NAR’s Second Century Initiatives: Trend-shifting projects to assist real
estate professionals, associations and the clients and customers they serve
By Carol Reed, CEO, Aurora Association of REALTORS®
So many announcements are made at meetings held by the National Association of REALTORS® that it can be easy to lose sight of the magnitude of the products and services that are currently offered or are being developed. This was once again true at the Association Executives’ Institute that I recently attended in Quebec City.
NAR Chief Executive Officer Dale Stinton introduced two new projects, both in the research or formative stages. First is the development of a REALTOR® Association Management System to provide support for and to manage a comprehensive membership data solution that fulfills the changing needs of the REALTOR ® organization.
REALTOR® Associations and REAL-TOR® Multiple Listing Services could participate in the cooperative to control management system expenditures and to realize a more diverse and flexible system. The anticipated rollout of this cooperative is early 2011.
The second announcement, still in the concept stage, is a joint venture with a university to provide an online real estate college degree program through NAR’s current REALTOR® University. NAR is committed to increasing the knowledge level of its members and sees this as a way to assist them in advancing their college education.
Several of NAR’s Second Century Initiatives are already in operation or are in a beta testing phase. To keep you up to date on benefits that can assist you with your business, a short description of each is listed below.
REALTORS® Property Resource (RPR)
RPR is in the beta testing phase and several of AAR’s REALTOR® members are currently participating in testing this product. When it launches later this year, it will be a database of 147 million parcels of real estate accessible to all REALTORS®. For each parcel, users find quantitative data – size, assessment and so on – plus qualitative data: comments from REALTORS® and their colleagues on what’s really key about the property. This database puts an unprecedented amount of information at its users’ fingertips. It can make the REALTOR® a go-to resource for their customers in a way that simply would not have been possible years ago.
HouseLogic
Launched this year, HouseLogic.com offers everything home owners need to increase, maintain and protect the value of their home. The site provides free information and tools to help home owners with home improvements, maintenance projects, taxes, finances, insurance, and even community involvement. HouseLogic.com helps consumers make confident decisions about what is often their largest investment – their home. REALTORS® can benefit from this site by using the resources on their own website or in newsletters, social media or neighborhood handouts. The resources are free for members to use as long as you follow the guidelines created by NAR.
REALTOR® Federal Credit Union
Recognizing the special financial service needs of REALTORS®, NAR created a REALTOR®-friendly credit union. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the Internet-based REALTOR® Federal Credit Union (RFCU) is designed to accommodate REALTORS®’ busy schedules. RFCU offers access to thousands of surcharge-free ATMs nationwide, secure online banking and bill pay, safe deposits, affordable loans, money market savings accounts, share certificates in a variety of terms and trusted advice. If you need to establish a line of credit or need a loan to purchase a car, RV, boat or first mortgage on a home, check out the rates on RFCU at www.Realtor.org.
REALTOR® University
REALTOR® University is NAR’s online education destination offering more than 400 hours of online education and professional development courses, and is the exclusive provider of courses leading to the following designations: ABR, AHWD, ALC, CIPS, GREEN, RSPS, REPA, SFR, SRES and TRC. It also includes a webinar center to access hot topic webinars both “live” and “on-demand”. Visit www.REALTOR.org/REALTORUniversity to learn about current and new courses and look for the free webinar “summit topics” offered on June 9.
Right Tools, Right Now online
The Right Tools Right Now initiative has been extended through 2010 to provide NAR products and resources. More than 400 free or at-cost products and services will be available through this year. Offers are updated monthly, so check back often for publications, events, courses, seminars, videos, research tools and more at www.REALTOR.org/RightTools.
To access many of the initiatives, you need to register on the specific site with your NRDS number and create your personal password. Your NRDS number is unique to you and does not change if you transfer to another Association. Contact AAR at (303) 369-5549 if you have lost or misplaced your NRDS number.
NAR offers great value for your dues dollars, so take advantage of the products and services that are available to you.
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