Realtor association tools driving member success

From data-driven platforms to safety apps and legal support, Realtor associations are investing in tools and services to help agents compete in a rapidly changing industry.

Leadership from Florida Realtors and Virginia Realtors told HousingWire their focus is on delivering simplicity, integration and education to ensure members have every advantage when serving clients.

Tim Weisheyer — president of Florida Realtors — said his association is prioritizing technology designed and built specifically for agents.

Among the most widely used tools is SunStats, an in-house platform offering statewide real estate data.

“Sun Stats aggregates real estate data across the state of Florida,” Weisheyer said. “It is the most recognized and accurate real estate database in the state, and members have access to it by virtue of their membership.”

The platform allows agents to analyze everything from absorption rates to average prices. Weisheyer said updates are ongoing.

“We know that with technology, what we built yesterday may not be as relevant tomorrow,” he said. “So we’re really working intentionally internally to make sure we’re constantly building it out.”

Florida Realtors also offers Form Simplicity — a transaction management system used nationwide — and Sabal Sign, a new in-house e-signing platform.

“We said, ‘Wait a second. We can build this ourselves, save money, and have the entire ecosystem built and owned by Florida Realtors,” Weisheyer said. “We wanted to go with the mindset of ‘built by Realtors for Realtors.’

“E-signing is incredibly important, not just in our vertical, but multiple verticals, and we recognize that we’ve built a technology that could be used and purchased by other industries too.”

The organization also runs a Tech Helpline, which Weisheyer described as a Realtor version of Geek Squad.

“It doesn’t matter what device or technology it is, we have our tech helpline,” he said. “Not only do we provide it as a member benefit, but we actually sell our tech helpline to other organizations and Realtor associations, as well.”

Adoption through awareness and training

Florida Realtors takes a phased approach to getting members comfortable with new tools. Weisheyer said the emphasis is on clarity and support.

“The first step for us is saying, ‘Let’s make sure we build it with the Realtor in mind, not some third-party platform that then has to be adapted into the real estate ecosystem,’” he said. “Then it becomes a conversation of, how communicating that to our almost quarter of a million members across the state of Florida.”

Awareness is followed by tutorials and parallel rollouts.

“It’s not a hard start and a hard stop,” Weisheyer said. “It’s a natural flow of you saying, ‘OK, I’ll run this transaction through this one and this one through (the new) one.’ We found that’s a very helpful process.”

Innovation and partnerships

Weisheyer recently launched an innovation fund to invest in technology that benefits members while creating revenue for the association.

“We really changed the conversation from us just being an avenue for people to sell their products, to saying, ‘We want you to partner with us,’” he said. “Whether that’s through a capital investment or some type of strategic partnership, everybody wins — the vendor wins, the member wins, and the association wins.”

Florida Realtors is exploring tools for safety, brokerage valuation and end-to-end transaction management. Integration is the common demand.

“The biggest request from our members is ease, simplicity, and integration,” Weisheyer said. “The more that we can create one unified ecosystem that enables our members to go into one place, one vertical technology stack, and get access to all of their tools with ease and simplicity, that’s the biggest thing people want right now.”

Virginia Realtors: Legal and safety support

In Virginia, the focus is also on protecting members and their businesses.

Rick Lugg — CEO of Virginia Realtors — said the association’s legal and safety tools stand out.

“Our members deserve every advantage when it comes to protecting their business, their clients, and themselves,” Lugg said. “Two invaluable benefits we provide include quick, reliable guidance from our Legal Hotline — typically within just a few business hours — and complimentary access to the FOREWARN app, which empowers Realtors to instantly verify prospects and add a critical layer of safety and confidence to every interaction.

“Together, these tools help ensure that our members can focus on what matters most: serving their clients with professionalism and peace of mind.”

Like Florida Realtors, Virginia Realtors face the challenge of adoption across a large membership base.

“With nearly 34,000 members, ensuring everyone knows about the wide range of valuable benefits available to them is an ongoing priority,” Lugg said. “From there, the next step is helping them put these tools into practice. To support that, we offer everything from quick how-to videos and live webinar trainings to peer testimonials that show how other Realtors have successfully integrated these resources into their daily business.”

Expanding education, staying competitive

Lugg said staying competitive means delivering ongoing, practical education on critical topics.

“In today’s fast-moving real estate market, staying competitive means staying educated,” he said. “At Virginia Realtors, we’re expanding our Learning Center website to deliver timely, forward-thinking education in the formats our members want most.”

On-demand access to educational content is No. 1 on many members’ wish lists, Lugg added.

“We’re focused on providing content on critical topics like artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, legal and contract updates, and evolving generational buyer and seller trends,” he said. “Just as importantly, we’re listening to our members so that what we offer reflects both what they want to learn and how they want to learn it.”

Looking ahead

Both associations said they’re constantly working to streamline tools, support members and anticipate future needs.

Weisheyer specified that Florida Realtors wants to set a national standard.

“What Florida Realtors was working to do is to not only be the leader of real estate in Florida, but to truly be the leader across the United States,” he said. “We know that as the largest Realtor association — and one of the most forward-thinking and innovative associations in the nation — we want to make sure we’re doing the best we can to lead for the rest of our peers across the nation.”