Real Estate Central

WASHINGTON, May 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Realtors(R) celebrating
the National Association of Realtors(R)’ centennial this week during the
Midyear Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo had an opportunity to put real
estate’s advances over the past 100 years into historical context during
last night’s Centennial Gala. Jim Rasenberger, author of America 1908: The
Dawn of Flight, the Race to the Pole, the Invention of the Model T and the
Making of a Modern Nation, was the featured speaker at the event, which was
attended by more than 1,200 Realtors(R) and guests.

“1908 was a year that marked a psychological shift in America,” said
Rasenberger. “Americans believed anything and everything was possible. Like
the Model T, which helped expand people’s horizons in bringing affordable
automobiles to the masses, Realtors(R) began expanding the vision of
homeownership - they believed that we should not just be tenants of the
American dream, but owners of it.”

The century since NAR was established has seen numerous demographic
shifts. The country’s population has more than tripled, from 87 million in
1908 to 300 million today. At the turn of the last century, fewer than half
of U.S. households owned their own home; in urban areas, three-quarters of
the population were renters. Today, homeownership approaches 70 percent.

Rasenberger told the audience, “We owe those who began this association
a debt of gratitude for helping to make America more prosperous and fairer
place to live.”

Realtors(R) themselves have changed, as well. NAR’s current membership
is predominantly female - 60 percent of all Realtors(R) are women - but in
1908, only one out of five women worked outside the home. The membership
also reflects the country’s growing diversity - 15 percent of Realtors(R)
are members of a minority population, and more than 25 percent of
Realtors(R) who joined NAR since 1999 are minorities.

“For 100 years, Realtors(R) have been bringing America home,” said NAR
President Dick Gaylord, a broker with RE/MAX Real Estate Specialists in
Long Beach, Calif. “As our nation has evolved, so has our profession. But
one thing remains constant - Realtors(R)’ commitment to the principles and
promise of an industry inexorably tied to the American dream.”

The National Association of Realtors(R), “The Voice for Real Estate,”
is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.2 million members
involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate
industries.



Information about NAR is available at http://www.realtor.org. News releases
are posted in the Web site’s “News Media” section in the NAR Media Center.

REALTOR(R) is a registered collective membership mark which may be used
only by real estate professionals who are members of the NATIONAL
ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS(R) and subscribe to its strict Code of Ethics. Not
all real estate agents are REALTORS(R). All REALTORS(R) are members of NAR.



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Source: Real Estate Newswire