Claudia Schiffer and husband Matthew Vaughn have chosen a new Las Vegas home. Apparently they can’t live without Nobu, having selected the Las Vegas condominium development by Peter Morton adjacent to the Hard Rock Hotel. Rumor has it that Claudia and Matthew just plunked down $2.5 million for their own little piece of Las Vegas real estate. I guess it’s going to get even easier to spot celebrities at the Hard Rock Hotel. Come to think of it, so many celebrities are buying Las Vegas homes these days, it should get easier to see them everywhere that fashionable people go!

The Las Vegas Convention Center presently contains about 250,000 square feet of dedicated meeting space. This is much less than key competitors such as Chicago and Orlando, Fla., but more than rivals such as Atlanta, New York and San Francisco. As we mentioned in the Las Vegas real estate blog in January, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has been proposing to update the LVCC via renovation and expansion. Well, we’re on! The proposed $400 million expansion and renovation of the Las Vegas Convention Center received a unanimous go ahead on Tuesday. So you see, yet another facet of real estate in Las Vegas is about to expand. And you thought the market for Las Vegas homes got big fast! Wait till you see how quickly this LVCC upgrade comes to fruition. When Vegas decides to build….stuff goes up quick!

The prices of Las Vegas homes remained fairly stable in February for single-family homes as well as condominiums and townhouses, the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors reported Tuesday. The median price of single-family Las Vegas homes in February was $286,000, relatively unchanged from January but up 39.4 percent from the same month a year ago. Las Vegas condo and townhouse units showed the same trend at $180,000, a 52.5 percent increase from a year ago but unchanged from January. Real estate in Las Vegas is hardly a bursting bubble.

There’s really no way to deny it, the weather in Las Vegas has been kinda cruddy for the last 6 weeks. It really has resembled Seattle more than Vegas…..with copious amounts of rain and plenty of overcast skies. We’re happy to announce that we have come out of the funk! Las Vegas is bright and sunny with temperatures in the low 70’s and a chance of 80 degrees by Friday! If you’ve been thinking about a quick trip to check out Las Vegas real estate, now’s the time! Springtime weather is just fabulous for us. Because of the rain, golf course real estate and landscaping of every type looks especially lush and colorful. Las Vegas homes are basking in the sun and the spring flowers are just beginning to bloom. Real estate in Las Vegas is especially beautiful this time of year. Don’t wait too long….we’ll hit 100 degrees soon enough!

The Federal Reserve has been raising short-term rates at a steady clip for almost a year now. As a result, it has become more expensive to take out adjustable-rate mortgages and home equity lines of credit. Normally, long-term interest rates go up when short-term interest rates go up. Not this time, and for reasons even Alan Greenspan can’t explain fully. The rates on 10-year Treasurys (the benchmark for long-term, fixed-rate mortgages) have been drifting slightly down or moving sideways for the better part of a year. Because of this, ARMs are getting costlier while fixed-rate mortgages have been getting less expensive. Currently, rates on one-year ARMs average 4.36%, just .99 percentage points below the 5.35% rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages. If you’re in the market for real estate in Las Vegas, these are important financial issues to consider carefully with your lender. The cost of money is very inexpensive by historical standards and the value added to Las Vegas homes because of this has been significant.

The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will kick off a nine city comprehensive training program for public housing agencies (PHAs) and assisted-housing practitioners in Las Vegas on March 29. Participants will get the latest information regarding HUD information systems and will receive training to help them navigate a wide range of program areas under HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH). HUD is the federal guardian that seeks to create affordable housing opportunities for Las Vegas homes and communities across the United States. Each three-day conference is free in the following locations: Las Vegas (March 29 - April 1), Dallas (April 19-22), Cleveland (May 10-13), Denver (June 7 - 10), Boston (June 28 - July 1), Seattle (July 12 - 15) Atlanta (July 26 - 29), Milwaukee (August 9 - 12), and Washington, DC (August 30 - September 2). The Department of HUD also promotes economic and community development as well as enforces the nation’s fair housing laws. Opportunities in the market for real estate in Las Vegas and every city in America are greatly enhanced because of the efforts of HUD.

The City of Las Vegas Aquatics Program was honored at the 20th annual National Aquatics Conference by receiving the National Park Association’s “2005 Excellence in Aquatics Award”. The award is given to only ONE organization a year in the entire country with a city population of 650,000 or more. The City of Las Vegas aquatics program covers virtually everything you can do in a pool. It offers synchronized swimming classes, lifeguard training, first aid and lifesaving training, water safety and lifeguard training for instructors, learn-to-swim classes, water aerobics, arthritis water exercise, Boy Scout merit badge training in swimming and aquatic therapy for stroke patients. MS Las Vegas Real Estate continues the process of educating the wider world about the REAL Las Vegas. This is a real city! Las Vegas homes offer a truly wonderful quality of life….and living!

Real Estate in Las Vegas Nevada continues to move upscale at an astounding rate. MacDonald Highlands real estate is one of the best representations of this trend. The two newest neighborhoods are Lairmont and Glenbrook. The custom lots at MacDonald Highlands range from one-half acre to 2 1/2 acres, and are priced from $800,000 to more than $3.5 million. Lairmont’s 16 custom lots measure about one-half acre to nearly three-fourths of an acre, and are priced from $1 million to $1.25 million. The 12-acre neighborhood is gated and features a landscaped entry, as does Glenbrook. It comprises 14 home sites ranging from about two-thirds of an acre to 2.08 acres. Prices start from $900,000 to $2.3 million. The golf course and strip views are simply breathtaking. The Highlands are a feature community within the MacDonald Ranch master-planned community which is located in Henderson, Nevada.

The Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center has enhanced the master-planned community’s cultural and educational amenities since it opened in 1993. The library houses more than 130,000 books, movies and music compact discs. It also includes a 291-seat theater, an art gallery, a conference room that accommodates as many as 40 people, three study rooms, two courtyards, and a story room. The art gallery, which is located off the main foyer, features six exhibits each year showcasing contemporary and classic art and photography from area residents. Summerlin ranked as the country’s best-selling master-planned community for much of the last decade, according to independent surveys. It is being developed in villages along the valley’s western rim and is home to more than 100 neighborhood and village parks, more than 100 miles of trails, houses of worship, shopping centers, medical facilities, business parks and nearly 100 model homes. Some of the finest Las Vegas real estate can be found in this section of the Las Vegas valley.

Pulte Homes is readying a 3,000-square-foot, single-story home from its Princeville Collection at Silverstone Ranch for immediate move-in. Located within a guard-gated neighborhood, the home features four bedrooms, three baths, a den, formal dining and living rooms, family room and split three-car garage. It overlooks the community’s 27-hole Silverstone Golf Club. MS Las Vegas Real Estate can arrange a private showing at your convenience.

Redhawk, the latest custom neighborhood to open within The Ridges village in the Summerlin master-planned community, recently released a phase of home sites. To date, more than 50 of 82 total home sites have been released and sold at the neighborhood adjacent to the greens of Bear’s Best Las Vegas. The golf course, coupled with The Ridges’ location along the edge of Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, offers a spectacular setting that’s hard to beat. The newest release includes four lots measuring half an acre or larger. Prices start from $759,000 to more than $1 million. Las Vegas luxury real estate at its finest. Call MS Las Vegas Real Estate for more information at 888-349-2595.

Lake Las Vegas Resort was recently cited as one of 10 “significant new projects that will define urban life in the 21st century” at the Architecture and Design Exhibition in Glasgow, Scotland. After getting off to a slow start, Lake Las Vegas has truly come into it’s own. The first people daring enough to buy Lake Las Vegas homes were Vegas locals who understood the vision and had an appetite for risk. More recently, investors from all over the world have added a Lake Las Vegas home to their portfolio as a second or even third residence. Lake Las Vegas is now ramping up for a new wave of locals as production-home builders Pardee and Woodside establish subdivisions with more “affordable” homes in the next phase of development. Pardee and Woodside have committed to building about 1,000 homes in the $250,000 to $350,000 range. Models are opening this spring and homes should be coming onto the market in 12 to 15 months. MS Las Vegas Real Estate has been working with Lake Las Vegas clients for the last 5 years, and we look forward to presenting this next phase of development to potential purchasers. Put our expertise to work for you.

Beazer Homes just purchased 44 acres of vacant land in Indian Springs, about 45 minutes north of Las Vegas on U.S. 95. The sale price was $3.3 million, according to Clark County Assessor records. Now what do you suppose they plan on doing with that piece of dirt? How does a 45 minute commute sound to someone from Southern California that normally drives 2 hours each way? MS Las Vegas Real Estate will keep you posted.

CDW Corporation, a provider of technology products and services to business, government and education, announced that it is committed to opening a distribution and technology center in North Las Vegas after a nationwide search of possible locations. CDW officials looked at several sites around the Las Vegas Valley and decided to go with North Las Vegas because of its location and because the building could be delivered quickly. MS Las Vegas Real Estate has been talking about the aggressive efforts to further develop North Las Vegas in this blog. We continue to be impressed by public and private efforts to make this happen. Congratulations to North Las Vegas!

In the last 10 years, over 416,000 new jobs were created in the State of Nevada. What percentage of those jobs came from the Gaming industry? Did you guess 50 percent? Not even close. Would you believe 12.7 percent? This according to an economic impact study conducted for the Nevada Resort Association. The association is sending the report, “The Facts About Gaming in Nevada,” to state legislators, county and city elected officials and other policy-makers throughout the state. The Greater Las Vegas economy is more diversified than most people from outside the state would imagine. During that same 10 year period, the casino sector’s percentage of the state’s total employment fell from 26 percent to 21 percent. MS Las Vegas Real Estate invites you to take a look at the New Las Vegas. We’re so much more than people think.

The constantly expanding high-rise condo market in Las Vegas will gain another player. The Palms announced plans on Wednesday to add a 50-story luxury tower that will provide additional romping room for the property’s celebrity clientele. Palms developer George Maloof said the residential project is part of a $600 million expansion at the 4-year-old property. Already under construction is a 40-story hotel tower that will have 347 rooms and suites along with entertainment offerings, two new restaurants, a 2,200-seat showroom, and an 8,000-square-foot recording studio. The 34-acre site on West Flamingo Road will eventually encompass 1,300 rooms in three towers once the current expansion is completed. Las Vegas real estate gets another boost from a casino company that looks to combine additional hotel rooms with high-rise condo units for sale. Through the Maloof family’s network of Palms customers, including sports figures, actors and actresses, recording artists and other celebrities, sales have been brisk. The units are priced from $500,000 to $7 million.

The Nevada Ballet Theatre recently held it’s annual black-tie fundraiser and honored Ann Margret as its Woman of the Year. The event was a huge success and raised over $400,000. The event was attended by over 1000 celebrities and local business and community leaders. Past honorees include Celine Dion, Chita Rivera and Carol Channing. Just another reminder from MS Las Vegas Real Estate that Las Vegas is a real city. Did you even imagine that Las Vegas had a ballet company? We’re so much more than people think.

Home values in Las Vegas will appreciate by 8% in 2005 and home building permits will drop to about 30,000 said Dennis Smith, president of Home Builders Research. He made these projections Tuesday at Las Vegas Housing Outlook 2005, which drew a sellout crowd of 2,000 to the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Recorded sales of new homes totaled 29,472 in 2004, compared with 25,230 the previous year, and are expected to reach 34,000 this year, including condominium conversions, Smith said. Las Vegas real estate is definetly not suffering from a shortage of media attention.

Renowned architect Frank Gehry has been commissioned to design a building in Las Vegas! The Pritzker-Prize winning architect has a number of famous projects to his name including the Guggenheim Museum in Spain and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. Now Frank Gehry has been commissioned to design a building in Las Vegas. Considered one of the world’s leading architects, Gehry will design the Alzheimer’s disease research center in the downtown Union Park development. Mayor Oscar Goodman will formally make the announcement at today’s City Council meeting. Las Vegas is a real city, we just can’t say it enough. Las Vegas real estate benefits more every day from this powerful trend.

Summerlin is not only one of the most incredible master-planned communities in Las Vegas, it’s a nationally ranked award-winning community as well. Here’s a bit of Summerlin trivia. Howard Hughes bought the huge chunk of desert that is Summerlin today. His original intention was to put the manufacturing facilities of Hughes Aircraft out in the southern Nevada desert. He ended up changing his plans in part because he was worried about his employees spending all their money in the casinos! Summerlin was the maiden name of Howard Hughes’ mother and thus it was named. Today Summerlin is nationally recognized as one of the finest master-planned communities in the country. Las Vegas real estate has a rich and interesting history.

Robin Leach of “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” is a serious television entrepreneur. He helped to create “Entertainment Tonight” and got the Food Network off the ground as one of it’s first TV personalities. Now he’s launching a Las Vegas TV Station. KVTE-TV, Channel 35, officially switched on at 5am this morning. The station basically will be “all Vegas, all the time,” Leach said, and offer a broad mix of entertainment, news, public affairs, financial, lifestyle, travel, dining, fashion and sports programming. TV broadcast history buffs will remember that the TBS Superstation began in a very similar fashion. MS Las Vegas Real Estate wishes Robin Leach the best of luck in his new venture. Hey Robin, let us know if you want to do a Las Vegas real estate show!

McCarran International Airport reported a solid 9.8% increase in passenger traffic during January of 2005 following a record breaking 2004 total. More than 3.27 million arriving and departing passengers came through the Las Vegas airport in January, the Clark County Aviation Department said Monday. Department data show McCarran has posted positive growth for each month since August 2003. Airport officials and industry experts have attributed this consistent growth to Las Vegas’ record popularity, as well as renewed growth in business travel after a multi-year slump. The Las Vegas economy continues to perform and 2005 looks like a banner year so far. The market for Las Vegas real estate has remained solid as well, and there is no sign of a bursting bubble. Prices for Las Vegas homes have remained highly stable after an incredible run-up in 2004.