We do it each time we come down and we try and stay a month. Nice rentals are in the $2,000 range for the whole month and are a short drive away from the strip. That works out to about $70 per day and they are usually a good size.This way you are not tied down to a real estate market which may get worse before it gets better. At $2,000 a month you can go down there for 10 years and only spend $20,000 which is a lot cheaper than spending the $140,000-$200,000 (an up of course) you would need to buy. Yes...real estate probably will go up over time BUT...ya just never know these days,especially since the whole world is suffering right now. Plus...as Canadians,we have issues that our US counterparts do not have when it comes to buying and selling real estate,taxes,immigration problems.etc.,not to mention the fact that your property sits empty for much of the year unless you can rent it and that opens up a whole other kettle of fish.
Also,casinos are a great place to stay as long as you can find one that is comfortable and relatively smoke free. I think that when I come to the convention that I will simple stay at the South Point for 3 weeks. It will be cheap and close to all of the action without being right in the action if you know what I mean.