NAR Board of Directors authorizes changes

WASHINGTON – May 21, 2007 – The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) Board of Directors met on Saturday and voted to create a credit union for NAR members, extend its public awareness campaign, and support an investment company to fund technology initiatives. Dues will also go up for the first time in 13 years.

NAR’s public awareness campaign, now 10 years old, promotes the use of a Realtor to sell or buy a home, as well as the benefits of using a Realtor versus non-Realtors. A special assessment of $30 that NAR members have been paying will continue through 2008 but increase to $35 in 2009 and 2010. Regular dues, which have not gone up since 1994, will increase by $16 per member starting in 2008, rising to $80.

The additional money, NAR decided, will go toward a consumer outreach effort to leverage alliances between Realtors and property owners; and the creation of a national property data “gateway” – a repository of detailed current and historical information on all real property in the United States. It will also fund start-up costs for the NAR credit union, and the technology investment company.

Other board action items

• Appraisers: The board also took a position opposing a “blind draw” selection system for choosing property appraisers in federal housing programs, but supported stronger penalties for those who improperly influence the appraisal process.

• 2008 officers: Directors elected Dick Gaylord of Long Beach, Calif., president; Charles McMillan of Irving, Texas, president-elect; Vicki Cox Golder of Tucson, Ariz., first vice president; and James Helsel Jr., treasurer of NAR for 2008. McMillan, who ran against Chris McElroy of Fort Collins, Colo., for the president-elect spot, will be the first African-American president of NAR.

• National policy issues: NAR will be an advocate for competitive, “net neutral” telecommunications legislation before Congress; open and transparent patent application processes; tax incentives that encourage energy efficiency, satisfy environmental goals or mitigate potential damage from natural disasters; enhancements to federal housing programs that encourage financing of manufactured and modular housing.

• NAR policy: NAR’s board also approved money for legal cases, stiffened qualification criteria that local Realtor boards may consider for membership, and added language that enables boards to consider certain criminal convictions in assessing a membership applicant. A new Standard of Practice was added to Article 12 of the Code of Ethics to clarify that the obligation to present “a true picture in advertising, marketing, and representations” includes the proper use and display of certificates, designations, and other Realtor credentials.

• MLS policy: MLS policy now requires that listing brokers report status changes (including sales) to the MLS, even when direct negotiations are conducted – with the listing broker’s consent – between the seller and the cooperating broker.

More information can be found on NAR’s member Web site, Realtor.org.

© 2007 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

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