Routh-Silberman came in at No. 1 among Las Vegas agents with nearly $240 million in volume in RealTrends Verified’s 2025 rankings.
‘More inventory across the whole country’
Routh-Silberman said elevated inventory is a reflection of national and local trends, shaped by pandemic-era buying behavior and natural market cycles.
“It was a collective purchase where a significant amount of the population, way more than normal, bought in 2021 and 2022,” she said. “So while there’s more inventory, there’s more inventory across the whole country.”
Las Vegas, she emphasized, is not witnessing a collapse — but rather a reshuffling of property holdings, especially among people who bought multiple homes during the pandemic boom.
Contrary to reports suggesting that retirees and investors are fleeing the market, Routh-Silberman said she sees the opposite.
“I don’t think you’re seeing a mass exodus from Las Vegas at all. Quite the opposite. I think we’re seeing a mass exodus from California, Oregon and Washington into Las Vegas,” she said. “Just because we have a really diverse real estate collection here, if you will. There’s everything from the $500,000 home to the $5 million and $15 million marketplace.”
She added that many current sellers are not abandoning the city but are instead “taking some money off the table,” noting that some are reallocating funds into savings, the stock market or larger properties within Las Vegas itself.
Realtor.com data and Altos Data shows a similar yearly inventory growth percentage in Las Vegas — and a marked separation from the next highest metro; Washington, D.C.
Altos Data places nationwide active housing inventory at 1,076,328 as of July 11, a 30% increase over the same time last year.
A low-inventory trough was hit March 4, 2022, at 305,138, with current national levels representing a 252.7% increase.
Like Routh-Silberman, Kuhl dispelled the notion of Vegas being in store for significant market downturn.
“We have lower transaction volume, and we have a growth in inventory just by virtue of the fact people have held on for a while longer than before,” he said. “I think people are getting ready to make some moves. So I wouldn’t say that people are fleeing by any stretch of the imagination.
“Not to mention, if there’s anybody fleeing us, start looking at some of those areas like Seattle. We’re still very tax favorable, and that still exists, so we’re doing very well.”
The Nevada Gaming Control Board’s 2024 fiscal year report showed a record $31.5 billion in total revenue, but net income fell 24.4% — including a 40.4% decline on the Las Vegas Strip, Realtor.com cited.
Upsizing and opportunities
Growing inventory is creating buying opportunities — especially for those with significant home equity.
“I think there’s also tons of opportunities to buy up, so those [who] have a lot of equity in the lower price points [are] going to be able to move up to higher price points,” Routh-Silberman said. “A lot of people that are selling right now in that zero to million dollar marketplace are actually purchasing up because they have more purchasing power.”
Realtor.com data shows housing inventory increasing in all four regions with the greatest growth in home inventory found in the West (+38.3%), followed by the South (+29.4%), Midwest (+21.3%) and Northeast (+17.6%).
“There’s a lot of hesitancy out there in the marketplace and people are finally bringing some [homes] to market,” Kuhl said. “I fully expect that — as we transition to more of a little bit of a buyer’s market — some of these segments, southwest included, are going to start seeing downward pressure and pricing on the lower end, and you’re going to see the transaction volume go up.”
‘Vegas acts like a resort and primary market’
Routh-Silberman cites Las Vegas’ distinction as an atypical market — with appeal cutting across categories from primary residences to vacation homes and investment properties.
“Vegas is different because it acts like a primary home market. It also acts like a vacation and resort marketplace and then it’s got a built-in retirement component,” she said. “So in my category — the $2 to $3 million and up, or the luxury sector — those people tend to be of retirement age, but they’re not retirees yet.”
She said many of her clients are “tax refugees” — wealthy buyers from high-tax states preparing for major life or financial transitions.
“A lot of people come here and purchase a couple of years in advance, before [they] sell a business,” Routh-Silberman said. “Because there’s a lot of taxes that we don’t have that most people do.”
Changing buyer profiles
Routh-Silberman noted that the buyer base is also evolving.
“It used to be like 100% Southern California. Now, it’s 75% Southern California, 25% Northern California,” she said. “But what we’re seeing right now is tons of people coming from Oregon and Washington, and I think it’s because of the political unrest and the security issues.”
Despite Las Vegas’ glitzy image, she argues it’s a well-run city.
“Everyone thinks it’s like a cowboy town. [But,] it’s pretty buttoned up, and it runs very efficiently,” she said.
A growing city with limited land
The current population of the Las Vegas metro area in 2025 is 3 million — a 1.59% increase from 2024 and up from 1.9 million in 2010, U.S. Census data shows.
Despite mounting concerns with available land, Routh-Silberman believes that steady buyer intake will keep the market stable over the long term.
“Ironically, Las Vegas is running out of room, and we’re running out of places to develop,” she said. “You’ve got a city with many more people now than there used to be.
“There’s no mass exodus from Las Vegas. There’s a mass exodus [from other states] into Las Vegas. That’s what I think.”
