March 7, 2025

ICYMI – ECONOMIC UPDATE RECORDING:

On March 4, MAR hosted a one-hour national and state economic update featuring NAR’s Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun and Maine State Economist Amanda Rector. View the recording and presentation slides here

WANT MAINE ECONOMIC UPDATES?

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HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION:

The homestead exemption provides a reduction of up to $25,000 in the value of a home for property tax purposes. To qualify, the applicant must be a permanent resident of Maine, the home must be the applicant’s permanent residence, the applicant must have owned a home in Maine for the twelve months prior to applying, and an application must be filed on or before April 1 with the municipality where the property is located (only need to file once). Learn more and share this link with your clients and colleagues.

MORE THAN TWO THOUSAND!

We are expecting more than 2,000 legislative bills to be considered in the first session of the 132nd Maine Legislature. MAR’s government affairs team reads each bill and works with the MAR Legislative Committee and MAR Board of Directors to 1) identify those bills that impact Maine’s real estate industry, and 2) establish a monitor, support, or oppose priority position for each bill. Already we’re working on high priority legislative bills around the topics of homestead exemption, fire sprinkler systems, fees at the registries of deeds, overboard discharge systems, local option taxes, and deed fraud.

Those bills are added to MAR’s “Legislative Bill Tracking Report” on a regular basis. As the session moves forward, we expect hundreds of bills to be included on the tracker; potential laws that could impact your real estate business!

Check out the Advocacy tab on the MAR website for links to the MAR Bill Tracking report 

(password: codeofethics). The yellow shading indicates new information since the prior week. The green shading represents new bills since the prior week.

You can also find tools you can use to read the proposed legislation, know when a public hearing is taking place, listen and watch the hearings, read public testimony about the bills, and more.

The Public Policy Statement of the Maine Association of REALTORS® guides our advocacy efforts

For additional assistance: Email Claire

MEDIATION FOR BUYERS AND SELLERS:

As a reminder, disputes or claims arising out of the Maine Association of REALTORS^® Purchase and Sale Agreement, or the property addressed in the Purchase and Sale Agreement shall be submitted to mediation in accordance with generally accepted mediation practices (see paragraph 17 of the P&S and paragraph 15 of the P&S-Land Only).

Parties may select their own mediator from a variety of sources. One source is the Maine Association of Mediators. Learn more here for list of their real estate mediators

For more information about real estate mediation: Click Here.

This information can be found on mainerealtors.com under the Member Resources tab, Documents You Ask For, Mediation for Buyers and Sellers

MAINE IS THE TOP “FIXER-UPPER” STATE

MAR President Jeff Harris was recently quoted in an interview with Fortune.com that named Maine #1 in a study from home warranty company Cinch Home Services as being the most friendly market for fixer-upper properties. President Harris attributed this ranking to Maine having "some of the oldest housing stock in the country, with 35% built before 1960—23% before 1940". He also noted that, due to "the lack of housing and affordability, renovating existing housing is a wise and feasible pathway to homeownership.” Read the full article here.

TAX TIME: 

From HouseLogic, here are some timely articles to share with your current and former clients about tax deductions for home owners

NAR LEGISLATIVE MEETINGS & TRADE EXPO: 

Registration is open for the 2025 REALTORS® Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo, May 31 – June 5 in Washington, D.C. Registration is free for NAR members. Some sessions will be virtual for those who prefer not to travel, including the NAR Board of Directors meeting. More information and to register

2026 NAR COMMITTEE APPOINTMENT PROCESS:  

The deadline is May 15 if you would like to request an appointment to a 2026 National Association of REALTORS® Committee. NAR Committees will meet in May and November 2026 at the national REALTOR® meetings (in D.C. and New Orleans) and may also meet virtually at other times during the year. There are currently 17 Maine REALTORS® serving on NAR committees during 2025.

Please note: NAR committee applications are completed online. 

Step 1: you must create/update an Expertise Profile on NAR.realtor;

Step 2: you can apply for up to five NAR committee appointments;

Step 3: you may seek endorsements/recommendations for your applications (which is important to do).

View a list of NAR committees, a link for your Expertise Profile, access to the 2026 NAR Committee Application process (NAR.realtor login required), and FAQ’s about the NAR Committee process

For login assistance for the NAR website (NAR.realtor): 1-800-874-6500

Please contact Suzanne with any questions. 

ACADIA COUNCIL 5K:

Join the Acadia Council of the MidCoast Board of REALTORS® for their 5K Fundraiser for Affordable Housing taking place on May 17^th in Blue Hill. Runners and walkers are welcome!  More information and to register

SPRING IS NEAR! 

Don’t forget to spring your clocks ahead one hour this weekend for Daylight Savings Time!

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