2. REALTOR-ASSOCIATE® Members shall be those independent contractors and salesmen who are affiliated with or employed by a REALTOR® Member or a firm, partnership, or corporation of which any REALTOR® Member is a sole proprietor, partner or officer, who are actively engaged in the real estate business and who are deemed qualified for REALTOR-ASSOCIATE® membership by a local board within the state in which the independent contractor or salesman is actively engaged in the real estate business or within a state whose border is contiguous with that state, or if the real estate firm is located outside the jurisdiction of any local board, by the state association within whose territory the independent contractor or salesman is actively engaged in the real estate business having an effective membership agreement with the National Association as provided in Article XV, Section 2.

3. Individuals who are employed by or affiliated as independent contractors with the REALTOR® principals of a real estate firm shall be eligible to be considered for primary membership as REALTORS® or REALTOR-ASSOCIATE®s only in those member boards in which a principal of the real estate firm or an individual in a position of management control on behalf of a principal who is not physically present and engaged in the real estate business in connection with the firm's real estate office holds REALTOR® membership.

Source: 2011 Constitution

At the National level, Realtor and Realtor Associate are the same thing - they are all Realtors paying the same
NAR dues, receiving the same rights and privileges with the same duties and obligations. At some local
boards their local bylaws define the two a little differently when it comes to the local dues amount they
pay, but there is no difference at the national level. When we talk about Realtor counts for dues,
directors, delegates, magazines, etc. we count both together.