Las Vegas home prices rose sharply in September as the supply of homes on the market remains tepid. Southern Nevada, meanwhile, is on pace to have its best year for home sales since 2012.
According to the latest report from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, the median price of existing single-family homes sold in September on the Multiple Listing Service was $265,000. That’s up 13.5 percent from September 2016.
The median price of condos and townhomes sold in September was $140,000, up 21.7 percent from September 2016.
GLVAR President David J. Tina said home prices have been appreciating at a fairly steady rate of about 10 percent per year for the past few years.
“There’s a strong demand for housing here in Southern Nevada,” Tina said. “Our economy and job market have been improving. Mortgage rates are relatively low. And our housing supply continues to be as tight as it has been in recent memory. All these things drive up home prices.”
Tina said the growing demand and shrinking supply of homes available for sale continues to present challenges for buyers, especially those seeking entry-level homes and condos.
At the current sales pace, he said Southern Nevada still has less than a two-month supply of existing homes available for sale. A six-month supply is considered to be a balanced market, he said.
By the end of September, GLVAR reported 4,969 single-family homes listed for sale without any sort of offer. That’s down 33.1 percent from one year ago. For condos and townhomes, the 680 properties listed without offers in September represented a 41.4 percent drop from one year ago.
The total number of existing local homes, condos and townhomes sold during September was 3,571, up from 3,541 in September 2016. Compared to one year ago, sales were down 0.4 percent for homes, but up 7.0 percent for condos and townhomes, according to the GLVAR.
Total sales so far in 2017 continue to outpace 2016, when 41,720 total properties were sold in Southern Nevada. At this rate, GLVAR statistics show that 2017 is on pace to be the best year for local home sales since at least 2012, Tina said.
Homes and condos continued to sell faster than last year at this time, Tina said.
In September, 82.9 percent of all existing local homes and 87.6 percent of all existing local condos and townhomes sold within 60 days. That compares to one year ago, when 76.1 percent of all existing local homes and 77.3 percent of all existing local condos and townhomes sold within 60 days.
GLVAR reported that 25.7 percent of all local properties sold in September were purchased with cash, similar to last month and up only slightly from 25.6 percent in September of last year. That’s less than half of the February 2013 peak of 59.5 percent, indicating that cash buyers and investors are playing a smaller role in the local housing market, Tina said.
