Friday, April 3, 1998 | 10:05 a.m.
Southern Nevada homebuilders have enjoyed a healthy housing market for at least the past three years, and most don't see the good times going away just yet.
While Wall Street analysts have cooled toward the growth of the Las Vegas hotel-casino industry market because of an over-saturation of rooms in the works, builders don't see the housing industry following suit.
As the Southern Nevada Homebuilders Association held its annual builders' show Thursday at the Tropicana Pavilion, the mood was one of guarded optimism.
Irene Porter, the association's executive director, said the member builders have produced about 20,000 single-family units each of the past three years. Most expect that to continue for at least the short term.
"I don't think it's going to come to a crashing halt," Don White of Pageantry Communities said. "It may slow down, but a crashing halt? No."
Nor does Rich Priesling of Hearthstone Construction see an end to the housing industry prosperity. He said the demand for housing runs about three to six months behind the completion of new rooms. The addition of planned megaresorts such as Bellagio, Venetian, Mandalay Bay and Paris could fuel housing as more workers are needed.
"We believe there's a minimum of two, two-and-a-half good years, maybe three," Priesling said.
Moreover, not all the boom is related to the tourism/gaming economy. Nevada's warm climate and attractive tax structure is luring more retirees.
"There's still a lot of growth in the area that's not hotel related. The retirement segment of our market is huge," White said, adding his company plans to build 300 houses this year.
Like the gaming industry, many have predicted a cooling of the housing industry in recent years as the economic boom seems almost too good to believe. "I don't think many people thought this growth would stay at the level it has the last three years," Richard Masters, former project manager for Pardee of Nevada, said. "For right now, I don't see any end for the housing boom."
And government agencies are also bracing for continued growth. Bob Weber, director of the Clark County Building Department, said he plans to add 10 inspectors this year.
Not that all is rosy in the housing industry. Builders say they face many challenges, among them elements of the community that want to stem the soaring growth in the Las Vegas Valley. Builders say that if jobs continue to be created, more housing is obviously a necessity.
"I didn't create growth. I just respond to it," White said. "I'm not going to build 50 houses if there's not a demand for them."
Porter echoed that the housing industry is only reacting to the influx of new residents. "It's easy to think that (we) stop home building and growth goes away. That's not true. You can end up with a lot of social problems if you don't have adequate housing," she said.
White said he supports controlled growth and that work is needed on infrastructure such as aging water and sewer systems.
Also, builders face challenges in keeping housing affordable, Priesling said. He said regulations in places like Henderson and North Las Vegas that increase the minimum square footage of lots result in higher costs passed on to buyers. In North Las Vegas the minimum lot size is now 6,000 square feet, compared to the county where it is as small as 3,500 square feet.
"The only land for affordable housing is in the county," he said.
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