SAN FRANCISCO (DQNews) -- Las Vegas home sales rose above a year ago for the 11th consecutive month in July as investors and first-time buyers - including many making "cash" deals - continued to target lower-cost, post-foreclosure properties. The overall median sale price fell nearly 4% from June, marking a low point for the decade and ending a brief period in which that price gauge and others had held steady, a real estate information service reported.

Nearly 70% of the Las Vegas homes and condos that resold in July were foreclosure resales, meaning those homes had been foreclosed on in the prior 12 months. That was the same as in June but up from 62.5% in July 2008. Foreclosure resales peaked in April at 73.7% of total resales, according to MDA DataQuick. The San Diego firm tracks real estate trends nationally via public property records.

A total of 5,311 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area (Clark County) last month, down 3.8% from June but up 28.5% from a year ago. It was the highest sales total for any July since 6,530 homes sold in July 2006.

July marked the 16th consecutive month in which sales of existing single-family detached houses rose on a year-over-year basis. The 3,925 single-family house resales last month were the highest for any July since 4,555 sold in July 2005. Resale Las Vegas condos have seen an annual sales gain for 13 straight months and in July sales were the highest for that month since 2005.

Sales of Las Vegas new homes remain extremely slow, largely because home builders can't compete with discounted foreclosure resales. Last month's 430 new-home sales fell 9.5% from June and fell 44.7% below a year ago. July's new-home total fell about 74% short of the average number sold in that month since 1994, when DataQuick's complete Las Vegas region statistics begin. The lowest month for new-home closings was January 2009, when 249 sold.

The median price paid for resale single-family detached houses - by far the region's largest home-type category - is one of the best gauges of overall price trends. That median also fell in July, declining to $135,100 after holding at $140,000 during May and June. Last month's resale house median was the lowest since it was $135,000 in June 2000. It stood 56.7% below its $312,250 peak in June 2006.

Another price gauge analysts watch fell in July after flattening out in May and June: The median paid per square foot for resale single-family detached houses dipped to $75 in July, down from $177 in May and June and down 34.2% from a year ago. July's figure was 60.6% lower than the $190 peak reached in June 2006.

Las Vegas foreclosures will continue to play a leading role in the Las Vegas housing market for the foreseeable future, mainly by keeping downward pressure on prices and by luring investors and first-time buyers. In July, 3,683 houses and condos were lost to foreclosure in Clark County, up 1.7% from June and up 26% from a year ago. It was the second-highest monthly total, behind 3,718 this February, since foreclosures began to surge in 2006. The figures are based on the number of trustees deeds filed with the county recorder's office. The document signals that a home was lost to foreclosure.

Tags: Las Vegas Real Estate Homes For Sale Homes Condos Foreclosures

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With the dollar expected to rise against foreign currencies later this year (that trend has already started), foreign investors are hurrying to purchase real estate in the US while their dollar goes further. Most of these investors are targeting the Las Vegas real estate market in particular, where the sharp decline in prices (due to the high amount of Las Vegas foreclosures) and the world class amenities have made it an attractive get-away destination. In particular, Canadian buyers are looking to Las Vegas homes as a vacation retreat from their harsh winter climate.

Most banks will not loan on real estate outside of their own country. With all the recent shifts in the credit markets, the qualifying criteria has changed for mortgage loans in the United States across the board, including those to foreign purchasers. Prior to this year, a foreign national could obtain financing from US banks as long as they had 35% to put down with no or limited documentation. Now US mortgage lenders are requiring full documentation of income and assets on all mortgage loans without exception, though the down payment requirements have dropped.

A citizen of a country other than the US can obtain a loan for property in the US based on what classification they fall under. A permanent resident alien is a foreign national who has been granted the right to work in the US permanently and who has been given a US social security number. A permanent resident alien can purchase property under the same guidelines as a US citizen. They can get a loan with as little as 5% down payment for a primary residence, either on a fixed rate or adjustable rate mortgage at the current interest rates available to US citizens.

All other foreign nationals, including those with temporary work visas, are required to put down a minimum of 25% for properties under $650,000 or 35% for properties over $650,000, whether the property is a primary residence or a rental property. Lenders will also require the equivalent of a US TRW rating as well as full documentation of their employment income and assets. In addition, the down payment money must be “seasoned” in a US bank for at least 60 days prior to the close of escrow.

These loans to foreign nationals are only currently available as adjustable rate mortgages or ARMS. The fixed rate terms can be for 3, 5, 7 or 10 years and interest rates are currently running between 7.5% and 8.5% with approximately 5 loan discount points prepaid for the amount of the loan (points can vary on a day to day basis just like interest rates). Each point is the equivalent of 1% of the loan amount, so on a $100,000 loan 5 points would be $5,000.

Another alternative is for the foreign national to obtain an equity credit line on their property in their home country and come to the US with cash in hand. Cash offers are very strong, and enable the buyer’s agent to negotiate the best possible price on behalf of their client.

For more information on getting qualified for a Las Vegas mortgage and to receive the latest listings on great deals in Las Vegas new homes, high rise condos or MLS listings, please contact our office at 702-985-7654 or email us at sold@greatlasvegashomes.com.

Tags: Las Vegas Real Estate Las Vegas Homeslas Vegas Condos Las Vegas Foreclos

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I really must begin by thanking Diann Tonnesen for offering to allow me to blog on her site. In case you’re not aware Diann is somewhat of an icon in the Las Vegas real estate community. To be offered to provide input for her web site is truly an honor. Thank you, Diann.

Diann told me that I could write about anything I wanted to write so I chose something that has been needling me for quite some time now; the way people shop for a Las Vegas home inspector. Do you realize how most people shop for a home inspector? They gain a list of inspectors, usually from their real estate agent, and call three or four inspectors asking what they charge for the inspection. They generally do this without knowing what they are buying. Especially with all the Las Vegas foreclosures on the market being sold "as is, where is" this truly boggles the mind.

Can you imagine people shopping for a car they same way they shop for a home inspector? It would look something like this:

Ring, ring.
“Hello, Lamborghini, Mazarati, Rolls Royce, Bentley dealership, can I help you?”
“Yeah, hi. You guys sell cars, right?”
“Yes ma’am, we do.”
“What do you charge for them?”
“Excuse me?
“Yeah, you know, how much do they cost?”
“Well are you aware of what kind of cars we sell?”
“Naw, I’m really not interested in hearing about that, I’m just calling around getting prices.”
“Well we have a beautifully reconditioned Bentley on sale this week that is valued at $35,000 that we are selling as a lost leader for $22,000.
“That’s great. Twenty-two thousand hunh? Okay, I may call you back. Thanks for your time.”
Ring, ring.
“Yeah, Arties Autos. What do you want?”
“Yeah, hi. You guys sell cars, right?”
“Why sure we do. What cha lookin for toots?”
“How much do you charge?”
“Well I can put you in this sweet little Yugo that was towed in, I mean, that came in last night for say… $15,000.”
“Fifteen thousand hunh? Okay. Sweet. I’ll take it.”

Sound absurd? Well sure it does. But many, many people who are about to make what is often the single largest purchase they’ll make in their entire life shop for their home inspector and their Las Vegas mortgage loans the same exact way.

So here is where I am coming from: I retired from the Navy in 1998 after spending nearly my entire adult life as an engineering inspector. I wasn’t just an “engineering inspector,” I was an engineering inspector and instructor where I was one of eight members of an elite team that earned the distinction as the most successful engineering inspection team in the history of the United States Navy. The distinction still stands today where our success record has never been matched.

When I retired from the Navy I transitioned into the civilian world as a Las Vegas real estate agent. After several years as a modestly successful real estate agent I became very frustrated with the quality and depth of home inspections available for my clients. There simply weren’t any good inspections available. The inspectors were more interested in protecting their own liability through the use of complicated and legalistic inspection agreements than they were in protecting my clients. I couldn’t even find an inspector who would walk on a concrete tile roof. They mostly used binoculars to review the roofing.

I thought the public deserved better. I thought people wouldn’t mind paying a little more for a true quality inspection where the inspector spent hours really investigating the home rather than hiring an inspector that spent several minutes walking through the home filling out a worthless checklist that contained no actual useful information.

I set out to create such a service. Now, after nearly eleven years performing thousands of home inspections, continually refining our procedures, attending thousands of hours of training, holding hundreds of training seminars, and developing an organization that is truly unique and first class I can truly state that there is no better inspection service available in the entire Las Vegas Valley, regardless of the price. It is not an opinion; it is a fact. We have inspecting Las Vegas homes down to an art. We don’t do cheap inspections, and our service is nothing like the inspections that the cheap guys perform.

Nowadays, the most common comment I hear is that we don’t charge enough for our inspections (compared to what we provide). I once had a home buyer say that he didn’t think we charged half of what we should charge for our service. I promptly quipped, “That’s not a problem. You’re more than welcome to pay double.” To my astonishment he did exactly that.

It is a statistical fact that the average home inspector ends up in litigation an average of three times each year because of issues the inspector did not discover and disclose in the course of his inspection. In eleven years that my company has been in existence neither I nor any of the inspectors who work for me has ever been named in any litigation in conjunction with a home we inspected. We have never gone to arbitration; we have never gone to mediation; and we were recently named on the Honor Roll for the Better Business Bureau of Southern Nevada, once again, for maintaining a complaint-free status.

For the consumer who swallows the paradigm that all home inspections are pretty much the same and selects their home inspector based solely upon the price of the inspection, they often get exactly what they are looking for: a cheap inspection. But for the consumer who shops for their home inspector based upon the quality of the service provided and who is able to discount the paradigm that all home inspections are the same: these are people who draw outside the lines and when they stumble across our firm we reward them with a Picasso every time. I can only hope that when it is time for you to get a home inspection you are able to discern the difference between “Art” and “Artie.” Have a great day!


Paul J. Donohue, RHI, RREI, CREI
President / Senior InspectorSpectrum Inspection Group Inc.
8345 Coyado Street
Las Vegas, NV 89123

Email: pdonohue@INSPECTLV.com
Web: http://www.inspectlv.com/
Scheduling: (702) 269-6716

Tags: Las Vegas Home Inspections Las Vegas Home Inspectors Las Vegas Real Estat

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Tags: Las Vegas Real Estate Condos Condominiums Cosmopolitan MGM City Center

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Fellow Anthem Homeowners:

Unfortunately, like most homeowners in Anthem Country Club, I have left it to others to determine the fate of our community, trusting that those who choose to volunteer will always act in our best interests. Volunteering for a seat on an HOA board is usually a pretty thankless task, and I rarely criticize decisions that are made by those volunteers. I give them a lot of credit for putting in many hours of unpaid labor on our behalf. Plus these are our friends and neighbors, and I enjoy the company of those Board members that I know on a social basis.

But after receiving a disturbing communiqué from Secretary Kathy Gillespie relating to the recent activities of the HOA Board, I decided to attend the March HOA meeting to see for myself what was really happening. I definitely do not always agree with Ms. Gillespie about either the issues or in particular with the way she handles things - she can be way too outspoken, and unfortunately her rhetoric often gets in the way of her message. But I do know her to be well meaning and honest in her business dealings, and I am glad she was there to be the "whistle blower" and bring to light things which we as homeowners should be aware of. I do think that we should have an HOA Board that can work together harmoniously in carrying out the will of the majority of the homeowners. Our HOA Board should also be able to negotiate and work in tandem with the Golf Club to promote our fine community as the best in the Las Vegas Valley. But all this needs to be accomplished by following the proper procedures first as set out by NRS statute governing Las Vegas homes.

While I don't claim to know what has gone on before, I can relay specific issues that I personally observed at the March HOA meeting and the subsequent April HOA meeting. The following are my own observations and/or opinions:

1. At the March meeting HOA President Rich Raines publicly announced over the microphone to more than 170 homeowners, including myself, that he was taping the meeting and that a copy of the tape would be made available to ANYONE who wanted it later. But at the subsequent April meeting when asked for copies of the tape, Rich claimed that he made the tape as a "private homeowner," not as a board member, and that he would not give anyone a copy of the tape. No apology was made or any explanation given for why he reneged on his promise to provide copies of this tape. I have to say, this did upset me, and I still have to ask, "Why not, Rich?"
2. At the March meeting it was brought up that there was an almost $11,000 debt owed by the club to the HOA. The majority of the Board members deemed this debt uncollectible and a deal was struck with Paul Anderson to exchange the $11,000 debt for a $2,500 food and beverage credit. I do not question the right of the Board to deem a debt uncollectible and to attempt to negotiate a settlement on our behalf. The Board is there to make the best decisions it can based on the information it has at the time. But unfortunately this deal was negotiated WITHOUT the benefit of an official resolution by the board. A resolution was only made after the deal was negotiated. Whether or not the members who made the deal assumed they had the backing of the other Board members is immaterial - there are certain procedures that must be followed to preserve the Board's integrity. Furthermore, it has been discovered that some members of the Board have used this credit to consume food and alcoholic beverages while conducting HOA business. When called to task by homeowners at the March meeting about using the HOA's money to consume alcoholic beverages, none of the Board members involved denied using this account in that manner, nor did they apologize to the membership for doing so.
3. At the March meeting it was also brought up that the Board had decided to lease space for HOA offices rather than letting the property management company provide such space as in the past. Again, I do not question the Board's decision to make such a choice. But again they failed to pass a resolution to lease that particular space until AFTER the deal was negotiated. The original resolution passed by the Board specifically called for a smaller, much less expensive space to be rented at Windermere on a 7 month sublease. Several members of the Board decided on their own to lease a larger, much more costly space for a three year term without a specific resolution to do so. (Hmmm...why does the remind me of the Las Vegas schools system?!!)
4. Then at the April meeting, again in front of over 150 homeowners, the majority of the Board voted to ratify a set of incorrect meeting minutes. The fact that they were ratifying a set of incorrect meeting minutes was pointed out to them by Ms. Gillespie in front of all the homeowners. But despite this the Board members STILL went ahead with this vote, although an accurate set of minutes was available for ratification as well.
5. At both the March meeting and the April meeting, the Board retained the HOA attorney to be present to defend and explain their actions. (Two different attorneys were retained, as the first one quit in between meetings.) The HOA attorney is supposed to defend the HOA, not the individual Board members. We paid $275 an hour for what many feel was the Board members' personal defense at two separate meetings. It is my opinion that this was an inappropriate use of HOA funds and should be reimbursed by the Board members involved to the HOA.
6. The Board sent out two separate politically oriented mailings, explaining/defending their actions and denigrating Ms. Gillespie's actions. Again I do NOT question their right to do this - Ms. Gillespie sent out her own political mailings as well. (Plus there was a highly inflammatory "anonymous" mailing that did not come from Ms. Gillespie personally, but most likely did come from one of her cronies.) The big difference is this - Ms Gillespie paid out of her own pocket for her mailings, but the Board used HOA funds for their mailings to the tune of literally thousands of dollars. I would like to officially ask these members to repay this money to the HOA. It is my opinion that it is inappropriate for the Board to be using HOA funds for political mailings.
7. In addition, the Board again indirectly appropriated HOA funds in using an issue of the Viewpoint to further their political slate by printing a letter from the former HOA attorney, expressing his opinion. (An opinion, by the way, that is not necessarily shared by other attorneys or the Ombudsman's office who have been asked to review these issues.) Again, in my own opinion, this was an inappropriate use of our HOA funds. The Viewpoint is supposed to be used strictly for community news, not as a political platform.
8. At the April meeting the suggestion was raised that since there seemed to be such divisive feelings within the community, ALL Board members should put their seats up for re-election and we would start over with a clean slate. This would allow the Homeowners to evaluate their position based on the most recent facts and hopefully elect a new Board which would be able to work together in harmony. This suggestion came, by the way, from the previous attorney whose letter was quoted in the Viewpoint. But members of the Board, who pointed with alacrity to the attorney's letter in the Viewpoint when they felt it supported their cause, declined to accept this suggestion from the same attorney. Again, just my opinion, but I feel that accepting this suggestion would have gone a long way toward defusing the situation and restoring calm and decorum to the election process.
9. At the April meeting the Board decided to limit the Homeowner's Forum to 30 minutes total. In a random review of minutes of previous meetings going back through 2001 from the association web site, I was unable to find another instance where the Board limited the Homeowner's time to question Board decisions and give input. Many homeowners were unable to voice their opinions and/or ask questions of the Board members as a result of this restraint of open Forum time.
10. In addition, the Golf Club Board has now decided to intervene in HOA business. At Golf Club member expense, a mailing was sent out asserting the Golf Club Board's opinion that the current HOA controversy may lower our Las Vegas real estate property values. The Golf Club Board also published this same letter in today's Libretto. The first part of the letter would have been fine, as it exhorted Golf Club members and HOA members to work together. But then the Golf Club Board specifically directed Club members to vote AFTER visiting the site www.anthemhoa.org to read the ex HOA attorney's opinion. Besides the fact that it is inappropriate for the Golf Club Board to post anything using official Golf Board venues about HOA business or take a stand on HOA politics, www.anthemhoa.org is a public web site and NOT password protected. If the Golf Club Board or HOA Board members are concerned about protecting our property values, this information should not have been posted on a public site. Potential buyers are already accessing this site and making the decision not to purchase in our community, even for the best deals on Las Vegas foreclosures'
11. ], until they see how our internal issues are resolved. Except for this site, these buyers would have no access to this information, which does not even appear in HOA minutes. It would certainly behoove us as an association to make this site password protected and accessible to "members only" in the near future.
12. Lastly, a question - Why are the February, March and April 2008 minutes not posted on the HOA web site for all to read?

Two other things have occurred which concern me, and I have no idea who is responsible. But hopefully this type of behavior is not sanctioned by any current or prospective Board members:

1. I chose to put a sign up in my yard supporting a slate of candidates who are running for the vacant seats on the HOA Board. That sign was stolen from my yard and others like it were taken from the yards of other residents in the community. Several other homeowners who put up signs were threatened that their homes would be vandalized, and one actually had his sign spray painted - unfortunately they overshot and spray painted a portion of his wall too.
2. Printed material was put directly into homeowner mailboxes endorsing a slate of candidates rather than mailing it through the US postal service. This is a violation of Federal law and hopefully our association will not be held accountable for this action. Perhaps the parties who took this action were unaware that they were violating the law, but will now be informed that they cannot do this in future.

The above facts only take into account what I actually know and have observed myself. They do not take into account any of the many other items that have been addressed at the latest HOA meetings, including the fact that the 2008 budget appears to be incorrect and that there have been no finance committee meetings to speak of. Also from what I understand, there has not been a set of HOA financials approved since August of 2007? Since I am not a finance expert, I am relying on others for the accuracy of this information. But all seven current HOA Board members did at least admit that the 2008 budget was incorrect, and that they were all collectively responsible for not seeing that it was done properly and in a timely fashion.

The above also does not address the issue that, as per HOA minutes, in January of 2008 Terra West tendered its 90 day notice of resignation as the property manager for Anthem. Since ACCA was one of their biggest accounts, I am sure it was a hard decision for them to consider resigning. Yet later the HOA Board claimed it "terminated" Terra West. Nowhere could I find in previous minutes any reference to the HOA Board being dissatisfied with Terra West's performance. This, along with the sudden resignation of our previous attorney, bothers me greatly. Attorneys and property management companies do not often drop huge accounts for no good reason. That would be similar to Bank of America deciding all at once that they did not want to give out Las Vegas mortgage loans.

My main concern in all of this is that currently our HOA Board does not seem to be following the guidelines of proper procedure. This is not the Board's fault - it is the fault of all of us who have not actively participated in making sure the Board follows the will of the homeowners. Our apathy has led to the HOA Board's assumption that it can pretty much behave as it wishes. At the Candidates Night, one thing I did pin down with EVERY single prospective Board member by individual verbal poll was the specific promise to tape record ALL future HOA meetings, and post them immediately to the HOA web site. This way there can be no doubt about what transpired and how each member voted.

My new personal resolution is to volunteer for one of the HOA committees and take an active part in creating policy, as well as becoming a contributing member of our community. I hope that others will do the same so that we can restore harmony and pride to our neighborhood. Anthem Country Club really IS the best place to live in the entire Valley - we just need to remind ourselves of how lucky we are to be here. I hated the fact that certain members of our community were rude to one another at the HOA meetings. This needs to stop, and we need to be respectful of each other's opinions, especially when we differ. It is my sincerest wish that once we get beyond these elections that we can again function as one and proceed without any further finger pointing or acrimony. We are neighbors, and blame has no place in these proceedings - rather we need to rectify our shortcomings, elect HOA Board members that are responsive to the goals of the majority without interference from the Club Board, and just "get ‘er done."

Sincerely,

Diann Tonnesen
39 Plum Hollow Dr.
Henderson, NV 89052
Anthem Country Club's first permanent resident March 1999

Tags: Las Vegas Real Estate Anthem Country Club Las Vegas Homeowners Las Vegas

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I got GREAT news at the the latest Crystal Ball Seminar which was held on April 24th at the Texas Station! it looks like Las Vegas will be coming out of the housing slump sooner than predicted by national economists. Steve Bottfeld, consultant for Market Solutions and local real estate guru says that the current window of opportunity to pick up the deep discount Las Vegas foreclosures may be over as early as October of this year!!!

As a matter of fact, our local MLS inventory on single family homes is down significantly. Around Thanksgiving of 2007 it was at an all time high of 25,000 active listings, but as of this week there are approximately 19,800. And new home inventory is way down as well since builders have not been pulling nearly as many new permits for the past two years. With all the new projects going up on the Strip like the MGM City Center, Cosmopolitan, Echelon and Fountaineblue, it is estimated that by 2010 there will be more than 120,000 new jobs generated in our local economy! Those people will all have to live somewhere, no matter if they rent or buy homes. Now the "experts" are actually predicting that by 2011 we will have a housing shortage and will experience another mini boom of appreciation. Leave it to Las Vegas to beat the odds and come out ahead while the rest of the country is floundering.

Personally I am buying up all the Las Vegas real estate I can get my hands on and I am encouraging my clients to do the same, while I am telling my sellers to sit tight if at all possible. Interest rates are still low, and the banks are practically giving away homes compared to two years ago. Prices on "deals" are comparable to what we were paying in the beginning of 2004 before all the craziness started. In December I attended an auction and picked up a unit in V at Lake Las Vegas for about half of its original cost.

I am also really excited about the possibilities with the redevelopment of downtown Las Vegas. On Thursday, the city also formally inaugurated a new urban core on a 61-acre, undeveloped parcel of land called Union Park. More than $6 billion in mostly private money has been announced for five ambitious projects: an Alzheimer’s research center, a 60-story international center for jewelry trading; a hotel by the celebrity chef Charlie Palmer, a casino-resort, thousands of residential units and square feet of office space, and, as its centerpiece, a $360 million performing arts center. Coupled with all the new businesses and clubs going in along Fremont Street plus the Outlet Mall and World Market, this whole area is really changing. I recently bought two Las Vegas condos at VERGE, a midrise project being developed on Main Street just north of the freeway.

So like Steve Bottfeld, I am bullish on the future of Las Vegas and happy to be living in one of the hottest spots in the country, both literally and figuratively. Check out some of the great steals on my web site at: Las Vegas Homes for Sale

Tags: Las Vegas Real Estate Las Vegas Homeslas Vegas Condos Las Vegas Foreclos

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