Dissension among Las Vegas Realtors could alter landscape for buyers and sellers 

(Photo: Hugh Jackson/Nevada Current)

Members of the Las Vegas Realtors association contend a move to change the organization’s bylaws is designed to consolidate power in the executive board, and possibly pave the way for the sale of LVR’s Multiple Listing Service to a private party, a move some say would be a financial boon to LVR, but render the organization irrelevant in the long run. 

The Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is the go-to resource Realtors use to list properties and find prospective homes for buyers. Privatizing its ownership could potentially further decentralize an industry disrupted by online platforms that allow potential buyers to search homes on their own and avoid representation by an agent.

“The MLS is really the primary income for the Board of Realtors, and the only reason most of us are, frankly, members, since there’s very few other benefits,” Realtor Zar Zanganeh said in a social media post Thursday. “Selling the MLS is going to benefit simply a couple of people who are going to be owning it and not regulating what they charge for fees.”

Last year, the Denver Metro Association of Realtors and South Metro Denver Realtors Association, the majority shareholders of the MLS in that metro area, sold the listing to a hedge fund for an undisclosed amount.  

Listing information provided to Zillow, Redfin, and other real estate platforms is syndicated through MLS, contributing to its value. It’s unknown how much the sites currently pay for the data. A sale of the MLS to a private party could benefit platforms that partner with the new ownership. 

HousingWire reports the Colorado state board warned Denver-area agents that private ownership of the MLS could have negative consequences, particularly with regard to data, who owns it, and how it’s secured. How the data is being used by its new owner, MAZL LLC, remains a mystery.

Former LVR president Keith Lynam says the rumored sale of the local MLS “is nonsense,” and is likely based on speculation that current president George Kypreos, whose firm is the Southern Nevada broker for properties owned by Zillow, is attempting to hire Zillow executive Nobu Hata as CEO of LVR. Hata was CEO of the Denver association when it sold its MLS. 

The changes proposed by the LVR board would eliminate several board positions, including a representative of the association’s MLS committee. 

An email message sent by the board to the association’s 15,000 members says the changes “are designed to enhance governance, expand the pool of leadership candidates from which the membership can choose, protect the integrity of our elections, and streamline committees.” 

The local dispute comes in the wake of allegations of election tampering that prompted LVR’s president in January to resign two days into his term, and as some agents struggle with new rules on how they are compensated.

In 2024, the National Association of Realtors settled class-action suits that alleged the practice of shared commissions between sellers’ and buyers’ agents amounted to collusion and violated anti-trust laws by reducing competition and inflating commissions.   

The settlement prompted a seismic shift in the compensation model – requiring that sellers pay the listing agent’s commission while the buyer pays their own agent, a departure from the tradition of the seller paying both agents. Since August 17, 2024, prospective buyers have been required to sign compensation agreements with agents before viewing homes, a process some agents describe as awkward and cumbersome.

Only members of Realtor associations are subject to the new compensation rules, a factor that, coupled with association unrest, could entice more agents to drop their memberships, say industry experts.

“They would also not be subject to the Realtors’ Code of Ethics,” warns past president Judie Woods, a member of the association since 1978. The code outlines conduct and professional responsibilities for fairness and integrity. 

The membership is slated to vote on the changes July 30 via Zoom “where all of our members can vote for or against these proposed by-law changes electronically during the virtual meeting,” Kypreos said in a video message sent to members. 

“That raised red flags for many members,” says Woods. “Why are we doing a bylaw change in a Zoom meeting? We always do them at a meeting where there’s open discussion, where you discuss pros and cons, and then vote on the motion with the members that are present.” 

Kypreos and LVR did not respond to requests for comment on a potential sale of the MLS, or the reasons for a virtual, rather than in-person, general membership meeting.

A petition posted online calls for the board to scrap the Zoom meeting in favor of a traditional meeting, and urges members to vote against the proposed changes to the by-laws. 

“The proposals change a lot of the core principles of our association,” Woods said by phone Friday. “It proposes removing several committees, including the bylaw committee, which has been there since the inception. It’s part of every realtor organization. These proposed changes to the bylaws did not even go through the bylaw committee.”