Unemployment and the recession are taking a toll on Las Vegas’ commercial real estate, driving up vacancies and prompting landlords to trim lease rates.
This summer’s round table discussion on what caused Las Vegas’ recession and what needs to be done to reset the economy should generate a lot of debate in the business and gaming communities.
It’s been a long and winding road for Frank Martin. The 62-year-old co-founder of Martin-Harris Construction, launched in 1977, has been a player in Las Vegas’ development over the past three decades.
What housing slowdown? Las Vegas set a record in June with more existing homes sold than any other month in history, according to the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.
What is on tap for Las Vegas in 2010 when it comes to the local housing market and economy? Although they will be weak, at least they will be better than 2009, according to one analyst who says they will at least be an improvement.
Anyone looking for a gauge to the Las Vegas housing market’s recovery may want to turn to local business leaders for insight. Based on their opinions, the rebound isn’t right around the corner.
Managers’ claims grew faster than others’; analyst blames construction bust
Monday, June 29, 2009
The biggest percentage increase in unemployment from May 2006 to May 2009 was among those in the ranks of management, state unemployment statistics show.
Property owners are doing what they can to cut prices to lure buyers, but the market for office buildings, retail parks and other commercial development is at a standstill.
The new-home market remained dismal in May, and existing-home sales reached their highest level since September 2005 as prices fell more, according to statistics released June 23 by SalesTraq.
Job losses and the recession will take more of a toll on the area’s housing market, which won’t recover until people start moving here again, a UNLV economist said.
The number of commercial properties facing foreclosure in the Las Vegas Valley is growing rapidly, leading to expectations of a massive bank takeover of office and retail buildings in coming months.
The number of commercial properties facing foreclosure is growing rapidly, and observers said a massive bank takeover of office and retail buildings is likely in the coming months. This year, lenders have filed default notices against 323 valley properties.
Windermere Summerlin is merging with Prudential Americana Group. The agreement announced Wednesday says Prudential Americana, already the state’s largest firm, will add 100 Realtors and another office.
No one has to tell Roland Sansone that the office vacancy rate in Las Vegas is 20 percent. Sansone, CEO of Sansone Development, is wrapping up grading and utility work in Henderson in preparation for construction of a three-story office building south of Interstate 215 and St. Rose Parkway.
Las Vegas’ staggering home prices during the boom years generated cries that the lack of affordable housing hindered the region’s ability to attract teachers and other crucial professionals and prevented companies from moving here.
Could the worst be over for Southern Nevada’s economy? Although the evidence is meager, there is an indication that Las Vegas’ economy could improve in the coming months based on the latest data from UNLV’s Center for Business and Economic Research, according to Director Keith Schwer. The Southern Nevada Index of Leading Economic Indicators shows seven of the 10 categories turned positive in May compared with April.
Although foreclosures fell in the nation in May, Las Vegas and Nevada weren't so lucky. Foreclosures show no sign of abating with 3,051 homes repossessed in May after dipping to 2,478 repossessions in April, a 23 percent increase.
Median price of a home sold in May falls to $140,000
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Las Vegas home prices dropped in May by their smallest percentage since November 2007 as demand for housing approached record levels, according to statistics released Tuesday by the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.
Six among Las Vegas’ best compensated in fiscal ’08
Monday, June 8, 2009
The closing of the high-profile deal that turned casino giant Harrah’s Entertainment from a publicly traded company into a private business resulted in six of the company’s executives landing in the top 10 of In Business Las Vegas’ list of highest-paid business leaders this year.
The number of people renting apartments in Las Vegas fell to a level not seen in more than a decade and, as a consequence, rents are falling to where they were in 2006.
Even though sales remain weak, the number of potential buyers checking out new homes rose in April and fewer people canceled their purchases, according to a local research firm.
First-time homebuyers and investors are leading the sales charge with home prices at their lowest in a decade, but Realtors contend that several appraisers are setting values that are much lower than they should be — and that those appraisals are killing sales.
With sales at their highest level since June 2006 and first-time homebuyers and investors gobbling up inventory, it has raised the question of whether lenders will flood the market with a backlog of foreclosures.
Steve Bottfeld is not afraid to share his opinions on the Las Vegas housing market even though he admits being right has been tougher in recent years for most prognosticators, including him.
A national real estate advisory firm is handing out predictions about when the new single-family home market will recover in Las Vegas: in three years.
The price of an existing home in Las Vegas in April fell to its lowest level since 1998, but the decline generated the most sales since the peak of the market in June 2006, according to statistics released this week by SalesTraq.
More than 80 percent of the homes bought in Las Vegas from 2005 to 2007 are underwater, a reflection of the danger that still lingers for the housing market.
Homes are more affordable in Las Vegas. The price of an existing home in April fell to its lowest level since 1998, and the drop generated the most sales since the peak of the market in June 2006, according to statistics released Tuesday by SalesTraq.
With sales still slow and developers close to default, planned communities can thrive by lowering prices, pitching amenities
Friday, May 15, 2009
Master-planned communities in Southern Nevada have taken some hits during this recession, and their struggles haven’t eased. Planned communities have long been part of Southern Nevada’s landscape, fueled in part by BLM auctions of federal land. The master-planned communities are paying the price for the sharp drop in demand for new homes. Despite sluggish sales for new homes, planned communities are taking a bigger chunk of the overall sales than a year ago.
Ten Las Vegas ZIP codes reported drops of more than 60 percent in home sales prices from 2008’s first quarter through March, according to a research firm that tracks regional sales.
The economy is taking its toll on the construction industry and homebuilding may not bounce back until 2010 and commercial construction until 2011, according to the Associated General Contractors of America’s chief economist.
With vacancy rates rising for commercial buildings and residential permit requests at their lowest level this decade, the immediate prospects for the local construction industry are bleak, according to the Associated General Contractors.
The local economy is still declining, albeit at a slower pace, and should lag behind the recovery of the rest of the nation, according to a UNLV economist.
Existing-home sales in March reached their highest level since August 2006, raising the question of how close the Las Vegas housing market is to recovery.
The future of Rhodes Homes hangs in the balance this summer. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court signed off on an agreement Tuesday for a $1.2 million budget that will allow Rhodes to use its cash to continue building and selling homes through June 28. The company, in the meantime, is developing a plan to help it emerge from bankruptcy — a challenge given the slowdown in the homebuilding industry and millions of dollars of debt.