National Realtor associations and the Dayton Area Board of Realtors have been asking members to send letters, faxes and e-mails to their legislators to protest the proposal. This would give the banks a competitive advantage. The banking industry already benefits from federal deposit insurance, favorable tax treatment and special access to credit. Also, the industry has ready access to information on the credit history of millions of Americans. Real estate brokerage is not a financial service.
People buy homes for shelter and own commercial property to operate a business.
By mid-March, federal officials were sifting through more than 36,000 comments about the proposal. Because of the intense interest in the issue, the federal agencies extended the comment period two months to May 1. A decision on the proposal is expected shortly after. Meanwhile, there are some in the real estate industry who aren't really sweating it. Skip Schafer, president of Commercial Realty Associates, said he doesn't believe banks would step on his toes if they were allowed to sell property because real estate transactions often are based on relationships that have taken years to build.