QUOTES

Do not Pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men!

John F. Kennedy

 

• This is a challenging and difficult time in the real estate industry.  It is important to stay Focused, Professional, Respectful and Ethical.

• As REALTORS® you have pledged to observe the principles of the Code of Ethics:
  
  Article 1-   Protect and promote your client's interests, but be honest with all parties
  
  Article 3-   Cooperate with other real estate Professional to advance your client's best interests;
  
  Article 15- Ensure that your comments about other real estate professionals are truthful, and are not misleading

• The National Association of  REALTORS® has made available the Right Tools, Right Now program available on their website.  Check out the link below for valuable tools and resources available as a member benefit.

• The Arizona Association of REALTORS® and the Santa Cruz County Board of REALTORS® are sponsoring a Short Sales and Foreclosure Resources class (this is a NAR certification course).  This class will be held on Friday, March 12 from 9 AM to 4 PM at the Board Office for $47 (a $175 value).  REALTORS® that complete the March 12 sessions will receive three hours of  Real Estate Legal Issues credit.  To receive the SFR certification attendees of the March 12 sessions must complete 3 one hour Webinars.  To register go to the AAR website on link below.

• Although not always easy, embrace change.  Social Media is the basis of establishing relationships with others.  Its popularity among all age groups, has had a profound affect on the real estate industry and how REALTORS® do business.  Take time to review the links below on Social Media Strategy, Smart Ideas for Better Social Networking and Five Lessons on Social Media.  It is not going away so become informed.

• SUPRA keys leased from the Santa Cruz County Multiple Listing Service are being replaced to improve battery performance.  If you have not replaced your Active key please contact the Board Office.

• SUPRA lockboxes can be purchased for $53.30 while supplies last.  Take advantage of this opportunity
  

• Remember, SUPRA keys are for the use of person who leased the key.  Do NOT lend your key to anyone.  This is a $500 fine if caught.

• Coming in February, changes to the FlexMLS dashboard.  Agents will be able to customize how they view their dashboards.  Additional changes can be viewed at the link below.

• Agents will be required to change their FlexMLS passwords when accessing the system on Wednesday, Feb. 17.

• To ensure reliable information is available on the MLS, agents should always review their listings for accurate info and confirm sold information being entered by selling agents.

Free AAR Webinar: "RESPA Reform and Your Business"
Find out how RESPA changes, including the new Good Faith Estimate and HUD-1 forms, affect your business. This webinar is taught by Amy Swaney, CMB, one of only nine individuals who hold the residential “Certified Mortgage Banker” (CMB) designation in the state of Arizona. Listen now! http://www.aaronline.com/Webinars/Recorded.aspx#Respa2

AAR Legal Resources:

Complaints & Disputes
REALTOR® associations are responsible for enforcing the REALTOR® Code of Ethics.
Only REALTORS® and REALTOR ASSOCIATES® are subject to the Code of Ethics of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (NAR). If the real estate professional (or his or her broker) you are dealing with is not a REALTOR®, options may include contacting the state real estate licensing authority or 602.771.7730, or the courts.

 Legal Hotline Q & A
Read questions and the answers given by the AAR Legal Hotline covering such topics as: agency brokerage, disclosure, and listings.

Legal Articles
View articles written by Michelle Lind covering various topics including: contracts, brokerage, short sales.

NAR
CURRENT REAL ESTATE NEWS/TOPICS & ISSUES
SFR Application Fee Waiver Extended
As part of NAR's Right Tools, Right Now initiative to support members, the $175 application fee to become SFR certified is waived through March 31, 2010. Act now to become SFR certified and be the short sales and foreclosure resource in your market! Read more...
http://www.realtor.org/narlservredirect.nsf/pages/NT0000156A?OpenDocument&WT.mc_id=LS011310&CAT=Curr


Re: NAR Update: Help for Haiti

Dear Fellow REALTOR®,
By now, we all know about the severe devastation caused by the earthquakes in Haiti. NAR is helping answer the calls for help in two key ways.

First, we are contributing $550,000 to charities that will help bring much-needed supplies and care to the people of Haiti. Included in that sum is $100,000 donated by our REALTOR Benefits® Program partner, Lowe’s®, which we have matched at $100,000. From that we will donate $50,000 to The Harvest of Haiti, founded by REALTOR® Patrick Moore, a 2007 Good Neighbor Award winner. Patrick has done great work for several years in Haiti supporting orphans, delivering clean water and providing medical care for more than 3,500 people a year.

http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2010/01/donate_haiti

We are also contributing $500,000 to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, which is supporting earthquake recovery efforts with immediate relief and long-term support to earthquake survivors. For up-to-the-minute information about these efforts, visit NAR's Haiti relief page on REALTOR.org.

Second, I have asked NAR to accept donations from REALTORS® through the REALTORS® Relief Foundation. Please consider giving today. To make a donation, go to www. realtor.org/relief, and complete the contribution form.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said: “An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.”

REALTORS® have earned a reputation for our compassionate work on behalf of others – both here in the United State and around the world. I hope you will join our latest efforts and bring that same compassion and hope to people who desperately need it.

Sincerely,

Cox Golder Signature

Vicki Cox Golder, CRB
2010 NAR President