Mortgage interest rates inch higher

Freddie Mac's weekly average moved up a little, to 4.91% for 30-year fixed. This same PMMS index stood at 6.08% last year this time, a scary number in comparison. Rising long-term bond yields are primarily responsible for the subtle increase, as the financial sector is trying figure out the direction of the fragile economy.

Las Vegas homes go underwater

Home prices are still falling nationally. More in some areas and less in others, but they still are in retreat. People who bought real estate in the last five years or so are in real danger of being upside down. Or underwater. That's when the balance on the underlying mortgage is higher than the home's value. Those who put nothing or very little down are most vulnerable.

Zillow.com, a well-known real estate website, just released a report on the first quarter of 2009 according to which 21.9% of all homeowners are now taking a bath. It was 17.6% in the fourth quarter, so the increase is clear.

In the same report Las Vegas has claimed the top spot with 67.2% of homes currently underwater. That is a troublesome number. Mortgage borrowers who put quite a bit of money down could still be okay here in Southern Nevada, at worst perhaps 5 to 10% upside down. That should make them eligible for the latest housing rescue plan, the Making Home Affordable one, where refinance can be done up to 105% of the home's value. As long as other important criteria is also met.

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Southern Nevada existing homes sold well in April

There is some optimism in the air that the Las Vegas housing market is hitting bottom. At long last. Perhaps. It’s still too early to go into any definitive announcements about that, though. The patient’s vital signs do remain quite mixed, that’s why.

Anyway, 3,198 single-family homes were closed in April, as was reported by GLVAR, or Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors. In the year-to-year comparison that comes to a big jump of over 78% and on a month-to-month basis it translates into a solid 7% gain from March. These numbers warm a lot of hearts in the desert valley. Downright affordable prices are drawing scores of buyers to the real estate bazaar here, amply bolstered by still low-flying mortgage interest rates.

On the other hand, the median price tumbled further to $141,720, a painful drop of almost 40% from a year ago. Bank REOs, or real estate owned, continue to dominate listings, comprising nearly 80% of last month’s sales. The lenders hard-hitting marketing tactics are pushing prices down. It of course is a buyer’s gain, but not so for a seller or a homeowner both of whom likely at one point sat on a nice cushion of equity.

The inventory has remained largely unchanged for months. The MLS calculates that in April there were 22,112 homes in it, a slight decline from March, but it still is rather high. And it hasn’t shown any continuous trend downward despite the steadily rising sales. Much of the Las Vegas real estate marketplace is probably glued on this particular figure, anxiously waiting for it to start sliding south.

That is one of the key pre-requisites for a viable housing turnaround.

In the photo Silverstone Ranch, Las Vegas, and second green on Valley Course.

Mountain's Edge in Las Vegas crowned as best-selling master-planned community

Who would have thought such a list even existed in this housing market? Especially since the new home segment is having major trouble in moving inventory almost everywhere, including here in Southern Nevada. But it’s true. Robert Charles Lesser & Co., a real estate advisory firm, is behind the study that keeps track of home sales in master-planned communities nationwide and then ranks them.

Mountain’s Edge claimed the top spot on the list with 879 houses sold in 2008, although overall sales there went down by 49%. It’s somewhat surprising that even that many properties were closed there considering all the overbuilding Las Vegas has seen and the turmoil in the mortgage and financial industries. Their incentives must’ve worked because new homes prices generally aren’t competitive with the resale sector.

The number two slot went to Cinco Ranch in Houston, number three to The Woodlands in Houston and number four to Providence, also located in Las Vegas. Notable here is that both Mountain’s Edge and Providence are developed by Focus Property Group, a major builder in the area. Despite being reasonably successful with these two projects Focus has also suffered setbacks in a couple of other local undertakings. But who hasn’t in this distressed market.

Usually the perennial heavyweight on this list has been Summerlin located here in Las Vegas. In fact, it has occupied the very peak of it for years on end and now, surprisingly, it can’t be found on it at all. Because The Howard Hughes Corp., Summerlin’s developer, failed to send in its sales figures. The list creator should consider other factors besides sales to arrive at its conclusions, argues the company. That’s why. Well, maybe they just couldn’t stomach being beaten by a local competitor this time around.

Anyway, Mountain’s Edge, way to go in a tough market.