So, unlike my Christmas vacation, during which it took me a week to get to Poland, I've made it to Las Vegas sans incident. I got here yesterday late morning and pretty much went right to work.

First on my agenda was a local market tour with Rick Heldreth of land brokerage firm Land Advisors Organization. And tour we did, taking a rip through many of the market's master-planned communities--Inspirada, Southern Highlands, Mountains Edge, Summerlin, Providence, Ardienté, and I'm sure there are a couple I missed in there.

I have toured a number of those master plans before with a variety of builders, but I always like to go back to see how things have changed. For example, last time I was at Inspirada, hardly anything was there. KB Home and Toll Brothers had models open to tour, but Meritage had sort of put the project on hold while it retooled its product in the community. And neither Kimball Hill nor Woodside Homes had yet filed for bankruptcy, and there was no lawsuit involving JP Morgan.

And it's always good to remember just how important master plans are to the Vegas market. When the land--flat, rocky, dusty--and the views--desert plains ringed by mountains--are pretty similar no matter which side of the city you're on, it's all about the community and its amenities. In fact, according to my colleagues at our sister division, Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, the market's top five master-planned communities accounted for 31.5% of the market's year to date sales, as of September. (4Q2009 numbers haven't yet been released.)

Curious to know which master plans were top dogs? Here's the list:

1. Mountain's Edge (442 sales)
2. Providence (290 sales)
3. Summerlin (227 sales)
4. Inspirada (187 sales)
5. Cactus Hills (138 sales)

At any rate, one of the most interesting things I saw while I was cruising through some of these communities was the apparent success of Harmony Homes. The company name may be relatively new to the competitive landscape, but its leadership is a local market mainstay. The company is the latest business venture for Jim Rhodes, former president of Rhodes Homes, which filed for bankruptcy in late March 2009.

Although it's unclear at this point where Rhodes is getting his financing for the new venture, what is clear is that the new start-up is gaining traction in the market quickly. The company's been picking up lots in a number of Las Vegas communities, and I can tell you that I saw a lot of Harmony homes under construction. For example, out of the bunch of lots that the company picked up in Summerlin, Heldreth said he thought about 108 lots remained. "And they'll be through them by the end of the year," he said.

For more expert commentary about what makes Harmony Homes special in the market and for a look at what kind of homes the company is building, check out the short, admittedly amateur video that I shot yesterday while driving through the builder's Ladera Terrace community in the master-planned community of Summerlin. Enjoy!