Clark County Housing

Buy now! Buy now! Buy now! Anybody remember 2005? Home prices were going up so fast you had to offer 10% over asking price and submit a photo of your family dog just to get the attention of the buyer. Seem like a long long time ago? Those times may be back.   Even in Clark County.   Prices are up 21.6% so far this year, from $188,700 in January to $222,500 in May.   Inventory is down 19% to a total of 2710 listings, from 3321 listings in May 2011. I hear stories of homes selling for tens of thousands of dollars over asking price in just a few days. What does this mean?  Why is nobody selling?  Will it last?  Where are all the bank owned homes supposedly stuck in the pipeline? Location, Location, Location. At least for now it appears that the crazy price wars are limited to the most desirable neighborhoods.   And what about the price/per foot of home sales?  That appears to be up only 8% since January.   

I would hate to jinx anything, but it almost looks like Phoenix may be stabilizing and maybe, just maybe, may have found the bottom.  Portland and San Diego may have a ways to go.

Based on January's average home sale price, it would appear that homes in Clark County are more affordable than they have been in at least 32 years.  This assumes no decrease in income over the 2011 estimates, and no significant increase in interest rates throughout the year.  We owe much of this to the PIIGS, and to the federal takeover of the mortgage industry. Still - prices continue to fall.

If you assume no big change in median household income since 2010.  And you project January 2012 across the entire year.  Then the price to income level would be below the post 1980 average for the first time since 2001.

Snapshot of the RMLS report for January.   Any silver lining?  Pendings up a bit?

2011 saw continued deterioration in the average home sale price in Clark County.  2012 is off to a poor start.  The last three January numbers have been close to the annual average price for that year.  The January 2012 number is about the same as 2002.

The good news is that we are very near the bottom.  The bottom being 0.  Perhaps January 2013? Then nowhere to go but up!  ...... I hope.

17 New homes sold in January.  17.  There always seems to be a big drop from December to January.  However, 17 new home sales is the lowest since sometime in the 80's.  On the other hand, 234 existing homes sold in January.  Not a bad number for post-credit-crisis Clark County.

Population growth has generally tracked new home sales.  Does not seem to be population driven pent up demand.

Foreclosure filings in Clark County have slowed to a trickle relative to the high levels of 2009 and 2010.

New foreclosures seem to have peaked.  While bank inventory is holding steady for now.