Can a seller record an audio or video conversation that a buyer and their agent are having while viewing a home in Nevada? This is a question that the leadership at the Reno-Sparks Association of REALTORS® , Sierra Nevada Association of REALTORS®, and the Northern Nevada Regional Multiple Listing Service (NNRMLS) have been asked numerous times of late. This question was posed to legal council and guidance for brokers, agents, buyers and sellers has been provided in a white paper written by Bonnie Drinkwater, Esq.
Recording of a conversation that does not occur via wire communication (a personal conversation) can be recorded by the seller because the conversation is taking place in the seller’s home where the buyer and their agent should have no expectation of privacy. Further the seller has no obligation to disclose that they are listening in. (Note: if the recording is transmitted real time to a cell phone and recorded, consent might be required.) See the white paper.
Best Practices For Consumers and Real Estate Agents
- Buyer’s agents should counsel their buyer clients to hold comments until they exit the property and return to the car to discuss the features of the home. It should be assumed that EVERY home has surveillance.
- Seller’s agents should advise the seller to post a sign that the home in under surveillance.
Amy Shocket is a Dickson Realty Broker-Salesperson in the Sparks office and currently serves as Vice-President of the Northern Nevada Regional Multiple Listing Service Board of Trustees.
