Image by srpatterson via Flickr

If you’re a Sin City enthusiast like myself, a tiny glimpse into the scandals that ensue behind closed doors on the city strip offer a world of intrigue and entertainment. I came across an article recently that offers a glimpse into the major bankruptcies that have occurred for Las Vegas Casinos. Naturally, what came to mind was the scene in Ocean’s 11, a Sin City original, where Rusty and Danny, AKA the dreamy Brad Pitt and George Clooney, are explained the top 3 casino robberies ever attempted. Fabricated or not, while reading the article I had a difficult time not envisioning the top bankruptcies, and ultimate scandal, in my head as if playing before me like a well scripted movie scene, just as Ocean’s 11 so masterfully painted a picture of the attempted robberies of LV casinos. Unfortunately, as I read further, the bankruptcies of Las Vegas casinos are a lot less glitzy: Donald Trump is no Brad Pitt.

As a frequent visitor to the City of Sin, I had always heard different rumors about what I would later learn was called the Fontainebleau Resort, standing amidst the towering Las Vegas hotels and casinos, halted mid-construction with giant cranes waiting to begin their work again. I never understood why the work didn’t resume, and neither did others, which inevitably fueled the rumors as to what event occurred to cease construction of the property. “It was a catastrophic divorce,” whispered some, “he cheated with his assistant and she took all his money,” - just another theory to make sense of the gap in the Las Vegas strip.

Some of the less shocking bankruptcies reported in Las Vegas include Terrible’s, and Palace Station, a casino tailored to the LV locals. Who has even heard of these? More surprising bankruptcies include the Trump hotel, while just off the strip is a staple to the Las Vegas scene. The Trump Hotel is owned by real estate mogul Donald Trump who has himself filed chapter 11 bankruptcy four times on his projects. Maybe it’s time Donald Trump saw an Omaha Bankruptcy Attorney. 

So how does a casino go bankrupt and what effects has the lack-luster economy had on the Rat Pack’s playground? According to the same article, the number of Casinos in LV has fallen from 42 in 2005, to 38 in 2010.  The number of employees was at its highest in 2008 at 114,465 and has fallen to a dismal 102,627 since. Less revenue equals fewer jobs; the unemployment rate is 14% in Las Vegas, the highest out of other metropolitan areas like Los Angles, Miami and New York. The occupancy rate at hotels has fallen from its 90% standing in 2007 to just 83% in 2010, also the room rate has thus fallen to an average $96 a night, a stark comparison to $133 in 2007. Surely a sign of tough times for Las Vegas casinos, maybe they should all consult an Omaha Bankruptcy Attorney.

Article courtesy of Ashley Love. Learn more by consulting a capable Nebraska Bankruptcy Lawyer and SkrupaLaw.com.