Phoenix's senior managing director James Wentworth is at the helm. Perry Muscelli, a top producer in CB Richard Ellis' Las Vegas office, has come on board as the Las Vegas senior director.

"Our initial efforts will focus on creating a strong industrial and office properties sales force," says Muscelli, a 19-year CB Richard Ellis employee. "Our near-term goals are to build that group and then expand to investment, multifamily and retail team-building."

Wentworth says the timing is right to enter the market. "The entire nation has watched with interest as Las Vegas consistently tops the list of fastest-growing US cities," he emphasizes. Las Vegas has added more than 100,000 new residents annually for most of the 1990s.