The GLVAR recently reported on the continued trend in Las Vegas inventory. They suggested that inventories will remain high for months to come but that the market should also remain stable."We're not expecting to see any significant increases in price or sales throughthe summer months, but we should still see the kind of stable market we haveexperienced lately. As for inventory, this may be the new reality for a while.The bright side is that prices are holding steady," said Devin Reiss, presidentof the GLVAR.Trends show an increase of some 300 to 400 new listings per week on average. Agents in the valley continue to pull out the stops to get properties sold. 05/14/2007

Las Vegas Farmers Market and the Summerlin Council will host the inaugural Strawberry Festival tomorrow, Tuesday, May 15, from 4-8 p.m., at 10401 Gardens Park Drive, a location near Desert Inn Road and Town Center Drive. You can get more information at www.lasvegasfarmersmarket.com and www.summerlin.com. The festival is free to the public and has all sorts of activities celebrating the delicious and nutritious fruit that strawberry is. I understand there is a short-cake eating contest that should be fun, then students from the Le Gordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Las Vegas will do chef demonstrations and the mandatory recipe competition is on the agenda as well. From what I can see, it should appeal to people of all ages. Especially children. We're talking about strawberries here, ar... 05/14/2007

New comers to Las Vegas often wonders what activities are available. Many families come to the valley and seek family-friendly recreation. There are a ton of options.One of my personal favorites is the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay Casino Resort. For a minimal entrance fee explorers can see some of the most amazing fish including piranahs, pacu, salt water fish, jelly fish, etc. The favorites exhibits are usually the sharks (of course) and the sting ray petting pool.If you are considering relocation to Las Vegas (ask for a relocation package) I would highly recommend a visit to the Shark Reef. 05/14/2007

In Las Vegas, escrows are held at title companies. A great escrow officer will help keep a deal together. They are responsive experts in the documentation required by the city, county, and state. They will serve as a 3rd party to the transaction to ensure the contract is executed properly and they will ensure that all moneys are distributed correctly.Nevada Title describes escrow as:The Title Company is a disinterested third party that collects and disbursesfunds in a real estate transaction in accordance with the written agreement forthe sale (Offer & Acceptance) between a buyer and a seller. The TitleCompany receives the Offer & Acceptance signed by the seller and buyer. Theearnest money from the buyer is also received at that time and escrow is thenofficially opened. The earnest mone... 05/14/2007

People have been building homes in Las Vegas for over 100 years. If you want to get technical civilizations have been building houses in Las Vegas and Nevada for 1000's of years but let's focus on the now. Because of all of the growth in the valley in the past 20 years I would venture to say that the majority of the houses standing are 20 years or newer. That would explain why this city has been a happy haven for developers for years. It is interesting to see the change in they style of Las Vegas houses over the past 100 years. As I have mentioned before it is one of my favorite past times to look at homes throughout the area. 05/12/2007

For as long as I can remember, casinos and cigarette smoking went hand in hand. I don't know why those two sort of meshed together. The blue-gray smoke wafting about a well-lit blackjack table made it look right for some reason. Smoking probably helped the gambler concentrate and win more, or so he believed. Perhaps it numbed the mind when the losing streak was getting totally out of control. Who knows what it is? Do people smoke more when they're inside a casino than outside? As indoor smoking prohibitions spread state by state like wildfire, from the east to the west coast, the casino industry is taking a fresh look at its anti-ban policy. Originally their argument was that prohibiting tobacco use would be detrimental to business. But now they hear more and more complaints from their ... 05/12/2007

Despite the predictions of many experts, most of the announced high rise projects have broken ground and are going forward. There have been some casualties of rising construction costs (or that what the developers would have you believe).  The latest cancellation is the W Las Vegas.  The project by Edge Group was announced back in 2005.  It was slated to be located next to the canceled Las Ramblas project in the Harmon corridor. The initial 22 acre parcel was purchased for 108 million dollars from D R Horton.  Later, they purchased the Las Ramblas acreage for another 202 million. According to the Las Vegas Sun, the project had no hard contracts but did have reservation agreements for 750 units. It seems to be the project just didn't generate enough interest to even cover the land purcha... 05/12/2007

This is the fifth part on how FICO works. To be able to fully follow the flow of discussion it would be to your benefit to first read FICO primer I, FICO primer II, FICO primer III and FICO primer IV.In this primer, we start with the second most important category, namely the amounts owed. Its weight is about 30% of your score. Using credit and owing money builds your credit profile. But if most of your available credit is used, that means you may be overstretched and are more likely to miss some payments. FICO scoring formula works to determine where to draw the line for any one credit profile. It's to your advantage to keep credit card balances low and if they have grown a little, keep paying them down. That'll definitely improve your score. Closing unused credit card accounts won't h... 05/11/2007

Distinctive Real Estate and Investments met yesterday with the developers and marketing representatives of an up and coming new project in Las Vegas that proves to be a superbly managed high-rise and community within itself.  It is a very nice project that is about to break ground, that does not over-price, that does not discount and one that will make its mark with incredible views across the entire Las Vegas Strip and the entire valley. Additionally, we recommend Streamline Tower in downtown Las Vegas - This one is built an move-ins will occur by January 2008.When people ask about the "condo-craze" in Las Vegas, the projects that fell through in 2005 and 2006 are gone with all the wild speculation.  This is 2007 and both projects are funded and are for real. We invite you to take a lo... 05/11/2007

Helldorado days started off as a tourism attraction in 1934 after the completion of Hoover Dam. This year, the Helldorado Days Art Contest, Show & Auction started off "Helldorado Days" at the end of April. Tomorrow there will be another  event at Spring Mountain Ranch.  It will be a walking guided trail ride followed by a cookout, entertainment and a horseshoe tournament. Here is a complete schedule of upcoming events with links to the Helldorado website:Helldorado Trail Ride and BarbecueMay 12, 2007Helldorado Village Exhibits and CarnivalMay 17 - 20Helldorado Days 3rd Annual Trap Shooting TournamentMay 17 - 20Whiskerino ContestMay 19thHelldorado Days ParadeMay 19thHelldorado Hold 'em TournamentMay 26thThe carnival will be held at Cashman Field and is a great family event. The event is ... 05/11/2007

As the city grows so do the options for Las Vegas Real Estate. It must be stated that Las Vegas real estate is defined as real property consisting of at least land with a structure attached to it. In other words, a Las Vegas Realtor cannot sale a trailer house on a rented plot. The mobile home must be attached to the land and have a permit stating that it has been converted to real property. Realtors in Las Vegas cannot sale rights to business' either for it is not real property. We cannot sale intellectual property or timeshares.In Las Vegas, Realtors can assist in the sale of Single family Residences, Condos, Mobile homes (If Permitted), Land, & Commercial buildings. 05/11/2007

Las Vegas Realtors are the cream of the crop. Unknown to most, there is a difference between Las Vegas Realtors and a Las Vegas Real Estate Agents. As a Realtor one is expected to abide a higher level of ethics and morals when dealing with other Las Vegas Agents and clients. When much is offered much is expected. There are more sever consequences as a Realtor if one is not upholding the title and pledge we all make upon joining the Board of Realtors. For clients it offers a greater peace of mind to know that they can work with someone who has made this pledge and can hold them to a higher standard. For other Realtors it makes a great work environment. 05/11/2007

There are over 15,000 Las Vegas Real Estate Agents in Nevada. Not all of them are active and of course those that are active don't necessarily do a lot of business. The real estate agents in Las Vegas have been through training and have passed test to prove their knowledge of the laws of Las Vegas Real Estate. Remember that just because they know the law it doesn't mean they know the market. It is very important to find an experienced knowledgeable real estate agent to work with. 05/11/2007

Earlier today a fire broke out in the Murano condos community in the popular master planned community of Silverado Ranch in Las Vegas. The community is engulfed in flames and fire has gone to "3" alarms. A neighboring CVS pharmacy is being threatened by the fire.  There is no word yet on the cause of the fire at this time. Because of the severity of the fire, the surrounding streets have been closed. Murano was still under construction at the time. It looks like the entire project may have been destroyed. -Charles 05/10/2007

This is the fourth part on how FICO works. To be able to fully follow the flow of discussion it would be to your benefit to first read FICO primer I, FICO primer II and FICO primer III.Let's now examine what type of factors FICO considers when putting together your score. And as we move along, there will also be tips for improving your figure. FICO evaluates five categories in all, namely payment history, amounts owed, length of credit history, types of credit in use and new credit. Each has an importance factor that is expressed as a percentage. Payment history has the weight of about 35%, the highest among the categories. And it makes sense. Payment of bills is vital. It covers the accounts that you have open, including credit card, car loan, mortgage, finance company and retail accou... 05/10/2007

  We have a relocation package with information on Las Vegas homes, Las Vegas Communities, and other general information about Las Vegas. We send this to prospective clients looking to relocate to Las Vegas from out of state. We find it very helpful since we get several internet leads.has Anyone found anything that works especially well and provides really helpful information to your client.We have a hybrid map of the Las Vegas area, MLS area map, Zip Code map, Relocation guide with general information about Vegas (From the title company), and some handy information about buying real estate in Las Vegas. 05/10/2007

One of my favorite past times is viewing Luxury Las Vegas Homes with clients. I have always been a huge fanatic when it comes to beautiful Luxury Estates. I had a dentist come into our office the other day inquiring a bout this custom Luxury Estate in Las Vegas on the southwest part of town and was wondering if it was at a right price. I pulled as best of comps as I could in the 20min he had.Last night at a party I met our friends business partner and he was talking about his custom home in Northwest Las Vegas. It has one room with double master baths and then the rest of the house is completely open. A one-room 3000sqft house.What makes it so fun to see custom homes is the imagination of the original owner. 05/10/2007

Las Vegas Homes are very popular and were extremely popular when the home prices were taking off. When the Las Vegas House market was going crazy it brought forth a lot of creative (stupid) lending options that allowed just about anyone to buy a home. Well now it is two years later and all of these "Investors" and other people, who could never really afford a home any way, are going into foreclosure. Las Vegas Short Sales have been the highest in the nation for the past three months. Now for all of you Short sellers and investors here are a few things to consider...Lenders will only allow a short sale if you are truly in a hardship position. If you own boats and other homes then it is obvious that you have other alternatives than to sale short. The lenders would rather foreclose on you ... 05/10/2007

The Las Vegas MLS is such a great tool for the Las Vegas Real Estate Agents. It's quite the step up from the old Book O Listings We used to have to rely on. I bet that most of us don't take the opportunity to really take the time to find out what great tools there are available. The latest one that I have been shown is the "Attachments" option on the left hand navigation bar when viewing the properties in details. With this option you can upload documents (i.e. any addendums your team may have or special contracts your office wants), larger pictures, anything. We have a team addendum that we want everyone to have that makes an offer on one of our Las Vegas Houses for sale and so we will put in the A/A remarks that they need to click the attachments button to the left and print out the a... 05/10/2007

There are several strategies to sale a Las Vegas house but one I have never tried is staging. Does it work? How much does it usually cost? We had an interior designer come to our Wednesday team Huddle to discuss staging. She mentioned that a Las Vegas Realtor could sell a home in a 1/3 less time by having their client's homes staged. Interesting information considering the current status of the market we in. Who has any insight to this? Do tell... 05/10/2007