Las Vegas Region November Home Sales/Prices

The median price paid for homes in the Las Vegas region fell to a five-year low of $189,000 in November as foreclosures made up more than 70 percent of the resale market. The total number of homes sold slid from October but still climbed above last year for the third consecutive month, a real estate information service reported.

A total of 3,325 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area (Clark County) in November, down 19.8 percent from October but up 12.9 percent from November 2007, according to MDA DataQuick. The San Diego-based firm tracks real estate trends nationally via public property records.

Sales normally taper off a bit from October to November. This year's relatively sharp month-to-month decline is at least partly the result of this November having just 17 business days, compared with at least 19 normally. October had 22 business days for recording transactions.

November marked the eighth consecutive month in which sales of existing single-family detached houses rose on a year-over-year basis. Total home sales, which have suffered from the decline in new-home construction, were the second-lowest for a November since 1998.

The median price paid for all homes sold in the Las Vegas metro area dropped to $189,000 in November, down 3.6 percent from $196,000 in October and down 30.0 percent from $269,990 in November 2007. The median's 30-percent annual decline is a record in DataQuick's Las Vegas region statistics, which begin in the early 1990s.

The overall median sale price has fallen on a year-over-year basis for 19 consecutive months and stands 39.4 percent below the region's peak $312,000 median in November 2006. Last month’s median was the lowest since it was $188,060 in November 2003.

Another gauge analysts use suggests greater price weakness: The median price paid per square foot for resale detached houses fell to $99 in November, down 35.9 percent from a year ago and down 47.8 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 reasons beyond the widespread decline in home values. Compared with a year ago, today's sales are more highly concentrated in lower-priced areas and, regardless of location, are more likely to involve a distressed property. The higher prices and qualifying standards for "jumbo" mortgages has resulted in sluggish sales in the more expensive neighborhoods. At the same time, bargain shoppers have flocked to the more affordable areas rife with discounted foreclosures.

About 72.4 percent of the Las Vegas-area houses and condos that resold in November had been foreclosed on at some point in the prior 12 months, MDA DataQuick reported.

Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA

Median price	Nov-07	Nov-08	%Change
Resale houses	$275,000	$185,000	-32.70%
Resale condos	$180,000	$95,000	-47.20%
New homes	$276,770	$246,929	-10.80%
All homes	$269,990	$189,000	-30.00%

Number of sales	Nov-07	Nov-08	%Change
Resale houses	1,215	2,322	91.10%
Resale condos	267	433	62.20%
New homes	1,463	570	-61.00%
All homes	2,945	3,325	12.90%