It’s a little clichéd, but the las vegas real estate market can be similar to some of the games in its casinos.

Both have ups and downs, and everyone has heard about people winning big without a lot of effort. On the other hand, there are plenty of other cautionary tales about people easily crapping out, and watching a sure thing quickly head south.

The region has some of the country’s highest foreclosure rates in the nation, and also has a large inventory of available properties and lower property values. Whole residential developments are going belly up, and commercial real estate isn’t doing too well either.

It’s easy enough to walk away from a real investment that sounded good a few years ago, and the bankruptcy courts are full of people who chose this way to cash out. However, this option isn’t for everyone, especially if you’d like to keep your investment options open in the future.

Another possible option is a short sale, where you work close with your lender to sell it for the balance remaining on your loan vs. market value or your ideal selling price.

This option has up-sides and down-sides. And just like at the crap table, there’s a fine line between doing something sensible and staying on your point, or taking the dice and seeing if something better comes up.

If you’re on the fence about a short sale, let us help you with the pros and cons.

Pros:

• Security now: Short selling might be the best option to make it out alive, figuratively speaking. Short sales are generally ‘do it now’ deals, since lenders or banks also want to get out of a bad situation, and are willing to work with owners and buyers to make something happen. But it can go away quick.
• Better offers may not come. The Las Vegas Sun reported in early June that it isn’t just the Las Vegas metro community that has one of the top five foreclosure rates nationwide, but the state of Nevada has highest foreclosure rates of all the states. The outlook isn’t expected to improve in the near future, which can be mixed news to any las vegas broker agency.

Cons:

• Pay to wait: If you can afford to pay for this property, go for it. Every mortgage payment improves your equity and credit, and lets more time pass for a possible market turn-around.
• Consider renting: Rental properties make sense on paper, especially if you contract with a las vegas property management for the hands-on aspects.