Hiya Vin,
Yeah the market out here seems to be hit pretty hard. I specialize in repaints so it's not to bad for me. Even if a house is sold as a forclosure, the new owners want it to look sweet... So in we go. I do have a buddy who lost his condo but has managed to hold on to his other two houses. It also seems like they still can't build stuff fast enough here. The city keeps expanding from it's center and the high rises, both residential and casinos just keep going up. Sometimes it makes me wish I was union. A union painter here working on a new casino starts at 33 and some change per hour. Not to shabby, although through private work I can sometimes pull as much as 100 bucks an hour. Not to often, but it does happen.
I still miss the upper mid-west where I'm from and want to move back there. I'm sick of Vegas. If you live here you realize that this city is a city within a city. Vegas is NOT just the strip. I want the green and the trees again though.
If I can get a job back in Minneapolis soon while there's still a couple of months of summer left I'm gone, otherwise I'll wait till spring. My friends tell me that works still pretty good back there.
Hmmmm, interesting thought... The houses and the things that a painter runs into back in the mid west are way different than what one runs into here in the desert. I wonder how much different other places in the country are as well?
Anyway, cheers man!!!
Jake.