Oklahoma City Realtor takes on battle for property rights at the national level
Kathy Fowler takes property rights personally and professionally as a Realtor, and she’s taking her concerns and lobbying efforts up a national notch.
She’s been named chairman of the National Association of Realtors Political Action Committee (RPAC) Major Investor Council. Her day job — often a day-and-night job; I know lots of Realtors — is as state managing broker for eXP Realty.
The Realtors say RPAC has one purpose:
“RPAC’s mission is to identify candidates for elected office on the local, state, and national levels who will work with Realtors to promote and protect the American Dream of property ownership. Candidates who receive support from RPAC are not selected based on their political party or ideology, but
solely on their support of real estate issues.”
Fowler, 51, said dedication to defending property rights isn’t the only thing the Realtors want in candidates for of
fice. For example, RPAC also lobbies for affordable down payments.
“The U.S. is one of only two countries
with 30-year mortgages,” she said. “It’s vital we protect that option for consumers. That’s why we work hard to build relationships on both sides of the aisle politically, so we can support homeowners no matter who controls Congress.”
I haven’t heard of any threat against 30-year mortgages — aside from climate change — but if there is, RPAC will be on it.
Here are some of Fowler’s thoughts on her new role.
Q. Congratulations on being named as chairman of the RPAC Major Investor Council. What is the general role of the council? A. The Major Investor Council is
composed of a representative from each of the 50 states that is charged with raising money for the Realtor Political Action Committee. The fundraising is divided into two areas, participation and major investors, which are investors who give more than $1,000/year.
The money we raise is used to support political candidates on the local, state and national level who support property issues such as an affordable solution to flood insurance, preserving the 30-year mortgage, keeping down payments affordable, etc.
Recent state legislative wins have been legislation prohibiting “wholesaling,” sometimes called equity theft, and starting a first-time homebuyers savings account program.
Q. What in your career prepared you for this role?
A. I served for 15 years on the state legislative committee studying bills that affect both residential and commercial property owners in Oklahoma. I have chaired local RPAC committees in Enid and Oklahoma City and served as the chair of the State RPAC Committee for four years.
Q. What are some of the issues you’re staying on top of ?
A. One of the biggest issues locally and nationally is the housing shortage.
Although it is easy to point the finger at COVID-19, this is more the result of underbuilding for nearly 20 years.
Home starts did not fully come back after the housing crisis in 2008-09, so we are working with Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) on the Housing Supply and Affordability Act.
Another tool to help is the Neighborhood Homes Investment Act, which will offer tax credits to attract private investment for building and rehabilitating owner-occupied homes. This is a bipartisan effort with longtime property owner advocate Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Sen. Tim Scott from South Carolina.
Q. What is of particular interest or importance to Oklahomans?
A. Flood insurance and the rental eviction moratorium are of particular interest to Oklahomans.
Homeowners insurance does not cover flood and over 13,000 property owners would be without coverage without the National Flood Insurance Program. If they have a mortgage, they would be in default, so keeping some sort of flood insurance available to Oklahomans is critical.
The eviction moratorium has been especially difficult for the “mom-andpop” landlords who provide nearly half of the rental units available in Oklahoma. These are the owners who are the most likely to work with their tenants, so we need to help them continue to provide housing in Oklahoma.
Q. Do you have anything else to add?
A. What sets the Realtor PAC apart is that the money comes from voluntary contributions and supports candidates on both sides of the aisle. In a time when everything is so adversarial, I am proud to be part of an effort that brings people together around something that we all value: our home.