Renown Health announced recently that a new partnership with Stanford Medicine has been made.  This is truly and game change for the Reno medical arena.  It makes Northern Nevada better in a multitude of ways that our community should celebrate and strengthens the world class reputation that the Reno area is cultivating.

The area has world-class skiing and other out door recreation with miles of hiking and biking as well as attracting a world class technology sector with Telsa, Apple and Switch to just mention a few… that have moved to the Industrial park just East of Reno. Desert Research Institute and the University of Nevada, Reno’s seismology lab are among the top research institutes in our area.

Now this region has increased access to the Stanford Health Care system, including its Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, ranked last month as one of 11 exceptional children’s hospitals in the nation by U.S.News & World Report.  In the past over $40 million worth of medical care has been spent in residents seeing out-of state specialists and another $20 million on Travel, lodging and related expenses according to Renown analysis. Renown expects that academic affiliations between Renown and Stanford University will increase the number of specialists who train and provide care in Northern Nevada. More residents will be able to get care here because of telemedicine opportunities with Stanford doctors.  Nevada suffers from a doctor shortage and this opportunity is going to help the situation.  With this partnership hopefully doctors that train in our area will now stay permanently in the short and long term.

At present Renown’s Hometown Health plan insures about 135,000 people, most in Reno-Sparks. Specialty and sub-specialty care at Stanford facilities will be covered in -network by the plan. This can mean huge savings for treatment not available here for a child with cancer or anyone needing a heart transplant, for example.  Well done to all those involved in making this happen  for us who live in Reno.

Many of us might not know, but one of the oldest spa’s in Nevada is a mere 8 miles down Mount Rose Highway from Montreux and the surrounding area. The road in front of Steamboat was once the Lincoln Highway, the 1st highway built in the United States. It went as far as Chicago.  In 1849 Winnemaca war chief of the Paiute Indians stationed their winter camp along the banks of Steamboat springs.  Indians traveled as far from Mexico to come to Steamboat Springs as it was considered a Sacred Grounds and camp in the foothills of Steamboat Springs. The Indians used the hot springs to cook their pine nuts while in 1849 settles were parboiling entire oxen in the hot springs. The well at the springs was named “Chicken soup” as the water was supposed to have a taste of chicken soup.

James Cameron discovered the Springs in 1859.  A sticky, black goo on the other side of SteamBoat was to be full of gold and silver which brought many miners to the area.  In 1862 Dr Ellis built a 34 bed hospital along with 7 baht houses. He was from Austria and had studied under Sebastian Kneipp a renowned Doctor in Hydrotherapy and practiced healing with herbs.  This was the first hospital in the world outside Austria to apply theses techniques and was considered advanced for the times.  Unfortunately there was a fire and in 1863 the resort was rebuilt as was the hospital.

Mark Twain came often to the springs to soak in the hot tubs as it was thought to help with rheumatism among other ailments. Dr Ellis made a concoction called “The Wake up Jack,” mixture which Mark Twain tried and for 48 hours said his stomach had never had such a scourging and would never take it again even though he felt wonderful after the three day ordeal. Once again the buildings burnt down and now it was owned by a Mr. Cullins who severed his relationship with Dr. Ellis.  In 1873 Mr. Cullin’s fell into the hot springs while building a new bath and died within 7 days as he was boiled alive. His widow sold the springs in 1874.

In 1878 construction of the Steamboat Irrigation Canal began.  A 34 mile long ditch originated above Verdi on the Truckee river to just south of the resort.  It still functions today.  President Ulysses Grant steamed into Virginia City and stopped off at the resort.  Unfortunately an earthquake on December 10th 1900 caused the hot Springs to dry up.  In 1918 Dr. Edna J Carver took possession and drilled new wells resulting in a sprouting 30 ft geyser, ending the dry spell.   The Spa was plagued by fire many times and in 1974 it was placed under the national Historical Register and a marker was placed along US Highway 395 S.  In March of 1996 the spa was reopened to the public and is run by a non-profit organization  – International Community of Christ, Church of the second Advent.

The waters at the Spa have a generous amount of minerals in them.  To mention a few, Silica, Sodium, Lithia and Lithium.  I have personally been many times and really enjoy the warm water and its healing power.  The Spa is located at 16010 S. Virginia street, Reno NV 89521 and the phone number is 775-853-6600.  www.steamboatsprings.org.

During our recent downturn , the recession also affected the commercial real estate in Reno.  Industrial, office, and retail were not immune to what is called today the worst recession in Nevada’s history. The good news is that with Northern Nevada seeing increased economic activity, including the arrival of some high-profile companies, commercial real estate in the region is seeing a rising tide effect, according to industry watchers.

Some of the companies that once existed are no longer around anymore, like Circuit City and Good Guys. Vacancy for retail in Reno-Sparks peaked at 17.3 percent in the first quarter of 2013, according to commercial real estate service firm CBRE Inc. Since then, the vacancy rate has gone down to 12 percent in the first quarter of this year. A vacancy rate of 7 percent to 8 percent is typically considered healthy for retail. Reno’s Central/Airport market, which includes the surrounding areas of Reno-Tahoe International Airport, continues to post the highest vacancy rates in the area at 24.2 percent.

Since last year we have already exceeded the retail market with a strong first quarter in 2016 with a net absorption or available space that has been filled, totaling 192,188 square feet, according to CBRE’s latest quarterly retail report. Retail also posted one of the biggest job gains for the state in March, helping lower the state’s jobless rate to 5.8 percent for the month, according to the Department of Training, Employment and Rehabilitation.  Due to an overabundance of supply the construction of new commercial property is still stagnant, however there is a demand for improvement to existing centers such  as the  19,500 square-foot expansion at the Outlets at Sparks, also known as the Legends at Sparks Marina.

It is the Industrial segment that has really boomed in Northern Nevada.  What with Telsa Giga-factory and Switch’s Super NAP-the world’s largest data center once finished, as well as the news that Rackspace is looking at our area, has given our area a much needed boost on the technology side as well as some corporate cred. Dermody Properties, for example, has broken new ground on its LogistiCenter I-80 West speculative project at the Boomtown area just behind Cabela’s. The 800,000-square-foot project will feature four buildings and focus on tenants ranging from 30,000 to 200,000 square feet, said Eric Bennett, first vice president at CBRE. “This will be the first speculative project built in west Reno to take advantage of the mature labor market in northwest Reno and the close proximity to California,” Bennett said. Distribution accounted for 70 percent of all transactions in the fourth quarter of 2015, according to Colliers International. “At the end of the day, it’s packers and pickers,” said Greg Shutt, a vice president with Colliers International. “It’s logistics.” Bennett also pointed to sizable expansions such as ITS Logistics’ 625,500-square-foot facility and pet item supplier Chewy.com’s 566,600-square-foot facility, with several more announcements expected during the second quarter.

Office space has been relatively flat in 2016. Rents have been rising for the last two years consistently and it will probably take another two and a half years  for a healthy market to emerge. The three dominant markets for office in the area are downtown, Meadowood and South Meadows, each with their own niche tenants from related industries, said Tim Ruffin. ( Executive vice president at Colliers International)

Looking ahead, the trends look positive for the area, commercial real estate watchers agreed. Reno-Tahoe International Airport added several new flights and routes while also posting its first passenger growth in a decade in addition to record cargo hauls. Nevada also was the No. 2 most popular destination for movers in the West according to United Van Lines’ 2015 National Movers Study.

For Northern Nevada, a big part of it involves the national attention gained from big economic development wins such as the Gigafactory, Ruffin said.

“The whole perception of investing in Reno has changed,” Ruffin said. “The expectations from Tesla haven’t materialized yet but investors are coming in because of the perception.”

After going through the toughest recession in its history, Northern Nevada has seen its fair share of economic development victories in the years that followed. Google Express, a shopping and delivery service for participating store, launched in Reno and Las Vegas on March 15 2016.  Google with its proximity to California where Google is based, made it a natural fit for the service, according to the company. This allows residents to use the online shopping and delivery service for participating area stores. Just to mention a few of theses stores: Barnes & Nobel, Bed Bath & Beyond, Guitar Center, Gymboree, Rayley’s, REI, Smart and Final, Target, Toy “R” Us, Walgreens and Whole foods. Brian Elliott, Google Express general Manger, said, ” Our goal with Google express is to offer a great shopping experience and connect people with their favorite stores.”  This will allow customers to receive their orders with overnight delivery..

Delivery costs for Google Express memberships can be free for eligible orders that meet store minimums. Deliveries that do not meet the store minimum will be charged a $3 small order fee. For two-hour time windows, deliveries start at $2.99 where available. Membership costs $10 a month and $95 per year. For non-members, delivery costs start at $4.99 for eligible orders that meet the store minimum with the same $3 small order applying for non-eligible items.  For two-hour time windows, delivery costs start at $4.99 where available.

Google Express service is available in Northern Nevada, Southern California, New York City, Boston, Chicago and Washington D.C.  Once again The Biggest Little City in the World has done it again.

I encourage you to all watch the New Nevada.   We have come a long way since the first Arch was installed in 1926 with the words, “The Biggest Little City in the world” to promote the Nevada Transcontinental Highway Exposition that ran from July 25 to August 1, 1927, which celebrated the completion of the Lincoln and Victory Highways.

On another note the unemployment rate dropped to 5.9 percent for the first time in eight years in Nevada since April 2008. The national rate remained at 4.9 percent. “The number of Nevadans unemployed because they involuntarily lost their jobs has tumbled from nearly 120,000 when the recession was at its worst, to less than 40,000 over the past year,” said Gov. Brian Sandoval.  Construction was the hardest hit sector during the recession and continues to lead the state in terms of percentage growth.  Trade, transportation and utility employment had the largest nominal growth this month by adding 9,9000 jobs to payrolls year-to- date, for growth rate of 4.2 percent.

The oldest cultural institution in the state of Nevada, the Nevada Museum of Art was founded in 1931 as the Nevada Art Gallery by Dr. James E. Church, a Professor of German and Classics at the University of Nevada, Reno. In 1988, the E.L. Wiegand Foundation provided the Museum with a new 15,000 sq. ft. facility and the institution was renamed the Nevada Museum of Art / E.L. Wiegand Gallery. Five years later, in 1993, the Museum received initial accreditation from the American Association of Museums, a credential held by less than 5 percent of the nation’s 16,000 museums. That same year marked the development of the E.L. Cord Museum School, a studio-classroom allowing its educational services to expand, and the start of an ambitious program to increase its permanent collection. In 1999, the Museum was awarded the prestigious National Award for Museum Service by the Institute for Museum and Library Services in Washington D.C. honoring outstanding museums that demonstrate a commitment to public service with innovative programs that address social, economic, or environmental issues.

It is the only nationally accredited art museum in the state, the Museum features exhibitions by national and international artists with a permanent collection of 19th through 21st century art.

Just to mention a few of the past exhibitions that have been at the museum: Frida Kahlo: her Photos, A Real Van Gogh?: An Unsolved Art World Mystery, Celebrate Art of the Tiffany Era: Three unique exhibitions and Andy Warhol’s Dream America.

The Nevada Museum of Art is proud to present to our community The Horse, a comprehensive exhibition detailing the enduring bond between horses and humanity. The exhibition explores early interactions between horses and humans and portrays how horses have, over time, influenced civilization through advancements in warfare, trade, transportation, agriculture, sports, and many other facets of human life. The exhibition was created by leading scholars and scientists at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Dioramas, skeletal mounts, fossils, cultural artifacts from around the world, and interactive computerized modules – will draw visitors into the world of the horse as never before. An immersive multi-media experience, The Horse explores our history, inter-dependence, and emotional connection with this remarkable animal.  I so enjoyed the exhibition which will appeal to all ages.

There is also a small section which introduces a person to horses in the American West. Joel Nelson’s poem, ” Equus Cabuallus,” is displayed on the wall and a video of him reciting it.  Nevada has the largest amount of wild horses in the United States.  You can see a selection of Historical and contemporary paintings, photographs, and sculptural works drawn from private collectors and the Museum’s permanent collection.  Explore the significance and impact of horses in Nevada’s settlement and culture.

The Museum is located at 160 West Liberty Street in downtown Reno. Phone number is 775.329.3333. Webiste is:   www.nevadaart.org

The housing market has been improving statewide throughout Nevada, and we expect around 50,000 people to arrive to the area in the next five years, according to the Nevada Association of Realtors. Prices have rebounded to just over half of pre-recession highs. Foreclosures and short sales have dropped to 6% in the two major cities combined markets. Demand has finally caught up to the supply and now it is getting harder and harder to find available homes. Residential development is still possible in Nevada due to its diverse landscape. From high desert surrounding Reno to the lush pine forests of neighboring Lake Tahoe, the natural sights are sure to please many. A typical Reno home now sales for $299,250, nearly double the price from the city’s recession low in January 2010 when homes fetched a meager $167,000, according to data from the Northern Nevada Regional multiple listing services. Luxury prices in Reno soared 20% year over year, according to special report on luxury sales release by Redfin last month. The Seattle-based brokerage firm says that average luxury home in Reno sales at around $1.1 million – cheaper than nearby San Francisco, where the average price for a luxury estate is $5.9 million. One has to remember that San Francisco is a mere 1 hour flight away and a 3 1/2 drive. Jet Blue now has a direct flight from Reno to New York as well.

Nevada is going under a transformation and there are more than just electric car companies that are a part of it. Dozens of companies have begun to move their operations to the state, many to the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center. Wal-Mart also has a 1 million-sqft. distribution facility there. Also located in TRIC is Las Vegas-based Switch and their data center, the largest in the world once it is completed. The Amazon distribution center and the Apple data center are also additions to the Reno community. A Palo Alto-based company, Tesla is building its $5 billion, 10 million-sqft. Gigafactory in northern Nevada in order to produce the lithium ion batteries that run their vehicles.

The Economic Development of Western Nevada (EDAWN) is continuing to focus its efforts on stimulating business, which thereby increases visitor count. Please watch this new video produced by Edawn on THE NEW NEVADA. The RSCVA has partnered with EDAWN, UNR, the City of Reno and the Regional Transportation Commission in order to market the region at a national level. There has also been increased awareness to the region due to newly added air services to and from Reno. For example, in June Southwest will begin nonstop Reno flights to and from Orange County. In addition to these, Reno-Tahoe has seen a snowy winter that has attracted ski bums from all over and promises a high water level on Lake Tahoe for summer adventures like rafting, kayaking, boating and water sports.

In 2015 housing prices skyrocketed in Northern Nevada.  Northern and Southern Nevada are battling neck and neck for fastest growing region.  Prices are almost back to what they were in 2005. Nevada had a 4.5 percent job growth in 2015, according to the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. Northern Nevada is expecting close to 10,000 new jobs per year according to DETR and the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada Projections.

There is no doubt that the employment increase is due in part to the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center, the largest Industrial Center in the world.

Tahoe Reno Industrial Center (TRIC) is a massive 107,000 acre park that encompasses a developable 30,000 acre industrial complex with pre-approved industrial and manufacturing uses. The uniqueness of the park and the county in which it resides is outlined in a recent article (click here)

Located nine (9) miles east of Reno on I-80, in a pro-growth Nevada county, the four 5,000 acre phases now available for development include:

• Rail serviced sites
• Municipal water and sewer utility companies
• High pressure gas to all sites
• Five (5) generating power plants on site with more than 900 megawatts of electrical power available to all park users

According to the Builders Association of Northern Nevada the housing inventory if far below demand. A healthy market has 6 months worth of houses to supply buyers and we have slightly less than 3 months available. This is why we are continuing to see rising housing prices as demand increases faster than supply.  The rental market has increased as well with the median rental price at an all time high of $946 per month, according to real estate website Zillow. Rentals are also expected to increase this year despite new developments. A similar lack of Multi-Family inventory and land is causing a rental crises in the region and raising prices.

During the next 5 years, housing prices are expected to increase another 6 % in Nevada, according to a December 2015 report by CoreLogic, a financial services and real estate consulting firm.  Similar percentages are also expected all over the country. However not everyone agrees they will go up that high. The Reno/Sparks prices might remain flat or rise more slowly, according to BANN forcast. A sudden increase of housing units, both single or multi-family would also change the supply in the region and affect prices.

Industry analyst Brian Bonnenfant said he’s “definitely” seeing real recovery in the region’s long suffering housing sector.  April home prices jumped more than 20 percent compared with last year in the Reno/Sparks market, according to a report.  Once again we believe this is true due to the inventory of for-sale homes being so limited.  As a result this has also affected New home sales.  About 300 new homes were sold, a 150 percent increase, compared to the first quarter of 2012, said Bourdeau, who is a real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty Group One.

As a result of what is happening to the market in the Reno/Sparks area, we have seen a drop in the unemployment to fall below 10%, down from 14% during the recession.  Washoe County’s taxable sales have also increased for three consecutive months in Nevada.  We also had the highest home appreciation in the nation at 24.5 percent.

In little more than 2 years, Washoe’s median sales price has risen more than 60 percent from its recession low of $135,000 in January 2012, but it is still well below the pre-recession high of $350,000 in the third quarter of 2005. Today the median sales price of a home is $222,000 in the Reno area.  Washoe median sales price is $218,000 and Sparks is $195,000.  Many buyers now have higher qualifications guidelines and we are seeing tons of cash where last time there were a lot of people who really should’t have been buying.

With low inventory of homes for sale and a growing buyers market we expect to continue this trend.  This might be the right time for sellers to consider listing their homes.  In Montreux we are seeing lots once again selling  to buyers  who cannot find a luxury home that suites them and are choosing to build their dream home.  Our inventory is so low with only 15 homes on the market at present.

For the first time the Reno’s housing market has joined the growing list across the country of metropolitan areas recovering from one of the worst housing crises in decades.  It continued to show improvement in January.  Reno has seen a 4.7 percent growth in building permits since its low in June 2009, a 12.3 percent increase in home prices since February 2012 and a 3.3 percent improvement in employment since February 2012.  All good sign’s that we are once again moving towards a healthier market.

A limited sales inventory of existing homes – has increased the median sale price, according to  the Reno/Sparks Association of Realtors February report. In January 2012 the median home price was $135,000, today it has jumped to $182.500.  It has also been noted that over 4,000 new Reno/Sparks homeowners no longer had “underwater” attached to their homes during the fourth quarter of 2012, according to a report released Tuesday by analytic firm Corelogic.  Negative equity, also known as being “underwater” or “upside down, means that the homeowner owes more than their home than it is worth.

Nevada’s state attorney general and the head of a Las Vegas nonprofit consumer counseling agency unveiled a program and an advertising campaign on Monday aimed at giving distressed  homeowners facing foreclosure a free one-stop place to seek counseling, referrals and legal support.   This program is to help those residents facing foreclosure or have lost their homes, as well as those seeking loan modifications or who are current but underwater on their home loans.  It will also help people who are working toward home ownership.  Money for the Home Again program comes from $57 million Nevada received from five of the nation’s largest banks as part of a national foreclosure settlement last February.

Residential real estate is improving and builders’ forecast looks more positive.  After 5 years of almost no construction more buildings are now going up in the Reno/Sparks area. With more demand for new  homes expected in 2013 residential real estate experts are more hopeful that  perhaps we have hit bottom and that we are turning around to a more positive future. With limited existing homes and a low inventory on the market, builders are seriously considering once again to start building more homes is our area.

The area saw a 65% increase in new home sales in 2012.  Spanish Springs, south Reno and north west Reno showed the most construction activity in 2012 and that trend is expected to continue this year, with an estimated of 925 new homes sales and 950 permits. In Montreux alone we have approximately 7 new homes being built at present, with 23 home sales in 2012, up from 2011,  and only 26 homes on the market at present, we are in a situation were  inventory is low and demand is up.

Nevada had the second-highest home foreclosure rate in the nation last year, but in the longer term, the state’s is now showing improvement. For the first time in 5 years Nevada is not at the top in terms of foreclosure filings, taking second place behind Florida.  This was reported in tracker RealtyTrac 2012 report.  Additionally, Nevada’s rate reflects a 56.5% decline from 2011 and more than 70 percent drop from 2010.

The commercial real estate  market is likely to see a slower recovery as no new construction is expected with the excess of inventory already in the Reno/Sparks market.  They predict it will continue to be slow but steady.

Governor Brian Sandoval believes the table has turned and there is light at the end of the tunnel for Nevada.  With unemployment   lower than it has been in over three years and falling faster than almost every other state in the nation.   With Education taking budget priority.   $300 million, will be allotted to three areas – K-12 education, higher education and the Department of Health and Human Services.  There is no doubt in my mind that Nevada is still a great place to live!