I’m curious, OP, any luck in Vegas? When you have a chance, please give an update.
We got back Wednesday evening. It was a good trip. We drove there taking 2 days, then had 3 full days and then drove back.
We met with a real estate agent there who I had been talking to and she gave general information on the market and some details on some areas. We then spent a couple of days driving around areas and going to open houses. While we can't buy yet I wanted to get a feel for the houses and what they were like.
For those people familiar with Las Vegas, our main focus of neighborhoods was northwest Las Vegas, mostly Providence also some other nearby areas were Centennial Hills, Skye Canyon and other nearby areas. We mostly focused on the 89166 and 89149 zip codes. We would consider 89143 but little is available in that zip code.
The other area we looked at a lot was Southwest, principally Mountain's Edge and a little north of there. So, 89178, 89179, 89148 and 89113.
Summerlin and nearby adjacent areas is possible (as is Henderson) but very unlikely due to the housing we like.
So -- observations
One purpose of the trip was to make sure we actually wanted to move to Las Vegas. While we have been there a number of time (including getting married there 30 years ago), we had not been there in over 20 years. We had read, looked at pictures, talked to people online. I felt I had a handle on how it would be there, but obviously prudent to go there.
Honestly, it was mostly exactly how I expected it to be. The research had been pretty accurate. Las Vegas is really easy to get around in. I loved 215 on the west and south sides and thought it was a great road. 95 up in the northwest was also great. Living where I live now, Las Vegas seems like a pretty small town (in area). I do feel that restaurant costs even in non-Strip areas were higher than they are here. My perception was the overall cost of goods was a little higher although not exorbitantly so. Well, except for gas which really was far higher in Las Vegas than in Texas.
One thing I had wondered about was how we would feel about the small close together houses. In pictures, I thought they would be fine. We really don't want a yard. But, I did wonder if the reality would bother me. It really didn't. I was taken aback that some houses have very short driveways not long enough to park a car in. That means visitors have to park on the street. And some lots are not wide enough to allow you park in front of the house without blocking the driveway. Going to open houses it was often hard to find a place to park. There was sometimes guest parking on a side street but that wasn't ideal.
There was an open house we went to that we really liked (it has since gone under contract). But, it had one of those short driveways. I hadn't realized that in the photo of the house in the listing so that is now something to pay attention to.
Prices are decreasing more in Las Vegas than here in DFW. This was very clear. What you could get for $450k in May is now more like $400k. This week I've gotten alerts on some of the houses we are following in Las Vegas and many had price reductions. We are having price reductions here but there are far more in Las Vegas. Right now in my market in Texas, demand is almost non-existent. Very few houses are going under contract. There were a flurry of price reductions in July and earlier in August but much fewer now. The problem seems to be one more of demand than price. And there are still a shortage (historically speaking) of houses on the market. Las Vegas... is different. The number of houses on the market (relative to history) is much higher. You don't have as much of a shortage on the market. Demand is still fairly weak but prices are continuing to fall. I think reflecting that fact that prices got so high in Las Vegas. I am seeing OpenDoor houses in Las Vegas being listed under what OpenDoor paid for the houses only a couple of months ago. Now, to be clear, houses in Las Vegas are still far more expensive than they were a few years ago. The house that has now reduced its price $50k is still being sold for $200k more than it was sold for in 2019 or 2020.
For us, this is all helpful. Even though we can't sell our existing house for what we could have sold it for several months ago, our purchasing power in Las Vegas has increased. I think prices will stabilize in Las Vegas but I don't see them going back up.
Summerlin/Henderson versus other areas I follow a number of Las Vegas forums or groups. Pretty uniformly people are always told -- regardless of budget -- to buy in Summerlin or Henderson. But this trip really reinforced why I am unlikely to find something there. For $450k you can definitely buy a house in Summerlin or Henderson. Of those two, I prefer Summerlin from a location and amenities standpoint. There is no doubt that you get great shopping and amenities in Summerlin which is nice. But, $450k in Providence will buy me a nice 3/2 house with a loft that was built in the last 10 years. It will have a modern layout including an open kitchen and a nice counter height island. The bathrooms will be more modern with a separate tub and shower (or a large oversized shower) and a separate toilet room. If the house is a one story you have a shot of it having a separate den or living room. We want a 3 bedroom house with another extra room as DH and I each want an office and we want a guest room. Usually the first floor will have a modern looking tile or vinyl plank or sometimes wood. For that price I can usually find a house between 1700 and 2000 SF. Two story houses usually have a nice sized loft. In Mountain's Edge, your money goes a little farther and you can get something a little larger for that price and a better chance of a larger one story or maybe a 4 BR house.
In Summerlin I can also buy a $450k house. It will usually be a house that is 15 to 25 years old. The finishes will be relatively poor quality. The flooring is often worn. The first floor will have a tile kitchen and then a patch of carpet in the living room (which looks so weird). The kitchen usually ranges from not open at all to maybe having a large pass through. The bar area on the island or peninsula is usually raised. The cabinets are older looking light oak stained wood. Everything is just super dated. A lot of these houses are 3 BR houses with no loft (if a 2 story) and no extra room if a one story. More often than not they are under 1500 SF houses. I was looking at 1 story houses the other day and in Summerlin they were tiny often between 1100 and 1300 SF. There is no room for a second office at all. Storage space is poor.
The point is that Summerlin as an area for amenities is nice, but your money does not go as far there. I would have to live in a far inferior house in Summerlin unless I got very lucky. We are keeping it in our searches as there occasionally is a remodeled house on the market...
The areas were were looking at in the NW and SW seemed safe (we did look at crime maps). We were avoiding anything close to the main highways.
We liked the Northwest more than the Southwest. I had heard 2 negatives about Providence (and the NW). One is that there is a lack of amenities. The other was that homeowners are often young and more transient. Yes, there are fewer amenities than in Summerlin. But there were enough. Wherever we went there was at least one or two nice grocery stores within 5 minutes. We had lunch at a very nice Mediterranean restaurant and saw several other options for day to day dining. We saw a Chase bank close by. Basically for most day to day shopping it would all be there. We drove there from Summerlin and it took 15 minutes. So, the Summerlin shopping dining is no more than 15 to 20 minutes away which is fine. I do think homeowners were clearly often younger family. Two of the open houses we looked at had clothing indicating the owner was an Air Force officer. So, yes, probably more transient and younger neighbors but that doesn't really bother me.
Mountain's Edge was OK in terms of houses. In fact, I think your money does go a bit farther there (although not a huge difference). On paper it is a little closer to the strip. But I found it harder to get around there. In 89178 and 89179 you are a long way from 215 (Blue Diamond is the through road). Also, while there was more shopping near Mountains Edge I found the dining options better in the northwest. We might still consider something there if we found the ideal house there but we are more likely to end up in the Northwest.
We stopped in Albuquerque for a couple of hours on the way back. Well, actually we drove around Rio Rancho to look at housing there. Early on we had considered that area and it was our back up to Las Vegas. There is no question that we could get a larger, nicer house in Rio Rancho. Or -- more likely since we don't want a large home -- we could get an equivalent home to those in Las Vegas for $50k less money. Las Vegas also has few one story houses and Rio Rancho has many more. We would far prefer a 1 story but are resigned to a 2 story in Las Vegas unless we get super lucky. In Rio Rancho we could clearly get a one story. The houses were nice but I was otherwise underwhelmed. Basically from an amenity standpoint and location standpoint, Las Vegas was just superior.
Oh - while we were in Las Vegas there was a house listed at about $425k that we really liked (only negative was the short driveway). It did go under contract a couple of days ago. But I noticed a house from the same floor plan has now reduced its price to about $409k which is under our original budget.
