"Realtor" - "NAR" is a HUGE Money Money Making Machine and your Interest is NOT their Priority.

the Legistative Process Protects Realtors because they have lots and lots of money so when NAR Lobbys for their Special Interests they usually get their way. NAR does not Lobby to get the things Stopped that Really Do Hurt You and NAR does not hold the "Good Ol' Boys" in your neighborhood to a higher standard, they simply do as they please bully you, treat you badly and you have to take it you have No Real Choice.

When you Complain to a Local Association of Realtors they Send you Away and when you Complain to the Real Estate Commission, the best you can get is their license taken and this is not going to happen most of the time.

If you want to get your money back or paid for damages that the Realtor did to you, then YOU have to get an Attorney and Fight them. It is not fair, you have proof in hand that they committed Fraud and yet you have to spend years in court so that a Judge, a Jury will have the "Opinion" of whether your a victim or not, and once in the courts your at the Mercy of a whole other Set of Good Ol' Boys and that To is a Matter of Who you Know, Connections, Affiliations and if your a new buyer in town, or in the county odds are no matter how much proof you have YOU will LOSE against the Realtor, they simply have more clout.

I have seen where Jury Trials award 1.2 Million in Punative to have a District Judge overturn this to $25,000 and a Supreme Court Stand Behind it. Shocking, However the only rights you have is the Right to Blog. I know that sounds silly, but the People are Listening, build a blog, post videos - documents - tell your Story and Send me a link at Crystal@CrystalCox.com - come up high in the Search Engines for their names and Expose them.

NAR is NOT listening to the Real Estate Consumer and why should they, they treat you bad and keep you down and you keep coming back for more. Many think that a "Realtor" is the only way to go and if you don't use a Realtor they Really Do Boycott you - then the Department of Justice Seems to be convinced that NAR is not a Cartel - a Monopoly and is NOT Violating Anti-Trust Laws Every Day of the Week when indeed they are - no one can do anything.

So the Real Estate Industry is Broken. Every part of the Real Estate Industry is Anti-Real Estate Consumer and No one is Listening To you so you NEED to Expose their Lies and Stop their Illegal, Immoral, Free For All on the Real Estate Consumer.

If you are SOLD a House that the MLS Sheet and the AD said it had Lakefront and the Buy Sell says it has Lakefront and the Real Estate Consumer just says oh I told you that - this is Wrong - Illegal Fraud and you Really have no Real Recourse without a Real Estate Attorney and Fighting for Years, even with One Hundred Percent Truth.

If the Realtor lies about the condition of a home, flat out or lies by way of Silent Fraud, which is saying Nothing, you have No Recourse - NAR says they are the VOICE of Real Estate. That is NOT True. NAR is the Voice of Realtors Staying in Business so that the NAR Cronies on TOP of the NAR Cartel Can Keep making Billions. It is not about protecting your rights in your real estate transaction. It is about Protecting NAR's Reputation and Keeping them in Business. And NAR is in Bigger Business then you may think at all levels of Real Estate.

Relocation Companies, Title Companies, Insurance Companies.... you name it NAR is their. So NAR needs to KEEP you under the Illusion that they are of a Higher Standard when Really they don't protect you even in the simpliest matter of buying a home SOLD to you on a lake turned out you don't own the lake front, or buying a home that was SOLD as Livable turns out it is NOT and you prove the REALTOR knew... you tell the MLS Director - you call the STATE Realtor Board and No One is Listening so Is there ANY benefit to USING a REALTOR in Your Real Estate Transaction ?

Your Local Realtor Association is in the Business of Making Sure the Real Estate Market keeps Marching on and they are not their to Listen to your Complaints about Realtors who Lie and Ruin your Life.

Until you Wake up to what the National Association of Realtors is Doing to you - then the Real Estate Industry Won't Change. Demand that NAR really be of a Higher Standard. Stop Mandatory E and O insurance. It is time for Realtor Accountability without years of your life and huge out money for a Lawsuit when you GOT something VERY different then What you Were Sold.

Time for Trial By Blog, Tell the TRUTH. Do not sit in Silence and just take what Local Big Wig Realtors are doing to you. Stand Up. Help to Make NAR Accountable so that the Good Realtors can Rise to the TOP and actually do business - because the Good Realtors they CANNOT protect you from the Bad ONES... NAR is NOT Listening...
National Association of Realtors

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There are Too Many Houses, Empty Houses, People Out of their Homes...

Builders and Realtors Unite to Lobby for laws that Force them in your life. Tons of foreclosures, and empty houses and they demand that money be let loose so that buyers can buy their new construction. Now the STANDARDS of that construction, well that is whole other topic for another day.

STOP overbuilding towns just to make developers and Realtors more money while at the same time directly attacking the Real Estate Consumer....

Builder Article... Below

"Builders Converge On Capitol Hill To Urge Housing Stimulus

January 8, 2009 - Less than 24 hours after members of the 111th Congress were sworn into office, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) launched an all-out effort to make housing a centerpiece of the massive economic stimulus package that lawmakers are expected to complete by mid-February.

More than 80 builders from across the country converged on Capitol Hill yesterday to meet with the congressional leadership and key members of the banking and tax writing committees to convey the message that a housing stimulus is urgently needed and that restoring demand for housing is the fastest and most effective way of reviving the economy.

The key ingredients to the recovery plan call for Congress to support enhancements to the home buyer tax credit, to provide below-market interest rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and to continue foreclosure prevention measures such as those advocated by Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Chairman Sheila Bair.

Underscoring the urgency of the situation, in a briefing to builders before their meetings with lawmakers, NAHB Chairman Sandy Dunn said: “Our industry stands at a crossroads and our efforts here today are vital to the housing industry’s ability to weather this storm and come out the other side healthy and in a position to grow.”

“Congress must understand that housing is central to the economic crisis, that housing has led our nation out of past recessions and that it can do so again,” she added.

NAHB President and CEO Jerry Howard stressed that NAHB, as leader of the Fix Housing First coalition — which consists of more than 600 organizations, home building companies and manufacturers — was marching to Capitol Hill to show a united front.

“The message we are sending to Congress — there are no large builders, no small builders, no low-income builders, no suppliers and no manufacturers,” he said. “We’re all in this together and we are all focused on the stimulus package. We are talking to our members of Congress about a proposal crafted over the past several months that will fix both the supply and demand side of housing.”

“Over the next year, the stimulus plan will increase economic activity in every state as vacant homes are absorbed, households are able to relocate to new jobs, home values are stabilized and local property tax revenues return to their pre-recessionary levels,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe.

This year alone, Crowe said the plan would result in 200,000 additional new home sales, 1 million more existing home sales and a boost in expected housing starts from 649,000 to 908,000, on par with last year’s level.

In addition, the plan this year would create more than 539,000 jobs, generating $26 billion in wages and salaries, $21 billion in business income and $28 billion in federal, state and local tax revenues.

“The excess housing inventory in today’s market is the result of unprecedented foreclosures, not overbuilding. That’s why we support Sheila Bair’s foreclosure relief plan and any common-sense proposal to alleviate the foreclosure problem,” Howard said.

To underscore this point, single-family housing starts as of November 2008 were at 441,000, the lowest level on record and a decline of 76 percent from the peak in January of 2006. In addition, an increasing share of new single-family homes were being built under contract for the owner and not speculatively.

Under Bair’s plan, the federal government would provide $24 billion in loan guarantees that could help as many as 1.5 million home owners modify their existing mortgages and avoid foreclosure.

Putting the situation in starker terms, Crowe said that barring any significant federal action, 4 million strapped borrowers could lose their homes this year. “There are at least 1.5 million excess empty homes on the market today. That does not include homes people live in and want to sell,” he said.

In order to stabilize the marketplace and put a floor under declining home values, NAHB and the Fix Housing First coalition are calling on Congress to pass short-term, targeted incentives that spur demand and encourage Americans to buy homes.

Specifically, a temporary, expanded home buyer tax credit is needed to reduce excess inventory and encourage fence sitters to enter the market. The Fix Housing First legislative proposal calls on Congress to enact a stimulus plan that would reduces mortgage interest rates to as low as 2.99 percent on 30-year fixed-rate conventional loans purchased between Jan. 1, 2009 and June 30, 2009. The interest rate would be 3.99 percent for contracts that close between July 1, 2009 and Dec. 31, 2009.

At the same time, lawmakers need to make the current $7,500 home buyer tax credit much bigger and better, eliminating its current recapture provision and making it available to all purchasers. The coalition is calling for a credit amounting to 10 percent of the home’s price, capped at 3.5 percent of local FHA loan limits. This would range between $10,000 and $22,000.

The key is basing the credit amount on prices in each locality.

“Obviously, you don’t need a $22,000 credit in Bozeman, Mont. but a $22,000 credit will just get you into the marketplace in California,” said Howard.

The tax credit and interest rate buy-down are not new ideas, Howard added. “Congress enacted a similar housing solution in the mid-1970s when the nation was in recession. The plan led us out of recession then, and it can do it again.”

Bolstering the visits to Capitol Hill, more than 17,000 telephone calls and e-mails in support of the Fix Housing First proposal were received by the Congress from members of NAHB and the coalition.

To learn more about the coalition, go to http://www.fixhousingfirst.com/ . "

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from an NAR Lobbyist - How do you tell a good politician from a bad one?

My Words are in Blue...

Talk to him or her.
Yes that ought to be able to tell ya (wink - wink)

It seems like common sense, but who has the time to talk to the politicians when these elections come up? By the time a normal person has time to focus on the election, they are standing in the voting booth.
What is a Normal Person, is it the Voting, taxing paying, Real Estate Consumer public that are clueless about what laws and agendas NAR are pushing on them without their VOTE or their consent in any way.

As a REALTOR®, you have us to help inform your decision. Here are a few highlights of our Candidate Interview Program:
yes Good Thing we have the Relator to help "inform" our decision. Or does this mean push their decisions and agenda on us.

REALTORS® have a business interest in who wins an election. Your business can fail due to government action or inaction; you must take an interest or lose.
Hmmm... We Need to Push our Political Clout so that Realtors can stay in Business.

A thoughtful official who is at least willing to have a rational conversation about housing issues is always preferred.
What is a "Thoughtful Official" is that one whereby the Realtor can easily get their way?

Candidates are real people, often-real people who have not bought or sold a home in years. Politicians need REALTOR® expertise to make good decisions.
Hogwash Plain and Simple, People, Consumers - the Public needs to be informed and needs to be a Part of the decisions that affect them. Supposed Realtor Experts telling politicians what needs to be done while contributing to "their campaign" is as Anti-Consumer as it gets.

Politicians who raise money are heard, get votes, and are elected. If politicians do not have enough money to run an effective campaign, they lose.
In walks NAR - the Realtors to FUND their Candidate... there Agenda...

Politicians who have bad policies are still raising money and getting votes while a politician who can defend your business languishes because his message is not heard.

REALTORS® on MORe’s interview panel will ask questions about transfer taxes, onerous inspections, any issue that will affect your ability to do business.

REALTORS® on MORe’s interview panel will also ask questions that protect your client. Issues like privacy, the right to freely sell property without government interference, or just keeping the cost down (in the case of impact fees or transfer taxes)

REALTORS® do not buy votes by participating in elections. To the contrary, REALTORS® are participating in our democracy just as the founding fathers planned, just read the Federalist Papers to see how.

REALTORS® only support Republicans, or Democrats. REALTORS® across the nation support candidates across the political spectrum. The point that binds all REALTORS® together is their need for a healthy, open business climate.

REALTOR® issues are your issues. While we all have political interests in other areas, all

REALTORS® have an interest in keeping homeownership a thriving business.
Yes Realtors have an interest in staying in business and the Consumers DO NOT need a Realtor to Buy and Sell and if the Consumer uses a REALTOR they have, in FACT less protection in their real estate transaction then if they Did NOT use a Realtor. Thanks to NAR Forms, E and O insurance and a whole lot more...

REALTORS® are really the only group that advocates for homeowners. There is not other group that takes positions on Mortgage Interest Deduction, privacy, and Fourth Amendment Rights like REALTORS® do.

REALTORS®, be proud of your political program.
Yes Realtors Be Proud of this Consumer Stomping "political program" brought to you by NAR the Real Estate Cartel.

Link to Source
http://activerain.com/blogs/merrinette

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Joel Blackwell - Realtor RPAC information - Realtor Politics, Lobbying, NAR Politics, and other Tidbits..

The Association of Realtors Does Not Exist to Protect You.

Just Like any Publicly Traded Company REALTOR and all their associated Companies, Websites and Associates - are about making money, volumes and volumes of money. This is based on a whole lot of people and and a whole lot of income streams, however, the National Association of Realtors needs you to Keep on Using Realtors at the Local Level or the Whole Illusion Breaks Down. Realtors Use the Laws meant to Protect you against you.

Realtors lobby in large numbers, send mass amounts of letter and emails to to Government agencies such as the Department of Justice to STOP you from Selling by Owner Effectively, they Stop other Realtors from giving you discounts and helping you to win for a change, they lobby to keep banks out of real estate and for any little thing that will keep them in business and Will NOT benefit you or any REALTOR - ex-Realtor - Real Estate Broker or Real Estate Marketing Company.

The Folks, that try and help you to get a better deal with less drama are shut out, boycotted or getting policies and laws put into place by NAR and their troops that stop them.

When a Legislative Issue Comes Up that May Hurt Realtors but Benefit the Real Estate Consumer, they - the National Association of Realtors, the Local and State Association of Realtors put out the Call to Get all the REALTOR, NAR members to Fight for whatever it is that NAR wants, oftentimes NAR does this in the Name of what is Best for the Real Estate Consumer, however this NOT likely to Be True.

The Only Reason a Multi-Billion Dollar Company like NAR would Put out a Call would be to Save their Billion Dollar Income Stream from Shrinking.

rIf it was in the Best interst of the Consumer and this was Really What NAR was Fighing for the Real Estate Consumer then they would spend these millions that they spend on Lobbying on TV ads, Newspaper Ads and ways to Reach the Consumer and have them Stand up - Write Letters and emails with the Realtors, but that is NOT what the Call to Action is About... it is About NAR Staying in Control of You, and the Realtors on the Ground in Your Town want to Keep their jobs so they Stand Up and Do what NAR tells them to do.

How do They "Put out a Call" they send ALL Realtors Emails - Newletters - Association tell all the Members they have access to - they even give you form letters to email or send ( talk about anti-trust issues) and they Stand United to KNOCK you DOWN.

I have gotten emails that explain how the local association proudly went to Washington DC to fight to keep banks out of real estate, they fight to keep the MLS Data exclusively yours even though it is Your Data - it is Public Data Controlled by the Realtors... they lobby to keep it this way.

They sent us emails to fight against buyers rebates, and then newletters to scare us into NOT giving rebates and then they pushed for laws in our STATE to make Buyers Rebates even more legal then they were with the Previous Laws. And then a few months later when NAR loses its battle with the Department of Justice our State Laws Change and WOW Now all of the Sudden it is Legal for Me to DO what I want with my Paycheck.

Funny all these years they Kept Realtors from helping the Real Estate Consumer but Could not, or did not put a whole lot - if any effort into Checking MLS data for Quality Control, Stopping Mortgage Brokers from getting and giving kick back, stopping appraisers from having a copy of a signed by sell before their unbiased appraisal, Stoping Realtors from control markets - entering false data - stop fake sales .. so much goes on that they WILL not look at because NAR needs Realtors..

Why Not Lobby to Change the Laws that Are in Place that Really Do hurt the Consumer? Well There is No Money in that, STOP using Realtors.

Common Sense tells us that REALTORS are Advocates for their own industry, however, who has got your back in all this? Not Politicians.. I mean Realtors make BIG money. I sell One Large Ranch I make well over $100,000 dollars, I can afford - a REALTOR can afford to keep you in your place, and they use your own legislation and system of laws to do it.

They Know the Laws and Loopholes to get their way, they take classes on this stuff. They know the Protocol and they Know Just What to do in Order To get Things done to benefit them and their agenda which is making sure you believe that you need a Realtor when you Do Not.

They have meetings and trainings to teach REALTORS, and local association directors how to better Fight for What they want within the United States Justice System that is suppose to be there to protect you the Real Estate Consumer.

You are Not Taught how to protect yourself from the Realtors activities, there are no Consumer Classes to Train you on how to get things done on your own behalf.

Training Realtors to Fight - to Lobby to Stand
against Consumer Rights SHOULD be an Anti-Trust Violation.

I mean they all get together and conspire, they plan letters together - get their story strait - is this NOT violating public trust. Do you Know that the Realtors Unite against you like this, one issue over a million Realtors and You..

NAR and the Realtors in your Town Have more Political Power than you or ANY consumer rights advocate group could ever have and they are getting stronger. Realtors, some are quitting - New ones will join and through it all REALTOR will get bigger with online sites, stocks, Internet Marketing and Ad Revenue - selling books and classes - selling useless accreditations and making more money from YOU..
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Check out the Following Link and Resources http://www.joelblackwell.com/Lobbying_RPAC_Realtor_Advocacy_Form.html

Search Terms for you to Learn More about All This
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Personal Political Power, Realtor Association Executive Directors, Motivate Real Estate Agents to Write Letters, a Realtors Call to Action, Consulting Training Political Action Realtor, REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC), RPAC Trustees: Provides political education training and fundraising programs for political action, Political Education Realtor, Political Fundraising Realtor, RPAC fundraising efforts, RPAC lobbyist
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Search for more on these Topics and find out what REALTORS do to actively change laws and policies to work against you. Realtors work hard
every day to Keep you Out of the Loop but Paying their Bills.

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The NAR is a HUGE Corporation and they have
a Constant Political Agenda to Keep REALTORS
in Business and to Keep you Down.

What Should You Do About this ?

STOP using Realtors, Complain to your Local Political Figure Heads, Email The Department of Justice, Email your Governor, Demand that there be More Protection in Real Estate for You, the People Who Matter Most in the Real Estate Transaction - The Real Estate Consumer.

rCrystal L. Cox Broker
I am YOUR Consumer Advocate in Real Estate.
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rrConsumer Protection, Politics of Real Estate, Real Estate Consumer, Real Estate Rants, NAR Lobbyist, Realtor Lobbyist, Realtors Lobby, NAR Politics, RPAC, RPAC Trustee, Realtor Association Executive Directors, RPAC Lobbyist

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When NAR Lobbys - You, the real estate Consumer, You lose

April 29, 2009

" The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has dramatically increased its lobbying expenditures (and influence) in Washington in the wake of the bursting of the housing bubble. The first chart shows the lobbying expenditures of the NAR over the past five quarters. As you can see the NAR has greatly ramped up its lobbying expenditures in the past couple of quarters. The Q1′09 expenditures represent an increase of more than 82% over Q1′08 expenditures. In the past two quarters the NAR has spent $12.25 million on lobbying in Washington."

http://ChartingTheEconomy.com/?p=839

The purpose of the next two charts is to give you some perspective on the amount of money that NAR / the National Association of Realtors is spending on lobbying. The second chart shows how much that NAR spent per business day on lobbying during each of the past five quarters. During the past couple of quarters on average the NAR has spent roughly $100,000 per business day on lobbying expenditures. This is a mind numbing number.

$100,000 A Day ~ Anti-Consumer Lobbying in My Opinion.

This is YOUR money, you the Realtors in the Field - you the Real Estate Consumer and I am Highly Doubtful that it is really in ANY best interest of the Public.

So NAR can Seemingly justify their expenditures by saying it was (is) necessary to help educate public officals on the complex issues facing the nation during the housing crisis.

This is a ridiculous argument. Having educational meetings with policy makers is important, but it doesn’t need to be an expensive process. How do I know this? Because I was a corporate lobbyist in Washington years ago.

I had many meetings on Capitol Hill, and it just doesn’t cost much. How much does it cost to meet over a cup of coffee and exchange some ideas? My expenses were always small (a few bucks). As a former lobbyist it blows my mind to think of spending $100,000 every business day on expenses. It would be work just trying to spend the money.

As far as having the NAR educating our public officals, that scares me too. The forth chart (below) shows what the NAR was saying about housing during the past few years as the housing market was collapsing. I took the quotes directly from the titles of NAR press releases. Is this the organization that we want educating our public officals on how to fix the housing crisis?
.... it serves an important part in the American political process. The problem is the excessive amounts of money that have become commonplace in Washington lobbying circles. Excessive levels of lobbying expenditures serve to distort politics and not to advance the political process.

On a positive note the disclosure and reporting on lobbying has become better. The next step is to put controls in place on lobbying expenditures.

Note: The lobbying expenditures covered in this report are from U.S. Congress disclosures (and cover just the federal government). It should be noted that there are many state and local realtor associations in the U.S. that also lobby state and local officals. Those expenditures are not included in this report.

Data Source: U.S. Congress
Various National Association of Realtors Press Releases

Link to Source: Check It Out
http://chartingtheeconomy.com/?p=839

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This is VERY, Very bad for the Real Estate Consumer. Realtors, NAR - lobbying your government why ? Sure must be on behalf of the Realtor. Why Not Just Get Back to Buyers Buying and Sellers Selling and Get Rid of all the Mumbo Jumbo.
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Lobbying is a way to FORCE Realtors into Consumers lives on as many levels as they can. Money Talks, the Realtors Lobby about an Issue that you, the Real Estate Consumer don't even know about. So you don't get a vote, but you get to Pay for It... for the Realtors, and for the Politicians they lobby and "Contribute" to. In the Real World of Real Estate, you, the Real Estate Consumer - You Lose.
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