Real eState
Why Mark Wahlberg and the ‘CSI’ Creator Are Buying Into Vegas’ Luxury Real Estate Boom
“We are thankful for the Californians because you are helping our market,” says real estate agent Trish Nash, of Douglas Elliman. “What started all this was COVID. We started to see people make lifestyle changes and really take a look at what their living situation was. And we started to see this influx of buyers from California, and it was just absolutely crazy.”
The craze for luxury homes continues. Las Vegas recorded its highest number of $1 million-plus sales in the first quarter of 2023, though median home sale prices have declined recently to around $415,000, after peaking in 2022 at $482,000. (In contrast, the current median sales price for a home in Los Angeles is around $980,000.)
It’s no longer just a place for Strip regulars like Wayne Newton and Donny and Marie Osmond; a new pack of power players led by Mark Wahlberg are relocating to Las Vegas, the land of no individual state income tax and lower-cost living. Nevada also has one of the country’s lowest property tax rates, at 0.55 percent, per Business Insider.
Last year, Wahlberg sold his 20-bedroom mansion in Beverly Park for $55 million and bought into the exclusive Summit Club in the Summerlin community, where he purchased a $14.5 million townhome and has also acquired a $15.6 million 2.5-acre lot. Wahlberg is also planning to build a production studio in the city. In March, he told Fox News it was “absolutely” his goal to turn Vegas into an entertainment industry center: “We’re looking to create 10,000 jobs in the studio alone. We want to train people both in front of and behind the camera, create jobs, most importantly, first and foremost, for locals … And then, after that, I think we can attract a lot of people. The housing market is great.” He’s also said that his family loves living there: “The kids are really happy, and it’s all about them.”
Concurs real estate agent Melissa Tomastik, of The Agency, “The value of the dollar stretches considerably farther in Las Vegas. Several of our clients have expressed that their real estate investment in Las Vegas equates to what they would have otherwise allocated toward taxes.”
CSI creator Anthony Zuiker — who grew up in Las Vegas and recently purchased a $6 million home in the suburb of Henderson — has seen the town go from a mob hangout to a first-class city. “We’re into the next level of professional sports, the A’s baseball, the Raiders, some really high-end, $2 billion Sphere, hotels, Resorts World,” he tells THR. “It’s definitely gone into a more fashion-forward direction.” The city will also welcome the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix in November and host the 2024 Super Bowl.
Some are buying because they have soured on California. Earlier this year, outspoken conservative Superman actor Dean Cain (who has said he opposes California’s fiscal, crime and homelessness policies) purchased a $3.9 million, five-bedroom modern contemporary in a gated community in Henderson. And venture capitalist Marc Andreessen — while continuing to own a record-breaking $177 million Malibu spread as well as a Tuscan-style mansion in Atherton, California — purchased a $36.2 million, 4.47-acre lot in The Summit Club in 2021. Last year, he tweeted, “Like Rome in maybe 250 A.D., we live amidst an enormous flowering of culture and creativity, but the roads are becoming unsafe and nobody is quite sure why.”=
Other recent celeb real estate deals include Celine Dion’s sale in May of an estate in The Summit Club for $30 million (she still owns a $5 million home in Lake Las Vegas) and Oscar De La Hoya’s purchase of a $14.5 million mansion in Henderson in 2022.
Developers are doubling down on the new Vegas cachet. Gated communities like The Summit Club, MacDonald Highlands, The Ridges and Ascaya offer the luxury and security of Los Angeles without the sticker shock. “It feels like Las Vegas is just getting started from a growth perspective. Because of the influx of people we’ve had from other states, the luxury market has been continuously growing,” says agent Ivan Sher of IS Luxury, adding that, “We have a new playing field of sophistication and architecture and design.”
The Four Seasons brand has also bought into the trend, with the Four Seasons Private Residences set to open in early 2026. And it seems that bet is paying off — of the 176 residences, which start at $3.5 million and go up to $29 million, 48 are already under contract, exceeding expectations. A home in The Summit Club is currently on the market for $23.5 million; listed with Coldwell Banker’s Lillie Shines, the 9,800-square-foot house features nine bedrooms (five in a private, attached casita) and an outdoor kitchen with pizza oven and bar on a parcel of just over one acre.
For decades, Las Vegas was where Zuiker escaped on the weekends, after spending his week working in Los Angeles. But now he’s living and working in Vegas full time, flying into Southern California for events. “I think things have flipped,” Zuiker says, “in terms of where we’re working and where we’re spending our weekends.”
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TORONTO – The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board says home sales in October surged as buyers continued moving off the sidelines amid lower interest rates.
The board said 6,658 homes changed hands last month in the Greater Toronto Area, up 44.4 per cent compared with 4,611 in the same month last year. Sales were up 14 per cent from September on a seasonally adjusted basis.
The average selling price was up 1.1 per cent compared with a year earlier at $1,135,215. The composite benchmark price, meant to represent the typical home, was down 3.3 per cent year-over-year.
“While we are still early in the Bank of Canada’s rate cutting cycle, it definitely does appear that an increasing number of buyers moved off the sidelines and back into the marketplace in October,” said TRREB president Jennifer Pearce in a news release.
“The positive affordability picture brought about by lower borrowing costs and relatively flat home prices prompted this improvement in market activity.”
The Bank of Canada has slashed its key interest rate four times since June, including a half-percentage point cut on Oct. 23. The rate now stands at 3.75 per cent, down from the high of five per cent that deterred many would-be buyers from the housing market.
New listings last month totalled 15,328, up 4.3 per cent from a year earlier.
In the City of Toronto, there were 2,509 sales last month, a 37.6 per cent jump from October 2023. Throughout the rest of the GTA, home sales rose 48.9 per cent to 4,149.
The sales uptick is encouraging, said Cameron Forbes, general manager and broker for Re/Max Realtron Realty Inc., who added the figures for October were stronger than he anticipated.
“I thought they’d be up for sure, but not necessarily that much,” said Forbes.
“Obviously, the 50 basis points was certainly a great move in the right direction. I just thought it would take more to get things going.”
He said it shows confidence in the market is returning faster than expected, especially among existing homeowners looking for a new property.
“The average consumer who’s employed and may have been able to get some increases in their wages over the last little bit to make up some ground with inflation, I think they’re confident, so they’re looking in the market.
“The conditions are nice because you’ve got a little more time, you’ve got more choice, you’ve got fewer other buyers to compete against.”
All property types saw more sales in October compared with a year ago throughout the GTA.
Townhouses led the surge with 56.8 per cent more sales, followed by detached homes at 46.6 per cent and semi-detached homes at 44 per cent. There were 33.4 per cent more condos that changed hands year-over-year.
“Market conditions did tighten in October, but there is still a lot of inventory and therefore choice for homebuyers,” said TRREB chief market analyst Jason Mercer.
“This choice will keep home price growth moderate over the next few months. However, as inventory is absorbed and home construction continues to lag population growth, selling price growth will accelerate, likely as we move through the spring of 2025.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
HALIFAX – A village of tiny homes is set to open next month in a Halifax suburb, the latest project by the provincial government to address homelessness.
Located in Lower Sackville, N.S., the tiny home community will house up to 34 people when the first 26 units open Nov. 4.
Another 35 people are scheduled to move in when construction on another 29 units should be complete in December, under a partnership between the province, the Halifax Regional Municipality, United Way Halifax, The Shaw Group and Dexter Construction.
The province invested $9.4 million to build the village and will contribute $935,000 annually for operating costs.
Residents have been chosen from a list of people experiencing homelessness maintained by the Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia.
They will pay rent that is tied to their income for a unit that is fully furnished with a private bathroom, shower and a kitchen equipped with a cooktop, small fridge and microwave.
The Atlantic Community Shelters Society will also provide support to residents, ranging from counselling and mental health supports to employment and educational services.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Housing affordability is a key issue in the provincial election campaign in British Columbia, particularly in major centres.
Here are some statistics about housing in B.C. from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s 2024 Rental Market Report, issued in January, and the B.C. Real Estate Association’s August 2024 report.
Average residential home price in B.C.: $938,500
Average price in greater Vancouver (2024 year to date): $1,304,438
Average price in greater Victoria (2024 year to date): $979,103
Average price in the Okanagan (2024 year to date): $748,015
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Vancouver: $2,181
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Victoria: $1,839
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Canada: $1,359
Rental vacancy rate in Vancouver: 0.9 per cent
How much more do new renters in Vancouver pay compared with renters who have occupied their home for at least a year: 27 per cent
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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