According to the latest quarterly consumer confidence survey released by the Siena Research Institute (SRI), overall consumer confidence decreased in all New York State MSAs in the first quarter of 2013.Home buying plans increased in six of New York's MSAs, while falling in three.

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In its U.S. Foreclosure Market Report for the first quarter of 2013, RealtyTrac reported New York had 11,769 total foreclosure filings in the first quarter and 5,373 of them were in the month of March, an increase both from the previous quarter and the previous month.

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced new legislation, the Public Trust Act, which would create a new class of public corruption crimes and enhance New York prosecutors' ability to crack down on public corruption across the state.

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The Tuesday, April 23, NYSAR Radio show will cover recent court and New York State Department of State decisions. Tune in at 10 a.m. on April 23 by using the player on the NYSAR Radio page or click here to listen on your Apple computer. 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.

Click here for more information as well as a list of links to play NYSAR Radio from any of your mobile devices.

NYSAR has partnered with local boards and associations to offer RI402 - "Real Estate Issues - Not Knowing Can Be Dangerous" - in 14 locations around New York State in 2013. Each class will be free to members who register for another REALTOR Institute course, a $225 value. This is a limited-time offer for currently scheduled classes only, while space is available. Call 800-239-4432 to register today.

Green 100, 200 and 300 will be offered April 22, 23 and 24, respectively, at the REALTOR Service Center in West Babylon, NY. The Green designation teaches you the latest green technologies to help you serve a broader array of clients.

Click here for more information or to register.

The Housing our Military with Excellent Service (HOMES) course will be offered April 25-26 at the Buffalo Niagara Association of REALTORS in Amherst, NY. In this course, you'll learn to identify the special housing needs and motivations of military personnel and veterans.

Click here for more information or to register.

NYSAR's exclusive partner for errors and omissions insurance, Pearl Insurance offers you comprehensive and affordable coverage customized to fit your needs. Their program, underwritten by XL Insurance, includes innovative features such as: deductible reduction; open house coverage; environmental failure to advise; innocent partner protection; and public relations advisory services.

For more details or a customized quote, call 800.289.8170 or visit www.pearlinsurance.com/nysar.

Annually, more than 8 million children are relocated by their families. Ease fears and meet the special needs of this sizeable market with "The Great Moving Adventure" DVD, a part of World Class Coaches Moving Families Initiative. Plus, after purchasing you'll, receive free training on practices to increase your client acquisition, satisfaction and retention rates. Visit www.worldclasscoaches.com/greatmoving-NYSAR.php for more details or to purchase the DVD for use with your clients. Please use coupon code "NYSAR2010" at checkout to apply your NYSAR discount.

NYSAR has launched two new 2013 RPAC promotional flyers.

Flyer 1 is a broker-specific piece offering a few pointers on how brokers may bring RPAC into the conversation among their agents. Click here for the flyer.
Flyer 2 shows how RPAC is working to preserve the American Dream of homeownership. Click here for the flyer.

*If you plan to print these documents, please be sure to print double sided.These documents are also available for download from the RPAC page of NYSAR.com.

Last week, nearly 70 members of the Long Island Board of REALTORS brought out their hidden talents in the name of RPAC by participating in an evening of karaoke. The event brought singing REALTORS from across Long Island to Hurricane's Grill in Syosset to sing the likes of Neil Diamond, Billy Joel, Cyndi Lauper, Back Street Boys and more.

Thank you to the attendees for lending their talents to the evening and for raising approximately $2,000 for RPAC.