Las Vegas Home Sales Did NOT sink 27% in July!

Posted by Paul Francis on Wednesday, August 25th, 2010 at 9:53am.

National Association of Realtors reports 27% drop in Resale Homes

Nationwide... this is not for Las Vegas Home Sales. BIG Difference....

Here is the national news being echoed on every business channel there is:

By P. Parameswaran (AFP) – 4 hours ago
WASHINGTON — US home sales are plunging despite rock-bottom mortgage rates as high unemployment prevents people from buying houses and threatens to curtail economic recovery.
Existing-home sales plunged for the third straight month by a whopping 27.2 percent in July to levels unseen in more than a decade, an industry group said Tuesday.
Sales of single-family homes, townhomes and condominiums dropped to 3.83 million units from 5.26 million units in June, said the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

My News alert from Channel 8 News flashed up: Breaking News - Home Sales Plunge!

Quick News blurb about the not so fantastic news for national real estate but no comparison of how National News compares to Las Vegas Home Sales.

So Here we go... I posted my Las Vegas July Home Sales hold up surprisingly well back a couple of weeks ago all things considering. (Such as the Tax Credit ending.) I was actually pretty positive about the news considering what I see going on across the United States with inventory spiking and the number of list price reductions. These are things that I follow through my national connections, associations, etc..

Let's go over the Las Vegas Multiple Listing Service numbers... Keep in mind, their numbers are a little different then mine reported above in my Las Vegas July Home Sales report since the Las Vegas MLS includes Boulder City, Mesquite, Pahrump and some other outlying communities. My numbers only consider the Las Vegas Valley... Henderson to North Las Vegas and for those of you out there not familiar with Vegasland... Las Vegas is right in the middle.

June 2010 Sales - Single Family Homes, Condos and Townhomes

4,265 Sales
Median Price = $140,000 for Single Family Homes
Average Sales Price = $167,888 for Single Family Homes

July 2010 Sales - Single Family Homes, Condos and Townhomes

3,748 Sales
Median Price for Single Family Homes = $135,000
Average Sales Price for Single Family Homes = $165,332

Ok... we had some drops. To be expected after the expiration of the $8,000 tax credit that mandated buyers had to get an accepted contract in before 04/30/10 and the deal has to close by 09/30/2010.

Percentage Wise:

A 12% drop in Closed Sales from June of 2010 to July of 2010.

Notice -- CLOSED SALES. Remember... plenty of buyers were out there trying to buy in April 2010 to beat the deadline. Short Sales, etc... that often closed in June of 2010. (Closed a bunch of my Las Vegas Short Sale Listings myself in June.)

So... in comparison to the National Report of a 27% decline in home sales for the nation as a whole... Las Vegas and Southern Nevada has plenty to celebrate with only a 12% decline.

Ok... I know celebrating is a little too much to ask for but considering Nevada is leading the nation in foreclosures and unemployment right now.... could it be a sign that we are closer to turning a corner then the rest of the nation?

Let's not forget, Las Vegas home values were decimated before all of the Federal Programs were put in place that temporarily propped up the real estate market. Especially in areas that were not allowed to correct. Now that the First Time homebuyers tax credit is over and other programs that I have always considered as only delaying the inevitable, markets that were in the process of corrrecting will now resume that process.

Let's face it... when I see Median Home Prices in some particular markets across the nation higher then Las Vegas and that also have much higher taxes... I personally think it's insane. My monthly property taxes for a home in Chicagoland were more then a Mortgage payment for the average price of a home in Las Vegas today.

That's Just Truly Insane...

Regardless... the latest national real estate news is going to continue to be gloom and doom for the next several months as the tampering with the real estate market proves to be futile and only delaying the inevitable... prolonging the pain... kicking the can down the road as I've been saying.

The Fact is though that Las Vegas Home Sales only dropped 12% in comparison to the nation dropping 27% as an average.

And in my book... 12% is quite significant compared to 27%.

The best time / weather of the year for Las Vegas is right around the corner and while we may have a drop in sales... it's going to be a great time to buy some Las Vegas Real Estate.

Paul Francis - REALTOR
Prudential Americana Group
Las Vegas Homes for Sale
702.592.3058

2 Responses to "Las Vegas Home Sales Did NOT sink 27% in July!"

Doug Francis wrote:
I have to agree that it is misleading to paint the whole country with a -27% figure. My real estate market in Vienna Virginia was actually +1%! That is because my part of Virginia has created more jobs than we have lost over the past quarter, and with job stability, lower prices and 4.5% mortgage rates then home buyers decide to buy. Our home buyers are still very cautious (if not skiddish) about making sure everything is "right" before deciding to buy a home especially because homes here cost triple the "Vegasland average".

Posted on Wednesday, August 25th, 2010 at 3:57 PM.

Paul Francis wrote:
Thanks for stopping by Doug... I hear the whole area around D.C. is full of new jobs. ;) As far as Las Vegas... until Private Business Owners start making money again and come to Las Vegas for much needed R&R, we'll be stuck with 14%+ "official" unemployment numbers for now. Housing is super, super cheap here nowadays.... great for Retirees and for traveling Consultants to be based.... not great for people who need a jobby job.

Posted on Thursday, September 2nd, 2010 at 8:07 PM.