Although the subprime loan crisis affects most of America, one area that has been hit pretty hard is Las Vegas. The big thing with Vegas was an overproliferation of housing. Seems strange that there could be such a thing as too much housing, but it happened there. For myself, those around me know that I've been heavily interested in picking up property in Vegas for a long time. My primary reason is that it's cheaper than California (Los Angeles).
However, I hesitate on the grounds that as a short term investment vehicle, it would be a horrible idea. For a long term strategy, I like the idea. But one thing worries me: the lack of jobs. Or rather the fact that most jobs out there consist of catering to the casinos. There's a danger to me in purchasing a piece of land where my type of market does not exist. For myself, I don't see much of a tech industry compared to say, Arizona. I don't know why this is, but it's kinda sad in some way considering that a lot of Vegas is growing massively into a thriving city.
I do believe that for housing to succeed one key ingredient is a proliferation of good jobs. Not gas attendants, grocery checkout, sales, or used cars. I mean jobs that earn people money. You could consider gambling a job for certain professionals, but I see that being rather limited. In the end, I guess what I would consider a good job might be more along the lines of a tech industry. Of course, Vegas probably has their share of lawyers, doctors, business moguls, etc. but those positions are more limited compared to something like the tech industry where you can get highly skilled professionals that can afford the housing.
Either way, I think for Vegas to succeed it needs to offer businesses outside of gambling tax break incentives to start up offices and allow other industries to become involved. That along with more universities to build up a reputation beyond a gambling/entertainment city that seems to stigmatize it.
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