Is Las Vegas becoming a ghost town?

During the "go-go" years Las Vegas experienced a tremendous boom in construction. Residential and commercial properties were being built at a "hyper" pace. Without going into a whole lot of detail. The real estate market in Las Vegas has "collapsed". 80% of the people who own houses in Las Vegas are "underwater". This is an example of what a lot of people are facing.

A friend of mine bought a town home in August of 2006. He paid 260k for it. In his community, there are roughly 80 other town homes that all look the same (cookie-cutter). The town home across the street from his sold for 85k cash about four months ago. There are a number of other foreclosures in his community listed for 100-120K. Remember that all of the town homes in this community are the same. If you do the math, my friend is 160k "upside-down" in his property. He has owned the place less than 4 years. I have been in Las Vegas for four years. When I first got to town I almost bought a house. I decided against it. Everyday, I thank my "lucky stars" I did not buy a house in Vegas during the "go-go" years. If I would have? I would be in the same predicament my friend is in. 

Why did I title this post "Is Las Vegas becoming a ghost town?". If you know the streets of Las Vegas as well as I do. You will find them very quiet and extremely interesting. The reason for my analogy?. A majority portion of the properties in Las Vegas are either (1). Foreclosed properties (2). Properties "on the way to foreclosure". A number of people think that Las Vegas is on her way to becoming a "ghost town". I DO NOT believe that. I have stated a number of times that Las Vegas is "resetting". Clearing out all the foreclosures is part of the "resetting" process. 

If you look at the census data, during the "go-go" years, the population of Las Vegas was increasing 30% a year. The latest census numbers show the population growth in Las Vegas is increasing at a very narrow rate (1-2)%. I see a lot of young kids coming to town. (I am 40 years old so I consider young to be 21-31). Las Vegas went from being extremely "over-priced" to "bargain basement". A number of people are starting to take advantage of this situation. I had a friend of mine from Kansas ask me, "What kind of jobs are in Las Vegas?" The answer to that is "two-fold". If you are expecting to find a good job in the construction or gaming industry (Good Luck). These two fields are the ones that are suffering the most. If you are more on the creative side (technology, film, new businesses). Las Vegas could very well be the place for you. Lots of young and creative people are coming to Las Vegas. My predictions for Las Vegas in the future? "Younger with an emphasis on technology and creativity".