Las Vegas and the National Hockey League have joined forces and are bringing some very positive implications for the local housing market. The brand new T-Mobile Arena will be the home to Las Vegas’ first professional hockey team beginning in the 2017-2018 hockey season. And other professional sporting organizations are holding their collective breaths to potentially follow suit, based on the eventual proven success of this yet unnamed Las Vegas hockey team.

If and when the new Las Vegas hockey team shows profitability, the influx of interested organizations could mean continued construction of new stadiums, even more jobs, more housing and population increase as well as a greater reinvestment into the community. Ultimately this is beneficial and a much-needed transition for the city that never sleeps.

Las Vegas and the National Hockey League are a match made in heaven, but what's been the holdup? The stigma attached to gambling in Las Vegas has been a deterrent to professional teams coming to Vegas, stating a conflict of interest or ethical issues. Mayor Carolyn Goodman is quick to point out that gambling is now ubiquitous, and she's right. With the onset of online gambling sites like Draft Kings, placing a bet is as simple as picking up your iPhone.

That perceived stigma once attached to Vegas and legal gambling may no longer be a relevant argument against professional teams making our sleepless city their home. The professional baseball gambling debacle, once in the spotlight, is also beginning to fade from the mind of the public to a large extent.

We all know, you have to spend money to make money, and financial services guru and owner Bill Foley opened his wallet to the tune of $500 million dollars. That may seem like a lot, especially considering the last two expansion teams together didn't add up to that price tag ($160 million total), but Vegas fans are ravenous and over 14,000 season tickets have already sold.

But it's more than just a team. It's merchandising, branding and a complete new image for Vegas. To Foley this isn't a gamble, but a sure thing and he's looking to win big.

Some are critical and even a bit skeptical, stating that Las Vegans are transplants by and large who will root for the back-home team rather than this new hockey team. If the ticket sales are any indication, however, Las Vegas fans just may be willing to share the love between their favorite teams. And truly won't they attend for the sheer love of hockey as well?

What will Las Vegas and the National Hockey League expansion bring to our city in the short term? Well, in short, jobs. And lots of them. From administrative work to upper management, technical services, sales, finance and security. This team will be an industry onto itself, and with unemployment being at a 6.4% rate in May, which is one of the higher rates compared to the rest of the country, this will add some much needed relief within the Vegas job market. Interested in getting involved with the National Hockey League?

What else will this mean? We will absolutely see an increase in hockey families moving to the Las Vegas area, with among the first undoubtedly being the 2017-2018 draft picks, which have everyone guessing at this point. The expansion draft will take place June 18-20, 2017 and picks will be announced June 21. Until then, sports fans will eagerly engage in debates and discussion about who the next famous hockey player could be that will move to the Las Vegas area.

The last time the National Hockey League expanded for the 2000-2001 season, Columbus, Ohio, experienced continuous population growth of 10% over the decade following the introduction of the National Hockey League team. If Las Vegas had similar results, we could see as many as 60,000 people joining our community. And with all of these big-name hockey pros moving to Las Vegas, undoubtedly we'll also see high-end growth in the housing market

We should also expect a reinvestment in the community. Las Vegas already has a head-start with the 2014 art district beautification projects that continue even today. We have a 31,000 square foot aquarium opening later this year at the Boulevard Mall. Flamingo Road is currently in the midst of construction for beautification and expansion and certainly other main transit routes will follow.

There are also continued talks of the Light Rail Project that would ease traffic congestion along the famously busy Las Vegas Strip. Surely we all know there will be a reflective increase in property values as a result of all of these improvements. With Las Vegas' projected housing-market sales growth for 2016, this can only mean continued growth, and hopefully for at least another decade as in Columbus.

What do we have to say to investors and house flippers? Get your wallet. The forecast for the future is sunny with a very good chance of profit, so the time to buy is now. Las Vegas is preparing for a cycle of wealth. And with the Las Vegas and the National Hockey League bringing jobs, this will in turn increase the housing demand with additional families moving to the Valley.

And, of course, improvements in the city will drive up property values, and that's the kind of monetary math we can get behind. With Las Vegas and the National Hockey League, it's a sure bet that Lady Luck is on our side.