December 24, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Buck Wargo
Summerlin re-emerged in the national spotlight in 2016, and developers of the 26-year-old master-planned community are relishing the role it will play in Southern Nevada over the next two decades.
The community projects it will end 2016 with 650 new home sales, its most since the Great Recession and cementing a No. 1 ranking in the Las Vegas Valley. Executives of The Howard Hughes Corp., who said Summerlin will sell even more homes in 2017, have outlined a two-pronged strategy to grow market share in the future by not only offering even higher-end homes on hillside lots but smaller and more affordable housing in the flatlands.
December 5, 2016 | Las Vegas Sun | Jackie Valley
The Clark County Stadium Authority Board met for the first time Monday and began laying the groundwork for governing the planned 65,000-seat facility that could house an NFL franchise.
As its inaugural action, the Stadium Authority hired local firm Applied Analysis to handle the board’s administrative and research functions for one year. Per terms of the employment agreement, Applied Analysis will bill the board for hours worked by its staff — not to exceed $25,000 per month.
It’s a familiar name to those involved with the stadium project. Applied Analysis, whose principal is Jeremy Aguero, staffed the Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee, the body that vetted resort corridor projects, including the proposed stadium, earlier this year.
December 1, 2016 | Vegas Inc. | Adam Candee
Home rental prices continue to trend upward in Southern Nevada, even as home purchase prices experience a seasonal lull.
Research firm Applied Analysis shows a 16th consecutive quarter of growth in average apartment rents in the Las Vegas Valley in the third quarter. Average rent per unit stands at $918 per month for the most recent quarter, representing an increase of 1.1 percent from the second quarter and a year-over-year jump of 8 percent.
November 23, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Nicole Raz
Nevadans overwhelmingly voted for ballot Question 4, which would exempt certain medical equipment from the sales tax, on Nov. 8. Jeremy Aguero with Applied Analysis said that was a mistake.
“I think this is a wonderful idea,” Aguero said. “But this is the wrong way to do it.”
The measure requires lawmakers to exempt oxygen machines, hospital beds, wheelchairs and other medical equipment prescribed by a health provider from state sales tax, which currently stands at 6.85 percent. Because it is a proposed constitutional amendment, approval requires passage by voters again in 2018.
November 23, 2016 | Nevada Business | Greg Ferraro
Las Vegas - Applied Analysis, a leading advisory services firm, announced the company has promoted three of its Analysts to Senior Analyst positions. Senior Analysts generally have at least two years of work experience within the firm and demonstrate their ability to take on senior roles on a wide range of client assignments.
Read More »November 14, 2016 | Las Vegas Business Press | Buck Wargo
Commercial development is bouncing back in Henderson, led by a resurgence in industrial projects to meet the needs of employers expanding or relocating to Southern Nevada.
Through the end of September, Henderson issued $140.7 million in permits for commercial projects. That’s double the $72 million issued through the same period in 2015.
The amount of construction reported by the city through the end of its fiscal year June 30 totals more than 3 million square feet of permits. By comparison, there were 652,153 square feet of construction permits in the year ending June 2013.
Industrial development is leading the way, and based on the statistics from research firm Applied Analysis, that shouldn’t be a surprise. Henderson reported the lowest industrial vacancy rate in the valley at 4.1 percent compared to a valleywide average of 7 percent, said Applied Analysis Principal Brian Gordon.
November 9, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Buck Wargo
Two years after moving into space at Downtown Summerlin, Golfsmith is expected to move out by the end of the year.
The 22,600 square-foot retail store is liquidating its golf products as part of a takeover by Ohio-based Dick’s Sporting Goods, which recently won a bankruptcy auction. Reuters reported the winning bid was about $70 million.
The Las Vegas store is one of several dozen that will be closed or are already closed. The deal reportedly included the liquidation of all but 30 of Golfsmith’s 109 stores in the U.S.
November 8, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Dan Michalski
A re-emergence of orange construction cones, reflective safety vests and rerouted walkways on Las Vegas Boulevard might suggest a building surge in Clark County.
But a new report reveals that apparent growth is hardly indicative of a coming boom — even though experts contend construction activity is showing many positive indicators on the economic horizon.
The latest numbers from Dodge Data and Analytics, a New York-based business intelligence firm specializing in the construction industry, show a 28 percent decrease in both residential and non-residential construction projects getting underway in September 2016 as compared to September 2015.
Cumulatively, according to Dodge’s year-to-date numbers through September, Clark County has seen $3.093 billion in construction projects get underway in 2016. That number is up slightly from $3.077 billion in 2015, representing an increase of just more than a half percent.
This half-percent rise comes from residential construction consisting of both single-family and multi-family dwellings, which has grown 15 percent — from $1.54 billion to $1.77 billion — while non-residential construction saw a decline of 14 percent, from $1.53 billion to $1.32 billion.
Brian Gordon, principal at Las Vegas-based Applied Analysis, cautions that the nonresidential numbers could be somewhat misleading, pointing out that 2015 saw something of a spike in part because of T-mobile Arena’s construction, which carried a $150 million permit valuation.
November 7, 2016 | Las Vegas Business Press | Buck Wargo
The recession may be long passed in Las Vegas, but don’t tell that to some commercial property owners, especially in the office market.
Reports show overall, the office market is steadily recovering; however, some 10-year loans made before the Great Recession are coming due this year and in 2017. That is putting some pressure on property owners who may not be able to refinance because values have not recovered enough.
Trepp, the New York-based data and analytics firm, reported that a loan behind the office complex, The Park at Spanish Ridge has been sent to special serving due to an imminent maturity default.
The $24.4 million note, which represents 3.41 percent of the remaining collateral behind the office park in the southwest valley, is slated to mature in November, said Sean Barrie, a research analyst at Tripp.
October 31, 2016 | KCLV-TV | Nancy Byrne
Read More »October 5, 2016 | Las Vegas Sun | Megan Messerly
If Las Vegas builds an NFL-ready stadium, the vehicles rolling into town and planes touching down at the airport could hint at the local dollars it’s generating.
They’ll be carrying tourists who planned a Las Vegas getaway around the chance to see their favorite football team, music superstar or boxing match. They’re “incremental visitors,” a technical term for new tourists who wouldn’t otherwise have come to the city, and they’re at the heart of the stadium gamble.
September 20, 2016 | The Spectrum | David DeMille
Utah elected leaders may not understand how much they're being asked to subsidize southwest Utah for the cost of the Lake Powell Pipeline, according to an analysis released Tuesday by a pair of economists from the University of Utah.
The state as a whole is being asked to pay for more than two-thirds of the pipeline project, according to a cutting critique authored by economists Gabriel Lozada and Gail Blattenberger in their analysis of a financing model used in meetings between local political figures and the Washington County Water Conservancy District.
September 8, 2016 | 13 Action News | Jon Ralston
Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis and Las Vegas Sands Chairman Sheldon Adelson met for three hours Wednesday in Las Vegas with more than a dozen people to discuss a deal on the proposed stadium, KTNV has learned.
The sit-down at the Clark County building was called by Commissioner Steve Sisolak, a member of the Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee, on the eve of the panel's meeting to discuss a new draft of a bill to be sent to state lawmakers. Other gaming executives attended the meeting as did fiscal advisers to the SNTIC to help draft a compromise.
September 5, 2016 | Las Vegas Business Press | Buck Wargo
When it comes to apartments in Las Vegas today, it’s all about luxury, high-end units, and The Calida Group is betting on it.
Residents have started moving into the first luxury apartments built in Summerlin in a decade. Constellation is a 124-unit, three-story, gated development in Downtown Summerlin, the 1.6-million-square-foot retail, dining, office and entertainment complex next to Red Rock Resort.
It’s considered to have the highest rents in Las Vegas for a complex built exclusively for renters. And its developer, The Calida Group, which is doing this one project with The Howard Hughes Corp. in a joint venture, has several other high-end projects under construction or in the planning stages. It opened one luxury apartment community this past year in Henderson, and another opened in the spring. Both are getting leased rapidly.
August 22, 2016 | Las Vegas Business Press | Buck Wargo
Homebuilders looking for land to construct high-end homes are driving up prices in the valley, which during the second quarter reached the highest level in eight years.
Research firm Applied Analysis reported that during the second quarter that ended in June the valley’s vacant land market reached its greatest average price per acre since 2008. The $367,947 per acre or $8.45 per square foot price was reached despite there being no resort transactions during the second quarter. Those are deals at higher price points that tend to skew the average.
Overall, land prices during the second quarter rose 16.3 percent from the first quarter and rose 10.9 percent from the second quarter of 2015, Applied Analysis reported.
August 15, 2016 | Las Vegas Business Press | Jeffery Meehan
A strengthening local economy has been helping push improvements in Las Vegas’ single-family home market, while the past troubles of the recession continue to dilute the local sector.
The local job market has come a long way in the past several years, though the Clark County unemployment rate of 6.8 percent in June still lagged behind the national rate of 4.5 percent, as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. But this pales in comparison to the peak local rate of about 14 percent in 2010.
Improvement in the overall economy increases the number of potential homebuyers, as more dollars become available for buyers to qualify for loans, experts said.
August 5, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Alexander S. Corey
Nevada officials reported in June that the Las Vegas metro area had added more than 26,000 jobs since last summer.
The Review-Journal talked to three Nevadans who got jobs this year in order to get a snapshot of some of those benefiting from the economic recovery.
Kimberly Hopkins, 46, was born and raised in Las Vegas. She remembers the recession vividly and is all too familiar with its aftershock.
Hopkins, who has worked for small local businesses over the last two decades, said the economic downturn affected how much those businesses could hire. After working at a local market and cafe over the last 10 years, Hopkins found herself out of work more than once after employers were forced to close their doors.
July 30, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Blake Apgar
After years of struggling, downtown Las Vegas’ Neonopolis retail center is starting to see brighter days.
Neonopolis, a dining and entertainment development in downtown Las Vegas, is slowly filling long-standing vacancies.
Rohit Joshi, the property’s owner, said the rebound is coming at the right pace.
“It is good it’s slow because it will be done properly,” Joshi said.
The building was completed in 2002 for $100 million. Joshi purchased it four years later for a quarter of the cost.
July 29, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Alexander S. Corey
A housing development that got sidetracked by the recession is back on track.
The Villages at Tule Springs — the largest housing development in North Las Vegas since the start of the recession — has its first three builders lined up.
KB Home and Pardee Homes have development agreements to build in the Village Three section of the master plan while CalAtlantic Homes already owns parcels there.
“If everything stays on track, we are looking to have homes go vertical in early first quarter of 2017,” said Bob Gronauer of the Kaempfer Crowell law firm, which represents the development’s owners.
July 28, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Richard N. Velotta
The Bali Hai Golf Club has emerged as a potential site for a 65,000-seat domed stadium, joining four other sites as leading locations for the project.
The number of sites under serious consideration for the project narrowed at Thursday’s Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee meeting.
Development partners Las Vegas Sands, Majestic Realty and the Oakland Raiders told committee members they have made initial contact with the operators of the 18-hole golf course south of the Mandalay Bay resort about the possibility of building
July 23, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Nicole Raz
Clark County is losing money from its own franchise agreement with Republic Services, the only waste-disposal company allowed to collect municipal solid waste from county businesses.
Under a 1993 franchise agreement between the county and what is now the Republic Services-owned Apex landfill, the county receives 4 percent of gross monthly revenue from tipping fees, or the fee of dumping waste into Apex landfill.
But many other waste collection and hauling companies are choosing to drive two and half hours to a landfill in Lincoln County rather than use Apex because they say Republic’s tipping fee is too high.
As a result, Clark County gets less revenue — though how much is unclear.
July 15, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Nicole Raz
The commercial retail sector, the commercial office market and the industrial market are gaining momentum in Southern Nevada, second-quarter market data show.
The Las Vegas retail market saw a drop in vacancy rates compared to this time one year ago, from 11 percent to 10.3 percent.
“It reflects continued interest in the retail market,” said Brian Gordon, a principal at Applied Analysis. “There’s a way to go before we get back to pre-recession levels, but the reality is the market is just different than it once was.”
July 6, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Matthew Crowley
David Copperfield now has an asset he probably won’t saw in half or levitate or make disappear, although he might disappear into it.
Clark County assessor’s office records show the famous illusionist bought a 31,000-square-foot house at 1625 Enclave Court in Summerlin for $17.55 million. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Nevada Properties’ luxury team, Shapiro & Sher Group, which represented both the buyer and seller in the purchase, announced the home’s sale Wednesday.
The Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors said the price was the highest ever paid for a Las Vegas home. For perspective, the same $17.55 million could buy about 76 homes at the $229,250 average median price the association said local existing single-family homes sold for in May.
July 1, 2016 | Grand Rapids Business Journal | Pat Evans
The future impact of Switch Ltd.’s SuperNAP in West Michigan has yet to be determined, but a Nevada economist said the company’s Las Vegas facilities have been transformative.
In a community dependent on tourism, Switch helped start a southern Nevada technology boom, said Jeremy Aguero, principal at Las Vegas-based economic firm Applied Analysis.
“We have the narrowest economic base of any major metro area,” Aguero said. “Hotels and casinos are more important to us than automotive in Detroit or aeronautics in Seattle and similar to government in Washington.
June 23, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Richard N. Velotta
A new financing plan that reduces public funding for a $1.4 billion domed stadium from $700 million to $550 million received a lackluster response Thursday from the Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee.
The stadium’s development partners, Las Vegas Sands Corp., Majestic Realty and the Oakland Raiders, also seemed wary of the revised plan, noting they got their first look at it late Wednesday afternoon. The NFL’s Raiders have vowed to seek relocation from Oakland to Las Vegas if the stadium is approved.
The cool response to the plan, unveiled by committee Chairman Steve Hill and financial analyst Jeremy Aguero, and the committee’s lack of progress on the proposal Thursday puts additional pressure on the panel to deliver a recommendation to Gov. Brian Sandoval and state lawmakers by the end of July. The committee also must formalize a recommendation on funding for the expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center within a month.
June 16, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Art Marroquin
In the wake of a scathing audit alleging Clark County’s taxi passengers paid excessive fees, a legislative subcommittee on Thursday recommended that the agency regulating Southern Nevada’s taxicab industry be merged with the larger Nevada Transportation Authority to create a new statewide oversight department.
The state Legislature could decide the matter during the next legislative session, set to begin in February.
The move comes after the Executive Branch Audit Committee determined in January that taxi riders were overcharged $47 million annually, and recommended that the Nevada Taxicab Authority be folded under the authority of the Nevada Transportation Authority, which regulates ride-sharing companies, taxis and limos throughout the rest of the state.
June 16, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Nicole Raz
Are we back?
A principal at Applied Analysis asked — and answered — his own question Thursday on the status of Nevada’s economy.
We can accept that the Silver State’s recovery is real, he said.
“If the question is: Are we back? It seems to me that we are almost suffering from some economic version of post-traumatic stress disorder — that we just don’t want to accept the fact that almost every one of the key stats that we’re looking at are showing improvement overall,” said Jeremy Aguero, a principal at Applied Analysis, at an event sponsored by the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance at the Four Seasons.
June 2, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Buck Wargo
In a sign analysts say shows the ultrawealthy have a growing level of confidence in the Las Vegas economy, the sale of new high-end homes is on the rise, and a new luxury development in Summerlin has sold half of its lots.
The Summit Club, a 555-acre country club community, announced customers are in the process of closing on 72 of the 140 lots up for sale. With a value of $235 million, that’s an average price of $3.2 million for lots that range in price from $2 million to $10 million.
That’s on top of buyers closing on 50 new homes valued at $1 million in 2015, the most since 50 such closures in 2008 at the beginning of the recession, according to Brian Gordon, principle of Las Vegas housing research firm SalesTraq. Between 2011 and 2013, there were only a combined 13 sales of new homes valued at $1 million or more. Another official also expresses confidence.
May 27, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Richard Velotta
The Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee on Thursday dug into the details of a complex financial proposal to build a $1.4 billion domed stadium that could lure the NFL’s Oakland Raiders to Las Vegas.
The board spent about three hours examining a public-private project that would use $750 million in hotel room tax revenue as the public’s stake in the project. The proposal was presented to the committee by a partnership comprising casino operator Las Vegas Sands Corp., Majestic Realty and the Raiders.
Committee members took the information under advisement for further study as they move toward issuing recommendations at meetings in June and July. Those recommendations, due at the end of July, are nonbinding and would be forwarded to Gov. Brian Sandoval for possible consideration by the Nevada Legislature.
May 25, 2016 | Reno Gazette-Journal | Anjeanette Damon
Because of a little noticed quirk in a decade-old state law, property tax revenue relied upon by local governments can't grow along with the economy, a leading tax revenue analyst said Wednesday.
The problem means the state's largest and most stable tax revenue is not recovering along with the economy, putting continued stress on government services already scrambling to meet the needs of a growing population.
"We have created a system by which we have disconnected our property taxes from our growth in the economy, which is creating some pretty significant revenue problems across the state," Jeremy Aguero of Applied Analysis told the Reno City Council on Wednesday.
May 14, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison
As CEO of Colleen’s Classic Consignment, Kevin Aiken buys and sells furniture all day long.
So where does Aiken get his office furniture?
Why, from IKEA, of course.
“IKEA does space design extremely well, efficiently and inexpensively,” said Aiken, who splits his time between Las Vegas and Minnesota, where IKEA has a store in Bloomington. “They have something for anyone who’s furnishing a home and needs good space design, especially in nooks and crannies. That’s sort of where they specialize.”
May 10, 2016 | 13 Action News | Gina Lazara
Red Rock Resorts, Inc. has announced that Station Casinos has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas for total cash consideration of $312.5 million.
“With the acquisition of the Palms we gain a leading gaming asset in Las Vegas with key strategic benefits in the Las Vegas locals market and close proximity to the Las Vegas Strip,” said Marc Falcone, executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer of Red Rock Resorts.
April 16, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison
Southern Nevada’s construction sector started 2016 strong.
Employment spiked 8.3 percent year over year in February, as billion-dollar projects papered drawing boards across the Las Vegas Valley.
Right about now, you’re probably sighing: “Haven’t we been here before?”
Not exactly, industry observers say.
Sure, today’s building boom shares echoes of the market’s frenetic pace before 2007, when the building bust hijacked the local economy and held it hostage for half a decade.
March 31, 2016 | Las Vegas Weekly | David McKee
Exuding a coppery gleam in the Las Vegas sunlight, the new T-Mobile Arena is surely the best-looking facility of its kind in Sin City. But what kind of substantive change should we expect it to bring to the world-famous Strip?
Casino developments have slowed. The Boulevard hasn’t seen a new, ground-up resort arrival in more than five years, and the arena’s opening has generated a buzz arguably not felt since the debut of Steve Wynn’s Encore in late 2008—just before the bottom fell out of our casino-based economy. Viewed in conjunction with its companion attraction, the Park, the arena makes it clear that MGM Resorts CEO James Murren has not given up on his quest to bring New Urbanism to the Strip (see CityCenter, 2009). T-Mobile will give Murren more control over the supply-demand equation, mainly to stage events that can be seen only at the arena.
March 27, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Caitlyn Belcher
In the early 2000s, Las Vegas was on the upswing for population, employment and housing growth. But at the downturn of the recession, Southern Nevada found itself on the wrong side of the curve.
“We were ground zero for the Great Recession, and because it was so deep, our fall off the cliff was a lot farther,” said Stephen Miller, director of the Center for Business and Economic Research at UNLV. “The recovery is taking longer for us, even if we’re recovering at the same rate as other cities. It’s like climbing a tall mountain compared to a small one.”
Although at a slower rate, local economic experts and analysts agree that the Las Vegas economy should continue to improve through 2016-17.
March 27, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jan Hogan
The skies above Las Vegas were sunnier than ever right before 2008. Business was booming, and tourism rates were soaring. Times were good.
How good? In 2007, Clark County gaming revenues hit a record $10.9 billion. The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported its highest average daily room rate: $132.09, with the highest month on record in April at $146.53. According to the Nevada Department of Transportation, Interstate 15 at the Nevada-California border had seen its highest monthly average of vehicles at 50,723. At the same time, local casinos were enjoying booming business after upping the ante against other states legalizing gaming, and Las Vegas led the charge with dazzling hotels, opulent nightclubs and signature restaurants. As a result, Southern Nevada’s casino industry outpaced any other city’s.
At that time, the Brookings Institution and the London School of Economics and Political Science analyzed data from 1993-2007, ranking Las Vegas No. 14 among 150 metro areas, with the world’s 18th fastest-growing economy.
March 23, 2016 | Las Vegas Sun | Eli Segall
Las Vegas home prices went through a wild roller-coaster ride the past decade or so: they soared, crashed, shot up again, then downshifted.
Today, the ride seems almost boring. For the first time in a long time, prices are flat.
The median sales price of previously owned single-family homes — by far the bulk of Las Vegas’ for-sale housing market — has hovered around $220,000 since June. Prices still are up 7.5 percent year-over-year but have been roughly the same for the past nine months, according to the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors.
March 10, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison
What goes up …
… is still going up.
For the third straight year in 2015, every ZIP code in the Las Vegas Valley posted home-price gains, according to new numbers from local analysis firm SalesTraq.
While improvements vary from neighborhood to neighborhood, overall statistics reflect ongoing recovery from recession in one of the nation’s worst-hit housing markets.
“It follows the broader market trends we’ve seen in Southern Nevada,” said SalesTraq principal Brian Gordon. “A lot of that is tied to improving fundamentals in the economy, including positive population growth, gains in the job market and increases in incomes. Much of that has translated into a respectable run in terms of housing price appreciation in the Las Vegas area.”
February 15, 2016 | Las Vegas Business Press | Craig A. Ruark
The aphorism "A rising tide lifts all boats" seems to be the theme for Las Vegas Valley nonprofits during this first quarter of 2016.
Fresh off the Jan. 29 Preview Las Vegas event where the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce gave encouraging news about the growing local economy, the Moonridge Group held its fifth annual Philanthropy Leaders' Summit on Feb. 5.
Led by founder and CEO Julie Murray, the Moonridge Group surveyed large corporations and small businesses in Nevada to determine the amount of funds and donated time given to charities, the types of charities and causes, and the expected returns on those charity investments.
The statistical results of the survey were presented by Jeremy Aguero, principal analyst at Applied Analysis, who gave a guardedly optimistic report.
February 6, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison
Nevada's lukewarm income recovery turned hot in 2015.
After nearly a decade bringing up the nation's rear in personal-income growth, the Silver State shot to No. 3 for gains in 2015, according to a new report from the Pew Charitable Trusts.
Barb Rosewicz, director of Pew's Fiscal 50 project, which produced the report, called the reversal "intriguing."
Faster income growth also provides a long-awaited "sense of stability coming out of the recession," said Brian Gordon, a principal of local economics and research firm Applied Analysis.
Personal income matters because federal agencies use the number to allocate funding for social services, while state governments check it to set budgets.
"It's an indicator that policymakers pay attention to as a key to what demands and resources might be," Rosewicz said.
But personal income is an important private-sector measure too: Growing incomes put more money into consumers' pockets for spending that spurs the broader economy, Gordon said.
From 2007 to 2014, Nevada didn't reap those advantages.
January 24, 2016 | Las Vegas Business Press | Jeffrey Meehan
A new survey finds small business owners in Nevada give high markings to the state economy but many are concerned about the stability of the U.S. economy.
Nevada State Bank's annual small business survey, done in cooperation with Applied Analysis, found that more than half of the 400 small business owners, operators and managers surveyed thought the U.S. economy was heading in the wrong direction. That number has increased from last year's 48 percent.
In contrast, on a state level, more than 60 percent of those surveyed think Nevada's economy is moving in a positive direction. This number stayed about the same as last year's statistics.
January 12, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Buck Wargo
The first luxury apartments constructed in Summerlin in nearly a decade are slated to open in April — part of the ongoing wave of higher-end units under development and consideration in the Las Vegas Valley.
The highest profile project is Constellation, a 124-unit gated rental luxury development in Downtown Summerlin, the 1.6 million-square-foot retail, dining, office and entertainment complex that opened in October 2014 near Red Rock Resort. A two-month delay in construction pushed back the opening and pre-leasing of the units, which is set to launch in mid-February.
The Downtown Summerlin project is among more than 6,000 apartments in the valley set to come online by the end of 2016 and early 2017, said Spenser Ballif, a senior vice president at CBRE, a commercial real estate brokerage. The majority of units are considered the higher-end Class A units whose vacancy rate is about 5 percent. Apartment construction was nonexistent following the Great Recession until units finally started opening in 2014.
January 11, 2016 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Buck Wargo
In a sign of growing investment opportunities for well-positioned properties within the Las Vegas retail market, a Florida investment firm has entered the market for the first time and acquired a shopping center south of Summerlin.
The Sterling Organization, a private equity real estate investment firm based in Palm Beach, said it paid $20 million for Smith's Shopping Center, a 108,000-square-foot center anchored by Smith's Food & Drug at the northwest corner of South Fort Apache Road and West Flamingo Road. Kirkorian Enterprises previously owned the center.
January 3, 2016 | Vegas Inc. | Kimberly Pierceall
LAS VEGAS — Visit Las Vegas in 2015? Count yourself among the more than 42 million people traveling to the casino corridor last year, according to the resort's biggest travel booster.
It's a number that breaks 2014's record visitation of 41.1 million based on estimates from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
How do they know? The public agency's lead researcher isn't saying how the widely publicized number is calculated. The method is proprietary and the information competitive, said senior research manager Scott Russell. But he said the 40-year-old formula involves polling most casino-hotels directly and takes into account occupancy levels, travel habits and airline traffic among other indicators. It also tries to subtract out locals from the airline and freeway traffic figures to get a more accurate count of tourists.