There are two big trends in the Las Vegas housing market this month. One is that while sales are declining, they are not declining as quickly has they have been. The same cannot be said for prices, however. Prices continue to decline in the double digits.
The Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors released their report for March 2008. With sales at 1,478, home sales were down 7.9%, which was the smallest year to year drop since December 2005, and the greatest number of homes closing since May 2007. It appears that the sales declines have slowed. However, with March typically one of the busiest sales months for Las Vegas, it also appears that 2008 will remain a lackluster year.
22,763 homes were on the market in March. Listings had dropped off somewhat in the fall, [typical] but have been rising slowly since December. The March increase in sales, however, has reduced the months supply to 15.4 months. That’s a dismal number compared to years past, but the best the market has seen since May 2007.
While sales seem to be shifting from "plummeting" to "stagnating", prices continue to see significant declines. The median price of homes sold in March was $243,169, down 20.3% from last year’s $305,000. The median price of a home in Las Vegas hasn’t been this low since March 2004.
The disparity between listings and sales, lack of buyer confidence, and tight lending will continue to take its toll on prices. Look for the pundits to get excited about the "not as bad as it could have been" sales numbers. I suppose you can’t blame them. In a market like this, the industry celebrates any relief it gets.
