Las Vegas September 2008 Home Sales Report

September sales of existing single-family houses in the Las Vegas region more than doubled from a year ago as the median price paid for those homes dove 31 percent. Foreclosures rose to 82 percent of all resales, a real estate information service reported.

While the number of single-family houses resold in September shot up 123 percent from a year ago, the increase in overall transactions was more modest thanks to declining sales for newly built homes.

A total of 4,243 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area (Clark County) in September, up 4.8 percent from August and up 38.9 percent from September 2007, according to MDA DataQuick. The San Diego-based firm tracks real estate trends nationally via public property records.

September marked the sixth consecutive month in which sales of existing single-family detached houses rose on a year-over-year basis.

Lower prices, especially among foreclosures, are fueling the recent burst in sales, which were the highest for a September since 2005.

The median price paid for all homes sold in the Las Vegas metro area was $205,000 in September, down 4.7 percent from $215,000 in August and down 29.1 percent from $289,000 in September 2007.

The median sale price has fallen on a year-over-year basis for 17 consecutive months and is now 34.3 percent below the region’s peak $312,000 median in November 2006. September’s median was the lowest since it was $200,000 in February 2004.

The median price paid for resale single-family (detached) houses fell to $196,000, down 30.6 percent from a year ago. That median was last below $200,000 in December 2003, when it was $193,000.

Another gauge analysts watch suggests greater price declines: The median price paid per square foot for resale detached houses fell to $108 in September, down 34.9 percent from a year ago and down 43.2 percent from the $190 peak reached in June 2006.

The median sale price – the point where half of the homes sold for more and half for less – has plunged for several reasons: Widespread home price depreciation; higher prices and qualifying standards for “jumbo” mortgages, which has undermined higher-end sales; and buyers’ preference for discounted foreclosures.

About 82 percent of the Las Vegas-area houses and condos that resold in September had been foreclosed on at some point in the prior 12 months.

Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA

	# of Sales			Median Price
	Sept-07	Sept-08	% Chg	Sept-07	Sept-08	% Chg
Resale houses	1,303	2,901	122.6%	$282,500	$196,000	-30.6%
Resale condos	317	429	35.3%	$180,623	$120,000	-33.6%
New homes	1,434	913	-36.3%	$310,290	$251,905	-18.8%
All homes	3,054	4,243	38.9%	$289,000	$205,000	-29.1%