When the REALTOR® Brand Betrays Its Own Values

Sometimes silence feels like complicity, and today, I can’t stay silent.


This week, I learned that the National Association of REALTORS®, through its REALTOR® Political Action Committee (RPAC), donated money to a candidate whose record and public statements are openly hostile toward the LGBTQ+ community.


That candidate is Winsome Earle-Sears, whose recent debate performance—captured in The Advocate—included the claim that firing someone for being gay isn’t discrimination. Let that sink in. In 2025, a person running for office stood on a stage and said that who you love should be grounds for losing your job.


And somehow, my national trade organization decided this person was worthy of our financial support.

The Ethical Line We Crossed

Article 10 of the REALTOR® Code of Ethics could not be clearer:origin, sexual orientation, or gender 

For decades, REALTORS® have prided ourselves on upholding fairness, equality, and the promise that everyone deserves housing free from discrimination or hate. We’ve fought to expand those protections—to include LGBTQ+ individuals—because equality in housing isn’t political, it’s human.


So when our political arm, RPAC, funnels money to a candidate who publicly dismisses those values, that’s not “bipartisan strategy.” That’s betrayal. It’s a moral and ethical failure that undermines everything the REALTOR® brand is supposed to stand for.


This Isn’t About Politics

I don’t care if a candidate is Democrat, Republican, Independent, or Martian.

If they’re advocating for policies that erase the humanity of people in our profession or the clients we serve, then our organization has no business helping them win.


This is not about left versus right.

This is about right versus wrong.


Our Code of Ethics isn’t just a marketing tagline. It’s supposed to be the backbone of our profession. And when NAR, through RPAC, supports someone who openly rejects equality, they’ve crossed that line.


Where Do We Go From Here?

If you’re as sickened by this as I am, you don’t have to accept it quietly.

  • Ask questions. Demand transparency from your state and local REALTOR® associations about where RPAC dollars are going.
  • Withhold your contributions. You have the right to opt out of RPAC donations and still support your association dues.
  • Speak up. Post. Write. Call. Challenge the narrative that “politics as usual” excuses funding discrimination.

Our silence will always be interpreted as consent. And I, for one, refuse to consent to bigotry being bankrolled in my name.

Because at the end of the day…

The REALTOR® “R” is supposed to stand for Respect, Responsibility, and Representation—not Rationalization.


When our trade group funds hate, it doesn’t just stain the brand. It stains every one of us who wears the pin, signs the contracts, and tells our clients that fairness still matters.


If RPAC wants to play politics, fine. But not with the soul of our profession. Not in my name.

About the Author

Patrick Harris (he/him) is a REALTOR® with ERA Crossroads Realty in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and an advocate for equality and transparency in the real estate industry. By day, he helps families find their next home. By passion, he writes science fiction exploring identity, empathy, and the human condition. Patrick believes that the REALTOR® Code of Ethics is more than a document—it’s a promise, and promises are meant to be kept.


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