Las Vegas NowInvestors Dive Back into Las Vegas Housing Market

Investors Dive Back into Las Vegas Housing Market

Home sales increased by about 30-percent last month, giving many people hope that we may soon turn the corner on the mortgage crisis.

Many of those properties are going to investors, who are buying properties two and three at a time. For Rent signs could soon be replacing many of the bank-owned and foreclosure signs as investors buy into the future of Las Vegas.

"Our whole strategy is to buy and hold for at least five to seven years buy at under value prices and rent them out at good rates," said investor Arthur Wong.

Members of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors call it a win for the valley as well.

"It is a supply and demand concept and what we have is any increase in demand is going to help absorb the inventory, the supply, which will get our prices back in check and that is the imperative," said Rick Shelton with the GLVAR.

And unlike the speculators that helped inflate home prices while trying to flip homes before the markets crashed, these investors are helping the market back up.

"We look at these as long term investments, so we are not looking to be slum lords, for lack of a better description. We want to make sure these investments hold their value and grow over the long term," said Wong.

Wong's investment group plans to take foreclosed places that are still salvageable and fix them up. Once they are brought back to their former glory, the group rents them out at prices lower than most complexes, while still seeing a profit.

"It does generate a nice rate of return now, even if we have to lower the rent. Because we are paying cash, we still get a good rate of return. As the economy improves, we will be able to raise the rent slightly and get a better rate of return," he said.