Category Archive : Economy

LAS VEGAS, NV – Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 saw a record-breaking year in Southern Nevada – its highest ever, in fact – both in terms of home prices and sales, driven by demand and low borrowing costs. And according to real estate experts, that trend is expected to persist well into the new year, with 2022 likely to continue breaking records time and again.

According to Frank Nothaft, chief economist with housing tracker CoreLogic, the pandemic initially caused a large drop in the real estate market; however, once the summer of 2020 hit, things started taking an unexpected turn for the better when mortgage rates dropped.

“Mortgage rates fell to 3 percent or even lower, and for many prospective homebuyers who didn’t lose their jobs, they saw this opportunity presented by record-low, rock-bottom mortgage rates, and the affordability that introduced,” he said. “We saw a lot of prospective homebuyers jump into the market, first-time homebuyers in particular. They saw this as an opportunity to trade up, buy more house, and more house, more room is exactly what they wanted during the pandemic. They needed more space because they needed the office from home. And if they had kids, at that stage of the pandemic, they had to plan for a school room from home, too.”

Nothaft noted that he was surprised at how long Las Vegas’ hot streak has lasted, saying that he had expected interest rates on home loans to have increased by now.

“Our forecast was that we’d see mortgage rates rising by now…well, they didn’t. Mortgage rates reached record-low levels. That has been a very powerful stimulant to the housing market,” he said. “In Vegas, we’ve got buyers coming in who earn a lot more money than the typical Vegas household who are able to buy a much more expensive home.”

However, Nothaft stated that the boom has made it harder for some Las Vegas families to be able to afford homes in the region, previously well-known for its low cost of living.

“You see prices really getting bid up. It makes it just that much harder for households, families that have been living in a market like Las Vegas to afford to buy,” he said. “What we’ve observed during the summer is something that we’ve never seen in the last 20, 25 years in the country. In the summer of ’21, more than one-half of the homes that sold on the MLS sold above the list price. And it’s not just that they’re selling above the list price, they’re selling quickly.”

Nothaft said that he’s expecting mortgage rates to eventually begin to climb, but most likely that will not happen at a rate that will have an impact upon Las Vegas home sales in 2022, which are expected to continue to climb… along with prices.

“We’re expecting a gradual rise in mortgage rates,” he said. “So, if that scenario comes to pass, and we see mortgage rates gradually rise and return back to some type of normal level, by the time we get to 2023, 2024, then we’ll see a gradual slowing down in home sales activity and in home price growth.”

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – 2021 was many things to many people, but for Southern Nevada, it represented the all-time record-setting year in the region’s real estate history, despite the lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic upon its economy still being felt to this day.

A record 50,010 residential properties – encompassing houses, condominiums, and townhomes – were sold in Las Vegas in 2021, which is a jump of 21.5 percent from the year before.

In December, the median sales price of previously owned single-family homes reached a never-before seen $425,000 – an increase of 1.2 percent over November’s record, and 23.2 percent year-over-year – with 3,178 single-family homes purchased.

The previous all-time high for home sales in Las Vegas was originally sent back in 2011, and that number was 2,000 homes less than the record set in 2021; experts called what was achieved last year in “remarkable,” considering the fact that these records were set in the midst of a pandemic, during a period where local home prices have never been higher and the supply never lower.

The COVID-19 pandemic contributed to high unemployment rates throughout Las Vegas – 33 percent of the workforce was unemployed in spring 2020 – but despite an early hit the real estate market rebounded far faster than experts had expected, driven in-part by super-low mortgage rates that allowed buyers to get the very most for their money.

As for sellers of Las Vegas homes, most were inundated with offers, and many sold at or even well above their respective asking prices; median sales prices often set new records nearly every month. Buyers jockeying to purchase newly-built homes, due to fierce demand, were often forced to join waiting lists and at times even drew names for the chance to submit a bid on a home.

The real estate market in Las Vegas is mainly driven by single-family homes, but demand increased for attached dwellings during 2021 as well; condos and townhomes also set records last month, with the median sales prices of both hitting $242,000, a 30.1 percent year-over-year increase. Who knows what 2022 will bring?

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Amid the announcement that Allegiant Stadium – home of the newly-transplanted NFL Las Vegas Raiders football team – would be hosting the Super Bowl in 2024, expectations of business and residential development and growth in the surrounding area to take advantage of the expected influx of visitors to the region has hit an all-time high.

Currently, the area surrounding Allegiant Stadium is made up of mostly commercial buildings, but as of the 2024 Super Bowl announcement, experts are expecting that will change as quickly to take advantage of the incoming tourist-related sporting activity that is expected in the wake of the 2024 NFL Super Bowl.

An agent that just sold a building directly around the corner from Allegiant Stadium, Ross Fabrizio, was recently interviewed by Las Vegas 8 News Now, and noted that the upcoming mainstream sporting activity in Vegas has the ability to transform the area around Allegiant Stadium into a unique money-making opportunity for all involved.

“The Raiders and Allegiant Stadium gave [my buyer] an opportunity for him to move his business elsewhere and take advantage of the situation,” Fabrizio said. “I think you will see some transition, that is a really tight timeline. This is a ‘make it happen’ kind of town if you have a dream in the morning you can make it happen in the evening, that is the Las Vegas way.”

According to County Commissioner Michael Naft, the area round Allegiant Stadium had been originally approved to be a more pedestrian-friendly area with restaurants and entertainment venues; however, with the recent announcement of the 2024 Super Bowl coming to Vegas, those plans may be fast-tracked in order to bring them to fruition as soon as possible.

Naft said that he expects more businesses to re-locate to the area round Allegiant Stadium as the 2024 Super Bowl comes closer and closer to kick-off time.

“We continue to work with business owners in the area who want to go through a transition, some of it is going to happen naturally, some of it is going to happen with us encouraging it to happen,” he said. “10 years ago that was largely a warehouse district, as more and more events take place like the Super Bowl, the makeup of the surrounding areas is going to change over time.”

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – While the prices of pre-owned homes in Las Vegas continue to shatter records nearly each and every month, prices of newly-built homes have been continuing to break records of their own, actually surpassing their pre-owned comrade in the month of November by a significant margin.

According to Las Vegas homebuilders, the median price of a newly-built home in the Southern Nevada region for the month of November 2021 was $444,677, as compared to the median price of pre-owned homes during the same period of time, which was $420,000.

The median price of newly-built homes noted for November represents an 11.5% increase over the same period of time in 2020, and due to non-stop demand and supply chain issues brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, that upward trajectory is not expected to end anytime soon, experts say.

November’s numbers mark the sixth time that the record for prices of newly-built homes in Las Vegas shattered all-time records, illustrating that 2021 was a year of significant growth for the industry.

Builders closed 1,054 new-home sales in November, which is a 26% increase year-over-year; this brings the total of newly-built homes sold in Las Vegas for 2021 up to 10,915, a jump of 17% from November 2020. And of course, that’s not taking December’s numbers into account, which should be out later this month.

In addition, 1,293 new-home permits were issued in Las Vegas last month, up 28% from one year ago, for a total of 13,774 so far this year – a massive 32% increase over November 2021.

The majority of residences that builders have been concentrating on constructing as of late are single-family homes, and sales have flourished throughout 2021 due to rock-bottom mortgage rates that have allowed buyers to lock in low-interest loans, getting them the most for their dollar when it comes to purchasing a house.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Despite their efforts to combat the high demand for housing and apartment options in the Southern Nevada region for the past year-and-a-half, developers in Las Vegas have reported numerous impediments in their pathways, in particular high costs and supply-chain issues brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Despite the housing market in Las Vegas remaining super-hot, experts say, delays brought about by supply chain disruptions have spelled costly issues for developers throughout the region. As a result, contactors in Las Vegas have noted that building and renovating homes and rental units in the region has been “10 times more difficult than two years ago”, despite the intense demand.

With materials hard to come by, the costs of construction have been elevated by several degrees beyond what they would have been prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Nat Hodgson, the director of the Home Builders Association of Southern Nevada.

“Everything you can imagine that goes into a house (is affected), because people say can you give me a list of what’s hard to get? It’s like it depends on what day of the week it is,” he said.

While overall, construction materials have jumped over 14 percent compared to what they would have cost a year or so ago, according to data from the National Association of Home Builders. Lumber in particular – a primary component of home construction – has significantly increased in demand – with a top price of $1,600 on the NASDAQ during summer of 2021, for the first time ever, before settling on the still-high price of $1,100 during recent months.

John Compagno, president of Renovations of Las Vegas Inc., said that the scarcity of materials presents challenges, but the continued affordability of homes in the region has remained constant, and workarounds mean that construction projects can continue for the time being.

“Although things are challenging at times with the lack of workmen and the cost of materials, on the flip side we’re very, very busy. So, it’s somewhat of an offset,” he said.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – In Las Vegas, the all-time records just keep getting higher, as the prices of pre-owned homes on the market reached yet another milestone in the month of November 2021.

According to reports, the median price of existing single-family homes sold in Southern Nevada in November was a whopping $420,000, which represents a jump of 2.4 percent over October 20201 and an increase of 21.7 percent from the same period in November 2020, when that price was $345,000.

As for the Southern Nevada condominium and townhome marketplace, the median price for November was reported as being $240,000, which also breaks the all-time record and represents an increase of 20.2 percent from the process they were fetching in November 2020, which was $199,700.

However, as the Las Vegas real estate market ventures into 2022, experts are anticipating home and condo prices to continue to increase, but at slower levels than they have previously, due in-part to rising interest rates on mortgages.

If median home prices continue to increase by double-digits as they have over the past year, experts say that it will be the first time the region has seen double-digit price growth three years running in over a decade.

Meanwhile, Southern Nevada’s inventory of available homes for sale continues to be smaller than preferred given the intense demand – with only a one-month supply being available which is considered far from ideal – and homes continue to sell at a far greater pace than they have in recent years.

At the end of November 2021, it was reported that 2,805 single-family homes were listed for sale without an offer, which is 25.3 percent lower than in November 2020.

By the end of November, a total of 4,135 existing local homes, condos and townhomes had been sold in Southern Nevada, with those numbers representing an increase in sales of 7.8 percent for homes and 18.7 percent for condos and townhomes over November 2020.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Lyric, a high-end apartment complex situated in the south Las Vegas Valley and boasting of a unique set of amenities for tenants, has reportedly been sold last month for an impressive sum of money.

Located at 304 East Silverado Ranch Boulevard near Las Vegas Boulevard, Lyric was recently announced as having been acquired by Starlight U.S. Residential Fund in November for $135.2 million, the latest multi-million dollar rental property in the valley in a year replete with them.

Lyric features an impressive array of unusual and interesting amenities for its tenants, including a pet-washing station, poolside spin bikes, a karaoke lounge, and much more, according to the new owners, who purchased the property with 99 percent of its units already occupied.

The demand for rental units throughout the pandemic has skyrocketed over the past year, and investment groups have taken advantage by snatching up apartment complexes and rental homes whenever they have become available. As a result of the demand – driven by the vastly-improving local economy, despite the ravages of COVID-19 – rent has been shooting up at a record pace while demand far outstrips inventory.

That being said, Lyric is merely the latest such facility to sell for $100+ in the last 12 months; the 456-unit Ely at The Curve was acquired from The Calida Group by LaSalle Investment Management in October for $155.6 million.

In addition, Tuscan Highlands, a 304-unit complex near the M Resort, was purchased by Utah real estate investor Scott Keller in May for $115 million; as the per unit price of that sale amounted to over $378,000 per unit, many sources at the time of the sale referred to the sale as one of the highest prices ever paid for an apartment complex in the Southern Nevada region.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – The Palms Casino Resort, which has sat closed and unused near the Las Vegas Strip since closing due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, has announced that it will now be reopening in 2022 under new ownership.

The Palms, which originally opened for business in November 2001, catered to local residents and tourists, in addition to becoming popular among celebrities and young adults. It opened with a casino, restaurants and nightclubs, and a 42-story hotel. Over the years numerous additions were added, including a second tower, a recording studio, a movie theater, a music venue, and a high-rise condo hotel.

Nevada state government ordered casinos to close in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but while casinos were allowed to begin reopening a few months later, the Palms remained closed while then-owner Red Rock Resorts waited for the local economy to improve.

In May 2021, Red Rock announced that it would be selling The Palms to the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians – a federally recognized tribe of Serrano people in California – for $650 million in cash. The deal is still pending due to regulatory approval, but is expected to be finalized by the end of the year.

The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians anticipates reopening the resort in 2022, with a greater emphasis being placed upon gambling as opposed to nightlife, with the core demographic still being local residents.

The resort – which had a $600 million renovation in 2019 – located just west of I-15 near the Las Vegas Strip and features a casino, approximately 700 hotel rooms, and suites, a variety of restaurants, meeting and convention spaces, a 2,500-seat theater, a pool, and spa, other numerous other amenities.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – A report released recently by Las Vegas Realtors (LVR) indicates that the cost of condominiums and townhomes in Southern Nevada have broken an all-time record, showing a whopping increase of 26 percent year-over-year.

According to the report, as of October 2021 the median price of Las Vegas condos and townhomes was approximately $236,000, which represents a 26.5 percent increase over October 2020, when that number was at $186,500.

LVR President Aldo Martinez noted that, as home prices continue to climb in Las Vegas – the median price of existing single-family homes sold in Southern Nevada during October 2021 was $410,000 – people looking for affordable lodging alternatives have been turning to condos and townhomes, which despite their own prices increases still remain cost-efficient overall.

“Our home prices are still increasing, but they’re going up more gradually. Even though we’re slowing down a bit, home prices are still rising,” Martinez said. “Buyers looking for more affordable options have been turning to condominiums and townhomes, as witnessed by the median condo price of $236,000. As we’ve been saying for some time, the rate of appreciation we’ve seen this year is great for homeowners, and the low interest rates have been great for home buyers.”

The LVR report noted that the total value of all real estate transactions conducted in Southern Nevada during October 2021 was over $1.5 billion for homes and $204 million for condos, high-rise condos and townhomes. This represents an overall increase of 13.5 percent year-over-year increase for homes of 13.5 percent, and a very impressive increase of 37 percent for condos and townhomes.

Overall, however, supply of both homes and condos remains tight, and given the overall demand – while currently beginning to show signs of cooling slightly – are nonetheless expected to continue an upward trajectory.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – When it comes to apartments in Las Vegas, they’ve never been more in-demand than they currently are now. And when it comes to what people are paying for those in-demand apartments, it seems that is yet another aspect of life in the Southern Nevada region that’s hit an all-time high.

Reports indicate that the prices of one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments in Las Vegas have seen a 30 percent jump when compared to the same period of time just one year ago, representing a significant increase in a relatively short amount of time.

The average rent of a one-bedroom apartment in Las Vegas is approximately $1,800 per month, and the average rent of a two-bedroom apartment will set someone back about $2,000 per month; these prices represent a new all-time high for the city.

The reason for skyrocketing rent is simple – demand, which has been fierce as the COVID-19 pandemic ends and the economy continues to recover. Competition has been strong for rental units in Vegas, and landlords and property managers recognize that; as a result, prices have been creeping ever-skyward, because it’s a given that someone will be willing to pay.

Rent prices in Vegas are currently at the point where it is beginning to fuel serious worry about the city’s continued affordability, an aspect of life in the city that has proved until now to be most attractive for people from neighboring states such as California, where taxes can make life unsustainable for some residents.

However, developers have been working on multiple apartment projects in Las Vegas that, upon completion, will hopefully feed into the ongoing demand and, as a result, help to stabilize rent prices.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Vegas, long thought of as one of the most cost-effective and affordable places to live in the United States, will likely hold onto that distinction for quite some time to come. However, at least one aspect of that impressive reputation has been starting to unravel in recent months, with a report indicating that Southern Nevada’s ultra-competitive home prices are now increasing faster than the national average, leading to many being priced out of the market.

The dependence that Las Vegas has on tourism as one of the main driving forces of its economy has always resulted in an ebb-and-low over the years, and the region’s housing market has been just as vulnerable to those variations in activity.

Over the past 20 years, real estate has hit extreme lows and highs, and currently Las Vegas is in the midst of yet another high, thanks mainly to a rapidly-recovering economy, low inventory, and very low borrowing costs that have enabled home buyers to get the very most for their money.

Similar circumstances have taken hold across the country – home prices have increased nationwide overall – but currently there is nowhere it is quite as acute as it currently is in Las Vegas, according to a new report.

The recently-released S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller index show home values in Nevada increasing at rates far outpacing the national average; prices in Southern Nevada were up 23.8 percent year over year in August, which represents a much bigger overall jump than the national average of 19.8 percent.

In contrast, August 2020 home prices in Nevada had only increased 4.7 percent year over year, whereas the national average was 5.8 percent, the index notes.

Of course, it should be pointed out that home prices in times of economic hardship have also tended to hit Nevada harder than many other parts of the country as well. During the mid-2000’s recession, home prices in Las Vegas had plunged almost 33 percent year over year; nationally, however, the worst drop by home prices was seen in early 2009, which was just shy of 13 percent.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Home prices in Las Vegas set yet another record in September, all while several experts have noted that the skyrocketing real estate prices in the Southern Nevada region are finally showing signs of beginning to stabilize.

The median sales price of previously owned single-family homes, which accounts for the majority of the home sales in Las Vegas, hit a record $406,500 in September, which represents a 0.4 percent increase from August and a whopping 20.5 percent jump from the same period of time last year, reports say.

3,209 houses were purchased in September, which is a virtually identical number from August but a 1.9 percent decrease from September 2020. Inventory of available homes on the market increased slightly last month, but still hovered at levels well below what was available last year.

At the end of September, 3,463 single-family houses were on the market without offers, representing an increase of 6.4 percent from August but a decrease of 27.8 percent from September 2020.

The real estate market in Las Vegas has essentially been supercharged over the past year, with the city bouncing back far quicker than anticipated after the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in lost jobs due to extended lockdowns of businesses.

A fast-recovering economy, low-cost home loans, high demand and low inventory have resulted in rapidly accelerating housing prices – with intense competition often driving buyers to pay more than the asking price – that had some worrying about affordability issues, with the median sales price having increased by over $100,000 since January 2020.

However, experts have also noted that while records are still being set, increases have been gradually slowing going up by smaller and smaller amounts but recognizing that pricing trends seen before the pandemic may soon become the norm, especially as developers work diligently to address demand for affordable housing and rental options.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.