Obviously, most REALTORS® are well aware of their annual dues but many may not have a clear understanding of the exact makeup of the various assessments. While most members have contact with their local association throughout the year, interaction with the national and state associations may not be as frequent or common.  We thought we would devote this article to adding a bit more clarity to current national and state association (in this case Missouri) dues structure. Being a REALTOR® means that you must belong to a local, state and the national association. It should be noted the local association is charged with the responsibility of collecting all three assessments each year so all three amounts are always included on a REALTOR’S® annual dues invoice from St. Louis REALTORS®.   

• The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) - $185 all member types.
  • NAR has always had a “General Assessment” used to support its various operations, services and infrastructure. Currently it stands at $150.00 and pro-rates monthly as new members join throughout the year.
  • In November of 1997 the NAR Board of Directors instituted the “Public Awareness Campaign” with a special assessment of $15. This initiative was launched in 1998. The assessment has incrementally increased throughout the years. The original purpose was “To promote residential and commercial REALTORS® in the marketplace and further strengthen the REALTOR® brand with the public.” Eventually the campaign was rechristened the “Consumer Advertising Campaign” with similar goals but described as follows on each dues invoice: “Your 2022 dues contain a THIRTY-FIVE DOLLAR mandatory assessment from the National Association of REALTORS® to fund a nationwide Consumer Advertising Campaign using TV network ads, digital ads, online video and social media posts highlighting the value a REALTOR® brings to a transaction and stressing the importance of using a REALTOR®.”
  • Many members have no doubt seen many of these national ads created by NAR throughout the years in various forms of media.
  • As noted, the assessment now stands at $35 annually and does not pro-rate. Hence the total NAR annual assessment for each member is $185.00 ($150.00 plus $35.00). NAR has no application fee.

• Missouri REALTORS® - Designated REALTORS® - $195.00 REALTORS® - $180.00
  • Like NAR, Missouri REALTORS® also has a “General Assessment” which is tiered between Designated REALTOR® members ($155) and REALTOR® members ($140.00). This assessment funds the general operations of Missouri REALTORS® including the legal hotline, tech help line, legislative activities and many other services and infrastructure. These dues pro-rate monthly throughout the year for new members.
  • In 2005 an “Issues Reserve Fee” assessment was started in the amount of $35.00 and later raised to $40.00 in 2008. This is a separate and distinct fund maintained by Missouri REALTORS® which supports or opposes federal, state or local policies that impact real property and real property owners in Missouri. The fund does not give to political candidates. Many members will recall the key role these funds played in the passage of Amendment 4 in 2016, which permanently prohibited sales tax on services in the State of Missouri, including real estate commissions.  Like the NAR Consumer Ad assessment this amount does not pro-rate.
  • Hence the total assessment from the state association is $195.00 for Designated REALTORS® ($155.00 plus $40.00) and $180.00 for REALTORS® ($140.00 plus $40.00)
  • Missouri REALTORS® also has a $200.00 application fee for new members, whether in the Designated REALTOR® or REALTOR® category.

These two assessments will appear each year on each renewing St. Louis REALTORS® member dues invoice along with the “Local Assessment,” which is the portion kept by St. Louis REALTORS®. The Local Assessment is the amount approved each year by the St. Louis REALTORS® Board of Directors and funds the local association’s operations and infrastructure.

Of course, the local association is also responsible for remitting these national and state dues for the thousands of REALTOR® members accurately and on a timely basis to these other two entities. One unique aspect behind the scenes is what is known as “the split,” which is a proprietary e-commerce system implemented by the National Association of REALTORS® a number of years ago.

This unique e-commerce system has been a boon to the local associations such as St. Louis REALTORS® in that when a member pays online or through the internal AMS (Association Management System) credit card system, the dues are automatically “split” between the national, state and local association bank accounts.  Everything is transmitted electronically and seamlessly. This reduces annual credit card fees by tens of thousands of dollars for the local associations which are able to leverage this system. The credit card fees for the state and national dues are not charged to the local associations.  It also greatly reduces the amount of monthly reconciliation and processing by St. Louis REALTORS® for funds due to the national and state association to dues payments made only via checks or cash.

This information is a good reminder of the value provided by NAR and Missouri REALTORS®. Dues dollars do make a difference, whether they are national, state or local.