News Archive

  • Gaming stocks end 2012 on high note

    December 31, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    What fiscal cliff?

    Gaming stocks were oblivious to investor worries that the lack of a year-end agreement in Congress to avoid wide-ranging tax increases and spending cuts would push the economy over the edge.

    The sector closed out 2012 on a positive note in December.

    Read More »
  • The rich dig deep

    December 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal |

    Everybody's in favor of eliminating all the "loopholes" in the tax code ... until you start naming them.

    The home mortgage interest deduction? Maybe not right away.

    Tax deductions for charitable giving? The write-off isn't the main reason Nevada's wealthiest citizens pull out their checkbooks, of course. But the amount those Nevadans contribute, digging deep even in these trying times, can be impressive.

    Read More »
  • Nevada's wealthy households make 27 percent of charitable donations

    December 27, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Chris Sieroty

    Philanthropy continues to be the key factor in the fiscal health of dozens of nonprofit organizations in Las Vegas and statewide. Although high net worth households faced a significant reduction in wealth during the recession, they managed to give hundreds of millions of dollars to support health care, the arts and education.

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  • Medical real estate development expected to boom soon in valley

    December 27, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Southern Nevada is poised to experience a major surge in medical real estate development in the next few years, an expert at Colliers International said.

    The surge will be driven by 79 million baby boomers headed into retirement and millions of Americans covered under President Barack Obama's health care plan, said Stacy Scheer, who specializes in medical real estate properties at Colliers.

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  • Las Vegas Valley, state unemployment rate ratchets downward

    December 21, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Improved consumer spending meant a merrier holiday season in November for thousands of newly employed Nevadans, as state and local unemployment rates edged down toward single-digit percentages and retail hiring returned to prerecession levels.

    Read More »
  • New York investment firm buying 427 CityCenter condos for $119 million

    December 21, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    MGM Resorts International on Friday announced the bulk sale of 427 condo units at Veer Towers, the twin residential towers at CityCenter, for $119 million, or about $279,000 per unit.

    Read More »
  • Gloomy Market Spurs Bulk Condo Sale in Las Vegas

    December 21, 2012 | The Wall Street Journal | Alexandra Berzon

    Las Vegas’s $8.5 billion City Center complex has tried for years to hang on to the high value it set at the height of the economic boom there for the condo units, but it said Friday that it is caving in to the market reality and selling a large part of its remaining stock in bulk at cut-rate prices.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas CityCenter Condos Sell in Bulk for $119 Million

    December 21, 2012 | Bloomberg | John Gittelsohn

    The owners of CityCenter, an $8.5 billion Las Vegas Strip development that opened amid the city’s real estate crash, said they sold 427 condominiums in a bulk transaction for $119 million.

    The residences are at the 669-unit Veer Towers, built as part of CityCenter, a joint venture of MGM Resorts International (MGM) and Dubai World’s Infinity World Development Corp., they said today in a statement. The condos’ buyer is Ladder Capital Finance Holdings LLLP, said Tony Dennis, executive vice president of CityCenter Residential. The CityCenter hotel, casino and condo complex opened in 2009.

    Read More »
  • Survey finds surprising gaps in social services in Las Vegas

    December 16, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Kristi Jourdan

    Cherlynn Brown rifles through a few bags of bread and boxed goods at Catholic Charities.

    It was either put food on the table or pay for her son's high school cap and gown. There wasn't enough money this month for both.

    Read More »
  • Positives, negatives reported in sector

    December 8, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Although the local economy continues to post modest gains from the downturn, commercial markets are showing mixed results in vacancy rates and average asking rents, the Applied Analysis business advisory firm reported in its third-quarter market monitor.

    The office market vacancy rate fell to 25.2 percent during the quarter, down from 25.6 percent in the second quarter. Vacancies rose 0.3 percentage points from a year ago.

    Read More »
  • Georgia passes Nevada for highest percentage of foreclosure sales

    December 6, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Georgia has supplanted Nevada as the state with the highest percentage of foreclosure sales, Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac reported Tuesday.

    A total of 193,059 U.S. properties in some stage of foreclosure were sold during the third quarter, a 3 percent decrease from the year-ago period, the online listing service showed. That's up 21 percent from the previous quarter.

    Read More »
  • No respite for the wealthy
    Study finds housing downturn hits high net worth households hard

    December 3, 2012 | Las Vegas Business Press | CHRIS SIEROTY

    The wealthiest Nevadans have not escaped the dramatic downturn in local home values, a report by The Private Bank, a division of Nevada State Bank shows.

    In its monthly "High Net Worth Report" on Nevadans living in a household with a net worth of at least $1 million, overall housing values in Southern Nevada fell from about $162.3 billion in 2007 to $77.3 billion in 2012, a decline of 52 percent.

    Read More »
  • Boomerang buyers who lost it all see life after foreclosure

    December 2, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Greg Bailey got an amazing deal on a home in Summerlin.

    Bailey, a local real estate agent, snagged the 2,470-square-foot beauty with city views in a September short sale for $230,000 - less than half of its $730,000 peak value.

    Read More »
  • New-home sales in Las Vegas continue rise, report says

    November 30, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    The Southern Nevada housing market continues to show signs of increased stability as sales and prices move in a positive direction, an analyst from SalesTraq research firm said Friday.

    The new-home construction sector posted its ninth consecutive month of year-over-year sales increases with 580 closings in October, and the median price reached $216,045, a 9.4 percent jump from a year ago, SalesTraq reported.

    Read More »
  • Fiscal cliff concerns add volatility to gaming sector

    November 30, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    Concerns over the looming fiscal cliff added increased volatility to an already shaky gaming sector.

    Average daily stock prices for eight of the 12 casino operators and slot machine manufacturers followed by financial consultant Applied Analysis tumbled in November.

    Read More »
  • Nevada taxable sales rise in September

    November 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    For sheer repetitiveness, your Thanksgiving leftovers have nothing on Nevada's taxable sales reports.

    State and county sales have spent 2012 trending upward between 2 percent and 11 percent a month on a year-over-over basis, and September's results were no different. Statewide sales came in at $3.73 billion, up 4.2 percent from $3.58 billion in September 2011. Clark County's businesses sold $2.69 billion in tangible goods, up 4.9 percent from $2.57 billion a year earlier.

    Read More »
  • Nevada, Las Vegas unemployment declines slightly

    November 19, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    It's noteworthy that Nevada's unemployment rate fell in October to its lowest level in more than three years.

    Perhaps more importantly, though, wages are on the rise, and that could signal more hiring in coming months, observers say.

    First, about that jobless rate: Unemployment fell statewide to 11.5 percent in October, down from 11.8 percent in September and 13.4 percent in October 2011, according to a Monday report from the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. It was the state's lowest jobless level since May 2009.

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  • Southern Nevada officials call for tax increase

    November 16, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Ed Vogel

    CARSON CITY - Several leading Southern Nevada politicians said Friday that taxes must be increased, or they cannot provide necessary services in their county or city.

    "You can't go on trying to run your city on half the property tax (compared to before the recession)," said Clark County Commissioner Tom Collins during the Local Government Summit, which attracted about 60 city council and county commission members from across the state.

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  • Economist: Job growth in Reno-Sparks to be lukewarm in 2013

    November 12, 2012 | Northern Nevada Business Weekly | John Seelmeyer

    Retailers are likely to lead a modest improvement in job growth in the Reno-Sparks metropolitan area, says a Las Vegas economist in a presentation commissioned by City National Bank.

    Brian Gordon, a principal in Applied Analysis, told about 100 business leaders in Reno that he projects job growth of about 1.2 percent in the region next year, slightly better than the growth of slightly less than 1 percent the past couple of years.

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  • More industrial space vacated than leased in third quarter in LV Valley

    November 10, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Users of industrial space in the Las Vegas Valley continued to contract in the third quarter, though the pace has slowed over the past 12 months, the Applied Analysis business advisory firm has reported.

    Net absorption fell by 46,600 square feet during the quarter, which means more space was vacated than was leased, resulting in a slight uptick in the vacancy rate to 18.6 percent.

    Read More »
  • Mining industry added third of new jobs to Nevada since 2009, study says

    November 8, 2012 | Reno Gazette-Journal | Staff Report

    Nevada’s mining industry accounted for 14 percent of jobs created in the state during the past year and 33 percent since the recession ending in June 2009, according to an Applied Analysis study released on Thursday.

    Read More »
  • Why Nevada is a Battleground State

    November 5, 2012 | Fox Business News |

    Applied Analysis principal analyst Jeremy Aguero on Nevada's economy.

    Read More »
  • Mining powering job growth in Nevada

    November 5, 2012 | Northern Nevada Business Weekly | John Seelmeyer

    Jeremy Aguero has been crunching numbers on the Nevada economy for nigh onto 15 years.

    But even the veteran economist, a principal in Las Vegas-based Applied Analysis, was taken aback a few weeks ago to discover how much mining has contributed to Nevada’s employment growth.

    The industry, which accounts for 1 percent of all the employment in Nevada and 5 percent of the state’s economic production, generated 14 percent of the jobs added to Nevada’s economy in the past 12 months.

    And the mining industry accounted for a full third of the jobs that have been added since the national recession officially ended in June 2009.

    Read More »
  • Economic talk short on details at Las Vegas event

    November 3, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Benjamin Spillman

    When it comes to Nevada's economic recovery Gov. Brian Sandoval was long on optimism and short on details during a business event Friday in Las Vegas.

    Sandoval, speaking at the inaugural Governor's Conference on Small Business, discussed in broad strokes his administration's efforts to help Nevada recover from an economic recession that cost tens of thousands of people their jobs and left most houses in the state underwater.

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  • October a 'mixed bag' for gaming stocks

    November 3, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    October was one those "mixed bags" for the gaming industry.

    Compared with a year ago, that average daily stock prices for 12 publicly traded gaming companies are down collectively 8.5 percent.

    Read More »
  • Unemployment rate inches up to 7.9 percent

    November 3, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Christopher Rugaber

    WASHINGTON - U.S. employers added 171,000 jobs in October, and hiring was stronger in August and September than first thought. The solid job growth showed that the economy is strengthening slowly but consistently.

    The unemployment rate rose to 7.9 percent from 7.8 percent in September. That was mainly because many more people began looking for work, and not all of them found jobs. The government uses a separate survey to calculate the unemployment rate, and it counts people without jobs as unemployed only if they're looking for one.

    Read More »
  • Report: Nevada's wealthiest tend to be older, married

    November 3, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

    A new analysis of Nevada's wealthiest finds that upper-crust households are diverse, but tend to be older, married and homeowners.

    The report, commissioned by Nevada State Bank and released last week by economics consulting firm Applied Analysis, explored the 76,200 households in Nevada with an estimated net worth of $1 million or more.

    Read More »
  • Jobless Frustrated, But Analyst Says Outlook...

    October 25, 2012 | 8 News Now | Cassandra Garcia

    Economic analyst Brian Gordon said jobs are making their way back to southern Nevada, but many struggling to find a job don't agree.

    Read More »
  • Taxable sales jump 7.6 percent; Clark County up 8.1 percent

    October 25, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Nevada's consumers came out in force in August, continuing a spending trend that dates back two years.

    And though the state has a long way to go on the road to recovery, observers say the newest taxable sales numbers show the economy remains on track toward better times.

    Read More »
  • Local spending is up, may be linked to mortgage delinquencies

    October 21, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Parts of the local economy remain mired in recession, but you wouldn't know it from taxable sales figures.

    Taxable sales, which the state Department of Taxation tabulates each month to gauge spending on retail goods, have been on a tear, with jumps of 5 percent to 10 percent year to year virtually every month since mid-2010. Clark County's taxable sales jumped to $2.54 billion in July, up from $2.35 billion in July 2010.

    Read More »
  • Nevada, Las Vegas Valley unemployment rates fall

    October 19, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Today, we're going to talk about unemployment.

    And given that we're two weeks away from hotly contested presidential and congressional elections, that means we're actually talking about politics.

    Read More »
  • Economist: Housing recovery could take decades

    October 8, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Benjamin Spillman

    Sileshi Kassa is nothing if not persistent.

    The 61-year-old Ethiopian immigrant slogged through a bureaucratic bog for two years so that he could save his family's Las Vegas-area house from foreclosure.

    Read More »
  • Obama's Nevada 'debate camp' site mirrors nation's woes and hopes
    Obama sets up debate practice at Lake Las Vegas, a resort crippled by the economy but betting cautiously on a comeback.

    October 2, 2012 | Los Angeles Times | Kathleen Hennessey

    HENDERSON, Nev. -- As President Obama holes up in a tony resort to cram for his first debate Wednesday against Republican rival Mitt Romney, searing reminders of his biggest hurdles to reelection are just outside his door.

    There's the closed golf course yellowing at the entrance to this planned community, clashing with the palm trees and manicured lawns. Down the road are empty storefronts at a "village" of boutiques and restaurants. Surrounding the hotel where the president is huddling with advisors are scores of recently built condos and homes, each a worth a fraction of its value a few years ago.

    Read More »
  • Gaming sector rebounds in September

    September 28, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    What changed?

    After four straight monthly declines, the gaming sector as a whole rallied back in September.

    Eleven of the 12 casino operators and gaming equipment manufacturers followed by Las Vegas-based financial consultant Applied Analysis experienced increases in their average daily stock prices during the month.

    Read More »
  • State's taxable sales rise in July

    September 27, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Spending in Nevada continued on its road to recovery in July.

    Taxable sales across Nevada increased 4.7 percent year over year in July, to $3.55 billion, the state Department of Taxation reported Thursday. Sales in Clark County jumped 5.4 percent, to $2.54 billion.

    Read More »
  • Nevadans have long bet their lives, fortunes on mining

    September 23, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Gold.

    It has forged human history since its Egyptian debut 5,600 years ago. It has launched wars, pulled populations across continents and captured the imagination. As a metaphor, it's an exemplar: Worth its weight in gold. A heart of gold. The Golden Age. The Golden Rule.

    Most importantly for you, gold is a pillar of Nevada's economy. As MINExpo rolls into the Las Vegas Convention Center on Monday, gold is the ascendant global commodity. Its price moves toward $1,800 an ounce, up more than 500 percent since 2000. For countries boosting reserves to tweak currency values or investors buying to hedge against a devalued U.S. dollar, gold is more precious than ever.

    Read More »
  • Nevada's constitution hinders efforts to raise mining taxes

    September 23, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Nevada's mining industry produces plenty of treasure.

    But there's debate over whether enough of that treasure makes it into the state's treasury.

    Nevada's mining tax is enshrined in the state's constitution as a maximum 5 percent levy on net proceeds of minerals. The tax is like an income tax, letting mining companies deduct costs of extraction, processing, marketing and delivery.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas housing sector sees positive signs in August

    September 20, 2012 | Vegas Inc | Eli Segall

    Las Vegas' housing sector had a good month in August with more new home purchases, higher sales prices and a jump in construction permits.

    A total of 602 new homes were sold last month in the Las Vegas Valley, up 60 percent from the same period a year ago, according to a report this week from SalesTraq, a subsidiary of Las Vegas-based research firm Applied Analysis.

    Read More »
  • Fewer homes means prices up

    September 19, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Home prices continue to move upward in Las Vegas as the supply of homes available for sale remains constrained, SalesTraq analyst Brian Gordon said Wednesday.

    Current conditions are more reflective of the boom years, as opposed to the hardest-hit market in the country, he said.

    Read More »
  • Nevada Desert Drowning as Underwater Loans Hurt Schools, Police

    September 12, 2012 | Bloomberg | Jennifer Oldham

    Tamara Harris and her neighbors are gambling that lenders won’t foreclose on their Spanish-style homes in the Las Vegas neighborhood of Southern Highlands.

    Harris, 38, stopped paying her mortgage three years ago after her accounting business lost its biggest client and her home’s value plummeted 52 percent. Some neighbors are also delinquent on their mortgages.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas housing collapse saw many, many casualties

    September 2, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Henry Brean

    You are a loser, and so am I.

    Everyone lost something when the Southern Nevada housing market caved in five years ago.

    Read More »
  • August less cruel to gaming investors than July

    September 1, 2012 | Las Vegas Review Journal | Howard Stutz

    OK, so August wasn't as cruel to gaming investors as July.

    Still, it was a tough month, especially if you own shares of gaming equipment manufacturers.

    Read More »
  • Nevada taxable sales grow nearly 8 percent in June

    August 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Nevada's taxable sales continued their two-year march onward and upward in June.

    As the state's job market steadied and consumers felt better about the economy, businesses moved hundreds of millions of dollars more in cars, clothes and restaurant meals than they sold a year earlier. Even construction joined in, as business improved for specialty contractors such as electricians and plumbers.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas Housing Marking Facing Foreclosure Glut

    August 29, 2012 | 8 News Now | Paul Joncich

    LAS VEGAS -- It's estimated there are thousands of foreclosed homes about to hit the local housing market.

    According to banking and real estate insiders, Las Vegas real estate is about to take another big hit, and it could delay the recovery for years to come.

    Foreclosure notices continue to be posted on homes around the Las Vegas valley.

    Read More »
  • Analysts see potential dark cloud for Las Vegas economy in 2013

    August 23, 2012 | Vegas Inc. | Steve Green

    The already-struggling Las Vegas economy could face more problems if the United States slips into a recession next year, local analysts say.

    On Wednesday, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office warned that a "fiscal cliff" threatens to cause a recession that would push the U.S. unemployment rate up from 8.3 percent to 9 percent. The fiscal cliff is a combination of circumstances set to begin in January unless Congress and the president break an impasse over the federal budget. They include spending cuts and tax increases that together would reduce the federal deficit by about $500 billion next year.

    Read More »
  • Jobless rates jump in Nevada, Las Vegas; benefits running out

    August 17, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Times are tough and getting tougher for Nevada's long-term unemployed.

    A Friday report from the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation revealed that unemployment insurance benefits are running out for jobless Nevadans, and the state's labor market isn't producing enough jobs to get them back on track.

    Read More »
  • NV Unemployment Climbs to 12 Percent

    August 17, 2012 | 8 News Now | Brian Brennan

    Nevada's unemployment rate for July rose 0.4 of a percentage point to 12 percent, according to the Department of Employment, Training and...

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  • Building apprenticeship funds rejected

    August 16, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | The Associated Press

    CARSON CITY - Gov. Brian Sandoval says it doesn't make sense to pump money into construction trade apprenticeship programs after thousands of workers were laid off during the recession and while the state's building industry remains in the doldrums.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas office vacancy reaches all-time high
    Fifth consecutive quarter of increases puts rate at 25.6 percent

    August 6, 2012 | Las Vegas Business Press | Hubble Smith

    Office vacancy in Las Vegas climbed for the fifth consecutive quarter and reached an all-time high of 25.6 percent in the second quarter, up from 25.2 percent in the previous quarter and from 24.3 percent a year ago, Applied Analysis, a business advisory firm, reported.

    The market saw 126,800 square feet of negative absorption during the quarter, or more space vacated than leased. That offset 199,000 square feet of positive absorption in the first quarter.

    Read More »
  • Gaming stocks fare poorly in July; Shuffle Master an exception

    July 31, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    Unless you own shares of Shuffle Master, July wasn't a great month to be a gaming industry investor.

    Lackluster second quarter earnings reports and continued economic concerns have spooked the gaming sector. Average daily share prices of publicly traded casino operators and game equipment providers tumbled from June.

    Read More »
  • Retail vacancy in Las Vegas hovers in tight range

    July 30, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | http://www.appliedanalysis.com/reports/washingtonpost072012.pdf

    Retail vacancy in Las Vegas has remained in a relatively tight range during the past three years, showing a modest increase to 10.5 percent in the second quarter, Applied Analysis business advisory firm reported.

    Vacancy is up just 0.1 percentage point from the previous quarter and from a year ago, suggesting stability in the retail sector, Applied Analysis principal Brian Gordon said.

    Read More »
  • SalesTraq Sees Improvement in Las Vegas Housing Market

    July 24, 2012 | 8 News Now | Steve Kanigher

    LAS VEGAS -- Real estate research service SalesTraq issued an upbeat report Tuesday on the Las Vegas housing market, pointing to three consecutive months during which sale prices for existing homes exceeded those from the same months in 2011.

    Read More »
  • Nevada jobless rate steady, valley's numbers up

    July 20, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Nevada's jobs markets stayed in neutral in June.

    Overall job growth couldn't drive unemployment down, and job cuts in some sectors as well as labor-force gains put the brakes on short-term improvement.

    Read More »
  • Nevada's housing crisis leaves Obama vulnerable

    July 20, 2012 | The Washington Post | Michael A. Fletcher

    LAS VEGAS -- Amy and James Watt know there are a lot of important issues in this year's presidential election, but for them it hinges on just one: their home.

    They never thought it would come to this when they bought their dream home, a three-bedroom with a large garage on a corner lot in suburban Henderson, Nev.

    Three years later, here they are, six months behind on their mortgage -- part of a housing crisis that has devastated Nevada.

    Read More »
  • Cafe Heidelberg closes, ends 40-year run

    July 9, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Caitlin Mcgarry

    One of Las Vegas' oldest German restaurants has served its last wienerschnitzel.

    Cafe Heidelberg on June 30 closed its doors, saying farewell to tearful customers after a more than 40-year run.

    Read More »
  • Southern Nevada sees income gains; U.S. numbers flat

    July 2, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    If you wanted a pay raise in May, Southern Nevada was the place to be.

    Even as wages stalled nationwide in the month, Southern Nevada saw income gains. What's more, as flat pay nationwide cut into U.S. consumer spending in May, and though Southern Nevada's May sales numbers won't be out until this month , experts say it's likely consumer spending here will improve noticeably.

    Read More »
  • Gaming stocks swoon in June

    June 30, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    Forget June.

    At least that's how gaming industry investors feel about a month when average daily stock prices collectively tanked.

    Reaction to the broader economy drove down the values of eight casino operators and four equipment manufacturers followed by Las Vegas-based financial consultant Applied Analysis.

    Read More »
  • Taxable sales increase in April

    June 28, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Consumer spending in Nevada continued to dig its way out of the downturn in April, with respectable gains in sectors ranging from car sales to restaurant dining.

    Taxable sales jumped to $3.53 billion in April, up 5.1 percent from $3.36 billion in April 2011, the state Department of Taxation reported Thursday. In Clark County, sales rose to $2.59 billion, up 4.9 percent from $2.47 billion a year earlier.

    Read More »
  • Local median home prices rise in May

    June 26, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Five straight months of rising median home prices in Las Vegas are not enough to convince housing analyst Dennis Smith that the market has recovered.

    He wants to see at least 10 months of price increases in a 12-month period.

    Read More »
  • A Rat Pack of Reviewers

    June 26, 2012 | The New York Times | Julia Moskin

    “THE food industry and the sex industry have a lot in common,” Al Mancini, the restaurant critic for Las Vegas CityLife, told me over pork buns on a recent blindingly bright morning.

    He should know. Mr. Mancini has been reviewing restaurants here for 10 years, but his first writing job was reviewing strip clubs, a feat he pulled off elegantly in serious columns evaluating establishments that the “entertainment” columns in most cities tend to ignore.

    Read More »
  • Conference attendees say Nevada isn't doing enough to educate ELL students

    June 23, 2012 | Las Vegas Sun | Paul Takahashi

    Despite having one of the largest Hispanic student populations in the nation, Nevada allocates just $120 per pupil in federal funding to help English Language Learner students become proficient in English.

    That's not nearly enough funding to educate this challenging group of students, speakers at a local symposium on ELL students said this week.

    "We don't fund anything right," said Jeremy Aguero, an economist with Applied Analysis, a Las Vegas-based economic research firm. "Some would say we're conservative. Others would say we're cheap."

    Read More »
  • Observers see sentiment improving in Las Vegas housing market

    June 18, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Confidence among U.S. builders ticked up this month to a five-year high, an indication that the housing market is slowly improving.

    The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo builder sentiment index rose in June to 29, the highest reading since May 2007. It increased from a reading of 28 last month, which was revised down one point from its initial figure.

    Read More »
  • Nevada jobless rate hits 3-year low; Las Vegas rate goes up

    June 15, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Nevada's jobs market outperformed the nation's in May.

    That's not a typo. Even as unemployment increased nationally, joblessness in the Silver State fell. The trend surprised economists, who said they expected tougher times here to match national sluggishness.

    Read More »
  • Jobs of the future? Think prosthetics, aerospace, fitness and more

    June 10, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    You've probably never considered a career in prosthetics or aerospace.

    Well, maybe you should, according to an analysis of local growth areas.

    Sure, Las Vegas made its nut on gaming and tourism, and those sectors still take up the bulk of jobs here. But numbers from local research firms and state and federal labor agencies show dozens of solid job prospects, from cardiovascular technicians to bakers to vocational teachers.

    Read More »
  • Ten occupations poised to expand

    June 10, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal |

    With the help of research firm Discovery Nevada, as well as an assist from the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, we've pinpointed 10 fields with high concentrations of jobs in the state or city, as well as strong growth prospects over the next five to 10 years. Some growth and salary figures are available only at state or national levels.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas land sales show dramatic rise

    June 6, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Land sales in Las Vegas Valley hit a two-year high in the first quarter with $40.3 million in total sales volume, a 38 percent increase from $29.1 million in the year-ago quarter, Bill Lenhart of Sunbelt Development & Realty Partners reported.

    The southwest submarket recorded the highest average price at $169,690 an acre, up from $150,191 a year ago, Lenhart said. It's still a steep drop from the peak in 2005 and 2006, when single-family residential land in the southwest was going for $600,000 per acre.

    Read More »
  • Learning about fans of the Electric Daisy Carnival will help Las Vegas court them long-term

    June 4, 2012 | Vegas Inc. | Richard Velotta

    The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority prides itself on being research driven, knowing the habits of tourists and business travelers who spend money when they come to Southern Nevada for business or pleasure.

    But the LVCVA has little information on fans of the Electric Daisy Carnival, the electronic music festival that in the two years since moving to Las Vegas has become one of the largest and most successful special events on the local calendar.

    Read More »
  • Debt crisis worries gaming stock investors

    June 1, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    Gaming stocks nosedived in May as investors grew worried over foreign debt matters and mixed messages coming from company earnings reports.

    Of the 12 publicly traded casino operators and gaming equipment providers followed by Las Vegas financial adviser Applied Analysis, 10 saw decreases in average daily stock price during the month.

    Read More »
  • Short sales of homes increasing across U.S.

    June 1, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Alex Veiga

    LOS ANGELES - Bank-owned homes and those in some stage of foreclosure saw their share of overall U.S. home sales grow in the first quarter.

    The increase was driven by a spike in short sales, or homes that sell for less than what the owner owed on their mortgage, foreclosure listing firm RealtyTrac Inc. said Thursday.

    Read More »
  • Home prices rise in most U.S. cities but unchanged in Las Vegas

    May 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Christopher S. Rugaber

    WASHINGTON - Home prices rose in March from February in most major U.S. cities for the first time in seven months.

    Prices, however, were unchanged in Las Vegas.

    The increase is the latest evidence of a slow recovery taking shape in the housing market.

    Read More »
  • State taxable sales jump in March

    May 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Nevada's taxable sales jumped in March thanks mostly to steep spending increases in counties up north.

    Sales of tangible goods by Silver State businesses jumped to $3.9 billion in the month, a 7.2 percent increase from $3.6 billion in March 2011, the state Department of Taxation reported Tuesday.

    Read More »
  • Water authority has 30,000 square feet of space for rent in Molasky building

    May 23, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Henry Brean

    The agency that supplies water to roughly 2 million residents and 40 milllion annual visitors will now try its hand as landlord.

    The Southern Nevada Water Authority has taken on its first tenant and plans to lease more unused space at its downtown headquarters.

    The valley's wholesale water supplier has about 30,000 square feet of vacant office space scattered throughout the five floors it owns in the Molasky Corporate Center, a 14-story office complex at the corner of City Parkway and Ogden Avenue, southwest of the Spaghetti Bowl.

    Read More »
  • Nevada, Las Vegas Valley unemployment rates lowest since 2009

    May 18, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    The last time Nevada's unemployment was this low, CityCenter and The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas weren't open yet.

    King of Pop Michael Jackson was on the market as a possible Strip headliner.

    And former U.S. Sen. John Ensign was a rising star in the Republican Party.

    Read More »
  • Recovery catches a chill

    May 5, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Staff & Wire Reports

    WASHINGTON - American employers added fewer workers than forecast in April, and the jobless rate unexpectedly fell as people left the labor force, adding to concern that the economic expansion is cooling.

    Payrolls climbed 115,000, the smallest gain in six months, after a revised 154,000 gain in March that was larger than initially estimated, Labor Department figures showed Friday.

    Read More »
  • Nevada Lawmakers Hear Ideas For Revising Local Government Tax Distribution Formula

    April 30, 2012 | Nevada News Bureau | Sean Whaley

    CARSON CITY -- A consultant hired by the cities of Henderson and Las Vegas to analyze the process used to distribute taxes to the counties and cities told lawmakers today the formula now used to make the allocations has weaknesses.

    Jeremy Aguero, principal analyst with the consulting firm Applied Analysis, updated the members of the Legislative Commission's Subcommittee to Study the Allocation of Money Distributed From the Local Government Tax Distribution Account on efforts now under way to improve the formula.

    Read More »
  • With boom over, Las Vegas enters Era of Normal

    April 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    The history of Las Vegas runs through the iconic figures who built the city. Bugsy Siegel. Frank Sinatra. Elvis. Steve Wynn. Debbie Harris. Debbie who? Here, let's introduce you.

    Debbie Harris is a middle-aged Rotarian who enjoys walks, listening to novels in the car, taking road trips and spending time with extended family. She's never worked in a casino, and she's squeezing in college classes around a full-time job in training and marketing.

    Read More »
  • Taxable sales in Nevada, Las Vegas surge by double digits

    April 26, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    That recession thing? It's not such a big deal anymore.

    That's what consumers seemed to say in February, as Clark County's taxable sales posted their largest year-over-year gain since May 2006.

    Read More »
  • City, bank officials tout program to boost Las Vegas homeownership

    April 25, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Benjamin Spillman

    Las Vegas' housing market, among the worst in the nation, will get a boost from a new homeowner assistance program.

    On Wednesday, officials from Wells Fargo bank and the city of Las Vegas announced that about $9 million will be available for people seeking to buy houses.

    Read More »
  • Applied Analysis enters collaboration agreement

    April 19, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    The Applied Analysis business advisory firm of Las Vegas has entered an agreement with Discovery Research Group to form Discovery Nevada, an entity that will provide market research surveys and analytics.

    Discovery Research Group and Applied Analysis have collaborated on other projects in recent years. However, most of the primary research has been behind-the-scenes efforts or small pieces of larger initiatives.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas new-home prices rise

    April 19, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Median prices for new homes in Las Vegas rose in March and climbed above year-ago levels, a report Thursday from SalesTraq housing research firm showed.

    The new-home price increased 3.3 percent from February to $201,668, and is up 1.6 percent from $198,400 in the same month a year ago, according to the March report.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas investor bets on industrial property

    April 18, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Even as industrial vacancy rises to record levels in Las Vegas, real estate investor Stephen Siegel finds reason to purchase a 48,000-square-foot industrial center in North Las Vegas for $1.45 million.

    At $30 a square foot, it's below replacement cost, the founder of Siegel Group Nevada said Tuesday.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas council approves public housing project

    April 18, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Benjamin Spillman

    Two former Las Vegas City Council members took a step toward closing a deal with the city that would allow them to access about $11 million in public money to build an affordable housing.

    On Wednesday the Las Vegas City Council, meeting as the redevelopment authority, voted 6-1 in favor of a proposal by former council members Michael McDonald and Frank Hawkins.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas commercial real estate vacancies remain elevated

    April 17, 2012 | Vegas Inc. | Steve Green

    Newly released commercial real estate data show that, for the most part, the Las Vegas market continued to scrape along the bottom in the first quarter.

    The commercial real estate sector of the Southern Nevada economy has been hurt during the recession by what turned out to be overbuilding during the boom years as many businesses, instead of expanding, reduced operations and laid off staff.

    Read More »
  • Betting on Vegas Comeback

    April 17, 2012 | The Wall Street Journal | Eliot Brown & Alexandra Berzon

    In the heat of the real-estate boom, MGM Resorts International MGM +0.23% and Dubai World made an ill-fated bet that the Las Vegas real-estate and gambling market would stay strong for years to come, launching an $8.5 billion casino resort called City Center soon before the market turned.

    Now, after years of struggles, they are betting that the Las Vegas condo market is approaching a bottom.

    Read More »
  • Michael Gaughan III plans to unify resort operations

    April 13, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Caitlin McGarry

    For the past decade, the Rampart Casino and JW Marriott Resort and Spa in Summerlin have operated as two distinct entities.

    Though physically connected and occasionally marketed under the same brand, the Resort at Summerlin, the hotel and casino were managed by separate companies and had little to do with one another.

    That independence is no more.

    Read More »
  • Nevada no longer first in foreclosures

    April 12, 2012 | 8 News Now | Tedd Florendo

    For the first time in over five years, Nevada no longer ranks number one in foreclosures. That unlucky torch was passed off to Arizona which now leads the nation in foreclosed homes. But don't celebrate yet...

    Read More »
  • Vacant-land prices tumble 90 percent from peak

    April 4, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Limited demand for vacant land in the Las Vegas Valley reflects continued weakness in the housing and commercial markets, with just 107 parcels changing hands in the fourth quarter, a report from Applied Analysis business advisory firm showed.

    A total of 206.5 acres were sold during the period, compared with 420.8 acres in fourth quarter 2010, and the average price declined nearly 50 percent to $102,491 an acre.

    Read More »
  • March mixed for gaming stocks

    March 31, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    Publicly traded gaming companies gave investors a slew of mixed messages during March.

    The average daily share price for two casino operators that derive most of their revenues from Asia blossomed during the month. Three of four gaming equipment manufacturers also experienced marked stock price increases.

    Read More »
  • People leaving the work force drives down jobless rate

    March 30, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    It's a bump in the road that may mean little on the journey toward economic recovery.

    State and local jobless levels fell significantly in February, with unemployment dipping to 12.3 percent in Nevada and 12.2 percent in the Las Vegas Valley, the state Department of Education, Training and Rehabilitation said Friday. That was down from 12.7 percent statewide and 13 percent locally in January.

    Read More »
  • McCarran sees strong growth in February passenger volume

    March 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Chris Sieroty

    Passenger counts at McCarran International Airport increased for the second straight month in February while Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air continued its double-digit growth in passenger traffic.

    According to figures released Thursday by the Clark County Department of Aviation, 3,108,106 passengers passed through the airport in February, a 6.6 percent increase from 2,915,992 passengers in February 2011.

    Read More »
  • Taxable sales in Nevada, Clark County rise

    March 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Looks like this growth trend is real.

    Taxable sales numbers released Thursday showed tidy gains in goods sold by merchants across Nevada and Clark County. Statewide taxable sales came in at $3.15 billion in January, up from $3 billion a year earlier, the state Department of Taxation reported. Sales in Clark County jumped to $2.33 billion, up from $2.25 billion in January 2011.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas Perspective Shows Rebound

    March 27, 2012 | 8 News Now | Chris Saldana

    Experts say things here are looking up in Las Vegas, including home sales. The newly-released Las Vegas Perspective goes into great detail about how our city is doing and what we can expect in the coming year.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas Perspective offers portrait of 'many communities'

    March 27, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Jeremy Aguero said his favorite part of the 148-page 2012 Las Vegas Perspective book is the section on demographics. It says so much about Las Vegas.

    Of the valley's nearly 2 million residents, 46.8 percent are white, 30 percent are Hispanic, 10 percent are black and 8.7 percent are Asian. Forty-five percent of voters are registered Democrats, 33.2 percent are Republican and 16.3 percent are nonpartisan.

    Read More »
  • GAME CHANGERS: Fixing Nevada's Broken Economy

    March 26, 2012 | 8 News Now | George Knapp

    LAS VEGAS -- The collapse of the housing bubble hit Nevada harder than just about any other place in the country. Tens of thousands of jobs vanished, 100,000 families lost their homes, and we're not out of it yet.

    For more than 20 years, Nevada led the nation in growth and we pretended it could go on forever. Everyone was making so much money that state leaders looked the other way at some pretty glaring problems.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas visitor profile: Little more spending but cautious on gambling

    March 26, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    Sometimes people lie about what they do in Las Vegas.

    That phrase isn't going to replace the "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" advertising campaign.

    And while it may seem a little harsh, it might explain a discrepancy in the annual Visitor Profile Study released Monday by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

    Read More »
  • 10 Hot Spots for Global Homebuyers

    March 26, 2012 | Inman News | Andrea Brambila

    "Las Vegas is on sale and the world is buying," said Heidi Kasama, vice president of the Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors and managing broker at Prudential Americana in Summerlin, Nev.

    Real estate research and information firm DataQuick noted that about 2.8 percent of buyers in that market area listed a non-U.S. home address, which is the lowest level among the 10 markets in this report but still more than double the national rate of 1.1 percent.

    Las Vegas is also one of the most searched cities by non-U.S. site visitors to real estate search sites Juwai.com, Realtor.com, Point2Homes.com and Trulia.com.

    Read More »
  • After hitting town with a huge splash, will WinCo be a game-changer in the Las Vegas grocery market?

    March 25, 2012 | Vegas Inc. | Steve Green

    When WinCo Foods opened two stores in Las Vegas this month, the scene at the company's new Henderson site was described in the Las Vegas Sun as looking like "Black Friday at a big box."

    Lines of shoppers flanked the building, and the parking lot swarmed with cars. One shopper said: "It's like Christmas right now. We're going crazy."

    Read More »
  • More in Las Vegas now rent than own

    March 24, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    Las Vegas is now a city of renters, though it's far less expensive to buy a home here than to rent one.

    From a peak of 64 percent in 2000, as measured by the U.S. census, Las Vegas Valley home ownership is now at 48 percent -- and will continue to fall.

    Read More »
  • Once Reliable Gaming Industry Shows Vulnerability

    March 23, 2012 | 8 News Now | Steve Kanigher

    LAS VEGAS -- As gaming goes, so goes Nevada, which is why the financial hit taken by the state's largest casinos has been so devastating.

    Among casinos with at least $1 million in gaming revenue, total revenue fell from $25.26 billion in 2007 to $20.85 billion in 2010. Those casinos also saw their bottom lines plummet from a collective $2.3 billion profit in 2007 to a combined $6.78 billion loss in 2009.

    Read More »
  • Nevada Fields One of Nation's Least Diversified Economies

    March 23, 2012 | 8 News Now | Steve Kanigher

    LAS VEGAS -- In an effort to recover from double-digit unemployment, record home foreclosures and widespread bankruptcy, Nevada faces a major hurdle -- one of the nation's least diversified economies.

    When economist Jeremy Aguero of Applied Analysis in Las Vegas gave the Nevada Development Authority a presentation in January on Nevada's economic future, he reported that the state had the nation's third least diversified economy, exceeding only Wyoming and Washington, D.C.

    Read More »
  • Applied Analysis acquires SalesTraq

    March 20, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Hubble Smith

    The Las Vegas-based housing research firm SalesTraq has been sold to Applied Analysis, a principal for the business advisory firm said Tuesday.

    Financial terms were not disclosed.

    SalesTraq has provided monthly statistics on the Las Vegas housing market for nearly 20 years, including new and existing home sales, median prices and building permits. The firm's clients include home builders, real estate agents, mortgage lenders and developers.

    Read More »
  • Strip Seeing Signs of Recovery

    March 20, 2012 | 8 News Now | Chris Saldana

    LAS VEGAS -- Nearly 39 million people came to Las Vegas last year, and this year we're on pace to top that number and hit 40 million. It's a promising sign that the Las Vegas Strip is on the way to economic recovery.

    Room rates are slowly rising, and so is slot revenue. But do the experts say Las Vegas is back?

    Read More »
  • Business rising stars shine

    March 17, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Caitlin Mcgarry

    Business success stories are not born, but made -- and they begin with hard work (plus a pinch of luck).

    Ten men and women who met that criteria were honored Friday by the Las Vegas Business Press as Rising Stars of Business during the publication's annual award ceremony at the Hard Rock Cafe on the Strip.

    Read More »
  • Las Vegas job growth in 2011 stronger than previously thought

    March 12, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    New jobs numbers show Nevada's economy faring better than early estimates suggested, but state and local markets still face a long road to full recovery.

    Monday figures from the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation reveal that Las Vegas added more jobs than stated in earlier reports. Unemployment statewide fell from 13 percent in December to 12.7 percent in January, and in the Las Vegas Valley it fell from 13.3 percent to 13.1 percent.

    Read More »
  • Nearly all gaming stocks gained during February

    February 29, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    Investors came home in February.

    The average daily stock prices for nine of the 10 publicly traded gaming companies tracked by Las Vegas-based financial consultant Applied Analysis increased during the month.

    Read More »
  • Nevada taxable sales saw gains in December

    February 27, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Improved clothing and car sales and more construction spending in December helped lift taxable sales across Nevada, the state Department of Taxation reported Monday.

    Taxable sales grew 3.8 percent, to $4.2 billion, year over year in December, a bellwether month for retail sales. Clark County posted bigger gains, with a 9.5 percent year-over-year spike to $3 billion.

    Read More »
  • Local apartment occupancy slips in fourth quarter
    Sustainable gains in population, jobs necessary for recovery, analyst says

    February 27, 2012 | Las Vegas Business Press | Hubble Smith

    Average apartment occupancy in Las Vegas dropped to 91.1 percent in the fourth quarter and landlords pulled back slightly on asking rents to $743 a month, business research firm Applied Analysis reported.

    Occupancy slipped 1.6 percentage points from the previous quarter and half a point from a year ago, while rents dipped from $752 in the third quarter and $756 a year ago.

    Read More »
  • Sprinkler rule tied to housing permits

    February 23, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Southern Nevada's biggest city has a new fire-sprinkler rule, but the regulation won't affect local homeowners anytime soon.

    The city of Las Vegas on Feb. 16 adopted an international building code that calls for fire sprinklers in every new home.

    Read More »
  • Analyst: Forget the boom, focus on recovery

    February 10, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Caitlin McGarry

    Las Vegas is a city that doesn't look back.

    It's a town where once-grand hotels and resorts disappear in an instant, leaving the desert to be scraped clean for the next big thing.

    Now, more than ever, that capacity to always focus on tomorrow is a strength, speakers said Thursday at the annual Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce annual economic forum.

    Jeremy Aguero, principal analyst of consulting firm Applied Analysis, drove home that point with a series of graphics showing that virtually all economic measures signal that Las Vegas is healing after years of deep recession.

    Read More »
  • Creativity, strong support system make for thriving city
    Preview Las Vegas 2012 speakers offer hope, suggestions for improvement

    February 10, 2012 | Las Vegas Sun | J. Patrick Coolican

    I’m generally skeptical of and resistant to pom-pom boosterism. So at the Chamber of Commerce’s Preview Las Vegas 2012 on Thursday, I snickered some at the optimism and good cheer, half expecting Gen. Westmoreland or Donald Rumsfeld to emerge and tell us they see the light at the end of the tunnel.

    In truth, though, it feels like the worst of the Great Recession is over, even in Southern Nevada. Rossi Ralenkotter, CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, and Jeremy Aguero of the firm Applied Analysis gave upbeat presentations with data showing things are looking up: Visitation is up for 22 consecutive months; room rates are up 25 percent since hitting bottom; population, employment, incomes are all up slightly.

    Read More »
  • Preview Las Vegas 2012

    February 9, 2012 | Las Vegas Sun | Leila Navidi

    Jeremy Aguero, principal analyst with Applied Analysis speaks during Preview Las Vegas 2012 at the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012. [photo]

    Read More »
  • "Preview" headliners upbeat about a Las Vegas comeback
    Experts share ideas with business leaders on boosting tourism and jobs

    February 9, 2012 | Vegas Inc. | Gregan Wingert

    Las Vegas may have taken a powerful body blow when the economy was down for the count, but speakers of Thursday's Preview Las Vegas 2012 say the city is making a comeback.

    Read More »
  • Businesses Hopeful for Profitable 2012

    February 9, 2012 | 8 News Now | Calvert Collins

    LAS VEGAS -- There are positive signs of an economic shift both on and off the Las Vegas Strip. Business and tourism experts told local business owners today that 2012 will be a profitable year.

    Almost 39 million people visited Las Vegas last year, the second most in history. This year, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority think we'll top 40 million, which means thousands of new jobs and decreasing foreclosure and unemployment rates.

    Read More »
  • 'Preview Las Vegas' predicts return to prosperity tourism and gaming

    February 9, 2012 | 13 Action News | Rikki Cheese

    Las Vegas, NV (KTNV) -- Business leaders gathered on Thursday for the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce's "Preview Las Vegas," the organization's annual meeting to predict trends in the year ahead.


    Gaming analyst Jeremy Aguero of Applied Analysis said, " The last several years have been about surviving the recession and business owners have done a phenomenal job of that. Now it's time to transition and think about how do we take advantage of this economic recovery."

    Read More »
  • Visitor volume rises 4.3 percent in 2011

    February 9, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Southern Nevada's tourism economy continued its steady march back from recession in December.

    The final month of 2011 brought nearly 3 million visitors to the local economy, for a yearly total of 38.9 million visitors, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported Thursday. That makes 2011 the city's second-best year ever for visitor volume. The statistic was also just 300,000 people below a record 39.2 million in 2007, and it was up 4.3 percent over 2010's 37.3 million. Authority officials had projected a 2.5 percent gain, said Scott Russell, the authority's senior manager of research.

    Read More »
  • Shares of Caesars Entertainment do well in initial offering

    February 8, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    At first thought, maybe Caesars Entertainment Corp. should have publicly listed more than just 1.4 percent of the company.

    The Las Vegas-based casino operator re-entered the stock market for the first time in four years Wednesday, and shares flew out of the gate. At one point, the stock was up more than 80 percent, with investors buying and selling shares at a rapid pace.

    Read More »
  • Forecasts of Las Vegas economy on tap at Preview 2012

    February 8, 2012 | Vegas Inc. | Gregan Wingert

    Education has its three R’s, and Jeremy Aguero is offering a set for the Las Vegas economy, too.

    In his address Thursday to business professionals gathering for Preview 2012, Aguero will focus on three words: reset, rethink and rebuild. Aguero is principal analyst for Applied Analysis, a firm that focuses on economic, fiscal and policy research, and he’ll be offering a forecast aimed at helping the city steer its way out of the recession.

    Read More »
  • Were the Boom Years Worth It?

    February 7, 2012 | KNPR - Sons of Nevada |

    The recession has been particularly hard on Las Vegas and on Nevada. Were the boom years worth the pain? Applied Analysis' Jeremey Aguero says yes, definitely.

    Read More »
  • U.S. jobless rate plunges, but Nevada slow to recover

    February 4, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    A national jobs report that sent stock markets soaring Friday drew more muted responses in Las Vegas.

    In a surge of hiring, companies added 243,000 jobs nationwide in January -- across the economy, up and down the pay scale and far more than just about anyone expected. U.S. unemployment fell to 8.3 percent, the lowest in three years.

    Read More »
  • Gambling stocks get January jolt

    January 31, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Howard Stutz

    The gaming sector mirrored the rest of Wall Street last month, which several analysts termed as the best January in more than a decade.

    All 10 publicly traded casino operators and slot machine manufacturers charted by Las Vegas-based financial adviser Applied Analysis posted gains in average daily stock price during the month, which ended Tuesday.

    Read More »
  • Nevada's boom and bust economy

    January 31, 2012 | Marketplace | Sarah Gardner

    Kai Ryssdal: It didn't take long for counting to be done in Florida tonight. All the major networks called the GOP primary for Mitt Romney just minutes after the polls closed.

    Here's what we know about how he won: Exit polls show two out of every three voters said the debates were important in helping them make up their minds. Electability was a big one. Forty-five percent said the most important thing was who could beat President Obama in the fall.

    Read More »
  • November taxable sales surge in Nevada, Clark County

    January 30, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    The recession: It's nothing a little linguine and a nice chianti can't fix.

    Sales inside Pasta Shop Ristorante were up 5 percent year over year in November, as recession-weary consumers indulged more in simple pleasures.

    Read More »
  • Shrewd, smaller Vegas resorts show that innovating, renovating can do wonders

    January 25, 2012 | Las Vegas Sun | J. Patrick Coolican

    When I look at the hand-painted psychedelia of the piano; the ornate, custom-made pool table; and shoe fetish art in the lobby of the Royal House, I feel a little hopeful, which hasn't been a very common emotion these past few years.

    The Royal, on Convention Center Drive, is a creative blend of commerce, art and design -- and an attempt to create a niche product that the megaresorts can't offer because they're too busy putting thousands of heads in beds or in front of slot machines.

    Read More »
  • Diversification? It's made major strides in last decade, analyst says

    January 20, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    Diversify Nevada?

    It's been happening, unheralded, for years, says one local economic analyst.

    For all the hand-wringing about how to expand the state's commercial base, diversification has made big strides here in the last decade, said Jeremy Aguero, a principal in local fiscal-research firm Applied Analysis.

    Read More »
  • Outlook for Las Vegas retail centers remains turbulent

    January 18, 2012 | Vegas Inc. | Steve Green

    The retail sector of the commercial real estate market remains choppy in the Las Vegas area.

    In a probable repeat of 2011, some strip malls and shopping centers are expected to thrive in 2012, while others will likely face financial troubles because of high vacancy rates and tenants struggling to pay their rent.

    Read More »
  • Local observers warn against seeing trend in jobless claims rise

    January 13, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Christopher S. Rugaber

    WASHINGTON -- Applications for weekly unemployment benefits spiked nationwide last week, largely because companies shed thousands of workers after the holiday season.

    But the same Labor Department report showed noticeably fewer first-time claims in Nevada during the holiday season. The Silver State posted one of the biggest declines in benefit applications in the week ending Dec. 24, with 1,590 fewer aid requests than in the prior week. The agency said claims dropped because Nevada reported fewer layoffs over the holiday.

    Read More »
  • MGM Resorts hopes to build resort casino outside of Boston

    January 12, 2012 | 13 Action News | Joyce Lupiani

    BOSTON, MA (AP) -- Casino company MGM Resorts International hopes to develop a resort casino on a 150-acre site in a small town in the western part of the state near the Massachusetts Turnpike, a person familiar with the plan said Wednesday.

    MGM Resorts would become the latest casino operator to propose a gambling facility since the state Legislature in November passed a law authorizing three resort casinos, including one in western Massachusetts. The company plans to partner with local landowner David Callahan to develop the site in Brimfield, a rural town of fewer than 4,000 residents about 80 miles west of Boston.

    Read More »
  • Major auto trade show drives Las Vegas visitation for November

    January 11, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Jennifer Robison

    A key auto trade show helped drive local visitor volume toward prerecession levels, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority reported Wednesday.

    On top of improving visitor numbers, the market saw a surge in average daily room rates.

    The latest numbers bode well for the city, with experts noting that a jump to an unprecedented 40 million local visitors may come in 2012.

    Read More »
  • U.S. economy creates 200,000 jobs, but Las Vegas hiring trails nation's recovery

    January 7, 2012 | Las Vegas Review-Journal | Christopher S. Rugaber

    WASHINGTON -- The nation added 200,000 jobs in December in a burst of hiring that drove the unemployment rate to its lowest in almost three years. The figures raised hopes that the economy might finally be healthy enough to power an even stronger job market.

    Four years after the start of the Great Recession, which wiped out 8.7 million jobs, a Labor Department report Friday showed that the past six months have been the strongest for job creation in the United States since 2006.

    Read More »