Honoring The Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS(r) on the occasion of celebrating their 100th Anniversary.

WHEREAS, The Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS® (GPAR) was founded on January 10, 1908, as the Philadelphia Real Estate Brokers Association. Since then, the Association has grown to become the most influential professional real estate association in Philadelphia; and

WHEREAS, In 1908, loosely knit neighborhood broker groups carried out the various real estate transactions in Philadelphia. What was then known as the Philadelphia Board of REALTORS® (PBR), GPAR succeeded in unifying these groups and brought order to Philadelphia's real estate market; and

WHEREAS, In the same year, the Board became a founding member of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), which organized REALTORS® on a national level; and

WHEREAS, The Association has always been an advocate of private property owners, as well as an ardent crusader against government spending and unnecessary real estate tax increases. A real estate license law, drafted by the Board and passed by the Pennsylvania legislature in 1929, became a model for similar laws adopted in other states; and

WHEREAS, Since its inception, the Association has worked diligently to improve the City of Philadelphia. In the mid to late twenties, GPAR was involved in industrial development, mass transit, dealing with problems of deteriorating neighborhoods and keeping large industries from leaving Philadelphia. The Association continued to battle excessive real estate taxation and played an active role in the New Deal programs of the Roosevelt Administration during the forties; and

WHEREAS, Since the 1960's, GPAR has maintained a strong working relationship with the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations in dealing with urban housing; and

WHEREAS, In 1995, PBR became the Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS® to reflect the growing scope of its members and services. GPAR continues to be a unifying force for its members, and is still active in such issues as the anti-graffiti effort and real estate tax assessment; and

WHEREAS, GPAR has formed strong relationships with many city agencies in its attempt to promote and advocate private property rights and homeownership in Philadelphia; and

WHEREAS, GPAR works to give back to the community and polices its own members by holding ethics hearings in response to consumer complaints; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That Council does hereby honor The Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS® on the occasion of celebrating their 100th Anniversary.

FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to The Greater Philadelphia Association of REALTORS® as evidence of the sincere sentiments and recognition of this legislative body.

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