Nathan Watanabe Las Vegas

We found this survey about real estate investments and wanted to share these compelling statistics.

This was a report in a new national survey of real estate investors, released this week by Move, Inc. (NASDAQ: MOVE). In the next 24 months, real estate investors will be more active - by 3 to 1  - in their local markets compared to typical homebuyers.

69% of investors say it’ll be easier to find properties in the near future. The Move, Inc. Investor Survey also suggests local markets will be heating up with renewed investor interest and activity.

Compared to a year ago, the Move Investor Survey found that:

• 62% of investors are paying more attention to home values in their local markets
• 43.5% of investors say that it will be harder to find bargains
• 41.5% of investors expect it’ll be easier to sell their properties in the next six months
• 22% of investors are bullish and expect prices to rise in the next six to 12 months
• 53.5% expect prices to remain relatively the same
• 23% expect prices will fall in the next 6 to 12 months

The survey also shows investors are positioned to compete vigorously with traditional first-time homebuyers for hot deals:

• 65.5% expect that first time home buyers will have trouble qualifying for mortgages
• 18.5% are cash buyers which is a strategy that’s out of reach for most first-time buyers
• 80.5% of investors expect cash discounts from sellers

Today’s investors are not stereotypical deal driven experienced flippers — They are planting for the future.

Contrary to the tactics used by investors known as "flippers,"

• 50% of today’s investors plan to hold their properties for 5+ years
• 11% expect to sell within 12 months of purchase
• 67.5% of the investors are investing for the long term
• 59% of the investors are new to real estate investing
• 33.5% are considering their first investment purchase
• 8.5% are in the process of buying/selling their first investment property
• 36.5% of the investors purchase more than one property
• 17% just completed their first transaction and plan to purchase more properties

When it comes to repairs and maintenance, 56.5% of investors say the repair and maintenance of investment property has not been difficult.

Moving forward:

• 42% plan to invest their own time and energy to improve, repair and maintain their properties.
• 29.5% said they’ll hire a contractor for repairs and 28% will purchase move-in-ready properties.
• 65.7% don’t expect repair costs to exceed 20% of the property’s purchase price.

“This data suggests today’s climate is hot for investing and is attracting a lot of new people that don’t fit the stereotypical deal-driven flippers that buy and sell properties quickly,” said Move, Inc. Chief Executive Officer, Steve Berkowitz.

“They’re mostly entrepreneurial individuals that will make vital contributions to local communities by investing their own money and sweat equity to improve and maintain properties. These personal sacrifices made over the long run will help improve housing stocks, home values, property tax bases, and thousands of local communities.”

(more...)

We’ve always said, “Opportunity has a shelf life.” But just what does that mean, especially to you?

Let’s take the Las Vegas market for example, where the real meaning of this phrase becomes apparent. It could mean the buys of a lifetime won’t exactly be here much longer as confidence returns to the market. But this is fantastic news for you, and we’ll share some inside information to help you take advantage of this occasion before the expiration date arrives.

How do we know opportunity is brewing? 63% of renters say that owning a home is a priority of theirs in the near future. In fact, 40% say it’s actually one of their highest. Furthermore, 25% of them are entertaining the idea today more than they were a year ago. When we look at those who have already purchased, 51% are paying cash and 45% are borrowing money at extremely low interest rates not seen in 30 years. The dream of owning your very own home is now far more realistic than it has been for the past 40 years.

According to Harvard University, last year the mortgage payment required to buy a median priced home (which is around $125,000) fell below 20% of the median household income for the first time since 1971. That means that a house payment would be less than 25% of what you earn. More people are eligible today than any time in the last 40 years.

When the market was booming between the years of 2003 and 2007, a whopping 1.3 million homes were created per year. Only 357,000 were created in 2010, but 9% of those built were in Las Vegas. Even just last month, there were 237 new home sales and 3,241 resales here. Resale activity is great; it’s actually increased 4% over the last year. We’ll continue to match last year’s total of around 43,000 annual sales if consumer confidence continues to increase.

However, the bad news is that current housing prices will continue to bob along the bottom end so long as foreclosures continue adding to our inventory. Honestly though, we’d still question calling that “bad news” for some of us, especially when the investors who buy these get a handsome 15% return on the properties when they rent it out for $1,200 per month to those who’ve lost their homes.

So given all of this, we have to ask...do you want to let this good fortune slip away? The numbers speak for themselves, but even they do not speak wholly for all of the benefits you can reap. Things are just looking excellent for real estate in Las Vegas, and you have the chance to get in on this…so what are you waiting for?