The effect of the housing market collapse extends well beyond the residential sector, as evidenced by the industrial building market’s foundering in the fallout.
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.
Creditors allege in court papers millions were misappropriated, homebuilder was mismanaged
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Rhodes Homes President Jim Rhodes is accused of misappropriating money by creditors who want him removed to prevent what they say is continued mismanagement. A bankruptcy filing alleges questionable activity, possibly even criminal, in the weeks leading up to the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing March 31.
The developer of One Queensridge Place disputed a report it has had trouble with its loan payments and said the luxury condominiums remain in good financial health.
The Las Vegas apartment market should deteriorate more in the first three quarters of the year before stabilizing in the fourth quarter, according to CB Richard Ellis in its latest review.
Nevada set a record in March with more than 10,000 homeowners defaulting on mortgage payments, and the price of existing homes sold last month in Las Vegas plummeted to its lowest level since 2001, raising the question how much further they can fall.
You wouldn’t think anyone would be brave enough to restart construction of a condominium project given the soft economy and continued credit crunch that has prevented many people from obtaining financing.
A tsunami of commercial real estate foreclosures is on the horizon and is threatening banks and undermining developers who are already struggling with high vacancy rates. It’s another looming blow for many banks that are sweeping up after the financial wave of the residential real estate bust. Since the first of the year, a growing number of developers of offices, industrial space and retail centers are in default and face foreclosure, according to local real estate analysts.
On first glance, he can be confused with Steve Carell of “The Office,” but Kevin Higgins isn’t acting as he tries to cope with a difficult commercial real estate market.
The office vacancy rate in Las Vegas surpassed 20 percent during the first quarter and rents are tumbling with no sign of slowing, according to a consulting firm.
Retail vacancy reached a record level in the first quarter as many stores closed their doors and new space came on line, research firm Applied Analysis reported.
Some Las Vegas homebuilders, especially small private ones, are going the way of the dodo. And if they have not gone away forever, many have shuttered their operations until the housing market turns around.
Nevada set a record in March with 10,351 homes defaulting on their mortgage payments as the state continued to lead the nation in foreclosure filings. California-based RealtyTrac reported Nevada had 19,849 foreclosure filings in March, a 26 percent increase from February.
Sue Naumann, president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, has spent her career in real estate. She and her husband, John, own Tsunami Properties.
When the foreclosure crisis hit Las Vegas, many expected apartment-complex owners to be the beneficiaries because those out-on-the-street homeowners needed to live somewhere. But the shadow rental market of homes and condominiums continues to put pressure on apartment-complex owners, whose vacancies are increasing.
The demand for Las Vegas homes jumped in March, but it continued to come at a price, with the value of homes dropping to their lowest level since the fall of 2001.
Tough-to-get financing and competition from existing houses cited
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Sales of homes priced at $1 million or higher are at a standstill. Home Builders Research reported that in February only one new home priced at more than $1 million closed escrow.
The most expensive gated community in the Las Vegas Valley won’t have homes anytime soon. Developers of Ascaya, a 664-acre residential development on the north side of the McCullough mountain range in Henderson, announced they will push back the timeline for selling custom lots.
With more than 14,000 members and a couple hundred thousand dollars to spend, the political action committee of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors is looking to make its mark on the 2009 municipal elections.
Sales of homes priced at $1 million or higher is at a standstill. Home Builders Research reported that in February only one new home priced more than $1 million closed escrow.
10 indicators show the downturn could get worse before conditions improve
Thursday, April 2, 2009
The slowdown in the Southern Nevada economy will continue through the end of 2009, marking the longest recession in the region since the 1930s, a UNLV economist said today. All 10 of the Southern Nevada Index of Leading Economic Indicators declined in March, said Keith Schwer, director of UNLV's Center for Business and Economic Research.
The Las Vegas economy still has some rough patches ahead, but a local economist today said the region’s long-term prospects remain bright. He said analysts expect "some type of recovery by the time we get to 2012."
The drop in home prices has opened the door to more Canadians buying vacation homes and investment property in Las Vegas, and some builders and developers are trying to take advantage of it.
Twenty-seven of 57 ZIP codes in the Las Vegas Valley recorded drops in median prices of 30 percent or more in 2008 compared to 2007, according a report by a San Diego tracking firm.
President, the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors
Friday, March 27, 2009
Sue Naumann, president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, has spent her career in real estate. She got her real estate license in 1979 when she worked full time in the title industry and later worked as a paralegal for a bankruptcy attorney.
Cash is king in the Las Vegas housing market. With lending guidelines tightened, especially for investors looking to purchase homes at bargain prices, cash buyers have increased dramatically.
The drop in home prices has opened the door to more Canadians buying vacation homes and investment property in Las Vegas, and some builders and developers are trying to take advantage of it.
The Southern Nevada chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties handed out awards March 14 honoring the best in the real estate and development industries.
Las Vegas reclaimed its dubious title as the foreclosure capital of the country in February, and Nevada set a record with its most-ever number of households in default on mortgage payments. That’s the first time since October that Las Vegas held the top ranking of cities with a population of 200,000 or more.
Las Vegas business leaders aren’t optimistic for a quick turnaround in the economy and suggest it’s likely the housing market won’t recover until 2010.
As bad as 2008 was for the new-home industry, 2009 is shaping up to be even worse. Through the first two months of this year, only 637 new homes sold. If that pace continues, fewer than 4,000 new homes will sell this year.
The Las Vegas economy’s tailspin isn’t stopping. It doesn’t sound good when there is an analogy between the Las Vegas economy and cliff diving, but that’s how UNLV economist Keith Schwer described the latest numbers released March 10 by the Center for Business and Economic Research.
If the Las Vegas housing market didn’t have enough bad news, the picture has gotten even gloomier when it comes to falling prices and the frightening prospect of people walking away from their homes.
Report shows one in 60 households faced foreclosure last month
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Las Vegas reclaimed the title as the foreclosure capital of the country in February, and the state set a record with its most-ever number of households in default on mortgage payments. That’s the first time since October that Las Vegas held the top ranking of cities with a population of 200,000 or more.
Las Vegas home sales edged up slightly in February, but nothing seems to stop falling housing prices, which have now fallen 50 percent from their peak.
Although the slowdown in the economy has curtailed housing and commercial construction, the development industry is guarding against any proposed legislation in Carson City that will hinder new projects when the recovery begins.
The steep drop in home prices and newly approved $8,000 tax credit for first-time home buyers will help pave the way for a recovery of the Las Vegas housing market in 2010, according to the National Association of Realtors’ chief economist.
They stand as steel monuments to the Las Vegas construction boom and a reminder of how a financial meltdown and national recession can bring it all to a halt.
Number of homes with upside down mortgages expected to grow
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Fifty-eight percent of Las Vegas homes with a mortgage are underwater and that number is likely to grow, according to a report released today by First American CoreLogic.
Nationwide turnaround in housing would boost local economy, experts say
Friday, Feb. 27, 2009
With Nevada leading the nation in foreclosures, no one has a bigger stake in the Obama administration’s housing rescue plan than Las Vegas. Housing industry observers are guardedly optimistic the plan will help stem foreclosures, which continue to drive down home prices. Although the drop in prices has boosted sales, that threatens to depreciate values marketwide and trigger more foreclosures, which have ruined bank balance sheets and contributed to the deepening recession.