Luck Turns on Las Vegas' Once-Hot Home Market

People trying to sell their homes in Las Vegas -- one of America's hottest job and property markets over the past decade -- have seen their luck turn dramatically worse this year.

AP Homes in Las Vegas

Dana Fillmore was like many of the thousands arriving to the casino capital every month when she moved from Minnesota in 2004 with her husband and two children. In her mid 40s, Fillmore had hoped the find a warmer climate, a house with a swimming pool and place where she could eventually retire.

With no money down, she landed a house with a pool for a $2,100 monthly mortgage.

But her marriage collapsed soon after, and her husband, who works in real estate development, had trouble with support payments as his industry slumped, she said, so she is now trying to sell her house.

A Web site designer, Fillmore bought the place in Henderson next to Las Vegas for $329,000 in July 2005, around the peak of the boom. Since listing the house at $317,000 a few months ago, she has dropped the price to $289,000 and is still hoping for her luck to change as she cannot afford to pay the mortgage on an annual salary of $42,000.

"My parents retired to Las Vegas. It's always been a dream of a lot of people in the northern states to move to a southern state," she said wistfully. "I wish now that I never moved."

Fast Bucks

The promise of a new start and quick riches has made Las Vegas one of America's fastest growing cities for years. Some did become fabulously wealthy from real estate, and in recent years others thought they too could translate rising prices and easy credit into fast bucks.

But no dice for those who bought a few years ago.

"Say they paid half a million. They might be able to sell in the low $400,000s, maybe," said Rita DeSimone, a broker working with Fillmore.

DeSimone said her income is down by half from last year. "Come May, the phone just stopped ringing," she said.

Joy Gillen, 60, a casino supervisor, has had her home on the market for nearly a year and a half. She initially listed the home at $597,000 then $539,900 and since refused to budge, even though she paid only $291,000 for it five years ago.

"I never thought it would ever take so long to sell my house here -- the market was so hot," she said. "I could sell for a cheaper price, but I would shoot myself (financially)."

Nationwide, many real estate markets have turned downward, but the Las Vegas picture is especially pronounced because many speculators in tune with the city's gambling spirit drove up prices and now find themselves forced to sell.