Which Is the Best Season for Las Vegas Real Estate Sales?

Written by Posted On Monday, 10 April 2017 10:44
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Every sales niche fluctuates to a market calendar. Retail sales of consumer goods ebbs and flows with the holidays. Florists and jewelers count on Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day for their biggest sales volume. Automobile dealers offer their best deals at the end of the month, end of the year, and during inclement weather. Real estate sales also follow a seasonal rhythm, even in locations that might not see four distinct seasons.

Common wisdom and historical data show that spring launches the season for real estate sales. But it’s not just because of the warmer weather. Coldwell Banker states that “families target this season for home shopping as they factor in the end of the school year to ensure a smooth transition for their children.” After all, moving is stressful enough without trying to switch schools in the middle of the academic year. The prime real estate sales season continues into summer and savvy home sellers know to make the best use of the warmth, sunshine, blooming plants, and fresh air to showcase their properties.

But Las Vegas doesn’t necessarily follow the rules.

A Difference in Population

Most communities rely on stable populations – growing families – rather than transient populations for growth and real estate sales. Not Las Vegas or the State of Florida.

Like Florida, Sin City boasts a transient population. Fewer than 24% of Nevada’s current residents were born in the state of Nevada. The constant population shift means that real estate holds a year-round attraction. In 2012, the City of Las Vegas Redevelopment Agency and the City of Las Vegas released a report on the demographics of Las Vegas and Clark County where the city is situated.

In 2012, the U.S. Census Bureau showed the population of Las Vegas (594,294) to be slightly more than a quarter of the entire county’s population (2,008,654). Projections for Year 2020 forecast population increases of 658,000 and 2,224,000 for the city and county respectively. Although the numbers may seem high, population growth remains slow and consistent compared to the explosive growth from 1990 to 2010.

Per capita and household income between city and county differs little, with city residents ($45,670 median household income) earning slightly less than county residents ($47,720 median household income). Resident demographics also remain consistent between city and county with regard to race and ethnicity, gender, marital status, age, level of education, and length of residency. It may be worth noting that residents in Las Vegas tend to move about every 9.6 years on average, as opposed to county residents who move a little more frequently (8.9 years average).

Housing perhaps shows the greatest variation between city and county, though the differences are small:

Type of Home

Clark County

Las Vegas

Single Family

58.8%

60.2%

Duplex & ¾-Plex

2.2%

3.0%

Mobile Home

3.0%

1.1%

Apartments

21.1%

22.3%

Condo/Townhouse

14.9%

13.4%

 

The above demographic data, unfortunately, may not warrant a concerted effort in targeting a particular population demographic, which forces real estate agents to focus on general residential sales instead of a particular housing type to leverage population needs.

Instead, demographic data of newcomers to Las Vegas do offer significant insight into real estate sales possibilities. The largest populations of incoming residents:

  • Earn a household income between $35,000 and $49,000 (17.4%)

  • Are married and moving to the area with their spouses (42.2%)

  • Are younger adults between the ages of 25 and 34 (22.9%)

  • Have no children (64.2%)

  • Have a high school diploma or GED (32.8%)

  • Are employed full-time (35.4%)

The demographic data regarding newcomers to Las Vegas can also be used by real estate agents to target their efforts to smaller segments of the incoming population to increase their sales volume in particular population niches.

Seasonal Considerations

While spring may launch real estate sales in most of the continental United States, Las Vegas’ desert climate upturns that tradition. Quite simply, when it’s hot enough to fry eggs on the sidewalk, people don’t want to be tramping from house to house when they could be enjoying a swimming pool or air conditioning.

Gavin Ernstone states that fall is the best season for real estate sales in Las Vegas. Basically, he says that fall is a buyer’s market for those looking to purchase new homes. Buyers have less competition among the hordes of other buyers who emerge in the spring like insects, and sellers have become desperate to sell before the holidays stress them even further. The cooler weather, too, is more conducive to tramping from home to home.

It’s true, too, that the volume of buyers also drops off in autumn. Ernstone relates this phenomenon not only to a reluctance to uproot children once the academic year starts, but also to the deluge of sports that begin with the academic year. Pressed for time and attention, home buyers, he says, become distracted during the latter part of the year.

Real Estate Statistics

In November 2015, the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors reported steadily increasing sales of existing local home, condominiums, and townhouses over 2014. On top of that generally positive report they also noted that short sales decreased and home sales prices increased, indicating stabilization of the local economy. This is corroborated by Elite Realty, which lists median sales prices from June 2006 to February 2017. The rebounding market shows housing prices having increased 8% to 2008 levels.

Market stability and rising home prices indicate that fewer people find themselves in financial distress. This may also be correlated to a decrease in cash sales of real property. However, it’s important to remain aware that “cash buyers and investors are still more active in Southern Nevada than in most other parts of the country, but that their influence on the local housing market is waning.”

The Las Vegas housing supply continues to remain “relatively tight.” It’s important to realize that sales and supply don’t necessarily coincide. Las Vegas sellers of real estate often benefit from a housing demand that usually exceeds supply. This means real estate generally doesn’t last long on the market, benefiting sellers who have schedules to keep: “69.3% of all existing local homes and 62.4% of all existing condos and townhomes sold within 60 days.”

But Then Which Season Is Best?

Both Ernstone and the Las Vegas Review-Journal agree that October is the best month to buy a residential property. The LVRJ references data compiled by RealtyTrac, a real estate information company. The trend, however, does not hold true for luxury properties, because owners of such properties aren’t desperate to sell. The LVRJ also states that climate has less effect on Las Vegas property sales mainly due to the very lack of distinct, climate-based seasons: “Southern Nevada is a unique market and offers buyers more time to explore housing opportunities.”

So, if you’re looking to buy a place in Las Vegas, there really is no time like the present.

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Randy Char

With over 20 years of experience, Randy Char is one of Las Vegas’ top-producing brokers. In 2013 his team surpassed records in the community and closed a landmark total of $100 million in sales. He is focused on delivering a highly personal, expert team-delivered experience for clients in the high end market.

www.skycondoslv.com

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