Should I Get Involved?

I know, ‘involved’ can mean a lot of different things.  There is drama-involved, relationship-involved, and of course Karen-esque-involved (sorry Karen’s, I’m sure you are personally very nice but it’s a concept that most people understand).

I’m not actually talking about any of these.

First, some definitions.  In order to represent anyone else in a real estate transaction, an individual has to have a real estate license.  This makes them a licensee or real estate agent.  Many of those licensees then join the REALTOR Association.  It is this group of members who can actually use the title of “REALTOR”. 

Whether or not you join the association kind of depends on your office.  If your office is a member, you will need to join.  If you want to join, your office needs to be a member.  I get it that not all agents will join the association, and for some it may truly not make sense. 

Now that we have the titles straight, let’s talk about what that means. 

At first glance, most people tie association membership with MLS access.  Yes, that is an important part.  But there is more.

The Association (hereafter referring to any or all of the local, state, and national levels) provides some other resources to members as well:

RPR – a web-based tool that allows access to property data, market data, market analyses, and professional reports for your people. 

Advocacy – the REALTOR Political Action Committee (RPAC) is, regardless of the metric you are using, always one of the largest PAC’s in the country operating at the state, local, and national levels on behalf of real estate owners.

Education – many local and state associations provide some great continuing education for members to keep their licenses active. 

Information – the national association has a library…….with staff……who can and will research real estate topics for you. 

Then there is accessibility.

This, in my opinion, is perhaps the greatest part of being a member of The Association.  Any member can be involved at the local, state, and national levels.  They are setting policies that have a direct impact on your daily business.  Don’t like the policy?  Were you in the meeting where it was discussed?  Even if you aren’t on the committee, there is usually an open gallery that allows for non-committee members to be present and contribute. 

At the time of posting this, I have just returned from Pierre, SD for state meetings.  I may be biased as a state director and co-chair of the education committee for this year.  But I don’t get paid for this endorsement either.  Not only have we doing business for the association this week but also hosted an event for legislators that connects us directly with them and allows for conversation about housing issues. 

I was involved in policy decisions for the association. I had conversations with state legislators, our Attorney General for the state, and with other leaders from the real estate industry. I had conversations regarding potential teaching opportunities in 4 different places (as an educator, that is like an agent signing a new listing). I had great conversation with an agent from Florida. That is a loaded couple of days.

Very few other professions allow for its members to have this level of direct impact on the professional environment.  The real estate world does allow for that.  It is up to you whether you want to take advantage of the opportunity or not.  You can have direct impact on the people and policies that guide your profession……if you take advantage of the opportunity.

To sum all of this up, I am not saying that you should get involved.  I’m saying you need to get involved.  You don’t need to be in a position on the board or a committee but at least engage and learn.  Find out what is going on.  Find out what changes are coming.  Find out who you can connect with.

Bigger than real estate, get involved with your community somehow.  You will learn.  You will grow.  You will care.  And, in the end, I truly believe your business will grow. Teddy Roosevelt is credited with saying “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”  Caring and knowing are both important and serve the other in a synergistic relationship.

Your involvement is what shows that you care.