Rising Rents in Las Vegas Making it Difficult for Some to Find Affordable Housing Options

LAS VEGAS, NV – Amid skyrocketing demand and a shortage in options on the open market, finding affordable housing in Las Vegas is becoming difficult to achieve for some residents, citing steadily rising rents in the valley – which reports say are seeing some of the highest increases nationwide –  as the reason why.

Some Southern Nevada residents are reporting that the cheapest monthly rents they are encountering when looking among available inventory of two-bedroom apartments on the market is ranging from approximately $1485 in the valley’s northeast area to as high as $1700 in Henderson and $1850 in the southwest.

In addition, a report published recently indicates that rents in Henderson have ballooned by as much as 45 percent from one year ago.

Of course, contributing to the rental issue is the fact that Las Vegas is still in the grip of a housing and rental shortage that developers are struggling to address, with numerous apartment complexes and housing communities currently in the works that real estate experts are saying are expected to help stabilize rents in the region once they are completed.

But in the meantime, reports indicate that owners and investors are currently testing the waters in terms of seeing how much they can get for their rental properties in a red-hot marketplace, often increasing their asking prices in light of any amenities that their properties possess, such as it being a newer build or if it has a pool.

However, until more house and apartment rentals are available in Las Vegas – with more and more projects are being announced and started by the day – some local residents are expressing sincere concern over finding affordable places to live in the meantime.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – It’s not every day that you get a car thrown in at no-cost to sweeten the deal when you purchase a home, but that’s the plan that was announced by developer Livv recently, who intends to construct two new housing communities in the Las Vegas area whose residences will all come with free Tesla electric cars.

The communities, which are slated to be built in Henderson and the southwest valley, are to be comprised of luxury “smart” and “sustainable” homes, and to that end Livv has stated that each buyer will receive a Model 3 Tesla electric car, each with a retail value of $40,000.

Livv – which constructed Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden’s Southern Highlands new $4.3 million home – has stated that the Henderson project – dubbed “Neo” – will break ground in the fall of this year, whereas the southwest valley project to be known as “Magnus” will have work commence upon it in 2022.

Neo will be developed upon 60 acres in the vicinity of MacDonald Highlands, southeast of Horizon Ridge Parkway and Stephanie Street. Plans call for the guard-gated community to be comprised of 84 homes when completed; home prices will begin at $2.3 million and go up as high as $4 million.

The one-and-two story homes in Neo will be semi-customized for the buyers, will offer unobstructed views of the Las Vegas Strip and mountains, and will range in size from 3,600 square feet to 5,000 square feet with three-to-four bedrooms. In addition, each house will have an either three-or-five car garage as well.

Seven floor plans will be available for buyers to choose from after they plunk down the required $25,000 deposit, and selectable interior designs will range from “Euro chic, bohemian and ultra modern.”

The plans for Magnus have yet to be finalized, but the community will be located on 27 acres in the southwest valley, and 94 semi-custom homes are anticipated, ranging in price from $1.3 million to $2.8 million.

Livv has a wide array of projects on their plate, currently with 12 housing communities in the works throughout the world.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – New York-based private equity firm Blackstone has entered into an agreement with MGM Resorts International to sell operations of The Cosmopolitan, the Las Vegas-based luxury casino and hotel on the Las Vegas Strip, for $1.625 billion. In addition, the hotel and casino’s real estate assets are being purchased by the Cherng Family Trust – which was set up by the owners of the fast-food chain Panda Express – for over $4 billion.

The total sale, valued at $5.65 billion, was announced on Monday; MGM Resorts International will run the daily operations of the venue for the next 30 years, with three options to renew their lease once it expires for an additional 10 years each time. MGM will pay the Cherng Family Trust a yearly rent of $200 million, with a yearly increase of two percent for the first 15 years of their lease.

Two years ago, Blackstone had attempted to sell the Cosmopolitan for a $4 billion asking price, but found no takers. They put the resort back on the market again this month, now seeking at least $5 billion, and this time it didn’t take long for a buyer to snag the iconic establishment.

The Cosmopolitan opened its doors for business in 2010; it was later sold by owner Deutsche Bank AG to Blackstone in 2014 for $1.73 billion, who then put $500 million into renovating the resort, which features 3,027 rooms, a 110,000 square-foot casino, 300,000 square-feet of retail and restaurant space, a spa and fitness facility, a 3,200-seat theater, and 150,000 square-feet of meeting and convention space.

The transaction is expected to close in early 2022, at which time MGM Resorts International will assume the operations of the resort going forward.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – The mansion of Scott Gragson – a Las Vegas-based real estate broker who is currently serving time in prison in connection with a fatal drunk-driving accident – has been listed on the rental market, for the whopping price of $50,000 per month.

The mansion, located at 5 Promontory Ridge Drive in The Ridges – a wealthy master-planned community in Summerlin – is described as a “desert contemporary masterpiece,” comes in at 10,621 square-feet in size, is fully furnished, and features six bedrooms.

The residence also features a number of posh amenities for its tenant, including clear views of the famed Las Vegas Strip, a private movie room, a guest house, a gym, and a basketball court.

If security is a concern, the mansion also has a a series of two gated entrances with a guard on-duty.

Gragson, 55, had been arrested on May 30, 2019, after he had been involved in a drunk-driving crash in The Ridges that left Melissa Newton, a 36-year-old mother of three, dead. Gragson pleaded guilty in February 2020 to one count of DUI resulting in death and one count of DUI resulting in substantial bodily harm and was sentenced to eight-to-20 years in prison.

In addition to the prison term, Gragson had also reached a settlement deal to pay restitution to Newton’s family in the amount of $21 million; he would pay $12.8 million, and his insurance company would pay the remaining $8.2 million.

Additional settlements were also reached with the surviving passengers of the vehicle – Greg Tassi and Christie Cobbett – although the amounts of those have not been publicly revealed. A third passenger, Christopher Bentley, is set to begin his civil suit against Gragson this November.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – A new state law that was signed by Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak on June 4 will, once it officially goes into effect next year, require that Clark County – and a number of cities – to tax all short-term vacation rentals (STVRs) within the city’s limits, in addition to imposing a number of other regulations upon the industry as well.

Assembly Bill 363, due to go into effect July 1, 2022, only applies to counties with over 700,000 residents – currently Clark County only –  and cities with over 25,000 residents, which includes Las Vegas, Henderson, and North Las Vegas. In addition, the bill will override the ban on STVRs that’s currently in-place in some of Clark County’s unincorporated areas, and will establish a number of rules governing them. Bill 363 mandates that the municipalities it covers establish a series of regulations covering owners of STVRs to:

• Have a state business license
• Pay an annual fee after acquiring local authorization
• Designate a local representative for the rental
• Maintain liability coverage, and
• Collect lodging taxes from guests

In addition, Bill 363 lays out a number of other rules that cover how STVRs can be utilized and where they can be located:

• Guests must stay a minimum of two nights in a non-owner-occupied property and one night in an owner-occupied property
• Short-term rental properties must be located at least 660 feet away from each other
• Vacation rental properties must be located at least 2,500 feet away from resort hotels
• Vacation rentals within a multifamily dwelling are limited to no more than 10 percent of units
• No more than 16 guests may stay in a short-term rental property
• Operators may hold no more than five local authorization permits per state business license
• Short-term rentals are prohibited in apartment buildings
• Governments must establish specific requirements for noise, trash, and security
• Short-term rentals are not allowed in communities with homeowners associations unless the association expressly allows them

Officials of local governments covered by this law are also required to establish and enforce penalties of operators of STVRs deviate from any of these rules, although certain minimum fines are laid out in the law; in addition, local governments are also allowed to create their own rules that are tailored for their individual needs and circumstances.

Third-party companies that facilitate short-terms rentals, such as Airbnb and Vrbo, are also required to collect taxes from individuals who utilize their services, in addition to having to submit reports each quarter to the cities they are operating in.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – A developer has announced plans to construct an apartment complex catering to the 55-and-over community, situated right behind a Las Vegas business that considers those in that age group among its core customer base- Henderson’s Sunset Station Hotel and Casino.

Ovation Development has filed plans with Henderson city officials for the apartment complex – dubbed Radiance at Sunset – that would be constructed upon a 5.3-acre section of property that is owned by Sunset Station, located off Warm Springs Road between Marks and Stephanie streets.

Apartment construction has been picking up in Southern Nevada as the pandemic has been slowly subsiding, with developers attempting to address the very real need for affordable housing options in the region fueled by Las Vegas’ recovering economy and job market.

Radiance at Sunset would consist of 249 apartment units, and should have no problem attracting tenants, since Southern Nevada has proven to be a popular destination for individuals that have retired and are looking for an affordable location to call home – Nevada lacks state income taxes and boasts a low cost of living – that also offers nearby entertainment options such as casinos and golf courses.

Sunset Station’s ownership noted that while younger people frequent their casino, their main clientele – especially as restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic have eased – remain those aged 65 and older, making a neighboring apartment complex aimed at the older set ideal.

Radiance at Sunset will also be located near other local amenities that would likely prove attractive to seniors, including a 72-lane bowling alley, 13-screen movie theater, bingo, and the Galleria at Sunset shopping mall.

Representatives of Ovation Development have noted that the project is still very early in the development process, and that they are currently “working through some typical predevelopment issues” before construction can commence.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Auric Symphony Park, a new luxury apartment complex situated in downtown Las Vegas, was recently unveiled by Nashville, Tennessee-based developer Southern Land Company, providing some much-needed housing options in that part of the city.

Southern Land Company’s vice president of multifamily development west, Kevin House, said that the developer’s founder, Tim Downey, feels that Auric Symphony Park will “revitalize” the downtown Las Vegas area.

“I think we were probably taking a little bit of a leap when we bought the site,” House said. “Tim, the founder of our company, really saw the vision of the area and saw what the city saw so we were excited to buy in and become part of the area.”

House said that new businesses and entertainment establishments that have recently set up shop in the vicinity – such as The Smith Center for the Performing Arts and World Market Center – will create the need for more housing for employees and tourists, saying that “We’ll bring even more bodies and more life to the area.”

Auric Symphony Park – which took two years to complete – features one- and two-bedroom apartments – varying in size from 591 square feet to 1,452 square feet – with rents ranging from $1,495 to $3,100 per month.

The apartment complex features a plethora of lush amenities for its tenants, including two-story cabanas overlooking a large pool area, a gym that offers residents on-site fitness classes, bike storage with a workshop area, a pet spa and pet park offering free tennis balls for pets, and a resident’s lounge on the fifth floor with impressive views of the Las Vegas cityscape.

In addition, the property also boasts approximately 21,000 square feet of ground level retail and restaurant space. Auric Symphony Park began renting units in early July; currently, the 324-unit complex is about 30 percent pre-leased and 18 percent occupied.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – The Southwest Las Vegas Valley will be seeing a new $500 million mixed-use campus being constructed in the near future, situated upon an area that was previously home to an aborted attempt at development after the mid-2000’s economy crash that has sat vacant ever since.

The project, dubbed Evora, is slated to be developed by Joe Sorge, whose resume features ownership of a gene analysis company and a producer’s credit on a Netflix comedy – unusual credits for someone looking to develop a mixed-use real estate venture – and will feature apartments, office space, and restaurants.

Evora will be located on a 42-acre plot of property on Buffalo Drive between Post Road and Patrick Lane, and construction is already in the works. Once completed – which Sorge has stated will take approximately five years – the campus will boast an apartment complex with 1,343 units, 240,000 square feet of commercial space, and underground parking garage.

Sorge indeed possesses experience in the apartment complex development game; he previously was responsible for building Evo, a luxury apartment complex that he sold for over $100 million prior to the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the demand for rental properties ever-increasing in Las Vegas as the city’s economy continues to recover from both the recession and the pandemic, more and more developers are getting in on mixed-use projects; UnCommons, also being constructed in the southwest valley, will offer 40 acres of apartments, restaurants, and office space.

However, despite the recent increase in investment in mixed-use properties in Las Vegas, these ventures are typically more difficult to acquire funding for, Sorge said, and there are other hurdles to overcome as well once the project has been completed, including difficulty leasing units if the economy hasn’t recovered causing tenants to go bankrupt and not pay rent.

However, Sorge is forging ahead despite the risks, and has noted that Evora will offer a “resort lifestyle” for tenants, with apartments from 700 to 1,500 square feet and rents from $1,600 to $3,200 a month and numerous amenities that will include a 1-mile perimeter walking trail, saunas and steam rooms, pickleball and tennis courts, and a yoga studio.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – The housing market in Las Vegas has been setting records for months, thanks in part to cheap money in the form of low-interest mortgages and a serious increase in buyers from out of state – many from California, who are looking for investment opportunities, and when you put those two factors together, you get a town that is on-course to becoming the house-flipping capital of the country.

Southern Nevada has been described by experts as an “extreme seller’s market” as of late, so when it comes to flipping a home – that is, buying it, renovating it, and then selling it for a profit – competition can be fierce for buyers; however, when it comes to selling, these homes are often going for more than their asking prices.

The demand for housing in Las Vegas –  and indeed, across the United States – is such that it has given birth to a new flipping phenomenon known as “iBuyers,” or “instant buyers,” which are people who will buy a home, make “light repairs,” and then “quickly resell” them for a profit. Oftentimes a buyer will have offers within 24 hours of listing a property, reports say, and often they will be in the form of cash due to the influx of wealthy out-of-state investors.

Investors have been snapping up homes across the country in recent months, but the focus as of late appears to specifically be Southern Nevada. Reports say that residential real estate investors purchased 3,043 homes in the Las Vegas area in the second quarter of 2021, which represents a whopping increase of 279 percent from the second quarter of 2020 – the highest year-over-year increase nationally – when the market was being negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nearly 23 percent of all homes bought in Southern Nevada during the first quarter of 2021 were by investors, reports say, and the region was ranked fifth nationally among 41 metro areas in the number of investor purchases.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV –  The housing market in Las Vegas has been enjoying a year of success amid skyrocketing home prices that has resulted in all-time records being set while sellers are often offered more than their asking prices by desperate buyers. However, August appeared to buck that trend – albeit only slightly, with prices appearing to stabilize – before the market resumed its hot streak in September as if nothing ever happened.

According to a recently-released report, the median sales price of previously owned single-family homes in Las Vegas appeared to plateau after hitting an all-time record in July with $405,000, as that price – which had been steadily climbing for the past year – remained at that exact level in August as well.

Regardless, it illustrated how far the housing market in Vegas has recovered, as that August $405,000 median sales price still represents a 25 percent increase over the same period of time in 2020.

However, it was soon revealed that the housing market in Southern Nevada had not hit a plateau, but simply experienced more of a momentary lull; according to trade association Las Vegas Realtors, rising prices in the region had taken a “momentary pause” during August while the market prepared for a pre-holiday surge.

Once the holiday season hits, the market can be expected to temporarily flatten once again, as it did from November 2020 to January 2021 when the median sales price of pre-owned homes remained at $345,000; in January, prices began climbing once again.

However, it remains to be seen if the market flattens as much – or for as long – this upcoming holiday season, as one of the reasons for the intense house-buying activity that Vegas has been experiencing as of late is being driven by historically-low mortgage rates, which are driving buyers to snap up every property they can.

What that being the case, there remains the possibility that this holiday season may not slow down as much as in previous years.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – The Blackstone Group, an investment management company based in New York City, is reportedly going to be putting the Cosmopolitan resort of Las Vegas up for sale, and their hefty asking price is said to be at least $5 billion, if not more.

Two years ago, Blackstone had attempted to sell the Cosmopolitan for a $4 billion asking price, but at the time found no takers, yet as time went by and the COVID-19 pandemic took hold of the country, prices of casinos have nonetheless continued to rise as investment firms have often bought them and then split the costs with management firms they bring in to run things.

Some real estate experts have speculated that a potential taker for Blackstone’s offer may be Apollo Global Management Inc., which has been purchasing casinos globally; MGM Resorts International is also being talked about as a possible partner and property manager, although there have been no official statements from either organization confirming this.

The Cosmopolitan, which encountered financial difficulty during its $3.9 billion construction phase due to the mid-2000’s recession, finally opened its doors for business in 2010; it was later sold by owner Deutsche Bank AG who would then sell the resort for $1.73 billion to Blackstone in 2014.

The Cosmopolitan is located just south of the Bellagio on the west side of Las Vegas Boulevard, between CityCenter and the Blackstone-owned Bellagio casino. The resort consists of two high-rise towers – the Boulevard Tower and the Chelsea Tower – and features 3,027 rooms, a 110,000 square-foot casino, 300,000 square-feet of retail and restaurant space, a spa and fitness facility, a 3,200-seat theater, and 150,000 square-feet of meeting and convention space.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – A real estate firm from Atlanta, Georgia has gotten into the highly competitive Southern Nevada rental marketplace with the recent announcement they have purchased two large apartment complexes located in the east-side of the Las Vegas Valley.

The firm, known as Carroll, noted that they had acquired the Emerald Springs, a 436-unit complex, in addition to The Meadows, a 383-unit building situated only three miles away and located on the very same road, which is Nellis Boulevard; Emerald Springs is near Bonanza Road, and The Meadows is near Desert Inn Road.

While Carroll did not mention the amount the firm paid for the two apartment complexes, public records from Clark County reveal that the properties sold for a combined total of $163.25 million.

Investors have been buying rental properties in Las Vegas in droves as of late, fueled by low borrowing costs and a demand from consumers moving to the city for its flourishing job market and relatively low cost of living. Records indicate that 10,424 Las Vegas apartments were purchased by investors in 2021 through the month of July, in comparison with the same period of time in 2020, was only 3,065 acquired. 

David Perez, Carroll’s chief operating officer, confirmed in a statement to media that both Emerald Springs and The Meadows are currently 96 percent occupied when the purchases took place, ending a three or four-year quest on the part of the firm to find the right rental space in the Las Vegas area to invest in.

Carroll also has rental holdings in the western region of the U.S. and that Las Vegas has proved an especially attractive city to invest in as its economy is still in the process of recovering from the pandemic and tourists – which are a driving force of Vegas’ financial well-being – are finally starting to coming back.

Also, in contrast to the rising rent rates in Vegas as of late – the average rent jumped 22.7% year over year in July – Perez noted that while maintenance will be improved at the two properties, the firm is not looking to raise rates for tenants in an effort to provide affordable housing.

Shelter Realty is a Real Estate and Property Management Company specializing in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.