Last week, the National Association of REALTORS (NAR) wrote to Congressional leadership urging Congress to act on two critical tax provisions that are scheduled to expire at the end of 2016. The first provision ensures that any mortgage debt that is forgiven by a lender in connection with a principal residence will continue to be excluded from the taxable income of the borrower. The second provision would extend the tax deduction for mortgage insurance premiums paid by homeowners. Extending this deduction beyond 2016 will greatly benefit the large number of homeowners, particularly first-time homebuyers, who cannot afford a 20 percent or greater downpayment. Click here for the full story.

Privately-owned housing starts in October rose 44.8 percent in the Northeast to 139,000, according to data released by the U.S. Commerce Department. September’s total was 96,000. Building permits for the Northeast fell 21.1 percent in October, dropping to 105,000 from 133,000 in September. Click here to read the entire U.S. Commerce Department press release.

Builder confidence in the market for newly-constructed single-family homes held steady in November at a level of 63 on the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI). The Northeast posted a two-point gain to 45 in November. Click here to learn more.

Last week, New York State Senate Republicans and Democrats re-elected the leaders of their respective party conferences: Sen. John Flanagan for the Republican Conference and Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins for the mainline Democrat Conference. With two Senate elections undergoing a final vote count and a growing Independent Democrat Conference (IDC) headed by Sen. Jeffrey Klein, it remains unclear who will control the Senate chamber in January.

Released on Nov. 16, the Federal Housing Administration’s actuarial report shows that the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund is on a steady financial trajectory, a finding the National Association of REALTORS believes is an opportunity to make FHA’s low downpayment mortgage option available to an even larger number of borrowers. In a sign of continuing health, the report shows that the fund’s "seriously delinquent" rate is at a 10-year low, while the overall economic value of the fund has increased by $3.8 billion. Click here for more information and a link to the report.

The Tuesday, Dec. 20, NYSAR Radio show will take a look back at 2016 and preview what’s new for 2017. Tune in at 10 a.m. on Dec. 20 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.

Join NYSAR and RPR for the "Tips for Growing Leads and Increasing ROI with RPR" webinar tomorrow, Wednesday, Nov. 23, at 2:30 p.m. Learn how to build a start-to-finish, successful real estate prospecting strategy using RPR’s dynamic data and impressive reports, available only to REALTORS. The webinar will also show you how to: calculate the marketability of your target zone; create a customized farm area using search tools and maps; spark conversations with homeowners using the RPR app and reports; convey your value to for-sale-by-owner listings; and build brand awareness with reports that peak homeowner interest. Register today!

The Seller Representative Specialist (SRS) course will be offered Nov. 28-29 at the Hudson Gateway Association of REALTORS in West Nyack, NY. Elevate your standards, enhance your performance, and demonstrate the knowledge and skills essential to professionally and ethically represent sellers.

 

Register online today or call 800-239-4432 x219. Click here for more information.

The GRI-8 Technology course will be offered Nov. 30 at the Greater Rochester Association of REALTORS in Rochester, NY. Learn how to be mobile and paperless in your real estate practice with tips on: transaction management tools; Internet advertising and syndication; e-marketing and social media; automation hardware, software and apps.

 

Register online today or call 800-239-4432 x219. Click here for more information.

NYSAR's partnership with UPS gives you access to exclusive shipping discounts – up to 30 percent! Enroll today to start saving on every package you send. Visit www.savewithups.com/nysar or call 800-325-7000 to enroll.

NYSAR Member Perks partner Taradel is an approved affiliate of the U.S. Postal Service’s Every Door Direct Mail® (EDDM®) program. Through this partnership, NYSAR members receive a five-percent discount to design, target, print and mail marketing pieces to every address in a specific zip code or carrier route. Forget buying mailing lists and printing labels, get started with Every Door Direct Mail® today. Click here to access the exclusive NYSAR EDDM® member portal.

The final auction item of the 2016 fundraising year item is the Michael Kors "Hamilton" leather medium brown handbag with shoulder strap and handles. Visit the RPAC Facebook group to place a bid or contact Derick King at dking@nysar.com or 518-463-0300 x238. Bidding will be open until the close of business Tuesday, Nov. 29.

Please mark your calendars - NYSAR must receive all RPAC investments by Wednesday, Nov. 30, to be applied toward the 2016 fundraising year. All donations received by NYSAR after Nov. 30 will be applied toward the 2017 RPAC fundraising year. Thank you all for the support toward our shared RPAC goals.

Thank you Gary Kenline from the Buffalo Niagara Association for submitting the high bid of $800 on the early-November auction item, the Amazon Echo. Thank you Gary for your service and leadership to the association through RPAC and beyond. Gary is a past NYSAR president, Lawrence B. Caldwell RPAC Service Award recipient, RPAC of NY Hall of Famer and RPAC Sterling R ($1,000) Investor for decades!