The housing market in Las Vegas is one of the worst in the nation, according to several real estate analysts. Las Vegas real estate is undervalued, but also rated as a worst housing buy, according to Local Market Monitor.
It is rated as a worst housing buy partly because much of the city’s employment is in manufacturing and construction, which are volatile markets especially in bad economic times, reported CNN Money.
Home values in Las Vegas are estimated at 30% of their fair market values and 52% below their value at the pre-recession peak. About 75% of homeowners in Las Vegas owe more on their homes than the homes are worth, reported Las Vegas Review Journal.
Land and commercial property values have dropped about the same amount, according to Dennis Smith of Home Builders Research.
Property taxes have lowered substantially, but not enough to make up for the difference according to First American CoreLogic Home Price Index, a property valuation service. Many property owners appealed before the state Board of Equalization to have their property taxes lowered.
The good news is that 40% of all home sales in Vegas in 2010 were cash. Buyers who pay cash for homes rarely end up in foreclosure, according to Paul Francis of Prudential.
Francis also reported that homebuilders are still building new homes in the Las Vegas area, adding to the surplus and continuing to drive home prices down.
Some cities in California and Florida joined Las Vegas in property value freefalls of over 20%, according to First American CoreLogic. The national average during that time period was 11.6%. Cities in Arizona and Rhode Island also saw property values fall at a higher-than-average rate.