Okay, I’m back. A loyal Las Vegas Advisor reader mentioned that several forum readers have asked where Robin went. Robin is just damned busy, and I hate to keep restarting my blog, telling my loyal readers that I’m back for good, and then having business pull me in other directions. Please forgive my long absence, and I’ll do my best to keep in touch at least every few days.

I just got back from Burning Man, so I’m feeling quite cocky. (If you’ve been there, you’ll get that.) I’m excited! The smell of the playa – still in my nostrils – wafts through my brain, business is thriving, and it’s all good. I haven’t had more than an occasional weekend off since my trip to Exuma last October; this 5-day immersion in a human carnival was just what I needed. The tent is packed up, Ron is uploading the photos, and we both feel rejuvenated.

We returned to see that foreclosure listings have risen to 2300 – an increase of just about 200 in the past week. With more REOs coming to market, and fewer buyers as the slow season arrives, you will see this number continue to climb. I expect to see house prices begin to slip, but not a great deal. Don’t panic if you recently bought – it’s most likely to be a slight dip in the 4% to 8% range over the next year. Just don’t buy a house today if you plan to flip it tomorrow. If you bought recently expecting a quick profit, you probably shouldn’t be allowed to make your own investment decisions anyway – better turn this over to your mom. She’ll tell you the obvious: don’t buy high and sell low.

Speaking of mom; I’m thrilled that my 86-year-old mom is coming to visit for 3 weeks. My 87-year-old dad can’t be torn away from his karaoke contests and bicycling, but it’ll be fun to show Mom around Vegas. I love Vegas – there’s always so much to show off when we have visitors.

Demand has remained very strong, with monthly sales well over 3000 homes. With consumer confidence blowing in the wind, it’s amazing that sales are as strong as they were early in this decade, when we all thought money really did grow on trees. After some pruning, Las Vegas home prices are such a bargain that people across the globe continue to buy here.

That reminds me – if you missed me live on Fox Business Network a few weeks ago, that was fun! I was asked to comment on whether this was a good time to buy a home in Las Vegas. Oh, hell yes. But somehow the other agent, Hazel, thought we were invited for “Realtor Smack-Down: Las Vegas vs. Miami”. It was really quite funny. I’m sure Miami is probably a good buy right now – but I know Vegas is!