NAREB’s 50th anniversary was held Wednesday, August 28, 2019, at the historic 1850s era Italianate Annesdate Mansion on Lamar. Story by Tony Jones NAREB’s 50th Anniversary Party Precedes State Of Black Housing Report The Memphis Chapter of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB) hosted a cocktail party Wednesday, Aug 28th to celebrate the chapter’s 50th Anniversary helping to sustain African American realtors. Held at the Annesdale Mansion on Lamar, several speakers saluted the organization’s quietly impactful influence on African American commerce and the nation’s democracy. Founded in Tampa, Florida in 1947, it’s not a stretch to refer to them as a secret weapon of black progress. The organization’s members are after more than just commissions, chapter president Cheryl Muhammad emphasizes. She and other members have been utilizing their social media imprints, regular conversation and, where appropriate, sales meetings and business encounters to trumpet NAREB’s official message of “Building Black Wealth Through Homeownership”. “It’s not a slogan, it’s the truth,” Muhammad espouses. “Think of all the professions, tradesmen, goods and supplies used in the home daily and you come to realize it’s simply a workable concept that needs more emphasis, especially here where the social map is crying out for the need to grow the black business sector. We’ve been trumpeting this call for decades, now urban areas throughout the nation are beginning to realize the bedrock impact of home ownership in the black community.” That cry in the wilderness has coalesced into NAREB’s 2MN5 initiative. The abbreviation stands for 2 million new homes in 5 years. When first announced several years ago, the ir seemingly lofty initiative wasn’t met with much national attention, but now their cry in the wilderness has become a trumpet call that is especially relevant to cities like Memphis, where the group’s initiative feels like a spring wind. Muhammad feels, “NAREB is a sleeping giant. I see us as potentially as important in our market as any organization you can name. We have a real legacy that drives us forward, and a real need to fulfill.” Both can be found on the website, nareb.com. “NAREB has played varying influential roles in the implementation of equal rights, fair housing, equal opportunity, and community development legislation at the local, state, and federal levels since its founding. Some significant policy achievements of NAREB were the first local fair housing legislation in 1962 in New York City, the first state fair housing legislation in 1963 in California, and the first national fair housing legislation in both 1947 and 1968. It was the 193 California legislation that propelled NAREB into national prominence.” The organization recently released its’ annual State Of Housing In Black America report hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus in the nation’s capital, the main highlight of a wealth of information available on their website. 18
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