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More REALTOR® associations and members are devoting time and money to support charitable causes in their communities, according to a new National Association of REALTORS® survey. What’s more, real estate pros view community involvement as a key component of their business plan, shows the 2024 Community Aid and Real Estate (CARE) Report, a survey of more than 6,000 REALTORS®, brokerages and associations.
“We have a deep sense of connection with our communities,” says 2013 Good Neighbor Awards winner Kristina Rhodes, who is an agent with ERA First Advantage Realty in Newburgh, Ind. “The high rate of volunteerism suggests a profession that goes beyond transactional interactions and actively invests time and effort into the wellbeing of the communities we serve.”
Get ideas for how to participate in the upcoming REALTOR® Volunteer Days event, June 1-9.
The CARE survey found that REALTORS® were most likely to volunteer with food banks, a local school or children’s sports team. Nearly 70% say they volunteer monthly, devoting an average of eight hours each month, the survey finds. Eighty-six percent say they made monetary donations to a charity last year, up from 2022. Donations from brokers and REALTOR® associations have also increased to an average of $1,000 annually from $800 in 2022. Individual REALTORS® donated a median of $1,200.
Among broker-owners, 73% volunteered monthly in 2023, the survey shows. The typical amount donated annually by broker-owners rose to $2,400 in 2023 from $2,300 in 2022.
Sixty percent of AEs or MLS staff volunteered monthly, and 92% made personal donations in 2023, up from 87% in 2022, the CARE survey shows. Ninety-seven percent of AEs or MLS staff said their associations hold events encouraging their members to volunteer, such as fundraisers for nonprofits or charitable causes. The typical number of events associations hosted last year was four.
“Being a REALTOR® is not just about selling homes or properties; it is the lives inside that matter the most,” says Debra Parmenter, a 2001 Good Neighbor Award winner. “We want to make the world a better place. ‘For it is in giving that we receive’—and that’s the beauty of it all.”
NAR’s Good Neighbor Awards program is celebrating its 25th year in recognizing the broad charitable efforts among REALTORS®. Over the years, Good Neighbor honorees have collectively raised and donated $1.47 billion to charitable causes.
