WEEKLY NOTICES - September 23, 2016 - SAR Board Nominations Due TODAY!

Weekly Notices

Friday, September 23, 2016

SAR Board Nominations Due TODAY!

NOMINATIONS DUE TODAY!

Nominations for your 2017-2018 SAR leadership positions are due TODAY - Friday, September 23rd.

There are five, two-year terms available on the board.

Nominees for directorships must be REALTOR® members who have served on a minimum of two (2) standing committees within the past seven (7) years or on one (1) standing committee within the past three (3) years.

If a candidate has served on only one (1) standing committee within the past three (3) years that candidate must also attend two (2) Board of Directors meetings within the twelve (12) months prior to running for Director.

Beginning in 2015, candidate committee attendance must be at a minimum of 80%, inclusive of excused absences, in order for service on said committee to be used to meet eligibility requirements.

To place a name in nomination with the Nominating Committee, please complete the application below .

You may FAX your completed form to the SAR at 324-8650, mail to: SAR, 1924 N Ash, Spokane, WA 99205 or Email to [email protected] by Friday, September 23rd.

If you have questions, please contact Susie Luby at 455-8600 or Sharon Houston at 326-9222.

Thank you for participating in the leadership of your association!

Download the 2017-2018 SAR Director nomination form (pictured above), online here.

Best August in 11 Years

Chris Soprych _ The Spokesman-Review graphic

Things have gotten kind of hot - positively hot-ish - in the Spokane home market. The August figures are in: Home sales for the month were up nearly 18 percent, the highest in 11 years, according to the Spokane Association of Realtors. Average home prices rose 6 percent. The number of homes available has shrunk. You hear rumors of bidding wars for homes, of homes snapped up within days - or sometimes in hours.

Read more in The Spokesman-Review, online here.

Fall Festival of Homes

Our friends at the Spokane Homebuilders Association welcome you and your clients to attend their 12th annual Fall Festival of Homes THIS WEEKEND (September 23-24-25) and NEXT WEEKEND (September 30, October 1-2).

REMIND your buyers that you will be happy to help them make an offer on any available home at the festival!

The Fall Festival of Homes offers FREE tours of newly constructed homes in Spokane where you can view the latest building techniques and designs.

Event booklets are available at your SAR or at the event website here.

Annie is Coming to Town!

SAR photo

Annie is coming to town!

Mark your calendar now and plan to join us on Thursday, November 17th, when your Washington REALTORS® attorney Annie Fitzsimmons makes a return appearance in Spokane with her new class: Put a S.O.C. in it = Standard of Care.

This Education Excellence series class comes with 7.5 clock hours, and meets your Purchase & Sale Agreement requirement.

It will be paired with our last Quarterly Membership meeting of the year at Centerplace Regional Event Center in Spokane Valley.

See the event flyer (pictured above) online here.

Spokane Transit Proposition 1

Your SAR Governmental Affairs Committee received a presentation on Spokane Transit Proposition 1, this week. Members had a chance to hear from, and ask questions to, the Spokane Transit Authority's Senior Communication Specialist on this issue.

Proposition 1 asks voters to authorize an increase in local sales and use tax to help fund STA Moving Forward, the 10-year plan to:

Connect people to services
Connect workers to jobs
Help advance regional economic development

The Committee makes no endorsement on this issue, but does encourage members to learn more about Proposition 1 online here:

http://stamovingforward.com/

Informational booklets on this issue are available at the front desk of your SAR.

Remember to vote November 8th!

Not yet registered to vote? Click here to register now:

Mayor Proposes 2017 Budget

Spokane has the highest property-crime rate among Washington's largest cities, a problem Mayor David Condon wants to address by moving police from patrol and traffic to investigations.

The proposal is part of a 2017 budget plan that calls for increasing city expenses by 16.3 percent.

The police plan is designed to address what Condon calls a "number-one issue" for residents.

Read more in The Spokesman-Review, online here.

Current Vacancies

The City of Spokane runs on many boards, commissions, councils, committees, and associations.

All of these run on volunteers.

Does the Bicycle Advisory or Spokane Park Board pique your interest? How about the Arts or Chase Youth Commission? The Planning and Economic Development Committee or the Sister Cities Association?

Each of these gives you an opportunity to network with other go-giver individuals in our community who, like you, want to make a lasting and positive difference in the place we call home.

See the list of current city vacancies online here.

See the list of current county vacancies online here.

Spokane-Spokane Valley GDP Up

The gross domestic product (GDP) of the Spokane-Spokane Valley metropolitan area is up 1.8 percent over last year.

Spokane ranks 107th out of 292 metropolitan areas - so, roughly, in the top third.

GDP is the monetary value of all the finished goods and services produced within a defined area in a specific time period.

In the the United States as a whole, GDP is up 2.5 percent over last year.

If you'd like to dive into these numbers, check out

the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis report, Gross Domestic Product by Metropolitan Area (pictured above), released this week, online here.

Hormel Elected to NAR Board

Your SAR congratulates member Tom Hormel (photo at left) for his re-election to the National Association of REALTORS ® Board of Directors by the vote of its members on Friday, September 16th.

Tom re-joins member Marianne Bornhoft (photo at left), who begins the second year of her two-year term in 2017.

It is great to have these two dynamic REALTOR ® leaders from the Inland Northwest helping to guide our national organization!

Mobile Alerts

Are you ready for the next REALTOR® Party Call for Action?

These are issued only a few times a year, whenever it is necessary to mobilize the whole of our REALTOR® power to influence legislation in Washington DC.

Text REALTORS to 30644 or enter your mobile phone number and your name through the link below to start receiving REALTOR® Party mobile alerts.

NAR will send you short text messages when we need you to take action on important real estate issues (usually only three to five times per year).

Sign up for REALTOR® Party mobile alerts online here.

One Fewer Patent Troll

In a major victory for real estate, Data Distribution Technologies, LLC - a so-called patent troll that has been demanding patent licensing fees from real estate companies - has agreed to a settlement with the National Association of REALTORS® that will prevent it from suing, or threatening to sue, real estate practitioners, brokerages, MLSs and other companies in the real estate industry that offer email alerts to consumers about new or updated listings.

"The terms of the settlement agreement include a covenant not to sue ... NAR members, local and state associations, MLSs, affiliates, and certain other NAR-related entities," the company says in a statement it released jointly with NAR.

Read more about this online here.

Legal Hotline: Promissory Notes

NEW!

Your Was hington REALTORS® Legal Hotline attorney

Annie Fitzsimmons is back this week with another ladel of tough legal love.

This week, Annie discusses the antiquated practice of using Promissory Notes for Earnest Money.

Watch now to find out issues that can arise from using Promissory Notes and why Annie wants you to stop.

The five-minute video is online here:

Promissory Notes and Earnest Money

Lunch & Learn: Home Warranty

Welcome to Lunch & Learn at your SAR: What is a Home Warranty and How can it Help my Business?

Monday, November 7th, at your SAR.

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

Lunch & Learn: Common Mistakes

Welcome to Lunch & Learn at your SAR: Common Mistakes and Blunders on the Purchase and Sale Agreement.

Monday, November 14th, at your SAR.

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

2016 REALTOR® 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.

IMPORTANT!

All REALTORS® must complete two-and-a-half hours of Code of Ethics training within each cycle. The current cycle ends December 31, 2016.

Can't remember if you've already taken the NAR Code of Ethics? You can log in to your member portal page to verify your member profile or call us at the SAR: 326-9222.

The Nekkid Truth

Tuesday, October 4 - The Nekkid Truth: Six Principles of Building a Real Estate Business - with Linda Miller Sheets.

Congratulations! You have your real estate license. Now, what do you do with it? This is a great opportunity to hear the nekkid truth about building your business.

Registration: noon
Class: 12:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
at the SAR

4.0 clock hours

SAR CALENDAR

Click on the image below to see the current SAR calendar

showing dates and times of classes, committees and events.

MLS Fees Due

Fourth Quarter MLS fees have been posted to the SAR member portal. Your payment is due by September 30th.

Please email Brenda at the SAR if you have a question about your fees or contact her by phone at 326-9222.

Thank you!

REALTOR® Safety Month

September is REALTOR® Safety Month!

Your clients can be your best partners in safety on the job - if they know what they can do, and what you will do, when touring properties.

NAR offers a short video to help consumers learn about the potential safety protocols they may encounter when working with a REALTOR®.

It's a great resource to share with clients to educate them about the importance of REALTOR® safety.

See the three-minute long video online here - perfect for sharing on your social media channels, or in your direct communication with clients.

Real Estate, Safety, and You

Want more REALTOR® safety resources? See the National Association of REALTORS ® Field Guide to REALTOR® Safety, online here.

The Voice for Real Estate

NEW!

Here are the featured segments in this edition:

Patent troll win
Home Buyer and Seller Profile
Housing supply gap
Register to vote
New Congress: what's ahead?
FHA condo finance rules webcast

See the seven-minute video online here:

The Voice for Real Estate

Ormsby Event

The campaign for SAR-endorsed Washington state legislative candidate Timm Ormsby D, Third District (pictured at left), invites you to attend a fundraiser for him at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 28th, at Hamilton Studios (1427 West Dean Avenue).

This Old House

This Old House - with Megan Duval, historic preservation officer, at the next Women's Council of REALTORS® event on Thursday, October 6th.

See the event flyer (pictured above) for more information, online here.

Bringing Projects to Spokane

Marketing Associates of Spokane will be talking about Bringing Projects to the Spokane Region on October 13th.

Greater Spokane Incorporated CEO Todd Mielke and Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce CEO Katherine Morgan will share the bill as guest speakers at this event, each sharing his/her organization's strategy on bringing investment and development to our region.

More information and electronic registration is online here.

Spokane County History

Spokane city has always been the seat of Spokane county - right?

Likely so in your lifetime, but not true.

Learn some of the old cool facts of Spokane County when Commissioner Al French and Facilities Director Ron Oscarson sit down to discuss Spokane County history.

See the September edition of Spokane County Spotlight online here:

Spokane County history

Interesting Statistics

Name the city with the second-largest urban waterfall in the United States?

Yep. Spokane. Cool, huh? (Buffalo, New York, has the largest).

Did you know that m ore than half of the buildings in downtown Spokane are on the Historic Register?

Double cool.

We'll forgive the headline that calls us "the forgotten city of the Pacific Northwest." Find a list of 12 interesting statistics about Spokane from GoMad Nomad online here.

Member 2 Member

The Spokane Homebuilders Association invite you to participate in its SHBA PAC Clay Shoot Friday, October 7th, at Spokane Gun Club.

See the event flyer (pictured above) for more information, online here.

NOTE: Member 2 Member is a member benefit of the Spokane Association of REALTORS®.

It is intended to announce a new product, service, location or affiliate event. If you are a member who wishes to share a message with your fellow members, please email it to Debbie at the SAR:

[email protected]

WCR Wellness Celebration

The Spokane-Eastern Washington chapter of Women's Council of REALTORS invites you to its sixth-annual 2016 Wellness Celebration and Rally - October 27th at the Spokane Convention Center.

See the event flyer (pictured above), online here.

REALTOR® Centennial Pin

The trademark "REALTOR ®" was adopted 100 years ago - this year - to identify the members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS ®: A revolutionary group of individuals deeply committed to integrity, community, and protecting the American dream of property ownership.

A century later, time and technologies may have changed the industry and how business is conducted, but our members' strong ideals, commitment to go the extra mile and their Realtor pride have prevailed true.

Wear the REALTOR ® Centennial pin to celebrate our history, our future, and our REALTORS ®.

Order your REALTOR ® Centennial pin online here.