Having just returned from 10 days in London, we have an interesting take on the UK’s view of Las Vegas. We also take steps to solve the Las Vegas unemployment problem by helping folks land a job in our fair city; either by working at the Vegas Video Network or by some great tips on getting hired. Show notes:

• Visit LASIK of Nevada (50% Off Premium LASIK + $200 more if you mention VVN)
  
  
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  • Sign up for Email Alerts (form found on right side of our website)
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• VVN is Hiring!!!
• Bringing Vegas to London
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We have found ourselves in the enviable position of needing more help in our eleven-camera capable, all high definition, live streaming video studio.  As a result, we’ve created an opening for a part-time, PAID, studio apprentice.

This is not a "go-get-me-some-coffee" type of gig.

We’re looking for a unique individual who wants to roll up their sleeves, work hard, and get deep into the inner workings of what is arguably the next step in broadcasting.

If you’ve ever wanted to get in on the ground floor of this exciting new way of reaching a world-wide audience, this may be the opportunity you’ve been looking for.

Sounds interesting?  Cool.  You’d be a great candidate if you are personable, enthusiastic, and willing to work crazy hours.  You should be VERY comfortable around technology — you’ll be helping with. . .

• pre-production (cameras, lighting, sets, graphics, guest prepping),
• production (video, audio, cameras, live chat), and
• post-production (audio, video, graphics, software, computers, social media, online)

Naturally, you are a fast learner with an affinity for all things techy, so regardless of the work you’ll be asked to do, you’ll catch on quickly and get the job done.   You should have a creative eye and mind, and should write well.  As time goes on, you’ll be capable of doing everything from writing show notes to being a technical director for any of the VVN shows.

This position will require 16 to 20 hours a week of your time.  There will be a mix of morning, afternoon and evening hours.  And it may turn into a full-time position.

If you’re our (wo)man, let us know.  Send an email to jobs@vegasvideonetwork.com.  Include your resume, tell us a bit about your technical capabilities/experience, and let us know why you’d like to work in a dark studio that is usually occupied by two crazy individuals.  If you’ve done any previous video work, we’d love to see that as well.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Summary: We have 10715 available properties, yet another drop. We haven’t seen this low a number of available units since June of 2010 and the end of the Home Buyers Tax Credit. The number of bank owned properties is abnormally low as lenders try to figure out how to comply with relatively new state laws and rulings by state judges. Expect more foreclosures by summer. More short sale and traditional sellers should start to appear with the flowers of Spring. While the number of available units is down, properties under contract are up — a healthy sign by most measures. We have a major tick up in both the number of leases waiting to be signed and the new leases signed. Rentals continue to move fast in this town, so don’t delay if you need to lease!

The News: The Feds are still trying to push through a big foreclosure fraud settlement that involves forgetting about investigating — let along prosecuting — the illegal actions of banks. However, they are bending under pressure from the public and at least two state Attorneys General to at least attempt to look into the matter. It turns out that “let the guys who wrecked the economy off the hook” is a bad strategy in an election year. In local foreclosure fraud news, yet another Nevada court has ruled that lenders must actually prove they have the right to foreclose before doing so.

December saw a drop in the number of homes under contract to be purchased nationwide. But don’t panic! That’s down from a 19 month high! Available inventory is down nationwide, too. It seems logical that if there are fewer homes available, fewer purchase contracts will result.

Two interesting problems to look out for. First, some economists think that all-cash real estate purchases are driving down home prices. Since roughly a third of our deals in Vegas are cash, this should be alarming. However, we have a large inventory of homes that are effectively un-mortgageable — those under $50,000 and those in very poor repair — so I do think this theory is overstated at least on the local level. It would be easy to say “See?? Look at all these homes selling for less than $50,000!” without pointing out that almost nobody locally will write a mortgage for that little. The other interesting thing is a study on what would happen if the minimum down payment on a mortgage went up sharply. It turns out that a minimum of as little as 10% would be a problem for as much as 40% of homebuyers. More alarming is that even more minority homebuyers would theoretically be out of luck. This study, of course, assumes that just because somebody made a lower down payment, the borrower couldn’t afford a bigger one. I find this assumption unrealistic.

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