The battle between the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and Phoenix Realtors (PAR) over alternative membership models has heated up.
With a cease-and-desist letter, NAR has drawn a hard line against PAR’s MLS Choice membership plan, set to launch in January. Will this move redefine Realtor membership structures nationwide?
Here’s what you need to know about this escalating standoff.
What Is MLS Choice?
Phoenix Realtors (PAR) planned to introduce MLS Choice on Jan. 1, 2025, as an alternative membership option. For $249 per year, members would gain access to:
- State-compliant forms
- Legal aid
- Continuing education
This model would allow agents to skip membership with both the Arizona Association of Realtors and NAR. However, MLS Choice members would forfeit certain perks, including:
- The ability to call themselves Realtors
- Access to NAR’s advocacy efforts, business tools, educational opportunities, and certifications
NAR’s Response: Cease and Desist
NAR issued a cease-and-desist letter to Phoenix Realtors, arguing that MLS Choice violates its three-way agreement, which requires agents to join:
- A local Realtor association
- A state Realtor association
- The National Association of Realtors
[MLS Choice] purports to allow real estate licensees to become members of PAR without becoming a member of the Arizona Association of Realtors or NAR.
In the email to NAR’s board of directors and association leaders, Muchow clarified the trade group’s position on Realtor associations and the link between membership and MLS access.
[Realtor associations] are chartered to strengthen the Realtor organization to benefit its members and the consumers they serve and set and enforce standards for ethical real estate practices.
NAR’s statement emphasized the need to protect its brand: “This is a matter of maintaining standards for the Realtor brand…to best meet the needs of our members and their consumers.”
NAR clarified that association membership is not required to access MLS services, as MLS participation is determined at the local level.
However, they asserted the importance of their integrated model, which they say upholds the Code of Ethics and provides consistency for members.
Why Is This Happening Now?
The dispute reflects growing discontent among agents and brokers over NAR’s three-way agreement, a longstanding policy that ties local, state, and national memberships together.
Phoenix Realtors’ MLS Choice is the latest attempt to offer more flexibility—a move NAR sees as a threat to its unified model.
What’s at Stake for NAR?
NAR argues that MLS Choice could:
- Undermine the Realtor trademark
- Weaken the benefits members rely on, such as:
- Market research
- Advocacy platforms
- Business resources
- Dilute standards for ethical real estate practices
Phoenix Realtors: Silent but Steady
PAR CEO Andy Fegley has not commented on the cease-and-desist letter. However, in November, he stated that MLS Choice is not intended to undermine NAR.
In an earlier conversation with Inman, Fegley clarified the purpose of MLS Choice as an update to MLS Only—a predecessor used by some in cases where agents are not required to maintain three-way membership to access the Arizona Regional Multiple Listing Service:
It’s modernizing the option of MLS Only to accommodate and provide choice to brokers to then provide choice to their agents to conduct their business. For it to be a choice, we have to provide all the tools necessary for real estate professionals to do their job.
The new membership option will cost participating agents $249 a year—less than half the $511 total annual cost to join NAR, the Arizona Association of Realtors and Phoenix Realtors.
One question at the heart of this conflict is whether that lower cost will be enough to “move the needle” for real estate agents. According to Clint Skutchan, Senior Vice President of Organized Real Estate with T3 Sixty (Real Estate News and T3 Sixty share a founder: Stefan Swanepoel), the answer is “Yes.”
Every dollar matters more in a downturn. There are definitely folks out there who are making really tough decisions right now based on tight margins and uncertainty of what the future marketplace looks like.
For now, PAR’s next steps remain unclear as the January 1 rollout date approaches.
The Bigger Picture
The clash between NAR and Phoenix Realtors could set a precedent for how real estate associations operate moving forward. As more agents demand flexibility and fewer membership requirements (not to mention costs), the industry may see additional challenges to the traditional membership model.
Stay tuned to see whether NAR’s cease-and-desist letter halts the launch of MLS Choice—or if Phoenix Realtors pushes forward in defiance.
