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Economic survival a focus at Preview 2008
February 11, 2008 - Amateur night is over and only the pros are going to
survive in Las Vegas, real estate observer Richard Lee said last week at Preview
Las Vegas 2008, the annual economic forecasting forum staged by the Las Vegas
Chamber and Nevada Development Authority.
Lee said he wakes up every morning wondering how to get his "share of the pie,"
but with 2 million people living here now, it keeps getting tougher.
"Last year, remember, I said we've got to make the pie bigger and think outside
the box," Lee, vice president and public relations director for First American
Title Co. of Nevada, told about 2,000 business leaders attending the event at
Cox Pavilion.
"Still not convinced? Look at all the resorts under construction. Look at the
south Strip and what's on the horizon for 2009 -- Plaza Las Vegas and Anthony
Marnell's M Resort. Yes, things are slower than what we'd like them to be, but
we are going to survive," he said.
The housing market is in the dumps, partly due to "irrational exuberance," in
the words of former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, which led to an
"implosion" of the subprime mortgage market, Lee said.
"The big question is where is the bottom? I don't know. I think we're close to
the bottom for new homes. We still have a ways to go in resales," he said.
In the hallway between appearances, Jeremy Aguero, principal of economic
research firm Applied Analysis, discussed some of his economic predictions such
as business growth, new companies moving to Nevada, increased employment, and
even a potential housing shortage in 2009 caused by rapidly declining home
prices. He also urged Las Vegans to use their portion of the impending tax
refund from the federal government to help jump-start the economy.
"Please spend it," he said. "Don't share it or use it to pay the credit card
bill. Put it back in the economy."
Opportunity abounds in a down market. Sell low, buy low. That's an example of
thinking outside the box, Lee said. Some homeowners may have to sell for less
than they paid, but they have an opportunity to buy something twice as good, he
said.
"My kids can buy a home today that they couldn't have a few years ago," he said.
"That's opportunity."
The economic predictions at Preview 2008 inspired R.J. Peterson, president of
Boca Raton Luxury Condominiums South Strip, who has participated for three years
and was eager to hear what the forecast would be for the current subprime
mortgage crisis.
Peterson, originally from Canada, said he believes the crisis will pass.
"There's no quick solution but there are other avenues to attract investors to
Vegas," he said. "There are no quick fixes here and we're going to have to ride
it out. But hopefully Las Vegas will be the last to slow down and the first to
speed up."
Many people may be questioning whether it's a good time to be in Las Vegas. Even
though the Strip has attracted global investment from Dubai and Israel and $30
billion in resort projects are on the way, the newspaper headlines and TV news
are "beating us up," Lee said.
Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority President and Chief Executive
Officer Rossi Ralenkotter said Las Vegas is second only to Google as the hottest
brand name. It's ahead of the National Football League, Sony and Amazon.com.
"We went from being a sales and marketing organization to being a brand
organization after 9-11," Ralenkotter said at Preview. "We're now branding
globally. We're not selling a product. We're not selling a car or a soft drink.
We're selling a destination."
He showed the tourism agency's latest print advertisements and television spots,
"Your Vegas is Showing," featuring epicurean and fashion scenes.
Lee noted that the $1.9 billion Palazzo opened in January, bringing Barneys of
New York to Las Vegas for the first time. Trump International Hotel & Tower and
Encore at Wynn Las Vegas are scheduled to open later this year.
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