E-News
New York State Association of REALTORS
November 3, 2015
REALTOR NEWS
Enrollment for health insurance in 2016 is now open! Look
to NYSAR Member Perks partner USI Affinity before Jan. 31 for access to all New
York State-approved carriers at the lowest possible rates. Plus, their
dedicated sales representatives will help you navigate the plan options and
find the coverage that best suits your needs. Remember, you will face tax penalties if you do not obtain coverage. Also, if you miss open enrollment, you will not be able to obtain health
insurance until the next open enrollment period unless you qualify for a
special enrollment.
Visit http://www.myrealtorinsurance.com/nysar or call USI Affinity’s dedicated sales representative Ned Cox at 888.834.3713
for more information. USI
Affinity will also hold webinars this Friday, Nov. 6, at 10 a.m. and on
Thursday, Nov. 19 at 9:30 a.m. to discuss individual open enrollment and the
NYSAR Health Exchange. Click here to register for the Nov. 6 webinar. Click here to register for the Nov. 19 webinar.
Pending home sales cooled in September for the second
straight month to their second lowest reading in 2015, according to the
National Association of REALTORS (NAR). The Pending Home Sales Index, a
forward-looking indicator based on contract signings in September, fell 2.3
percent to 106.8, but is still 3 percent above the same time last year.
The index in the Northeast fell 4 percent to 89.6 in September, but is still 3.9 percent above a year ago. To read the entire NAR press release, click here.
The index in the Northeast fell 4 percent to 89.6 in September, but is still 3.9 percent above a year ago. To read the entire NAR press release, click here.
The
National Association of REALTORS has created Conference Live,
a virtual window into the 2015 REALTORS Conference & Expo experience. This free
NAR resource takes viewers behind the scenes of the event being held Nov. 13-16 in San
Diego, CA. You can even follow along with the experiences of more than 30
featured attendees including New York State REALTOR Danielle Riley from
Rochester. Learn how you can follow Danielle’s conference experience by clicking here.
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
The
Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE), which investigates violations of
state ethics and lobbying laws, issued a proposed
advisory opinion that would ban statewide elected officials and
state legislators from soliciting or accepting campaign contributions or other
forms of support from any person or entity that could be subject to that
official’s enforcement powers. The proposed opinion is open for public
comment. For more on this story, click
here.
New York City’s Corporation Counsel Zachary Carter expressed a willingness to use eminent domain to advance Mayor Bill de Blasio’s affordable
housing plans. The administration also intends to use eminent domain to seize
three vacant beachfront sites in the Coney Island section of Brooklyn so it can
continue with plans for economic development as part of a rezoning approved by
the New York City Council in 2009. More on this story can be found here.
Acting
superintendent Anthony Albanese has announced his resignation from New York
State’s Department of Financial Services. Albanese was the temporary successor
to Ben Lawsky, who stepped down in June. More on this story can be found
here.
Stay up-to-date on NYSAR Government Affairs news
and events by following us on Facebook and Twitter.
LEGAL
The
Tuesday, Nov. 17, NYSAR Radio show will cover recent court and New York State
Department of State decisions. Tune in at 10 a.m. on Nov. 17 on your PC or Mac
by using the player on the NYSAR Radio page. You will need to be logged in to listen. If
you have not yet created your account with the website, you will need to click
on "New User" on the Member Login page and follow the prompts. Find
more information as well as a list of links to play NYSAR Radio from any of
your mobile devices here.
Join
NYSAR and former IRS trainer and best-selling author Sandy Botkin on Thursday,
Nov. 12 at 2:30 p.m. for a free webinar on how to pay the smallest amount of taxes
possible next year by doing a few simple things today. The webinar will cover:
how to deduct your meals and entertainment; how to legally deduct your home office;
how to get the equivalent of free gas for your vehicle; how to easily track
your mileage and other expenses to stay tax compliant; and more. The webinar
will conclude with an overview of the Taxbot mobile app. As a NYSAR Member Perk, members receive a
50-percent discount. There will also be a brief Q&A session at the end of
the webinar. Register today!
UPCOMING EVENTS
The
GRI-2 Business course will be offered Nov. 10 at the Hudson Gateway Association
of REALTORS in White Plains, NY. Take your business to the next level and gain
market share. This course provides the building blocks to: create an effective
business plan; build support structures using assistants and teams; prospect
successfully and tap into niche markets; and develop policies to avoid risk.
Register online today or call NYSAR at 800-239-4432 x219. Find more information here.
Register online today or call NYSAR at 800-239-4432 x219. Find more information here.
The
Seller Representative Specialist (SRS) course will be offered Nov. 17-18 at the
Hudson Gateway Association of REALTORS in Goshen, NY. Elevate your standards,
enhance your performance, and demonstrate the knowledge and skills essential to
professionally and ethically represent sellers. To watch a special message from
course instructor Roseann Farrow, click here.
Register online today or call NYSAR at 800-239-4432 x219. Find more information here.
Register online today or call NYSAR at 800-239-4432 x219. Find more information here.
MEMBER PERKS
NYSAR’s
newest Member Perks partner, Mailify, is
an email marketing software application that helps you to create, send and track
beautiful and effective email campaigns and newsletters. With mobile-responsive
email templates specifically designed for real estate, live personal support
and the best deliverability in the industry, Mailify will take your email
marketing to the next level. Brokers can even setup a master account and give
agents access to shared credits and templates. NYSAR members save 20 percent
and your first 5,000 email credits are free with member code "NYSAR." Click
here for more information.
RPAC
Thank
you to our October RPAC auction winner, NYSAR Past President Susan Goldy from
the Bronx Manhattan North Association of REALTORS. Susan submitted the high bid
of $1,000 on the Apple Watch. Thank you, Susan, for your continued service and
leadership to the association. Susan is a member of the NAR RPAC Hall of Fame,
NYSAR RPAC Hall of Fame, RPAC Golden R Investor ($5,000) and President’s Circle
member.
Submit
your bids for the Amazon Echo, a cloud-based voice service that instantly
provides information, answers questions, plays music, reads the news, checks
sports scores or the weather, and more.Bidding closes Friday, November 20.
Visit the RPAC page of NYSAR.com to learn more.
The
Ithaca Board of REALTORS hosted their first-ever Roaring 20s RPAC Casino Night
fundraising event last week. The event featured a live DJ, mock casino gaming
tables, auctions and plenty of fun in the name of RPAC. All told the event
raised $3,258. Thank you to the 61 attendees for embracing the theme and
supporting RPAC. The proceeds from this event brought Ithaca over their 2015
RPAC fundraising goal.
