April 27, 2007

 

You can go for the "big" day with others from SCAOR on Wednesday, May 16 to tour the Trade Expo, visit the NAR building, and have a special visit to the US Senate.

Your REALTOR^® Political Action Committee (RPAC) donation of $50 or more will save your seat on the bus. Leave the driving to us and get the scoop from inside the beltway! Did we mention that donors' names are entered in a "grand prize" drawing to be announced during SCAOR's member meeting? Contact the Association office via phone or visit, or e-mail info@SCAOR.com for registration.

The host of MSNBC's "Hardball With Chris Matthews" and NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" presents his insider's views during the 2007 NAR Midyear Legislative Meetings & Expo in Washington, D.C. Matthews will appear before the Legislative and Political Forum on May 15, 7:30-9 a.m., in the Marriott Wardman Park. Hear what makes Chris Matthews' shows lively and thought-provoking as he draws on his experience as a broadcast journalist, a newspaper bureau chief, a presidential speechwriter, and a best-selling author. For more, click here or contact: Gerry Allen, 202-383-1109.

 

SCAOR is sponsoring a bus trip to the Midyear Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo in Washington, DC on Wednesday, May 16. This is a great opportunity to network with our REALTOR^® members. For more information see attached flier or call the SCAOR office at 302-855-2300.

 

 

BLOOD DRIVE CANCELED The Blood Drive scheduled for May 1 at the SCAOR office has been canceled due to lack of participation.

 

April 23 - May 30 Delaware News & Meetings Posted

This is a quick note to remind you about the Statewide Delaware GIS Conference (Delaware GIS 2007: Serving Communities) that is scheduled for next Wednesday, May 2. It's not too late to register.

The core audience for this conference is the community of GIS professionals in state and local governments, academia, and the private sector. But it will also be of value to local elected leaders, citizen activists, and to those who might make good use of the information generated by the use of GIS data and tools.

"GIS" stands for "Geographic Information System." It is the combination of the map and the database into what we call "geospatial data." While this has, in the past, been a specialized branch of data management, the advent of easily accessible on-line GIS-related tools such as Google Maps and Google Earth has brought the use of this powerful knowledge-management tool into wider use.

There's no reason that geospatial data can't be a valuable asset in any business, level of government, or citizen initiative. The Delaware GIS Conference can help show you how. Please consider joining us.

The Conference will be held on Wednesday, May 2, at the Sheraton Inn and Conference Center in Dover. It will feature presentations and workshops ranging from the widely accessible to the deeply technical. Major topics include Economic Development, Public Safety, Land Use and Infrastructure Planning, Education and Natural Resources. Keynote speakers will look at the history of spatial data and at new ways that citizens can become involved in, and make better use of, this tool.

We hope to see you there!

Mike

Michael B. Mahaffie
mike.mahaffie@state.de.us
(302) 739-3090
Delaware Geographic Data Committee
Delaware Census State Data Center
Delaware Office of State Planning Coordination
Office of Management and Budget

EYE ON THE HILL
The April 2007 issue of "Eye on the Hill" focuses on the importance of insurance availability to the real estate industry and NAR's Plan to Ensure Available and Affordable Insurance. Click Here to read more.

 

Four Real-Life Fair Housing Violations

Training your sales associates in the practical applications of the Fair Housing Act will help ensure that they do not inadvertently violate the Fair Housing Act by: Providing false information on the availability of a property for sale or rental, based on a person's protected class status - even if that information is based on the owner's desires. How this might be communicated in real life: "There's no point in your showing the Smith's house to that Hispanic couple; the Smiths will never sell to them." Refusing to provide information on the availability of loans or other financial assistance or providing information that is inaccurate or different because of a person's membership in a protected class. How this might be communicated in real life: "Mr. Hernandez, I think your best bet is to go to a mortgage broker for a loan. It'll be more expensive, but they're more likely to accept your application." Using an appraisal that improperly takes into consideration the protected classes in estimating property value. How this might be communicated in real life: "See if you can get the value of the property as high as you can. She's an old lady, and this house is her only asset, so I want to get her a really good price." Relying on illegal covenants or provisions that preclude the sale or rental of a dwelling to a person because of membership in a protected class. How this might be communicated in real life: "I'd love to show you the house in this development, but the restriction covenants wouldn't allow you to build the entry ramp you need for your wheelchair." TIP: You never know when your fair housing practices are being tested. Testers from government or private groups can pose as home seekers, and their evidence is fully admissible in court. The courts have determined that a violation of the Fair Housing Act may be proven even if there was no intent to discriminate, if there is evidence of a discriminatory effect.

 

Each year since 2002, the federal government has designated June as National Homeownership Month, with a goal to increase minority home ownership in the United States by 5.5 million before the end of the decade. For this year's activities, NAR has gathered together a wealth of resources and tools for your use that support homeownership and strong communities.

Look for the resources at REALTOR.org under the Housing Opportunity, Diversity, and Smart Growth sections, and get ideas on promoting homeownership, too.

 

NAR President Pat Vredevoogd Combs is urging REALTORS^® to contact their members of Congress to become cosponsors of the Community Choice in Real Estate Act, H.R. 111, which would permanently ban national banking conglomerates from entering real estate brokerage and management. The need to pass the bill was made clear with the recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court to allow the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to exempt mortgage lenders and other state chartered corporations, wholly owned by national banks, from complying with certain state laws. This ruling means that banks, if they are permitted to broker real estate, could claim exemption from state real estate regulations for operating subsidiaries engaged in real estate brokerage. More than 200 House members have signed on. See if your members are on board online. If they're not, send a letter from the NAR Action Center.

 
REGULATORS WANT LENDERS TO HELP BORROWERS
AVOID FORECLOSURE

The federal agencies responsible for regulating banks, thrifts, and credit unions have issued a statement encouraging these federally insured institutions to work with borrowers to help them avoid foreclosure. The regulators noted that workouts of problematic mortgages are in the long-term interests of both the lenders and the borrowers, and they encourage borrowers who can't meet their mortgage obligations to contact their lender or servicer as soon as possible to discuss alternatives, such as converting adjustable-rate mortgages to fixed-rate mortgages or refinancing into a lower cost, fixed-rate mortgage. For more, contact: Jeff Lischer, 202/383-1117.

 

Congratulations to our SentriSecure Brokerages as of April 26!
List of offices here >>

The following report shows the offices that have combination lockboxes on some listings. As combination boxes are eliminated, these offices will be added to the SentriLock Offices list.
Brokerages with Combo Boxes as of 4.26.07 >>

LOCKBOX FIRMWARE UPGRADE AVAILABLE

New firmware is available for your lockbox(s) that will improve the 1-Day Code functionality and also eliminate a random problem that was causing premature battery depletion.

Find out more in the SentriLock Q & A section >>

 

Article 11

The services which REALTORS^® provide to their clients and customers shall conform to the standards of practice and competence which are reasonably expected in the specific real estate disciplines in which they engage; specifically, residential real estate brokerage, real property management, commercial and industrial real estate brokerage, real estate appraisal, real estate counseling, real estate syndication, real estate auction, and international real estate.

REALTORS^® shall not undertake to provide specialized professional services concerning a type of property or service that is outside their field of competence unless they engage the assistance of one who is competent on such types of property or service, or unless the facts are fully disclosed to the client. Any persons engaged to provide such assistance shall be so identified to the client and their contribution to the assignment should be set forth. (Amended 1/95)

 

It's that time of year again. DAR's Nominating Committee is asking for nominations to prepare a slate of Association Officers and Directors for 2008. Please submit names for consideration to the Nominating Committee before July 1, 2007. See attached nomination form.

 

Consumer Information Statement

Hey, did you watch CSI this week?

Well, guess what? We have our own CSI.
Well, not exactly. We're going to have a CIS. "What's that?" you say. CIS is the new Consumer Information Statement that we're all going to be required to give to our clients when the new Agency law takes effect.

Find Out Here >>

 
 

Each week we will be covering a portion of the "MLS Rules and Regulations." To be on the SAFE SIDE, please review the rules each week to eliminate errors in the system which could lead to MLS violations and fines. These rules and regulations have been submitted and reviewed by NAR and are in full compliance with National Association policy.

FAILURE TO CORRECT WITHIN 48 HOURS

When an MLS Listing Complaint & Fine Notification has been sent, the Participant must make the correction within 48 hours. Failure to correct a listing within 48 hours incurs an additional minimum fine of $200. Failure to pay fines within 60 days will result in termination of service and will result in a hearing before the MLS hearing panel.

 

© Copyright 2007 Sussex County Association of REALTORS^®
23407 Park Ave., Georgetown, DE 19947, USA
Phone (302) 855-2300  ~  Fax (302) 855-2319  ~  info@scaor.com  ~  www.scaor.com