The median sold price continues to fall – dropping below $150,000 for the first time since February 2000. May’s median of $149,700 sets a new 11-year low. Bank-owned sales, accounting for 40 percent of May’s sales, are fueling the price drop with a median sales price of $128,000.
May’s 492 units sold exhibited a median sales price down 3.1 percent from April’s median of $155,250, and down 14.8 percent year-over-year. Not surprisingly, the median sold price per square foot continues to fall as well. May’s $87.37 sold price per square foot represents a 2.4 percent drop from April’s $89.50, and a 14.7 percent drop year-over-year.
Active listings appear to be holding steady while pendings continue to increase.
May sales by type break out as follows:
- Bank-owned properties: 40% – down from April’s 38%
- Short sales: 29% – up from April’s 31%
- Equity sales: 29% – up from April’s 31%
May sales by price band break out as follows:
| sales price ($000’s) | units sold |
| 0 – 99 | 85 |
| 100 – 199 | 266 |
| 200 – 299 | 89 |
| 300 – 399 | 25 |
| 400 – 499 | 13 |
| 500 – 599 | 3 |
| 600 – 699 | 1 |
| 700 – 799 | 2 |
| 800 – 899 | 2 |
| 900 – 999 | 1 |
| 1M+ | 5 |
| total | 492 |
For those readers who prefer the median sold price for houses and condos combined, May’s 585 sold houses, condos and town homes exhibited a combined median sold price of $140,000 – up from April’s combined median of $138,000.
Historical data follows.
| Month Year | # Sold | Sold Price | Sold Price per Sq Ft | Average DOM | # of Listings | # of Pendings |
| May 2011 | 492 | $149,700 | $87.37 | 133 | 1,968 | 1,682 |
| Apr 2011 | 431 | $155,250 | $89.50 | 138 | 1,914 | 1,593 |
| Mar 2011 | 511 | $160,000 | $91.59 | 132 | 1,906 | 1,497 |
| Feb 2011 | 385 | $161,000 | $93.35 | 142 | 1,882 | 1,416 |
| Jan 2011 | 361 | $159,900 | $92.19 | 153 | 1,970 | 1,329 |
| Dec 2010 | 480 | $165,500 | $94.43 | 144 | 2,021 | 1,148 |
| Nov 2010 | 399 | $170,000 | $96.14 | 139 | 2,060 | 1,376 |
| Oct 2010 | 418 | $174,950 | $98.57 | 135 | 2,146 | 1,371 |
| Sep 2010 | 466 | $168,000 | $97.52 | 133 | 2,186 | 1,473 |
| Aug 2010 | 449 | $180,000 | $97.53 | 127 | 2,222 | 1,513 |
| Jul 2010 | 414 | $180,000 | $101.74 | 129 | 2,158 | 1,580 |
| Jun 2010 | 602 | $170,000 | $100.52 | 145 | 1,966 | 1,625 |
| May 2010 | 450 | $175,807 | $102.37 | 138 | 1,789 | 1,804 |
| Apr 2010 | 510 | $179,995 | $103.13 | 128 | ||
| Mar 2010 | 477 | $175,000 | $99.14 | 141 | ||
| Feb 2010 | 338 | $170,000 | $101.68 | 138 | ||
| Jan 2010 | 346 | $167,000 | $97.06 | 134 | ||
| Dec 2009 | 424 | $178,000 | $101.28 | 126 | ||
| Nov 2009 | 461 | $175,000 | $103.61 | 112 | ||
| Oct 2009 | 561 | $180,000 | $103.52 | 123 | ||
| Sep 2009 | 520 | $185,948 | $103.31 | 128 | ||
| Aug 2009 | 482 | $179,900 | $102.64 | 116 | ||
| Jul 2009 | 515 | $180,000 | $103.45 | 126 | ||
| Jun 2009 | 536 | $180,317 | $104.09 | 136 | ||
| May 2009 | 426 | $175,000 | $102.29 | 139 | ||
| Apr 2009 | 429 | $190,000 | $105.71 | 133 | ||
| Mar 2009 | 369 | $200,000 | $105.85 | 133 | ||
| Feb 2009 | 293 | $205,000 | $111.52 | 132 | ||
| Jan 2009 | 233 | $200,000 | $113.04 | 117 | ||
| Dec 2008 | 294 | $218,950 | $121.74 | 145 | ||
| Nov 2008 | 269 | $220,000 | $122.24 | 152 | ||
| Oct 2008 | 354 | $230,000 | $131.43 | 144 | ||
| Sep 2008 | 358 | $239,250 | $136.72 | 145 | ||
| Aug 2008 | 321 | $250,000 | $142.14 | 140 | ||
| Jul 2008 | 397 | $251,000 | $145.48 | 139 | ||
| Jun 2008 | 369 | $262,500 | $148.05 | 142 | ||
| May 2008 | 314 | $260,215 | $152.30 | 134 | ||
| Apr 2008 | 314 | $275,000 | $154.05 | 172 | ||
| Mar 2008 | 238 | $274,000 | $150.93 | 166 | ||
| Feb 2008 | 195 | $289,000 | $156.48 | 149 | ||
| Jan 2008 | 165 | $285,000 | $170.23 | 146 | ||
| Dec2007 | 228 | $283,950 | $167.22 | 143 | ||
| Nov2007 | 204 | $299,750 | $172.24 | 126 | ||
| Oct2007 | 241 | $296,000 | $173.55 | 116 | ||
| Sep2007 | 230 | $299,945 | $179.46 | 114 | ||
| Aug2007 | 311 | $305,000 | $182.49 | 118 | ||
| Jul2007 | 300 | $315,000 | $189.78 | 113 | ||
| Jun2007 | 329 | $320,000 | $196.78 | 104 | ||
| May2007 | 364 | $313,200 | $190.81 | 107 | ||
| Apr2007 | 320 | $309,500 | $193.93 | 121 | ||
| Mar2007 | 324 | $315,000 | $189.61 | 121 | ||
| Feb 2007 | 269 | $315,000 | $191.18 | 126 | ||
| Jan 2007 | 245 | $312,900 | $199.79 | 133 | ||
| Dec2006 | 291 | $309,000 | $193.51 | 114 | ||
| Nov2006 | 281 | $318,000 | $197.32 | 111 | ||
| Oct 2006 | 363 | $312,400 | $201.44 | 105 | ||
| Sep2006 | 344 | $314,950 | $198.08 | 98 | ||
| Aug2006 | 349 | $325,000 | $210.92 | 94 | ||
| Jul2006 | 373 | $335,000 | $210.62 | 93 | ||
| Jun2006 | 424 | $339,000 | $214.54 | 91 | ||
| May2006 | 374 | $339,950 | $219.05 | 99 | ||
| Apr2006 | 368 | $334,600 | $212.08 | 88 | ||
| Mar2006 | 387 | $340,000 | $215.54 | 99 | ||
| Feb 2006 | 283 | $335,000 | $217.29 | 101 | ||
| Jan 2006 | 274 | $365,000 | $216.38 | 98 | ||
| Dec2005 | 333 | $355,000 | $217.31 | 89 | ||
| Nov2005 | 385 | $349,000 | $220.00 | 81 | ||
| Oct2005 | 484 | $359,450 | $223.06 | 77 | ||
| Sep2005 | 531 | $354,500 | $219.26 | 77 | ||
| Aug2005 | 582 | $360,500 | $220.52 | 73 | ||
| Jul2005 | 608 | $353,000 | $218.99 | 71 | ||
| Jun2005 | 679 | $350,000 | $215.69 | 69 | ||
| May2005 | 644 | $333,250 | $209.95 | 68 | ||
| Apr2005 | 558 | $326,750 | $207.57 | 77 | ||
| Mar2005 | 584 | $325,000 | $200.17 | 81 | ||
| Feb 2005 | 342 | $318,500 | $197.54 | 88 | ||
| Jan 2005 | 341 | $310,000 | $195.19 | 85 | ||
| Dec2004 | 450 | $312,500 | $190.72 | 77 | ||
| Nov2004 | 448 | $309,950 | $191.62 | 63 | ||
| Oct2004 | 512 | $299,250 | $188.72 | 53 | ||
| Sep2004 | 496 | $292,750 | $185.78 | 61 | ||
| Aug2004 | 505 | $285,000 | $182.95 | 56 | ||
| Jul2004 | 544 | $304,300 | $179.28 | 61 | ||
| Jun2004 | 533 | $285,000 | $172.16 | 65 | ||
| May2004 | 476 | $278,750 | $169.64 | 65 | ||
| Apr2004 | 526 | $259,950 | $158.08 | 67 | ||
| Mar2004 | 508 | $245,000 | $142.56 | 71 | ||
| Feb 2004 | 365 | $237,000 | unavailable | 81 | ||
| Jan 2004 | 380 | $228,500 | unavailable | 78 | ||
| Dec2003 | 441 | $240,000 | unavailable | 82 | ||
| Nov2003 | 444 | $220,750 | unavailable | 78 | ||
| Oct2003 | 430 | $219,880 | unavailable | 76 | ||
| Sep2003 | 587 | $223,000 | unavailable | 71 | ||
| Aug2003 | 512 | $220,000 | unavailable | 75 | ||
| Jul2003 | 533 | $210,000 | unavailable | 77 | ||
| Jun2003 | 475 | $207,000 | unavailable | 77 | ||
| May2003 | 450 | $198,950 | unavailable | 85 | ||
| Apr2003 | 478 | $197,750 | unavailable | 82 | ||
| Mar 2003 | 428 | $192,000 | unavailable | 77 | ||
| Feb 2003 | 321 | $186,895 | unavailable | 79 | ||
| Jan 2003 | 316 | $186,000 | unavailable | 96 | ||
| Dec 2002 | 379 | $193,500 | unavailable | 93 | ||
| Nov 2002 | 423 | $190,000 | unavailable | 82 | ||
| Oct 2002 | 483 | $189,900 | unavailable | 83 | ||
| Sep 2002 | 410 | $174,000 | unavailable | 85 | ||
| Aug 2002 | 459 | $180,000 | unavailable | 74 | ||
| Jul 2002 | 469 | $176,000 | unavailable | 83 | ||
| Jun 2002 | 445 | $185,000 | unavailable | 80 | ||
| May 2002 | 470 | $178,450 | unavailable | 77 | ||
| Apr 2002 | 360 | $169,500 | unavailable | 93 | ||
| Mar 2002 | 377 | $169,000 | unavailable | 84 | ||
| Feb 2002 | 323 | $170,900 | unavailable | 89 | ||
| Jan 2002 | 269 | $172,475 | unavailable | 99 | ||
| Dec 2001 | 287 | $182,000 | unavailable | 86 | ||
| Nov 2001 | 323 | $161,500 | unavailable | 85 | ||
| Oct 2001 | 357 | $166,500 | unavailable | 79 | ||
| Sep 2001 | 355 | $168,000 | unavailable | 81 | ||
| Aug 2001 | 448 | $160,350 | unavailable | 84 | ||
| Jul 2001 | 433 | $169,900 | unavailable | 90 | ||
| Jun 2001 | 426 | $166,225 | unavailable | 96 | ||
| May 2001 | 404 | $162,050 | unavailable | 97 | ||
| Apr 2001 | 370 | $158,750 | unavailable | 94 | ||
| Mar 2001 | 385 | $159,900 | unavailable | 97 | ||
| Feb 2001 | 297 | $159,950 | unavailable | 104 | ||
| Jan 2001 | 264 | $165,000 | unavailable | 102 | ||
| Dec 2000 | 272 | $156,500 | unavailable | 100 | ||
| Nov 2000 | 355 | $154,500 | unavailable | 93 | ||
| Oct 2000 | 348 | $153,000 | unavailable | 98 | ||
| Sep 2000 | 356 | $160,000 | unavailable | 104 | ||
| Aug 2000 | 412 | $163,375 | unavailable | 94 | ||
| Jul 2000 | 368 | $155,000 | unavailable | 110 | ||
| Jun 2000 | 466 | $165,845 | unavailable | 104 | ||
| May 2000 | 363 | $158,000 | unavailable | 105 | ||
| Apr 2000 | 312 | $155,000 | unavailable | 113 | ||
| Mar 2000 | 339 | $162,700 | unavailable | 102 | ||
| Feb 2000 | 248 | $148,000 | unavailable | 108 | ||
| Jan 2000 | 223 | $156,000 | unavailable | 113 | ||
| Dec 1999 | 264 | $155,000 | unavailable | 118 | ||
| Nov 1999 | 293 | $149,900 | unavailable | 98 | ||
| Oct 1999 | 289 | $147,895 | unavailable | 108 | ||
| Sep 1999 | 311 | $157,000 | unavailable | 106 | ||
| Aug 1999 | 360 | $148,500 | unavailable | 112 | ||
| Jul 1999 | 375 | $147,800 | unavailable | 105 | ||
| Jun 1999 | 372 | $150,000 | unavailable | 103 | ||
| May 1999 | 307 | $145,500 | unavailable | 106 | ||
| Apr 1999 | 324 | $151,700 | unavailable | 111 | ||
| Mar 1999 | 308 | $151,000 | unavailable | 121 | ||
| Feb 1999 | 249 | $148,900 | unavailable | 120 | ||
| Jan 1999 | 210 | $143,000 | unavailable | 115 | ||
| Dec 1998 | 265 | $140,000 | unavailable | 118 | ||
| Nov 1998 | 280 | $152,800 | unavailable | 126 | ||
| Oct 1998 | 286 | $142,825 | unavailable | 115 | ||
| Sep 1998 | 279 | $144,500 | unavailable | 102 | ||
| Aug 1998 | 331 | $145,000 | unavailable | 113 | ||
| Jul 1998 | 335 | $150,000 | unavailable | 108 | ||
| Jun 1998 | 351 | $148,500 | unavailable | 103 | ||
| May 1998 | 302 | $145,500 | unavailable | 99 | ||
| Apr 1998 | 235 | $149,000 | unavailable | 111 | ||
| Mar 1998 | 267 | $142,500 | unavailable | 114 | ||
| Feb 1998 | 201 | $139,900 | unavailable | 126 | ||
| Jan 1998 | 167 | $149,490 | unavailable | 129 |
Note: The medians table above is updated on a monthly basis. The median home price data reported covers the cities of Reno, Nevada and Sparks, Nevada [NNRMLS Area #100]. Residential data includes Site/Stick Built properties only. Data excludes Condo/Townhouse, Manufactured/Modular and Shared Ownership properties. Data courtesy of the Northern Nevada Regional MLS – June 2011. Note: This information is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed.
Tom Joad
So the median crashes through the 60% down mark from the bubble apex. 60% loss in value. Extraordinary.
And down 15% YoY.
And the REOs just keep comin’…….
Martin
I posted a few days ago that the banks have total control over the market now. The banks are setting the market. They control 70%, or more, of the sales.
The banks will go as low as they want to move this staggering inventory of houses they own or control (by their ability to control selling prices of REOs and short sales), many of which have not yet even hit the MLS.
Phil
65% down? Do I hear 65% down?
bob_c
Nevada’s total Loan to Equity ratio is -14.4% according to report issued by Zillow.
GreenNV
I took a quick look at the “previous owner” field for May’s sales on the Assessor’s site. I counted at least 40 of what the MLS will pick up as “equity sales” as flips of properties bought at Trustee’s Sales just from names I recognized – the number is probably closer to 50 units.
– TD flips are now close to 10% of the total market.
– At least 30% of equity sales are TD flips.
– True “equity sales” are running only about 20% of total unit sales. If you subtract the new builder homes listed on the MLS that get captured as equity sales, the real number might be approaching 15%. 1 in 7.
Free Falling
Time to bring back the Bantering Bear! The carnage continues. Interestingly, if we accept that 10% of all sales are TD Sale flips, that is living proof that there is still money to be made in this crazy market. In my ‘hood there has been a wave of new listings in the past 60 – 90 days, so it seems we can expect the price correction to continue. The more prices fall, the greater incentive for strategic default continuing to fuel the collapse. The great boom is being followed by the great over correction. Dirt cheap housing will eventually help Reno attract new businesses and related jobs. The question is when?
Woodrow Stool
“Dirt cheap housing will eventually help Reno attract new businesses and related jobs. The question is when?”
Not in our lifetime. Job growth in Reno will be negative for the foreseeable future – don’t forget many more layoffs are coming from UNR, the state, city of Reno, Washoe county, public schools as the new state budget hits the fan. The bottom is not even close.
Let us also not forget the state of downtown. IMHO this is the biggest inhibitor of (for example) technology companies leaving the bay area and coming to Reno. It is a mess, and for upstart companies looking for a place to plant roots, downtown Reno is not going to do.
Raymond
“Dirt cheap housing will eventually help Reno attract new business and related jobs.”
Really? And what kind of “new business” will be attracted by dirt cheap housing?
Please don’t say high tech. Please.
Business attracted by UNR as it marches relentlessly into mediocrity?
Cutting edge tech people don’t wan’t to live in “dirt cheap housing”. They don’t have to. They live in pretty fine housing in places like Palo Alto, and Durham, and Austin.
Highly educated people in any field don’t want to live in “dirt cheap housing” because they don’t have to either.
So what kind of “new business” is Reno’s “dirt cheap housing” going to attract? Well, a workforce willing to live in “dirt cheap housing”. Like, $8 an hour keno runners, and $10 a hour warehouse stockers, and any other business that needs a workforce stocked with high school dropouts.
Oh wait, Reno already has that.
The spiral swirls downward, and downward, and downward.
Tom
One client in the senior nursing care business has commented to me that certain regions with severely depressed housing costs plus an abundance of lower-tier labor are potentially attractive sites for his company’s future planning. They need places to house the infirm elders needing care-giving and assisted living in our society, a growing demographic. Keeping housing costs low and costs down for orderlies, attendants, van drivers, cleaning crew, and so forth, are big parts of their game plan. He predicts that people will be looking for places to place their aging and infirm parents at acceptable monthly cost. With enough orderlies and lower-tier nursing support, a care center doesn’t need that many of the more expensive R.N. or LVN or accredited practitioner types of employees.
Maybe if he is on target, Reno will become the nursing home capital of the west. Think of it, some of the old downtown hotels converted to large assisted living centers, with rec rooms and dining halls in the former casinos and restaurants. The hotel rooms would be the right size for senior retirees, all the private baths for patient rooms are already there. The kids and grandkids could visit and stay in the premium rooms or suites, right in the same building, and then upon leaving, know that Grandma is in good hands.
It’s not so crazy, there are hospitals handy when higher expertise and care is needed. The airport is very handy and an easy in-and-out, and the location is convention to the region. Future arch: “The Biggest Little Nursing Home in the World”
Sully
As Tom mentioned, there are many possibilities for companies to relocate here. The dirt cheap housing will be a big factor. However, as far as leading edge next generation Hi Tech – forget it! The public sector will continue to have problems until the private sector bounces back raising the tax revenues that pay for the public sector. The only reason they are still laying off now is because revenues are going down, government never learns, its always different this time!
Most likely type of company will be light manufacturing with wages in the 11 – 20 dollar range, maybe even biotech that needs a cost friendly area for R&D, a major issue Silicon Valley.
rory
@ Raymond, why do you assume the University refocusing it’s resources on Major’s and College’s with the highest enrollment is a march toward mediocrity? The campus is beautiful and with all the capital improvements of the past decade the U is built for the future. Please explain how trimming the fat makes an education at Nevada less valuable.
Grand Wazoo
I can answer that question Rory – one of the biggest impacts of reduction in state funding at UNR will be the reduction in the number of class sections offered. That means the classes a student needs to graduate simply won’t be taught as often. That makes it that much harder to graduate within a reasonable amount of time. It is a big issue on campus that is only going to get bigger.
tallguy
Trimming the fat at UNR? Its reputation is undergoing extensive damage nationwide, and some of the strongest faculty are leaving. Why stick around for pay cuts, benefit cuts, hostile attitudes about education and your value to the community, while all signs point to decreasing quality in the incoming student pool that you have to work with if you easily have options elsewhere? The best people always have other options. Good riddance, some will say… well, that’s the future of a local economy built on something other than luck and low pay leaving as well. Why would the very best students come here when they look at the headlines and see “less less less” in Nevada? They have options elsewhere too.
If Nevada does not care to make education a priority, to make economic redevelopment and investments in resources that will attract a diverse and high value economic base here, don’t expect one to just magically appear. How much data do we need to see that says the current “low tax, business friendly” model is utterly broken and stupid?? We’ve had it for decades, and it has done well at bringing in a few warehouses that pay minimum wage. Yet those horrid “high tax, high regulation” states that have chosen to use those taxes (i.e. invest them) in strong education and economic diversification still seem to do just fine in generating, keeping, and attracting lots of companies and jobs that pay far more than minimum wage and look alot like the foundations of a future information age economy.
From a friend who is a vice president at a major company (1000’s employees), and went to Harvard business school: Low tax economic models are only going to attract marginal businesses whose very existance depends on a fractional improvement in profits. These are the weakest businesses, don’t expect much from them. Do you think Google, or Apple, or Facebook, or the monster biotechnology firms care much about the marginal tax rate? No, they are making millions and even billions in profits, a couple percentage points here and there mean nothing to them. What matters is the employees, getting the very best and keeping them happy.
rory
Tallguy, how is the U’s reputation undergoing extensive damage nationwide?
rory
Also at Tallguy….students who select Nevada for college still see tremendous bang for their buck. While tuition will be rising, tell me where you can get a comparable education in California for under $15,000 a year??
Chuchar
“Reno will become the nursing home capital of the West.”
Great. What a fabulous future.
Oh, a University where the School of Education is going to disappear? Where one cannot even get a graduate degree in the field of education? Where one cannot study French or Russian? Where one cannot study dance or theater?
You must mean a community college.
Well on the way to mediocrity.
But yes, Rory, the flowers smell nice. Surely the sign of a great university.
tallguy
Rory: When the people and programs that UNR is known for leave and go somewhere else, damage occurs. When UNR can’t hire promising young faculty because they come and visit and see “less less less” and “cut cut cut” damage occurs. When UNR tries to recruit strong students and they read the student newspaper about all the cuts and program closures on their visits, what do you think they will say about UNR?
A Universities reputation among other institutions, recruiters, and businesses is built upon all of these factors. Strong programs, strong faculty, and strong students. How can you think the reputation is stable, or improving, when what UNR can do and be is going down?
Carole
Why would anybody need a graduate degree in the field of education here in Nevada?
We have little use for education, at least past the high school level. Even those nursing home jobs Tom is talking about that are going to save Reno only require a 10th grade education.
Maybe we ought to do away with the nursing school program as well at UNR. Save some more money. No need for “those more expensive R.N. accredited practitioner types of employees.” Hell, any high school dropout can do the jobs that are going to save Reno. Great thinking, Tom.
Tom
Just passing on someone’s comments who is in the caregiver business, Carole, no personal judgment intended on Reno. Also, the nursing home operators he tells me do need a few of those higher educated persons, it’s just that those people are not as much of a component of overhead as are the larger numbers of low-end employees. In Reno there is perceived to be an abundance of the latter, plus cheap housing. So it seems attractive to them as a place for expansion.
rory
Chuchar, so French and Theater are vital programs and support the Universities mission? That’s a reach. What Tallguy is saying makes sense but your points are hard to follow. If one wants a degree in French, then go to a school which has that degree. Not every U needs to offer 200 degree programs. Nevada should focus on programs its great at, namely Engineering, Business, Mining, Nursing, Medicine and a few others which get little attention but are exceptional in most respects.
rory
To your question Tallguy….you act like Nevada is in permanent state of decline. Take a step back for a minute. Times are tough today, but just 10 years ago things were booming. Even with shrinking budgets enrollments continue to soar and tuition is still dirt cheap when compared against similar sized institutions.
I guess we should all be thankful Coach Chris Ault is doing his part to boost the profile of the University because there is no better advertisement for attracting undergrads than a Top 25 football program. Don’t believe it, just look at Boise State’s national profile pre-2000….
Skippy
I think the UNR boosters need to a come to grips with a cold hard fact. Nationally, UNR is not considered a good school. It is tied for last place (191st) among the ranked schools on the US News Rankings.
http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/university-of-nevada-2568
http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/spp%2B50/page+4
Maybe we can inject more funds into UNR that are badly needed by other services and get up to 173rd. I maintain that UNR needs to refocus with less funding on what it does well (Earth Sciences) and not try to offer all things to all people.
Martin
This thread is about the median price of a house in Reno. How did it end up being about the UNR football team?
Is the news of the Reno houisng market just so dismal that people can’t stand to talk about it?
rebrunner
It could be worse. The median price of a house in Las Vegas is now $124,000.
tallguy
I am fine with refocusing efforts at UNR. Refocusing involves taking resources from Peter and giving them to Paul because Paul is better. That can be smart, I can support that, and it is probably needed.
That is not what is going on. Even strong programs are being cut and made weaker. There is no additional investment in good programs to support a refocusing effort, and we have broad based cuts in education across the board, which is bad over the long term I think..
It is my opinion that NV will continue to decline until we get off the tired horses of mining and gaming and “low taxes are an attraction” mindset. Given what I see from political leadership, I am not optimistic, despite a historical recession and budgetary crises, strong support for the status quo continues.
Norton
Re the “low taxes are an attraction mindset”.
Nevada has had one of the lowest tax burdens per capita in the nation for decades. No state income tax. No state inheritance tax. No corporate income tax. No warehouse tax. Midrange property and sales taxes. And Nevada has the worst economy in the country today to show for it. Highest unemployment rate. Highest bankruptcy rate. Highest foreclosure rate. Whenever the Great Recession ends, Nevada will be the last state out.
So exactly, what has Nevada benefitted from its “low taxes are an attraction” mindset? I think its a bunch of hooey.
Many states have a higher per capita tax burden than Nevada, and they all are better off economically than Nevada.
Rubicon
Truth be told, Nevada is now contending with Alabama, Mississippi, and West Virginia for the nation’s number one backwater.
At least their universities can play football at a premier level. Which according to Rory is a major criteria by which to measure a university.
Zen
“Many states have a higher per capita tax burden than Nevada, and they all are better off economically than Nevada.”
This statement means nothing. One does not necessarily correlate with the other. This state is vastly different in many ways than most other states. There are many factors that account for the condition Nevada finds itself in, not just lower taxes. Do you really think that simply raising taxes will bring a better economy to Nevada? I want to see the plan first! How are my higher taxes going to be reinvested? Lets also remember that nobody and I mean nobody can waste money like bureaucrats. If I remember right, the last time we raised taxes in this state, the state raised all the money it needed, in fact too much. Everyone that had a car registered in the state got a check back that year because the state collected too much money. This was when the economy was booming. The next year what happened, the economy was still booming, but no check went back to the people. The bureaucrats figured out how to spend the money. Did that help out our present economy? No, here we are again, broke. Oh and what about the big windfall from the tobacco companies lawsuit in 1999. It has been going to the millennium scholarship for over a decade. That’s right, it was invested into higher education. Was this really the best investment of that money? How many of those kids families could have afforded to send their kid to college without it? How many of them could have worked their way through college? Now after more than a decade of investing that money into higher education, the college system in Nevada is in big financial trouble. I need to see a plan. A plan that makes sense. A plan that looks down the road to help the state diversify our economy with good private sector jobs. One that works over the long run, not just until the next election. So far I haven’t seen it. Leadership is what has really been missing from this state, not tax dollars.
billddrummer
In the discussion about the university system, every post contained at least one grammatical error.
That doesn’t bode well for the future of education in Reno, does it?
Zen, thank you for your excellent command of the language. It’s becoming more and more rare, especially in the blogosphere.
Cutting education ensures that high tech companies will pass on the area. As long as the state education system continues to be starved of resources, the vaunted ‘good jobs’ will go to more enlightened regions–Raleigh, NC, Austin, TX, and Silicon Valley.
I cited my daughter as an example–she graduated from Spanish Springs HS as salutatorian, and elected to attend NYU. She won’t be returning to Nevada except to visit her family.
I applaud her decision to pursue her ambitions 2500 miles away. She wouldn’t be satisfied here.
billddrummer
And further on the sinking median: I rent, so it doesn’t matter to me. Until I can pay cash for a house, I’ll continue to rent.
bob_c
Billdrummer, does the world revolve around you?
MikeZ
$149,700.
$87.37/sq-ft.
Wow.
rory
Rubicon,
I merely stated a good football program supports the University in ways which are hard to quantify but which are vitally important.
Martin,
Housing in Reno is in a terrible state of perpetual decline. This median data only reaffirms what we already knew. God forbid a discussion should go in different directions. Shame on us!
rory
To piggy back off the discussion of Reno’s suitability as it pertains to tech jobs….Reno made this map, fwiw: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/05/ff_jobsclustermap/ (emerging tech epicenters)
It’s a start.
billddrummer
@bob_c,
Yes. Yes it does.
Woodrow Stool
Rory – that map basically shows 500 “tech” jobs added in Reno between 2003 and 2008 (read the fine print). I would say that time was mostly during the boom, those days are over and the data used for this study is up to eight years old.
Not exactly relevant to Reno in 2011 I would say.
rory
Woodrow,
Your point is not without merit but to suggest those days are over, permanently, doesn’t fly with me. Granted, Reno will never by a tech city but its location is still attractive to smaller outfits or larger firms looking to open smaller focused offices in places outside of Silicon Valley or the other major tech centers. I just can’t get behind the permanent pessimism in regards to Reno’s future. The city has some unique qualities which have not vanished unlike our home equity.
Darwin
If I may make a comment. I work at a local area high school, and interact on a daily basis with the top graduates. I can assure you there is an exodus out of Reno by our best and brightest. These kids are almost universally choosing to go to college out of state, and few, if any, of them talk about ever returning to Reno upon completion of their higher education. My colleagues at the other local high schools report the same experience with their students.
Those in our town who suggest that the ever declining quality at UNR makes no difference are blind. We are losing our most talented young people. They are not blind.
billddrummer
@Darwin,
Thank you.
Paul
As someone who moved from the Bay Area, where even many college educated folks have to wait nearly until middle-age to buy a house, cheap housing is a bigger attraction than many on the blog may think. A friend of mine in medicine made an interesting observation: the percentage of children born with autism in affluent Bay Area counties, as in Reno, is well above the national average. In Reno, its often younger mothers with drug problems. In the Bay, its mothers who wait until their late 30’s or 40’s to have children (it takes that long to save for a down payment and get to the career position to qualify for an 500k-1M mortgage). Women who get pregnant “late” simply have a much higher chance of having an autistic child.
The point here is that Reno is very close to an area (SF Bay) densely populated with affluent, high income people where housing remains insanely expensive. So expensive, in fact, that large swaths of the younger population have to delay important life events (moving out of the parent’s house, getting married, having children) simply because of housing costs. At some point, a good climate, little traffic, good airport access and great outdoor recreation are going to be a draw to Bay Area residents who don’t want to have to organize their life and very existance around trying to afford shelter.
Paul
Regarding attracting companies to Reno, could someone send a memo to someone in leadership to take the brothel ads off the taxis? I think brothels in remote locations are a great idea. Having a brothel ad on every single taxi in town, and greeting visiting executives with a phalanx of brothel ads lining the taxis at the airport is not. There are taxis with brothel ads at every major hotel, every shopping center, driving by public schools including elementary schools, driving up to Lake Tahoe – give me a break. Harry Reid was not quite right – its not the brothels, its the ads.
Zen
Paul, you seem perfectly capable of sending a memo, why don’t you send it? I couldn’t agree more with you, but in this country, legal businesses have the right to advertise. I don’t think there is anything that could be done to stop them.
Funny, but sad story: After a taxi drove by us, my 7-year old daughter asks, “Why does it say, ‘Where all the girls are’, when it’s called the Mens Club?”
Personally, I gave up using taxi’s the minute my oldest daughter could read because of these advertisements, but other than that, I don’t think you can do much more. My loss of business hasn’t put them under yet.
Ed
I love that the housing is getting cheaper by the day. Coming from bay area it is very attractive. Very nice listings at around 120k-130k!
Sully
Hey Paul, welcome to the biggest little city in the world. Like most big cities doing things that are counterproductive is the norm not the exception. For an area that is trying to increase tourism and draw business interest to move here, you would think someone in power would notice those signs. Heck, the casinos could buy up all the space and put up cleaner ads, however I think they are more concerned about protesting their property tax bills – to further drain the revenue base.
Having a Mayor that owns a casino consulting firm apparently isn’t the best choice for the area. My first impression of those ads was similar to yours, over time I’ve become immune to them (not happy just immune).
Phil
Funny, I remember during the height of the bubble frenzy here in Reno, standard realtor spinjive was that rich Bay Area escapees were going to move to Reno in droves and keep the market ascending upward forever, because our median priced $360K house was “dirt cheap” to Bay Area folk.
Now that that nonsense has been discredited, and the median price has fallen 60% from its high, we again hear how Reno will be saved by Bay Area escapees, this time foaming over the “dirt cheap” median $150,000 houses available all over town.
MikeZ
I can assure you there is an exodus out of Reno by our best and brightest. These kids are almost universally choosing to go to college out of state, and few, if any, of them talk about ever returning to Reno upon completion of their higher education.
I don’t really understand the logic that’s behind the keep-them-here-for-four-more-years thinking. How does keeping the “best and the brighest” here in Reno for for more years, attending UNR, and then watching them leave anyway for work, help the Reno economy?
Seems to me the problem isn’t UNR or students leaving for out-of-state colleges. Who cares if they go out of state for 4 years?! Not me. The problem is JOBS. We need more, better jobs. And improving UNR isn’t going to make more or better jobs appear in Reno.
Wouldn’t our money and time be better spent on job creation first and foremost, and improving education later, once the revenue is there?
Cramden
Here’s an up to the minute update on the Siena. Went there for dinner tonight with a friend, but not at the fancy restaurant. Dead as a doornail. Nobody sitting at the bar. Nobody playing craps, nobody playing 21, one guy playing roulette. The poker tables not open. I counted six people playing slots, plus what appeared to be two street people. Nobody in the shushi place. There were five other people in the restaurant besides me and my friend.
This for a Saturday night in June. I know they have not really advertised the place much, but this cannot be a good sign.
By the way, the food was pretty good, and the prices were reasonable. But not really in any way remarkable and not in any way very different from any other casino place.
Mr Frisky
MikeZ: Who exactly do you think creates jobs? University graduates, particularly in the “hard sciences”, with big and new ideas and access to investment capital. That’s how it works. The bay area, despite it’s high tax burden, became what it is for technology because of a collision of three forces: excellent higher Ed (both public and private), investment capital (VCs on Sand Hill Road, their first big win was Sun), and a desirable place to live with a great climate.
If Nevada is going to escape this blue collar hell it finds itself in, higher Ed is an essentialnpart of the solution, and must lead the way.
What do you do for a living anyway? A question often asked but never answered.
Sully
Mr Frisky, you do a good job of defining Silicon Valley today, however it wasn’t like that in the 60’s. VC didn’t exist, Sand Hill Road was just a road. Sanford, now called the MIT of the West wasn’t quite the electronics college it is today. Sun Micro, founded by Sanford graduates, is now owned by Oracle – founded and still run by a college dropout. Maybe Apple is a better choice, oops also founded and still run by a college dropout.
The weather was there long before Dr. Noyce and Fairchild Semi Conductor came to town – actually before HP founders also.
A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. Reno needs to take that first step. MikeZ is correct, please note he didn’t say we don’t need education, just that it’s not the most pressing item on the agenda.
The first and simplest step would be to clean up the image – i.e. change ads on taxis! 🙂
Creating a good first impression for potential companies should be a priority.
Get antique tax laws changed – starting with property tax assessment. Right now too much depends on gaming tax which is declining along with tourism (sales tax). In other words build a foundation first, then put the building up. Education is important but jobs are more important at the moment.
All the PhD’s in the country cannot create jobs here in short order if some of these other items are not addressed.
tallguy
I am of the opinion that a strong education system is a jobs creating necessity for any high value industry. If you want to create low wage jobs, the education system is irrelevant (current situation). If you want to recruit and attract any high value industries, their management and employees will care ALOT about K-12 and higher education.
Education has to come first. Employees are not going to want to come here because “Oh yeah, we’ll have a good education system sometime later once we get this economy system thing worked out”. They want it now. Just like high value industries will want strong educated workers right now. Not later.