NAR is Also the Largest Force in Commercial Brokerage

The National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) annual C5 + CCIM Global Summit, scheduled for Sept. 17-19 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, in Hollywood, FL, will bring together a cross-section of the commercial real estate industry, from brokers to REITs. It may come as a surprise to some industry members that NAR is so deeply involved in the commercial side of real estate, let alone that it’s “the largest commercial member organization in the United States,” said Johnny Noon, director of engagement, commercial real estate at NAR. “And we have been for a while.” 

The association currently has more than 180,000 members engaged in CRE transactions. “We are building awareness of our commercial programs and services and we are continuing to invest in providing value for our commercial practioners,” said Noon. 

Since one of the primary functions of a professional association is advocacy, it follows that NAR is active in the halls of Congress as well as state capitals. Befitting its stature as the largest CRE member organization, NAR has long advocated on behalf of the commercial sector. 

“Our lobbyists are in Washington and they are working with legislators to inform them on commercial real estate issues that affect commercial landowners and commercial practitioners,” Noon said. For example, “NAR has been at the forefront of advocating for and helping protect the 1031 Exchange.” 

Perhaps less visible to the industry are NAR’s efforts at the state and local levels. NAR was a major force in reducing the sales tax on commercial leases in Florida, for example. No less important are instances where NAR helped to make sure that would-be legislation never came into existence in the first place. 

“Lawmakers are well intentioned when writing legislation, but sometimes we have to go inform them, ‘no, no, no, no. Here’s what the effects would be of doing that,’“ Noon explained. “There’s always unintended consequences and it’s up to our advocacy team to be in Washington and educate them.” 

Arguably the residential side of the real estate industry got to the technology party earlier than their commercial counterparts. However, NAR is in the forefront of bringing commercial practitioners up to speed.  

“We’re also a huge investor in technology,” said Noon. “For example, we were one of the first investors in DocuSign through Second Century Ventures, NAR’s strategic investment arm. We have invested in over 40 commercial proptech companies, and if you look up REACH Second Century Ventures, you can see a whole list.” Beginning with the Class of 2013, REACH has scaled more than 200 companies serving real estate and adjacent industries including Notarize, Knock, Curbio, Rental Beast, Stake and Occupier.

NAR’s aim with tech investment is “pairing technology with the broker experience,” Noon said. “How can technology be a catalyst and an added benefit, not a replacement for a broker? How can we get them more productivity, in a more efficient way?”

For commercial brokers, NAR offers Realtors Property Resource (RPR), which Noon described “our secret weapon in the marketplace, and what makes us a differentiator. Because if you’re with a large brokerage, you may have access to unlimited amounts of data and you’ve got all these resources. But if you’re a small or medium-sized brokerage, maybe you don’t have access to that level of resources.” Through RPR, though, members can gain “access to the tools, data and resources needed to help them be not only competitive, but excel in winning clients.”

“Our number one goal is to be an essential business partner for our commercial practitioners,” said Noon. “You will continue to see more from NAR on the commercial front.”