Weekly Notices

Friday, January 22, 2016

Spokane/Kootenai Real Estate Forum

The popular 2016 Spokane/Kootenai Real Estate Market Forum will be held on Thursday, February 25th, at the Spokane Convention Center.

Your SAR sponsors this event - it is always a valuable experience.

This year, attendees will hear from these featured speakers:

Jim Frank - founder, Greenstone Corp., on Economic and Demographic Drivers

Dave Black, CEO, NAI Black, on Real Estate Impacts of a Completed North/South Freeway Corridor

Mark Mansfield, executive director, Spokane University District Board, on the Spokane University District

See more details and register online here.

Have a product or service of interest to the local real estate community? Reach local real estate leaders from your vendor table at the event! All sponsors will be in the main event room.

For details, see the sponsorship flyer (pictured above) online here.

Broker Symposium

Enjoy REALTORŽ education designed specifically for Designated Brokers, Branch Managers, and Team Leaders.

Plan now to attend the Washington REALTORSŽ Broker Symposium, Thursday, March 17th, at the SeaTac Convention Center.

Take away actionable and useful information to use in your business for improved function, profitability, and fun!

Visit the event web page to learn more and register, online here.

Life in Prison without Parole

The man accused of kidnapping and killing Arkansas real estate agent Beverly Carter (pictured at left) has been sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Carter's case gripped national headlines when the agent went missing following a house showing to a prospective buyer in September 2014.

Prosecutors argued during the trial that the accused and his estranged wife had set up a fake house showing to lure Carter to a home and then kidnapped her and tried to demand ransom from her husband.

REALTORŽ magazine has more online here.

Chris Polychron (pictured at left), was NAR president when Beverly Carter was murdered. After hearing the verdict in her case, he wrote: "I urge all REALTORSŽ to honor Beverly Carter's memory by remaining vigilant."

Read the full version of his remarks online here.

Legal Hotline Mailbag

Often, a question to the Legal Hotline Mailbag returns an answer that could benefit many members, and so it is answered in a video.

Washington REALTORSŽ Legal Hotline lawyer Annie Fitzsimmons is back this week with just such a video.

In this video, Annie discusses delivery of the signed Form 17 and how attaching it to the MLS listing does not necessarily equal 'proof of delivery.'

You can see the five-minute video online here:

Legal Hotline Mailbag

Great Expectations

2016 NAR President Tom Salomone stands behind the words "great expectations" - his slogan for the new year - on the cover of REALTORŽ magazine, this month.

Tom goes back far enough in the business to remember when a key board was, in fact, a board in the office with keys on it, and MLS listings arrived at the office in thick books.

His philosophy: "Average people do what's expected of them. Great people do what's expected - and then some."

Read the uplifting article about our new national president, online here.

2016 Education Requirements

By the current rule, you need to take a Code of Ethics class once in every four-year cycle. That means that if you have not taken a Code of Ethics class since January 1, 2013, then you need to take a COE class before the end of this year!

This COE requirement also applies to appraisers.

Check the SAR's class schedule and register for a class via the Member Portal:

By the new rule, which starts on January 1, 2017, you must complete a Code of Ethics class once in every two-year cycle. The first two-year cycle will begin January 1, 2017, and end December 31, 2018.

Email Debbie at the SAR, or call her at 326-9222, to confirm your status.

While you're checking, NAR, SAR, and WA-DOL require you to take other classes in varying cycles, too.

For example, SAR requires you to take a Purchase & Sale Agreement class once in a four-year cycle; the Washington State Department of Licensing requires you to take the Core Curriculum class once in a two-year cycle.

If you have not taken a Purchase & Sale Agreement class since January 1, 2013, then you need to take a P&S class before the end of this year!

This P&S requirement does not apply to commercial members or appraisers

See a handy guide to WA-DOL, NAR and SAR education requirements (pictured above), online here.

2016 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 2016.

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.

Code of Ethics: Standards for Success

NEXT WEEK - CLASS FULL!

Thursday, January 28 - Code of Ethics: Standards for Success - with Linda Miller Sheets.

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

7.5 clock hours

Statewide Purchase and Sale Agreement

Tuesday, February 9 - Statewide Purchase and 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

Home Inspections for REALTORSŽ and Appraisers

Thursday, February 11 - Home Inspections for REALTORSŽ and Appraisers - with Matthew Pederson.

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

7.5 clock hours

The Code of Ethics for Real Estate Professionals

Friday, February 12 - The Code of Ethics for Real Estate Professionals - with Linda Miller Sheets.

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

4.0 clock hours

Code of Ethics: Standards for Success

Tuesday, February 16 - Code of Ethics: Standards for Success - with Linda Miller Sheets.

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

7.5 clock hours

In This Issue

Spokane/Kootenai Real Estate Forum

Broker Symposium

Life in Prison without Parole

Protect Sensitive Information

Great Expectations

2016 Education Requirements

2016 REALTOR® Education

SAR CALENDAR

SAR Brokers Need to Know

Seller's Market Begins 2016

2016 SAR Dues Past Due

2016 SAR Special Events

WCR January Event

ListHub Report - December - NEW!

Market Activity Report - December - NEW!

You Be The Judge - January - NEW!

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.

SAR Brokers Need to Know

In addition to the Friday Weekly Notices and the Monday Education and Events Update, your SAR offers a monthly electronic product called Brokers Need to Know (pictured above).

This document, created by request of managing brokers, offers current and relevant content in an MS-Word file that you may use to build your communication for your team.

Send an email to Angie at the SAR if you'd like to be added to the distribution list to receive this electronic product.

The January Brokers Need to Know went out last week. The document is online here.

Seller's Market Begins 2016

If you have a seller who's on the fence this year, consider showing them 2016 SAR President Susie Luby's guest column in The Spokesman-Review this past Sunday (pictured above).

Susie writes: "It's a seller's market - in Spokane and much of the country."

It is generally held that the more a market favors the seller, the rosier that region's economic future appears to be.

See Susie's article online here.

2016 SAR Dues Past Due

Your 2016 SAR annual dues were due January 1st, 2016.

Thank you if you have already paid them!

If you have not yet paid your dues, they must be received or postmarked no later than January 31st to avoid a 10% late penalty.

The final date for payment of 2016 Annual Dues is

February 29th - with penalty.

If your payment is not received or postmarked by this date, your membership and services will be inactivated.

To pay your 2016 SAR annual dues online, click on the graphic below, which will bring up the login screen for the SAR member portal.

You may retrieve an invoice while online to pay by mail or you may pay in person at the SAR, 1924 North Ash Street.

Please call 326-9222 if there is any part of this you do not understand.

Thank you for your continuing membership in your SAR!

2016 SAR Special Events

Your SAR Special Events Committee will meet on Thursday, February 4th, at 9:00 a.m.

This 90-minute meeting will share details on upcoming SAR events - Third-grade Poster Contest, Golf Tournament, Food Drive, Christmas Party, and the Washington REALTORSŽ Fun Night - and let you sign up for the events you'd like to work on this year.

All are welcome and encouraged to attend; no previous experience required. There will be something for all tastes and all commitments!

Email Debbie at the SAR, or call her at 326-9222, if you have any questions before the meeting.

WCR January Event

The Spokane-Eastern Washington chapter of Women's Council of REALTORSŽ invites you to its first program of 2016 - Thursday, February 4th - featuring Tami Bonnell, CEO of EXIT Realty Corporation International.

Download the event flyer (pictured above), with more information, online here.

ListHub Report for December

See the December ListHub report, online here.

Market Activity Report - December

The SAR Market Activity Report for December is now online.

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

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

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

You be the Judge - January

Here is You Be The Judge for January:

Case #2-3: Obligation to Disclose Defects.

Read the case and submit your judgement online here.

Winner to be announced next month.

Congratulations, Patrick Martin, Martin Partners Real Estate, our December Starbucks card winner!

DECEMBER ANSWER

The Hearing Panel concluded that REALTORŽ B's actions to encourage his buyer-client to pressure the seller to try to modify the listing agreement with REALTORŽ A was an unwarranted interference in their contractual relationship. The Hearing Panel noted that Article 16, as interpreted by Standard of Practice 16-16, required REALTORŽ B to determine, prior to presenting an offer to REALTORŽ A and her seller-client, whether REALTORŽ A was willing to contribute to REALTORŽ B's commission, either directly or by reducing the commission as agreed to in the listing contract and, if so, the terms and amount of such contributions. It was the decision of the Hearing Panel that REALTORŽ B had violated Article 16.

From Case #16-16: Buyer Agent's Demand that Listing Agent Reduce Commission.

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

Member Roster Update