Archive for the ‘Las Vegas Real Estate’ Category
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Oct
29
Posted by Mark Clawson
In my first post on staging your home in preparation to putting it on the market, I mentioned Clean up…Clear out…Fix In…Fix Out. Let’s start with Fix Out.
Backwards, yes but the saying sounds better that way! Take a note pad with you and go outside. Better than that go across the street and look at your house. Pretend you don’t live there. Can you see the house? Does it look inviting? Is the yard mowed, trimmed, clear of stuff. Is the paint peeling or does the driveway, sidewalk or the roof have moss on it.
Imagine the For Sale sign out front. If you (remember you dont live here) drove by and saw that sign would the house beckon you to take a look? We are talking Curb Appeal.
The pots out front add charm but the base of the pots could stand a little scrubbing. You can’t see it here but a tree near by is overgrown and parts are dying. Time for a replacement. If you are selling right away get bigger plants instead of waiting for them to grow a bit.
Some nurseries will help you select plants and even plant them for you, but there are all kinds of books and magazines that tell you how to do that. And don’t forget to water them daily if the weather is warm. Make sure your front door is in good shape and painted a pleasing color. Spray painting the door is preferable so you don’t have brush strokes. And you need to take the door OFF to do that. New bark in the planting beds is usually a good idea.
Fix In: After you fix up the outside its time to tackle the inside. Using the same approach and notepad, walk around your house taking an inventory of things that need fixing. Having it in one notebook and checking off the items as they are done will keep you on track. A well maintained home will alway sell faster and bring a better price than one that is not. All functioning parts of your house need to do just that, function! Furnace, waterheater, stove, oven, toilets, ect, ect. Speaking of toilets, new toilet seats should be put on so they are bright, sparkling clean.
Click on this link to view the full article written by Kathleen Cragun on IssaquahUndressed.com
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Mar
23
Posted by Mark Clawson
A new Casino and Resort Hotel is rising from the desert on The Strip. The Fontainebleau Hotel is coming to Las Vegas.
The Fontainebleau Miami Beach opened its doors in 1954 and was considered a “monument to modern design and architecture”. Designed by Morris Lapidus the Hotel Resort attracted the likes of Elvis, Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack. Not surprising that they are developing a Las Vegas version right on the Strip in Las Vegas. The resort in Miami has seen a billion dollar face lift and now we can see the image grow in Las Vegas. Below is a picture of the Fontainebleau Miami Beach.
Here are some othe photos of the construction site on The Strip.
There will be a transformation on the northern end of The Strip that is sorely needed. After the Fontainebleau is completed in late 2009 or early 2010 the next project is the Las Vegas Tower which will be 102 stories. This will truly energize the area. Currently the Sahara, Riviera and Circus Circus occupy the area surrounding these new developments and we will truly have a new venue for style and architectural design that will enhance the experience and flavor of The Strip.
Here is an artist renditon of the Fontainebleau Las Vegas at night.
I have to admit that I have a soft spot for the Sahara. Back in the 60’s a few of my friends and I ventured to Vegas. We were young, perhaps 20, and ended up catching a show with a comedian named Don Rickels. This was not a stage show but a bar show. I won’t get into the details; this was at the start of his career and we still talk about the night at the Sahara.
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Mar
18
Posted by Mark Clawson
I must admit that the mortgage market is getting very crazy and unpredictable. So do we need to be celebrating with a glass of wine and a nice dinner? You can be the judge.
Two weeks ago the thirty year fixed rate mortgage had a note rate of 5.875% and today it is 5.5%. This is good. However, the 3 Year Adjustable Rate Mortgage has gone from a note rate of 4% to 5.625%. This is not good. You can view all of todays conforming rates by clicking here.
My thinking is not nessarily supported in fact, however, I will give you my best read. Long term mortgage rates are pegged, somewhat, to long term Treasury Notes or Bonds. Short term rates don’t have such a mechanism at work. Bankers are having a hard time finding Wall Street investors for their ARM products and with little demand the rates are moving upward. I believe there is concern about home values in the short term. Prices are falling and there is concern about the borrower losing equity in their home. Without a pricing mechanism in place fear is coming into play.
For now, ARM Products for mortgage loans don’t look very appealing. The rates are higher than fixed rate mortgages.
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Mar
04
Posted by Mark Clawson
LAS VEGAS FORECLOSURES AND BERNANKE
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke today put forth some new ideas on how to prevent homeowners from falling into foreclosure. Bernanke notes that lenders have increased their efforts toward “loss-mitigation” but he believes that more can be done.
He went as far as saying that lenders should “reduce the amount of the loan to provide relief to a struggling owner.” Bernanke stated that “Principal reductions that restore some equity for the homeowner may be a relatively more effective means of avoiding delinquency and foreclosure.” He indicated that “with low or negative equity in their home, a stressed borrower has less ability — because there is no home equity to tap — and less financial incentive to try to remain in the home.”
This would be a very tough sell to the lenders. Would they be pressured to write down the principal again in the future if housing prices continued to fall? Would the lender then share in any equity increase going forward?Lots of questions, but at least someone is thinking. The lenders are getting hurt due to the loan programs that they made available. The borrower is getting hurt because of a real lack of understanding the loan program that he signed off on.
We should be requiring our high school students to acquire the knowledge necessary to make decisions on home loans, as well as, understanding what and how credit scores work.
On the Mortgage Rate front, rates on 30 year fixed rate conforming loans have stayed pretty much the same. Three and Five Year ARMS are getting much better. It seems as though investors are not so concerned with the short term. They are worried about inflation and they are demanding higher rates on thirty year mortgages for that added risk.Here is a link to Conforming Mortgage rates for today.
Mark V Clawson 702-351-7912
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Feb
29
Posted by Mark Clawson
The stock market is in trouble and mortgage rates are falling. A couple of days ago I wrote a post about the potential for a test of the recent lows in the stock market. It seems as though this may be occuring. The Dow Jones Industrial Averge was down over 300 points today. The recent low was 11,645 on January 23rd and we could see a test of that number next week. If you are in the market for a refinance or a home purchase get ready to act.
My guess is that the Fed will cut rates again at their March 18th meeting. When this happens I would expect that 30 Year Fixed Rate mortgage rates will move higher. The last time the Fed cut short term interest rates 30 Year Fixed rate mortgages did not benefit at all. Rates moved quite a bit higher and the reason was inflation worries.
Mark V Clawson 702-351-7912
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Feb
22
Posted by Mark Clawson
Thirty year fixed rate mortgage rates in Las Vegas continued to move higher over the past week. What I am seeing is a slight disconnect from the 10 Year Treasury note yield. Changes in fixed rate mortgage rates tend to mirror the movements in the 10 Year Treasury Note Yield. A week ago the 10 year Treasury note yield was at about 3.7% and today it is about the same. However, fixed rate mortgage rates are higher. So, what is happening?There seem to be three factors that are influencing this type of action on rates for fixed rate mortgages.
One, you have uncertainty concerning the impact of the increase in conforming loan limits on mortgage backed securities.
Two, investors are demanding higher returns given the lack of liquidity in the market and the perception that inflation is on the rise.
Three, there is concern over the viability and sustainability of the insurers who guarantee performance on bonds. It’s a crazy market right now.
I still think rates on fixed rate mortgages can go lower since rates are moving down when the stock market has problems. My guess is that we will see the stock market test the lows seen on January 23rd of this year. That number was 11,645.
So, if you are thinking seriously about buying or refinancing your home; you need to plan in advance. On January 23rd of this year fixed rate mortgage rates dropped, for one day, to about 5.25%. That was the day that the market hit 11,645. The next day rates were back to about 5.625%.
If you are prepared to act you might just get lucky. Here is a link to mortgage rates being quoted today. Mark Clawson 702-351-7912
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Feb
20
Posted by Mark Clawson
This afternoon I was driving around just south of Aliante and I noticed three attractive homes for sale. All threeof them are in the 3800-3900 block of Internet Avenue. Now remember I’m not a real estate agent so I had some trouble finding information about the properties. What I can tell you, with a fair degree of confidence, is that the next two homes are both about 3500 square feet. The one above is a little smaller.
According to a realtor that I spoke to; they seem to be owned by the banks and represent good value for the buyer.
This home is currently priced at $499,000 and an open house is expected this weekend. The price is likely to be adjusted downward, according to the realtor.
Hope I have the right house on this one. This home is said to have a pool and a casita. The price is $499,000, hence the potential for a price reduction on the last home.
I thought that these homes were a little different from what is normally seen in Las Vegas. They are not in a gated community, they just caught my eye and I have tried to find out more information on them.
When you decide to buy one, call me and I’ll help you with the loan.
Mark V Clawson 702-351-7912
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Feb
18
Posted by Mark Clawson
The Las Vegas Review Journal had an interesting article on the foreclosure market in the Las Vegas Valley this weekend. A time warp in real estate values seems to be occurring.
“Sometime this weekend, while you’re shuttling the kids to soccer tournaments or picking up milk at the grocery store, several dozen of your neighbors will go back in time nearly 10 years. They’ll see a 3,128-square-foot Christopher Homes house in Summerlin’s upscale Country Rose Estates on sale for it’s circa 2000 price of $370,000.”
The Housing Bubble is creating a Perfect Storm for many homebuyers, investors or otherwise. The Bubble which was created by over zealous investors, lenders and builders pushed prices too far and too fast. We are seeing a retrenchment in home prices which will probably be overdone.The values of homes in the Las Vegas Valley will recover and move forward again.
You can review my reasoning in this article Las Vegas Real Estate - Time to Buy. The recovery time for the Las Vegas Real Estate market may be longer than some had thought. The same lenders who gave you option ARMS, stated income and stated asset loans are now trying to be good business people. These changes will reduce the number of homebuyers who can qualify for home loans.
There is an inventory of 7,000 foreclosed homes on the market in the Las Vegas Valley and this is hurting everyone’s home values. They need to be sold and taken out of the market.
A new marketing strategy is unfolding in Las Vegas. The investor or homebuyer will “simply hop a ride on a foreclosure bus tour led by Barbara and Marshall Zucker of Prudential Americana Group, Realtors. Such tours have been hot since the fall in distressed housing markets in California, Florida, Michigan and Georgia. Now they’re revving up here.”
This seems like a great way to get a real look at the market and to find some true values. The bus tours are free and you will have a chance to view multiple properties.
To read the full article “Home sellers warp time” in the Review Journal here is a link.
Mark V Clawson 702-351-7912 Your Local Mortgage Loan Consultant
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Feb
14
Posted by Mark Clawson
I have updated Las Vegas Mortgage rates and you can view them by clicking on the bar at the top of the page. Over the last week we have seen the stock markets move higher and this has impacted the 10 Year Treasury Note Yield. We are seeing 30 year fixed rate mortgage rates moving up by about .375%. I have mentioned that in a declining stock market there is a flight to quality, so when the markets are doing better then rates on mortgages tend to move higher.
Now on the bright side, while the 30 year fixed rate mortgage rate has been moving higher the shorter term adjustable rates (3-5- and 7 year) have remained the same or have gone somewhat lower. The reason for this is that the loosening by the Fed is perceived as inflationary and inflationary pressures are not felt as strongly on shorter maturities.
Mark V Clawson 702-351-7912
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Feb
09
Posted by Mark Clawson
Everyday I will be posting conforming mortgage rates on my blogsite. You can click on Mortgage Rates on the bar at the top of the home page. These rates will be for purchases only. The rates that you will see assume 20% down, 680 credit scores, a conforming loan and purchase only. Your needs will vary because we are all unique.
Should you need a mortgage rate quote that is specific to your needs, please feel free to call at 702-351-7912 or e-mail me at markvclawson@gmail.com. The mortgage loan market has been in a state of turmoil for a number of months and lender quidelines are in a continual state of flux. Zero down loans are temporarily unavailable in Nevada. A good alternative is FHA. FHA will lend 97.15% of the value of the property and better yet these loans are assumable! Credit scores can be below 680. The rates I have quoted are for the perfect situation on a purchase. If your situation is not perfect there are alternatives. I just want you to know that each purchase or refinance (rate and term or cash out) is unique and that can effect the rate that you are eventually quoted. The best situation is to get pre-approved and determine what your real rate will be. There have been too many lenders who have been promising what they can’t deliver. We will work with you so that you don’t have any surprises.
