Bob Goldberg is the Chief Executive Officer of the National Association of REALTORS®. Since assuming the role in August of 2017, Bob has overseen transformations that have positioned NAR as real estate’s leading figure in the fight for diversity and inclusion; the industry’s primary driver of technological innovation; and as an association lauded for a genuine, unwavering commitment to its members. As part of the responsibility that NAR has to more than 1.5 million REALTORS® worldwide, Goldberg has overseen the formation of several initiatives which have influenced the market and proven immensely valuable to NAR’s general membership.
Founded under Goldberg’s leadership, NAR’s Strategic Business Innovation and Technology (SBIT) group has transformed the industry by launching several widespread real estate technology—or PropTech—tools. More than 150 global technology firms have been scaled through NAR’s tech growth program, REACHand its investment arm, Second Century Ventures, of which Goldberg serves as president. Together, the two entities played a significant role in helping propel real estate through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today, over 600,000 REALTORS® use SCV & REACH solutions annually, delivering a cumulative savings of more than $60 million to NAR members. With REACH continuing its expansion, NAR projected it would welcome some 40 new technologies to the program’s global portfolio in 2022 alone. With Goldberg’s direction, SBIT also successfully launched NAR’s annual Innovation, Opportunity & Investment (iOi) Summit. In just its third installment, the conference welcomed 500 real estate practitioners, investors, and PropTech leaders to examine the future of real estate, pool talent and resources, and fund new ideas.
In an effort to provide REALTORS® an opportunity to leverage their individual brands within the broader, $5 billion REALTOR® brand, Goldberg spearheaded NAR’s acquisition of the top-level “.realtor” and “.realestate” domains. Today, “.realtor” has made it easier for home buyers, sellers, and investors to locate a trusted source of real estate information and services.
Under Goldberg’s leadership, NAR’s advocacy presence in Washington, D.C. and in state capitals across the U.S. helped guide the industry through the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting real estate’s classification as an “essential” service and helping the residential market pace America’s broader economic recovery. Existing home transactions soared throughout 2020 and 2021, reaching 15-year highs in 2021. Today, NAR remains one of the nation’s most influential advocacy groups, working daily with policymakers on issues ranging from housing affordability and racial inequity in real estate to national flood insurance and infrastructure reform.
In the depths of the pandemic, Goldberg revived the association’s popular “Right Tools, Right Now” program and spearheaded an initiative to provide telemedicine service to NAR members, helping protect REALTORS® both physically and financially.
Overall, Goldberg has fostered a staff culture focused on respect, putting members first, leading change, communicating, and collaborating. He has worked to ensure decisions made at the association are made from a member’s perspective, and he instituted a “Day in the Life” program designed to ensure all 350+ NAR staff members understand the challenges and complexities REALTORS® face each day in their profession. The organization also initiated the REALTOR® Safety Network, a national alert system that strengthens NAR’s existing REALTOR® Safety Program.
In addition, it created an innovative, self-directed program for REALTORS® to encourage professional development. Today, more than 90,000 REALTORS® are participating in NAR’s Commitment to Excellence (C2EX) program, surpassing by more than 300% its initial goal set in November 2018.
Finally, Goldberg has made corporate responsibility a priority during his time leading NAR, partnering with the Food Recovery Network—and encouraging state and local REALTOR® groups from across the country to do the same—to fight hunger and combat food waste. Since the partnership began in 2019, NAR and other state and local REALTOR® groups have donated more than 3,700 pounds of food—or roughly 3,100 meals—to those in need throughout the U.S.
A 26-year veteran of NAR and a member of the REALTORS® Political Action Committee Hall of Fame, Goldberg worked as a senior vice president at the association before ascending to its top career leadership position. Prior to joining NAR, he was an SVP at PRC Realty Systems, the nation’s leading provider of computer-based real estate information.
In January 2021, Goldberg was named the eighth most influential real estate executive by the Swanepoel Power 200, and the industry’s single most powerful association or MLS executive. Under his leadership, NAR has been labeled one of America’s best places to work by the Great Places to Work® Institute for two straight years.
Bob is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He and his wife, Susan, a former REALTOR®, split their time between Chicago, Illinois, and Clarksville, Maryland.
