"This year, home buyers can conduct their own virtual tour of model homes before visiting the community during America's Biggest Open House," Liesse said. "We've created a special Web site, AmericasBiggestOpenHouse.com, to help buyers preselect the neighborhoods they want to tour. The Web site, which is also accessible through Summerlin.com, allows residents to select neighborhoods by price, location, style and builder, making their visit to Summerlin even more productive and convenient."

According to Liesse, America's Biggest Open House was such a success in 2006 and 2007 that the developer plans to make it a semiannual event.

"Prospective home buyers will also enjoy a festive atmosphere at each of the participating neighborhoods, making it even more fun to come to Summerlin," Liesse said. "Balloons, refreshments, visits with community mascot Summerlin Sam and prize drawings are among the perks to be offered by many Summerlin home builders that weekend."

Liesse suggested that prospective home buyers make a day of their visit to Summerlin.

"Coupons from Mark Rich's New York Style Pizza & Pasta and Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf are included on a special America's Biggest Open House driving map that can be downloaded from AmericasBiggestOpenHouse.com," she said. "Visitors can stop for a piece of pizza or a quick cup of coffee while on their self-guided Summerlin tour."

Participating neighborhoods are located in five actively selling villages: The Mesa, The Paseos, Summerlin Centre, The Vistas and The Ridges. Homes in those villages range from 937 to nearly 6,000 square feet and are priced from the mid-$200,000s to more than $1 million.

According to Kevin Orrock, top division executive of The Howard Hughes Corp., the community still has nearly 9,000 of its 22,500 acres left to develop.

Of the 30 villages Summerlin will have at buildout, 13 are complete and six are under active development.

According to Orrock, Summerlin has been a household name in Southern Nevada for more than 18 years.

The community is now home to more than 95,000 total residents who live in nearly 40,000 homes, townhouses, condominiums and apartments. More than 22,000 people work in Summerlin's many retail centers, business parks, as well as medical centers and schools.

"Over the next 15 or so years, Summerlin will continue to unfold to its master plan," Orrock said. "A southbound drive along Hualapai Way today reveals that the Summerlin influence is becoming more and more evident -- even as far south as Russell (Road), where The Mesa Village is flourishing with hundreds of homes already occupied."

Summerlin began taking shape in 1990, carved mostly out of raw desert on the western rim of the Las Vegas Valley.

Amenities available to residents include more than 100 neighborhood and village parks, more than 150 completed miles of the Summerlin trail system, nine golf courses, a dozen houses of worship, shopping centers, medical and cultural facilities, business parks, 22 public and private schools and more than 100 actively selling floor plans.

For more information, visit summerlin.com or call 888-898-5015.