I want to give a shout to a couple of my favorite Las Vegas haunts!

Just a short distance east from Summerlin is Rosemary’s.  Located in a non-descript but upscale shopping center, Rosemary’s offers a fabulous dining experience, (I think it serves among the best food in Las Vegas!) expertly prepared by husband and wife chef/owners Wendy and Michael Jordan.  Chef Michael trained with Emeril Lagasse in New Orleans and the cuisine reflects his creole influence with dishes like hoppin’ john and cheddar grits.  Rosemary’s caters to the local crowd and has a great happy hour in the bar, half price bottles of wine on Sundays and lady’s night Wednesday  half price entrees for ladies!    I really love dining at Rosemary’s and am glad it is in the neighborhood! 

El Sombrero is a very small Mexican restaurant located in the Arts District in Downtown Las Vegas.  Housed in a VERY understated building, the El Sombrero was opened here in 1950 by the family of the current owners- 1950!  Teresa and Humberto own it now and he is the master chef and Teresa handles the often crowded dining room with a friendly manner.  I am a big fan of the tamales but the enchiladas, tacos and chile verde are on my favorite list as well.  Come early for the huevos rancheros and the chorizo and eggs as well!  The El Sombrero is a part of Las Vegas history that I hope is around for a long time to come! 

A housing SHORTAGE in Las Vegas by 2009?

You heard me right, a SHORTAGE!  But how can that be- Las Vegas is one of the real estate trouble spots, right- DEAD WRONG!  A report from the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association   indicated that the growing work force will demand more condominiums, town-homes and apartments due to affordability issues and that single family homes will be less in favor due to increased land and materials costs.  What has been happening is that with lessened housing demand, builders have been selling their land holdings, sitting on or not building on land currently in the portfolio and closing sales offices at poorly performing communities which has greatly diminished the supply of housing.  This has not been an issue in 2007 since the demand was not adequate enough balance out the lack of supply but in 2008, where several industry insiders predict an upturn in real estate demand will occur as early as in the first quarter of the new year.  Remember, in the next five years, there is a staggering $65 BILLION in major construction projects being undertaken in Clark county and that means jobs, new residents and increased demand for all types of real estate! How long will this process take?  This is unknown but with the historic level of mortgage rates and real estate prices that the Las Vegas Review Journal reported  “Experts say prices will not go much lower”, we could already be in the trough and demand and prices may head upward as soon as March 2008!   Contary investment theory dictates that the time to buy is when when the rest of the market is selling- so what are you waiting for? Have a HAPPY and PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!