By VERNON ROBISON
The Progress
Demand is high for real estate in Moapa Valley. But there are plenty of knowledgeable and experienced realtors here to help buyers along.
Spring is traditionally the season for real estate in Moapa Valley. Pleasant weather and the Clark County Fair draws people out of the city to enjoy Moapa Valley’s rural charm. Many of those visitors decide they want to make it their home.
But with the pandemic still following close in the rear view mirror, and with economic uncertainties and social conditions being what they are in the world of 2022, local realtors are saying that the flight toward rural life is happening like seldom ever seen before. And it isn’t easy either.
“We can see what’s happening all around the country; people are wanting out of the cities,” said local real estate broker Janet Marshall of Foremost Realty. “And that means that more people have found the Moapa Valley. They have found that we have a wonderful place here and it is green and that the community is neighborly. And of course people are attracted to that.”
Clea Whitney, owner and broker of Clea’s Fabulous Moapa Valley Real Estate agrees. Whitney also operates a real estate sales office in Las Vegas as well. She has seen a trend of people moving from larger cities in California to Las Vegas. As that has occurred, people from urban Las Vegas have been looking for places to live like Moapa Valley, she said.
“At this point, I haven’t seen a lot of people coming from California to live in Moapa Valley,” Whitney said. “But most of mine are coming from Vegas. They want to get out of the city and this place is like a revelation.”
That, along with extended low interest rates, has created a high demand and a healthy market for sellers of local real estate.
But the downside is that the inventory, which has been historically low in places like Moapa Valley, has plummetted even more. There are very few homes, or even building lots available on the market currently.
“We are at less inventory than we were right after the pandemic started and everything dropped down to nothing,” said local realtor Kasen Kolhoss who sells locally for CustomFit Real Estate.
That makes it a great time to sell a home, Kolhoss said. But there is a double edge to that, he added.
“The biggest thing that people tell me is that they would love to sell their house right now because the market is so high,” Kolhoss said. “But then they realize that they’d have nowhere to go without buying another really expensive house.”
Marshall says that she counsels buyers in the market to be prepared to be quick in making a strong offer on properties that come available; because they don’t last long. She said that it is normal to have a new listing and have every realtor in town want to bring someone, or several people, who are interested in it. Multiple bids on properties are not uncommon, she said.
“If people are buying, I encourage them to be patient,” Marshall said. “Because when you have only a handful of homes on the market to show, it might take some time to get in there.”
Whitney said that most people have no trouble with selling their home quickly in Vegas for a good price. But then there may need to be some contingency agreements in place for getting them into a home in Moapa Valley.
Even so, the Moapa Valley market has not gotten crazy the way that it has in Las Vegas over the past several months, she said.
“In Vegas they are putting $10,000 over the appraised value, or $10,000 over the highest offer,” Whitney said. “A house can go for $50,000 over the list. That is kind of nutty!”
But that is in Vegas,” she added. “That is different than us. Out here, we still have a volatile and competitive market, and things are moving fast. But we are seeing offers that stay pretty close to the list price: maybe one percent over or so. Nothing like in Vegas. When people go nuts on a list price here, the properties tend to just sit.”
Kolhoss said that he has run across some people who have expressed concerns about buying into a market like this, worrying that the bubble might break like it did in 2008. But he doesn’t see that happening anytime soon.
“I saw a statistic recently that by 2026, the U.S. is going to be short something like 10 million houses,” Kolhoss said. “And with demand continuing what it is, and probably even expanding, there is just not going to be enough housing out there. I think inventories are going to be low for quite a while.”
Kasen Kolhoss can be reached at 702-305-6870. Clea Whitney can be contacted by calling 702-575-4240.Janet Marshall is available at 702-274-1814.
