Weekly Notices

Friday, May 15, 2015

2015 NAR Legislative Meetings

More than 8,000 REALTORSŽ arrive in Washington to help ensure federal legislation and regulations help rather than hurt real estate. The REALTORSŽ are in town for the 2015 NAR Legislative Meetings.

To learn about the issues, The Voice for Real Estate host Stephen Gasque talks with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and NAR Chief Lobbyist Jerry Giovaniello talks about priorities in NAR's legislative town hall meeting.

The video also covers lawmakers getting tough on patent trolls and NAR Senior Counsel Finley Maxson provides advice on preparing for August 1 changes to closing procedures.

Featured segments:

2015 NAR Legislative Meetings
NAR Town Hall on legislative priorities
Lawmakers move on patent trolls
Advice on upcoming changes to closing forms

Watch the six-minute video online here:

The Voice for Real Estate 22:
Legislative Meetings, HUD-1

Home Inspections

NEW!

Washington REALTORSŽ Legal Hotline lawyer Annie Fitzsimmons returns this week with a fresh video in her continuing series on Strategies for a Competitive Marketplace.

Buyers (and their Brokers) are getting creative trying to come out on top among multiple offers.

Waiving the home inspection or doing a verbal pre-inspection may not be a good idea.

Annie Fitzsimmons explains the ramifications of pre-inspections from both the buyer and seller's point of view.

Learn more in this eight-minute video:

Strategies for a Competitive Marketplace
Part 6: Home Inspections

Lunch & Learn - Identity Theft

NEXT WEEK!

Bring a group from your office or invite a friend or two so you can all learn how to defend yourselves against identity theft:

Monday, May 18th
Noon to 1:30 p.m.
at your SAR

See the event flyer, pictured above, online here.

Lunch & Learn - Auctions & Real Estate

Learn the good, the bad and the ugly in real estate sales by auction at your SAR:

Monday, June 8th
Noon to 1:30 p.m.
at your SAR

See the event flyer, pictured above, online here.

Lunch & Learn - Safety

Learn how to reduce opportunities that make you a target - from a retired deputy sheriff - at this valuable, new Lunch & Learn at your SAR:

Monday, June 15th
Noon to 1:30 p.m.
at your SAR

See the event flyer, pictured above, online here.

2015 REALTORŽ Education

CONTINUING EDUCATION

Quality of Education

through SAR/WR Education Instructors

Here is the latest class listing of your SAR - offering the best live and local continuing real estate education classes for 2015.

Click on each class title, underlined in blue, to bring up a flyer for that class - suitable for posting in your office.

Register for these classes online here:

Please be in touch with Debbie at the SAR if you have any questions about these classes or your license education requirements, by phone at 326-9222 or by email.

Core Curriculum:
Current Issues in Washington Residential Real Estate

NEXT WEEK!

Tuesday, May 19 - Core Curriculum: Current Issues in Washington Residential Real Estate - with Sabrina Jones-Schroeder.

You must take this class every two years for your renewal.

Registration: 8:15 a.m.
Class: 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
at the SAR

3.0 clock hours

Code of Ethics for Real Estate Professionals

Code of Ethics for the Real Estate Professional

NEXT WEEK!

Tuesday, May 19 - Code of Ethics for the Real Estate Professional - with Linda Miller.

This Code of Ethics class is for you if you are past your first license renewal. You are required to take a Code of Ethics class once between January 2013 and December 2016.

Registration: Noon
Class: 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
at the SAR

4.0 clock hours

Thursday, May 28 - The Nekkid Truth: Six Principles of Building a Real Estate Business - with Linda Miller.

By popular demand - this all-new class is especially helpful for those just getting their real estate license and asking the question, "What now?"

Registration: 8:15 a.m.
Class: 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
at the SAR

4.0 clock hours

How to Work with Difficult People
and Conflict Resolution

Thursday, June 4 - How to Work with Difficult People and Conflict Resolution - with Linda Miller.

Registration: 8:15 a.m.
Class: 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
at the SAR

3.- clock hours

Fair Housing: R.E. Licensee Accountability

Thursday, June 4 - Fair Housing: R.E. Licensee Accountability - with Linda Miller.

The SAR highly recommends this class.

Registration: 12:30 p.m.
Class: 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
at the SAR

3.5 clock hours

Friday, June 5 - Land and Acreage 200: Rural Property - with Jim Palmer, Jr.

BIGGER! BETTER! This is a new 7.5 hour Land and Acreage class. You may take it whether or not you've already taken the original 4.0 clock hour class. Lots of good information in this new class.

"At some point, every broker will have the opportunity to represent a client in a transaction that involves a well, septic system or acreage," Joe Garst, SAR immediate past president.

Registration: 8:15 a.m.
Class: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
at the SAR

7.5 clock hours

Purchase & Sale Agreement

Thursday, June 11 - Statewide Purchase & Sale Agreement - with Sabrina Jones-Schroeder.

This class is full. Please see below for a second offering.

Registration: 8:15 a.m.
Class: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
at the SAR

7.5 clock hours

Purchase & Sale Agreement

Thursday, July 2 - Statewide Purchase & Sale Agreement- with Sabrina Jones Schroeder.

Registration: 8:15 a.m.
Class: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
at the SAR

7.5 clock hours

In This Issue

2015 NAR Legislative Meetings

Home Inspections

Lunch & Learn - Identity Theft

Lunch & Learn - Auctions & Real Estate

Lunch & Learn - Safety

2015 REALTOR® Education

SAR CALENDAR

Learn from Last Year's Murder

Washington Housing Market Strong

Drone Tests Expanded

Doc Overhaul

ListHub Report for April

Market Activity Report - April

You Be The Judge - May

Member Roster Update

Suggestion Box

SAR CALENDAR

Click on the image below to see the current SAR calendar

showing dates and times of classes, committees and events.

Learn from Last Year's Murder

Pleading for the real estate community to learn from last year's murder of Arkansas agent Beverly Carter (pictured at left), her son implored practitioners during the 2015 REALTORSŽ Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo in Washington, D.C. to make safety a higher priority in their businesses.

Read the story in REALTORŽ magazine, online here.

Washington Housing Market Strong

Washington state's housing market was strong in the first quarter of 2015, with both sales and new building permits up compared with a year ago and the market remaining largely affordable, according to a new report from the Washington Center for Real Estate Research at the Runstad Center.

Housing affordability for all buyers statewide continued to rise in the first quarter; however, affordability varied widely across the state.

The Center's findings were discussed further with UW Today, online here.

Drone Tests Expanded

The Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday that it will expand its tests on the use of UAVs - Unmanned Aerial Vehicles systems or commonly referred to as "drones" -- for commercial purposes.

FAA's studies will include tests over the safety of flights taking place over urban areas and over distances farther than the pilot can see.

FAA's latest announcement has been viewed by industry advocates, who have been awaiting to use UAVs, as a possible sign of greater openness by the FAA in permitting commercial use of drones.

Read more in REALTOR magazine, online here.

Doc Overhaul

August 1 will be a big day for real estate professionals because that's when two new closing forms - a Loan Estimate and a Closing Disclosure - will replace the three forms you're used to working with: the HUD-1 Settlement Statement, the Good Faith Estimate, and the Truth-in-Lending disclosure form.

These updates are part of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) and Truth in Lending Act (TILA).

Read more in the new issue of REALTORŽ magazine, online here.

ListHub Report for April

See the April ListHub report, online here.

Market Activity Report - April

The SAR Market Activity Report for April is now online.

See the latest report - and archived reports - online here.

See the April 2015 summary report (pictured above) online here.

See the 2015 year-to-date summary report (pictured above) online here.

You Be The Judge - May

Here is You Be The Judge for May:

Case #1-5: Promotion of Client's Interests

Read the case and submit your judgement online here.

Those who decide correctly will be entered in a drawing for a Starbucks coffee card!

Winner to be announced next month.

Congratulations Anne-Marie Ophus, Exit Real Estate Professionals, our April Starbucks card winner!

APRIL ANSWER
The Hearing Panel pointed out that brokers have no hesitation in advising clients that properties are overpriced when this is the case, and they are obligated to be equally candid in providing their best judgment to clients when properties being offered for sale are obviously underpriced.

The panel concluded that in view of the wide discrepancy between the owner's asking price and the property's market value, which REALTORŽ B conceded was apparent to him, it was REALTORŽ B's obligation as an agent to advise his client that the house was worth considerably more, especially since it was apparent that Client A had been away from the community for years and was out of touch with local values. The Hearing Panel found REALTORŽ B in violation of Article 1.

Case #1-15: Obligation to Advise Client on Market Value

See the full text of last month's case, online here.

Member Roster Update

NEW!

Click here to view the latest Roster Update - listing new and resigned members and companies.

Click here to view the latest list of MLS Subscription Waivers approved by the SAR Board of Directors.

Send a message to Angie at the SAR with any changes.

Suggestion Box