Sixty-two percent of survey respondents say they disapprove of the National Association of Realtors’ recent performance, according to T3 Sixty’s NAR Midyear Flash Poll published on Tuesday.

The real estate consultancy’s survey was conducted in May prior to NAR’s midyear conference. It was distributed via Typeform to a “curated list” of industry executives, which T3 Sixty said “ensured a diverse representation of role within the residential real estate brokerage industry.“


Respondents were split into two groups. Group A included “industry executives at large, encompassing brokerage leaders or owners, agents, sales managers, team leaders, and association or MLS executives and staff,” while Group B was “targeted specifically at executives not covered by the NAR or other related settlements.”

According to the report, the Group B segment allowed T3 Sixty “to capture the views of those potentially impacted by different regulatory or organizational frameworks, providing a comparative analysis against the mainstream segment.”

Of the survey respondents, 61% were brokerage leaders or owners, 21% were agents and 9% were sales managers and team leaders.

In addition to the 62% who disapprove of NAR’s recent performance, 63% of respondents disapprove of its handling of the commission lawsuits and its settlement agreement. But fewer respondents (48%) disapprove of NAR’s handling of communication and support regarding the settlement.

Given these challenges, it is no surprise that respondents’ top concerns were commission-related issues (14%), consistent communication (14%), and managing market variability and compliance (11%).

On the bright side, however, the survey found that 73% of respondents feel like they completely understand the business practice changes outlined in the settlement. And 71% said they feel likely or very likely to meet the deadline to implement the business practice changes, while 26% expressed doubts about it.

While agents and brokers may not be thrilled with NAR, they aren’t completely pessimistic about the industry at large. The biggest opportunities for agents and brokers moving forward, respondents say, are opportunities to articulate and prove value (18%), training and education (17%), and improved communication and transparency (13%).

In an optional feedback section of the survey, T3 Sixty noted that many respondents highlighted what they felt were a lack of proactive measures and delayed responses. One respondent wrote: “In general, too little, too late. I think this settlement should have been handled more aggressively from the start.”

Others noted what they felt were issues in transparency and timeliness of communication.

Additionally, while some respondents supported NAR’s efforts to deal with the commission lawsuits, others criticized the trade group, with one respondent writing: “They let [Michael] Ketchmark [lead attorney for the Sitzer/Burnett plaintiffs] ruin something that has worked smoothly for buyers, sellers and agents for years.”

Respondents also called for more member-centric policies, with one respondent writing that decisions should be made “from a Realtor’s position, not an organizational one,” as well as enhanced support and resources for agents.