Southern Nevada home prices end the year in record territory

LVR — formerly known as the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors — reported that the median price of existing single-family homes sold in Southern Nevada through its Multiple Listing Service during December was $345,000. That matches the all-time record for existing local home prices set in November. It’s also up 10.2 percent from a median price of $312,990 in December 2019.

Local condos and town homes sold for a median price of $186,000 in December. While that’s down from November, it’s still up 4.5 percent from $178,000 in December 2019.

“I think we surprised a lot of people with how the local housing market not only held up, but set records, during an otherwise rough year for our community and our local economy,” 2021 LVR President Aldo Martinez said. “I don’t see much changing in the early part of 2021. Demand for housing remains high. Our housing supply and mortgage interest rates are still very low. As long as these trends continue, it’s a good bet that local home prices will keep rising.”

Martinez, a longtime local Realtor who took over as president of the association on Jan. 1, said the number of local homes available for sale remains well below the six-month supply considered to be a balanced market. He said the sales pace in December equates to just over a one-month supply of homes available for sale.

By the end of December, LVR reported 3,240 single-family homes listed for sale without any sort of offer. That is down 41.5 percent from 2019. For condos and town homes, the 1,153 properties listed without offers in December represent a 25.9 percent drop from 2019.

LVR reported a total of 4,097 existing local homes, condos and town homes were sold during December. Compared with the same time in 2019, December sales were up 26.7 percent for homes and up 30.9 percent for condos and town homes.

According to LVR, the total number of existing local homes, condos, town homes and other residential properties sold in Southern Nevada during 2020 was 41,617. That’s up from 41,269 total sales in 2019. By comparison, LVR reported 42,876 total sales in 2018 and 45,388 in 2017.

For years, Southern Nevada made national news for riding a real estate roller coaster, with pre-recession home prices soaring to record highs and then falling faster than almost anywhere else in the U.S. during the Great Recession. During the pandemic, the local housing market has been more in line with national trends, with a tight supply and historically low mortgage interest rates contributing to rising sales and record prices.

During December, LVR reported that 20.2 percent of all local property sales were bought with cash. That compares with 21.8 percent in the same month in 2019. That is well below the February 2013 peak of 59.5 percent, suggesting that cash buyers and investors have been less active in the local housing market.

Despite the coronavirus crisis and economic downturn, the number of so-called distressed sales remains near historically low levels. LVR reported that short sales and foreclosures combined accounted for just 0.9 percent of all existing local property sales in December. That compares with 1.8 percent of all sales in 2019, 2.9 percent two years ago and 3.6 percent three years ago.

These LVR statistics include activity through the end of December. LVR distributes statistics each month based on data collected through its MLS, which does not necessarily account for newly constructed homes sold by local builders or homes for sale by owners. Other highlights include:

■ The total value of local real estate transactions tracked through the MLS during December was nearly $1.5 billion for homes and nearly $160 million for condos, high-rise condos and town homes. Compared with 2019, total sales values in December were up 52.9 percent for homes and up 37.4 percent for condos and town homes.

■ Homes have been selling faster than they were in 2019. In December, 84.3 percent of all existing local homes and 77.1 percent of all existing local condos and town homes sold within 60 days. That compares with 2019, when 71.5 percent of all existing local homes and 70.2 percent of all existing local condos and town homes sold within 60 days.

Las Vegas Realtors was founded in 1947 and provides its more than 15,000 local members with education, training and political representation. The local representative of the National Association of Realtors, LVR is the largest professional organization in Southern Nevada. Each member receives the highest level of professional training and must abide by a strict code of ethics. For more information, visit LasVegasRealtor.com.