(Las Vegas, NV) —  Nevada officials report more interest in real estate careers just as housing prices start ticking up.

The Nevada Department of Business and Industry reports 917 people passed the real estate licensing exam between January and July. That’s a 22 percent increase from the same period a year ago.

Real estate organizations say their membership is slightly down year-over-year, although numbers appear to be bottoming out from their recession crash.

The Greater Las Vegas Association of Realtors roster includes slightly more than 11,000 people, down about 200 from a year ago. At its peak in 2007, the association had nearly 17,500 members.

Michelle Casolair of Prudential’s Americana Real Estate Academy tells the Las Vegas Review-Journal she’s seeing enrollment increase for prelicensing courses, which is an indicator of a stabilizing industry.