by Buck Wargo, Las Vegas Sun, 11.30.2010 

Las Vegas’ economic performance is fourth from the bottom in newly released world rankings and the prospects for a rapid recovery are dim with its dependence on domestic tourism and construction, according to the author of a report released this week.

Before the recession, in measurements analyzing 1993 through 2007, Las Vegas ranked No. 14 in the world among 150 metropolitan areas studied by the Brookings Institution and London School of Economics.

Las Vegas fell to 128th in the rankings during the recession in 2008 and 2009, and since the recovery has begun, its ranking has fallen to 146th. That’s better than only Dublin, Ireland (150); Dubai (149); Barcelona, Spain (148); and Thessaloniki, Greece (147).

The report said the patchy recovery that took hold in most U.S. cities in 2009 and 2010 didn’t happen in Las Vegas. The city’s income levels declined 1.2 percent despite an increase nationally, and the employment rate dipped 3 percent, much greater than the national decline of 0.7 percent.

The report also cited Las Vegas’ foreclosure problem with the second highest share of bank-owned homes in the country and more than two-thirds of residential mortgage holders owing more than their homes are worth.

“If the first year (of recovery) is any indication for Las Vegas, it could be a long, slow road ahead with the overhang from a damaged real estate market,” said Alan Berube, senior fellow and research director at Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program. “It’s going to take time to sort through that.”

For a decade and a half before the Great Recession, Las Vegas added jobs at a 4.9 percent annual pace with booming construction, real estate and gaming industries. Nationally, Las Vegas was ranked No. 1 and the closest was Phoenix, whose global ranking was No. 20.

The city’s decline was like that of economies in Eastern Europe — “a house of cards,” Berube said. The rankings measure jobs, job growth and income — all categories that have taken hits with a current jobless rate of 14.1 percent, Berube said........read full article