Las Vegas

Local housing statistics released today by the Greater Las VegasAssociation of Realtors show fewer home sales but higher prices inAugust compared to the previous month and year. GLVAR presidentRick Shelton, a longtime local Realtor, said the association’sstatistics continue to indicate that the local housing market is“bouncing along the bottom.” He said the expiration of the federaltax credit for homebuyers was a major contributor to the 12.7%decline in single-family home sales in Southern Nevada betweenAugust 2009 and August 2010. The tax credit sparked home sales lastsummer and until it expired April 30, but he said it also led toslower sales since then. “This decrease in sales from 2009 to 2010is relative to the spike in sales we saw during this same time ofyear between 2008 and 2009, when the tax credit was available,” hesays. Meanwhile, the median single-family home price in SouthernNevada during August rebounded to $140,000, up 3.7% from July, up3.3% from August 2009 and matching the price from June 2010. Themedian price of local condominiums and townhomes sold in August was$67,000, down 1.5% from $68,000 in July, but up 1.1% from one yearago. Like last month, GLVAR reported a slight decrease in shortsales and an increase in sales involving foreclosed homes. InFebruary, 22% of all existing homes sold in Southern Nevada wereshort sales. That rose to 25% in March to 27% in April to 29% inMay to a high of 34% in June to 31% in July to 30 % in August.Bank-owned homes accounted 53% of all local home sales in February,falling to 50% in March to 43% in April to 40% in May to 38% inJune before inching back up to 42% in July and 43% in August.Shelton says that buyers are also benefiting from increases in thetotal number of homes listed for sale and the number of homeslisted without any sort of pending offer. August marked the fourthstraight month that both inventory categories showed an increasednumber of homes listed for sale.