Hello Dan,

As you can see, there is apparently a lot of different ways to arrive at the answer. Currently the available rental listings in the Las Vegas Valley, which includes North las Vegas and Henderson is 5816 rentals currently available. This includes both single family and condos. But as Damon pointed out this only includes properties currently listed on the MLS for rent. Not all property managers list their units on the MLS. Additionally, many owners find they can advertise on Craig's list and bypass the MLS all together, so this number is a bit nebulous.

If we drill down into the data a bit deeper, we get a more clear picture. For instance, there are currently 748 units that have been put into contingency status (on hold), typically while credit and rental history is run on a potential tenant. Lastly, we see that there were a whopping 28,034 units that were leased in the last 12 months. Now the data begins to have value. If we draw a straight line from month to month, it would suggest that with 5816 units available, there is a 60 day supply.

However, often properties that are still on the market, may still be available because they are listed to high. If your property is listed at a fair market value, it should have no problem leasing within a week. If it is even $50 overpriced, it may not rent at all. The take away on this is that you need to price at what your property manager suggests and don't get greedy. If you hold out for more and it takes a month instead of a week, you may never recover those weeks, or more of lost revenue. If a tenant is willing to pay over market, this should raise a red flag, suggesting that there are credit issues, past rental history issues (damage, rent skipping, etc.), or when they do discover that they are overpaying (and you can count on the fact that they will find out), the relationship becomes more adversarial. Bottom line: if priced right, they rent quickly and deliver a great return on investment.

I have no idea what Dawn's problem is. The question seems legitimate to me, I don't consider myself a mega superstar, and I don't wear a cape. But if the number of thumbs up is any indication, my answers are cogent and factual, and apparently someone thinks they are helpful. Dan, I hope it is helpful to you.

Best of luck, and thanks for reading.

I'm not following the thread, so feel free to contact me directly. However, I did find my way back here and noticed your (Dan's) post addressing me on the 5th.

Dan,

You can't really get the vacancy rate from the rental statistics in my blog because it does not represent units that are occupied. It only shows units that were actively marketed and rented during the 12 month period. An owner's and property manager's goal is to keep tenants in place longer than 1 year.
http://www.trulia.com/blog/damon_botticelli/2011/07/las_vega…

But what you can see which is extremely important is the absorption rate and which areas do better than others. To get the absorption rate, divide the total units rented by 12 to get the number of units rented per month. Then divide the total available units by the units rented per month.

The stronger rental areas will have about a 1 month's supply while the weaker rental markets will be closer to a 2 or more month's supply.

I was under the impression that's there is no such thing as "a dumb question".
It makes sense to me to look at the big picture of available rentals, and than analyze the data to see if there are situations that can make the numbers meaningful for my investment goals.


David Cooper. Licensed Professional Investor, 35 Years Experience
Get Your FREE List of Bargain Homes at http://www.lasvegaswinner.org
or Call +1-702-739-8820 Since 1917 Realty

Dan: As an experience investor in Las Vegas rental homes, location and age of home is so much more important than the total numbers. Las Vegas is NOT going to be a ghost town, and it still increasing in population every month. I would suggest calling a few full time rental companies, the ones that sepialcialize in rentals only, and get their latest view on how well good located houses are renting.

David Cooper. Licensed Professional Investor, 35 Years Experience
Get Your FREE List of Bargain Homes at http://www.lasvegaswinner.org
or Call +1-702-739-8820 Since 1917 Realty

Supply has increased 10 to 12% since Oct. 1. Supply should go way down if Obama forces banks to forgive loan amount over and above CMV. Ain't Socialism Grand? Vote All The Bums Out. Time to clean house. We need honest conservitive business people in office...no more lawyers. Get involved, choose a side...Liberalism Nanny State or Conservitism and the Traditional American way of life. The America that God would be proud of and bless. Matthew

Well located houses in good neighborhoods close to employment centers are in high demand. The economy in Las Vegas is recovering and I am getting rent increases from last year on my investment properties. There are really only 6 zip codes that I consider prime for purchase and rent out, and those neighborhoods many miles from the strip should not be considered in finding a good investment

David Cooper. Licensed Professional Investor, 35 Years Experience
Get Your FREE List of Bargain Homes at http://www.lasvegaswinner.org
or Call +1-702-739-8820 Since 1917 Realty

There are 5818 total rentals. 3748 are single family homes. This is across all of Las Vegas obviously some areas rent quicker. Another tidbit is there are currently 11,234 single family Short Sales either in contract or available. These folks will eventually have to move somewhere and most likely it will be a rental until they rebuild credit. I can generate a list that shows all areas and activity or specific areas you might be interested in. You can visit my website at http://www.ssrealtylv.com and I will gladly assist you with further numbers or break downs.

Damon,

Your blog post doesn't paint a great picture, it looks like most areas have 10%+ rental vacancies.

Has this number been climbing? I would assume it has.

Quite frankly, I dont care about the actual number, I only care about the change that is taking place. I may be interested in buying a single family house as a rental property, but I am concerned about a glut of rental units available. So, I wanted to get a better idea of what the statistics look like.

I'm not sure about David's number, but I get 5816 listed units including N. Las Vegas & Henderson currently listed for rent on the MLS. This doesn't include apartment complexes, units listed by owner or other non-mls type listings.

Want more details on rental stats? check out a recent post of mine at:
http://www.trulia.com/blog/damon_botticelli/2011/07/las_vega…

Las Vegas Homes For Rent — 2,251 rentals found


David Cooper. Licensed Professional Investor
Get a FREE List of Bargain Homes at http://www.lasvegaswinner.org