Las Vegas

Bugsy Siegel was a visionary. Despite his habit of mafioso type behaviour, many people revered him.  However, I don't think Bugsy would believe what is happening now to the once open piece of desert land in south Nevada.  Las Vegas condos are going up in huge proportions.  Yes, for some, the market is at a lull and there have been projects that have not gone forward but I still cannot believe the immense Las Vegas condo developments sprouting up. 

I frequent Las Vegas roughly five to seven times per year and each time more construction cranes seem to be filling up the Strip.  (I was just in Sin City last weekend for the consumer electronics convention and some other award show at the Mandalay Bay).  I was driving down the strip on Saturday and some Las Vegas condos like Vdara (once completed) will redefine the luxury condo/hotel business. 

However, I began to wonder if the demand will meet the supply in the coming years.  There are roughly 30,000 new rooms slated to be delivered in the next few years and with our market facing a downturn, I wonder if a trip Las Vegas will be very high on the agenda for many people. I mean, Las Vegas is a town that caters to your every vice and most of these vices require excess or disposable money.  With a possible recession in the future, I doubt many people will have disposable income.  Also, with the development on Macau in Asia, this takes away from many Asian tourists visiting Las Vegas.  

In order for the upcoming supply to meet the demand, Las Vegas will need to start marketing to other parts of the world and condo developers will need to start marketing on a global scale - reaching all parts of Europe and Latin America.  This will not only help the housing market but also help Las Vegas hoteliers stay in the black on their investments.   Marketing to other parts of the world will not be as easy as some would expect as many campaigns in Vegas, although successful, focus on the fact that the US is a very conservative country - unlike many countries in Europe - and that in Las Vegas, you can be as free as you want - within reason - and it's accepted!  I am curious to see what happens in 2008 for Las Vegas condos and the city in general.