Newsroom Article

For release Nov. 8, 2011

GLVAR reports home sales remain on record pace while prices dip slightly

Statistics released today by the Greater Las Vegas Association of REALTORS® (GLVAR) show sales of local homes, condominiums and townhomes in October continue to set a record pace, while home prices dipped from the previous month and year.

According to GLVAR, the total number of local homes, condominiums and townhomes sold in October was 3,881. That’s down from 4,108 total sales in September. However, October sales were up from 3,385 total sales one year ago.

Within that total, single-family home sales during October increased by 20.0 percent, while sales of condos and townhomes decreased by 2.9 percent, all when compared to October of 2010.

The declining number of homes sold between September and October is consistent with seasonal sales trends, according to GLVAR President Paul Bell, a longtime local REALTOR®. “For at least the last seven years, we’ve sold fewer homes in October than we did during September,” Bell said. “But I think the significant thing here is that October sales are up substantially from last year.” Seasonal trends suggest that home sales will likely continue to decline over the next few months, through the holiday and winter months that make up the slowest season for local home sales. Even with the expected lull entering November and December, Bell said 2011 is running about 10 percent ahead of last year’s sales pace and has a chance to set a GLVAR record for most existing homes sold in a single year. He attributes this ongoing sales surge largely to investors buying mostly low-priced homes at bargain prices. As for home prices, GLVAR reported the median price of all single-family homes sold in October was $121,000. That’s down 1.9 percent from $123,400 in September and down 9.0 percent from $133,000 one year ago. Meanwhile, the median price of all local condominiums and townhomes sold in October was $59,000, up 4.4 percent from $56,500 in September, but down 9.2 percent from $65,000 one year ago.

GLVAR reported that the median price of bank-owned single-family homes sold in October was $109,900, up 1.9 percent from $107,900 in September. The median price of single-family homes sold as part of a short sale in October was $124,500, down 0.4 percent from $125,000 in September.

In October, GLVAR reported that 50.0 percent of all existing homes sold in Southern Nevada were purchased with cash. That’s down slightly from 50.7 percent in September. Meanwhile, 25.4 percent of all existing local homes sold during October were short sales, which occur when a bank agrees to sell a home for less than what the borrower owes on the mortgage. That’s up from 23.5 percent in September, but still down from a peak of 34 percent set in June 2010.

Bank-owned homes accounted for 48.1 percent of all existing home sales in October, down from 49.4 percent in September.

The total number of homes listed for sale on GLVAR’s Multiple Listing Service decreased from September to October, with a total of 21,478 single-family homes listed for sale at the end of the month. That’s down 1.8 percent from 21,866 single-family homes listed for sale at the end of September and down 4.8 percent from one year ago. GLVAR reported a total of 4,563 condos and townhomes listed for sale on its MLS at the end of October. That’s up 10.5 percent from 4,129 in September and down 22.6 percent from one year ago.

The number of available homes listed for sale without any sort of pending or contingent offer also declined from the previous month and year. By the end of October, GLVAR reported 10,346 single-family homes listed without any sort of offer. That’s down 3.1 percent from 10,678 such homes listed in September and down 16.4 percent from one year ago.

For condos and townhomes, the 2,182 properties listed without offers in October represented a 15.6 percent increase from the 1,888 properties listed without offers in September and a decrease of 34.2 percent from last year.

This month’s GLVAR statistics include activity through the end of October 2011. GLVAR distributes such statistics each month based on data collected through its MLS, which does not necessarily account for newly constructed homes sold by local builders or for sale by owners. Other highlights reported by GLVAR include:

• The monthly value of local real estate transactions tracked through the MLS during October decreased by 5.4 percent for homes, to nearly $468 million. For condos and townhomes, the total value of all sales in October was nearly $57 million, down 18.1 percent from September. Compared to one year ago, total sales volumes in October were up 12.6 percent for homes, but down 12.6 percent for condos and townhomes.

• Through October 59.9 percent of all homes and 62.8 percent of all condos and townhomes sold within 60 days. That compares to September, when 60.7 percent of all homes and 61.3 percent of all condos and townhomes sold within 60 days.

About the GLVAR GLVAR was founded in 1947 and provides its nearly 11,500 local members with education, training and political representation. The local representative of the National Association of REALTORS®, GLVAR is the largest professional organization in Southern Nevada. Each GLVAR member receives the highest level of professional training and must abide by a strict code of ethics. For more information, visit www.lasvegasrealtor.com.

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Contact: George McCabe, B&P (702) 967-2222 or 325-7358