• On Good Things Utah this morning – Our hosts are definitely tired today after performing last night in downtown Salt Lake City to raise money for the American Cancer Society. It was the first annual Cancer is a Drag event and Nicea, Deena and Surae dressed up like Barbies to Dance the Night Away on stage along with a host of other performers including our show creator George Severson and Utah musician Kurt Bestor. Tune in for fun pictures of the event.
  • Also on the show, if you’ve recently considered moving to an entirely new city, you’re not alone. Ever since the pandemic, many of us have had more flexibility when it comes to where we work and, as a result, where we live. That’s caused millions of people to rethink where they call home, whether they’re looking for the best place to retire or just generally searching for the nicest places in America to settle down, with lower living costs, better job opportunities and higher quality of life. So, just where are people looking? According to a new study by real-estate site Redfin, one of the most popular places homebuyers are perusing also happens to be one of America’s most popular vacation destinations.
    • To pinpoint which cities were getting the most attention from potential homebuyers, Redfin’s analysts sifted through 2 million web searches between April 2023 and June 2023. The company homed in on members who viewed at least 10 for-sale houses, including at least one outside their current metropolitan area. In other words, it tried to focus on people who seemed to show serious interest in relocating to an entirely new place. One caveat: The study didn’t track actual home purchases or moves after people showed online interest. And while those potential homebuyers might not actually pack up and head to another city, they are definitely moving-curious and likely to do so.
    • The city that came out on top in Redfin’s study is … Las Vegas. Yes, that Vegas—home to the world’s most famous stretch of casinos, resorts, thrill shows, tourist attractions and debauchery. It was the first time Las Vegas ever topped this particular list for Redfin. Now, there’s a good chance Sin City has never crossed your mind as a place to live and that you’ve instead considered it as a fun weekend getaway. But for a lot of folks, that’s changing. Tourists know Las Vegas for its bright lights, gaming and star-studded shows. But like a lot of cities, the experience for the locals is far different. “There’s a lot more to Las Vegas than just the Strip,” says realtor Michael Bondi, who’s lived in the area for almost 20 years. “The only time I go down to the Strip as a local is if there’s a concert, a sporting event or a restaurant I want to go to.”
      • Here are some of the top reasons people love Sin City:
    • Affordability
  • One of the biggest reasons to consider Las Vegas, especially for those in large metropolitan areas: cost of living. Someone who lives in San Francisco and makes $115,000 would need to earn just $62,683 to maintain their standard of living in Las Vegas, we found using a cost-of-living calculator from NerdWallet. Plus, the home prices here are far more affordable than some of the big West Coast cities where, Redfin found, a lot of the people eyeing Vegas homes currently live. Redfin reports a typical home in the Vegas area costs around $412,000. Compare that with around $975,000 in the Los Angeles area, about $1.4 million in San Francisco and around $826,000 in Seattle. Also appealing? Nevada doesn’t have state income tax.
    • Job opportunities
  • Nevada ranks as one of the nation’s fastest-growing states. Interestingly, at some points this year, the state reported higher unemployment rates than the country as a whole, but there are still a lot of job opportunities in the area. Just think about all the touristy businesses downtown! The opportunities are only growing too, Bondi points out. Las Vegas recently added a few new professional sports franchises, and it may soon be home to a couple major motion picture studios … which will translate to thousands of new jobs. “We’ve got so many projects coming here that are going to transform Las Vegas,” Bondi says.
    • Quality of life
  • Ultimately, it’s not the Bellagio or the Venetian that Bondi likes having close to his home in the Vegas suburbs. It’s the two Home Depot stores within a five-minute drive, along with the calm traffic. It’s that type of convenient suburban environment that many of his clients from big cities have been searching for. “It takes me 20 minutes to go from one side of town to the other,” he says. “We have traffic, but it’s manageable.” We hope you tune into this Hot Topic and so much more this morning on a Friday edition of GTU!