With the media and news focused negatively on the Las Vegas luxury real estate foreclosure news these days, the positive foreclosure news is being overlooked.  Yes, there is such a thing as positive Las Vegas luxury foreclosure news.

With Canadians buying Las Vegas luxury foreclosure condos due to their Loonie being close to par with the US dollar, Asian countries experiencing increasing wealth and targeting Las Vegas luxury foreclosures to buy, and global investors realizing how low luxury real estate prices have fallen in Las Vegas, it’s no surprise that Las  Vegas is currently experiencing a renewed interest lately in its luxury foreclosures.

Having performed research for an investor in the Miami and San Diego markets, suprisingly the prices per square foot for luxury high rise condos are higher than Las Vegas.  That may explain at least one reason why buyers are increasingly focused on the Las Vegas luxury foreclosure condos priced in the $100’s and $200’s a square foot.  Think that you cannot buy a luxury foreclosure condo in beautiful Las Vegas Turnberry Place in the $100’s a square foot?  Luxury condos that at the real estate peak were selling above $500,000 or in some cases near $1 million are now priced from the low $200.000’s and higher for foreclosures.

Contact Bruce Hiatt at 702-456-7080 PST and let him create a special Las Vegas luxury foreclosure condo search just for you.

Las Vegas existing home sales just finished its 12th consecutive month of increasing existing home sales.  That respresents an 86% increase of existing home sales from March 2008 to March 2009.  While many of the existing home sales were comprised of Las Vegas foreclosures, the overall improvement in Las Vegas real estate sales is good news overall for that region of the country.  It is also a good sign for the Las Vegas luxury real estate market as it too is now showing signs of recovery.

These newly reported statistics, courtesy of  SalesTraq, are consistent with the increased number of buyers contacting Luxury Realty Group since March 2009.  These buyers are primarily cash buyers who are seeking luxury high rise condo deals such as foreclosures.

46 percent of Las Vegas luxury foreclosure condos are under contract as of May 4, 2009.  So the media would have you believe that 46 percent is a huge number but guess again.  Across the Las Vegas Resort Strip or near Strip corridor of Panorama Towers, Sky Las Vegas, Turnberry Towers, Metropolis and Turnberry Place there are a total of 28, that’s right, 28 bank owned luxury high rise condos.  Of those, 13 are under contract and the number under contract is growing lately.  Where are the tons of bank owned foresclosures the media keep broadcasting about Las Vegas?  Must be single family homes as it clearly isn’t the luxury high rise condos near or on the Strip I mention in this blog post.

We just closed a foreclosure luxury condo in Turnberry Towers with our buyer from New Zealand.  This was a cash deal just like our other recent buyers looking for that good Las Vegas condo foreclosure deal.  Another cash buyer, this one from Switzerland, just grabbed a great two bedroom luxury foreclosure in Sky Las Vegas.  Maybe buyers in the US are hesitant about buying but the foreign buyers are targeting Las Vegas luxury foreclosure condos lately and getting the good ones. 

If you have interest in buying a luxury high rise condo foreclosure in Las Vegas please contact us soon.  Statistics are showing us limited supply continues to be the case for luxury high rise foreclosures lately.  Las Vegas luxury real estate appears to be gaining momentum lately and we hope you are considering Las Vegas as your new home, second home or vacation home.

In 2002, Las Vegas was considered one of the best buying opportunities for real estate.  Home and some condo prices were in the $100,000 to $200,000 range and affordability was considered to be very good.  Then came the recognition of how Las Vegas real estate was undervalued in comparison to California and what happened next is history.  Now in 2009, Las Vegas real estate has once again rolled back to 2002 price levels according to John Restrepo of Restrepro Consulting Group.  What does that mean for the buyer of Las Vegas real estate, especially Las Vegas luxury real estate? Opportunity knocks once again.

During April 2009, prices for luxury high rise condos, especially Las Vegas luxury high rise condo foreclosures, have attracted buyers all over the world.   With a limited number of luxury high rise foreclosures in Las Vegas in the Strip resort corridor area, things have heated up.  Buyers are now experiencing multiple offer situations and losing out on opportunities to buy Las Vegas luxury foreclosures in the high rise condos near the Strip.  Luxury Strip Resort area high rise foreclosure condos under $500,000 are highly targeted now for purchase by cash buyers.

For example, Luxury Realty Group just sold a two master, two bedroom luxury high rise condo in beautiful Turnberry Place for $192 a square foot at $422,000.  High rise developers tell us you cannot build luxury high rise condos for that price anymore.  This particular luxury condo was a Turnberry Place high rise condo foreclosure and the buyers was driven to purchase because they believed prices in Las Vegas were near the bottom of the market for such luxury level high rise condos.

Similar buyer perspectives are now occuring in Sky Las Vegas where only a handful of luxury high rise foreclosures are on the market.  Our buyers are frustrated as several have recently lost out on buying Sky Las Vegas condo foreclosures due to multiple offer situations.  

Contemporary luxury Turnberry Towers high rise condo towers are another very popular community our foreclosure buyers have targeted.   Prices have rolled back for Turnberry Towers luxury condo foreclosures in some cases to a 40% to 50% price reduction over the original purchase price.  One of our Turnberry Towers luxury condo foreclosure cash buyers just purchased a two bedroom condo under $500,000 that has balconies on either side of the tower.

With multiple offer situations now occuring in some cases for luxury Strip Resort area high rise condo foreclosures, we expect to see an increase in the number of high rise foreclosure condo buyers entering the market for the rest of 2009.

I thought it was just Luxury Realty Group experiencing a sudden rise in international foreclosure buyers.  What are these international foreclosure buyers targeting?  Clearly Las Vegas luxury high rise foreclosure condos have been the international focal point over the past two weeks.

We first experienced a buyer from Switzerland who wanted to buy a foreclosure in Sky Las Vegas, Turnberry Towers or Turnberry Place.  Of course when luxury high rise condo foreclosures now show prices as low as $200 a square foot you can imagine the strong interest level.  High rise developers tell us that just the hard costs to build a new high rise luxury condo are north of $300 a square foot.  When you add the soft costs like permits, architectural renderings and marketing you can imagine the real replacement cost numbers per square foot.

So far Luxury Realty Group has represented buyers from Germany, Switzerland, New Zealand, England and Canada over the past three weeks making offers to buy Las Vegas luxury high rise condo foreclosures.  Was this just a fluke or is trend beginning to happen?

In speaking with the doormen and concierge of the prime Las Vegas Strip area residential high rises, we learned the number of real estate agents showing luxury condo foreclosures has been significant recently.  So significant that one high rise condo tower employee told me they are having to add additional staff to handle the valet parking for real estate agents and their clients.

Does this mean Las Vegas is reaching a bottom for luxury high rise condos?  No one knows for sure but what we can see is a sudden high demand for the very few luxury high rise foreclosure condos.

If Las Vegas luxury high rise foreclosure condos are of interest to you please contact Bruce Hiatt today.

There’s no doubt Las Vegas has started its Spring real estate season with the number of luxury high rise condo foreclosure buyers contacting Luxury Realty Group. These buyers have discovered the 3 reasons to buy Las Vegas luxury high rise condo foreclosures now.

The three reasons are:

1. Prices for Las Vegas luxury high rise foreclosure condos in the Resort Strip corridor have fallen in some cases below $300 a square foot.  Luxury Realty Group just sold a luxury high rise condo for below $200 a square foot this week.  High Rise developers tell Luxury Realty Group they cannot build a high rise condo at such prices per square foot in prime Resort locations.
2. Mortgage interest rates continue to fall for loans conforming to Fannie Mae limits
3. Some of the luxury high rise condo foreclosures are unused or slightly used, investor properties resulting in buyers being able to purchase a new or “looks like new” condo at half price or more from the luxury high rise condo peak prices in Las Vegas.

Considering buying a luxury high rise foreclosure condo in Las Vegas?  Contact Bruce Hiatt today so he can create your own private high rise condo foreclosure search that meets your special search criteria.

Bruce Hiatt can be reached at (702) 456-7080 x201 PST.  You can also follow Bruce on Twitter @LuxuryRealtyGrp or subscribe to our RSS feed at www.LasvegasHighRiseBlog.com or www.FineVegasHomesBlog.com.

Luxury Realty Group is recognized by the press as a leading brokerage on the Strip.  They can be seen on networks and in publications such as CNBC, Forbes Magazine, Details, LV Business Press, Wall Street Journal, The Review Journal, Los Angeles Times and USA Today.

Disclaimer: All information contained within this post is subject to change without notice. Subject matter is not guaranteed and is often considered time-sensitive.