Study Looks At Differences In LGB & Straight Home Buyers

Couple looking for first home (stock photo)

As some readers may know, I'm a licensed Realtor here in Las Vegas.

So I was interested to see the  first-ever Profile of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Buyers and Sellers released by the National Association of Realtors.

Crunching the numbers from four years of data, the report shows some definite differences in how LGB folks feel about, and approach, homeownership compared to heterosexuals.

When it comes to first-time buyers:

• 58% of bisexual homebuyers surveyed indicated they were purchasing their first home

• 36% of gay and lesbian buyers said the purchase was their first

• 32% of heterosexuals indicated it was their first trip to the real estate rodeo

Bisexuals were the youngest homebuyers, stepping up to the plate at median age 36-years-old, but with the lowest median income of $62,400.

Gay and lesbian buyers were the oldest demo at a median age of 45-years-old, but a much higher median income of $92,900.

Heterosexuals tend to buy around age 44 and with a median income of $91,200.

Bisexuals leaned towards smaller homes (median square footage of 1,840) and showed a preference for small towns (22%).

Gays and lesbians were more likely to buy in large cities or urban centers (28%) and chose larger homes (median square footage of 1,900).

The straight crowd liked bigger and newer homes (median square footage of 2,060) with a majority (53%) preferring the suburbs.

The report utilized data from 22,521 respondents. Of those, 3 percent identified as gay or lesbian, while 1 percent indicated being bisexual.

Check out the info-graphic below. And for more detail, click over to the National Association of Realtors.

And if anyone ever has any questions about real estate, while I can't list or sell homes outside of Nevada, I can offer professional advice on buying and/or selling your home. Reach out to me via my Real Estate Facebook page here.

New, major 9K home development being planned for NW Las Vegas

How do you know the economy is picking up in Las Vegas? A new, major real estate project involving 9,000 homes is being planned.

From Vegas Inc:

Developers of the Southern Highlands master-planned community are launching another large residential project in Las Vegas.

The Olympia Cos. said today it is planning a 1,700-acre community in the northwest corner of the valley, between Grand Teton Drive and U.S. 95.

The property is entitled for 9,000 homes, as well as commercial and gambling uses. Olympia indicated that it would sell project land to homebuilders over the next 10 years.

The community would be Las Vegas’ first major real estate development to break ground since 2007, according to Olympia Chairman and CEO Garry Goett.

The real estate market is already tightening as most homes in decent shape on the market are going into multiple offers within just a few days of being listed.

Las Vegas is slowly coming back, kids.

Forward.

Las Vegas: Median home prices have biggest jump in 9 years

I still have my real estate license here in Nevada and I've been watching the market steadily improve over the past two years.

I hope more of this news gets out, as many buyers still come to the market thinking we're giving homes away for a dollar fifty.  Inventory is low and prices are rising. 

From Vegas Inc.:

Southern Nevada’s housing market began 2013 with mixed results last month, with rising prices, shrinking inventory and an uptick in nondistressed sales.

The median price of single-family homes sold in the region in January was $150,000, an increase of only 0.7 percent from December. But it was up 27 percent from a year ago, marking the largest year-over-year jump since at least 2004, according to a report out Friday from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

For the first time in years, “traditional” sales between a buyer and seller, with no lender calling the shots, accounted for more than half of all deals last month. Short sales, in which lenders agree to sell a home for less than what’s owed on the mortgage, accounted for 36 percent of the deals in January. That was down from December’s record-setting 46 percent but still up from 28 percent a year ago.

Additionally, sales of bank-owned homes comprised 12.5 percent of the month’s deals. That was up from 9.5 percent in December but down from 45.5 percent last January.

In addition to all that, at the end of this year the Mortgage Relief Forgiveness Act will expire making the "forgiven" part of a short sale taxable again. That will cause a lot of short sales to dry up, in my opinion.

2012 homes sales rose to 5 year high

The National Association of Realtors reported yesterday that home sales from 2012 reached 4.65 million.  That's an increase of 9.2% over 2011.

In addition, home prices rose due to a tighter supply of homes for sale, with inventory dropping to 1.82 million - a 12 year low.

The demand for homes has also pushed builders to speed up construction, adding new jobs to the economy.  New jobs in construction for December 2012 alone totaled 30,000 - the most in 15 months.

Whoo-hoo!

 (source)

Housing market: Fastest pace since April 2010

Further evidence that the US housing market continues to slowly improve:

The Commerce Department says that sales of new homes rose 4.4 percent in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 377,000. That's the strongest pace since April 2010, when a homebuyer's tax credit boosted sales.

New home sales have increased 15.3 percent in the past year.

Rising sales have kept the supply of available homes low, which pushes up prices. Only 149,000 new homes were for sale at the end of last month, just above a record low of 143,000 in August.

Las Vegas home sales jump

Local home sales jumped and prices edged slightly lower in March compared to the previous month and year.

"Local homes were already selling at a strong pace, but sales increased significantly in March," said GLVAR President Paul Bell. "As for the slight decrease in median home prices last month, I think real estate investors are influencing that statistic because they tend to buy lower-priced homes, which are generally owned by banks."

According to the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors, 51.4 percent of all existing homes sold in Southern Nevada during March were purchased with cash. That's down from 53.8 percent in February.

As long as local home prices remain so affordable and lending standards remain relatively stringent, Bell said he expects the percentage of cash buyers to hover near record levels.

The total number of local homes, condominiums and townhomes sold in March was 4,316. That's up from 3,371 total sales in February and up from 3,989 total sales one year ago.

By the way, I should mention that I am a licensed Realtor in Nevada. If anyone would like to take advantage of a solid buyer's market or like some information about Las Vegas real estate, visit my real estate website at www.LVhabitats.net.