A Spanish Trail home facing two of three golf courses in the upscale community sold for $6 million and led the way in August sales as the luxury market for single-family homes and high-rises continues its slowdown.
Las Vegas had 118 sales of luxury homes and condos exceeding $1 million in August, according to Forrest Barbee, corporate broker for Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Nevada, Arizona and California Properties. The 118 sales are the second-slowest month since there were 86 in January 2021. July recorded 106 luxury sales of condos and high-rises.
The strength in the high-rise market has slowed as well. There were 79 sales of units in buildings of five stories and above. That’s the second fewest since there were 64 in January 2021. There were 74 sales in July.
There was even a lack of high-value sales in August and up until the start of the Labor Day weekend, according to the Multiple Listing Service. Only one sale in August surpassed $4.2 million but two surpassed that mark on Sept. 2.
■ The No. 1 sale in that period was the $6 million property on Spanish Gate Drive in Spanish Trail. Built in 1995, the one-story home measures 10,916 square feet with five bedrooms, seven baths and a five-car garage. It sits on 1.64 acres.
Angela James with Berkshire Hathaway HomeService, Nevada Properties was the listing agent while Gary Kirschbaum of Easy Street Realty Las Vegas was the buyer’s agent.
James said the backyard faces two of three courses in Spanish Trail and has a 578-square-foot pool house with two additional bathrooms and a kitchenette.
James called it resort-style living. As you enter through double gates, the landscaping is “gorgeous roses, bubbling fountains and Four Season sculptures that make for the perfect welcome retreat.”
The bedrooms are en suite with individual floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking garden views and outdoor access. There’s direct access to the garden from every room.
“It is a one-of-a-kind property given its 1.64 acres on a double fairway,” James said. “Not only does it have the main house but a pool house and service quarters for the housekeeper. The gardens speak for themselves. It’s a destination-type home. You feel like you are living at the Four Seasons.”
■ A two-story home built in 2015 on Reims Drive in McDonald Highlands in Henderson sold for $5.25 million. It measures 7,998 square feet with five bedrooms and six baths and sits on 0.58 acres.
Rob Jensen of the Rob Jensen Co. was the listing agent, and Jung Kim of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, Nevada Properties was the buyer’s agent.
Jensen said the home is built on a hillside lot with mountain, city and golf course views. It lives like a one-story with everything the owner needs on the main level, he said. There’s even an expansive walkout basement for entertaining.
The lower level has a wet bar, movie theater and gym/game room. The elevated yard has a resort-style pool and spa and shaded outdoor kitchen and putting green.
There’s a spa-like primary bedroom on the main level with a Strip view. The master bathroom has room-darkening motorized shades, dual vanities, double shower and heated floors. The home has an elevator and outdoor stair lift.
Jensen said inventory is up and sales are down in the luxury marketplace. It’s gone from two to three months to nine to 11 months of inventory, whereas six months is normal.
“The scale has shifted to the buyer side now,” Jensen said. “Premium properties are still going to be a hot ticket. It’s not easy to go find a lot to build on, nor are there new guard-gated home tracts.”
At the end of August, there were 441 homes in guard-gated communities with 101 that lowered their price, Jensen said.
“I think the market will continue to stay soft in the next year,” Jensen said. “The shelves are stocked with homes for sale, but you have fewer buyers. Whether they are sitting on the sidelines, concerned about the market, can’t afford as much home because of higher interest rates or skittish because of the stock market, you have this shift.
“Given the Federal Reserve raised interest rates again (Wednesday), the slowdown could be here a little bit. But overall, I’m still bullish on Las Vegas with so many things going on with growth and sports.”
■ A two-story home built in 2021 on Jensen Street in the Lone Mountain area sold for $4.85 million. It measures 8,900 square feet with seven bedrooms, nine baths and a six-car garage.
Kamran Zand with Luxury Estate International was the listing agent. John Nelson with Simply Vegas was the buyer’s agent.
Zand describes the new home on a 1-acre compound as having an open floor plan and flex room. It has a floating staircase, wet bar, wine room, 20-foot ceilings and private courtyard.
The downstairs primary bedroom is like a retreat with a fireplace, morning kitchen and outdoor shower, Zand said.
The home had a detached casita with a living room, kitchenette, bedroom, bathroom and washer/dryer hookups.
The acreage boasts large grass areas, upscale pool and spa, covered patio, outdoor kitchen, motor court, recreational vehicle parking and its own private gates for security in a quiet and rustic modern environment, Zand said.
■ Two high-rise condos were among the top sales in August. A 43rd-floor penthouse at The Martin that measures 3,653 square feet with three bedrooms and 3½ baths sold for $4.22 million.
Randy Char of Las Vegas Sotheby’s International was the listing agent. No buyer’s agent was listed.
Char said the penthouse “exudes elegance with its contemporary stylings. It has floor-to-ceiling, picturesque windows that offer expansive views of the Strip, mountains, Allegiant Stadium and city views.
The main living space offers an open floor plan for entertaining or catching a sunrise and sunset. It features a wet bar and 750 square feet of outdoor terrace overlooking the Strip.
Char said the unit is modern and is in impeccable condition with views he called spectacular. He said it’s rare to have a large deck with a 270-degree view.
Char said there continues to be demand for special high-rise units even though it’s a discretionary purchase. The smaller condo units aren’t moving but the larger ones are, he said. The buyers of the smaller units are more interest-rate sensitive, he added.
“It’s the unique, special and great remodels, those are the ones people want,” Char said. “There’s plenty of wealth out there for people to acquire them.”
As for the slowdown in the luxury home market, Char said buyers are waiting for the right price rather than jumping at anything.
“What happens in an inflationary environment, people take a pause,” Char said. “They don’t have consumer confidence and want to see how the economy goes. They are just sidelined. They haven’t lost real wealth. There hasn’t been much activity in The Ridges but there’s maybe 20 homes available. Everybody has eyes on them, but people are slower to make decisions right now.”
■ A penthouse on the 47th and top floor at the Waldorf Astoria sold for $3.93 million. It measures 2,126 square feet with two bedrooms and three bathrooms.
Diane Varney with Coldwell Banker Premier was the listing agent. Shari Sanderson with Award Realty was the buyer’s agent.
Varney said the penthouse has great views and a lot of amenities, including a gourmet kitchen with a pot filler and wine refrigerator. The main bedroom has a soaking tub.
The top floor is one foot higher than the rest of the units in the building, Varney said.
There was so much demand that in the first hour of listing, the phone was ringing, Varney said.
“There are only a handful of units on the top floor of the Waldorf Astoria, and the last time one was sold was 2016,” Varney said. “I hit a home run in promoting it as something very exclusive. It’s clout to say I live in the top-floor penthouse of the Waldorf Astoria in Las Vegas. There is a person that wants to say that, promote that, feel that and live that. We had a half a dozen offers and closed for $440,000 above the list price with it on the market for seven days. We had it closed within three weeks.”
The unit was last sold in 2015 for $2.6 million and grew $1.3 million in value over seven years, Varney said.
