It all began around 10 years ago when I moved to Las Vegas. Whenever I traveled away from Las Vegas and traveled back by plane, people would ask me where I was going. "To Las Vegas," I replied. All of a sudden a big grin would come over their faces. Next question would always follow "What hotel do you stay at?" "I live there," I would reply without giving out any further information. Now, a bigger grin would spread across their faces. "Boy, that must be fun."
Well, Las Vegas is fun. We are, after all, the city of entertainment. There are great shows to see here all the time. There are casinos all over the place. If you have nothing to do you can go to a casino and throw money into a slot machine and pray that today is your day. Additionally, you can attend a trade show, eat at a fabulous restaurant, go bowling or watch a movie all in a casino without ever having to go outside. If shopping is your thing, then we have some of the best shops in the world right on the Strip too. Here you can purchase jewels costing in the millions or buy designer label clothing costing thousands - the possibilities are endless. You can golf and you can swim and spend time in the sunshine. We have about 350 days of sunshine per year. In January, February and March of this year, when everyone in the east was brutally cold, we had temperatures in the high 80's. You could not beat it! It was wonderful!
In March, I went to Texas to visit my family. When I was leaving the Texas airport, I got in the line to check my bags at the airport. Same questions, same grins and people's faces would light up when you say you live in Las Vegas. This time one of the people in line had a new comment for me. "I guess no children live in Las Vegas. I mean, after all, with all the stuff that goes on there." Then he gave me a little wink as if he and I knew something that other people didn't. I couldn't pursue the conversation further as I was racing for my gate. But, on the plane home, I pondered what he thought went on here.
I thought of my neighborhood - I live in Henderson, NV. I am 15 minutes off the Strip. I live high up in the hills overlooking the city of Las Vegas. From my backyard, you can see the lights of the city twinkling at night. I would be coming home around 10PM. There was hardly any traffic on the freeways. All the stores and restaurants that I pass to get home are all closed by 10PM at night. My normally quiet neighborhood was QUIET. There wasn't anyone outside. I did pass a bobcat. He raised his head and looked at the car and then even he went back home.
The next morning was a typical work day for everyone. The big yellow school bus came and picked up the children for the elementary school at 7:15AM. The next yellow schools buses came for the Middle School children and then the later yellow buses came for the high schoolers. While many of the schools in Las Vegas are considered average to poor, the schools in Henderson are considered superior to many schools in the United States both by curriculum and by test scores. Henderson can boast the top elementary, middle and high schools in the area.
On my way to work around 10:00AM, I could see the businesses starting to open. You could see the managers and employees cleaning and sweeping and getting ready for the day. The parking lots at the supermarkets were already filled with cars and shoppers. The banks had several people going in and coming out.
I met my first client. We drove down one street to look at homes. Here, there were 5 churches of different denominations and one Jewish Temple - all of which had signs out front offering their activities for the week. As I quickly drove by with the client, there was bible study offered at one, teen activity at another, young children activity at a third and on and on. Sounds like your town doesn't it? This is what most of the neighborhoods in Las Vegas look like. This is, in short, Las Vegas away from the Strip and it is a nice place to live.
It is less expensive to live here than in many other states. Families don't need heavy winter clothing. You don't have to pay for heating oil and many other items costing $$$$ as needed in other states. We have nice weather almost all year and no state income tax which represents an instant savings for all working people. Many of the hospitality jobs offer fairly decent pay and good benefits. Many people retire here.
Our dominant industry in Las Vegas is, of course, tourism and hospitality. The people who work in those places have to have some place to live. Guess what? They live in homes, condos or apartments as in any other town. They live off the Strip, they have children who go to school and many families worship on weekends. We even have doctors, dentists and pharmacists. We have hospitals. Architects. Farmer's Markets, bakeries, soccer leagues, soccer moms, colleges and everything you have. The only difference is that we have mega hotels and an economy built on conventions, weddings, tourism and slot machines.
Now about that wink? What did he think that he knew that he thought that I knew?
Myra Gouger, RRG, ABR, SRES, CDPE, CPRES
REALTOR®
Senior Real Estate Specialist
Certified Distressed Property Expert
Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist
Realty ONE Group
2831 St. Rose Pkwy, Suite 100
Henderson, NV 89052
702-858-9311
myra_gouger@yahoo.com
www.nevadahomesdirect.com
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