The most successful real estate team in Nevada, led by luxury broker Ivan Sher, has left Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and formed his own independent brokerage firm, IS LUXURY, with plans to expand into Utah and Southern California.
Formerly known as the Ivan Sher Group, the team has generated more than $4 billion in revenue since its inception in 2005. In a recent 2021 national listing by The Wall Street Journal, Sher’s group was recognized as the leading real estate team in Nevada.
The company said it had $760 million in home sales in 2021, a record for the team that has managed Nevada for nearly 15 years. Sher’s team is known for representing business people, athletes and celebrities over the years.
Sher’s team, which was also the #1 team in Berkshire Hathaway’s global network, has opened an upscale two-story office in downtown Summerlin for its 15 agents and 17 administrative staff.
The move to create an independent brokerage firm is part of a national shift in the luxury real estate industry toward boutique luxury firms, Sher said. He said Berkshire Hathaway has been “an invaluable partner to us and (vital) to our success,” but he added that after more than 20 years, starting your own business was a natural transition. He said he felt it was the right time to expand into more markets outside of Las Vegas as an independent company.
“It just made sense to me to start my own brokerage firm,” Sher said. “I’ve been given the autonomy and independence to run my own show with Berkshire Hathaway. It’s the right time to grow and launch a luxury brand. I have an entrepreneurial side. On the dollar-and-cent side, it almost makes sense to stick with Berkshire Hathaway, at least initially. But there is a thirst I have to grow.”
IS LUXURY has also entered into an exclusive marketing partnership with Forbes Global Properties, an international media and marketing platform showcasing the world’s finest luxury properties for sale.
Sher’s team is FGP’s exclusive partner in the Las Vegas and Henderson area. With affiliation with FGP, Sher plans to expand his business into the top luxury markets beyond southern Nevada, including Park City, Utah and Newport Beach, California.
“I’ve noticed that so many of my clients have second homes in Newport or Park City, Tahoe, Scottsdale or Aspen, and having control of my own business allows me to expand into those markets,” Sher said. “Now I feel like I have an opportunity to do this on my own, albeit more costly because it will be at my expense rather than working with someone like Berkshire Hathaway. This is an opportunity for me to build a network of clients and serve them across multiple markets. I would like to work in three more markets in the next five years. It’s not a monetary goal because I know that if I do everything else right, the money will follow.”
Sher said he met his clients in Newport Beach and Park City and thought that would be a great place to start.
You already know him and his team, he said. Sher launches the new venture at a time when luxury sales are falling and fears of a recession. He started the process a year ago when the market was at its best.
“You’re right, the timing isn’t the best,” Sher replied. “But in every market we reach, we create our own market. My agents are the best in town and most of my agents do more business than my competitors. There’s never a right time to do anything and you have to follow your gut.”
As part of the company’s rebranding efforts, IS LUXURY introduced a new logo and relocated to offices in downtown Summerlin. Sher said he sees the space as a hub for events and social gatherings, as well as a convenient place to do business and meet clients.
IS Luxury is located at 2130 Park Center Drive in a 6,200 square foot office. The interiors of the former retail location were demolished and a 2,000 square foot mezzanine was added to create two levels. It is the only street level non-retail space in downtown Summerlin.
The lower level features a luxury hotel-inspired lobby, living room and bar area for events and entertainment, 19 private office spaces for real estate consultants and executives, two conference rooms, a green room for custom video recording and podcasting, lounge areas, business center and administrative coworking spaces .
Mark Stark, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Nevada, Arizona and California Properties, who has worked with Sher since 2000, said that becoming an independent brokerage firm was a natural progression for the firm’s top global team.
For more than 20 years, Stark says his company has operated on a business-services model that allows sales managers to build a brokerage business within their brokerage office and assume the additional risks and rewards that come with owning their own business. Sher is the eighth to do so across four markets in three states, and the two have spoken about the opportunity for an extended period of time, he added.
“Ivan Sher is clearly in a category of his own,” Stark said. “He has built an incredible business and we are very proud to have been a part of IS LUXURY’s growth, starting our own brokerage business and expanding its reach into other states.”
Stark said this sends a message to anyone who wants to start their own opportunity brokerage with Berkshire Hathaway.
“We are very happy for Ivan and wish him all the best,” said Stark. “I know Berkshire Hathaway isn’t happy to have separated him from their brand, but the way we’ve structured the executive model is very conducive to the sales executive side. And that is why we continue to grow.”