Hello REALTORS®,
Over the last month, I have been reporting on the status of your REALTORS® Association’s advocacy efforts. Last week, I covered state government. This week, I am reviewing NAR’s efforts on your behalf in Washington, DC.
The most important news from NAR is its emphasis on advocacy, which NAR detailed in its Annual Report and Strategic Plan. You can read about them here.
2026 National Advocacy Priorities
NAR’s focus is on two categories of issues:
- Increase housing supply to meet demand and protect the American Dream of homeownership. NAR estimates a 4.7 million-unit shortage nationwide, contributing to the housing affordability crisis.
- Support self-employed professionals like Realtors.
NAR works hard to provide research to policymakers that support these priorities. You can read NAR’s one-page brief on its 2026 National Advocacy Priorities by clicking here.
Status of your National Advocacy Priorities
Institutional Buyers
President Trump recently issued an executive order directing federal agencies to take steps to prohibit institutional buyers from buying single-family homes. NAR issued this statement:
“The National Association of REALTORS® is encouraged that the administration and members of Congress are focused on addressing the nation’s housing affordability and supply crises. We share the goal of ensuring there are enough places for people to live and of expanding access to homeownership—especially for first-time buyers—and ensuring that housing policy strengthens communities rather than limiting opportunity.
At our Annual Conference in November, REALTORS® adopted a policy aimed at incentivizing large institutional owners of single-family rentals to transition homes back to owner-occupants while also creating new housing supply. As the administration and Congress continue to develop proposals in this space, NAR looks forward to working collaboratively to share our research, policy expertise, and practical solutions that boost supply, improve affordability, and put more families on a sustainable path to homeownership.”
Shannon McGahn, NAR Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy Officer
At the national level, the share of residential purchases made by corporations, companies, and LLCs has remained relatively stable over the past decade, averaging around the mid-teens. A key distinction in the data is the role of LLCs, which account for most institutional buyer purchases.
When purchases by corporations and companies, only, are isolated, the national share falls to 3.2% in 2024, underscoring that large, institutional buyers represent a much smaller portion of total market activity than headline figures sometimes imply. Some states have an outsized share of institutional ownership, while the data shows that South Carolina is well below national levels.
House Financial Services Committee Passes Bipartisan Housing for the 21st Century Act and Respect State Housing Laws Act
On December 17, 2025, the House Financial Services Committee passed two significant housing bills: Housing for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 6644) and the Respect State Housing Laws Act (H.R. 1078). The Housing for the 21st Century Act represents a major bipartisan, comprehensive effort to address the nation’s housing affordability crisis. Read more here…
House Passes Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act
NAR has long championed Association Health Plans (AHP) to provide choice and competition for small businesses and independent contractors seeking affordable, high-quality coverage alongside Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans.
When the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) allowed self-employed individuals to join AHPs in 2018, several state and local REALTORS® associations, like SCR, offered comprehensive, lower-cost options without harming ACA markets. A court later overturned that DOL rule due to a confusing patchwork of federal and state laws. This bill would codify AHP eligibility for all small businesses and the self-employed.
NAR’s testimony and recent letter of support underscored that expanding AHP access remains a top priority for NAR members. Read more here…
NAR Sends FY2026 Appropriations Recommendations to Congress
NAR sent its Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations recommendations to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees as Congress works to finalize spending bills for the current fiscal year. The letter urges full funding for critical HUD programs, including Housing Choice Vouchers, fair housing programs, housing counseling, the HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) program, and Community Development Block Grants (CDBG).
The letter emphasizes that these programs provide essential support for housing affordability, expand access to homeownership and rental housing, and help communities address the nation’s housing supply shortage. With both the House and Senate advancing bipartisan housing packages, NAR stressed that legislative reforms can only succeed if paired with sustained appropriations that allow policies to be effectively implemented at the local level.
NAR will continue working with appropriators to ensure robust funding for federal housing programs that support homeownership opportunities and community development.
President Trump Directs MBS Purchases to Lower Mortgage Rates
President Trump directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase $200 billion of their own mortgage-backed securities (MBS) to lower mortgage rates. Mortgages rates fell nearly 0.2% the next day, ending the day at 5.99%. NAR has advocated for the government, including the GSEs, to expand their MBS purchases to bring down mortgages rates, and applauds this move.
The Federal Reserve was the major purchaser of mortgages backed securities during the pandemic and for much of the decade prior. In 2022, the Fed began to pull out of the mortgage market, leaving a vacuum of demand in its place. Rates rose as a result and, in the fall of 2023, NAR wrote the Fed and Treasury urging them to wade into the market, including directing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to increase purchases of their own MBS.
As NAR noted in its 2023 letter, while positive, this pressure on rates must be accompanied by efforts to expand supply.
Local Election Updates
Voters in the Anderson 3 School District will go to the polls on March 10. On the ballot is a referendum to allow the school district to issue $60 million in general obligation bonds. If approved, the property taxes on a $200,000 home will increase by $120 per year.
And Anderson City Council will hold elections on April 7. On the ballot will be the Mayor and four members of City Council.
Your Advocacy Team will provided a Voter Guide on these and other elections closer to the time of each election.
How can you help?
Advocacy, as you can see from this report, is a long game. It’s also an important part of the way your Realtors Association represents and serves Realtors. There are two important ways you can help:
- Vote
- Contribute to RPAC
RPAC is an important part of our association’s advocacy efforts. Success hinges on the election of Realtor Champions. My favorite quote, at least recently, is that there are two kinds of politicians: those who raise money, and those who lose.
RPAC’s objective is to cooperate as an association to raise money for the campaigns of candidates who will champion Realtor issues. If you haven’t already contributed to RPAC, click here to contribute. Any amount will help.
Michael Dey, Director of Government Affairs