Representatives from the Greater Fort Worth Association of REALTORS® (GFWAR) visited the Texas Capitol on March 26 for Realtor Day, a biennial opportunity for Realtors to address state representatives and lobby for legislation that benefits homeowners, homesellers, property owners and the real estate industry as a whole.

“As Realtors, we will always advocate on behalf of fair real estate practices, and an opportunity to speak directly with our legislators is not wasted,” GFWAR President Paul Epperley said in a press release. “We want to ensure the voices of those in the Fort Worth region are heard and our legislators know what is important to their local constituents as the economic and homebuying/selling landscape continues to evolve.”

Here are the house bills (HB) and senate bills (SB) GFWAR addressed on Realtor Day, as well as their intended benefits to the industry:

• HB 8 and 9 increase state funding for school districts to offset local tax rates for homeowners.
• SB 4 provides tax deductions by raising homestead exemptions to $140,000.
• SB 673 and HB 1779 grant homeowners’ ability to build accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and otherwise modify their properties.
• SB 7 and HB 16 improve water resource management.