Las Vegas is always referred to as “Ground Zero” for all of the foreclosures and short sales we have here in Clark County.

It is estimated that 1 in 13  Las Vegas homes are in some phase of foreclosure. Nationally there are more than 3 million homeowners over 60 days late. There are currently 11,393 short sales in Las Vegas on the market of which 6,325 of the short sales are in contingent status, meaning there is an offer on the home. That leaves 45% of the short sale homes currently available for offers.

Las Vegas real estate has had 22,808 closing since January 1, 2009 and short sale listings were 2,027 of them. That is less than 9% total.

North Las Vegas was host to Hope Now for homeowners in Las Vegas facing foreclosure. They were expecting several thousand homeowners to come to Aliante Station during the 2 day workshop. There were mortgage lenders and counselors offering assistance for the frazzled home owners who have seen huge drops in their property values. Las Vegas is also at a record high unemployment at nearly 12%. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and Housing and Urban Development-approved counselors  answered questions for distressed homeowners and possible solutions.

Hope Now helped nearly a quarter million people stay in their homes through loan modifications and repayment plans.

The Nevada Foreclosure Mediation Program has received its first three requests for mediation , two of which are from Clark County, NV. This is a program designed to put homeowners together with their lenders to work out a loan modification in a more efficient time frame.

Nevada Foreclosure Mediation Program began on July 1 under Assembly Bill 149. Mediation’s will be conducted by Senior District Judges or Supreme Court Settlement Judges and some 400 attorneys that have signed up for training to be approved as mediators. The rules and other information about the Foreclosure Mediation Program are available on the Supreme Court website: http://www.nevadajudiciary.us/ . The homeowner and lender will split the 400 fee for the mediator.

Homeowners in Las Vegas facing foreclosure will need to submit all of their financials, past taxes, monthly bills and current income. This is also the same info required to do a short sale. This program is only for homeowners who have received a Notice of Default ( NOD) after July 1, 2009 and the home must be a primary residence.

This program will save a lot of homes for people who want to stay in the home and could afford the new payments if the loan is modified. A short sale is still a good alternative for people who can’t afford the payments, lost a job or have to move from the area.