Las Vegas Investment Club

JANUARY 1ST 2016 NEWSLETTER

Interest Rates Will Rise
in 2016 The Question
is How Fast?
Market Maneuvering
Margins Are Minimal
Dips Are One Thing
A Steady Downside Is
Something Else
No One Cares About
Your Money More Than
You Do
Election Years Have
Some Predictable Effects
Beware Of The Financial Advisor Selling His
Own Goods
Buy American Does
Not Apply Now
Housing Supply And
Demand Remains Unbalanced
Student Debt Curbs
Potential New Homeowners
How Did We Become
A Society Lulled By
Entitlements?
America Is Not Designed To Be A Socialist Nation!
The Running Of The
Bulls Begins
Be For Something Instead Of Just Against
Something
AUTHORED BY MIKE LATHIGEE

Why 2016 Wont Be

A Good Year For The
Stock Market!
In 2015 I was very clear at all our club meetings and communications that stocks were
fully valued and that the strength of the US
dollar had a negative impact on company
earnings. At best, I expected the market to
trade sideways for the year. That is exactly
what did occur.

quicker than anticipated. Higher interest

rates would have dire consequences for
both the stock market and the real estate
market.

You might recall that at one meeting in May,

internationally known trader Phil Town
and I discussed this situation in detail. We
guided investors to take profits and go into
a heavier cash position. In 2016 my guidance is similar but I believe the potential
of a significant correction is very possible..

As I see it, this is the problem we are facing:

Even if the market were growing at a strong
pace, the S&P 500 stocks are still not cheap
in relation to their earnings. This leaves
little maneuvering room. Any economic
headwind will cause a stock market sell-off.
Bottom line is stocks are overvalued as of
this date January 1st, 2016.

The good news is that I dont see a recession in America in 2016. However, the
economic growth around China, Brazil,
Russia, Europe, and most other nations
remains weak. This means less demand
for US exports. This slowed demand for
US goods, combined with the strong dollar and coupled with weak international
growth will continue to mute earnings
growth in 2016.
Interest Rates Will Rise in 2016 The
Question is How Fast?
The Federal Reserve has lifted the cap on
interest rates and although I dont expect
the Fed to take an aggressive stance, the
impact of higher rates will hurt bond prices
and mutual fund portfolios. That will be
bad for your 401k!
I dont see inflation as a problem in 2016.
However, if inflation does rip through the
US market, the expected impact would
be for the Fed to raise interest rates much

Market Maneuvering Margins Are Minimal

That is why in 2016 I would reduce all exposure to the stock market to about twopercent of your net worth. I suggest buying
stocks on substantial sell-offs when they
begin to show value relative to the sales
price.
Do not listen to your financial advisor when
they tell you to be long in the market. It
is in their own interest to keep you in the
market in order to protect their fees. Right
now the market is a gamble and not worth
the risk.
I see little room for upside movement when
the S&P 500 is trading at 17.2 times its earnings over the last 12 months. This is much
higher than the 14.5 ratio weve seen over
the last decade. With stock prices this high
there is little room left for them to rise unless we see substantial economic growth
or a huge market sell-off. At this time I am
on the sidelines.

Dips Are One Thing A Steady Downside Is Something Else

I have another area of concern, too. The
majority of mutual funds continue to underperform the market. Mutual funds are
a favorite of financial advisors, yet for the
most part your advisor is not your friend.
Over time the fees charged by your advisor
will erode the accumulated gains you could
attain by over 50%. My feedback is in most
cases a financial advisor is a bad investment and moving in the wrong direction.
All the governments regulatory involvement has made things even worse. It has
gotten to the point where most financial
advisors are simply glorified mutual fund
salespeople due to their limitations on
what they can and cannot do.
So, my guidance for 2016 is that we are
looking at a year likely to trade downward.
Couple that with the financial fees you are
paying in your 401k or mutual funds, and
2016 could take you one step closer to the
poor house. Investors relying on financial
advisors need to look hard at this combination and make some smart decisions.
I suggest attending Las Vegas Investment
Club Meetings and take on more personal
accountability for your financial affairs.
Many people are surprised that lower oil
prices sometimes have a negative impact

on the stock market. The logic is lower

gasoline prices means more money for
consumers to be able to spend elsewhere
and a stronger consumer. After all consumers make up about 75% of US GDP
and more spending by consumers drives
up stock market values. However, there
is another factor at play that is offsetting
any potential stock market gain.
As of the date of this article Jan 1, 2016 oil
is near $40 and likely in my opinion headed
lower. Much lower oil prices cause sovereign wealth funds that are from oil producing states to sell off their portfolios to meet
their budgetary needs domestically. This
has an impact on all equities worldwide
as these funds sell off their equities and
other securities.
The level of sovereign wealth fund assets
under management as of December 31,
2015 is $7.2 trillion, with $4.4 trillion originating in commodity and oil rich nations.
These oil dependent nations like Saudi
Arabia have to repatriate the capital from
the sovereign wealth funds having a negative impact on stock markets worldwide.
No One Cares About Your Money More
Than You Do

I believe that the only investors, who will

do well in the stock market in 2016, are
investors capable of making individual
stock picks without having to pay financial advisor fees. I freely admit that this is a
high risk game for most people. Thats because most people are not equipped with
the skills needed to do due diligence and
objectively assess the risks and rewards.
All I can tell you is that you are not going
to do well if you only listen to a financial
advisor. Their standard policy is to tell you,
You are in this for the long term and need
to ride out the dips in the market. That
makes money for the financial advisor,
the bank or brokerage house but not you!
Dips are one thing, but I foresee something
more than a dip. If you get such advice
from your advisor then seriously consider
firing them. It doesnt matter how long
youve known them, how much money
theyve made for you in the past. Staying
in for the long term is not good advice in
todays market. You must remember that
your financial advisors best interest is in
their own pocketbook, not yours. Yes I have
said this many times already but I hope it
is sinking in!!!

If you havent already done so, it is time

to stop relying on others to manage your
money!

Election Years Have Some Predictable Effects

Another consideration for the stock market in 2016 is the upcoming presidential election. Whenever we have a change in the oval
office the stock market becomes volatile, which then becomes a catalyst for corrections. Capital markets do not like uncertainty
and changing presidents is the ultimate uncertainty.
Unlike most economists, I believe that in 2016 a correction of 20% or more is probable. I think in the first quarter of 2016 we are going to see a correction of 10% or more. Oil, a change in the President and a world slowdown are all reasons for the market to sell off
and there are very few reasons to see upside.
China remains my top concern and any negative information can cause a market sell off to correction levels of 10% or more. If nothing more, the possibility of a sell off is significant enough to avoid following the normal strategy most financial advisors recommend,
which is to buy ETFs and mutual funds.
I repeat, fees on these investments can quickly consume any profit. But more importantly, these funds are likely to underperform
and unlikely to even see any profit in the year ahead. What the advisors are saying is a safe investment is not safe at all; it is a high
risk losers game!

Beware Of The Financial Advisor

Selling His Own Goods
It is my opinion that the worst place to get financial advice is at your bank. I have spoken to many bank financial advisors and found
very few are equipped with the skills necessary to really guide investors. For the most part they just sell mutual funds from a small
group of offerings that are controlled by the bank. Basically these advisors are showing you less than 1/100,000 of what is available
in the marketplace. .
Plus banks have very limited options on what products they can sell you. And they do call them products only you dont get any
warranty or guarantee if it breaks. If you are looking for a place to get objective advice on investment options, it is prudent to look
elsewhere.
Yes, I realize I sound a bit harsher than usual in this newsletter, but sometimes it seems that I have to hit people over the head with
the truth before they get it! I will go to my grave telling you that financial advisors are motivated to make themselves rich, not to
make you rich.
Okay. Here is some black and white truth.
In 2014 more than 90% of mutual funds underperformed the markets and this was even before fees were factored in. Even if you
challenge what Im telling you, you just have to look at the numbers. I guarantee that the numbers can speak for themselves.
I can also guarantee that this newsletter will not be popular with the financial services industry. And you know what? I dont care.
They are not my people.
I am not concerned about them. I am not concerned about how to line their pockets. My concern is about giving you a reality check,
giving you some education, giving you some awareness of what the economy is doing. My concern is about giving you some common
sense guidance about how to manage your money and where not to put it. At this time, that means the stock market.
I have no vested interest in writing this newsletter other than to guide members on the best strategies at any given time, as I see
them. My priority is to help club members and I could care less about the hostility of financial advisors. They can dislike me all they
want. They know the truth of what Im saying. They just dont want you to know it.

Buy American Does Not Apply

Now
If you are still determined to stay in the stock market, then at least
consider looking outside of America for investments.
Most Americans only have a very small percentage of their stock
portfolio in foreign stocks. The main reason I am more bullish on
foreign stocks right now is because most foreign stocks are trading
at a much lower multiple. At this time if you are still keen to invest
in the stock market look at market ETFs from developed nations
like Germany and Italy. I would still avoid China as it could have
huge swings and even professional traders find it hard to predict
trading patterns in China.
I discussed China as a high risk play in late 2013 and at club meetings discussed ETFs like ASHR and YINN. At that time valuations
were low and I felt a lot of money could be made. Well we hit it
correctly and these ETFs had triple digit gains. In 2016 the risk is
just not worth the reward no matter how much the sell-off. The
government totally manipulates the stock market in China and
there is a host of new concerns that did not exist in 2013-2014.
Having said this I still look at foreign exposure as a better idea
than investing domestically. Still, you need to remember that
investing in stock markets abroad is a definite risk. The biggest
risk has to do with the currency conversion when you take profits.
Here is what I mean.
It is possible for a foreign market to outperform the US market
by a wide margin. However, if the US dollar continues to move
much higher, then any gains you make could turn to vapor when
you convert your investment back into US dollars.
I believe that if investors wish to invest in stocks then the same
foreign markets have more upside than what I foresee for the
American market. As stated I like developed nations and would
avoid the emerging nations. I like Italy and Germany. Having said
this I am long on nothing in the stock market for 2016.
If you invest in foreign markets you definitely need to do your
homework in this arena before moving in. Pay attention to currency fluctuations, news, politics and everything about your
investment, so that you dont get hurt badly in a sudden shift, or
short-changed at the end game.
As for myself, throughout 2015 I sold all my remaining stock positions and as of December 31, 2015 I had less than one-percent of
my net worth in the American stock market. For all members I
advocate holding a much smaller position in all stocks.

I am on the sidelines until value begins to return to the markets.

By value I mean at least a 20% correction to attract true upside
interest. I am hoping for a huge sell-off and expect it may occur
in the first quarter of 2016.
One reason I say that is because I am seeing many stocks had
huge gains in 2015 and investors will wait to early 2016 to sell
these stocks to delay paying tax for another year. I believe these
stocks will see downward pressure in the New Year and even on
the first trading day of January 4.
As 2016 starts we will continue to witness volatility in the capital
markets for a prolonged period of time. A 20 percent to 30 percent correction is equity prices would only then signal to begin
to look at a possible re-entry to buy stocks. The earnings of US
companies in 2016 will continue to contract in the S&P 500 largely
due to a strong US dollar.
I believe 2016 does have an entry point with a large sell off and
I am not all doom and gloom. I am still ready to put money to
work if stocks go on sale throughout the year.
My Final Concern about the markets in 2016 is that central banks
are running out of ways to stimulate the economy. Central banks
around the world can no longer repress financial volatility and
therefore any major negative economic news will take longer
to restore stability. I predict huge quick sell offs in 2016 if additional downward sell off in oil or bad news out of China. In the
United States where central bank easing can no longer be used
to assist markets the lawmakers on Capitol Hill will have to use
the old fashion methods of reforming corporate taxes, reducing
debt and joint ventures between the public and public sector on
overhauling out dated infrastructure.

Housing Supply And Demand

Remains Unbalanced
The US housing market had a strong year in 2015. With continued low interest rates, my outlook for housing in 2016 is more positive
than my view on stocks.
In addition, as the US economy continues its long recovery, leading to higher wages, the consumers situation will continue to improve.
Combine this with lower oil prices and we will see consumers gain more purchasing power, which will drive demand for housing.
The bull market in housing since 2009 was mainly due to lower interest rates and the increased buying power of homeowners. The
supply and demand imbalances between many cities also drove housing prices higher and will continue to do so in 2016.
Let me give you a snapshot of what I mean by imbalances in supply and demand.
In recent history, many large metropolitan areas had plenty of buyers in the market for housing, yet not enough homes to meet demand. This caused prices to move higher than they would have normally. This situation remains intact and will continue through 2016.
I am hopeful that the large price increases for homes in 2016 will entice more sellers into the marketplace, thus creating a more balanced marketplace where supply can better meet demand.
This imbalance is the number one factor driving prices upward in many cities. For the most part, evidence of this supply and demand
balancing act will be most prevalent in the west in cities like San Francisco, Portland and San Diego.
Still, I believe that the price increases for homes in 2016 will move at a slower pace than we experienced in 2015.
While we may see a reduction in buying power due to higher interest rates, it is likely to be off-set by projected improvements in the
job market and the broader economy.
To give you some perspective, in 2014 three-million jobs were added to the work marketplace. The prediction for 2015 was for twomillion jobs however, as of January 1, the date of this newsletter the numbers for 2015 are not finalized. These jobs lead to more
people being able to buy homes!
Student Debt Curbs Potential New Homeowners
The biggest damper on housing prices is something that I have discussed many times in the past. And that is the fact that many Millennials are saddled with student debt. The amount of this collective debt is more than $1.3 trillion. Obviously, this kind of financial
obligation keeps many first-time buyers out of the housing market.
The problem is that these education loans create a debt-to-income ratio that is higher than is acceptable by conventional mortgage
brokers. This causes problems in the underwriting and approval process.
Also, this debt can impact credit scores, especially if payments have been missed. Given our recent rocky economy, missing payments cant be unexpected.
My heart goes out to these Millennials, because I have nieces and nephews and I understand how hard it can be to get started in life
when saddled with this kind of obligation. They are truly between the proverbial rock and that really hard place.

Speaking of Debt
Speaking of debt, I need to return to a recurring theme that refuses
to stay under the carpet, no matter how often the politicians try
to sweep it under!
We must constantly be aware of the impact of our US national
debt on every aspect of our economy and its recovery. The current debt of the United States is $19 trillion at the Federal level
-- and growing daily.
Consider these two facts:

Since 2000 total spending by the US federal government
has increased by 107%.

Since 2000 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has increased
by only 87%.
Economics 101 defines GDP as the basic measure of the market
value of all goods and services sold in an economy.
Total spending will undoubtedly increase as our population demographics create further drag with an aging population.
Our job is to deal with the facts, accept that most of this is out of
our control, and make what adjustments we can in our lives to
control our own financial well-being.
We are now in an environment where interest rates are on an
upward trend, which means America will have to spend even

more on the interest it pays to its bond holders.

This is a double whammy.
Not only does the government have to pay more and more to
service this outstanding debt, the money spent on this interest cannot be spent elsewhere. It cannot be spent on activities
designed to encourage business growth, launch technological
advancements, or build infrastructure, etc.
It is ironic when these are the very activities we need to fund in
order to create jobs, which will create more tax payers, which will
potentially lower the deficit.
This is a vicious and downward spiral. As things stand now, it is
a losing battle.
The solution is a double whammy, too.

As I see it, the solution to increasing revenue is to get
more people employed.

The solution to increasing our GDP is to generate products
that people want to buy.
Both objectives can be accomplished by supporting business
growth, injecting capital into developing technologies and rebuilding our cities. These are all areas that invite investors.

How Did We Become A Society

Lulled By Entitlements?
Over the past decades, American culture has changed to the point
where we have become a society of citizens, who see entitlements
as part of what it means to be American. In fact, much of our
economic structure is based on these expectations. Obamacare
has moved us further in this direction.

on these types of entitlements.

Over $2.3 trillion of our annual debt is spent on a combination of

Medicare/Medicaid, social security and income security, which
includes unemployment insurance, welfare and food stamps.

So, Bernie, here are the stats:

Somehow, in the last 10 years, governments started to throw the

number $1 trillion around like it was a smaller number. Ten years
ago $1 trillion was not even in the vocabulary of any discussion
of any budget. Anywhere!
It is interesting to note that the American defense budget dedicated to our national security is about 25% of the budget spent

The cry of politicians like Bernie Sanders to raise the taxes on

the wealthy is completely UnAmerican. It doesnt take into account some basic facts.

According to IRS data and the Congressional Budget
Office, the top 10% of all income earners already pay nearly 70%
of all the federal income tax collected.

The top one-percent (1%) of all earners pay nearly 33%
of all the income taxes collected by the IRS.

To me, that seems like they are paying a fair portion of income taxes. In addition to paying the majority of income taxes, the rich pay
the largest share of consumption taxes. We are talking about sales tax, taxes on fuel, excise tax, and import duties, etc.
Still, when you listen to the Democrats, they seem to beat the same drum incessantly about maintaining entitlements and taxing
the rich.
Throwing Stones At The Wrong Target Wont Solve The Problem
Since the facts dont support the democratic solution, I can only guess that they are following the rules of the advertising industry,
which says, If you can pull your customers emotional trigger, they are yours.
When people are scared, they want a scapegoat to blame for their troubles. In this case it is easy to make an enemy out of the rich
niche. And the rich niche has its own collection of scapegoats to blame for our precarious economic picture.
The truth is that as long as we are looking at other people to blame, we can avoid looking at ourselves. We can avoid making our
own decisions. We can avoid being accountable for our own results.
I wish taxing the rich were the simple solution, but ignoring the facts in favor of a wishful world is not the way to find that solution.
There are solutions there must be. We got into this mess by making a series of incremental choices and we will find our way out
my making different incremental choices.
We need as a society - to stop trying to make something true that simply isnt true. We need to stop placing blame, start looking
at facts and work from there.
Yes, we need a better tax code and yes, there are many inequities and too many pork barrel inefficiencies in the current tax code.
As of today, we have over 74,000 pages of tax code to tell us how to comply when filing our tax return. Until we can change it, we
must work with what we have.
I suggest that if Bernie doesnt want to deal with reality, he move to another nation governed by Socialism. I will gladly buy him a
ticket! He will see soon enough that that system has never worked and never will.

America Is Not Designed To Be A

Socialist Nation!
If you want to live in a socialist environment then I suggest you
pick a socialist country that believes like you do and move there.
Just dont try to turn America into one.
I was born in Canada and spent the first 43 years of my life there,
so I think I have some perspective about the differences between
these two forms of government.

Canada is a collective society based on doing what is
best for society as a whole.

America is about doing what is best for the individual.
That is the foundation of the US Constitution.
America is about free enterprise and being willing to work to
improve your lot in life.
Immigrants to this country seem to understand this concept of
individual enterprise better than many natural born citizens. Most
immigrants come to this country to work hard, raise families, pay
taxes, and strive to improve their circumstances. They were not
raised believing that the government owed them a living. They are
grateful to be in a country that even has work! Any kind of work!
As we drift further into our entitlement mentality I fear we are
losing that American spirit of individual enterprise. As I watch
more and more money shelled out by the Federal government
on entitlement programs I am concerned that American citizens
may entirely lose touch with that concept.
I fear we have turned into a society of consumers and takers
rather than builders and givers. I fear that if we drift too far in
this direction without correction, we will find ourselves unable
to even envision the kind of society imagined by the American
forefathers when they wrote the Constitution.
I am proud to be American and had the pleasure of earning my
American Citizenship less than three years ago. Coming from
Canada, I prefer what America stands for. Yet, as a person who
moved to America from another country, I am sad to observe that
too many Americans dont seem to understand the principles
that America was founded upon. Even worse, they really dont
seem to care.

I like to think that I understand what it means to be American and

Im proud of my citizenship. I embrace the opportunity to use my
skills to improve my life and the lives of those I love. I embrace the
opportunity to make a contribution that I can only hope leaves
the world a little better for my having been here.
The Running Of The Bulls Begins
I am not political. I dont care about parties and red and blue
states. I like to think for myself, so I do my own research and draw
my own conclusions.
Having researched Trump, I can, to a certain degree, understand
why his wall around America appeals to so many people. Still, I
would not vote for him.
Having mentioned Saunders and Trump, for the record, let me
say that I saw Rand Paul at a luncheon a few weeks ago. I have
concluded he exemplifies most closely what I believe American
culture is supposed to be. He talks about less government interference and much more deficit control. He is the closest to a
Libertarian of any candidate and if I were one of our Constitution
authors, I would probably vote for him based on his platform.
I have stated many times at club meetings that I believe the correct role of the Federal government is one of providing national
security, not interfering at every level of our daily lives. If anything,
I believe that any interactions with citizens should be more at the
state level, rather than directed from some Federal stronghold
many miles from most of us.
I probably wont see that dispersion of control in my lifetime,
because too many Capitol Hill politicians would be putting themselves out of work in that scenario and that will never happen as
long as they live.
Maybe we should just wait for the old guard to die off and then
not reelect a replacement. Would that work? Smaller government
by attrition?

Be For Something Instead Of Just

Against Something
America is supposed to stand for freedom. Our founders fought
against extreme government control. They fought and died for
the privilege to construct their own lives and to support their
families without government interference.
Life wasnt as easy then as it is now. If you got sick you probably
died. If you got old you did die. People relied on wits, ability, and
often on the good will of others. Early Americans built a strong
country filled with opportunity. They did not trust nor depend
on any government for their well-being. Yes, things were harder
then, but I dare say the freedom was worth it.
Sadly, as American culture continues to move away from its core
value of hard work in exchange for freedom, I fear we will become
more and more enslaved by our expectation of entitlements.
What started out as a helping hand has become a fist around
our throat, strangling us with its benevolence.
Still, it is a very seductive expectation. That is why I am pretty
sure voters will elect a Democrat president. I believe the flag of
entitlement protection will wave hard enough to send us into
another cycle of Democrat presidents.
Let me say this once more in case you missed my point the first
twelve times I said it.
This is not what America stands for. Entitlements did not build
America into a world power and give us our high standard of living. A big fat piggybank full of money borrowed from our children
did not do that! The American spirit of individual enterprise built
our nation into an economic giant and that is the spirit we need
to reconnect with in order to salvage our country.
One of the biggest crimes I could lay at the feet of our interfering government is the crippling of small business in this nation.
Stacks of regulations are strangling the small businesses that
hard-working Americans stake their lives on every day.

Before Attempting To Change A Thing, It Helps To Understand It First

At our next club meeting we will be discussing in detail the impact
of these regulations on small businesses.
If America is to become self-sufficient again, we need to reclaim
our free-enterprise system. We need to support small business
growth, get people back to work and fire up our free enterprise
spirit at the ground level.
Everyone knows that the government is broken. We see the
gridlock caused by polarized partisan parties. We see how this
dysfunction has trickled down into our everyday lives.
But America still has a lot of spunk. America is building momentum
to take itself back. We just need to remember how it feels to fight
for what is important.
This means business owners will need to become somewhat
political if they mean to dismantle rules written by desk-jockeys,
who have never stood behind a retail counter or hired an employee or navigated insurance packages or had to cut back a
single-mother to 20 hours.
If you own a small business or know someone who does, you will
want to show up at our next club meeting.
January 25, 2016
Members: Free
Non-members: $25
Orleans Hotel and Casino.
6:59 p.m. sharp. (And yes, we always start on time.)
To attend the next club meeting, click here to reserve your place.

At our club meetings we have had long discussions about the

explosion of regulations that have brought small business growth
to all-time lows. Each year our Federal Government creates hundreds of new rules that impact small business.

Now On To Our Hometown Las

Vegas!
The good news for Las Vegas is that our economic recovery outperformed the national economy in employment, population
growth, job creation, home price gains, and population increases.
To put that into perspective you need to understand that much
of that economic advance is due to the huge economic drop Las
Vegas experienced earlier on.
It makes sense when you think about it. When a city leads the
nation in job losses and sees the nations biggest drop in real
estate values, it has a lot of upside room to move. What we have
seen is an exaggerated upswing in our growth, recouping some
of our earlier deep losses.
A better barometer of our health is our GDP growth, which hit
3.5% in 2015. This reflected the gradual, yet continuing recovery
across the nation. That recovery gave consumers more spending
money, which many chose to spend in Las Vegas.
While general economic recovery in Las Vegas has been consistent, our jobless rate remains at 7.2%, which is still high when
compared to the national level.

remains the State with the highest percentage of homeowners

with negative equity in their homes. Hopefully, time will eventually eliminate that situation.
Despite rising home prices, construction activity remains low
in Clark County and residential construction is still far below its
pre-recession peak.
What is fascinating to note is that, according to UNLV Economic
Department, Las Vegas gaming is lagging well behind its national
counterpart. US gambling is actually above its pre-recession
peak, while gross gaming revenue for the Las Vegas Strip is still
4.7% below it pre-recession peak. The UNLV goes on to say that
visitor spending on nongaming activities is more than triple that
spent on gaming.
Normally, I end my Economic Report with guidance of what
investors should do to maximize their gains in this economic
environment. Instead, I will be discussing those ideas at our next
club meeting, which I hope you will attend.
To attend the next club meeting, click here to reserve your place

Our population continues to grow as Las Vegas attracts many

residents from the Northeast and Midwest.
The problem for Las Vegas remains a lack of industry diversification beyond gaming. We really have no technology industry or
any other industries that require a highly educated and skilled
work force. We are fortunate in that our tourist volume is expected
to grow in 2016, but as a community, we need more emphasis
in manufacturing, education and other activities to strengthen
our financial foundation.
Economists are predicting unemployment levels to hit 6% by the
end of 2016, which takes us back to pre-recession levels. That is
a hopeful idea.
Las Vegas house prices have increased by 49.7% since the industry
hit bottom in January of 2012. Over that same period US housing
prices increased just 23.6%, so you can see why we are at the top
of that particular list.
However, as we have discussed at many club meetings, Las Vegas

10

Meeting Calendar
I just want to thank you all again for your continued interest and support in my efforts to share with you my insights regarding economic trends and how they playout in our investment world.
The club is proud of our educational program and we believe it rivals anything taught at any of Americas finest business schools.
Here is our line-up so far:
All events are scheduled at Orleans Hotel and Casino.
All evening events start at 6:59 p.m. sharp.
Members: Free
Non-members: $25 | BECOME A MEMBER - CLICK HERE
January 25, 2016
The Las Vegas Investment Club Presents:
Economic Outlook for 2016
[ REGISTER FOR MEETING - CLICK HERE ]
Mike Lathigee will discuss his outlook for 2016 and conduct a discussion about the regulations impacting small businesses.
February 29, 2016
The Las Vegas Investment Club Presents:
An Evening with Federal Reserve Economist
Our very special guest is a Senior Economist from the Federal Reserve Bank. It is very rare to interact with any Federal Reserve Bank
Economist and this is a MUST ATTEND event for any serious investor.
March 8, 2016
The Las Vegas Investment Club Presents:
The impact of Maccau on Las Vegas
Our guest speaker graduated from Oxford University in England and is the President of one of Americas most influential organizations. He will be discussing the impact of Maccau on the Las Vegas Economy and the cultural changes we have to expect in Las
Vegas. I have seen him speak and he is entertaining and very interactive, so this evening will be a treat!
April 2 & 3, 2016
The Las Vegas Investment Club Presents:
EconoSummit 2016
Experience eight world-class presenters over two days. The club works all year round to put this event together and coordinate
speakers from all across America.
This years theme is : Based on what is happening in the world and the economy what investors can do to maximize the returns in
their portfolios. We will discuss specific strategies.
The 2016 EconoSummit runs from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. both days, with plenty of potential one-on-one time between attendees
and presenters, so bring your questions.

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Member Announcements
We have had a good year in 2015 in terms of membership and events. I look forward to seeing all of you at our next meeting, along
with your guests, which brings me to this announcement.
The Las Vegas Investment Club works on the breakeven basis to provide world class education to members and maintain a strong
community presence. We have been grateful to the Board Members of the Las Vegas Club for their subsidizing the shortfall of running the Las Vegas Investment Club over the last few years. Now it is time for a small adjustment.
We have had a fairly flexible open-door policy in the past, and it is now time for the club to move toward breakeven. So, starting in
2016, mon-members will be charged a modest admission to attend club meetings.
And if you find value with us, we encourage membership. The cost to join the Las Vegas Investment Club is $299 per year. Your membership provides you with admission to our meetings and events at no cost, or at least at a deep discount. We also have special
fieldtrips available to club members only!
To join the Las Vegas Economic Club please CLICK HERE!
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR OF THIS NEWSLETTER GO TO WWW.MIKELATHIGEE.COM
WE ARE ALWAYS REQUIRED TO INCLUDE A DISCLAIMER SO PLEASE READ!
DISCLAIMER: THE AUTHOR OF THIS NEWSLETTER IS NOT A FINANCIAL ADVISOR. YOU SHOULD SEEK FINANCIAL ADVICE FROM
A REGISTERED FINANCIAL ADVISOR BEFORE TAKING ANY STEPS DISCUSSED IN THIS NEWSLETTER.

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