Las Vegas’ housing market started 2018 looking a lot like 2017: sales and prices climbed from a year earlier as availability plunged.

The Paseos in Summerlin with the Spring Mountains in the background (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

Las Vegas’ housing market started 2018 looking a lot like the 2017 market: sales and prices climbed from a year earlier as availability plunged.

Buyers picked up 2,261 single-family homes in January, down 13.7 percent from December but up 5.5 percent from January 2017, according to a new report from the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.

The median sales price of those homes was $265,000 last month, down 1.1 percent from December but up 11.3 percent from last January.

Meanwhile, 3,718 single-family houses were on the market without offers at the end of January, down 2.8 percent from December and 36.5 percent year-over-year, according to the GLVAR.

The trade group reports data from its listing service, which largely comprises previously owned homes. Single-family houses make up the bulk of Las Vegas’ market.

Despite the year-over-year gains, the market posted month-to-month declines in January. GLVAR President Chris Bishop, a branch manager with Coldwell Banker Premier Realty, said in a news release that January is “traditionally one of the slowest months” for sales and prices and that this report “reflects that.”

Still, he expects 2018 to be “another strong year” with rising prices, according to the press release.

“It’s possible we could even do better than last year in terms of appreciation,” Bishop said.

Last year’s sales total was among the highest ever in Southern Nevada despite plunging inventory, and prices climbed at one of the fastest rates nationally.

According to the GLVAR, around 46,600 homes sold last year, up 12 percent from 2016 and the third-highest tally on record.

Single-family houses sold for a median of $267,900 in December, up 14 percent from a year earlier, and the monthly tally of new listings for such homes posted year-over-year drops nine times in 2017, GLVAR figures show.

Contact Eli Segall at esegall@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0342. Follow @eli_segall on Twitter.