Las Vegas NowCondo Prices Still Dropping

Condo Prices Still Dropping

While prices for single family homes have started to bottom out, sources say it's going to take longer for the condos to make a come back.

Turnberry Tower Two is one of the many luxurious condos near the Las Vegas Strip. There are 318 units and 256 are unsold. That's 80-percent of the building remaining unoccupied.

Three years ago luxury high rises and condos were all the rage. But the growth has come to a screeching halt. Condos like Streamline, Juhl, and Luxe Lofts are prime examples. "There's still a significant number of units on the market with very little sales taking place," said Brian Gordon with Applied Analysis.

Applied Analysis keeps up to date with the latest movement in the condo market. Gordon says only one third of the condos built in the last two years sold, mostly to investors looking for second homes.

The problem now is that condo prices are still in a free fall. "Nobody wants to overpay in a declining market. Buyers are very diligent about units they are looking at. Price points and certainly foreclosure activity factor into the high-rise market as well," said Gordon.

That means recovery may take longer compared to the rest of the housing market.

John Eisele is the president of the Las Vegas High-Rise and Condo Association. He says this is a great opportunity to cash in on never before seen deals. He thinks prices will start to rise once the glut of single-family homes are off the market. "I think once we get through that inventory we will see the same type of activity in the high-rise and mid-rise sector," he said.

According to Restrepo Consulting Group, a Las Vegas-based economic research firm, the median price of a luxury condo was $386,500 this summer. That's 25-percent less than one year ago.