Kurt Thompson

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit Massachusetts hard in the spring and the state issued stay-at-home orders, many residents faced housing instability and economic uncertainty. The Massachusetts Association of Realtors members began to discuss ways in which they could help those Massachusetts residents struggling with housing stability to stay in their homes.  

In addition to successfully advocating for significant state funding increases in rental and mortgage assistance programs to support Massachusetts renters struggling in the midst of the pandemic, including the Residential Assistance for Families in Transition (RAFT) and Emergency Rental and Mortgage Assistance (ERMA), MAR members also wanted to play a more active role in assisting those in need.  

Inspired by the work of Attorney General Maura Healey’s office offering mediation of housing disputes during the pandemic, MAR worked to develop ways to offer the services of trained Realtor mediators to assist in these efforts.  

Mediation is a process that uses a neutral third party to facilitate the negotiation of disputes with a goal of reaching a settlement agreement that both parties can agree to. Mediation is an opportunity for parties to resolve their own dispute rather than turning over control of the decision process to up to a judge. Also, while the judge is required to make a decision on the legal evidence following the legal rules applicable to the case, the parties can reach settlement terms tailored to satisfy their own individual interests and needs.  

The MAR Mediation Scholarship is just one of the many ways Massachusetts Realtors are playing a pivotal role in their communities during the pandemic and can serve as a model for other states. It is also a natural fit for Realtors, many of whom are already trained mediators and have extensive negotiation experience through the contract brokering process. Any Massachusetts Realtors able to fulfill the training requirements and practice expectations may apply and participate in the program.  

What’s Involved 

The MAR Mediation Scholarship consists of a $1,500 credit to attend a state-approved mediation training course, totaling roughly 35 hours, and receive mentorship through a local affiliate of Healey’s Face-to-Face Program, which provides access to mediation services for residents across the commonwealth.  

Upon completion of these requirements, scholarship recipients will be eligible to mediate disputes through their local Face-to-Face program, including pre-court and District Court eviction cases, with the goal of bringing property owners and residents together to resolve disputes outside of a courtroom setting. Scholarship recipients are expected to provide at least 60 hours of volunteer mediation assistance following the fulfillment of course and training requirements.  

The scholarship will help supplement the efforts of many mediation programs around the state and Gov. Charlie Baker’s Eviction Diversion Initiative, working in cooperation with the Massachusetts attorney general’s office, at a time when the courts are in need of additional assistance. For filed cases, MAR’s Realtor mediators can help parties reach fair outcomes and avoid costly and time-consuming trials.  

Mediation has proven extremely effective in court, especially for eviction cases where Housing Court mediators successfully resolve around 80 percent of cases before going to trial. Ultimately though, the program is designed to equitably resolve cases even earlier in the process, helping to soften, if not avoid, any spike in eviction filings, thereby protecting housing stability for Massachusetts residents and preserving court capacity.  

Thus far, MAR has been overwhelmed by the response from members, with 50-plus applications and counting. We are rapidly working to expand our initial offering through outreach to local mediation programs for additional trainings and mentoring capabilities. We are also working to secure additional funding to increase our scholarship capacity. We hope to provide this valuable training and volunteer opportunity to everyone with interest. MAR will share updates and scholarship decisions with all applicants in the coming weeks. 

The MAR Mediation Scholarship is just one more way that Realtors are working to improve their local communities across the commonwealth.  

Kurt Thompson is the 2020 president of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors and a broker with Keller Williams in Leominster.