Priority Issues

Read about NVAR's work on several legislative and regulatory policy goals, including current priority issues, on-going issues, standing Public Policy Positions and recent Realtor® Advocacy Wins. Make your voice heard by submitting feedback for the annual NVAR Legislative Program, submitted every spring. 

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2023-2024 NVAR Legislative Agenda

Download the 2023-2024 LEGISLATIVE AGENDA
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On-Going Issues

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NVAR Legislative Program

Legislative Program

Every spring, NVAR compiles legislative and regulatory policy goals for the coming year into a document called the NVAR Legislative Program.

The Legislative Program is developed over several months based on feedback given by NVAR members. The process begins in March, when NVAR committees and forums are asked to submit issues to the NVAR Public Policy Committee for consideration. Individual Realtors® may also submit issues to the committee. A task force researches these issues and recommends pertinent ones for inclusion in the Legislative Program.

Once a draft program has been developed, the Public Policy Committee reviews it and sends a final draft to NVAR’s Board of Directors for consideration. Following approval by the Board, NVAR forwards the program to the Virginia Association of Realtors® for inclusion in the statewide list of legislative priorities.

An important component of the issues we look at is your voice. If you have suggestions for items we should be looking into please email us at govaffairs@nvar.com OR fill out this quick form.

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Town Hall Notes Blog

VA Signals Temporary Suspension on Buyer Agent Payment Ban

May 22, 2024, 13:12 PM by Grace Parr
Official says the Department of Veterans Affairs will temporarily allow VA buyers to directly compensate their agent.

 

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This is a huge win for Realtor® Advocacy, especially in Northern Virginia where VA Loans are used in 11% of all sales and have accounted for $2.7 Billion in sales volume in 2023 and 2024. Your RPAC Dollars at Work!

Learn more about Realtor® Advocacy Wins here.

 


 

The Department of Veterans Affairs plans to temporarily lift its ban on buyers directly paying for professional real estate representation until the agency deems it necessary to engage in a formal rulemaking process, a VA official said Tuesday at a Mortgage Bankers Association conference in New York.

Although not an official announcement, the comments from VA Deputy Director of Policy Michelle Corridon were met with relief from the real estate industry, as the VA's home loan guaranty is the only loan program with this explicit prohibition. Veteran buyers have limited options in situations where the seller makes no offer of compensation to the buyer's agent, potentially leaving veterans without professional representation or forcing them to switch to less favorable loan products.

"NAR launched an all-hands advocacy effort on this issue, meeting with VA officials, engaging with lawmakers and rallying our industry partners to ensure this prohibition was lifted," says Shannon McGahn, chief advocacy officer at the National Association of REALTORS®. "This is also a testament to the thousands of REALTORS® who came to Washington just a few weeks ago with a unified message. Without this change, thousands of veteran buyers could be denied access to professional representation in their pursuit of the American Dream of homeownership. Taking this extra step ensures veterans have the same opportunity as others to compete in a tight housing market. We applaud the VA for recognizing this danger and acting swiftly to protect veterans."

 


The information above was pulled from the National Association of REALTORS® blog. See the original here.