Economic Conditions for the Las Vegas Valley March 2007
Housing Conditions:
- Foreclosure/Short Sale Listings (4/14/2007): Total Listings (4/14/2007) 23,675; Foreclosures Commenced: 806, 3.4% of all listings; Short Sales: 1104, 4.7% of all listings; Both Foreclosures Commenced AND Short Sales: 305, 1.2% of all listings.
- New Home Sales (February 2007, units sold): 1,142 Year Change -47.3% (excl condo conversions, highrises)
- New Home Sales (February 2007, median price): $330,070 Year Change -4.4% (excl condo conversions, highrises)
- Existing Home Sales (February 2007, units sold): 2,332 Year Change -27.2%
- Existing Home Sales (February 2007, median price): $289,000 Year Change: 2.5%
- Single Family Residential Permits (February 2007): 1170 Year Change -51.9%
- Apartment Rental Rate (4 Q 2006): $850 Year Change +4.5%
My analysis: New home standing inventory is pretty much non-existent with the exception of a few. The Single Family Market under $300K is beginning to move with the least amount of inventory ~ only 6 months. Standing inventory in this market is pretty much wiped out. Very few building permits over the last six months means very few new homes are being built. High resales are suffering with a whopping 36 months inventory. I have watched rental rates rise the last week -2 weeks with lack of inventory. First and Second Quarter 2007 changes will be interesting.
New Residents/Employment Conditions:
- New Residents (February 2007): 6,782, Year Change -7.4%
- Total Employment (February 2007): 933,300, Year Change +3.6%
- Unemployment Rate (February 2007) 4.3%, Year Change +13.2%
My analysis: We need more jobs to continue strong growth. Our employment rate is up from a year ago but has dropped from 4.7% in the last month.
Tourism/Gaming Conditions:
- McCarran Airport Total Passengers (January 2007): 3,669,613 Year Change +5.9%
- Gaming Revenue (January 2007): $967,777,123, Year Change -2.0%
- Visitor Volume (January 2007): 3,545,886, Year Change -1.1%
- Convention Attendance (January 2007): 780,542, Year Change -5.7%
- Hotel/Motel Occupancy (January 2007): 85.4% Year Change -0.8%
My analysis: The gaming/tourism industry is still strong.
Sources: Salestraq, Home Builder's Research, Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, Nevada State Gaming Control Board, Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles, McCarran International Airport, Las Vegas Convention & Visitor's Authority, Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation
