NAR’s investment arm makes inroads with Mexican association 

Editor's note: From regional and statewide players to locals focused on a single market, multiple listings services and Realtor associations are the backbone of residential real estate. Here we highlight some of the latest news about the organizations that are shaping the future of the industry.

Second Century Ventures strengthens ties with Mexico

The National Association of Realtors' strategic investment arm, Second Century Ventures (SCV), has established a new partnership with Mexico's leading real estate association. The news follows SCV's announcement in June that it had formed a strategic partnership with the Confederación Inmobiliaria Latinoamericana (CILA) to support tech adoption and innovation among real estate professionals in Latin America.

SCV's new formal partnership with the Asociación Mexicana de Profesionales Inmobiliarios (AMPI) will help strengthen the already close ties between Mexican and American real estate professionals, NAR said in a press release. The agreement was made during this year's REACH LATAM program, which was held in Monterrey, Mexico.

AMPI, which represents thousands of real estate professionals across more than 100 local sections, will work with SCV on tech adoption, share best practices, grow educational programming, connect its members with SCV's tech accelerator REACH and support Mexico's "digital transformation" within the real estate industry.

SCV Managing Partner Dave Garland said the partnership reflects SCV's commitment to strong relations with Mexican real estate professionals. 

"The talent, the ambition, and the heart of Mexico's real estate professionals are superb, and they deserve a direct line to the best technology and boldest ideas on the planet," Garland said. "Standing beside AMPI — an institution that has protected and elevated this profession for nearly seventy years — we are going to make sure Mexican practitioners aren't just keeping pace with the future of real estate. They're helping build it."

Jenny Rivas, president of AMPI, added that her organization's "longstanding relationship with NAR has strengthened our profession for years, and this partnership with Second Century Ventures marks the next evolution of that collaboration."

Stellar MLS welcomes new corporate shareholder

Florida-based Stellar MLS has announced that Realtors Association of Citrus County (RACC) is its newest corporate shareholder.

With the agreement, which Stellar framed as an alternative to traditional MLS mergers, RACC gains an ownership stake in the MLS while retaining its identity and autonomy over daily operations. Stellar will also become the exclusive MLS provider for RACC members. The MLS currently serves about 80,000 customers in Florida and Puerto Rico, and RACC represents about 950 brokers and agents.

Shayne Fairley, the newly-minted CEO of Stellar MLS, said he is "delighted" to welcome RACC to the MLS. "By bringing our organizations together, we are creating greater opportunities for RACC members and existing Stellar customers through access to a broader inventory, enhanced technology and a more connected real estate network," Fairley said in a news release.

RACC President Keith Pullias described the move as "more than a technology upgrade" — it's "a commitment to providing the resources, reach, and opportunities our Realtors asked for."