A report from the Arizona Republic. "The number of Arizonans behind on their mortgages and in danger of losing their homes is at a two-year high and expected to keep climbing. Many homeowners staved off foreclosure a few years ago by refinancing to more risky adjustable-rate mortgages with lower monthly payments."

"But now, those homeowners, and the many investors who used the same mortgages to buy multiple houses, are struggling to hold on as their payments begin to increase."

"'We've just started to see the head of the monster,' said Margie O'Campo de Castillo of Arizona Dream Realty. 'There were a lot of three-year, adjustable-rate mortgages done to buy Valley homes or refinance in 2004 and 2005. Payments on those loans are about to start rising. More foreclosures will follow.'"

"Statewide, 3.51 percent of homeowners are at least one month behind on their home-loan payments, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's quarterly snapshot of the housing market. The figures are for the last three months of 2006. In Arizona, about 9.2 percent of borrowers with subprime loans are behind on their mortgage payment."

"'There will be some pain,' said Terry Turk, president of Mesa-based Sun American Mortgage. 'A lot of people are shaking their heads at the subprime loans out there.'"

In Business Las Vegas from Nevada. "The Nevada Association of Realtors has predicted a 'modest correction' in the statewide housing market in 2007 by projecting home sales will decrease 12 to 18 percent and prices will fall 7 percent to 10 percent by early 2008. The reason: too much supply and not enough demand, the association said."

"The report mentioned a high volume of speculative sales and current divestment of those assets in leading to instability. In Clark County, more than 55 percent of the 22,800 homes on the resale market in late 2006 were vacant or tenant-occupied."

"New home sales in January were down 23 percent from December and 26 percent from January 2006. 'We have anticipated drops in prices for some time because product is not moving,' said Monica Caruso, spokeswoman for the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association. 'This is Economics 101.'"

"The report cites analysts who said Las Vegas is 33 percent to 42 percent overvalued."

The Las Vegas Business Press. "Southern Nevada saw just 1,407 homes sales in February, a 21.3 drop from the previous year, reports the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors. And while there were only 5,210 new listings in February, slightly less than 12 months ago, there were still 19,639 units available for sale or 11.1 percent more than in 2006."

"Condo/townhomes saw similar results with only 277 sales in February, a 42.8 percent decrease from 2006. New listings swelled to 1,447 units, a 29.8 increase over 2006, while the number of available units ballooned to 5,524 or 34 percent more than 12 months ago."

"Realtors are responsible for 95,670 direct and indirect jobs statewide. Real estate professionals and their employees additionally generate $138.3 million in yearly state revenues, including $50.4 million in retail-sale and use taxes, $83.4 million in property taxes and $4.5 million in gambling-percentage fees. Real property-transfer taxes add an additional $165 million to state coffers."

"'Growth in the number of realtors and real estate transactions has increased tremendously during the past three years,' said Catherine Sutton Cloy, NVAR's executive vice president. 'Our clients and members expect that we keep them informed, separating hyperbole from reality.'"

The Review Journal. "Nearly $30 million in construction projects on the Strip will carry Las Vegas through the next couple years of slowed construction in the residential market, economic analyst John Restrepo said."

"Las Vegas will probably experience a continuing decline in residential building permits, which dropped to 33,000 in 2006 from a peak of 40,000 in 2005, Restrepo said. The next two years will return to the 30,000 level of 2003, he said. Construction still accounts for 12 percent of total employment, about twice the national average, (he) noted."

"Irene Porter, a member of the coalition and president of Southern Nevada Home Builders, said recent home builder layoffs reflect a slowdown in the housing sector as both builders and buyers are finding the present market 'somewhat daunting.'"

"Affordability and price stability are both industry concerns, she said."

"Restrepo said another problem on the horizon is the personal savings rate that turned negative by 1.4 percent in December. Combine that with subprime lending practices, and Restrepo said he can see why Nevada foreclosures rose to 6,900 in the fourth quarter, up from 5,800 in the previous quarter and more than double the year-ago period."

"(Nevada) State Budget Director Andrew Clinger said Tuesday that the state will have to scale back its spending because of less than expected revenue. The statement in a hearing last week that revenues will be $50 million less than expected is 'probably a conservative estimate,' Clinger said."

The Nevada Appeal. "Lyon County may have to resort to layoffs to solve its budget problems, but Human Resources Director Steve Englert said that would be a worst-case scenario."

"Englert said the county could save by laying off everyone in positions created in the last three years (except emergency); by laying off everyone in positions created in the last two years, with no exceptions; or by reducing requested overtime."

"The county's budget headache can be traced to the building slowdown, the tax cap and a 3 percent tax abatement mandated by the state, said Comptroller Josh Foli. He presented the commissioners with revenue projections and budget requests that leave the county with a $1.75 million shortfall at the end of the next fiscal year."

"Foli said the building slowdown hurt because it cost the county millions in sales tax revenue. 'The economy has slowed down in Nevada,' he said. 'It's kind of a domino effect, so our sales taxes have decreased. The real property transfer taxes decreased 27 percent from last year to this year,' he said."