NAR launches "Buy Now/Sell Now" Campaign. No Joke

Interesting article.

I believe that the NAR should stay out of the institutional advertising business and work hard on the DOJ v. NAR litigation.

I think the NAR should pursue trademark violations.

I think the NAR should monitor the agreement with Realtor.com

I think the NAR should work with local boards to enforce code violations.

I think the NAR should leave advertising to agents and brokers who sell real estate.

Lenn

It must be working a little bit. 

Our current NAR President told consumers to call a REALTOR® if you're considering a home purchase and apparently a lot of buyers have been listening.

"The percentage of consumers surveyed who are more likely to hire a Realtor® than a real estate agent who is not a Realtor® has risen from 51 percent in 1999 (the first year of the survey) to 64 percent in 2006."

"2007 marks the most extensive outreach effort since the Public Awareness Campaign began. Ads will be broadcast nationwide from January through November and will air more than 8,750 times on national TV and radio outlets and more than 25,000 times on local radio stations through a national buy. Print, billboard, bus shelter, and poster ads are available to local and state associations to use in their own outreach efforts, and Realtors can download Web banners for their own Web sites. To view the materials and learn more about the national Public Awareness Campaign, visit www.realtor.org/awarenesscampaign."

You know, I don't think that the general public knows (cares?) if their agent is a member of NAR or not.  I think that most consumers think all agents are members of NAR.

Frank - I like your idea of...."Is Buying Right for You, Right Now?"  That seems much more cunsumer freindly to me, more like consult with a "Realtor" for informed advice to determine if buying right now (or not, or later) is in their best interests.  Much better focus, thanks for the post!

Frank, I think you may have missed the underlying message in the ads.  The ads essentially tells people to that "Every market's different, call a REALTOR^® today."

I personally see nothing inaccurate or misleading there.  In fact, I think you would agree.  The only way to determine if buying or selling is right for an individual is to consult with someone who can give them solid, factualy, local market information.

I think that while your intention is noble, it seems that your "Don't Trust NAR" tag is a bit like shooting yourself in the foot.  NAR is telling consumers to turn to local REALTORs like yourself for advice.  You seem to be telling people that that is bad advice.  Seems a bit ironic, doesn't it?

I am no fan of an economist that waits for all other reports and analyses to be issued, and restates the opinions of others, and I am not sure why you would infer that I am, from what I said in my comments, or in any of my posts.

To answer your comment directly (which, by the way, you avoided doing by replying to my comment with a question, instead of a direct response) -- I did not see the ad, and the pdf you linked to wouldn't open for me, but I will try to give you an answer:

It is a good time to buy.  I think you cannot refute that.  There are many options for buyers, because of the availability of inventory to select from, and the near historic lows in mortgage rates.  (Combined with the changes in FHA limits, it is a very good time, indeed.)

It is also a good time to sell, for the same reasons.  Sellers need to have buyers.  With the availability of funds, buyers are abundant.  In a market with so many buyers looking for homes, of course it follows that it is a good time to sell.

That said, no one can make a general statement and have it be appropriate to every specific situation.  That is why a REALTOR must evaluate the market for every client's situation.  It is not a good time to buy for every buyer, nor is it a good time to sell for every seller.  A good REALTOR will advise their clients to that effect.  I think you and I agree about that.  I wrote an article recently about the importance of individual specific evaluations for each client:  Absorption Rate: What it is, and Why you Should Know it  Please review it.  I would welcome your comments there.

I dont mean to sound adversarial, here, but it seems to me that you have fallen into the trap of over-generalizing something.  Apparently, there is no love lost between you and NAR.  I have no idea what created that reaction, but I think that you are unfairly applying a general statement to every action that NAR takes, and projecting that same negativity to every member of NAR.  You say you don't want NAR to make generalized statements, but in the same breath, you make generalized statements about NAR.  Don't you see the irony?