The Florida Association of Realtors® is the voice of Florida real estate

The Florida Association of Realtors (FAR) is the largest trade association in Florida, serving nearly 150,000 members and more than 17,000 member firms. Headquartered in Orlando, it has a staff of 102.  FAR also maintains an office in Tallahassee, with a staff of 10.

The Association’s broad range of member services includes:

• Free Legal Hotline
• Technology Helpline
• Florida Realtor, a glossy four-color business magazine
• EarlyBird, a daily e-mail news service
• Florida Real Estate Headlines, a weekly business newsletter exclusively for brokers
• Numerous educational programs
• Florida Living Network Web site (consumer-oriented) and the Planet Realtor Web site, a service and news oriented site password protected for use exclusively by Florida Realtors.

Florida Association of Realtors: A History

Over the years, thousands and thousands of Florida Association of Realtors (FAR) members have helped millions of buyers and sellers transfer property, though the organization began simply when, in 1916, a small band of 68 real estate brokers from 16 Florida communities gathered in Jacksonville for the first convention of what is now FAR. That first meeting was the beginning of a vision and an ongoing mission.

Woodrow Wilson was president in 1916 and a National Association of Real Estate Boards convention had already adopted the term "Realtor." Earlier, three real estate boards had been formed in Florida -- Tampa and Jacksonville in 1911 and St. Petersburg in 1912 -- but the 1916 get-together marked the first time an organization had formed on the state level.

By the FAR convention in Miami in 1921, the Association began its campaign for a state real estate license law, but it was four years later before the state Legislature passed a strong one when, in 1925, it formed the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) to bring some order and rein in the unregulated real estate operators who had swarmed across the state selling everything above water -- and sometimes under it. By 1923, FAR had 29 Boards and 887 members -- and was $5,000 in debt.

At the same time, Jacksonville had about 100,000 people and led the state in commerce. Orlando had only 9,282 people and Miami Beach barely made the count with only 644 residents. While the nation had more people living in cities than in rural areas for the first time, Florida bucked the trend -- 63 percent of Floridians still lived in the country.

By 1924, FAR’s membership swelled to 2,368 members and 50 boards; the Depression hit in 1929, however, and membership dropped to 615. By 1932, FAR hit rock bottom. Stocks had fallen to 10 percent of their 1929 value, 15 million people were out of work, and FAR bottomed out with only 265 members. The Association operated out of a few small rooms within the Orlando Chamber of Commerce building.

World War II, however, brought an end to the Depression and the state continued to grow. By the end of the 1940s, the nation began to hear a lot about the Sunshine State, thanks to President Harry S. Truman’s vacation residence in Key West.

By the 1950s, Florida joined the rest of the nation in an exuberant boom time, a celebration of housing that intensified as tourists discovered the state. A new technique to "concentrate" orange juice also allowed Florida farmers to serve more consumers and, consequently, expand their farms. Business, both agricultural and residential, was so good that FAR hired a field representative to visit the local boards.

The 1950s also proved to be a pivotal time for the education of Realtors. In 1953, the University of Florida announced the addition of 17 real estate courses and the inclusion of two instructors that were also Florida brokers. Then, in 1954, FAR created the Educational Seminar that later became the FAR Educational Institute and, more recently, the Realtor Institute. By 1959, FAR had 3,591 members and was offering a health and accident group insurance program.

In the early 1960s, science finally perfected the two elements necessary to move Florida into the real estate spotlight -- air conditioning and effective insect control. As a result, FAR grew to 69 boards and 8,700 members; in 1966, FAR celebrated its 50th anniversary. Still, only 37 percent of home sales were handled by brokers -- owners, builders and private salespeople handled the rest. By the mid-1960s, the space program and its Florida-based flights continued to make headlines throughout the nation and the world, giving the state a free multimillion-dollar ad campaign. And, when Walt Disney announced the creation of a new theme park toward the end of the decade, tourism expanded exponentially. By 1969, FAR had 14,000 members.

The 1970s became FAR’s biggest decade for growth. Tourism had doubled in just one decade, going from 10 million annual tourists in 1960 to 20 million in 1970. FAR established its political action committee -- the Real Estate Political Education Committee. By the end of 1970, Florida Realtor magazine announced that membership had grown to 16,872, making FAR the second biggest Realtor association in the nation. By 1973, the assessed value of Florida real estate had increased almost 50 percent in only four years, and membership reached 25,000. By 1975, despite a nationwide economic slowdown, FAR membership reached 35,000. By the end of the decade, FAR had 83 member boards and more than 44,500 members.

By the early 1980s, demand for housing remained strong but high interest rates took their toll. FAR presidents set their sights on the creation of a Department of Real Estate on the state level, and membership rose to 68,000, making it the largest trade association in the state. The work at hand was on the local level, however, as computers began to make day-to-day tasks simpler. FAR had been using computers for a few years, but the move to include local boards was in full swing, and the state’s Realtors began to adapt the new technology to their own offices. In 1986, an unrelated development also proved pivotal in FAR history -- negotiations began on a parcel of land in Lee Vista Center -- what was to become the current home of the Association.

In 1987, Jerry Matthews took the reins as Executive Vice President of the Florida Association of Realtors and its 75,000 members. Under Matthews’ leadership, FAR automated association operations, installed a legal hotline, launched a research and analysis department and introduced computer products designed for Realtor organizations.

Through the 1990s, FAR continued to lead the nation in new technology products, introducing new Web sites to the world. The Florida Living Network, a consumer-based site, became a model for Realtor organizations throughout the nation, and many states’ Realtor associations are now part of the network. FAR also launched Planet Realtor, a comprehensive, real estate related tools and business information site for members only. The Association introduced Headlines, a weekly synopsis of events important to brokers, and, by the end of the decade, debuted EarlyBird, a daily news service e-mailed directly to members.

John Fridlington joined the Florida Association of Realtors in 2005. Under his leadership as Executive Vice President, FAR continues to move forward, growing in membership and consistently providing state-of-the-art resources to members throughout the state.

Fridlington came onboard during a dynamic growth period in the Florida real estate industry. Strong market growth, matched with low interest rates and creative home-financing programs led to record-setting home sales throughout Florida. Now, more than ever, Realtor professionals rely on their member organization for information, products, programs and services.

In January 2006, FAR helped launch Transaction Desk on its Planet Realtor members-only Website. This free state-of-the-art online office-management system streamlines all phases of real estate transactions. Transaction Desk is managed by Real Estate Industry Solutions, a wholly owned FAR subsidiary.

Another FAR subsidiary, the Technology Helpline, continues to grow and provides Florida members with free one-on-one technical consultation. Several out-of-state associations also subscribe to this service.

The future is untold, yet through the eyes of Florida's leading association professionals, it continues to be bright in the Sunshine State.