Las Vegas sees largest monthly tourism gain since 2005

In another sign that the city’s tourism industry is improving, Las Vegas in July saw its largest year-over-year visitation increase since December 2005. In July, the number of visitors increased by 4.7% to more than 3.3 million this year, according to a report by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Read full article: http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/sep/10/las-vegas-sees-largest-monthly-tourism-gain-2005/

House votes to extend home buyer credit 3 months

Yesterday, the House overwhelmingly passed a bill, which would give homebuyers an extra three months to complete their purchases and qualify for a generous tax credit. The extended deadline only applies to people who signed purchase agreements by April 30. The bill now goes to the Senate, where Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has sponsored a similar measure. More than 2.6 million taxpayers claimed the tax credit through April, according to the Internal Revenue Service.
Read full article:http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2010-06-29-homebuyer-tax-credit_N.htm

Mike Pristow | REALTOR®
____________________________
Mike Pristow, Donna Hodge & Associates
Keller Williams Realty - The Marketplace
2230 Corporate Cir., #250
Henderson, NV 89074
d. 702 .939 .0034
f. 702 .948 .1001
e. mike@pristow.com
www.pristow.com

Search for bank owned homes at:
www.VegasREOconnection.com

Nevada to get $102.8 million for foreclosure prevention

Nevada will receive $102.8 million as part of a program to help residents who are trying to avoid foreclosure on their homes.

President Obama announced the "Hardest Hit Fund" earlier this year during a visit to Las Vegas. Nevada is among five states that will receive funds from the program, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Nevada will receive the largest amount per resident.

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Las Vegas April Home Sales Up 0.2% from a Year Earlier

A total of 4,462 new and resale houses and condos closed escrow in the Las Vegas-Paradise metro area (Clark County) last month - up 0.2% from a year earlier. April's sales total was the highest for that month since April 2006, when 6,663 homes sold. Last month marked the 20th in a row in which sales have risen on a year-over-year basis. The median price paid for all new and resale houses and condos sold in the Las Vegas metro area in April was $133,955, up 3.0% from $130,000 in March and up 0.7% from $133,000 a year earlier. Read full article:
http://www.thestreet.com/story/10767728/1/las-vegas-april-home-sales-dip.html

TAX EXEMPTIONS (Clark County Nevada)

Many people are unaware that there are a number of tax exemptions that residents may use to lower the property taxes on their homes in Clark County, Nevada. We thought we’d mention them to you, in hopes that you or a friend or family member may save some money! These exemptions may be applied to real property tax or personal property tax which includes business personal property and manufactured housing. The tax dollar amount of the exemption varies with the taxing district in which you live. You may also apply the exemption on your motor vehicle governmental services tax. To use your exemption toward the governmental services tax on your motor vehicle, you must obtain a DMV voucher from the Assessor's Office to present or mail to the Department of Motor Vehicles with your renewal registration form.

VETERAN’S EXEMPTION: is in the amount of $2,123 assessed value. The Veteran's Exemption applies to Nevada residents who have served in the Armed Forces of the United States in any of the following branches: Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Coast Guard, the National Guard, or Reserves, while on active duty, and the Merchant Marine during time of war or national emergency. A veteran must have served a minimum of 90 continuous days of active duty of which at least one day was between: April 6, 1917 to November 11, 1918; December 7, 1941 to December 31, 1946; June 25, 1950 to May 7, 1975; September 26, 1982 to December 1, 1987; December 20, 1989 to January 31, 1990; August 2, 1990 to April 11, 1991; December 5, 1992 to March 31, 1994; November 20, 1995 to December 20, 1996. Also, veterans are eligible who served on active duty in connection with carrying out the authorization granted to the President of the United States in Public Law 102-1 or served on active duty in connection with a campaign or expedition for service in which a medal has been authorized by the government of the United States.

DISABLED VETERAN’S EXEMPTION is provided for veterans who have a permanent service-connected disability of at least 60%. The amount of exemption is dependent upon the degree of disability incurred. The permanently disabled veteran with a 60% to 100% disability receives the exemption which ranges from $10,613 to a maximum of $21,226 assessed value. The benefits of this program may succeed to the surviving spouse of the disabled veteran who was eligible for the exemption at the time of death.To apply for either the Veteran’s Exemption or the Disabled Veteran's Exemption, you must possess a valid Nevada Driver's or Identification Card or have been a resident of Nevada for six months and provide the Assessor's Office with a copy of your DD214, honorable discharge paper, certificate of satisfactory service or separation documents (which indicate your date of entry and honorable discharge date). In addition, documentation from the Veteran’s Administration of the percentage of service-connected disability is required for the Disabled Veteran’s Exemption.

BLIND EXEMPTION is in the amount of $3,184 assessed value. It is available to Nevada residents whose visual acuity with correcting lenses does not exceed 20/200 in the better eye, or whose vision in the better eye is restricted to a field which subtends an angle of not greater than 20 degrees.(Continued Inside)To apply for the Blind Exemption, you must possess a valid Nevada Driver's License or Identification Card or have been a Nevada resident for six months and furnish to the Assessor's Office a certificate from a licensed physician, stating that you meet the qualifications to be considered legally blind under NRS 361.085.

The SENIOR CITIZEN TAX ASSISTANCE PROGRAM in Nevada offers a Senior Citizen Tax Assistance/Rental Rebate program to persons 62 years of age or older whose annual household income was $26,190 or less (plus or minus an adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index) during the preceding year. The total income amount will be adjusted each year by the State of Nevada, Division of Aging Services. This program applies to any person meeting the age, residency and income requirements regardless of whether you own your home, rent an apartment or house, or live in a manufactured home (mobile home).

The filing period for the Tax Assistance/Rental Rebate program is from February 1 to April 30 of each year. The amount of benefit depends on household income and the amount of taxes or rent paid. The average rebate is approximately $275.00.We have provided an abbreviated description of these tax exemptions as described on the Assessor’s website. If you think you qualify for any of these programs, they are administered by the County Assessor. For more information, or to request forms, please call the assessor’s customer service number, 702-455-3882 or visit one of the Assessor's Office locations.

10 STEPS TO FIND OUT IF YOUR RENTAL HOME IS IN FORECLOSURE

I receive a lot of inquiries from renters that are concerned about this, so thought I would provide a great article about this originally posted on January 16, 2008 by KVBC News 3, Investigative Reporter: Mitch Truswell

We get many, many phone calls from people who need to rent a home, but wonder if the rental they're looking at is in foreclosure or soon will be. The county recorder's office says on a daily basis, renters are learning the home they're living in went into foreclosure. The scary part is that the renters only learn this when they find a notice on their front door telling them they have a few days to move out! Others will find a padlock on their rental home. Not only do these folks have to move out, if they paid first and last month's rent, plus a security fee, they likely won't get that money back.

Unfortunately, there is no quick 1-800 number to call and get an answer. Instead you have to do a little detective work. The Watchdog is watching out for you. We've made this as simple as possible and have put a step by step list on how to see if the home you're renting, or want to rent, is currently in foreclosure. It would make a lot of sense to check this on a monthly basis.
Here we go!

1. Get the address of the rental property. If it's not in the rental ad, call and get it. Or better yet, set up an appointment to look at the house. That way you'll be sure the address you're given is accurate.

2. Go to the Clark County Assessor website:

3. In the top left corner, click on address search and then enter the address. Keep in mind you enter the house number, the street name, the type of street (court, circle, road, etc) on separate lines. If you don't know what city or town the rental is in.. just leave that unspecified. Even though the rental home is in Las Vegas, it could show up under another town, such as Spring Valley, etc. Anyway, enter the address information and hit submit.

4. You should see a listing with the exact address. It's probably the first one on the list. Click on the parcel number.

5. Under general information you should see the homeowner's name and address, and also the parcel number again. Write that parcel number down .. you'll need it.

6. Go to the Clark County Recorder website.

7. The second listing on the upper far left side of the site is "search records" .. click on that.

8. In the middle of the page you'll see several options to search on. Simple, Advanced, Instrument ID and Marriage.

9. Click on "Advanced Search".

10. The only thing you want to concern yourself with on this page is "legal descriptions". There are four lines under legal descriptions .. you want to use the first line which shows parcel number. In the blank space NEXT to parcel number, you want to enter the parcel number you wrote down. Do not enter the dashes between the number .. just the numbers. Then click on the button below that says "Detail Data".

This should take you to the "Web Services Detailed Data Results."

You'll notice each entry has an instrument number and a document type. If default paperwork has been filed with the recorder's office, it should be listed here. The most recent actions are listed first. If it's not listed now .. you may want to check back on a weekly or monthly basis. If you see something that might be a default, or you want more information, write down the instrument number and take it with you to the county recorder's office. They are there to help you and that instrument number will prevent you from going through all these steps again. Some detailed documents are ONLY available at the county recorder's office. Employees there will help you find what you're looking for.

Where is the County Recorder's office? It's inside the big stone-looking building at 500 S Grand Central Parkway known as the Clark County Government Center near Charleston. It's across from the Premium Outlet Mall and near the World Market Center. The recorder's office is on the second floor. The phone number is 455-4336.

REPO's Effect On The Las Vegas Market

The huge number of foreclosed properties being marketed by banks is having a profound effect on the whole resal estate market in Las Vegas. The sheer number of REPOs is making them the dominant force in setting the prices of properties that are sold, and changing the average and median sale prices all across the state, and the nation. The Las Vegas Valley is one of the areas with the highest percentages of foreclosed properties, called REO by the banks (standing for Real Estate Owned.)

According to statistics extrapolated from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, between May 2008 and December 2008, monthly closed sales averaged 60% to 76% bank owned properties, with the percentage increasing each month.

Month	All Closings	REO Closings	% of REO
May	2451	1471	60%
June	2618	1695	65%
July	3057	2068	68%
August	2893	1986	69%
September	3115	2185	70%
October	3085	2190	71%
November	2541	1923	76%
December	2901	2201	76%

Banks (and other institutional mortgage lenders) don't want to sell their properties lower than the other properties in the neighborhood, but they are working under a number of constraints that many homeowners are not. Agents often hear this statement from homowners; "I don't have to sell. I'll wait until I get my price." The bank will say, "Tell me where I have to price it to sell it in 30 days," and "We've had it on the market for a month, let's lower the price." Their carrying costs on the property are huge, making utitlity payments, sometimes paying for pool and lawn maintenance, accruing HOA fees and fines, and taking hits from the vandalism many vacant houses attract. But their biggest loss is the capital tied up in foreclosed homes that they can't use to make new loans and other investments.

These financial institutions also have deadlines relating to their balance sheets that homeowners do not consider. They may lower prices repeatedly to close by the end of the month, the end of the quarter, or the end of the year. Management may set goals to get rid of a certain percentage of properties by a certain date, and if that means drastically lowering the price, they will do it.
And lastly, they have no emotional attachment to the property. They don't care what color the walls are painted, (unless the color is preventing the property from being sold.) They don't know and don't care that someone put in a new hot water heater and air conditioner in the last two years. They just hope for a working one of each is in a property, and they protect themselves from the chance that they dont' work by only selling the property to buyers who will purchase "as-is." And buyers make lower prices on properties sold "as-is" than properties of which the owners have filled out the property condition statements, and are amenable to making small repairs.

This has created a dramatic downward trend in our median and average home sale prices, as those homes that are not foreclosures are forced to lower their prices to stay competitive. This is not great news for property sellers, but for property buyers it's a great time to buy. For investors, for the first time in years, they can purchase a residential property and expect to cash flow positive.