Mountain’s Edge: Top Selling Master Planned Community

Mountain’s Edge was the top selling master planned community in the country for 2008. An impressive feat considering the tumultuous real estate market in Southern Nevada as of late.

Mountain’s Edge sits on 3500 acres of land in the Southwest part of the Las Vegas Valley. 550 acres have been set aside for parks and future community amenities. Six schools are planned for the community, with two elementary schools already up and running. There are more than a dozen builders offering 76 different models for sale. On top of that there are roughly 272 resale homes currently for sale in the community.

Like any community there are pros and cons to living in Mountain’s Edge. Some features can be both a positive and a negative at the same time. For example Mountain’s Edge maintains strict zoning and property standards. As well as generous and well maintained common areas. These features tend to help maintain property values into the foreseeable future. The down side to this is that there is (usually) more than one association fee. One for the sub-division and one for the master planned community. In Mountain’s Edge there is also a SID (Special Improvement District). A SID is basically a bond taken out to raise money for infrastructure (roads, sidewalks, utilities, etc.). All homeowners agree to pay back the SID over a specified period of time until it is paid off or they sell the house. SID balances are transferable to the new owners when the home is sold.

Mountain’s Edge is well named as it sits tucked up against the mountains in the Southwest corner of the valley. Some would say it is a little isolated with limited shopping and minimal road access. Both factors which will be addressed over time with increased local shopping options and the extension of Rainbow Boulevard (a major north-south Boulevard in Las Vegas).

This blog was intended to give the reader a brief overview of Mountain’s Edge. In future blogs, I will address in more detail, other relevant facts and features about the community.

My name is Greg Hoffman and I have lived in Las Vegas for the past 19 years. I have been a Realtor here for the past 10 years. I welcome your comments and questions. 702-683-6913.

The 18th annual Las Vegas Bowl sponsored by MAACO  pits No. 15 BYU against No. 16 Oregon State.  For the fifth straight year all the tickets have been sold out.  Fans can still contact BYU and Oregon State ticket offices for seats to the game.  The game will be played on December 22nd and a crowd of 40,000 is expected.  The game kicks off at 5 pm and will be televised nationally on ESPN. Read More

Next time a real estate agent shows up at your door and advises you need to move out as the home has been foreclosed, ask them if it is a Fannie Mae-owned foreclosure.  If it is, you can inquire about a month to month lease with Fannie Mae and stay in your home.  By signing a month to month lease, this will give you an ample amount of time to locate a new property to rent or purchase without the stress of having to vacate immediately.

To qualify, renters must live in foreclosed properties at the time Fannie Mae acquires the property. Any single-family property is eligible including two- to four-unit properties, condos, co-ops, single-family detached homes and manufactured housing. The properties must meet state laws and local code requirements for a rental property. Fannie Mae will not require security deposits. The properties will remain on the market for sale.

Fannie Mae will hire a real estate broker or property manager to manage the property and rental rates will be comparable to rents in the area.  If comparable rental rates are higher than what you are currently paying, Fannie Mae will look into a mutual resolution.  They will not require a security deposit which is nice as it won’t tie up any funds needed to secure a new residence.

For more information on this program, visit Fannie Mae.

One of the premier views on the Las Vegas Strip!  Sky Las Vegas is a sheik building located right on the boulevard.  This corner unit is on the 15th Floor and looks out directly at the famous Las Vegas Strip.  Sky Las Vegas has all the amenities you expect, such as valet, professional front desk service, fitness area, pool with four cabanas, spa, private theater for up to fifteen people, business center and racquetball courts.

The Short Sale: An Under-Utilized Method to Avoid Foreclosure

We have an epidemic of foreclosures in America. Las Vegas, Nevada has been leading the pack in this grim statistic for over two years. I was at a real estate conference in Las Vegas last week and one of the panelists who consults on a committee working with the government made a comment which stunned me, 80%-85% of homes that are foreclosed across the nation were never listed on their local MLS (Multiple Listing Service) as a short sale prior to being foreclosed.

Many sellers who are stuck underwater usually end up feeling powerless after fighting within the system, and eventually give up. Sellers need to know that there are still options open to them that involve little or no cost which may save them from a foreclosure or even bankruptcy. Your REALTOR assumes the burden of dealing with your bank on your behalf, but the results can offer a buyer a much quicker return to normalcy.

A short sale is when a homeowner sells a property for less than is owed on the current mortgage. Permission must be obtained from the seller’s lien holders to do so, but if successful, foreclose is avoided. The process is complex, but the results are far more favorable to a seller than foreclosure. Under short sale, the debt is usually settled in contrast to a foreclosure where the bank gets the home back, but the issue of the debt is not settled and the bank may have strong recourse available to them to pursue the unpaid debt depending on State law. You will have to consult with an attorney on these issues.

People who know they have to alter their loans to maintain their ownership engage in an activity known as a “workout” of their loan. Most major workout options consist of the following:

1. Repayment of past due payments
2. Forbearance (temporary suspension of payments)
3. Loan modification
4. Short sale
5. Deed-in-Lieu of foreclosure. Investment homes are not eligible. Borrowers voluntarily give the property back to the bank. This is however, still a foreclosure.

With over 4 million foreclosure filings expected in 2010, alternatives to foreclosures are being encouraged by the Federal Government. In a market like Las Vegas, where plummeting property values have excluded many homes owners from curative programs such as Hope For Home Owners, the short sale is a viable option for many homeowners who know they cannot maintain the mortgage.

Sellers, go seek counseling on all the potential options up front. You want to move from one option to the next rather than try only one, stop to learn the next, and on an on. The problem with this strategy is you will run out of time to really mount a successful short sale effort. Don’t wait until two weeks before your home is due to be foreclosed and then try to take a stab at a short sale.

Going back to the original statistic that over three quarters of people who lose their home did not try to sell it demonstrates that the public is unaware or at the least uninformed that they can work with their bank to sell it, rather than have the bank simply come and take it!

Please contact Sena and Associates at 702.376.0088  for a free consultation on short sales and whether it may be a good option for you.

After much speculation within the industry, news out of Washington D.C. this week confirmed that Senate is moving forward on extending the $8,000 first time home buyer tax credit. The Senate still has to approve the measure; however, it appears to have bi-partisan support amongst Republicans and Democrats. Read More

Unfortunately, the misconceptions many sellers in Las Vegas may have about this question often prevents them from pursuing one of the best options to a foreclosure—the short sale. They just assume that they won’t be able to pay any closing costs, have the money to cover buyer requested repairs and mostly believe they cannot afford a REALTOR.

In reality, if the seller’s bank approves a short sale, they will allow for the majority of these costs to be taken right out of the sales proceeds, including the REALTOR’s commission! In some cases, the seller may never have to contribute any money at all.

Now that being said, there is no guarantee that a seller will never have to contribute something to the closing. If you’re interviewing prospective real estate agents to list your property, and they tell you this, run! No REALTOR can make such a guarantee. You don’t even have an offer yet; you don’t have an appraisal; the bank has not evaluated the seller’s financial profile; and lastly, you certainly don’t yet have an offer from the seller’s bank with the terms of the short sale they are willing to accept.

Example:

Seller has a home on the market as a short sale for $200,000. The bank usually allow for many of these costs to come directly out of the $200,000.

• Escrow and Title fees
• Title Insurance
• REALTOR Commissions
• Taxes (both property and transfer taxes)
• Home Owner Association fees
• Legal Fees (if applicable)

I always try to minimize any potential costs my sellers will have to incur, and present in a straightforward manner, exactly what the benefits and negatives of the seller covering a certain cost, so that the seller can make an informed decision.

In the current Las Vegas real estate market, we are literally trying to settle hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt per property, so in some cases, the sellers may have to contribute something and should not automatically expect that they will not have to contribute in some fashion. When you look at what is often asked from sellers as compared to how much debt is being settled, the amounts are often staggeringly meager.

Earnest money deposit (EMD) is the amount of money the seller has REQUESTED as a deposit to agree to sell you their house. Consider it a sign of good faith that you, the buyer, will go through with the purchase once you initiate the offer. Remember, by agreeing to your offer the seller has severely limited their ability to market their house for sale during the time you requested to close the transaction.

The EMD REQUESTED is always listed on the Multiple Listing Sheet (ask your realtor to see it). I capitalized requested to highlight the fact that EMD amounts are not set in stone. Almost everything is negotiable in this transaction and EMD is no exception. Offering to small an EMD can paint you as an insincere buyer. It also may cause you to lose the purchase to a competing offer with a higher EMD. Conversely, I always advise my clients not to offer any more of an EMD then is requested from the seller. Why risk a penny more of your money then you have to? If you ever have to default (breach the contract without an acceptable reason) you could lose your EMD.

Always make sure you have the money in the bank before you submit a check with your offer. The EMD will be turned over to the title company (usually within one day of acceptance of your offer) and they will cash it shortly thereafter. They place the money in a trust account until it comes time to close the transaction or until it is requested by either the buyer/seller.  An interesting side note, even veterans (doing a dollar down VA loan) have to put down an EMD. The same rules mentioned above apply to veterans as well (though they have slightly greater protections in regards to potentially losing their EMD).

The down payment is the amount of money the LENDER requires that the buyer put into the purchase of the property. For example, on an FHA backed mortgage the lender requires that the buyer put down 3.5% of the purchase price. In return, the lender agrees to finance 96.5% of the purchase price for the buyer. The seller DOES NOT dictate what  the down payment requirement is.

If the EMD is more then the required down payment, then the extra money can be used for other things. It can be used to pay for closing costs (including buying down the interest rate) or it can be partially refunded at close of escrow. Another important difference between EMD and down payment is the time in which the two types of funds most be committed. EMD most be submitted with the offer and down payment is usually required at close of escrow (at the end of the transaction).

Always check with your local professionals as laws and procedures vary from state to state. My name is Greg Hoffman. I have lived in Las Vegas for 19 years and I have been a Realtor here for 10 years.

Some of the easier banks to work with on a Las Vegas short sale: Aurora, Nationstar, Wells Fargo, GMAC, Wilshire, HSBC, OCWEN, Specialized Loan Servicing

If you have mortgages with one of the above institutions and believe that you may qualify to do a short sale of your Las Vegas Home; then help may be easier than you think. The number one threat to successfully selling your home via a short sale (assuming you have a legitimate hardship and need to sell for less than you owe your bank) is the name of the bank on your mortgage statement.

I’ve found the above institutions understand the value of approving a short sale in an upside-down market such as Las Vegas is currently experiencing. The alternative is foreclosure, period. Foreclosed homes usually net less for the banks, so not approving the short sale is simply illogical. Lenders can get the homes off their books without ever having to take possession of the home—less liability, lower exposure to loss.

Banks that can make a decision on approving a short sale inside of 6 weeks will give those sellers a far better chance to complete a short sale as the end buyer will not get impatient and bail on the deal.

Sellers who can no longer make their mortgage or who will soon arrive at that point, give us a call to see if your lending institution has a reputation for really working with borrowers.  We can be reached at 702.376.0088 or you can complete the form to the right.  You can also read our most Frequently Asked Short Sale Questions.

Buying a short sale in Las Vegas is becoming a much more attractive option for home buyers as our currently inventory has been slashed in recent months. Of the 11,760 homes for sale right now in the Las Vegas valley, only 2,575 are bank owned foreclosures. As a buyer, if you factor in homes that will not be in your price range, reside in areas that do not interest you, as well as the condition of the home not being to your liking, that 2500 figure quickly gets whittled down. Of those few homes that may draw your attention, we are frequently seeing multiple offer situations and your chances of being the winning bidder are further reduced! Buyers get worn down with this process. Imagine having to go out and look at 25 homes a week in the heat of Las Vegas, put in offers on the couple you actually like, only to get shot down. This process can continue for weeks.

As an alternative, buyers have begun to turn to homes being offered on short sale terms. There are advantages to buying short sales vs bank owned.

1. You get to lock up your home under contract right away. A good agent, proficient in short sales, will know how to get that seller to commit to you as a buyer. Remember, sellers can still forward additional offers to the bank even if you have a contract, so having a strong agent, who can keep the seller committed to you is essential.
2. The real estate industry has becoming more adept at processing short sales in this market saturated with distressed sellers. Short sales have always existed, but never has the industry been forced to deal with the volume of foreclosures and short sales. Although not perfect, it is easier than a year ago, and getting better.
3. You often get to see how the home is being treated. With many short sales, they are often occupied, giving you insight into how they home is being maintained, something not available when you are making offers on vacant foreclosures. Also, the landscaping can also be saved, since all utilities are on at the property. Foreclosures usually take at least a couple of months to bring to market, and by that time the hot temperatures may mean you will have to schedule a trip to the local nursery once you move in to replace your burned out landscaping.
4. Sellers are usually very cooperative. They rarely fight you on seller contributions for closing costs, because they don’t care. They are not getting any money from the proceeds of the sale anyway. They are very appreciative of you as the buyer, because you (and your money!) are their ticket out of an impossible situation.

Most of the information out there about short sales is all negative; the pitfalls, drawbacks, etc., and very little about the upside. That is the purpose of this article, to show the benefits. To understand more about the short sales, continue to read through our blog as many topics regarding short sales here in the Las Vegas valley are covered. For immediate assistance, please give us a call at 702-376-0088.

I have been corresponding with a potential Las Vegas Property Management client for a few weeks now.  The initial contact I received was an email asking about our services, fees and an idea of how much his property would rent.  As soon as I received the email, I began to do some research on the condo located in Henderson, Nevada but I couldn’t find the unit number he provided, it didn’t exist.  I sent an email back to him and within a few minutes he sent me the correct unit number as he had the numbers mixed up.  I did my research and sent him an email with details about our services, fees and rental rates.

A short time later he responded and asked if I would be able to meet with him while he was in town working on the unit.  So of course I agreed.  Well today was the day I met with him and his wife.  During the appointment, they asked me several questions pertaining to renting their condo, my experience and why I would be the right Las Vegas Property Manager for the job.  As the appointment drew to a close, I asked them if they had a chance to interview any other Property Managers and his reply was a bit shocking.

He advised that out of all the Property Managers in Las Vegas that he emailed, I was the only one that caught the Unit Number mistake in his email.  It wasn’t like they could have a done a search based on his name and received the correct Unit Number because at the time he was in the process of buying the condo and it was still in the name of the Lender.   So how were the other Property Managers able to provide rental rates without knowing if the unit was a 1 or 2 bedroom unit?  He never provided that information, all he provided was the address.  Makes you wonder how some people are even business!

Many homeowners who purchased their Las Vegas Home between 2004 and 2007 are most likely upside down, unless they put a substantial amount down of at least 40%.  With home values dropping from a high of $315K in June 2006 to today’s average price of $140K can make selling your home very difficult and most likely will require you to sell it as a short sale.  Unfortunately, just because you want to sell your home does not mean the Bank/Lender is going to agree to take a loss without some type of hardship such as job relocation, job loss, divorce or death.  So depending on your financial situation, renting your home for the next 3-5 years could be an option to selling.

Giving the state of the economy, the Las Vegas Rental Market is doing well.  Many former homeowners are now becoming renters as they have lossed their home to foreclosure or sold it as a short sale.  For those that lost their home due to foreclosure will be unable to purchase a home for 5 years, making them an ideal long term renter.  Knowing that there is still a market for rentals, the next step is determining what your home could rent for based on what other homes have rented for in the area.  The rental price could be the determining factor on whether you can afford to rent your home out or if the negative cash flow is going to force you to sell your home.  The last thing you want to do is rent your home out knowing full well you are going to let it go in foreclosure as this is very unethical and could cause a hardship for the tenants when they are forced to vacate the property.

If you are in a position that is forcing you to sell or rent your Las Vegas Home, it is important to contact the right real estate agent.  Chances are, if you are going to sell your home, you will need a real estate agent that specializes in short sales and remember there could be legal and tax implications.  If you are going to rent your home, I would recommend having a Las Vegas Property Management Company handle the management of your property.

If you have any questions about the short sale process, feel free to contact Paul Rowe at 702.376.0088.  If you are thinking about renting your Las Vegas Home and are in need of Property Management Services, feel free to contact Tony Sena at 702.376.7379.