‘Unfiltered’: Why NAR advocacy is ‘the envy’ of D.C. and beyond
Watch the conversation with NAR’s top lobbyist as she discusses what advocacy really means for members and some of the big wins the association has achieved.
NextHome CEO James Dwiggins has emerged as a significant voice on the topics that are shaping the real estate industry: lawsuits, innovation, leadership. But Dwiggins doesn't just answer questions, he asks them of guests on Real Estate Insiders Unfiltered, his podcast with Keith Robinson, NextHome's chief strategic officer.
On this week's episode of Real Estate Insiders Unfiltered, Shannon McGahn, NAR's chief advocacy officer, talks about the gains the association has made for both its members and consumers, and responds to one of the questions she hears most often: "What has advocacy done for me lately?"
The short answer: A lot, she says, adding that NAR "is the envy of Washington and advocacy organizations nationwide because of decades of what our members have done to build up this operation."
See what advocacy looks like in the wild: A common misperception, said McGahn, is that NAR is mainly focused on lobbying in D.C. In reality, she said, "the bulk of that funding that comes directly from our members to support our advocacy efforts is being used at the state and local level."
One example of local advocacy is working to ensure agents can be their own bosses: "Nearly 90% of Realtor members are independent contractors and choose to be. And we've had at the state level times when that has been questioned. Protecting the ability of real estate professionals to do business in the way that they know it should be conducted, that's a very important win."
And if NAR didn't exist? "The outcomes would be that you don't have as strong of a voice, you don't have as united of a voice, and you don't have as much input or any input on what is happening at all levels of government that relates to real estate and property ownership."
McGahn also cited NAR's outreach to the VA as "a great recent example of the impact that NAR advocacy has and how quickly that we can move."
"The VA's home loan guarantee was the only program that explicitly bans buyers from directly paying for professional real estate representation," said McGahn. Following the settlement, her team "launched an all-hands-on-deck advocacy effort on the issue" — and it paid off, with the VA agreeing to revise its policies. "This was a huge and very timely win."
The views, thoughts and opinions expressed in the Real Estate Insiders podcast belong solely to the podcast creators and guests, and not Real Estate News.