Housing

LAS VEGAS — Six-hundred or so of the state’s Democratic party faithful this morning attended their annual state convention at the Bally’s Hotel conference center in Las Vegas. Five-hundred sixty-two delegates were credentialed but about two dozen vendors lined both sides of the room and guests were also welcomed.

RENO – President Barack Obama made a brief stopover here today, visiting with a couple who refinanced their home through a White House initiative helping underwater homeowners who have government-backed loans.

After meeting with Paul and Valerie Keller, Obama urged Congress to expand the Home Affordable Refinancing Program (HARP) to other mortgages as well.

Nevada Legal Services is offering a free Foreclosure Information Class available to any homeowner in Nevada. The class will focus on the foreclosure process including mandatory mediation and the government sponsored loss mitigation options. The class will be held on Tuesday, May 15, 2012 at the Dayton Library, 321 Old Dayton Rd., Dayton. Nevada Legal Services is a nonprofit HUD Certified Housing Counseling organization providing free legal services to low income Nevadans. Nevada Legal Services is a statewide organization assisting every county in Nevada.

CARSON CITY – A new report questions the value of tax incentives and regulations approved by many states around the country, including Nevada, to create “green jobs,” noting that subsidies used for such programs can take away revenue for other needs such as public education.

Event at Obama for America Campaign Office, March 15, at the Carson City Democratic Central Committee Headquarters
at 502 E. John Street (& Roop St.) behind Bank of America

On Thursday at Noon, Occupy Carson City demonstrators, MoveOn.org members and homeowners in crisis will rally at the local Obama for America (OFA) office in Carson City, NV to demand that government-controlled mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac provide relief to ten million underwater homeowners by adjusting their mortgages to reflect the true value of their home.

With St. Patrick's Day fast approaching, it's time to brush up on your knowledge of Irish music! Here's a lighthearted approach to Irish Musicology from the Carson City Irish American Music Duo of Gairin Music.

Jig

Recognized for stewardship and care taken in the building and construction of developments around Lake Tahoe, the 22nd annual Best in the Basin awards were announced Tuesday by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.
The TRPA, which sets policy for development around Lake Tahoe, will recognize the winners, listed below, during the 2011 Best in the Basin awards presentation during the meeting of its Governing Board on Wednesday, Feb. 22 in Stateline. Go here for the agenda.

RENO – Gov. Brian Sandoval said today his plan to repeal 654 unnecessary regulations will assist in the state’s efforts at economic diversification and job creation by making Nevada more business friendly.

In addition to the repeal of more than 600 rules, another 1,100 will be updated as a result of an executive order he issued in January 2011 imposing a one-year freeze and calling for his cabinet to thoroughly review the entire regulatory framework of the state. The review was finalized last week.

CARSON CITY – Nevada’s taxable sales rose 9.6 percent in November over the same month a year ago, driven in large part by car sales and improved business at bars and restaurants, the state Department of Taxation reported today. Taxable sales totaled nearly $3.4 billion for the month.

For the fiscal year that began July 1, 2011, taxable sales are up 8.5 percent through November.

Clark County sales were up 8.6 percent. Washoe County sales were up 5.3 percent.

CARSON CITY – Nevada’s unemployment rate fell by four-tenths of a percentage point to 12.6 percent in December, the second consecutive monthly decline that saw the number of jobless drop to 166,300, a state agency reported today.

A year ago, the rate, which is adjusted for seasonal fluctuations in the labor market, hit a record high of 14.9 percent.

Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto announced today a lawsuit against Lender Processing Services, Inc., DOCX, LLC, LPS Default Solutions, Inc. and other subsidiaries of LPS (collectively known “LPS”) for engaging in deceptive practices against Nevada consumers.

To a packed house of observers, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board voted to approve Phase 1 of the Homewood Mountain Resort Ski Area Master Plan at their monthly meeting on Wednesday, December 14.

Attorneys General Kamala D. Harris of California and Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada today announced that their states have entered into a joint investigation alliance designed to assist homeowners who have been harmed by misconduct and fraud in the mortgage industry.

By forging this alliance, California and Nevada will combine investigative resources, including litigation strategies, information, and evidence gathered through their respective ongoing investigations, assisting each state as it pursues independent prosecutions.

The Carson City Board of Supervisors is seeking applications from persons interested in serving on the Redevelopment Authority Citizens Committee. There are six (6) openings in the following categories, two (2) in each category:

• “Business Operator” or “Property Owner” from Redevelopment Area 1
• “Business Operator” or “Property Owner” from Redevelopment Area 2

The Nevada Housing Division today announced a new low mortgage rate for Nevada's first-time homebuyers. The Division is offering a dramatically low mortgage 3.50% interest rate for a 30-year fixed rate loan to qualified buyers.

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MESA, Ariz. - Like just about everyone in the Phoenix area, Jen Pollock has lost several neighbors to foreclosure and short sales. And, like hundreds of thousands of others in Arizona, Pollock and...

LAS VEGAS – President Obama will today announce he is expanding a federal aid program to allow more homeowners to refinance their mortgages at today’s low interest rates, said White House officials this morning.

CARSON CITY – The September jobs report released today contained some hints of economic life in recession-battered Nevada, even though the unemployment rate held steady at a double-digit 13.4 percent rate from August.
While still tops in the nation in unemployment, Nevada saw a decline in the jobless rate in the Las Vegas area, to 13.6 percent from 14.3 percent in August. The Reno-Sparks and Carson City areas also saw declines.

The hardest bubble to see is the one you are in. We have survived the Internet bubble, later the housing bubble and the stock market, private debt and discretionary spending bubbles. You would thin...

Bob Fredlund wouldn't say the housing market is turning around, even as he waded through the sawdust of a half-built home and lauded its craftsmanship.Fredlund, a real estate agent with Coldwell...

A federal effort to pump affordable loan money into rural communities across the nation is bringing the city of Caliente a brand new pumper truck and a rescue vehicle with a mini-pumper, and not a moment too soon.

Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto and Nevada Assembly Majority Leader Marcus Conklin announced that the new ‘Foreclosure Fraud Reform’ law will take effect on October 1, 2011.

The Carson City Board of Supervisors recently awarded a residential lot in Carson City to the Sierra Nevada Community Land Trust (SNCLT).

NEWS RELEASE — With recent success guiding the approval process for major projects at Lake Tahoe, the accomplishments of law firm Feldman McLaughlin Thiel reflect a rising correlation in the spectacular mountain community between a healthy environment and a healthy economy.

It's been almost two years since I first heard about the Nugget Project.

Back then, the plan was very vague, a public-private partnership that could add up to $90 million. The city's part of this project would be a 1/8th cent sales tax increase and money from the redevelopment fund equaling approximately $25 million.

Last month's report from Business Insider ranking Carson City No. 1 in the nation for best housing markets over the next five years, didn't particularly surprise Sandi Smith.Smith, a Realtor wit...

By Kristi Boosman
LAKE TAHOE — A federal judge has dismissed a suit against the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency and the Sierra Colina project that was brought on by the League to Save Lake Tahoe.

Job, jobs, jobs. We are told that is what we need to fix our ailing economy.

With an unemployment rate above 9 percent, we do need more jobs. But there's a better chance of getting Sarah Palin to pose naked for a PETA anti-fur ad than there is of getting any kind of job-creating bill through a Congress held hostage by deficit-obsessed Tea Party Republicans.

Carson City authorities arrested a 22-year-old transient on Saturday after a car chase went through residential neighborhoods before ending up crashing into a concrete barrier.

Tyler S. Norman faces felony charges of eluding a police officer and vehicle grand theft. A passenger in the car, Michael Swerdling, 23, of Carson City faces a felony drug charge.

NEWS RELEASE — In a board room still crowded following a 12-hour hearing, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board voted to approve the Boulder Bay Community Enhancement Project. Four years in the planning, the project will replace the aging Tahoe Biltmore Casino in Crystal Bay, NV with an eco-friendly, mixed-use resort that will significantly reduce stormwater pollution and vehicle emissions associated with the site.