Affordable Housing returns to Las Vegas... Bad news Good news!!!

Las Vegas house prices are in freefall, dropping more sharply than in any other large U.S. city... Bad news Good  news!

In early 90's Las Vegas was known for the comfortable affording housing. The price of gasoline, food and utilities were cheap. Many Californians would move to Las Vegas - specially blue color workers-... Taxes were a major attraction for business and housing were tempting. A tree bedroom House would be below $100,000 ... There were the good years.

Somewhere along the way, Las Vegas exploded into a housing frenzy, new developments, Hotels, Casinos, High-rise Buildings, Resorts, Golf Communities... were growing like mushrooms after rainy days... Constructions everywhere brought jobs, new Casinos, Hotels and Restaurants brought even more jobs... The demand for housing went up to the roof.

The city once we new (a pretty dynamic, exciting city, never the less...) changed, almost over the night, into the world wide Mecca of Entertainment. The place of happening and glamour. In 2004 Las Vegas real estate went crazy. At the time, many of us thought it was just the most wonderful thing, an opportunity to reap a just reward for all our hard work. Homes roughly doubled in value... We were all ecstatic!

The Housing prices went out of control and the subprime mortgage practices pushed the entire housing market to a disaster. We had the bubble! ... When the mirage vanished, it left behind some very real carnage. Foreclosures are just part of it. Some home builders who couldn't sell any homes packed up and moved to greener pastures - or just packed up. Others have gone into hibernation, waiting for better times. It was very difficult times for those who have owned homes here since before the real estate market collapsed. Those skyrocketing values we were so giddy about a few years back? Just put them out of your mind and keep the "for sale" sign in the garage.

Did the bubble burst?... Some experts are not that confident but slowly and surely the real estate market will adjust itself and we'll see again the good days.

But what is a bad news, for so many, it is a good news for others... The old saying: When a door closes behind a window opens ahead!... It's called the new opportunity... the rule of reverse fortune.  As with most things, there's a silver lining. The plummeting values that many of us lament are great news for people who previously could not afford to buy a home in Las Vegas... LIFE IS NOT FAIR!!! It seems that way!

It is time to buy again in Las Vegas! Interest rates are still historically low, but because of the subprime fiasco, lending requirements have increased substantially. But this time around the home buyers must save up a lot more for a down payment. And that's not easy when the cost of everything -- gasoline, food, health insurance, etc. -- makes it doubly difficult to save. So, for those who can make the down payment and secure a loan, it's a great time to buy.

Remember!  "Homeownership isn't for everyone," writes Geoff Schumacher publisher of Las Vegas CityLife. But the dream may be too deeply ingrained in the American psyche to believe him.