January 24, 2018 


Roanoke Valley Associathion of REALTORS  
    R OANOKE VALLEY REALTOR® ONLINE   

   You are receiving this online enewsletter as a benefit of being a member of the Roanoke Valley Association of REALTORS®.
 

MEMBER TYPE / COUNT
REALTOR®            1,178 Membership Update Logo
Offices                      130
Affiliate                    267

  Click here to see which RVAR members have switched firms, gone inactive, or joined recently.
Advocacy @ Work is an article aimed at updating members on what is happening in our region regarding Economic Development and/or Governmental Affairs.
 
The Virginia General Assembly convened on Wednesday, January 10th for the start of the 2018 session. There are 19 new Delegates, a new Governor and Lieutenant Governor. During this "long" 60 day session, the General Assembly will work on a new biennial budget and consider over 2000 bills and resolutions.

Virginia REALTORS® has several bills making their way through the General Assembly that RVAR is supporting.  
 
Team Legislation -- Defines a Real Estate Team and will require brokerage agreements (buyer's and seller's agreements) to include the name and contact information of the supervising broker. Consumers need to know, in all transactions, who the supervising broker is, should a problem arise.

Non-English Translation of Documents
-- Encourages real estate licensees to assist the growing diverse population by establishing statutory authority for a real estate licensee to refer a party to one or more translation services. The legislation would also make clear that the real estate licensee is not liable for any inaccuracies that may occur by the translator or translation service.

Earnest Money Deposits
-- Establishes in statute a right for the real estate broker to give written notice to the parties and disburse an earnest money deposit in accordance with the clear terms of a real estate purchase contract. Also gives a real estate broker an option to give written notice of intended disbursement, with a 15-day "protest period" for one of the parties to object in writing.

Broker Education & Post-license CE
-- Allocates 2 hours of the existing 8-hour broker education hours to the requirements for broker supervision. Also adds real estate finance to the existing curriculum for post-licensure education.

Condo & Property Owners Associations -- Would require all Common Interest Communities (Condo and Property Owner Associations) to provide a short summary of important information contained in the resale certificate or disclosure packet. This summary will provide buyers with a summary of items that could affect their decision to purchase a home. This legislation was proposed by RVAR.

Acceptance of Rent with Reservation -- Requires a landlord to give a notice of acceptance of rent with reservation to accept rental payments and still move forward with eviction. Clarifies the existing law removing the requirement for second notice for the time period between entry of an order of possession and prior to eviction.

Lexington Short-Term Rental Ordinance -- The City of Lexington passed an ordinance to regulate short-term rentals that violates state law. This legislation is to require the City of Lexington to amend its ordinance to come into compliance with various provisions of state law.

Clarification of a Supreme Court Case -- A real property owner who buys a house at foreclosure sale, if the occupant does not move out, would file an unlawful detainer in the General District Court. In the Parrish case, the occupant challenged the legal title of the successor owner. The Office of the Executive Secretary of the Virginia Supreme Court prepared a narrative to try to head off the potential of every unlawful detainer case getting derailed by assertion by a tenant or other occupant of insufficiency of legal title to real property. This legislation places into statutory language the substance of the narrative.

Click here to track progress of Virginia REALTORS®' bills and find more details about each one. The 2018 session of the General Assembly is scheduled to conclude on March 10th.

Article provided by Joe Sutliff, RVAR Director of Economic & Governmental Affairs.


NAR worked throughout the tax reform process to preserve the existing tax benefits of homeownership and real estate investment, as well as to ensure as many REALTORS® as possible would benefit. While NAR remains concerned that the final bill diminishes the tax benefits of homeownership and will cause adverse impacts in some markets, NAR achieved several big successes in the final bill. NAR helped save the exclusion for capital gains on the sale of a home and preserved the like-kind exchange for real property.

Click here for NAR's summary of the key provisions of interest to REALTORS®. The individual provisions noted do not affect tax filings for 2017 unless noted. NAR will continue to work with lawmakers to fine tune the provisions passed and address additional provisions.
 2017 Year End Home Sales  hom 

2017 ended with record breaking MLS home sales - 5,325 homes sold, the highest year end total since 2006. And with over 1 billion dollars in volume sold, the highest year end volume since 2006. A link to the year end home sales statistics , along with a 4-year comparison is provided on the front page of RVAR.com. The MLS releases its monthly home sales statistics around the 15th of the following month.
Code of Ethics Change: Misleading Imagescoe 

The 2018 Code of Ethics includes one change related to misleading images. NAR's Board of Directors voted to update the Standards of Practice to make clear that members are prohibited from using misleading imagery in real estate marketing materials. This change reflects NAR's position that as consumers increasingly rely on photos to assess properties, images that have been excessively altered or distorted can harm the credibility of the real estate industry and members. See below for the amended Standard of Practice.

     Standard of Practice 12-10: "REALTORS®' obligation to present a true
    picture in their advertising and representations to the public includes
    Internet content, images and the URLs and domain names they use, and
    prohibits REALTORS® from . . .
    (5) otherwise misleading consumers, including use of misleading images".

Click here to view the 2018 Code of Ethics.
zipForm® Plus Upgradezip 

In November, the zipForm product was upgraded to zipForm® Plus. The Roanoke Valley MLS provides zipForm® Plus and zipForm® Mobile to all MLS subscribers as an MLS benefit.

Learn more about the look and function of zipForm® Plus:

1.    If you prefer to read, click on this Quick Tips PDF.
2.    If you prefer to watch short videos, click here to access the library of YouTube videos on zipForm® Plus topics such as:
*    Finding your documents
*    Creating a new transaction
*    Using templates

Questions? Contact the zipForm® Help Desk 586-840-0140 (24/7 Monday-Friday; 10AM-10PM Weekends and Holidays)
Appalachian Power Launches Online Form for Status of Property Requestsaep  

REALTORS®, property owners and buyers can now request a Status of Property report from Appalachian Power Company using a convenient online request form. This service applies to properties located at Smith Mountain and Leesville Lakes. Prospective buyers and their agents may also request a Status of Property report, a copy of which will be forwarded to the current property owner of record.

Click here for access to the online request form. REALTORS® and property owners will be able to submit whether the property is currently listed for sale and/or whether the property is under contract, including the scheduled closing date.
RPAC Exceeds Goals for 2017! rpac 

A huge "Thank you" to the 439 REALTORS®, Affiliates and RVAR staff who contributed to the 2017 REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) fundraising campaign! RVAR exceeded all the goals set for us by Virginia REALTORS®, raising over $39,875, including 17 Major Investors (contributions of $1,000 or more.) Click here to see those who contributed more than their fair share. 
RVAR's Family Fun Night on the Iceice  


Join us for a night of fun and fast paced hockey with the Roanoke Rail Yard Dawgs on Friday, February 2nd.  

Tickets are just $10 for adults and $8 for children (under 12) and includes admission and a meal voucher to be used at the concession area.   

Order as many tickets as you would like - bring your family & friends for a fun, exciting evening at the Berglund Center!!  The game starts at 7:05PM.

These are pre-purchase only tickets and must be ordered by 3:00PM Monday, January 29th. Tickets can be picked up at the "Will Call" window on game day.

Click here for more information and the order form.

Join us in helping make a difference

The 2018 Community Service Committee would like you to join us as we kick off the new year with our first Service Day Project.

RVAR will be volunteering with Feeding America (1025 Electric Road, Salem, VA 24153) on Friday, March 9. There will two opportunities to volunteer, 9:00am - 12:00pm or 1:00pm - 4:00pm. There will be breakfast snacks and lunch available.

If you would like to join us click here to sign up for the AM shift or click here for the PM shift.

You can also call the RVAR at 540-772-0526 to have us register you for the shift of your choice.

Feeding America Southwest Virginia was founded in 1981 and proudly commemorates 37 years of fighting hunger and changing lives through community partnerships.

The Food Bank is an affiliate member of Feeding America and for the last three decades the Food Bank's ultimate mission has remained the same: eliminate hunger in the region.

The primary function of the Food Bank is to secure large quantities of food for the hungry. Over $28 million worth of food and grocery related products are channeled through a network of 353 partner feeding programs in our 26-county, 9 city region that provide food or meals to those in need.

If you would like to donate or get more information for Feeding America SW VIrginia please log on to their website at www.faswva.org.

How much has changed in the past 10 years? Click here to check out RVAR and the real estate market in 2008. (Hint: There were 1,665 REALTORS in 2008, whereas RVAR begins 2018 with 1178 members.)

The Price is Right . . . Or Is It? Learn from the experts on how to price your listings, including how to price unique properties. On Thursday, February 22nd (10-11:30AM), Curtis Burchett (MKB) and Ken Smith (Long & Foster) will share their proven techniques for pricing listings. Click here to register for this FREE class.

Managing Seller and Buyer Expectations - RVAR's Education Committee will offer a free three-part series in March focused on managing Seller and Buyer expectations from before until after a transaction. Mark your calendar - details will be available soon.

    March 6th:    BEFORE the transaction (10:00-11:30AM)
    March 13th    DURING the transaction (10:00-11:30AM)
    March 20th:    AFTER the transaction (10:00-11:00AM)

2018 GRI Designation Classes: RVAR's Education Committee will bring three GRI designation classes to the Roanoke Valley in 2018:

    GRI 501, Agency in Virginia, April 17th
        Instructor: Donna Austin
    GRI 507, Ethics and Professional Responsibilities, May 22nd
        Instructor: Tim Vohar
    GRI 502, Sales Contracts, October 23rd
        Instructor: Michael Guthrie

Click here to learn how to earn the Graduate, REALTOR Institute (GRI) designation, including a calendar of all the courses being offered in Virginia this year. Many of the classes provide continuing education (CE) and post licensure (PL) credit.
Our RVAR Familyfamily

Sympathy

RVAR expresses sympathy to Michele McDaniel of MKB, REALTORS® upon the recent death of her son.

Congratulations 
 
RVAR congratulates Mary Dykstra of MKB, REALTORS® upon being named 2018 Guardian Angel by Children's Trust for her 23 years working as a Court Appointed Special Advocates volunteer.
 
RVAR also congratulates those recently named "2017 Best of Smith Mountain Lake" by The Laker Magazine.

Best Real Estate Company: Gold -- RE/MAX Lakefront; Silver -- Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Smith Mountain Lake Real Estate; Bronze -- Long & Foster Smith Mountain Lake
 
Best REALTOR®: Gold -- Tricia Johnson (RE/MAX Lakefront); Silver - Phyllis Johnson (RE/MAX Lakefront): Bronze -- Dana Montgomery (Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Smith Mountain Lake Real Estate)
 
Best Bank / Mortgage Company: Gold - American National Bank & Trust; Silver - HomeTown Bank; Bronze - SunTrust

Let RVAR know
if you have news to share.   
Upcoming EventsUpcoming 

February 2nd
February 22nd

Family Night at Hockey Rink
The Price is Right Class

Contact:
ROANOKE VALLEY
ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
  |  540.772.0526