A PLACE WHERE HOME ASKING PRICES HAVE NO SHAME
I’ll admit it: the tease was irresistible. There was no good reason why I should take the time to read on, even though it was near the top of the Wall Street Journal’s Real Estate section. This was not likely to be the kind of relevant background information that would be useful in my daily Las Vegas real estate dealings. But the tease was not something I could just skim past and forget. The words were dangling there on the screen; almost a dare: “Where Home Prices Start at $115 Million.” It wasn’t just the $115,000,000 home price that aroused curiosity. After all, this was the WSJ Real Estate section—where there are almost always stories about properties somewhere or other in the world with asking prices that numb the mind. It was the idea that there could actually be anywhere on Planet Earth where home prices start north of one hundred million! Think of what the comparables reports would look like! Now, I was fairly certain the answer wouldn’t be our Las Vegas—home prices here tend to be considerably more modest. But the way the tease was worded, it seemed likely they were talking about somewhere in the U.S. because the home prices were in dollars. A whole lot of dollars. Before clicking on the READ MORE box, I tried to guess the answer. Somewhere in Silicon Valley? DownLas VegasManhattan? Connecticut? Palm Beach? None of these seemed likely if I recalled earlier articles about the haunts of the famous and newly down-and-out who are having to give up their mansions (often because they are scraping the bottom of the barrel, down to their last $10 million). Those estates usually have home prices in the $ single million range. I decided there must be some gimmick, wherever it was. So I gave up and clicked: Los Angeles. Bel Air, to be precise—“ in a new development.” And the gimmick is that this is a three-home development, “The Park Bel Air.” And it seems that none of the homes is actually built yet. These are spec homes in an 11-acre development “currently under construction.” Asking home prices do start at $115 million “and go up to $160 million, with upgrades and custom furnishings.” I spent a minimum of time musing over what kind of upgrades would bring in the extra $35 million and skipped down to the part where, elsewhere in the L.A. area, there is a spec home with an “unprecedented” asking price of over $500 million. The head of a New York-based appraisal firm was quoted as saying, “It’s almost as if there is no shame in wildly overpricing a listing anymore.” And down there near the very end, the article admits that there is only one thing missing from the phenomenon. Buyers. This October’s Las Vegas home prices are certainly bargains—particularly when compared with The Park Bel Air’s. There are other advantages, too: they are actual homes that are already actually built, instead of just planned. Give me a call: we can actually visit them!
LAS VEGAS HOMEOWNER OPTIONS INCLUDE LOCS SECOND MORTGAGES
It’s because the purchase of a home involves such a substantial sum that Las Vegas homeowners are often thought of as being financially constrained. With years’ worth of income bound up in a mortgage, it’s the dominant figure in many a financial statement. But there is also another way to look at it—and it’s the way much of the financial world does. They know that homeownership is a very positive attribute. It indicates stability; dependability; substantiality; soundness. That’s why second mortgages are so common. And it’s why the financial ‘constraint’ that people think of in connection with owning a home can be a bit of a mischaracterization. Las Vegas homeowners can actually be the recipients of several financial options available only to them. Let’s first be clear about some terminology. A home equity loan is also known as a home equity line of credit, or HELOC. A trueHELOC carries a variable rate of interest, continuous use of funds, and future amortization. It is most often used for purchases made over time: college tuition is a frequently cited example. HELOCs can be an option for those planning a series of home improvement projects. Home equity lines of credit can be very convenient to use: often the credit can be accessed via credit card. On the other hand, to handle a single large expense, a second mortgage may be more advantageous. A second mortgage is borrowed as a single lump sum that is amortized in the same way as the first. Its interest rate may be fixed or variable, but is usually higher than that of the first mortgage. The standout advantage to most second mortgages is that the interest portion of payments is, like a first’s, tax-deductible. That can make them an attractive alternative for the Las Vegas homeowner who wishes to consolidate other debts—for instance, to pay off credit card balances, which usually have higher interest rates. That fact, combined with the tax features, can make a second mortgage a prudent alternative. HOWEVER…the very fact that these options—available only to homeowners—are so attractive is also why they should be chosen only after their long-range effects have been taken into account. In the mortgage101 web site, for instance, you can read that “both types of loans can reduce your debt”—a statement which is at best misleading. Any loan increases debt. If the proceeds are used to pay off an existing debt, that won’t “reduce your debt;” it will just rebalance it. That might make good financial sense, but (let’s get real) the only way to reduce a debt it to pay it off. When in doubt, do be sure to run any plans by a trusted financial advisor. Homeownership does include significant financial options, which is one reason it’s a major touchstone of the American dream. I hope you will let me know if I can help you with your Las Vegas home ownership plans!
LAS VEGAS DIY HOME STAGERS CAN LEARN FROM THE PROS
You might think that professional home stagers in Las Vegas are intent on aiming for the kind of look that would draw ooohs and ahh ahhs if it were featured in Good Housekeeping or Better Homes and Gardens. In fact, you’d likely be more on-target if the magazine you thought of was actually RealSimple. In case you haven’t been near a newsstand lately, that’s the top-selling magazine “about simplifying your life.” RealSimple (“Life made Easier”) has articles like “31 Pro Tips to Control your Clutter” and “Get Organized for Fall: systems in place, stress in check.” If you are planning to have a Las Vegas home for sale anytime soon you could do worse than picking up a copy—if for no other reason than to check out its editorial slant: Less is more. Open space attracts. Simplicity rules. Today’s home stagers in Las Vegas (and just about everywhere 21st-century lifestyles have invaded) work towards the goal of clarifying room spaces—making it as easy as possible for prospective buyers to imagine their own furnishings and décor preferences in place. A further refinement is a subtlety. In that light, successful staging has something in common with many of the best classic movie scores: it moves you without your being conscious that it’s there at all. An experienced Las Vegas stager will often put her or his expertise to work in ways that we would find hard to match, but for homeowners with a do-it-yourself bent, a good start can be to study some of the advice stagers agree upon: Be willing to let go! Your home as you know it is likely not to be the version that will be easiest to sell. Be willing to say goodbye to anything: furnishings, floor plans, favorite décor items. In other words, remove that compact computer table from the dining room corner—the open space is more important (you future homeowners know they can set up an in-home office anywhere). Color it neutral. Stagers usually shun bright colors, which may be lively but intrusive. Creamy shades, grays, and soft earth tones allow viewers to cast their own preferences onto a scene. But this is a guideline that has limits, too: if neutral turns into sterile, you’ve gone too far. Apply practical arithmetic. That is be aware of the power of thoughtful addition and subtraction. From your now-spacious and neutral-toned rooms, subtract as much of the furniture as possible, then remove personal items and bric-a-brac. Then add back in the minimum you need to create a livable environment. If the budget allows, substitute rental furnishings (and even accessories) for original elements that are too well worn. If your home staging efforts are successful, you will have created a more showable, sellable Las Vegas property. I can also be helpful by contributing feedback about what is currently popular with Las Vegas buyers. Call me for a no-obligation consultation.
Categories
Recent Posts
