The False Hope of a Real Estate Rebound
Las Vegas has always been known as a place where the house always wins, but there are still thousands of people who have not yet recovered from the recession and the housing crisis, so the house is not winning in these cases. They are still dealing with underwater loans and looming foreclosures. They blame themselves. They blame banks. They blame the government. The Great Recession is still haunting them and even though the presidential race is right around the corner many of them are not seeing much hope coming even from a new president.
Rebound Not Finding Them
Even though much of the area is seeing some rebound in housing sales and prices, some families who bought at the peak of the market or borrowed against their homes may never see any return on their homes. They may have walked away from their homes and are dealing with renting a home now while trying to fix their credit. This, along with the lukewarm job market, is not helping them to regain any footing in the unsteady economy and they do not see how a change in the government is going to aid in that either.
Even with new resorts being built, vacationers visiting, and new homes being built, there are still those who are stuck in 2008 who are battling with their banks trying to avoid foreclosure and owing more than their home is worth. To these people, economic recovery was just a little storm that brought rain to some people, while skipping them.
One American Story
One story of this is that of Michael Hutchings. He made a fortune building custom homes and built his own 3300 square foot dream near the Las Vegas Strip. It included all the luxury amenities that there were in 2006 and today he owes about $800,000 on this property. He has watched his neighbors lose their homes to foreclosure one by one and watched drug dealer’s move into his neighborhood. He could walk away from his mortgage and lose almost $600,000 or make a stand. He said there are no good choices, much like the election. “The whole system’s kind of broke,” he said. “We’re trying to reinvent ourselves, trying to run businesses, trying to pretend like it’s 2003 again. And it’s not.”
He goes back and forth he says, between staying and not staying. One minute he wants to give up and the next he is determined to keep up the fight. “This is my last stand,” he said. “I’m like that old farmer who won’t get off his property.” Almost 1 in 4 homeowners in Las Vegas owes more than their home is worth. This is the third highest rate in the US, which is only behind Cleveland and Akron, Ohio. Even though we are seeing some signs of recovery, they are still not at the level of 2005.
While there are some signs of hope in the Las Vegas real estate market, there are still those who are still struggling. Hopefully, who ever become President will take that into consideration and find a way to help alleviate some of the struggle and stress