Regulation Nation: Housing Edition
Buying or selling a home is one of the most highly regulated transactions in a person's life. In this episode, Shannon and Patrick unpack the complex world of real estate regulations - exploring what they mean for NAR members, how they affect consumers and the role NAR's advocacy team plays in shaping them. Wherever you practice real estate, chances are the National Association of REALTORS®, along with your state and local associations, has influenced how your state's real estate regulations are put into practice.
2025-09-05
30 min
Transcript
Available Results
Generated results are saved to the knowledge database for reuse and search.
No generated results are available for this episode yet.
Extract Knowledge
Pick what you want extracted first. Model, scope, and chapter options appear after a template is selected.
Generated results for public episodes are saved to the knowledge database so they can be reused and searched later.
Transcript
1 00:00:05,070 --> 00:00:08,490 - Welcome to the advocacy scoop, the podcast that takes you 2 00:00:08,490 --> 00:00:11,850 inside the advocacy work of the National Association 3 00:00:11,850 --> 00:00:14,610 of Realtors connecting NAR members 4 00:00:14,610 --> 00:00:17,730 with their advocates in Washington for a front row seat 5 00:00:17,730 --> 00:00:21,270 to the fight for public policy that strengthens the ability 6 00:00:21,270 --> 00:00:24,240 of Americans to access property ownership. 7 00:00:25,650 --> 00:00:28,590 - Hello everybody and welcome to the advocacy scoop. 8 00:00:28,590 --> 00:00:29,850 I'm Patrick Newton here, 9 00:00:29,850 --> 00:00:32,010 with's Chief Advocacy Officer Shannon 10 00:00:32,010 --> 00:00:33,390 McGahn. Hello Shannon. 11 00:00:33,390 --> 00:00:35,070 - Hello Patrick. - And this, 12 00:00:35,070 --> 00:00:36,870 this episode we're really excited about. 13 00:00:36,870 --> 00:00:38,430 It sounds like one of those things 14 00:00:38,430 --> 00:00:39,900 that's gonna be super boring, 15 00:00:39,900 --> 00:00:42,630 but it's actually, I think, gonna be one 16 00:00:42,630 --> 00:00:44,760 of our best episodes, regulate 17 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:45,780 - Regulators. 18 00:00:45,780 --> 00:00:46,710 - How much did you love that 19 00:00:46,710 --> 00:00:49,470 song, how you would listen to it? Like, 20 00:00:49,470 --> 00:00:51,660 - Can we do karaoke later? And I'll tell you how much 21 00:00:51,660 --> 00:00:53,070 - I wore out that cassette tape. 22 00:00:54,360 --> 00:00:55,500 We're gonna take a little bit 23 00:00:55,500 --> 00:00:58,890 of a dive into real estate regulation 24 00:00:58,890 --> 00:01:03,060 and how sort of impactful that is on the industry 25 00:01:03,060 --> 00:01:04,430 and all of our members and the, and, 26 00:01:04,430 --> 00:01:05,880 and the way they do business 27 00:01:05,880 --> 00:01:07,650 and how, you know, you tackle 28 00:01:07,650 --> 00:01:09,600 that from an advocacy standpoint, Shannon. 29 00:01:09,600 --> 00:01:13,140 But before we get into all of that, I mean, happy September. 30 00:01:13,140 --> 00:01:15,480 We've just wrapped up August recess is 31 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:19,050 what we call it here in dc but no recess for the weary. 32 00:01:19,050 --> 00:01:20,670 - Oh, absolutely. No recess. 33 00:01:20,670 --> 00:01:22,410 August was incredibly busy 34 00:01:22,410 --> 00:01:25,020 and now we are trudging forward on 35 00:01:25,020 --> 00:01:26,820 to the end of the fiscal year. 36 00:01:26,820 --> 00:01:28,740 So happy end of fiscal year coming up, 37 00:01:28,740 --> 00:01:29,880 - Patrick. That's right. I know that 38 00:01:29,880 --> 00:01:31,260 - You celebrate that every year. 39 00:01:31,260 --> 00:01:32,790 - I know. I, I have, every month 40 00:01:32,790 --> 00:01:35,160 of the year is like correlated to me for something 41 00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:36,360 that Congress has to get done. 42 00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:37,560 That's just how my brain thinks. 43 00:01:37,560 --> 00:01:40,260 But yeah, we go straight into making sure 44 00:01:40,260 --> 00:01:41,730 NFIP doesn't have elapse. 45 00:01:41,730 --> 00:01:44,220 - Exactly. Yeah. So September's going to be quite busy, 46 00:01:44,220 --> 00:01:46,320 but we have plenty to cover before we get there. 47 00:01:46,320 --> 00:01:49,410 - Do you go anywhere fun over August? 48 00:01:49,410 --> 00:01:52,410 - Not really. It's been very, most people, 49 00:01:52,410 --> 00:01:54,120 their kids start school in August. 50 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:55,980 We don't go back until after Labor Day. 51 00:01:55,980 --> 00:01:58,770 So it's a lot of managing kids camps 52 00:01:58,770 --> 00:02:00,570 and dealing with the DC heat. 53 00:02:00,570 --> 00:02:02,460 - Well I'm, I'm very sad to tell you 54 00:02:02,460 --> 00:02:05,790 that I am now pulled ahead of you in our race 55 00:02:05,790 --> 00:02:08,430 to visit all the Disney parks in the world. 56 00:02:08,430 --> 00:02:10,770 - Oh, do tell. - I went to Hong Kong Disney, Ugh. 57 00:02:12,000 --> 00:02:14,160 - I didn't even get to go to a Disney in August, 58 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:15,570 but I did go in late July, so 59 00:02:15,570 --> 00:02:18,300 - I didn't even realize that there was a Disney World 60 00:02:18,300 --> 00:02:20,190 where we were in Hong Kong and it was a 61 00:02:20,190 --> 00:02:21,420 total spur of the moment. 62 00:02:21,420 --> 00:02:23,610 Like we woke up and was like, we have one more day. 63 00:02:23,610 --> 00:02:27,390 What are we gonna do today? And we just stumbled on it. 64 00:02:27,390 --> 00:02:28,806 - Well, it's a small world after all. So, 65 00:02:28,806 --> 00:02:30,090 - And we went on that ride 66 00:02:30,090 --> 00:02:32,220 and it's exactly like the one here. 67 00:02:32,220 --> 00:02:34,800 It's basically the same ride. So, but it was fun. 68 00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:38,100 It was fun. Anyway, so enough about August. 69 00:02:38,100 --> 00:02:40,170 We'll talk about that a little bit later in the episode. 70 00:02:40,170 --> 00:02:42,510 'cause I know you do wanna talk about a lot of the meetings 71 00:02:42,510 --> 00:02:44,610 that we have with members of Congress and stuff over August. 72 00:02:44,610 --> 00:02:46,500 But let's get back into the real estate regulations. 73 00:02:46,500 --> 00:02:49,890 And so pop quiz Shannon, the Federal code of regulations, 74 00:02:49,890 --> 00:02:52,205 I think it's the Code of Federal Regulations is what it's 75 00:02:52,205 --> 00:02:55,140 how it's stated, but like it's a real thing. 76 00:02:55,140 --> 00:02:58,620 There is literally a book of every regulation 77 00:02:58,620 --> 00:03:01,960 that exists in the United States federally, 78 00:03:01,960 --> 00:03:05,770 and it's like a living, breathing document 79 00:03:05,770 --> 00:03:07,090 that you can't slay. 80 00:03:08,530 --> 00:03:09,530 It's like a dragon. 81 00:03:10,420 --> 00:03:14,440 - Well, I do recall as a young staffer on Capitol Hill that 82 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:17,710 before press conferences we would print out the regulations 83 00:03:17,710 --> 00:03:19,870 and then bring them in those cardboard boxes. 84 00:03:19,870 --> 00:03:22,540 And we thought that was going to just make such a huge 85 00:03:22,540 --> 00:03:23,950 impact at a press conference. 86 00:03:23,950 --> 00:03:26,170 And it turns out we didn't really make front page 87 00:03:26,170 --> 00:03:27,430 of any newspaper, 88 00:03:27,430 --> 00:03:29,740 but it at least helped me work on my strength 89 00:03:29,740 --> 00:03:31,300 to carry those boxes down the hall. 90 00:03:31,300 --> 00:03:33,610 - Well, the, the, the, the code 91 00:03:33,610 --> 00:03:37,210 of federal regulations in the seventies was 70,000 pages. 92 00:03:37,210 --> 00:03:38,920 So how many pages I looked it up, 93 00:03:38,920 --> 00:03:40,810 do you think? It's up to now 94 00:03:40,810 --> 00:03:42,005 - 70 million pages 95 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:47,140 - Now you've deflated my, my stat 180,000 pages. 96 00:03:47,140 --> 00:03:49,300 - 11 million. Is that a number 97 00:03:49,300 --> 00:03:50,300 - I always had. 98 00:03:50,300 --> 00:03:53,230 My old boss used to say like, with these numbers are so big 99 00:03:53,230 --> 00:03:56,170 that nobody can really like wrap their minds around 'em. 100 00:03:56,170 --> 00:03:59,605 When you say 11 billion cajillion dollars, 101 00:03:59,605 --> 00:04:01,210 like nobody can really wrap their mind around 102 00:04:01,210 --> 00:04:02,500 how much money these things are. 103 00:04:02,500 --> 00:04:04,270 But like, so I broke it down a little bit. 104 00:04:04,270 --> 00:04:08,500 180,000 pages, that's a three story building that's as tall 105 00:04:08,500 --> 00:04:12,220 as a Tyrannosaurus Rex and it's like reading War 106 00:04:12,220 --> 00:04:14,890 and Peace 140 times. 107 00:04:14,890 --> 00:04:16,480 - Well, I didn't read it one time, 108 00:04:16,480 --> 00:04:18,880 but is there a podcast version of, 109 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:20,110 - Is there a CliffNotes 110 00:04:20,110 --> 00:04:21,100 - Version, a CliffNotes podcast that 111 00:04:21,100 --> 00:04:22,750 I could, I could listen to? 112 00:04:22,750 --> 00:04:24,970 Well, what we're gonna do today is provide 113 00:04:24,970 --> 00:04:29,200 that CliffNotes podcast for what is related to real estate 114 00:04:29,200 --> 00:04:33,100 and housing, and in particular the, the consumer transaction 115 00:04:33,100 --> 00:04:35,325 that occurs in all of these regulations 116 00:04:35,325 --> 00:04:37,630 - And, and buying and selling property. 117 00:04:37,630 --> 00:04:40,120 It's not just the most expensive transaction of your life 118 00:04:40,120 --> 00:04:43,180 and impactful, it's also the most regulated transaction. 119 00:04:43,180 --> 00:04:46,495 I mean there's enormous consequences not just for access to, 120 00:04:46,495 --> 00:04:49,570 to housing, but consumer protections 121 00:04:49,570 --> 00:04:51,040 and you know, 122 00:04:51,040 --> 00:04:53,110 just look at the closing documents that you signed. 123 00:04:53,110 --> 00:04:55,840 - Oh, exactly. And every person listening 124 00:04:55,840 --> 00:04:58,450 to this is familiar with what happens at closing 125 00:04:58,450 --> 00:05:00,520 and just for residential deals, 126 00:05:00,520 --> 00:05:01,810 we're looking at closing contracts 127 00:05:01,810 --> 00:05:03,820 that average a hundred pages, 128 00:05:03,820 --> 00:05:06,880 but they could be upwards of 300 pages depending on the 129 00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:09,160 state and local legal requirements 130 00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:12,010 and the terms of that particular transaction. 131 00:05:12,010 --> 00:05:15,010 So in every deal you're going to see 10 to 30 pages 132 00:05:15,010 --> 00:05:18,040 of a final purchase agreement, a loan application, 133 00:05:18,040 --> 00:05:20,200 another dozen or so pages. 134 00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:23,800 Security instrument is another two dozen pages. 135 00:05:23,800 --> 00:05:27,100 The notes is a few pages, settlement statement, 136 00:05:27,100 --> 00:05:29,590 lender affidavits, all of these things are adding up 137 00:05:29,590 --> 00:05:32,110 to close to a hundred if not more pages. 138 00:05:32,110 --> 00:05:33,880 And people are often like, oh, hey, 139 00:05:33,880 --> 00:05:35,860 well I'll just DocuSign those and see. 140 00:05:35,860 --> 00:05:37,900 But no, there's, with every single one 141 00:05:37,900 --> 00:05:41,020 of those pages is some sort of regulation, some sort 142 00:05:41,020 --> 00:05:43,960 of government interaction, some sort of contract law. 143 00:05:43,960 --> 00:05:46,240 And that is where the realtor gets involved. 144 00:05:46,240 --> 00:05:48,520 - And that's the, the spread of, you know, a hundred 145 00:05:48,520 --> 00:05:51,040 to maybe even 300 pages is 146 00:05:51,040 --> 00:05:54,220 because regulations can vary widely from state to state, 147 00:05:54,220 --> 00:05:56,050 but also, you know, whether there's mortgage 148 00:05:56,050 --> 00:05:57,320 requirements and things like that. 149 00:05:57,320 --> 00:05:59,660 But I mean like, don't even get me started on commercial. 150 00:05:59,660 --> 00:06:01,580 'cause that can go up to what, 151 00:06:01,580 --> 00:06:02,600 - Oh, so commercial deals, 152 00:06:02,600 --> 00:06:05,600 those contracts are easily triple, if not more, 153 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:07,610 they can run up to a thousand pages or more 154 00:06:07,610 --> 00:06:09,320 because you're looking at lease provisions 155 00:06:09,320 --> 00:06:12,380 and zoning, environmental regulations and financing. 156 00:06:12,380 --> 00:06:13,460 And so these documents 157 00:06:13,460 --> 00:06:15,620 that are at the closing table are a byproduct 158 00:06:15,620 --> 00:06:18,860 of some regulation that's aimed at preventing fraud, 159 00:06:18,860 --> 00:06:22,010 protecting consumers and ensuring that there is proper tax 160 00:06:22,010 --> 00:06:23,030 and legal compliance. 161 00:06:23,030 --> 00:06:26,480 And chances are that the National Association of Realtors 162 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:27,560 or one of the state 163 00:06:27,560 --> 00:06:30,380 and local associations were involved in working 164 00:06:30,380 --> 00:06:32,870 with policymakers and other regulators 165 00:06:32,870 --> 00:06:36,080 and government officials on how they are implemented, 166 00:06:36,080 --> 00:06:37,610 how they're working, how they may not be 167 00:06:37,610 --> 00:06:39,320 working and need to be changed. 168 00:06:39,320 --> 00:06:41,600 So it's a very important job that we do here. 169 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:44,270 - Yeah, and that's Brian Green's team here, you know, 170 00:06:44,270 --> 00:06:46,700 on your, on your advocacy team, he came over from hud, 171 00:06:46,700 --> 00:06:49,880 he was 20 years career at HUD before coming to NAR. 172 00:06:49,880 --> 00:06:50,990 We're so lucky to have him, 173 00:06:50,990 --> 00:06:54,080 but I mean we have that A to Z doc we're covering, 174 00:06:54,080 --> 00:06:55,190 we have all of this covered. 175 00:06:55,190 --> 00:06:58,400 I mean we have, you know, two floors of policy analysts 176 00:06:58,400 --> 00:07:00,410 who are, who are on this stuff 24 7. 177 00:07:00,410 --> 00:07:03,560 - Oh, absolutely. So Brian, I was the vice president 178 00:07:03,560 --> 00:07:04,880 of policy advocacy. 179 00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:06,110 A lot of folks are like, what do you mean 180 00:07:06,110 --> 00:07:07,460 by policy advocacy? 181 00:07:07,460 --> 00:07:09,020 Well, for each one of these issues, 182 00:07:09,020 --> 00:07:12,380 we have subject matter experts over a dozen subject matter 183 00:07:12,380 --> 00:07:14,960 experts who work here in our DC office. 184 00:07:14,960 --> 00:07:18,680 And their job is to follow all of these federal regulations 185 00:07:18,680 --> 00:07:21,590 and to work directly with the regulators. 186 00:07:21,590 --> 00:07:23,060 So things like the Truth 187 00:07:23,060 --> 00:07:26,240 and Lending Act, the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, 188 00:07:26,240 --> 00:07:27,740 which we all know is RESPA 189 00:07:27,740 --> 00:07:32,330 and tila Dodd-Frank Act, which really changed how, I mean, 190 00:07:32,330 --> 00:07:33,715 financing was working and, 191 00:07:33,715 --> 00:07:35,270 and what the, the housing market, 192 00:07:35,270 --> 00:07:37,190 how things were going to proceed in the future. 193 00:07:38,060 --> 00:07:38,960 - We were both on the hill when that, that passed. And you 194 00:07:38,960 --> 00:07:41,240 probably had a big hand in that at financial services. 195 00:07:41,240 --> 00:07:44,090 - Oh, absolutely. So I started on the hill, returned 196 00:07:44,090 --> 00:07:45,890 to the hill back when that was being considered 197 00:07:45,890 --> 00:07:48,290 and being passed and, and just seeing that over the, 198 00:07:48,290 --> 00:07:51,500 the decade plus of years of, of work there, 199 00:07:51,500 --> 00:07:55,850 how much things like qualified mortgage rule 200 00:07:55,850 --> 00:07:58,670 with their impact on who is eligible for mortgage 201 00:07:58,670 --> 00:08:01,070 and who isn't the Fair Housing Act, 202 00:08:01,070 --> 00:08:02,900 the Fair Credit Reporting Act, 203 00:08:02,900 --> 00:08:05,420 anti-money laundering regulations, these are all things 204 00:08:05,420 --> 00:08:07,790 that our team is working on day in and day out. 205 00:08:07,790 --> 00:08:09,980 And in particular we are hearing from folks 206 00:08:09,980 --> 00:08:12,530 around the country on, Hey, we see 207 00:08:12,530 --> 00:08:14,300 that this new document came out 208 00:08:14,300 --> 00:08:16,100 and it's not working well for our clients. 209 00:08:16,100 --> 00:08:17,540 Can you contact the regulator? 210 00:08:17,540 --> 00:08:18,650 And we will, we'll reach out 211 00:08:18,650 --> 00:08:20,330 and say, can you please take a meeting and, 212 00:08:20,330 --> 00:08:21,890 and see that there are concerns here. 213 00:08:21,890 --> 00:08:23,540 And that's another way that we can make sure 214 00:08:23,540 --> 00:08:25,250 that we're advocating directly. 215 00:08:25,250 --> 00:08:28,970 - And you know, real world example of this crossed my inbox, 216 00:08:28,970 --> 00:08:33,260 literally today a member approached someone, a member, 217 00:08:33,260 --> 00:08:38,260 someone from our leadership with a question about a new reg 218 00:08:38,300 --> 00:08:40,730 having to do with the way international transactions 219 00:08:40,730 --> 00:08:41,780 are done for housing. 220 00:08:41,780 --> 00:08:43,880 And Evan, our tax policy analyst, 221 00:08:43,880 --> 00:08:46,370 was like within 30 minutes had the answer back to them 222 00:08:46,370 --> 00:08:48,470 and an analysis on it. So it's like weird. That 223 00:08:48,470 --> 00:08:49,470 - Would be ferta. 224 00:08:49,470 --> 00:08:50,720 - Yeah. Right. Yeah. So I mean there's 225 00:08:50,720 --> 00:08:52,400 - An acronym for everything too. 226 00:08:52,400 --> 00:08:55,050 - And that literally came through my inbox like an hour ago. 227 00:08:55,050 --> 00:08:57,360 So it's like this is a rolling constant 228 00:08:57,360 --> 00:08:58,680 thing that we monitor. 229 00:08:58,680 --> 00:09:00,900 - And Patrick, you mentioned an important document 230 00:09:00,900 --> 00:09:04,380 that exists on our advocacy resources and, and website, 231 00:09:04,380 --> 00:09:08,160 but the A to Z document, so any issue under the sun 232 00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:11,070 that the advocacy team is working on from the letters A 233 00:09:11,070 --> 00:09:15,870 through Z, we have a very quick, easily digestible summary 234 00:09:15,870 --> 00:09:18,210 of what the issue is and what our position is 235 00:09:18,210 --> 00:09:20,310 and what the latest actions are that are happening. 236 00:09:20,310 --> 00:09:22,170 So please check that out. 237 00:09:22,170 --> 00:09:25,110 - And we are making sure that's all updated right now 238 00:09:25,110 --> 00:09:28,650 because we, we constantly monitor all those issue pages 239 00:09:28,650 --> 00:09:30,330 and make sure they're, they're updated. So 240 00:09:30,330 --> 00:09:32,190 - Along with our advocacy impact page, 241 00:09:32,190 --> 00:09:33,570 do you wanna tell our dear your 242 00:09:33,570 --> 00:09:34,920 listeners about that new? Oh 243 00:09:34,920 --> 00:09:39,510 - Yeah, just check out advocacy impact realtor, a new sort 244 00:09:39,510 --> 00:09:43,170 of a vanity URL that's easier to remember that has a lot of, 245 00:09:43,170 --> 00:09:45,240 that chronicles a lot of our, our work that we're doing 246 00:09:45,240 --> 00:09:46,073 and the impact that it's 247 00:09:46,073 --> 00:09:47,310 having on the industry and our members. 248 00:09:47,310 --> 00:09:48,660 So another way to keep track, 249 00:09:48,660 --> 00:09:49,660 - Right? 250 00:09:49,660 --> 00:09:53,070 - Yeah. - Well and we just this past month hosted new state 251 00:09:53,070 --> 00:09:55,200 and local AEs and Gads 252 00:09:55,200 --> 00:09:57,720 and so for those of you who are not liking the acronyms 253 00:09:57,720 --> 00:10:00,150 that we throw out there, association executives 254 00:10:00,150 --> 00:10:02,040 and government affairs directors. 255 00:10:02,040 --> 00:10:04,170 And so those are folks who are working at the state 256 00:10:04,170 --> 00:10:07,860 and local level and at the state level there are many more 257 00:10:07,860 --> 00:10:11,550 regulations including those regarding property taxes, 258 00:10:11,550 --> 00:10:15,030 local zoning ordinances, environmental restrictions. 259 00:10:15,030 --> 00:10:18,240 There are many state specific disclosure laws. 260 00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:20,670 So when you're working on things like mold or lead paint 261 00:10:20,670 --> 00:10:23,460 or radon, there are federal regulations and, and, and, 262 00:10:23,460 --> 00:10:27,540 and state ones, water rights, easements, mineral rights, 263 00:10:27,540 --> 00:10:29,730 all things that our state associations are involved with. 264 00:10:29,730 --> 00:10:31,140 And sometimes we can help. 265 00:10:31,140 --> 00:10:34,290 - Well, let's start at the very beginning, state 266 00:10:34,290 --> 00:10:36,330 and local work our way back up to federal, 267 00:10:36,330 --> 00:10:38,010 because I'm glad you mentioned that we, 268 00:10:38,010 --> 00:10:40,920 when we're looking at state regulations, that can vary sort 269 00:10:40,920 --> 00:10:45,900 of wildly, you know, some states have more than others and 270 00:10:45,900 --> 00:10:48,120 and how, how does that fit into the picture? 271 00:10:48,120 --> 00:10:50,520 - Which state do you think has the most regulations when it 272 00:10:50,520 --> 00:10:51,520 - Comes to the crack? 273 00:10:51,520 --> 00:10:53,640 I mean, I could guess, but I don't wanna like, 274 00:10:53,640 --> 00:10:54,870 I don't wanna throw shade. 275 00:10:55,980 --> 00:10:57,420 - Well, they can be good regulations. 276 00:10:57,420 --> 00:10:59,880 They're not, we're not judging which ones are good or bad, 277 00:10:59,880 --> 00:11:02,130 but, and you're just the pure quantity of those 278 00:11:02,130 --> 00:11:03,810 - Regulations and you're a hundred percent crack. 279 00:11:03,810 --> 00:11:05,760 We're not dissing regulations. 280 00:11:05,760 --> 00:11:07,620 I I don't want it to sound like that's what we're doing. 281 00:11:07,620 --> 00:11:09,870 We're we're talking about the fine line that we walk 282 00:11:09,870 --> 00:11:12,210 between ensuring consumers are protected 283 00:11:12,210 --> 00:11:14,430 and not inhibiting access to housing. 284 00:11:14,430 --> 00:11:16,560 And the one good example is this is the National Association 285 00:11:16,560 --> 00:11:19,980 of Home Builders actually had a study recently 286 00:11:19,980 --> 00:11:22,380 that said 25% of the cost 287 00:11:22,380 --> 00:11:24,750 of building a home is regulations is 288 00:11:24,750 --> 00:11:25,920 compliant with regulations. 289 00:11:25,920 --> 00:11:27,990 - Yes. And we use that number in that study 290 00:11:27,990 --> 00:11:29,940 and many of our communications materials. 291 00:11:29,940 --> 00:11:32,430 And then when it comes to multi-family 292 00:11:32,430 --> 00:11:35,490 and rental units, that number goes up to a third 293 00:11:35,490 --> 00:11:37,140 of the costs in regulations. 294 00:11:37,140 --> 00:11:40,890 And so many times that is increasing the price of housing 295 00:11:40,890 --> 00:11:43,140 because that has to be paid at some point. 296 00:11:43,140 --> 00:11:45,090 And so it is an important area to know 297 00:11:45,090 --> 00:11:47,310 where those regulations are protecting the consumer 298 00:11:47,310 --> 00:11:49,800 or where they are unnecessarily driving up costs. 299 00:11:49,800 --> 00:11:50,940 - Right, okay. So state 300 00:11:50,940 --> 00:11:54,490 and local ordinances, we have this one stat in 2024, 301 00:11:54,490 --> 00:11:56,380 our policy team here pulled these stats up, 302 00:11:56,380 --> 00:12:00,880 but like state houses introduced 87,000 bills in 2024 303 00:12:00,880 --> 00:12:04,660 compared to just 20,000 in the US Congress in the same year. 304 00:12:04,660 --> 00:12:06,820 So a lot's going on 305 00:12:06,820 --> 00:12:07,820 - Just - 20,000. 306 00:12:07,820 --> 00:12:10,840 - Just 20,000. It's just, it's a small number compared. So 307 00:12:10,840 --> 00:12:13,060 - I mean, but how many of those are post office namings? 308 00:12:13,060 --> 00:12:15,940 - That's true. And those are typically very 309 00:12:15,940 --> 00:12:17,620 bipartisan, very easy to pass, 310 00:12:17,620 --> 00:12:19,570 - But there's a lot to monitor there on the ground. 311 00:12:19,570 --> 00:12:23,590 So I, my question to you is like how do we keep apprised of, 312 00:12:23,590 --> 00:12:25,720 of what's happening like on state and local? 313 00:12:25,720 --> 00:12:28,630 - Well that is one of the most important aspects 314 00:12:28,630 --> 00:12:29,950 of the three-way agreement. 315 00:12:29,950 --> 00:12:32,680 And knowing that in every zip code, every locality 316 00:12:32,680 --> 00:12:35,050 that we have an association that's working 317 00:12:35,050 --> 00:12:37,480 with their state association that is also working 318 00:12:37,480 --> 00:12:39,970 with the national association to identify 319 00:12:39,970 --> 00:12:41,500 where these things are moving. 320 00:12:41,500 --> 00:12:44,770 Do we have policy that would address this? Do we support it? 321 00:12:44,770 --> 00:12:46,450 Would we have opposition to it? 322 00:12:46,450 --> 00:12:47,725 And where can we ensure 323 00:12:47,725 --> 00:12:50,320 that we're putting the right resources behind those issues? 324 00:12:50,320 --> 00:12:52,750 So when we have the, the tracker that you mentioned, 325 00:12:52,750 --> 00:12:56,260 Patrick, and there are many municipalities, 326 00:12:56,260 --> 00:13:01,030 I think there were over 150,000 proposed ordinances 327 00:13:01,030 --> 00:13:02,050 in 2024. 328 00:13:02,050 --> 00:13:04,780 So when we're looking at our overall advocacy efforts 329 00:13:04,780 --> 00:13:08,140 and folks say, well that's a a a lot of resources going 330 00:13:08,140 --> 00:13:11,260 to the national association, we remind folks that our job is 331 00:13:11,260 --> 00:13:12,400 to make sure that the state 332 00:13:12,400 --> 00:13:14,950 and local associations are getting that attention. 333 00:13:14,950 --> 00:13:19,480 And that's through things like zoning and land use decisions 334 00:13:19,480 --> 00:13:21,370 and making sure that they have the right studies 335 00:13:21,370 --> 00:13:24,640 and research and resources behind that. 336 00:13:24,640 --> 00:13:26,200 Looking at things like their building codes 337 00:13:26,200 --> 00:13:29,050 and safety standards and what are best practices, 338 00:13:29,050 --> 00:13:30,970 property taxes and assessments. 339 00:13:30,970 --> 00:13:32,950 That's an issue that's popping up more 340 00:13:32,950 --> 00:13:35,950 and more around the country that property taxes are just 341 00:13:35,950 --> 00:13:37,090 becoming too punitive 342 00:13:37,090 --> 00:13:39,190 and it's difficult for people to stay in their home 343 00:13:40,630 --> 00:13:44,980 rental ordinances and eviction processes and just who 344 00:13:44,980 --> 00:13:46,780 and when can you evict? 345 00:13:46,780 --> 00:13:48,190 That's a very sensitive issue 346 00:13:48,190 --> 00:13:51,220 and one that we are working on throughout the country 347 00:13:51,220 --> 00:13:53,740 to make sure that that tenants are protected. 348 00:13:53,740 --> 00:13:55,300 But that we also have the ability 349 00:13:55,300 --> 00:13:57,400 for those housing providers to make sure 350 00:13:57,400 --> 00:14:00,010 that they can stay in business. 351 00:14:00,010 --> 00:14:02,590 Things like property managers and buyers 352 00:14:02,590 --> 00:14:04,120 and sellers who are working in those fields. 353 00:14:04,120 --> 00:14:06,400 - And that affects everyone, you know, property owners, 354 00:14:06,400 --> 00:14:08,350 developers, contractors, builders, landlords, 355 00:14:08,350 --> 00:14:11,050 I mean buyer sellers, the whole, the whole gamut there. 356 00:14:11,050 --> 00:14:13,690 But which you're talking about local ordinances. 357 00:14:13,690 --> 00:14:18,220 So let's step up one level and talk about state regulations. 358 00:14:18,220 --> 00:14:21,520 So like how does states regulate real estate differently? 359 00:14:21,520 --> 00:14:22,960 - Well, and that's a, a very important issue 360 00:14:22,960 --> 00:14:24,790 because when you're looking at the licensing 361 00:14:24,790 --> 00:14:26,590 and professional conduct of agents 362 00:14:26,590 --> 00:14:31,150 and brokers, that is regulated at the state level. 363 00:14:31,150 --> 00:14:32,380 Many of the disclosures 364 00:14:32,380 --> 00:14:35,320 and consumer protections are also at the state level. 365 00:14:35,320 --> 00:14:38,200 Things like title practices and escrow 366 00:14:38,200 --> 00:14:40,420 and compliance with state tax rules, 367 00:14:40,420 --> 00:14:42,100 those are all handled at the state level. 368 00:14:42,100 --> 00:14:43,570 And that's why our, our team 369 00:14:43,570 --> 00:14:47,110 of state gads government affairs directors work very closely 370 00:14:47,110 --> 00:14:49,180 with our subject matter experts 371 00:14:49,180 --> 00:14:50,770 and we're always prepared 372 00:14:50,770 --> 00:14:52,790 to see when these changes are happening. 373 00:14:52,790 --> 00:14:55,280 - So who falls under state oversight other than 374 00:14:55,280 --> 00:14:56,630 agents and brokers? 375 00:14:56,630 --> 00:14:58,310 - Oh, and that's an important question 376 00:14:58,310 --> 00:14:59,630 because when you're looking at 377 00:14:59,630 --> 00:15:03,740 how expensive a transaction is, what looking to to sell 378 00:15:03,740 --> 00:15:05,240 or purchase a property 379 00:15:05,240 --> 00:15:08,840 and just the vast amount of regulations that happen there, 380 00:15:08,840 --> 00:15:12,620 it's not just what is being regulated but who, so agents 381 00:15:12,620 --> 00:15:16,640 and brokers, as you mentioned, appraisers are also there. 382 00:15:16,640 --> 00:15:20,450 Title companies, mortgage brokers and lenders. 383 00:15:20,450 --> 00:15:24,020 And then many of the attorneys who are maybe required 384 00:15:24,020 --> 00:15:26,900 for closings also regulated by the state bar. 385 00:15:26,900 --> 00:15:28,940 So pretty much everyone who is involved in 386 00:15:28,940 --> 00:15:31,130 that real estate transaction is under some 387 00:15:31,130 --> 00:15:32,570 sort of a state regulation. 388 00:15:32,570 --> 00:15:35,180 - Okay. And then, and then taking a step, you know, 389 00:15:35,180 --> 00:15:37,760 up from there back to the federal level, which is, 390 00:15:37,760 --> 00:15:40,460 I'm admittedly a little bit more familiar with just being, 391 00:15:40,460 --> 00:15:42,380 you know, living and working in DC for so long. 392 00:15:42,380 --> 00:15:45,740 But you know, what role does the federal government play in 393 00:15:45,740 --> 00:15:47,000 regulating real estate? 394 00:15:47,000 --> 00:15:49,610 'cause it seems like transactionally, it's 395 00:15:49,610 --> 00:15:51,350 so focused on local, 396 00:15:51,350 --> 00:15:54,530 but the federal government plays a big role as well. 397 00:15:54,530 --> 00:15:56,150 - Well, and it's interesting because when you speak 398 00:15:56,150 --> 00:15:57,380 with federal officials 399 00:15:57,380 --> 00:15:59,330 and you talk about the real estate transaction, 400 00:15:59,330 --> 00:16:00,590 they're very quick to say, well 401 00:16:00,590 --> 00:16:02,720 that's primarily done at the state level. 402 00:16:02,720 --> 00:16:05,000 And then we come back and say, well, 403 00:16:05,000 --> 00:16:06,560 the federal government does have an 404 00:16:06,560 --> 00:16:08,270 important role to play here. 405 00:16:08,270 --> 00:16:09,860 That's everything from fair housing 406 00:16:09,860 --> 00:16:13,040 and anti-discrimination enforcement that's happening at HUD 407 00:16:13,040 --> 00:16:16,130 or at DOJ mortgage financing and disclosures and, 408 00:16:16,130 --> 00:16:18,290 and the servicing of those mortgages, EPA, 409 00:16:18,290 --> 00:16:22,160 environmental rules, fema, flood zones, we're all familiar 410 00:16:22,160 --> 00:16:24,590 with that coming up soon. 411 00:16:24,590 --> 00:16:26,630 The National Flood Insurance Program is set 412 00:16:26,630 --> 00:16:28,040 to expire at the end of September. 413 00:16:28,040 --> 00:16:30,890 So stay tuned for a potential call for action there. 414 00:16:30,890 --> 00:16:32,510 And then, as we mentioned with Dodd-Frank, 415 00:16:32,510 --> 00:16:34,700 increasingly the consumer protections 416 00:16:34,700 --> 00:16:37,010 through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 417 00:16:37,010 --> 00:16:38,780 through RESPA as we mentioned earlier, 418 00:16:38,780 --> 00:16:40,400 another Dodd-Frank changes, 419 00:16:40,400 --> 00:16:42,200 and then also at a topic 420 00:16:42,200 --> 00:16:44,690 that we have been very active on this summer 421 00:16:44,690 --> 00:16:47,240 as the tax treatment of properties 422 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:50,900 and those transactions, such things as the capital gains tax 423 00:16:50,900 --> 00:16:52,910 and IRS regulations. So 424 00:16:52,910 --> 00:16:54,165 - Yeah, and we talked about that in the, in 425 00:16:54,165 --> 00:16:57,290 that last episode about what comes next for real estate 426 00:16:57,290 --> 00:17:00,800 because, you know, once the tax bill was passed, the IRS 427 00:17:00,800 --> 00:17:04,580 and, and the, the regulatory site gets to work on that. 428 00:17:04,580 --> 00:17:06,770 So we, we got into, into that a little bit last month. 429 00:17:06,770 --> 00:17:08,780 But you know, just to underscore your point, 430 00:17:08,780 --> 00:17:09,800 you know I looked this up. 431 00:17:09,800 --> 00:17:13,670 So there's 50 titles in the Code of Federal regulations. 432 00:17:13,670 --> 00:17:15,440 So basically like 50 chapters 433 00:17:15,440 --> 00:17:18,650 and about 10 of those deal directly with real estate. 434 00:17:18,650 --> 00:17:20,930 And then of course that's directly 435 00:17:20,930 --> 00:17:23,515 and then it's also broached in many other ways and forms 436 00:17:23,515 --> 00:17:25,460 and, and throughout the, the code of regulation. 437 00:17:25,460 --> 00:17:27,200 So it's, it's baked in there. 438 00:17:27,200 --> 00:17:29,750 - And when we're looking at the who, not just the, what 439 00:17:29,750 --> 00:17:31,280 that's regulated at the state level, 440 00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:32,930 the same thing happens at the federal level. 441 00:17:32,930 --> 00:17:37,280 So lenders and mortgage RS are regulated by the CFPB, 442 00:17:37,280 --> 00:17:39,740 the FDIC and HUD rules, banks 443 00:17:39,740 --> 00:17:42,170 and financial institutions by federal lending 444 00:17:42,170 --> 00:17:44,690 and disclosure laws, real estate professionals 445 00:17:44,690 --> 00:17:47,420 through Fair Housing Act compliance developers 446 00:17:47,420 --> 00:17:48,620 and builders through many 447 00:17:48,620 --> 00:17:50,790 of the environmental compliance programs. 448 00:17:50,790 --> 00:17:52,080 And then of course buyers 449 00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:55,950 and sellers buy our favorite IRS rules, capital gains, 450 00:17:55,950 --> 00:17:58,650 things like 10 31 exchanges. 451 00:17:58,650 --> 00:18:00,600 And also things like lead paint disclosures 452 00:18:00,600 --> 00:18:03,180 that we hear from our folks all the time 453 00:18:03,180 --> 00:18:04,920 that those forms need to be updated or changed. 454 00:18:04,920 --> 00:18:07,410 And those are exactly the kinds of things that we work with. 455 00:18:07,410 --> 00:18:09,210 - So how does this work on the federal level? 456 00:18:09,210 --> 00:18:11,850 Like they ask for a public comment 457 00:18:11,850 --> 00:18:14,460 or do we see regulations coming? 458 00:18:14,460 --> 00:18:15,720 Do we know they're coming or do, 459 00:18:15,720 --> 00:18:17,640 do we get blindsided by them? 460 00:18:17,640 --> 00:18:19,410 I mean, I mean tell me how it works. 461 00:18:19,410 --> 00:18:22,200 - We are, we are thankfully not supposed to be blindsided 462 00:18:22,200 --> 00:18:25,260 by them that the way that the regulatory law works and 463 00:18:25,260 --> 00:18:27,810 and the process works is that there is a notice 464 00:18:27,810 --> 00:18:29,040 of proposed rulemaking 465 00:18:29,040 --> 00:18:31,740 and then we have the opportunity for public commentary. 466 00:18:31,740 --> 00:18:32,940 So examples of that 467 00:18:32,940 --> 00:18:35,610 that have happened somewhat recently are things like the 468 00:18:35,610 --> 00:18:38,430 Federal Housing Finance Administration looking at ways 469 00:18:38,430 --> 00:18:41,790 to further regulate housing providers in potentially 470 00:18:41,790 --> 00:18:44,070 charging them or restricting their ability 471 00:18:44,070 --> 00:18:45,300 to increase rents. 472 00:18:45,300 --> 00:18:47,880 And so we put out kind of a call for action, if you will, on 473 00:18:47,880 --> 00:18:49,590 what that public commentary could look like 474 00:18:49,590 --> 00:18:52,440 and how that might actually have the opposite effect 475 00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:54,990 and increase the cost of rent in many areas. 476 00:18:54,990 --> 00:18:58,380 And we were able to push back on those rent control efforts. 477 00:18:58,380 --> 00:18:59,490 Those things happen all the time, 478 00:18:59,490 --> 00:19:03,330 but sometimes depending on the agency you'll see, hey, 479 00:19:03,330 --> 00:19:05,250 we're just gonna abandon this now 480 00:19:05,250 --> 00:19:07,530 or we're just gonna go ahead and push this through 481 00:19:07,530 --> 00:19:08,700 and then see what happens. 482 00:19:08,700 --> 00:19:12,690 And that's when we also have to be extra cautious 483 00:19:12,690 --> 00:19:13,710 of those actions 484 00:19:13,710 --> 00:19:16,410 and involved very quickly so that team 485 00:19:16,410 --> 00:19:18,210 of subject matter experts who works day in 486 00:19:18,210 --> 00:19:20,430 and day out directly with those regulators. 487 00:19:20,430 --> 00:19:21,690 And it's important to note, we work 488 00:19:21,690 --> 00:19:24,570 with Congress on the oversight of those regulators. 489 00:19:24,570 --> 00:19:27,930 So each committee in Congress actually has, is tasked 490 00:19:27,930 --> 00:19:30,210 with the job of looking into those agencies 491 00:19:30,210 --> 00:19:32,400 and making sure that they are following the law 492 00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:34,020 and that they're actually doing it 493 00:19:34,020 --> 00:19:35,040 the way that they're supposed to. 494 00:19:35,040 --> 00:19:37,530 So if we have a problem, we have recourse 495 00:19:37,530 --> 00:19:39,780 and going to Congress and saying they're not following the 496 00:19:39,780 --> 00:19:42,480 rulemaking process, we don't think that this is something 497 00:19:42,480 --> 00:19:44,550 that Congress gave them the authority to do. 498 00:19:44,550 --> 00:19:47,550 What oversight can we do or as a lawsuit needed. 499 00:19:47,550 --> 00:19:49,890 That was the eviction moratorium lawsuit was one of those. 500 00:19:50,760 --> 00:19:52,920 - Yeah, and I'm glad you brought this up the way it meshes 501 00:19:52,920 --> 00:19:55,650 with Congress because there was a Supreme Court case 502 00:19:55,650 --> 00:19:58,620 recently where they broach federal regulations 503 00:19:58,620 --> 00:20:01,260 and it's something along the lines of you can't have 504 00:20:01,260 --> 00:20:03,750 so much latitude in interpreting federal regs. 505 00:20:03,750 --> 00:20:05,910 Congress needs to be a little bit more specific when they 506 00:20:05,910 --> 00:20:07,140 pass these things. 507 00:20:07,140 --> 00:20:10,470 - Yes, Patrick, that was a very big Supreme Court case, 508 00:20:10,470 --> 00:20:11,490 Loper versus Bright, 509 00:20:11,490 --> 00:20:15,360 which essentially ended the Chevron deference, which meant 510 00:20:15,360 --> 00:20:18,030 that courts would give agencies deference to say, 511 00:20:18,030 --> 00:20:20,100 you know this what you're trying to do better. 512 00:20:20,100 --> 00:20:21,210 And so we're gonna go ahead 513 00:20:21,210 --> 00:20:24,510 and say what you did is probably the right thing to do. 514 00:20:24,510 --> 00:20:25,920 Congress didn't like that so much 515 00:20:25,920 --> 00:20:27,930 because Congress wants to say we are the ones 516 00:20:27,930 --> 00:20:30,150 who gave you the authority with this law 517 00:20:30,150 --> 00:20:32,250 and you need to apply it the way that we say. 518 00:20:32,250 --> 00:20:34,860 So this way we at least know 519 00:20:34,860 --> 00:20:37,230 that those regulations aren't always a final word 520 00:20:37,230 --> 00:20:39,540 and there is more ability for Congress to get involved. 521 00:20:39,540 --> 00:20:40,860 - Regulators are gonna regulate. 522 00:20:42,150 --> 00:20:45,540 Alright, well thank you for giving us this primer on 523 00:20:45,540 --> 00:20:47,860 how these work local, state and federal. 524 00:20:47,860 --> 00:20:50,590 But with all that said, I kind of wanna just tick through, 525 00:20:50,590 --> 00:20:52,450 we're not gonna get too in the weeds about this, 526 00:20:52,450 --> 00:20:55,000 but some examples 527 00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:57,760 of the regulatory work you've done perhaps in the past year. 528 00:20:57,760 --> 00:20:59,740 And I think that the one that comes top of mind 529 00:20:59,740 --> 00:21:03,520 to me is the veterans agent compensation issue 530 00:21:03,520 --> 00:21:05,290 that we pounced on. 531 00:21:05,290 --> 00:21:06,730 - Well that is a great one. 532 00:21:06,730 --> 00:21:08,320 And before I jump into that, all 533 00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:11,560 of these are available on advocacy impact realtor 534 00:21:11,560 --> 00:21:14,020 and so you can see where these wins occurred. 535 00:21:14,020 --> 00:21:17,020 But yes, very quickly 536 00:21:17,020 --> 00:21:19,930 after the settlement was announced, there was a concern 537 00:21:19,930 --> 00:21:23,620 that veterans may not have the same ability to have access 538 00:21:23,620 --> 00:21:25,240 to the use of a real estate professional 539 00:21:25,240 --> 00:21:27,310 because of not a rule that was made, 540 00:21:27,310 --> 00:21:30,010 but guidance that was in a handbook. 541 00:21:30,010 --> 00:21:32,830 That's not something that's really con contemplated in Loper 542 00:21:32,830 --> 00:21:34,690 versus Bright and Chevron deference. 543 00:21:34,690 --> 00:21:37,330 And so we went to the VA 544 00:21:37,330 --> 00:21:38,620 and said, would you be able 545 00:21:38,620 --> 00:21:42,550 to change this handbook reference in order to ensure 546 00:21:42,550 --> 00:21:44,380 that veterans have the ability 547 00:21:44,380 --> 00:21:46,600 to hire a real estate professional? 548 00:21:46,600 --> 00:21:49,720 And they did. And then we were able to, 549 00:21:49,720 --> 00:21:52,150 through legislation win a permanent fix 550 00:21:52,150 --> 00:21:55,630 so veterans can directly compensate agents. 551 00:21:55,630 --> 00:21:57,940 And so we're still working with the VA to push to ease some 552 00:21:57,940 --> 00:22:00,220 of those loan rules like fees and inspections 553 00:22:00,220 --> 00:22:02,350 and things that could also hurt competitiveness. 554 00:22:02,350 --> 00:22:04,330 But that was a very quick 555 00:22:04,330 --> 00:22:08,285 and meaningful win that resulted in congress. Well 556 00:22:08,285 --> 00:22:10,690 - You, you just said an important word, guidance. 557 00:22:10,690 --> 00:22:12,820 So what is the difference 558 00:22:12,820 --> 00:22:17,680 between a regulation guidance and like an executive order? 559 00:22:17,680 --> 00:22:19,990 I mean all on the same, I mean they're coming from the top. 560 00:22:19,990 --> 00:22:21,460 - Well all of that's being litigated. 561 00:22:21,460 --> 00:22:23,650 So we're, we're learning the difference between all of that 562 00:22:23,650 --> 00:22:25,930 but, but guidance is often something 563 00:22:25,930 --> 00:22:28,960 that is a softer version of what that regulation would be 564 00:22:28,960 --> 00:22:31,180 and this is how the agency is interpreting 565 00:22:31,180 --> 00:22:33,520 and how they're directing their own staff 566 00:22:33,520 --> 00:22:35,620 to manage through that process. 567 00:22:35,620 --> 00:22:38,020 - But the way we respond to that is one 568 00:22:38,020 --> 00:22:40,000 and the same sort of, or is it, 569 00:22:40,000 --> 00:22:41,710 - Well we, we, we honor that guidance 570 00:22:41,710 --> 00:22:44,020 and when you're working with them, but at the same time you 571 00:22:44,020 --> 00:22:47,380 can push back on guidance a lot better than you can on 572 00:22:47,380 --> 00:22:49,510 something that's gone through that rulemaking process. 573 00:22:49,510 --> 00:22:52,000 So, and you can go to Congress, which is 574 00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:55,300 what we successfully did is going to key members of Congress 575 00:22:55,300 --> 00:22:58,390 and saying, this is guidance, this guidance is not working, 576 00:22:58,390 --> 00:23:01,090 it's certainly not working for the direct consumer, 577 00:23:01,090 --> 00:23:04,480 the VA borrower and how can we get this changed quickly? 578 00:23:04,480 --> 00:23:05,770 And that worked. 579 00:23:05,770 --> 00:23:08,050 - Okay. Well a few of the other regulatory issues we've 580 00:23:08,050 --> 00:23:10,960 worked on, energy efficiency is a big one, right? 581 00:23:10,960 --> 00:23:13,720 - Oh yeah. So our position on these energy efficiency 582 00:23:13,720 --> 00:23:17,230 mandates is that we support safe cost effective codes 583 00:23:17,230 --> 00:23:20,200 but oppose any type of rigid federal mandates 584 00:23:20,200 --> 00:23:21,340 that will raise costs 585 00:23:21,340 --> 00:23:22,630 and maybe not deliver the same 586 00:23:22,630 --> 00:23:24,550 results that they're expecting. 587 00:23:24,550 --> 00:23:27,010 So more voluntary and incentive-based solutions. 588 00:23:27,010 --> 00:23:28,900 So we've been fighting for that. 589 00:23:28,900 --> 00:23:29,920 One of the big ones 590 00:23:29,920 --> 00:23:33,250 that we have been working on over several congresses that 591 00:23:33,250 --> 00:23:35,380 for some reason doesn't get a lot of media attention, 592 00:23:35,380 --> 00:23:38,590 but it's a very important issue is protecting the 593 00:23:38,590 --> 00:23:40,480 independent contractor status. 594 00:23:40,480 --> 00:23:43,570 Over 90% of realtors are independent contractors, 595 00:23:43,570 --> 00:23:45,920 which is core to the business model. 596 00:23:45,920 --> 00:23:49,760 And when we pull members of NAR, they say that is a feature, 597 00:23:49,760 --> 00:23:51,560 not a bug that they are in this profession 598 00:23:51,560 --> 00:23:53,720 because they want to be independent contractors. 599 00:23:53,720 --> 00:23:56,300 So we had the Department of Labor working 600 00:23:56,300 --> 00:23:59,780 to provide some more clarity and preserve this choice. 601 00:23:59,780 --> 00:24:02,000 It's been kind of up in the air 602 00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:05,120 for the last several congresses where it's been a priority 603 00:24:05,120 --> 00:24:07,190 to remove independent contractor status. 604 00:24:07,190 --> 00:24:09,800 And we were successful in having legislation introduced 605 00:24:09,800 --> 00:24:11,450 that would preserve the ability 606 00:24:11,450 --> 00:24:13,250 for real estate agents in particular 607 00:24:13,250 --> 00:24:15,050 to still be independent contractors. 608 00:24:15,050 --> 00:24:16,790 But it's something that comes up quite a bit at the 609 00:24:16,790 --> 00:24:17,930 state level as well. 610 00:24:17,930 --> 00:24:19,220 And we still have to keep an eye on. 611 00:24:19,220 --> 00:24:20,690 - Mm, we did a lot of work. 612 00:24:20,690 --> 00:24:22,550 I remember one of, when I first came here, 613 00:24:22,550 --> 00:24:24,440 this was I think one of the first things that popped up, 614 00:24:24,440 --> 00:24:27,710 but the condo rule FHA and 615 00:24:27,710 --> 00:24:32,480 - Yes, so the FHA has some pretty strict rules on 616 00:24:32,480 --> 00:24:35,690 how to determine lending for condos. 617 00:24:35,690 --> 00:24:38,840 And we worked to loosen restrictions on the commercial space 618 00:24:38,840 --> 00:24:41,420 so we could have more openings for owner occupancy 619 00:24:41,420 --> 00:24:43,970 and investor ownership for many first time, 620 00:24:43,970 --> 00:24:45,440 first generation home buyers 621 00:24:45,440 --> 00:24:47,210 who are just entering the market. 622 00:24:47,210 --> 00:24:48,710 A condo is a great purchase for them. 623 00:24:48,710 --> 00:24:51,650 It's a way to get onto that property ownership ladder 624 00:24:51,650 --> 00:24:54,080 and modernizing those outdated rules so 625 00:24:54,080 --> 00:24:56,450 that more condos will qualify for 626 00:24:56,450 --> 00:24:59,420 that first time homeowner at HA financing 627 00:24:59,420 --> 00:25:00,890 was another big victory. 628 00:25:00,890 --> 00:25:04,010 - And you know, multifamily as well. 629 00:25:04,010 --> 00:25:06,110 We do a lot of work on that regulatorily. 630 00:25:06,110 --> 00:25:09,140 - Oh, exactly. And in particular on the environmental 631 00:25:09,140 --> 00:25:10,700 reviews and wage rules 632 00:25:10,700 --> 00:25:13,490 because as you mentioned with the home builders there, 633 00:25:13,490 --> 00:25:15,620 there, there are stats that that is increasing, 634 00:25:15,620 --> 00:25:18,650 these regulations are increasing the cost by up to a third. 635 00:25:18,650 --> 00:25:20,960 So reforming some of the rules 636 00:25:20,960 --> 00:25:22,940 that could discourage new housing 637 00:25:22,940 --> 00:25:24,080 and close that pipeline 638 00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:25,760 for folks getting into multifamily housing, 639 00:25:25,760 --> 00:25:27,170 that was another big issue. 640 00:25:27,170 --> 00:25:28,310 - And at Flyin realtor 641 00:25:28,310 --> 00:25:31,880 where we keep our federal legislative priorities updated 642 00:25:31,880 --> 00:25:33,680 and, and obviously housing affordability 643 00:25:33,680 --> 00:25:37,400 and supply has been one for EV for you know, multiple years. 644 00:25:37,400 --> 00:25:41,120 But we do work on the supply 645 00:25:41,120 --> 00:25:42,860 and affordability on the regulatory side. 646 00:25:42,860 --> 00:25:44,120 So what are some of the measures 647 00:25:44,120 --> 00:25:46,910 that you've taken there to address supply? 648 00:25:46,910 --> 00:25:48,710 - So inventory being the number one issue 649 00:25:48,710 --> 00:25:50,330 that's driving the lack of inventory 650 00:25:50,330 --> 00:25:52,070 that's driving up the cost of housing. 651 00:25:52,070 --> 00:25:55,340 And so we have been supporting bipartisan reforms, 652 00:25:55,340 --> 00:25:57,740 things like the FHA loan limits and tax credits 653 00:25:57,740 --> 00:26:01,730 and others to unlock supply and to remove barriers 654 00:26:01,730 --> 00:26:04,280 and expand those affordable housing options. 655 00:26:04,280 --> 00:26:07,190 And a great deal of that happened at the state 656 00:26:07,190 --> 00:26:10,760 and local level, which is why we were initial sponsors 657 00:26:10,760 --> 00:26:13,310 and continue to support the Housing Supply 658 00:26:13,310 --> 00:26:14,990 Accelerator playbook. 659 00:26:14,990 --> 00:26:17,540 We've talked about it on this podcast several times, 660 00:26:17,540 --> 00:26:20,210 but please look it up if you haven't seen it already. 661 00:26:20,210 --> 00:26:21,320 This is work that we've done 662 00:26:21,320 --> 00:26:23,270 with the American Planning Association 663 00:26:23,270 --> 00:26:26,330 and the National League of Cities to look at 40 policies 664 00:26:26,330 --> 00:26:27,470 that could happen at the state 665 00:26:27,470 --> 00:26:31,100 and local level to immediately unleash that housing supply 666 00:26:31,100 --> 00:26:32,900 and help more people get into home ownership. 667 00:26:32,900 --> 00:26:35,120 So that's another example of where all three levels 668 00:26:35,120 --> 00:26:37,910 of the government are needed to make that work. 669 00:26:37,910 --> 00:26:41,270 - Alright, well wrapping up our thoughts on regulation. 670 00:26:41,270 --> 00:26:43,350 Shannon, what's your final, 671 00:26:43,350 --> 00:26:44,350 - Patrick? 672 00:26:44,350 --> 00:26:45,360 I couldn't agree with what you said earlier. 673 00:26:45,360 --> 00:26:48,750 More that this is the most expensive financial transaction, 674 00:26:48,750 --> 00:26:51,840 but it's also the most heavily regulated financial 675 00:26:51,840 --> 00:26:55,050 transaction that any consumer is going to make. 676 00:26:55,050 --> 00:26:56,580 And it's important to have regulations 677 00:26:56,580 --> 00:27:00,240 that protect fairness, transparency and consumer safety, 678 00:27:00,240 --> 00:27:02,760 but also to balance private property rights 679 00:27:02,760 --> 00:27:04,530 and the community impact. 680 00:27:04,530 --> 00:27:06,930 So the work that we're doing here, I could not be more proud 681 00:27:06,930 --> 00:27:09,750 of and the team has really focused on 682 00:27:09,750 --> 00:27:11,280 where we can unleash inventory 683 00:27:11,280 --> 00:27:14,970 and make housing more affordable by tackling regulations 684 00:27:14,970 --> 00:27:17,250 where needed but supporting them where it works. 685 00:27:17,250 --> 00:27:19,710 - Alright, well it's closing time, 686 00:27:20,730 --> 00:27:24,270 which means you've gotta give us some behind the scenes 687 00:27:24,270 --> 00:27:27,210 or story, maybe August recess related. 688 00:27:27,210 --> 00:27:29,820 I don't know, tell us something exciting. 689 00:27:29,820 --> 00:27:31,950 - All right, well we don't, we don't have this on video 690 00:27:31,950 --> 00:27:34,710 so you miss me rolling my eyes when Patrick says August 691 00:27:34,710 --> 00:27:38,700 recess because there is no recess when it comes to advocacy. 692 00:27:38,700 --> 00:27:42,240 So in August alone, we had hundreds of meetings occur 693 00:27:42,240 --> 00:27:43,290 around the country 694 00:27:43,290 --> 00:27:47,310 with our FPCs federal political coordinators who meet 695 00:27:47,310 --> 00:27:49,560 with their member of Congress in the district, 696 00:27:49,560 --> 00:27:51,930 or maybe they do a state event, 697 00:27:51,930 --> 00:27:55,200 maybe we can post some fun pictures from the Iowa Fair. 698 00:27:55,200 --> 00:27:56,550 There was a lot of members there 699 00:27:56,550 --> 00:27:59,160 and our own president, Kevin Sears made it out there. 700 00:27:59,160 --> 00:28:01,470 I'm sure it wasn't because of the food options, 701 00:28:01,470 --> 00:28:03,450 but we'll let you be the judge on that one. 702 00:28:03,450 --> 00:28:06,180 But there is no rest in August when it comes 703 00:28:06,180 --> 00:28:07,230 to these efforts. 704 00:28:07,230 --> 00:28:09,150 And so those hundreds of meetings match up 705 00:28:09,150 --> 00:28:11,430 with the thousands that we have had since the beginning 706 00:28:11,430 --> 00:28:14,760 of the year, including the legislative meetings in June. 707 00:28:14,760 --> 00:28:17,640 And then the big talking points here in August have been 708 00:28:17,640 --> 00:28:20,940 to make sure that we fund the federal government 709 00:28:20,940 --> 00:28:23,400 and we don't shut down the flood insurance program at 710 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:24,420 the end of September. 711 00:28:24,420 --> 00:28:27,300 And that folks support the capital gains relief, 712 00:28:27,300 --> 00:28:29,220 more homes on the market act 713 00:28:29,220 --> 00:28:31,920 that would double the capital gains exemption 714 00:28:31,920 --> 00:28:33,900 for folks trying to sell their home right now 715 00:28:33,900 --> 00:28:35,520 and provide great incentive 716 00:28:35,520 --> 00:28:36,960 to bring more homes on the market. 717 00:28:36,960 --> 00:28:40,590 And there are other measures that have been introduced 718 00:28:40,590 --> 00:28:42,450 that would completely eliminate capital gains. 719 00:28:42,450 --> 00:28:44,490 So it's going in the right direction. 720 00:28:44,490 --> 00:28:45,810 - Well I'm glad you mentioned those meetings 721 00:28:45,810 --> 00:28:47,790 'cause I actually was chatting in the hallway with a, 722 00:28:47,790 --> 00:28:50,310 a member of our lobby team who said, you know, 723 00:28:50,310 --> 00:28:52,920 we had 5,000 meetings plus last year, 724 00:28:52,920 --> 00:28:56,820 but this one member of the lobbying team had 700 meetings in 725 00:28:56,820 --> 00:28:58,290 the first quarter of this year. 726 00:28:58,290 --> 00:28:59,850 Just him, 727 00:28:59,850 --> 00:29:01,710 because we were obviously in the middle 728 00:29:01,710 --> 00:29:02,880 of tax reform at the time. 729 00:29:02,880 --> 00:29:06,060 So I think we're gonna top the 5,000 number this year that, 730 00:29:06,060 --> 00:29:06,960 - So that's his excuse for 731 00:29:06,960 --> 00:29:08,310 why I haven't seen him in the office. 732 00:29:08,310 --> 00:29:09,420 That's fine, that's fine. 733 00:29:09,420 --> 00:29:11,580 But it's, it's also important to note 734 00:29:11,580 --> 00:29:15,120 for our next scoop we can probably share more information 735 00:29:15,120 --> 00:29:18,300 because one of the big asks in the August recess meetings 736 00:29:18,300 --> 00:29:20,430 was, please join the Real Estate caucus. 737 00:29:20,430 --> 00:29:24,360 And we started with four members back in May of 2024. 738 00:29:24,360 --> 00:29:26,250 So tune in next month to find out 739 00:29:26,250 --> 00:29:28,200 what the final number is looking like. 740 00:29:28,200 --> 00:29:31,650 - And we also have a big event we're hosting here at the 741 00:29:31,650 --> 00:29:32,700 DC office. 742 00:29:32,700 --> 00:29:36,180 We're having all the chiefs of staff on the hill. Yes. 743 00:29:36,180 --> 00:29:38,700 Come up for a little soiree 744 00:29:38,700 --> 00:29:41,020 - Chiefs of staff who also do not get August recess. 745 00:29:41,020 --> 00:29:43,240 And I'm sure we're all back in the district working. 746 00:29:43,240 --> 00:29:45,220 So this is a bipartisan event. 747 00:29:45,220 --> 00:29:48,850 There are very few organizations in DC that do these kinds 748 00:29:48,850 --> 00:29:51,670 of things, but we have a widely attended bipartisan event 749 00:29:51,670 --> 00:29:55,240 where we're expecting a great turnout of chiefs of staff 750 00:29:55,240 --> 00:29:57,490 to welcome them back with our beautiful views 751 00:29:57,490 --> 00:29:59,890 of Capitol Hill and talk about 752 00:29:59,890 --> 00:30:02,440 how we can move things forward over the next month. 753 00:30:02,440 --> 00:30:03,940 - Well I would push back on that Shannon, 754 00:30:03,940 --> 00:30:08,620 and say there are organizations in this town that would love 755 00:30:08,620 --> 00:30:09,730 to do an event like that, 756 00:30:09,730 --> 00:30:11,680 but they do not have Shannon McGann on that. Oh 757 00:30:11,680 --> 00:30:12,910 - No, they don't have, 758 00:30:12,910 --> 00:30:14,860 they don't have Patrick Newton. Oh, they don't have, 759 00:30:14,860 --> 00:30:16,810 - You're You're the one that gets 'em all here 760 00:30:16,810 --> 00:30:18,280 and they love coming to our building. 761 00:30:18,280 --> 00:30:19,330 - They like to come here to talk about 762 00:30:19,330 --> 00:30:20,830 regulations. Yeah. And that's what 763 00:30:20,830 --> 00:30:21,830 - We're gonna be covering. 764 00:30:21,830 --> 00:30:24,370 You make it so fun. Alright, well thank you Shannon. 765 00:30:24,370 --> 00:30:26,380 Thank you everyone for tuning into this episode, 766 00:30:26,380 --> 00:30:27,430 the advocacy scoop. 767 00:30:27,430 --> 00:30:30,070 And we will see you back here hopefully 768 00:30:30,070 --> 00:30:32,440 next month without a government shutdown 769 00:30:32,440 --> 00:30:33,440 - Hopefully. 770 00:30:33,440 --> 00:30:34,540 Thanks for listening everyone. 771 00:30:34,540 --> 00:30:36,040 - So that's the scoop. Thank you 772 00:30:36,040 --> 00:30:38,050 to everyone listening to this podcast. 773 00:30:38,050 --> 00:30:39,280 Please be sure to subscribe 774 00:30:39,280 --> 00:30:41,590 and share wherever you get your podcast. 775 00:30:41,590 --> 00:30:44,560 And meet us right back here for more advocacy scoop next 776 00:30:44,560 --> 00:30:46,030 - Time. 777 00:30:46,030 --> 00:30:49,270 Realtors are members of the National Association 778 00:30:49,270 --> 00:30:50,103 of Realtors.
Chapters
No chapters available.