NAR: MLS Policy Change Caps Historic May Meetings
WASHINGTON – The big news coming out of the National Association of Realtors®’ (NAR) Board of Directors meeting Friday:
Members won’t see a dues increase for NAR in 2021.
Be You, Only Better — Raise Your Personal Bar With the C2EX Program
Brokers will be able to get MLS data feeds of their own listing content.
NAR’s 2021 officers were chosen via remote election for the first time, as the 2020 Legislative Meetings were conducted virtually – the first time in its history, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As we find during any time of crisis, this pandemic offers our members and our association a tremendous opportunity to evolve and adapt to the markets of the future,” said NAR CEO Bob Goldberg, quoting musician Frank Zappa. “Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.”
The May meetings typically attract 9,000 to 10,000 members and include Capitol Hill visits by state Realtor delegations. The virtual platform drew more than 28,000 registrants, about triple the usual participation, who had the chance to attend streaming forums, committee meetings and conference sessions that took place from April 27 to May 14. The number of registrants even surpassed the average for NAR’s largest event, the annual Realtors® Conference & Expo.
While Goldberg said he hopes this year’s November convention will proceed as planned in New Orleans, future NAR events will forever be changed in that they will include both virtual and in-person components.
“Decades of investments in technology and a commitment to reinventing ourselves allowed NAR to execute a conference none of us imagined being necessary just a few months ago,” he said.
New rule on broker content
The board approved a new multiple listing policy requiring MLSs to provide participants or their designees with access to the content they’ve entered into the MLS. Most MLSs already offer such data feeds. Proponents say the new rule promises greater efficiency by ensuring brokerages don’t have to manually enter the same data multiple times into various systems and fosters innovation.
NAR Treasurer John Flor presented the 2021 budget and Finance Committee Report, which the board approved. Member dues will stay at the current rate of $150 per year, and NAR is forecasting 1.3 million members, about a 5% decline from current membership at this time.
2021 NAR officers
The board elected Leslie Rouda Smith of Plano, Texas, as NAR’s president-elect and Kenny Parcell of Spanish Fork, Utah, as first vice president for 2021. In a contested election, Nancy Lane of Brandon, Miss., was elected 2021-22 NAR treasurer. Andrew Barbar, 2015 president of Florida Realtors, was elected regional vice president for Region 5, which includes Florida. The full list of 2021 leadership and the 2021 regional vice presidents can be found here.
Source: National Association of Realtors®, Erica Christoffer
© Florida Realtors®