Do you believe the California Association of Realtors (CAR) provides you valuable services for your annual dues?
- No (70%, 481 Votes)
- Yes (30%, 206 Votes)
Total Voters: 687
Updated 05-10-2012
Many real estate licensees wrongly believe they must join the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the California Association of Realtors (CAR) or the local Association of Realtors (AOR) branch of CAR to practice real estate in California, too often equating these trade union leviathans to the Department of Real Estate (DRE) due to their past close liaison.
Other licensees have a slightly better grasp on the implications of membership or non-membership in the real estate trade union versus DRE licensing, but still mistakenly believe that union membership is necessary in order to access their local multiple listing services (MLS).
This impression is not unfounded. Before 1976, most real estate trade union boards owned and required all access to the MLS to include membership in their association. Such practice was prohibited in 1976. [Marin County Board of Realtors, Inc. v. Palsson (1976) 16 C3d 920]
Palsson prohibited making association membership a requirement for MLS access to the marketplace. The association was allowed to exact a “reasonable fee” from nonmembers, derogatorily called Palsson members, for MLS access. Of course, the bundling continued with the AORs claiming ownership of data behind all the published listings, giving access only to their card-carrying members.
Related article:
So, let’s get the facts straight: trade union membership is not required to practice real estate and it is not required to access an MLS. Give your local association a call — they know the rules.
Related article:
Letter to the Editor: trade union membership not a licensing requirement
To access an AOR-owned MLS, an individual must:
- have a valid California real estate license;
- be a broker, or a sales agent under a broker who is a member of the MLS;
- apply for access to the MLS; and
- pay a fee, which varies by AOR.
If an agent’s broker is not a member of an AOR, the agent is not required to be a member of an AOR. However, if a broker is a member of an AOR, his agents must also be members of the AOR in order to access the broker’s MLS.
No other restrictions apply. Real estate agents and brokers can continue to access an MLS without paying excessive and unnecessary dues or entangling themselves in a trade union’s bureaucracy, codes and arbitration rules.
Knowledge is power — and this case, money saved.
Question. If my broker belongs to a local association can I just join MLS and get a supra key?
Dear Mr. Bye:
To access the MLS and obtain a Supra key, you do not need to be a member of an association of realtors. You may pay for these services separately through the local board, and forgo the union membership.
I join my local MLS here in San Jose CA as MLS access only, but now that i want a supra key to show homes, i’m being forced to join the board! They tell me because my broker is a board member I have to join as one too. Why should I be forced to pay their ridiculous fees. I only want mls and a supra key access, that’s all I need to work.
Can you just join CAR and not NAR or local association to be able to access the MLS and get a supra key?
Outlaw the PAC’s. We wont need any “organization” to represent us, elect legislators and make then do thier jobs, like know and read the legislation they are voting on. Pass a law that prohibits “combining ” legislation, each bill MUST have only one issue in it! No more “piggybacking” legislatiion onto an important issue that must be passed, so the lobbysts tack on some extra “fluff” to further line thier pockets. That is why I am refusing to join the “orginazition”. I am being treated as a outcast and am having a very hard time getting a place to hang my license, even with 24 years in the business. I have to get a brokers license and carry all that extra baggage to be able to work. This is not equitable, I am being discriminated against because of my political views, something I learned by personal experience when I ran for a local office. The whole political “system” in our county STINKS, and CAR and NAR are part of it. Stop sending your money to those crooks in Washington!
i’ve been a member off and on for the last two decades and finally decided that the “buy now” blather they push is too much for me to bear. their economists are hacks, the code of ethics is a joke, they take all comers who can pony up a check…they are no more exclusive than a supermarket club card.
realtor is a brand and the brand stands for nothing except a bunch of hot air.
i buy the forms from zipforms for about twice the cost of membership but i am no longer embarrassed by the association with uneducated kooks that can’t spell, transact, communicate clearly, return calls, compose an offer or even add or subtract. good ridence.
Hi Mike,
I know my reply is four years after your comment, but I am thinking of dropping my association membership after 18 years. I own a small brokerage in San Diego and have a great deal of insider’s knowledge at the association level (all three in San Diego County) and at Sandicor.
I see too, like you point out, that purchasing ZipForms directly, as a non-association member, is about double the cost of association membership (with free forms, ha), but you get the association monkey off your back.
Now that it is four years later, are you still doing the same thing and/or do you regret dropping out of the association for MLS-only access? Thank you for (hopefully) your answer!
Have had a brokers license since ’68 and contractor’s license since ’68 as well. I use both as my full time profession.
I use to belong to our local realty board but after attending many, many meetings I finally had to stop going because it was just too depressing. I found the time spent in attendance kept me from doing business. Mostly, because the majority of the members had little or no educational background in the basics such as accounting, management, contract law, Roberts’ Rules and economics as well as just plain old English grammar. The meetings, in many cases, would “breakdown” into useless blather and accomplished very little of relevance to the brokerage business.
So, pay your lobbyist directly, use legal forms (contracts) that suit your style and do your own thing.
There is a weekly prayer breakfast? Damn! Take my yes vote back.
Great article. I too got out. L those fees for nothing. Whomever mentioned ethics is correct,
I love the freedom to pick my clients however, I do not like that I can not
Pick the agent on the other side of the deal. When we as agents give our
All and best deals will come and close, instead of thinking about the commission.
Thanks again.
Sincerely
Linda carol chase
I’m a broker, in the business for over 33 years. I have belonged to both CAR and MLS…MLS provides a service…CAR provides forms. First Tuesday has forms. However, some dumb agents won’t accept the First Tuesday forms and won’t present your offers. Used to be able to go to the Board office and buy forms even if you didn’t belong to CAR. Haven’t tried it lately. I was told 30 years ago, that an offer written on a brown paper bag was legal…but the young people coming into the business don’t know that. They THINK they have to join all the organizations. Now you can access listings through the internet without belonging to MLS. My daughter is a broker and I argued with her over joining CAR. She thought she HAD to.
Having access to lok box keys is useful…but have to belong to MLS to “lease” the key. Some agents have combo locks on property (I have used them for years), but they won’t give you the combination. Lots of ignorance in the business…and lots of agents are losing out on good buyers because they think they can only work with those who belong to all the organizations.
Withholding a bonafide offer is a legal matter whether it be on looseleaf paper or forms. Do some research or get legal advice. Seller would also be VERY interested.
Let’s be honest. Only numbnut realtors with no business responsibilities have the time to be involved with CAR. Their lobbying efforts have been hugely unsuccessful because true morons were elected to represent the majority “voters.” In the end, the Galeria of Morons has been allowed to make kneejerk decisions without finding out the wishes of those they represent. In CAR, it’s mo money, mo money, mo money, for which you get NOTHING! Worse, every newbie is forced to join CAR; their political claws are everywhere. My question continues to be….why and how soon can we get rid of the entire bunch o’ dummies?
I do like both the First Tuesday and CAR forms. The other agents do not like any forms except the CAR forms. Even some listings require offers to be made using CAR forms. I do like the CAR legal Hot Line. I like the convenience of the way the CAR forms are set up to be used and records kept for years for our review. What I don’t like about CAR is that they are irresponsible in their lobbying efforts and I don’t have any input. I think that the housing bubble that caused our present recession is in part the fault of CAR. They lobbied for low down, no down & easy qualifications to get more sales only looking to get more agents in the industry to increase the dues and thus making CAR stronger. I don’t like my dues going to a UNION, which is what CAR is, and not being able to say how the dues are used. I was a subscriber to First Tuesday for years before there was an internet, where we had big binders of information. I believe that First Tuesday was and is great for letting the real estate industry know what is happening on the legal front.
Thanks for posting this article! A lot of agents are very robotic and ignorant about what it really takes to be in and practice real estate in California. Also a lot of non licensees seem to think that they can practice too. So, when will we tackle the CAR form monopoly in the industry? Most agents don’t know that they are NOT really necessary or required. A great deal of them who use these forms just copy from some former filled out contract and don’t even know what half of the verbiage says about the transaction that they are about to get into with their buyers or sellers. They refuse contracts/offers from qualified buyers because the offers are written on other publishers forms. Just like how they (CAR) were forced to conform to a certain standard with the MLS usage/access; they should be made to conform to a certain standard of contract acceptance. All agents should be forced to accept ANY valid contract/offer whether or not it is written on CAR forms. These offers should be reviewed as equals to those written on CAR forms. Not all agents are raking in the dough and can afford these excessive annual CAR/NAR membership fees.