Arnold to retire as CEO, general counsel of R.I. Realtors and MLS

WARWICK – Susan Arnold, CEO and general counsel of the Rhode Island Association of Realtors and State-Wide Multiple Listing Service, will retire at the end of the year.

Arnold has led the RIAR and its subsidiary, the MLS, since 1997. Prior to her promotion to CEO, she served as the association’s lobbyist and general counsel.

During her years as CEO, Arnold oversaw the development and growth of the organization’s websites, RILiving.com and RILivingCommercial.com, used by thousands of individuals searching for properties for sale, rent or lease each year.

In recent years, she also oversaw the development of the Rhode Island Commercial Information Exchange, a data exchange service for commercial real estate professionals.

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The Rhode Island Association of Realtors has approximately 4,000 members in 750 offices. Rhode Island Realtor transactions resulted in more than $6.2 billion in property sales last year, according to a press release.

Arnold also served on numerous national committees during her tenure, including the National Association of Realtors Legal Action Committee, NAR Multiple Listing Issues and Policy Committee, and the NAR Association Executives Committee. Regionally she served as a director on the New England Realtors Committee, the Rhode Island Housing Resources Commission and Grow Smart Rhode Island. She is also the CEO of the Realtor Foundation, a nonprofit arm of RIAR that helps individuals with housing-related needs.

“Susan is an exceptional leader and will be greatly missed by our entire association,” Robert Martin, RIAR president, said in a statement. “She has strengthened our organization and all Realtors and their clients are better off thanks to her work here.”

John Silvia, president of State-Wide MLS, said, “Susan has left an indelible mark. She navigated MLS through the growth of the Internet which changed real estate dramatically. Now RILiving.com is one of Rhode Island’s greatest success stories. Her successor will have huge shoes to fill.”

Prior to her employment at the Rhode Island Association of Realtors and State-Wide MLS, Arnold was a business manager, closing attorney and South County Realtor. A member of the Phi Delta Phi International Legal Honors Fraternity, she is a past recipient of an American Jurisprudence Award. She received undergraduate degrees in English and education from Tufts University and a law degree from Suffolk University.

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