THESE ARE BUYERS SWARMING OVER A NEW LISTING! No not really. So I was sitting on my porch last night (Sunday night) and watching my hummingbirds at the feeder on my front porch, felt more like a hornet's nest, and it reminded me of how the real estate market used to be.  Do you remember when you put a sign out on a house and got it on the MLS and there were 10 offers on the table in 24 hours?  Well, I do, and thanks to that swarming is why we are where we are now.  Not much action this weekend from any buyers.  Some neat facts about these hummingbirds.  I am trying to identify them, either Rufus or Allen's.  Apparently they spend the Summer here in Northern Nevada and then hightail it south to Mexico for the Winter (not a bad idea?).  They need to eat every ten minutes, their heart beat... 08/13/2007

I hear a lot of people, here in Reno and Sparks, complaining about our market and how bad it is.  The media doesn't help by running programs about the high foreclosure rates, the real estate bubble popping, dropping stock market, increasing national deficit and global warming.  No wonder people are in panic mode, according to CNN it's the end of the world.  However, I have a different theory based on facts and what I'm seeing with Reno home sales.  This is a Great market if you're a buyer and a good market if you're a seller, let me explain.  Buyers, because of the widespread panic and desperation of sellers that don't have a true idea of what is going on and higher than normal inventory, you have plenty of homes to choose from.  That's the obvious, but by working with a Qualified Realt... 08/10/2007

I recently analyzed the Reno/Sparks real estate market to determine the correlation between Days on Market (DOM) and the Sold/List price ratio.  I looked at Solds during the first half of 2007.  2,273 homes (excluding manufactured) sold in the Reno-Sparks market area during that time.  The results were striking (read more). 08/08/2007

Here in Reno one can buy a brand new home for less money than an existing one...this is certainly an odd state of affairs! Dick 08/05/2007

In early May I posted (on my other blog: renorealtyblog.com) a table showing the proportion of vacant listings by MLS area in Reno-Sparks.  Today I recompiled the numbers and updated the table. Overall the proportion of vacant listings in Reno-Sparks has remained unchanged at 34%.  However, on an individual area basis, some significant changes have occurred since May (see below).  Also, not surprisingly, tenant-occupied listings inched up slightly, from 7% to 8%. The table below shows the proportions of Vacant/Owner-Occupied/Tenant-Occupied listings for various MLS areas in the Reno/Sparks area. The table is sorted by Vacancy rate - highest to lowest. MLS Area Vacant Owner Tenant Southeast 50% 32% 18% Northwest 49% 38% 13% Somersett 44% 47% 9% Old Southwest 43% 51% 6% Southwest Suburban... 07/24/2007

The market here has took a dive in the past 2 years and property once valued at 350000 now could be worth just 295000 on a good day.  The buyers are in short supply and the properties for sale are plentiful and bountiful.  Sellers still feel their property is worth what it was 2 years ago and must be provided many tools like CMA 's, sales, appraisals (try ZILLOW.COM) to find out the truth.  Yes if you want to sell or have to sell now you will take LESS then just a few years back. In fact SHORT sales and Foreclosures are in the hundreds now .  For people who do not know a Short sale is when the seller has to sell for less then what he owes on the property which makes the Lender get involved.  THis can be a good thing for a buyer if they are able to wait for a BANK response to their offer... 06/06/2007

Celebrity Basketball Game, RenoBishop Manogue, DeMarc Entertainment, Inc. and Tahoe360.com invite you to participate in the 1st Annual Celebrity Basketball Weekend at Bishop Manogue High School; May 11th -12th, 2007. The weekend will include a celebrity game, Doctors vs. Lawyers game; a barbecue and a live auction.  The fundraiser is for the Bishop Manogue Boy's basketball team that will be traveling to Australia in June to play in an Australian Basketball tournament.The celebrity game will feature some of the star player's from the And 1 Mix Tape tour (a show that comes on ESPN (3) days a week-and very popular amongst the high school and college students). There will also be a Doctor's vs. Lawyers game, which will be coached by NBA Legends Rick Barry and Robert Reed.  The following day... 05/01/2007

RENO / SPARKS Interactive maps of Reno and Lake Tahoe, activities, events, web cams and virtual tours RENO AND SPARKS "The Biggest Little City in the World!" A lot of things to a lot of people, Reno is one of the Country's original gambling meccas, home of the University of Nevada Reno, and the Reno/Tahoe Airport, a major hub and access gateway to Lake Tahoe and the Sierra. Reno is currently experiencing an industrial boom, and has become one of the faster growing areas in the Nation. Part of the same metropolitan area, Sparks is just east of downtown Reno. Reno Area Recreation With its easy access and considerable facilities, Reno is a popular spot for consumer shows and conventions. Most of these take place at the Convention Center and the larger casinos. Reno also hosts a number of o... 04/28/2007

I am a regular contributor to the Reno Realty Blog.  This popular blog describes itself as "Musings on the Reno Sparks real estate market" and has one of largest readerships of any real estate blog in Reno.    You may access this blog at the following web address: Reno Realty Blog 03/03/2007