2016 INAUGURAL ANNUAL REPORT
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Letter from the CEO General Association Updates • Membership • Heck-Andrews House • PAGs • Legal Hotline • Community Engagement • NAR Awards & Recognition Government Affairs & Legislative Meetings
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NC REEF
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NC REALTORS® PAC
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NC Homeowners Alliance
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Communications & Marketing The Smart Move™
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Education
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Events
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Homes4NC
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Business Development
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LETTER FROM THE CEO With another year in the rear view mirror, it is a perfect time to reflect on the successes of the year. Those reflections also inspire and instruct our future. In this first edition Annual Report for NC REALTORS®, you will read about programs and services that have been offered and promoted for the benefit of our 38,000+ members. From real estate investments to community service, from risk management to consumer engagement, NC REALTORS® is front and center proving our commitment every single day of the year to: • Providing a dynamic, vibrant and successful future of our members; • Building better communities; and • Enhancing the quality of life in North Carolina.
ANDREA BUSHNELL Chief Executive Officer
It is important to thank each member for your membership and contribution to making NC REALTORS® a “first-in-class” organization devoted to innovation, influence, integrity and inclusivity. Without the many tireless hours of volunteerism given to your association, NC REALTORS® could not have achieved any of the many successes of the year outlined in this Annual Report. Kim Dawson, 2016 President; Treasure Faircloth, President-Elect; Kelly Marks, Treasurer; and Tony Smith, Immediate Past-President, deserve your thanks and your congratulations. They were the true leaders in moving NC REALTORS® forward in 2016. I sincerely hope that you will find the information contained in this Annual Report instructive, as well as inspiring. This is your association, and I am proud of your accomplishments!
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MEMBERSHIP
PAG
Gain of 2,322 since December 2015 HECK-ANDREWS HOUSE An ambitious undertaking that started in 2015 is now coming to fruition. The property officially became owned by NC REALTORS® in September and will soon transition to the new NC REALTORS®’ offices of the Government Affairs Department with event space on the bottom floor and rental office space on the top floor. The design is nearly complete, and the construction should commence in the spring of 2017 with occupancy expected in late fall of 2017.
Dozens of members embraced two separate PAGs this year—the Governance PAG and REALTOR® of the Future (ROTF) PAG. Through brainstorming, research, strategic thinking, collaboration, healthy debates, and hard work, each PAG finalized two reports designed to help move the association into the 21st century, positioning us for success for years to come. While the roads to where we are today — with the ROTF PAG passing and the Governance PAG being removed from the BOD agenda at Conference — haven’t always been straight and pothole free, the PAGs are applauded for their efforts, vision, and passion. Also, the members are commended for passing the ROTF PAG, and we are excited to see how the work groups will take the concepts within this PAG and move us all forward into 2017 and beyond.
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LEGAL HOTLINE Perhaps one of our most popular member benefits, the Legal Hotline has been a free benefit for members since 2015. Now an independent tool and resource for all members that you can access at your fingertips, the volume of calls fielded has grown tremendously. It is the most clicked-through content in our newsletters.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Now more than ever, our local associations are engaged in their communities and making a real impact on the lives of others where our members live, work and play. Driven by our new Core Standards, what perhaps started out of necessity has since blossomed into heartfelt, inspiring acts of kindness, hands-on volunteering projects and undeniable generosity. With strategic cause marketing programs through Boys & Girls Club, our #NCREALTORS4WV campaign and our school supply drive — to name a few — your efforts are making a difference statewide.
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
NC REALTORS® has had a stellar year this year with recognition from NAR. From Andrea Bushnell’s national William R. Magel Award, Wendell Bullard being named 2017 liaison to the REALTOR® Party Community Engagement Committee, multiple NC REALTORS®
being named to chair national committees in 2017 (Asa Fleming, Linda Trevor, Cady Thomas, Leigh Brown, Lou Baldwin and Wendell Bullard), a record number of our members and staff actively engaged on national committees and receiving two NAR grants, it is obvious our association is respected at the national level and even modeled in local and state associations across the country.
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GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS Our Government Affairs team was ahead of the curve this year, resulting in positive outcomes for REALTOR® members and consumers in the state of North Carolina. Through proactive efforts, we were well-prepared for the legislative short session and knew the issues and areas to address. This year we saw the passage of legislation to improve the state’s vacation rental act and ensure that appraisers are compensated fairly, as well as budget provisions
We were well-prepared for the legislative short session and knew the issues and areas to address… protecting the Mortgage Interest and Property Tax deductions, while providing increased funding for the Housing Trust Fund. The Shared GAD (Government Affairs Director) program expanded again in 2016 with the addition of a local-level lobbyist in
Forsyth County. This Shared GAD covers government affairs for WSRAR and marks our first formal partnership with the Home Builders Association. In addition to this GAD, NC REALTORS® has two more local GADs in the Greensboro/High Point region and in the Pinehurst/ Southern Pines region.
LEGISLATIVE MEETINGS This year’s NC REALTORS® Legislative Meetings continued our tradition of success with hundreds of REALTORS® from across the state, taking time in Raleigh to meet with their legislators about important REALTOR® priorities. We were extremely fortunate to be joined by many of our legislative champions throughout the three days, as well as having Governor McCrory join us during our Legislative Reception. This is a great opportunity to get the REALTOR® voice heard in the halls of the legislature, and we look forward to next year’s event.
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EDUCATION Ombudsman Program On January 1, 2016, NC REALTORS® implemented a new statewide Ombudsman Program. We had 13 volunteer Ombudsman from across the state trained to handle requests from consumers and REALTORS® and 27 local associations participating in the program. Core Standards All North Carolina associations met their Core Standards requirements for the 2nd Compliance Cycle. NC REALTORS® William C. Bass Leadership Academy Ray Alexander | Greensboro Regional Bob Bates | Greensboro Regional Rosemary Buerger | Fayetteville Regional Clif Cheek | Brunswick County Alton Cooper | Winston-Salem Regional Crystal Copas | Sanford Area Randy Dockery | Mountain Lakes Anita Emery | Mid Carolina Regional Rich Ponzio | Raleigh Regional Renee Smith | Raleigh Regional Johnny Wehmann | Orange Chatham Michael White | Durham Regional
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HOMES4NC
$3,000 Donation to NAR’s REALTOR® Relief Fund and $3,000 Donation to a Program to Help Pay Association Dues for REALTOR® Members Impacted by Hurricane Matthew Homes4NC encouraged local associations to give back to their communities by matching their investments in affordable housing. A total of $10,736 supported housing activities in High Point, Greensboro, Greenville, Newport and Winston-Salem through the Matching Grant program. After Hurricane Matthew hit the state in early October, Homes4NC donated $3,000
to NAR’s REALTOR® Relief Fund and $3,000 to kickstart a program, which will help pay association dues for REALTOR® members impacted by the hurricane. Volunteers and staff from Homes4NC and NC REALTORS® worked tirelessly to approve over $200,000 in REALTOR® Relief Funds for applicants displaced by the storm.
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NC REAL ESTATE EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION (NC REEF) “First-in-class” YouTube Channel Project Development
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$2,500 in Scholarship Funding 4 Classes Certified for CE
NC REEF pressed a reset button in 2016, committing to new projects and approaches to education delivery. Top among those projects is an effort to develop a “first-inclass” YouTube channel, which will host short, high quality videos on topics of importance to members on one playlist and for consumers on another. NC REEF started recording its video library in the fall and will continue this effort in 2017. Once a critical mass
of videos is recorded, NC REEF will launch a brand awareness campaign, ensuring that the videos reach a wide audience for its compelling educational programming. Additionally, NC REEF continued its scholarship program, awarding $2,500 in scholarship funding to members pursing educational opportunities, while increasing their professionalism and earning designations.
NC REEF achieved certification for four CE classes with the North Carolina Real Estate Commission. A number of instructors have been approved, and those classes are currently available to local associations and groups that wish to sponsor the classes.
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NC REALTORS® POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
When REALTORS® from across the state come together, we have a powerful voice on issues that will lead to a healthy business climate for REALTORS® and keep home ownership affordable for families across North Carolina. Your NC REALTORS® PAC is funded and directed entirely by members through voluntary investments. NC REALTORS® PAC 2016 raised $679,964 reaching 130% of our $525,000 goal with 9,359 investors bringing
our participation to 27% (goal of 30%). In addition, NC REALTORS® committed to being a Platinum R this year allowing us to credit an extra $10,000 towards our goal. In total, we raised $691,484 for NC REALTORS® PAC 2016 exceeding our goal and proving to be one of the most successful fundraising years in NC REALTORS® history. We also ended the year with 204 major investors (goal of 196), which is 29 more than we had last year! We had a goal to have 20 President’s
Circle members and ended the year with 34, which is 11 more than 2015. Also, 42 of 49 local associations met or exceeded goal this year. The leadership and staff of NC REALTORS® greatly appreciates your voice, time and investments and would like to give a big “thank you” to each of you.
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NC HOMEOWNERS ALLIANCE As valuable consumer resource, the NC Homeowners Alliance continues to demonstrate the real value of REALTORS® to consumers across North Carolina. By educating the public about issues that directly and indirectly impact them as homeowners, the NC Homeowners Alliance has a record number of non-members (22,000) along
with us for the ride. The work the Alliance does is absolutely imperative to the health and future of our clients and industry. We applaud you for your outreach, successes and positive impact.
NC HOMEOWNERS ALLIANCE FIELD TEAM The NC Homeowners Alliance Field Team is proud to report that 41 local REALTOR® associations participated in homeowner-focused advocacy in 2016. The Alliance also engaged with NAR’s consumer database to reach over 275,000 people during the fall elections and helped pass local and statewide referenda dedicated to economic development and infrastructure improvements. The Alliance is excited to turn its efforts to increasing NC REALTOR® participation in advocacy on behalf of homeowner rights in 2017.
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COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING One of our more popular member benefits, Insight magazine has become a resource for you to learn about issues impacting your business, association news, and trends that you should monitor and potentially adopt to help you succeed as a REALTOR®. The publication has been improved with more valueadded content REALTORS® can relate to. In the near future, look for even more improvements, including more consumer-focused articles you can share with your clients.
Additionally, the North Carolina Association of REALTORS® recently received approval from the North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State for its assumed name or DBA — NC REALTORS®. Rooted in a strategy to better align the association in the real estate industry and with its members and consumers, the new brand identity, including the name and modified logo, will be primarily used to market to its members, consumers, partners and the public.
THE SMART MOVE™ As another glowing example of our progressive consumer outreach efforts, this campaign is on the path to becoming a full-fledged movement. More than a catchy tagline, The Smart Move™ demonstrates the value of REALTORS® and home ownership. After a month-long consumer contest, this campaign awarded one local consumer, one REALTOR® and a local association with cash and other prizes totaling more than $15,000. There is excitement building around The Smart Move™ transition from a simple campaign into a way of life for REALTORS® and consumers statewide.
New Branding & Recording Studio
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EVENTS Events Inaugural Gala January 2016
Location Washington Duke Inn Durham, NC
Attendees 273
Vision Quest January 2016
Washington Duke Inn Durham, NC
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Spokesperson Training January 2016
Washington Duke Inn Durham, NC
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Legislative Meetings June 2016
Sheraton Raleigh Hotel Raleigh, NC
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Annual Conference September 2016
The Greenbrier White Sulphur Springs, WV
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BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT In 2016, the Business Development Department secured 11 annual sponsors, including BB&T Home Mortage, Century 21, Pearl Insurance and Systems Engineering, that provided $58,900 in annual revenue. We hosted 56 exhibitors at the 2016 NC REALTORS速 Conference & Expo, including nine REALTOR速 Partners and 10 exclusive conference sponsorships. Additionally, we had approximately $42,700 in sponsor and exhibitor sales from conference. Looking ahead, the Business Development department is hoping to develop more relationships and market the value of the REALTOR速 Partner program.
Our goal is to provide awareness to our members on quality services and products needed to help them gain success. Sponsors
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