REALTORS® face job-related risks every day—working alone, meeting with strangers in unfamiliar places, and sharing personal contact information. While independence is one of the perks of our industry, it can leave agents open to vulnerabilities.
The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) has dedicated September as REALTOR® Safety Month to raise awareness of safety issues, though it’s important for real estate professionals to stay focused on safety year-round. That’s why, more than a decade ago, NAR launched the REALTOR® Safety Program. The program provides members with safety education, tips and countless other resources and tools at no cost. The aim: Help REALTORS® make it home safely to their family every night.
Here are some REALTOR® Safety Program highlights:
A New National Network
There is safety—and power—in numbers. In March, NAR launched the REALTOR® Safety Network to capitalize on the strength of our 1.3 million members. The program enables members and REALTOR® associations to submit incident reports online. NAR will deploy safety alerts via social media when a physical or cyber threat to REALTORS® warrants national attention. For example, alerts will be issued if a pattern of assaults against REALTORS® has been reported, a REALTOR® or immediate family member goes missing and the family is requesting assistance, or an association name is being used fraudulently.
Empowering Agents
Arming your agents with information will build confidence, increase their capacity to protect themselves and their clients, and make them less susceptible to mistakes that could put their property or personal safety at risk.
We encourage you and your agents to attend NAR’s upcoming REALTOR® Safety Webinar, “Prospect or Predator? Reduce the risk of being a target!” presented by David Legaz on Sept. 17, 1 p.m. Central. Learn more and register at NAR.realtor/safety/safety-webinars.
Along with the webinar, you’ll find a wealth of information and extensive resources at NAR.realtor/safety. Take advantage of hundreds of articles, reports and videos, plus archived webinars covering topics like personal safety, data security and cyber safety. We continually add new information, resources and programs, so check back often.
Keeping Safety Top of Mind
An easy way to help your agents make safety a habit is to send them regular safety tips. Each week, NAR posts a new safety tip as a shareable graphic on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Follow @NARdotRealtor or search for #RealtorSafety to capture and share these tips with your agents.
Safety Tools and Apps
At NAR.realtor/safety, you can learn about an array of tools and products, such as security systems, personal alert devices, and smartphone apps. NAR doesn’t sell or endorse these products or services, but offers information to help members decide what’s best for their personal safety protocol. Several companies that participated in NAR’s REACH technology accelerator are listed, including Guard Llama and Trust Stamp, as well as REALTOR Benefits® Program partner SentriLock with the SentriKey Real Estate app and agent safety feature.
Supporting REALTOR® Safety Programs
To help state and local associations implement safety programs and encourage ongoing awareness, we provide $10,000 annually in safety grants.
What’s Your Plan?
NAR strongly encourages brokerages to create a safety plan and educate agents about it. Since every office has unique needs, NAR doesn’t prescribe a standard plan. But to help you get started, we offer customizable safety-related forms like an Agent ID Form, Agent Itinerary and Office Safety Action Plan.
Make Safety Your Top Priority Year-Round!
Visit NAR.realtor/safety to access all of NAR’s REALTOR® Safety resources.
