No bubble, but the local market is heating up

SEVEN or eight years ago, Las Vegas’ housing market was all but dead. Banks were foreclosing on homes all over town, property values were plunging, and developers were walking away from unfinished projects.

Today? The market has reached the most heated levels in years.

Home prices are rising at one of the fastest rates in the country, builders are selling the most houses in a decade, and developers are opening more and more apartment complexes.

There’s been an ever-present concern in Las Vegas about whether we’re in, or about to enter, another bubble — a reasonable fear, given how horribly the last one ended. Also, while home prices are still a lot cheaper than in other large cities, I doubt people want them to climb so high that Las Vegas sheds its status as a more affordable place to live.

Still, it’s worth remembering that, by almost any measure, the market is still below the peaks of the mid2000s real estate craze — in some cases by a lot.

Is a crash around the corner? Your guess is as good as mine. But for now, let’s look at where things stand.

Resales

Perhaps the biggest issue in the resale market is the lack of inventory. Las Vegas isn’t alone in dealing with a shortage of listings, but it’s helping fuel the fast-rising prices — a boon for sellers and heartburn for buyers.

The median sales price of previously owned single-family homes — the bulk of the market — was $289,000 in April, up 16 percent from a year earlier. Around 3,800 houses were on the market without offers at the end of April, down 25 percent from a year earlier, the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors reported.

According to the S&P Corelogic Case-shiller index, prices here are climbing at the second-fastest rate nationally, behind Seattle.

Resale prices are still below the peak of the bubble: The median for a single-family house topped out at $315,000 in mid-2006, according to the GLVAR.

But the median also has more than doubled since hitting bottom in early 2012 at $118,000.

Homebuilders

Las Vegas’ home construction industry was basically wiped out during the recession, as sales evaporated and builders went out of business.

Today sales totals are rising fast, buyers have been paying record prices, and builders keep snapping up more land.

Builders closed more than 3,200 sales in Clark County this year through April, up 22 percent from the same four-month period last year, and booked a median sales

SEGALL

auctions.

Now, thanks to the appeal of

Las Vegas and an international audience that appreciates classic motorcycles, Mecum is attempting to make its June event as attractive as its larger January motorcycle auction.

Mecum currently conducts auctions in 14 markets.

Saturday marks the last of the three-day cycles-only event. Doors open 9 a.m. Saturday at the South Point exhibit hall with bidding beginning at 10.

Hondas, Harleys, Triumphs and Indian motorcycles are on display at the current show.

About 5,000 people were expected to attend the three-day event. On Thursday, an early preview included Q&A sessions with racers Brad Lackey, Eddie Lawson, Kenny Roberts and Bubba Shobert.

The January event, now considered the largest motorcycle auction in the world, brought 1,750 bikes to Las Vegas.

“That auction not only is the biggest auction in the world, it’s very much a gathering point for the motorcycle collector enthusiasts from across the world,” said David Morton, manager of communications and event marketing for Mecum.

“We have buyers and sellers from Europe and from Asia and other markets, but again, it goes back to the destination value of Las Vegas. We’ve tried doing motorcycle auctions in other markets, but none nearly with the success we’ve had in Las Vegas.”

January’s event resulted in $14 million in sales with an 80 percent sell-through rate.

Next January’s event is expected to have 2,000 bikes, including a 250-piece collection from Stockholm, Sweden.

The current show is considerably smaller with 600 bikes, but Morton noted that having shows in January and June enables a broader audience of attendees to include those who aren’t able to get to Las Vegas in January.

No single bike drew more attention than another in the first two days of the current event, but Morton noted there are a variety of styles for every taste and there are even bicycles on display.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702477-3893. Follow @Rickvelotta on Twitter.