Top Nevada Agent Kristen Routh-Silberman Raises Las Vegas’s Luxury Profile

“There are not as many realtors here, which makes it easier to be a big fish,” she acknowledges.  But as a luxury property market, Las Vegas hasn’t drawn the kind of national attention lavished on Miami Beach or even Austin—which means there’s tremendous upside.

“We don’t have many of those big city problems,” she says, noting the stunning natural beauty of the landscape on the outskirts. “Life can be quieter here if you want it to be.”

And because it is less established, she adds, there are fewer rules when it comes to buying property, and what is offered tends to be very “cutting edge”: “The builders here compete between themselves to test-market new models and new amenities.”

Things are changing fast, however. With the still fresh addition of an NFL team, the upcoming Formula 1 Grand Prix in November, and the relocation of the Oakland A’s (still two seasons away) to a new stadium in the city, Las Vegas is coming into its own as a laid-back luxury location still on the rise.

Although she especially enjoys representing sellers, saying she loves the challenge of “trying  to find the person who would fit the product,” Routh-Silberman has certainly represented some major listings in her career, including the sale of developer and hotelier Steve Wynn’s house for  $17.5 million three years ago.

The 15,000-square-foot mansion in upscale Summerlin, northwest of downtown, had gone on the market a year before but didn’t sell. Wynn then re-listed it with Routh-Silberman. Her pitch?

“Part of what makes this home so incredibly special is that it’s like a bespoke Wynn Hotel, but in a fully ethereal, one-of-a-kind residential retreat,” she says.

It worked, apparently—she sold it in three months.

Even as she recognized and successfully sold the many virtues of Las Vegas earlier in her career, Routh-Silberman was also savvy about the limits that its relative size could put on a career. And she wanted more.

Ten years ago, she got the opportunity to represent a new luxury development community in Henderson.

“I learned a lot from the developer, selling the community, the lots, and the houses,” she said. “Enough that the next time I found out such a development was in the planning stages, I asked if I could put together ‘micro developments’—a selection of houses in the three different price brackets, starting at $1 million to $3 million and going up to $5 million to $10 million-plus.”

By investing in what she called “custom collections,” Routh-Silberman was on her way to really expanding her business. As with any homes she sells, a key to this new model was “knowing all the numbers.”

“I examine the fine print, I know all the contracts, I look at everything from a numbers point of view,” she says, adding, “I trust my own investment advice.”

The agent has further expanded her expertise into high-rise development with a new project, Four Seasons Private Residences Las Vegas at MacDonald Highlands.  Currently under construction, there are 171 of these private residences in two hillside towers offering views over the Strip, which is just 20 minutes away. With residences starting at $3.95 million, it's a project Routh-Silberman is particularly excited about".

Routh-Silberman credits her early career experience in the tech industry with teaching her the value of marketing and the importance of understanding the product.

“I put my houses first, and let them be the stars,” she tells me. “I make sure they get a lot of press, but it’s all about them, not me.”

Given her success at putting Las Vegas in the spotlight, however, she may not be able to avoid getting some of that shine.

David Hay is a well-known architectural writer and playwright. His stories have been featured in The New York Times, Dwell and New York.