[12buttons]

Hi folks! We are an 50+ married couple leaving for taxes and weather and more affordable housing. Looking for an area that is kind of green as we're used to trees, etc. Schools not an issue. 20 minutes to airport would be nice. Looking for a community close to good shopping and services...Whole Foods etc...no kiddie-villes or heavy HOA fee postage stamp lots..need around 3000 sq ft hardwood floors, newer construction transitional or redone older home.

I am a writer who prefers tranquility with a nice view maybe..the antithesis of the "strip" mentality! My husband will have to travel back to Los Angeles semi regularly, (but I don't need to be in the flight path of the airport, just somewhat commutable.)


So, if any of you kind people could offer some areas to begin our search, that would be great. I need to get something rather soon so I don't need or want the foreclosure short sale route as I understand they take a long time. But I am looking for under $100 a sq ft if possible.

Also how cold does it get? (Should I sell my fur coat?)
And does the weather change a lot from north to south?

If you have a favorite area, or one you'd love to live in, I'd love to hear your opinion. Thanks in advance!

Cheers!

[ScoopLV]

This question has been answered dozens of times.

If you want a view, you will want to live on the rim of the Las Vegas valley. The city is shaped like a lop-sided bowl. The closer you are to the mountains that ring this city, the better your view will be. (This is a generality. There are some very nice places with great views that are built on small hills that dot the interior of the valley. These places tend to be quite expensive.)

Good luck finding a house with hardwood throughout. Most places are going to have engineered-wood floors because installing real hardwood is problematic in a city where the humidity hovers in the 0-10% range. We have almost 3,000 square feet of hardwood. But it was a royal pain to install, and you'd better be fairly handy (and know a great deal about wood) if you want to go this route.

Under no circumstances should you hire a local flooring company to install hardwood. They have no idea what the proper acclimation period is. And most of them have no idea what a moisture meter does. So they install your beautiful, expensive floor. And then three months later you have gaps all over the place because the wood has shrunk so much. And if the floor is glued-down, you have no recourse but to rip up the new floor and then do the job right.

The best floor for Las Vegas in my opinion is roto-printed, porcelain tile. We have travertine, because roto-printing hadn't taken off when we installed our floor. But if I could do it over, I'd go with porcelain.

The fact that you're asking about hardwood tells me that you need to do more research about this climate.

Your lot-size requirement will answer many questions. What kind of space do you need?

North, south doesn't matter. But the west side is cooler than the east side. There is also more precipitation on the west side of town. Lows are typically in the mid-30s to mid-40s in the winter.

[aardogfsu]

Hi, NYer here too, from Guilderland (Albany)...I live in Spring Valley and love it...though anything SW of the strip is fine...I met some other upstate Nyers here from Schenectady...taxes, weather, real estate...all good reasons to move.

[irishspy]

HI 12 Buttons I am from Plattsburgh NY moved here for the same reasons. We bought on the East side 89121. 4 miles from the strip and 4 miles from the airport. 1719 SQ FT Townhouse 3 bedrooms 2 baths fireplace atrium and a 2 car garage. Gated community with 3 swimming pools and a tennis court. Near all of the stores you will need. There are many areas in LV to choose from but my advise is get a good Real Estate agent. Everyone has their own personal reasons for living where they do. I do agree about the hardwood floors a problem out here and something you may want to re think. Our HOA fees are $200.00 a month and it covers maintenance on the roofs. Our land and school taxes are about $780.00 per year so figure taxes on anyplace you buy as 1% of the assessed value. Try to get that back in NYS FAT CHANCE!!! 300 days of sunshine it has been in the 80's all week up to today but suppose to go back into the 60's next week. Lots of green in this part of town also. So good luck and keep us posted.

[Tek_Freek]

Real Estate Search | Redfin

You can zoom out and choose a different location. Sorting can be done by price per sq ft.

[aardogfsu]

No offense to those East siders, but I would definitely stay on the West side...spring valley, summerlin, enterprise. West side south of Charleston but north of blue diamond...new houses great deals, nice and safe...parts of East have crime and just seem old and dirty.

[airics]

Originally Posted by aardogfsu

No offense to those East siders, but I would definitely stay on the West side...spring valley, summerlin, enterprise. West side south of Charleston but north of blue diamond...new houses great deals, nice and safe...parts of East have crime and just seem old and dirty.

I agree.

[MollieW]

I am in the very northwest and the views abound. Was on my back porch watching the snow clouds over the mountain this am. Love it here

[lvoc]

You will find that there are nice little green half acres available in the NW,SW, SE and far East. These are generally well suited to a tranquil self contained environment with as much green as you choose. My home for instance is pretty much all green with much of the front inter-set with desert landscaping.

I agree with Scoop that hardware is a hard row to hoe in this climate. We use stone in the high use areas with carpet elsewhere. It is possible to do hard wood but it is difficult...some of the synthetics well done are a much better idea.

You can find suitable homes at the $100 level though that is a bit light for the newer or well updated ones. You might want to go smaller on the home size and a bit more on the psf.

You can buy at your target...but it will need work.

[Exaday]

What about the New York New York? It's just like NYC isn't it? You should feel right at home in that place.