‘Ask T3’: NAR CEO vows to ‘outrun irrelevance’ 

Editor's note: The Ask T3 series explores some of the biggest questions in real estate with thoughtful insight from industry professionals. Check out our top takeaways and watch the latest episode from host Nick Bailey, chief real estate officer at T3 Sixty. (Real Estate News is an editorially independent division of T3 Sixty.)

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When Nykia Wright was appointed interim CEO of the National Association of Realtors in November 2023, it wasn't the first time she'd taken the helm of an organization at a pivotal moment.

At her prior job leading the Chicago Sun Times, she was promoted to CEO weeks before Christmas — and didn't know if she could make payroll.

"That was a real interesting moment," Wright told host Nick Bailey, chief real estate officer at T3 Sixty, on the latest episode of Ask T3. "My job throughout the rest of my career, whether it's at NAR or anywhere else, is to absolutely prevent that circumstance from ever happening again."

A beleaguered organization: Wright joined NAR in the wake of a sexual harassment scandal and a verdict against the trade group in a major class-action antitrust lawsuit. NAR later witnessed the departure of several controversial high-profile executives, reached a $418 million legal settlement and instituted budget cuts throughout the organization.

"I knew that we needed to outrun irrelevance," Wright said. A year after becoming NAR's permanent CEO, she still has plenty on her plate.

Changing NAR's strategy — and its leadership: The association is close to completing a strategic plan that will be rolled out to its executive committee in November, Wright said. In the meantime, NAR's entire executive team has been "re-engineered."

"There were people who got us here that would not be able to take us to the next chapter, and so we dissolved those relationships," she said, adding that she was "very empathetic" to those who didn't sign up for "running faster than the scandal."

By being transparent about where NAR is heading, she believes people will be able to choose whether they want to be part of its future. "The thing about a free market is people have that choice."

9 main objectives: Wright listed nine "core" items the trade group is working on: 

• Delivering market-leading research

• Advancing business-centric tools

• Elevating its education and events portfolio

• Amplifying advocacy impact

• Elevating the Realtor brand

• Being the first voice in real estate

• Rebuilding partnership foundations

• Centralizing relationship management

• Creating valuable business solutions

"We are the belle of the ball as it relates to [advocacy]," Wright said. 

"But we are not resting on our laurels. Not only do our Realtors benefit from that, but real estate agents who are not Realtors benefit from that. Certainly at the end of the day, consumers benefit from that. So we are sort of doing the Lord's work."

Bringing 'PTSD' to work: Wright half-jokingly said she has post-traumatic stress disorder from her previous work at the cash-strapped Chicago Sun Times, but as someone who thrives in challenging environments, Wright thinks of business as her "sport." 

"This is grueling work, but I'm having an enjoyable time," she said, adding that she aims to impact "small business owners around the country who have decided through capitalism to make this their choice of earning a living."

It's "a heavy crown to wear, a heavy responsibility," she said, "but it's what I signed up for." 

Finding new ways to 'add value': "While NAR certainly is not cash-strapped, we are nowhere near as wealthy as we were in a pre-settlement world," Wright said. 

"I'm looking at it as we go along to say, 'Where can we cut here? How can we think about different ways to continue to add value without necessarily increasing costs?'" she explained. "Revenue is super important. How do we look at the diversification of revenue streams?"

Setting short- and long-term goals: Wright identified stabilizing NAR's membership count as her top goal for the next 12 months, "because people have begun to believe in what we are selling in terms of value across the nation."

As for her own legacy? Wright simply wants to leave NAR better than she found it. That means "convincing people that this is more of a business that you want to lean into as opposed to lean out of," she said.

"There is no [other association] in America that can do some of the core things that we can do."

Correction: This story has been updated to clarify which job Nykia Wright was referencing during a portion of her remarks.