National Association of Realtors

This article is licensed under theGNU Free Documentation License.It uses material from the Wikipedia article "National Association of Realtors" (click for full Wikipedia text)

The  'National Association of Realtors ' (NAR), whose members are known as " 'REALTORS '", is North America's largest trade association, representing over 1 million members (as reported in 2006), including NAR's institutes, societies, and councils, involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. NAR also functions as a Self Regulatory Organization for real estate brokerage. NAR governs the hundreds of local Multiple Listing Services (MLSs) which are the information exchanges used across the nation by brokers. However, there are many MLSs that are independent of NAR; MLSPIN is an example of one of the larger independent MLSs in North America. NAR's membership is composed of residential and commercial brokers, salespeople, immovable property managers, appraisers, counselors, and others engaged in all aspects of the real estate (immovable property) industry. Members belong to one or more of some 1,600 local associations and boards and 54 state and territory associations of realtors. They are pledged to a strict Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice, which includes duties to clients, the public, and other realtors. (see http://www.realtor.org/mempolweb.nsf/pages/code). Agents and brokers are also licensed by states. The NAR wields substantial power as a lobbying organization on behalf of agents and brokers. In 2005, NAR had the largest Political Action Committee in the United States. See http://www.opensecrets.org/pacs/topacs.asp for the top 20 PACs. Through a complicated arrangement, NAR sets the policies for most of the Multiple Listing Service, which are essentially the information exchanges for residential real estate. In 2005, the Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit against NAR alleging its MLS rules were the product of a conspiracy to restrain trade by excluding brokers who used the internet to operate differently. For a description of the DOJ action, see http://www.usdoj.gov/atr/cases/nar.htm. The MLSs are to residential real estate what NASDAQ and the New York Stock Exchange are to securities.

Realtor - Colloquialism

 Realtor  is frequently used as a colloquialism in many countries to describe any person or company involved in the real estate trade, regardless of their NAR status or American residence. The word "REALTOR" all in caps, is a Collective trade marks and can only be used  commercially  by National Association of Realtors members or licensees.

See also

• Real estate broker
• Estate agent (United Kingdom)
• List of real estate topics
• United States housing bubble

External links

• Realtor.com - Official Homesite of the National Association of REALTORs
• Legal Cases on the NAR
• Realtor.org
• Realtors Back Away From Plan To Restrict Access to Listings
• National Association of Realtors Political Action Group (PAC)
• RPAC
  
  This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.It uses material from the Wikipedia article "National Association of Realtors" (click for full Wikipedia text) Hide