NAR move will increase 2024 dues by 4%
NAR has approved a proposal that would increase dues based on the inflation rate. This will raise 2024 dues to $156 (from $150).
Key points:
- NAR is facing annual deficits of up to $15 million over the next few years.
- Membership hit a record high of more than 1.5 million last year, but is expected to drop by approximately 15%.
- The vote took place at NAR’s annual Realtors Legislative Meetings in Washington, D.C.
The National Association of Realtors board today approved a proposal to tie dues to inflation, a move that will increase 2024 dues by 4%.
NAR dues, paid annually every January, are currently $150. With this change, dues will increase to $156 per year in 2024. This is in addition to a $45/year fee to support consumer advertising.
This move comes against a backdrop of increasing expenses and falling membership numbers. NAR is facing annual deficits of $10-$15 million over the next few years, a spokesperson confirmed, and a 15% drop in membership from a high of 1,580,971 at the end of 2022.
NAR is also looking at ways to cut costs and grow non-dues revenue.
"In total, efforts to ensure member dues dollars are allocated as efficiently, effectively, and responsively as possible have resulted in bottom-line savings of more than $45 million since 2017," said NAR VP of communications Mantill Williams.
Specifically, this move aligns potential dues increases to the nation's primary measure of inflation, the Consumer Price Index. Annual increases would be capped at 4%.
For most of the past 20 years, inflation has been well under 4%, before jumping to 4.7% in 2021. Inflation ended up at 8.0% last year — after hitting an "unacceptably high" 40-year monthly peak of 9.1% in June — and is currently estimated to reach 5.8% this year. It's also a driver for the interest rate increases that have bumped up mortgage rates, impacting housing affordability and buyer activity.
The Thursday vote was part of the NAR annual Realtors Legislative Meetings, which take place each May in Washington, D.C.