Steps to Membership

If you are a licensed agent or a real estate professional doing work in the Philadelphia area, please consider joining the Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS®. Our Association is comprised of more than 3,600 hard‐working members throughout the region. GPAR has served as the Voice of Real Estate in Philadelphia since 1908. We work to elevate and protect the professionalism in our industry, provide tools and resources for success, and advocate for the rights of private property owners. Have questions about membership? Please email Donna LePera at donna@gpar.org or call 215-423-9381.

New REALTOR® New Member Orientation Required REALTOR® Training REALTOR® Emeritus

Membership Renewal

Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS^® members are annually invoiced for their REALTOR^® membership. Upcoming dues amount and deadlines will be sent out to all members via email and posted on this page.

GPAR has not increased local dues in more than two decades.

$601 is the total for 2024 Primary REALTOR^® membership dues, which covers dues for the Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS®, Pennsylvania Association of REALTORS^®,and the National Association of REALTORS^®. Additionally, there is a voluntary RPAC contribution included with a suggested amount. The breakdown of fees is as follows:

Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS^® – $250
Pennsylvania Association of REALTORS^® – $150
National Association of REALTORS^® – $201 (includes required $45 National Image Campaign assessment)
Voluntary RPAC Contribution – $35

Dues notifications are emailed directly to all primary GPAR members in August. All membership dues payments and other membership fee payments are non-refundable and non-transferrable.

Payment Options – Pay in Full or Via Easy Pay Plan Installments

Primary REALTOR^® members will once again have the opportunity to opt to pay their dues in full by January 5, 2024, OR choose to pay via installments through the Easy Pay Plan. Primary REALTORS^® who are considering their dues options for 2024, should note the following:

The Installment Plan will be an available payment option with six payments from August to January
If initializing the Installment Plan in August, the payments will be spread out in six installments ending in January; if initializing the plan after August, the first payment will “catch up” missed installments
The Installment Plan can only be initialized via a credit card because of the automatic debit requirement
You will be able to initialize the Installment Plan as an option when you enroll in the Easy Pay Plan
The first dues payment is processed in August. The additional dues payments are processed on or around: September 8, 2023; October 13, 2023; November 10, 2023; December 8, 2023; and January 5, 2024

Requirements for Maintaining REALTOR^® Membership

Once an individual has become a REALTOR^® with GPAR, they are eligible to receive all benefits and services afforded with membership. Listed below are the requirements that an individual must continue to meet to maintain their REALTOR^® membership:

Licensure – A member must maintain an active Real Estate license in Pennsylvania or in a contiguous state. If your license becomes inactive, escrowed, or placed with a referral company, your membership is required to be canceled.
Change of Status – It is the duty of the member to notify the Association of any changes to licensure status or office affiliation.
Affiliation – A member must affiliate their license with a Designated REALTOR^® of an office that belongs to GPAR. If the Designated REALTOR^® does not belong to GPAR, either he/she has to opt to join the organization, or the member must consider joining the local organization to which the Designated REALTOR^® already belongs.
Dues – A member must pay annual GPAR membership dues, which include local, state, and national dues. If a member fails to submit payment and is still actively licensed in a primary REALTOR^® office, then GPAR is required to bill the Designated REALTOR® for the licensee as a non-member. Finally, a member is responsible for any incurred late fees and/or reinstatement fees.
Code of Ethics – A member must complete the National Association of REALTORS^® Code of Ethics requirement once every three-year cycle.

New REALTORS®

New to the real estate business? This National Association of REALTORS® Field Guide can help you get on the road to success with tips, ideas, and advice. Learn what other rookies have done to jump-start their careers, find first clients, overcome objections, and develop negotiation strategies.

New Member Orientation

Our New Member Orientation Program is the final step of the application process for a new member of the Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS®. The National Association of REALTORS® mandates attendance at a New Member Orientation as well as a 2 ½ hour new member Code of Ethics Course. Once your application has been processed, you will receive a confirmation email with registration links to available classes.

GPAR is confident you will find the amount of time you dedicate to attending this program will enhance and enrich you as a real estate professional.

Note: failure to complete required training, as provided to you in your confirmation email, will jeopardize membership resulting in suspension and a reinstatement fee. In the event of suspension, you are prohibited from using the term REALTOR®, a registered trademark, on any business card, letterhead or stationery.

Required REALTOR® Training

Did you know that not all licensees are REALTORS®?

A real estate licensee can only be classified as a REALTOR® after becoming a member of the National Association of REALTORS®. The first step on your road to becoming a REALTOR® is to obtain a state-issued real estate license.

Acquiring a Pennsylvania Real Estate License

In order to sell or rent properties in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and earn a commission in the process, you must first obtain your real estate salesperson license. To obtain your Pennsylvania Real Estate License, you:

Must complete Real Estate Fundamentals and Real Estate Practice for a total of 75 hours of education. Coursework must be completed through a Commission-approved provider. You must be at least 18 years of age and hold a high school diploma or GED. Pre-licensing coursework must be completed prior to taking and passing the Pennsylvania Real Estate Salesperson Exam. Our partner, The CE Shop, offers all coursework required to fulfill this education requirement.
Must schedule and pass the state licensing exam. This must be taken at a PearsonVUE Testing Center.
Must submit a criminal record check, which can be obtained through the state police’s PATCH website. The criminal record check cannot be older than 90 days from the date the Commission receives your license application.
Must have a sponsoring broker to submit your Salesperson License Application online use the state’s PALS website. Once you complete the application and submit all required documents, your employing broker must login and complete their portion of the application.

Mandatory Code of Ethics Training for REALTORS®

REALTORS® are required to complete ethics training of not less than 2 hours, 30 minutes of instructional time once every three-year cycle. The training must meet specific learning objectives and criteria established by the National Association of REALTORS®.

The current three-year cycle will end December 31, 2024. Local REALTOR® associations are required to provide access to ethics training programs that meet this requirement. This can be accomplished in conjunction with other associations or through some other method, such as home study, correspondence, classroom courses or online courses.

New members of local REALTOR® associations must complete similar training when they first join. A new member who has completed the New Member Code of Ethics Orientation shall not be required to complete additional ethics training until the next three-year cycle.

A REALTOR® who has completed the required ethics training within a three-year cycle in one association shall not be required to complete any further ethics training for that same training cycle if the REALTOR® becomes or is a member of another association. In addition, a member may take courses to satisfy this ethics training requirement through any association or outside training facility where the member can provide satisfactory documentation of completion.

Ultimately, it is the local association where the individual holds membership that will determine if the training taken meets the required learning objectives and criteria. Failure to complete the required ethics training shall be a violation of a membership duty for which membership is suspended and subsequently terminated.

Be sure to familiarize yourself with the Code of Ethics Training requirements and learning objectives for new members and existing members.

REALTOR® Emeritus

A REALTOR® Member who has held membership in the National Association as a REALTOR®, REALTOR-ASSOCIATE®, or both, for a cumulative period of forty (40) years, is eligible for REALTOR® Emeritus status.

The REALTOR® Emeritus status eligibility requirements are:

Forty (40) years of REALTOR® or REALTOR-ASSOCIATE® (or both) membership.
Proof of one (1) year of service* at the National Association level.

* “Service” is defined as serving as an NAR officer, director, committee member, Federal Political Coordinator, Global Ambassador, or Global Coordinator to a country with which NAR holds a reciprocal agreement.
Upon approval of an application for REALTOR® Emeritus status by the Board of Directors of the National Association of REALTORS®, no further payment of dues to the National Association is necessary by the member association of which the REALTOR® Emeritus is a member. Please note that the dues waiver does not take effect until the dues year immediately following the Board of Directors’ approval. In addition, REALTOR® Emeritus Members are exempt from the Code of Ethics Training requirement.

A completed application is necessary to begin the approval process for REALTOR® Emeritus status, which must be completed by the candidate’s local association. Documentation substantiating the candidate’s forty (40) years of membership and one (1) year of service at the National Association level must be attached to the application. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Please contact GPAR’s Donna LePera at 215-423-9381 or email her at donna@gpar.org for deadline and application information.