Las Vegas Valley makes top 5 in pending home sales — in a bad way
Pending home sales in the Las Vegas Valley dropped 13.4 percent year over year through the end of March, the third-highest rate in the country, according to a new report from Redfin.
Only Miami (17.4 percent) and Fort Lauderdale, Florida (16 percent) had steeper drops than Las Vegas. Houston (12.3 percent) and West Palm Beach, Florida (8.7 percent) rounded out the top five.
Pending sales decreased in roughly half of the major metropolitan areas across the country, according to Redfin. Valley home prices have sat at a record high since the start of the year, according to Las Vegas Realtors statistics, which pull directly from the Multiple Listing Service. The median sale price for a house sold in Southern Nevada last month was $485,000.
Ryan Knoch, a real estate broker with Simply Vegas, said he doesn’t think the market has reached a turning point just yet.
“I don’t see prices falling or becoming a buyers’ market yet,” he said. “There are multiple reasons, but mostly because inventory stays low and out-of-state buyers are still helping sales. New loan programs are helping buyers find entry into the market, and that will continue to grow.”
Pressures on real estate market
The residential real estate market is under a multitude of pressures, according to the same report from Redfin, including elevated mortgage rates, tariff uncertainty, a volatile stock market and increased fears of a recession. Mortgage rates sit at 7 percent as the bond market, which directly influences the mortgage rate has been on a roller coaster since President Donald Trump took office.
Matt Hennessy, a Las Vegas-based mortgage adviser, said that since Trump kickstarted a global trade war at the start of April, the markets have been swinging wildly as mortgage rates went down to their lowest rates in six months, and then promptly shot back up again.
“Whether we’re talking about mortgage rates or a typical yardstick of the rate world like the 10-year Treasury yield, it was the roughest week in quite a while,” he said. “Nearly every corner of the market continues reacting in volatile fashion to last week’s tariff announcement and the subsequent updates. Momentum toward higher rates took on a life of its own this week for laundry list of mostly esoteric reasons.”
However, Hennessy said some of the underlying economic indicators are still good, which creates an odd dichotomy for the American economy and the real estate market.
Nationally, according to Redfin, new home listings continue to rise (up 10.3 percent annually) while pending sales continue to drop.
“Supply is up partly because many homeowners who have been considering selling are listing now, in hopes that they’re able to pocket their equity before a potential economic downturn,” the Redfin report said.
Redfin research lead Chen Zhao said the economy appears to be at a crucial fork in the road in 2025.
“The only thing that’s certain about mortgage rates and the housing market right now is extreme uncertainty,” she said. “With the White House going back and forth on tariffs, sending markets and rates reeling, Americans are feeling uneasy about their money. Nobody knows what will happen next. It’s likely that financial anxiety, rapidly changing economic news and the rising chance of a recession freeze the housing market. But it’s also possible that economic turmoil pushes down mortgage rates and or people decide to bite the bullet now instead of waiting for conditions to perhaps worsen, encouraging homebuyers and sellers to jump into the market.”
Contact Patrick Blennerhassett at pblennerhassett@reviewjournal.com.
