[irisheyzs]

Thanks jet...

[brucerby]

Great map - thanks!...according to that map, Spanish Trails is in the RED area for the "BURGLARY Category".
So I guess thieves know where the good stuff is. :-(

[lvoc]

Load the map again...there is a later version.

[irishspy]

Please keep in mind their is almost 2 million people living in LV this myth of a crime free area here really gets me. It is not too hard to spot the areas where crime is most occurring
but LV is no different than any other city it's size. Their are many areas which living in is a pleasure I live on the east side in Paradise and the crime here is minimal. I came from the east coast also did a short sale and yes it took 6 months to do the sale but I had a good agent who knew the system and keep us informed. The market here is crazy but you can get some great buys if you have the patience. You may consider renting for 6 months while you search areas to buy in and get a feel of the areas. Most of all ask here on the form for people who actually live in these areas you want and how they chose the areas they live in. You need more than a crime map to tell you the whole story.

[BBMW]

Why not just rent, and see where the market goes? You've certainly missed the bottom of the market. But I get the feeling that the market is somewhat artificially supported. If the economy turns down again, I think the current price levels could take a significant hit. In the mean time, investors are driving the market, and you could probably rent at less than what you'd have to pay to buy.

[tbill618]

Originally Posted by irisheyzs

I spoke to a couple of realtors this week just to get an idea of what we need to do before our trip in April. I have to say that I am a bit disappointed.

The first thing that both of them said was that they think we will be disappointed in what we can get for the price range I gave. I have been religiously looking at homes on Redfin, Zillow, Trulia, and Realtor.com for months now, and yes I know that most are gone by the time I see them but I thought it was giving me somewhat of an idea of what is out there. I have studied zip codes, neighborhoods, and communities and know where I don't want to look. I have been looking in the $130,000 - $150,000 and have seen many homes in nice areas with 3 bedrooms and a pool.

The town we live in in PA is a very old city, lots of row homes, quite a few bad neighborhoods, the home we live in here is a three story townhouse. We are not looking for a big, fancy house near a golf course or even a gated community. Most of the areas I have looked at are a hell of a lot nicer than where we are now.

Our plan was to sell our current home, put a nice chunk down on a home in Vegas to have a nice small mortgage so we can enjoy ourselves after being strapped for years raising three boys. I don't want to be house poor again.

Here's an example of what would be the perfect house for us. It's a little bigger than what we need but it's a good example.

7101 Trading Post Ln, Las Vegas, NV 89128 - Zillow

They both said to get pre approved before we come out so we can really see what we can afford. We will have that done before we go but I know what we can afford and I don't want to go that high. Is that so unusual? Both tried to steer us away from foreclosures and just said that short sales were nightmares...which I know they are but maybe it wouldn't hurt to look.

I don't know. I just feel really discouraged.

Three points.

-Ignore realtor.com, they do a very poor job of updating homes there. Really the only website you need is Redfin.

-It isn't just the 130-150k homes seeing bidding wars. When we arrived in July I thought we could find something with our specs for under 300k but was quickly disabused of that notion. Because of the lack of inventory houses are up 15-20% from where they were one year ago. And if you don't act fast, as in religiously check Redfin and go to see the house the day it comes on the market, you won't have a chance of buying that home. Here is what happened to us recently.

-We have had a contract on a short sale house since August first. If you do look at short sales make sure that your agent has a lot of experience with them. We didn't and we are paying the price.

Oh yeah, one more thing. Housing all over the country is coming back but the stupid politicians in Nevada passed a law which has kept inventory lower here than it should be. It is called AB 284 and Gov. Brian Sandoval and AG Catherine Cortez Masto must be punished for this foolishness. When a politician thinks it is a good idea to put criminal penalties on banks for mistakes on paperwork they are too stupid to hold public office. Remember to vote against them to send a message.

[BBMW]

While AB 284 does glom up the market, the banks shouldn't be able to process forclosures without the proper paperwork, properly executed. They played fast and loose in the boom. Now they have to deal with the mess they created.

[WestieJeff]

The problem with AB 284 is that it requires the person who is approving the foreclosure to be personally criminally liable if they are wrong.

That's a little much IMO.

Is there really a problem with people who are paying their mortgage getting foreclosed on? I know there are isolated cases, there always have been.

I don't think people who aren't paying their mortgage should be able to stay in their home because of a paperwork technicality.

Originally Posted by BBMW

While AB 284 does glom up the market, the banks shouldn't be able to process forclosures without the proper paperwork, properly executed. They played fast and loose in the boom. Now they have to deal with the mess they created.

[BBMW]

That's the bank's (or whoever owns the note's) problem. It's due punishment for playing fast and loose. They expect the legal system to clean up the mess they made. Sorry, but no.

Personal legal liability may be a bit over the top. But I would be fine with significant civil peneties.

Originally Posted by WestieJeff

The problem with AB 284 is that it requires the person who is approving the foreclosure to be personally criminally liable if they are wrong.

That's a little much IMO.

Is there really a problem with people who are paying their mortgage getting foreclosed on? I know there are isolated cases, there always have been.

I don't think people who aren't paying their mortgage should be able to stay in their home because of a paperwork technicality.

[oomph]

I would not get discouraged. The best thing to do, imo, is to come out, be prepared to make your deal, maybe not the deal to beat all deals, and then settle into your new life. I was looking in the $150 to $200k range and found what I wanted for $180k. If i needed to, I could have been happy in many $150k and lower homes. I think the value is still here.