To help Realtors better understand the issues involved with the upcoming decision on the display of Multiple Listing Service data on virtual office Web sites (VOWs), the National Association of Realtors has created and is distributing educational materials to members of NAR's Board of Directors, leadership and state and local Realtor associations.

At its next meeting on May 17 in Washington, NAR's board is scheduled to consider a proposed national policy governing VOWs, which are online brokerage services that allow access to real estate data from MLSs to consumers who register.

The special educational materials include a special section in the May issue of REALTOR Magazine that explains VOWs and the need for a VOW policy, a video and a Power Point presentation. The video features Ann Hale Bailey, a consultant to NAR who has been working with the association's working groups on the draft VOW policy. The video and Power Point have been distributed on CD-ROM disks so that they can be played on personal computers.