Nevada State Lawmakers Considering Legislation That Would Cap Rental Increases

LAS VEGAS, NV – Members of the Nevada state legislature are currently mulling over legislation that, if passed, would institute a ceiling on the amount that landlords could increase the rent of their tenants, with the cap tied to the local cost of living index for the rental unit’s surrounding area, a number that would be determined by the Nevada State Housing Authority.

In addition, the legislation in its current form would also mandate that landlords would be prohibited from imposing any rent increases upon a tenant during the first year they inhabit the unit in question. 

The bill – authored by Nevada State Senator Pat Spearman – also includes language that would officially declare a housing crisis in the state if it were passed.

“A minimum-wage earner would need to work 62 hours to afford a studio apartment,” Senator Spearman said to the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee last week, adding that women and people of color are disproportionately affected by the affordability gap when it comes to housing options.

Senator Spearman also noted that approximately 30 percent of single-family homes in Nevada are currently owned by investors.

While several groups have come out in support of Spearman’s legislation, there is also a fair amount of opposition to it as well; State Senator Jeff Stone – who rents out properties himself – expressed concern over a clause in the bill that pertains to the degree of profit a landlord can gain from their rental units.

“How do you define reasonable return on investment, when there are so many variables that different landlords have to contend with?” Stone asked, who said that simple mom and pop landlords – among whose number he counts himself – to be disproportionately affected if this bill is passed in its current form.

“To create all these bureaucratic pathways that I have to go through to justify what I can charge a tenant, not to charge 5 percent when inflation is 8.5 percent, you’re already requiring landlords to take a 3.5 percent hit,” Stone said.

Stone said another clause in the bill governing new construction does not do enough to incentivize new housing developments and only offers an advantage to large-scale investors.

“You are going to hinder investment,” he said. “And if you hinder investment, it’s going to exacerbate the supply and demand issues that we have here in Nevada.”

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Officials in Clark County Nevada unanimously voted Tuesday to amend their ordinances governing short-term rentals within its jurisdiction in order to update regulations that a judge had previously ruled to be unconstitutional.

Previously, a lawsuit filed by the Greater Las Vegas Short-Term Rental Association (GLVSTRA) had resulted in a preliminary injunction being imposed by District Court Judge Jessica Peterson, who had ruled that certain aspects of Clark County’s short term rental ordinances regulating the local industry were “vague” and “unconstitutional.” 

County attorney Lisa Logsdon said this week the commissioners agreed to clean up the language in their guidelines, noting that the county “took many of the court’s suggestions in drafting these amendments to ensure that the amendments address the court’s concerns with the ordinance.”

The changes to the ordinance are as follows:

• Renters are no longer required to sign applications under penalty of perjury.
• Inspectors must now provide 48 hours’ notice before showing up to inspect a property; previously, no advance notice was required.
• Large parties are still forbidden at short term rental properties, but the previously “vague” definition of what constitutes a large party has been stricken from the regulations.
• The county will now rely on existing code that regulates noise, lighting and air-quality standards.

However, GLVSTRA President and Director Jacqueline Flores issued a statement reacting to the news of Clark County’s revisions to their ordinance, saying that she did not believe they would be sufficient to alleviate the concerns of the over 700 homeowners that her organization represents.

“Many of those amendments do very little to fix the infirmities the Court has serious issues with and in other cases the County just didn’t fix some of the Sections at all,” she said. “The County is doing very little or nothing at all to satisfy the unconstitutionality of those provisions.” 

Logsdon noted that Clark County officials are eager to arrive at an agreement that would satisfy GLVSTRA’s lawsuit, saying that the district attorney’s office had requested that the association draft a “written settlement offer” and submit it for their consideration. 

Flores responded that there was a lack of interest on the part of Clark County commissioners last month to discuss a potential settlement, but noted that if their attitude is now different, she would be willing to discuss it with them.

“If the County Commissioners have now changed their mind, then we welcome that conversation,” she said.

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – In contrast to its recent history as a housing market that experiences numerous highs and lows in terms of pricing, a new report by Las Vegas Realtors indicates that Las Vegas’ marketplace has remained relatively stable so far in 2023. 

According to their report, Las Vegas Realtors noted that the median price of existing single-family homes sold in Southern Nevada during March was $425,000, which represents virtually no change from the month before and a decrease of 7.6 percent year-over-year, when that price was $460,000. 

That price is also lower than Southern Nevada’s all-time record price of $482,000, which was set in May 2022. 

In addition, the marketplace for condominiums and townhomes sold in March was relatively stable as well, with the median price coming in at $260,000, a 2 percent increase from February but a 3.7 percent decrease year-over-year, when that amount was $270,000. The all-time record for condos and townhomes was also set in May 2022, when that price was $285,000. 

Las Vegas Realtors President Lee Barrett noted that the growing stability of the local real estate market shows that there is a “strong underlying interest and demand for owning a home here in Southern Nevada.” 

“Southern Nevada was one of the first places to experience this recent shift in the housing market,” he said. “It seems logical to me that we may also be among the first to come out of this recent slowdown. Our median home price hasn’t changed since December. Local home prices had previously been declining by 1 percent or 2 percent per month. This may be a sign that we’re near the bottom of this cycle.” 

Las Vegas Realtors reports that at the end of March, there were 4,196 single family homes listed for sale without any offers, which represents a 109.3 percent increase year-over-year. In addition, there were 1,103 condos and townhomes listed without offers in that same month, which is a 179.9 percent increase from March 2022. 

2,962 existing homes, condos, and townhomes were sold in Southern Nevada in March, which was a 27.8 percent decrease year-over-year for homes and a 35.6 percent decrease for condos and townhomes. There was approximately a two-month supply of inventory of homes on the market by the end of March, which shows an improvement over the same period of time last year, when there was less than a one month supply available. 

Typically, a six-month supply represents a balanced market between buyers and sellers. 

LAS VEGAS, NV – The Nevada Legislature last week introduced Assembly Bill 340, which, if passed, will change how landlords in Nevada can evict tenants from their properties by forcing them to first file an affidavit in court before they are allowed to start the eviction process. 

AB 340 was presented to the Nevada Legislature Assembly Judiciary Committee last Wednesday, with the sponsors of the legislation saying that its intent is to protect tenants in the state who are struggling to keep up with increases in their rent.

A local organization backing the bill, Battle Born Progress, said that it would give tenants more time to respond to an eviction request by mandating landlords to file a court order before they can serve an eviction notice.

“If a landlord needs to evict a tenant that can still happen,” said Battle Born Progress representative Will Pregman. “But there needs to be an ability for the tenant to reasonably respond to it.”

But while some groups are supporting the bill, many others are criticizing it; Derek Moellinger of Vice Realty Group, which manages apartment complexes, issued a statement condemning AB 340 while also referencing a previous piece of pandemic-era legislation – AB 486, set to expire in June – which stays an eviction proceeding if a tenant has an application for rental assistance pending.

“Landlords have been destroyed in the state because of AB 486. Now the state seeks to further damage landlords with this new bill. I am an investor and I manage almost 1000 properties and I will not put one dollar of my own money into Nevada,” he said. “I counsel every one of my investors to move out of this state and move to a state that actually has fair eviction laws. Right now, in Nevada a tenant can claim to have applied for rental assistance and with that claim, whether true or not, the eviction process will take a minimum of six months and can go as long as a year. During that entire time, the landlord receives no money; and when the tenant finally moves out, the landlord has no recourse to regain any of that lost money. The tenant can then break back into the unit and it is not considered a crime. It’s a civil matter, and the landlord must go back to court and try to remove this person again.”

“These are the kinds of laws that landlords have to deal with in Nevada right now and it’s insane to me that the state wants to further punitively damage landlords when housing is the scarcest resource Nevada has,” Moellinger continued. “You have Investors like me and my friends who have millions of dollars at their disposal and refuse to spend a dollar of it in Nevada anymore. We used to be the reasons blocks were repaired and we were the reason tenants were placed. We were the reason things improved for low-income people. Now it’s a disaster in this state and it’s only going to get worse because the state is chasing away the only people who are willing to actually make a difference, which are owners.”

AB 340 would have to be approved by the state assembly and senate before it could be signed into law by Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo.

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Last week, Clark County held a lottery to rank applicants for potential licenses to operate short term rentals via services such as Airbnb and Vrbo, although a group representing rental operators criticized the drawing, calling it unnecessary and confusing.

Greater Las Vegas Short-Term Rental Association (GLVSTRA) President Jacqueline Flores complained about the lottery, essentially calling it a waste of time.

“It is important to highlight that the Clark County Short Term Rental Lottery today will serve no purpose other than to merely establish the order in which applications will be reviewed by the County staff,” she said. “This is not what will ultimately determine who will get a license.”

The lottery, which was held on March 29 in a closed-door meeting that was streamed online and broadcast on local public television stations, placed the 1,306 forms that the county had received over the course of a six-month application process into a “random number selector.” However, while officials have yet to reveal how many licenses they will ultimately grant to applicants, they have clarified that they will not exceed 1 percent of the county’s existing “housing stock.”

The lottery – carried out by Smartplay International Inc., with the results tallied by consulting firm Baker Tilly U.S. LLP – took place despite a preliminary injunction having been imposed by District Court Judge Jessica Peterson, who had ruled that certain aspects of Clark County’s short term rental ordinances regulating the local industry where “vague” and “unconstitutional.”

That injunction came as a result of a lawsuit filed against the county by GLVSTRA, which has petitioned the Nevada Supreme Court to rule on the case. Currently, Clark County officials are attempting to make changes to the short-term rental ordinances that were struck down by the District Court judge last month.

Before Clark County began the process of establishing legal short-term rentals within its boundaries, officials estimated that there had been previously as many as 10,000 homes without permits being rented out illegally.

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – When it comes to selling your home, owners are naturally looking to get the very best price they can in return for their pricey investment. And while spring is considered by many the best time of the year to list your property, real estate experts are noting that one specific week in April – especially in Las Vegas – is typically the best time to put your house on the market. 

Many experts have shown that sellers can get significantly more in return for their homes when they list them in springtime; according to reports a home that would normally fetch $187,000 in January can sell for as much as $208,273 in May. 

But in 2023 real estate gurus are noting that April is looking more and more like the best time of the year to sell a home for numerous reasons, with the week of April 16 to 22 – particularly in Las Vegas –being ideal due to the fact that the rapidly changing real estate market is anticipated to reach its zenith during that specific one-week span of time, according to Sam Saltzwedel from Realtor.com. 

“That’s largely because families want to move when school is out. Interest rates aren’t significantly going down yet. [They] are basically the only factor that stopped houses from continuing to skyrocket,” he said. “While it does not have the highest price or the lowest time on market, this week offers higher than average prices and lower than average time on markets while also offering a higher-than-average number of buyers.” 

That ideal week, however, can change depending on which city across the country you may be examining; while April 16 to 22 is considered the target in Las Vegas and numerous other cities this year, experts say the last week of March was the time to list in Los Angeles or Chicago, whereas in Seattle the ideal listing week would be April 2 to 9. 

The exact formula for determining the ideal listing week comes down to listing prices, the average number of days on the market, and online views per property; in addition, the number of other sellers in a given region that will provide competition for your listing is also a factor, with too much inventory being available in a particular market often driving down demand or prices. 

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Elon Musk’s The Boring Company has announced their proposed plan to increase the size of their Las Vegas Loop – the underground transport system they constructed underneath the city – by approximately 50 percent, representing a grand total of 65 miles. This is provided that local officials approve the plan, which seems likely given the project’s initial success so far.

The Loop is comprised of a series of underground tunnels, dug by The Boring Company, that currently ferries people back and forth to the Las Vegas Convention Center in a series of Tesla automated electric cars in approximately two minutes each way. Normally, the route would take an average of 30 minutes for a person to walk on their own.

The Boring Company had previously stated they plan on expanding the tunnel system, with plans for new people mover routes to various area resorts and the airport having already been submitted to city officials.

The proposed additions would be comprised of a series of crisscrossing tunnels underneath the streets of the city that would enable passengers to travel to casinos, retail areas, the University of Nevada Las Vegas campus, and even residential areas. If approved by city officials, the Loop network would expand to 69 stations and a total of 65 miles of tunnels, as well as an additional undetermined number of Tesla vehicles to navigate them.

If the plan comes to fruition, a Loop station would conceivably be located within a few blocks of almost anywhere in central Las Vegas, Including stations adjacent to the University of Nevada, Allegiant Stadium – home of the Las Vegas Raiders NFL team – as well as Harry Reid International Airport.

There would also be an additional tunnel added that would run parallel to the Las Vegas Strip with several stations throughout its length, which could conceivably offer a high-speed express route joining the North and South sections of the city; currently, a similar tunnel connects the east and West sections.

he city of Las Vegas has not yet commented on the proposed additions to the Las Vegas Loop.

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Despite the fact that Clark County officials have recently stated they plan to make changes to some of the rules governing the short-term rental industry within their jurisdiction, that doesn’t appear to be enough for the Greater Las Vegas Short-Term Rental Association (GLVSTRA), which has announced they want the Nevada Supreme Court to rule on whether or not the short-term regulations county officials have laid in place are constitutional or not.

GLVSTRA has been engaging in a legal battle with Clark County regarding what they refer to as overly strict and intrusive ordinances put in place regarding homes rented through services such as Airbnb and Vrbo. In February, District Court Judge Jessica Peterson ruled that aspects of the ordinances are unconstitutional and issued a preliminary injunction to temporarily block them.

Sections of Clark County’s ordinances that Peterson declared unconstitutional included a clause that mandated that those seeking to establish a short-term rental must sign their application under penalty of perjury; in addition, random inspections of rental properties with no notice, vague definitions over what is considered a “party” or a “disturbance,” and the ability of the county to issue “discretionary fines and penalties” were also temporarily struck down by last month’s ruling.

Despite clearing that legal hurdle, GLVSTRA appealed to the Nevada Supreme Court this week because they say their full array of claims against Clark County were not addressed by the District Court Judge’s ruling, according to GLVSTRA President Jacqueline Flores.

Flores said that her organization takes particular exception to Clark County’s use of a lottery system to determine which short-term rental applicants will be granted licenses, in addition to requirements mandating specific minimum distances between rental properties and hotels.

Despite attempts to sit down and hash things out with Clark County officials, Flores said the two sides were unable to come to a fair and equitable arrangement, thus necessitating the organization’s move to appeal the case to the state’s highest court.

“We have been trying to work with the county commissioners in good faith and they have refused to do that so far,” Flores said. “We need a Nevada Supreme Court ruling. That way we’re able to address all those municipalities at the same time, and ultimately the entire state.”

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – In an effort to crack down on potentially disruptive and loud partying during spring break season, Las Vegas police have been conducting unannounced and random spot checks on short term rental properties to ensure that occupants are adhering to local laws and ordinances and not creating a disturbance for their neighbors. 

Reports indicate that police have been showing up to properties rented out through services such as Airbnb and Vrbo throughout the city and unexpectedly knocking on doors, reminding the short-term renters within that holding loud parties or allowing underage drinking is illegal and will be enforced if encountered by authorities. 

Police noted that the large increase in spot checks is a common department policy during periods of time such as spring break where excessive partying is anticipated. 

However, the validity of the spot checks have been questioned by the Greater Las Vegas Short Term Rental Association (GLVSTRA), with the organization claiming they have not been receiving any complaints from neighbors of short-term rental properties in the city.  

At a time when Las Vegas faces a shortage of police officers, the county should be far more interested and concerned on using these officers to answer emergency calls from residents and reducing response time for far more serious issues in the Valley,” GLVSTRA said. 

Proposed rules and ordinances governing Airbnb and Vrbo rentals have been a regular bone of contention between Clark County officials and the short-term rental industry. In particular, Clark County has ordinances in place that ban holding large parties, weddings, and other events on short-term rental properties where the attendance would exceed the maximum occupancy limit of the dwelling in question. 

However, in February a Clark County District Judge ruled that the county’s definition of what constitutes a “party or wedding” was worded in a way as to make it “vague and ambiguous.” 

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Ground was recently broken on Cartier Industrial, a new industrial space located on a 4.28-acre plot of land in North Las Vegas, after successful completion of grading of the property which was achieved in late January of this year.

The project – located on the northwest corner of North Lamb Boulevard and East Cartier Avenue, with easy access to major highways such as I-15 and 515 – is the latest in the large number of industrial facilities that have been popping up throughout Las Vegas over the past year or two, with the city becoming a popular shipping hub for numerous companies across the country.

Once completed, Cartier Industrial is slated to be made up of a freestanding, concrete tilt building which will include eight 9×10-foot dock loading doors and two 16×14-foot grade level doors, both with a 30-foot clear height. There will also be an R-24 insulated tilt wall panel system, R-38 roof deck insulation, 81 parking stalls, an ESFR fire suppression system, M-D zoning, and rear loading truck access.

Tim Castello, Certified Commercial Investment Member (CCIM) and owner of the project’s developer, Castello-Monkarsh Development, noted that Cartier Industrial will help to serve the very much growing need for industrial space in Las Vegas.

Cartier is providing a much-needed product for the industrial sector in North Las Vegas.  This project is perfect for an Owner-user, whereby the owner can lease out half the building and reduce their carrying costs.  This is just one of the projects we are developing in the area,” Castello said. “The industrial sector valley wide is at historic lows with vacancy rates at less than 1.7%. This project is a rare opportunity as we are offering it for either purchase or lease at an affordable rate. Cartier is situated in a desirable neighborhood welcoming to industrial users.”

The facility will be available for either sale or lease once it has been completed, and according to the developer it will be able to be split up between two separate tenants if needed.

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Construction of the greatly anticipated Dream Las Vegas hotel-casino project has been “fully stopped” after developer Bill Shopoff revealed this week that his funding has temporarily dried up, leaving him owing approximately $25 million to $30 million for work on the resort.

Despite the whopping debt he owes currently, Shopoff – President and CEO of Shopoff Realty Investments – is insisting that the project is only briefly halted, and that work will resume “once the terms of the financing are finalized.”

Work has fully stopped at the site, other than anything required for safety,” Shopoff said.

Construction on Dream Las Vegas broke ground on Las Vegas Boulevard last year and is slated to take a different approach from the massive mega-resorts that the city is known for, offering a “smaller, boutique-style experience.”

Shopoff – along with his partner in the project, Contour CEO David Daneshforooz – said that he is in “active” discussions with his lender, and that he anticipates the kinks in his funding to be worked out within the next month or so.

“Clearly, we’re delayed on getting some financing,” he said, explaining that some of the issues regarding Dream’s funding are tied to skyrocketing loan interest rates caused by the record-high inflation plaguing the country.

Currently, the budget for Dream is in the neighborhood of $550 million to $575 million; until now, Shopoff and Daneshforooz have been paying for its development with cash out of their own pockets, and are currently negotiating with their lender for a $400 million plus loan.

Development for Dream is being spearheaded by contractor McCarthy Building Companies, whom Shopoff insisted will be paid and will continue work on finishing the 531-room hotel-casino.

Obviously people want to get paid for their work, and we want them to be paid,” Shopoff said. “They will be paid, and the project will get built.”

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.

LAS VEGAS, NV – Lawmakers have proposed new legislation that, if passed, would result in higher property tax increases for Nevada homeowners. State Senator Dina Neal (D-North Las Vegas) has introduced Senate Bill 96, which proposes setting the floor at 3% for residential property tax increases, which she said would be a way to provide security for the budgets of local governments if a looming recession comes to pass, a possibility predicted by many financial experts. 

“The bill was set up to stabilize revenue and make sure that the local governments, if a recession does come in the future, that they will not lose revenue but that they will maintain 3 percent all the time,” she said. 

Previously, before the mid 2000’s recession, property tax increases in Nevada resulted in a great deal of financial hardship for many residents, forcing some to sell their homes. The Nevada Legislature attempted to combat this issue in 2005 by capping tax increases at up to a 3% maximum for owner-occupied, single-family homes; commercial and rental properties had their tax increases kept at up to 8%. 

However, Neal’s bill would see residential property taxes for Nevada residents increase at a rate of 3% annually; commercial and rental properties would have their increases capped out of rate between 3 and 8%. 

The purpose of the bill, according to Neal, is to prevent property tax rates from dipping below the 3% mark. 

While some groups have spoken out in favor of the legislation – including the Nevada Association of Counties – it also predictably garnered a great deal of backlash as well. The Nevada Republican Party, the state Independent American Party, the Libertarian Party of Nevada and Americans for Prosperity, among others, have protested the potential of raising property taxes on Nevada residents. 

“Nevada does not have a revenue problem. It has a spending problem,” said Nevada Republican Party Executive Director Alida Benson. “It is outrageous that this bill, which will target Nevada families who are already suffering under the heavy burden of out-of-control cost-of-living increases, is even being considered.” 

It is unknown if the bill will ultimately become law. Since it would increase tax revenue to the state, it would require a 2/3 majority vote. In addition, Governor Joe Lombardo has repeatedly pledged not to raise taxes on his constituents, giving Senate Bill 96 a significant uphill climb if it is to be passed. 

Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of  Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.