Texas is once again at the center of real estate-aligned political spending, as new federal filings show the National Association of Realtors’ Political Action Committee directing more of its candidate contributions and independent expenditure dollars to the state than anywhere else ahead of the 2026 cycle.
The filings, submitted to the Federal Election Commission in mid-March 2026 and covering activity from early 2025 through late February 2026, include itemized disbursements from the Realtors Political Action Committee as well as separate reports on independent expenditures. They outline spending across candidate contributions, political advertising, party committee funding and transfers within NAR’s broader political network.
Inman has contacted the National Association of Realtors for comment and will update this story if a response is received.
Texas leads candidate funding, but at modest levels
The filings, which cover activity from early 2025 through late February 2026, show roughly $10 million in total disbursements across more than 2,000 transactions. But only a portion of that total went directly to federal candidates.
Instead, the data reveals a layered political spending approach that includes candidate contributions, party committee support, PAC-to-PAC transfers and internal organizational spending.
Of the total, about $1.27 million was directed to campaign committees tied to individual candidates. Within that subset, Texas received the most funding, with about $147,000 in contributions, more than any other state in the dataset. California and North Carolina followed, with $126,000 and $76,000, respectively.
Among the largest individual recipients were Republican Mark Harris (North Carolina, $13,000), Republican Matthew Van Epps (Tennessee, $10,000), and Democrat Joe Courtney (Connecticut, $6,000). A long list of candidates — including Texas Republicans Roger Williams, Randy Weber and Dan Crenshaw, as well as Democrat Henry Cuellar — received contributions of $5,000.
NAR plays both sides and its own network
Beyond candidates, NAR directed significant funding to national party committees on both sides of the aisle.
The Republican National Committee received about $210,000, while the National Republican Congressional Committee, National Republican Senatorial Committee, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee each received roughly $150,000. Democratic National Committee-aligned entities received approximately $210,000 in combined contributions.
The filings also show extensive activity within the Realtor political network itself, with funds flowing to state-level Realtor PACs. Maryland, South Carolina and Indiana RPACs were among the largest recipients.
NAR–aligned advertising dollars pile into Texas, as well
Independent expenditures are funds used for advertising and messaging about candidates rather than directly given to their campaigns. In this spending, NAR-backed dollars also flowed primarily to Texas, according to the filings.
More than $360,000 in independent expenditures was directed at Texas candidates alone, underscoring the state’s importance to housing-related policy debates. Texas accounted for the largest share of independent expenditure dollars in this dataset.
The bulk of that spending — nearly $288,000 — was directed at John Cornyn, the senior U.S. senator from Texas. That level of concentration is notable, even for a major industry-aligned effort. All the identified expenditures were directed toward supporting Cornyn, with none directed against him.
For example, NAR’s PAC was linked to roughly $216,000 in digital advertising costs supporting Cornyn on Feb. 11, 2026, with Bridge Impact LLC of Bethesda, Maryland listed as the payee. Another expenditure of about $71,100 for online video production was paid to Meath Media Group of Washington, D.C.
Cornyn has long been a key figure in Washington, D.C., on issues tied to tax policy and financial regulation, areas where real estate groups have historically invested heavily in advocacy. He is currently facing a closely watched Republican primary runoff against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Smaller bets, bigger shakeups in House races
While the Senate race dominates the independent expenditure totals, the filings also show smaller, targeted NAR-backed advertising and related spending across several Texas House races, including those of Tony Gonzales (R), Dan Crenshaw (R), Julie Johnson (D), and Henry Cuellar (D).
The spending was directed at both Republicans and Democrats, reflecting a strategy that aligns with how real estate–related groups have historically engaged lawmakers on both sides of the aisle on housing-related policy.
Federal filings show that NAR’s PAC directed its advertising spending in support of both Gonzales and Crenshaw, with roughly $40,000 backing Gonzales and just over $13,000 supporting Crenshaw. None of the expenditures in this dataset opposed either candidate.
NAR’s PAC spent roughly $10,500 supporting Johnson and just over $10,000 backing Cuellar, both Democrats, with no expenditures in this dataset opposing either candidate. It underscores the group’s bipartisan approach to supporting lawmakers aligned with its policy priorities.
In each case, the spending coincided with competitive primary contests across Texas House districts. Gonzalez ended his reelection bid after withdrawing from the Republican primary runoff, following his admission of an affair with a staffer. Crenshaw was defeated outright in his Republican primary by hard-line Texas state representative Steve Toth.
Julie Johnson will face former Rep. Colin Allred in a Democratic primary runoff after neither candidate secured a majority in the initial vote.
In Texas’ 28th Congressional District, Cuellar easily fended off a primary challenger, securing renomination in the South Texas border seat he has long represented. Cuellar’s political standing has been shaped by a high-profile legal saga. He was indicted under the Biden administration on allegations that he and his wife accepted roughly $600,000 in bribes from an Azerbaijan-linked energy company and a Mexican bank. He was later granted an unconditional pardon by President Trump.
Money flows to Texas, but the ground is shifting
The concentration of NAR-backed spending in Texas likely reflects the state’s growing role in housing policy debates, spanning tax incentives, housing supply and mortgage access. As population growth shifts economic and political influence toward the Sun Belt, Texas lawmakers play a significant role in shaping those discussions.
For real estate professionals, the implications extend beyond campaign finance. NAR’s political spending has long focused on policies that directly impact agents, brokers and homeowners. With many of those issues facing renewed scrutiny following the association’s recent commission-related legal challenges, the stakes heading into the 2026 midterms may be higher than usual.
