Earlier this week the National Association of Realtors(NAR) made headlines for the extravagant perks and compensation its executives and volunteer leaders receive.
A New York Times investigation detailed the lavish perks enjoyed by trade group executives, particularly former CEO Bob Goldberg, who had three memberships to exclusive country clubs, paid first-class airfare for personal travel, a $1,500 monthly car allowance, free pet-sitting for his dogs Tuffy and Fonzie, and tickets to “Hamilton” at the height of the musical’s popularity. These niceties were on top of a salary of $1.2 million per year that later ballooned to $2.6 million, according to NAR’s 2022 Form 990, which was filed in November of 2023.
Other NAR executives who earned over $1 million in 2022 are Mark Birschbach, the senior vice president of strategic business innovation and technology, and Shannon McGahn, the senior vice president of government affairs.
Volunteer elected leaders also received choice perks and swollen bank accounts. Per the 990 form, 2022 NAR president Leslie Rouda-Smith earned $413,566, while president-elect Kenny Parcell pocketed $256,956, first vice president Tracy Kasper earned $181,362 and treasurer Nancy Lane received $212,356.
According to the Form 990, all of the salaried elected leaders worked an average of 30 hours per week for the trade organization.
The New York Times spoke to seven nonprofit lawyers who argued the perks at NAR were excessive. The lawyers also said that the trade association may be running afoul of tax laws given its status as a nonprofit trade association.
“It is highly unusual — I would even say virtually unheard-of — for volunteer leaders and officers to receive compensation at those levels,” Jeff Tenenbaum, a nonprofit lawyer in Washington, D.C., told the paper. “Many of us who practice association antitrust law have always wondered, ‘How can they get away with this?’”
Using NAR funds for personal benefit might be a violation known as “private inurement,” even if the spending is related to business travel. Private inurement could result in NAR losing its tax-exempt status.
Although the trade association declined to comment on the issue, 990 filings show clear that the compensation for NAR’s executives and leaders is not in line with those of other trade associations in the housing space.
Mortgage Bankers Association
Like NAR, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) has executive staffers and a board of directors, which has its own leadership team. But unlike NAR, the compensation of the trade group’s leaders looks quite a bit different.
Although MBA president and CEO Bob Broeksmit earned $2.04 million for his work directly related to MBA in FY 2022-2023, according to the MBA’s 2023 Form 990, Matt Rocco, who served as the chair of MBA’s board of directors in 2023, took home $12,566. The MBA clarified that it was reimbursement for expenses specifically incurred when fulfilling his duties as an MBA officer.
Other MBA officers who received reimbursements included chair elect Mark Jones, who worked an average of seven hours per week for the association and incurred $3,670 in expenses for the year, immediate past chair Kristy Fercho (average of one hour per week), who was reimbursed $6,892 and vice-chair Laura Escobar (averaged four hours per week), who was reimbursed $1,623.
However, while NAR’s compensated volunteer leaders all worked an average of 30 hours per week for the organization, MBA’s 990 shows that its chairs like Rocco only worked an average of four hours per week on MBA related work, which one could argue is a more reasonable work load for an uncompensated volunteer position.
American Land Title Association
In stark contrast to NAR, the American Land Title Association (ALTA), which also has elected volunteer leaders, including a president, who serves a one-year term, does not compensate any of its officers, including those who serve as president, president elect, treasurer, committee chairs or governors.
According to the trade group’s fiscal year 2022 Form 990, which was filed in September of 2023 and is the most recent form publicly available, 2022 ALTA president Jack Rattikin III worked an average of two hours per week for ALTA and another two hours per week at related organizations. According to the filing, elected officers put in an average of one to two hours of work a week at ALTA and an average of one to four hours a week at other related organizations, which may include things like their state or local land title association.
ALTA declined to comment and would not clarify if officers were compensated for expenses incurred while doing work for ALTA, such as travel costs.
In addition to not compensating its volunteer leaders, the salaries paid to ALTA executives are also much smaller than those earned by c-suite executives at other trade associations. In 2022, ALTA CEO Diane Tomb took home $756,697 for an average of 40 hours of work per week at ALTA. The pay for other executives ranged from $127,567 to $516,544.
National Association of Homebuilders
The trade group advocating for homebuilders, the National Association of Homebuilders(NAHB) boasts roughly 140,000 members, roughly one-tenth of NAR’s membership, but the association still compensates the volunteer leaders of its board of directors. The NAHB’s fiscal year 2022 Form 990 shows that 2022 board chairman Jerry Konter took home $41,121 for an average of four hours of work per week, while John Fowke, the immediate past chairman, took home $47,830, also for a weekly average of four hours of work. The trade group’s first, second and third vice chairs were also compensated $34,226, $29,614 and $25,968, respectively. According to the NAHB, these payments are annual stipends to cover business expenses accrued when performing duties related to their roles as NAHB senior officers. The association noted that these roles are all volunteer positions. Chairmen are elected annually by the NAHB’s leadership council, which the trade group said consists of over 1,700 NAHB members. The rest of the board of directors is also volunteer and they do not receive a stipend.
Of the trade group’s executive leadership, the NAHB’s president Gerald Howard received the largest compensation package in 2022, taking home $1.774 million. Other top earners include James Rizzo, the group’s chief legal officer, at $575,375, treasurer and CFO Eileen Ramage, who earned $502,687, and James Tobin, who serves as the executive vice president of government affairs and chief lobbyist, and earned $529,915.
Appraisal Institute
Topping out at roughly 16,000 members, the Appraisal Institute (AI) is much smaller than the roughly 1.5 million member NAR, but like NAR it does compensate its elected volunteer leaders.
According to AI’s fiscal year 2022 Form 990, the organization’s 2022 president Jody Bishop earned $148,525 in return for working an average of 40 hours a week for AI. Other compensated officers include president-elect Craig Steinley ($104,600), vice president Sanda Adomatis ($94,600), and immediate past president Rodman Schley ($94,524). All three officers worked an average of 20 hours per week on AI related activities, according to the 990 form.
But while AI’s elected leaders were compensated more generously than those at other, larger trade groups, its executives were paid less. AI CEO Jim Amorin took home $498,511 for an average of 50 hours of work per week in 2022, while CFO Beate Swacha earned $253,925, and general counsel Jeffrey Liskar earned $326,920.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
While not a housing industry trade association, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is one of the few trade associations with similar heft and influence as NAR. The group, which claims to include members from more than 3 million businesses nationwide, advocates for policies that help businesses and the economy.
The organization’s most recent Form 990 is from fiscal year 2022 and it reveals that its board of 111 directors, who all work an average of one hour per week for the group, are not compensated. CEO Suzanne Clark, who took over for longtime leader Tom Donohue, made $5.9 million in salary from the nonprofit, plus $423,000 from related organizations.
The next highest salary earner was Agnes Warfield-Blanc who earned $4.4 million in 2022, while executive vice president and COO Justin Waller, executive vice president and chief policy officer Neil Bradley, head of intelligence Myron Brilliant, chief legal officer Harold Kim, executive vice president David Hirschmann, senior vice president of policy Martin Durbin and chief communications officer Michelle Russo all earn between $1 million and $2 million per year.
The Chamber did not return HousingWire’s request for comment.
Jeff Andrews contributed reporting.