimated 30,000 homes effected, so be sure to ask your home inspector about it. This is a far bigger deal locally than the tainted drywall issues in some parts of the country. I thankfully haven’t encountered any of that drywall (experts tell me it’s unlikely here), but I sure do know some developments with Kitec issues!

Available Listings: There are 11212 single family homes (up), with a median price of $157,945 (down), $83 per square foot (unchanged), with median time on market of 78 days (up). In addition, there are 2621 condominiums and townhomes (up), with a median price of $72,000 (down), $65 per square foot (down), and median time on market of 70 days (unchanged).

Distressed Properties: Of available listings, there are 6254 short sales (up) and 2817 bank-owned properties (up). Median price for a short sale is $125,000 (unchanged); median price on a bank-owned home is $122,900 (up). All short sale listings must be considered at risk of becoming bank owned properties whether they are available or contingent. The 4727 non-distressed properties for sale (up) had a median price of $204,335 (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. Ask your mortgage professional, as some lenders are hesitant to finance such properties.

Single Family Home Prices: Of available listings, 182 under $50,000; 1965 between $50,000-$100,000; 5627 between $100,000-$200,000; 2274 between $200,000-$400,000; 596 between $400,000-$700,000; 256 between $700,000-$1,000,000; and 470 over $1,000,000. The fact that the number of units under $100,000 is rising significantly despite a stable median price for distressed properties suggests that banks are also taking back lots of high end homes.

Condo and Townhome Prices: Of available listings, 622 under $50,000; 1348 between $50,000-$100,000; 579 between $100,000-$200,000; 101 between $200,000-$400,000; 20 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. The slide in median condo prices is clearly related to the huge jump in properties under $50,000 now available.

Contingent and Pending listings: Of the 14083 properties in the process of being purchased (up), 11353 are single family homes with median price of $135,000 (up); 2731 are condominiums or townhomes with median price of $65,000 (unchanged). Final negotiated sales prices are confidential until closing. Of the total, 9933 were short sale (down), 2679 were bank owned (up), and 1457 were non-distressed sales (up).

Recently sold: 573 properties closed in the last week, 3663 in the last 30 days, and 26262 so far this year. For properties closed in the last 30 days, median time on market was 29 days (up, time on market including the contingent period was 103 days). Median sales price was $124,000 (up); median list price was $124,900 (unchanged). Short sales accounted for 1091 of them, there were 1552 bank owned properties, and 915 non-distressed sales.

Rentals: 4012 homes, townhomes, and condos were available for rent in the Valley in the MLS system (up). Median square footage of these units is 1376 and median rent is $1100. There are 784 contingent leases waiting to be signed and 2149 leases signed in the last 30 days (up) with median rent of $1150 and median square footage of 1534.

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.