The state's Tax Relief Commission delivered its final report, calling for property tax relief for homeowners and businesses, to Gov. Andrew Cuomo on December 9.The commission's recommendations focus on providing property tax relief for New York homeowners and businesses, and enhancing the state's economic competitiveness.

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In its U.S. Foreclosures Market Report for November 2013, RealtyTrac Inc. reported New York State had 4,062 total foreclosures, an 8.58-percent increase from October and an increase of 9.22 percent from the same time last year. 

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Move Inc., the operator of REALTOR.com, has concluded a pilot program test of AgentMatch in Boulder, Colorado and Las Vegas that started in July. The program, designed to match potential sellers with agents in their area, had been met with much discussion, debate, and concern among NAR members. 

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The House of Representatives and Senate will adjourn this week. However, it is not the end of this Congressional session, so all legislation will remain active in 2014. NYSAR is continuing a strong effort to pass three legislative priorities including: providing mortgage cancellation tax relief; passing the Mortgage Choice Act; and delaying flood insurance premium hikes.

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The Call for Action supporting the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act has ended. Thank you for helping get New York to a 16-percent response rate on this important issue! The national response rate was 11 percent, with the highest state response rate belonging to Iowa at 30 percent.

To view your local board response rate, click here.

On December 5, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the H.R. 3309 "Innovation Act" aimed at curbing abuses in the patent litigation system. The bill is intended to discourage frivolous patent lawsuits brought by patent holders with hopes of large settlements. REALTORS have increasingly been the target of licensing demands from patent trolls for use of common business technologies like scanner-copiers and website search alert functions.

For more information on this legislation, click here.

The New York State Department of State recently posted the following on its Division of Licensing Services website: "The vendor that produces the photo identification cards for Real Estate Licenses, Security Guard and Armored Car Guard Registrants, qualifying officers of Private Investigator and Watch Guard or Patrol Agencies and officers of Armored Car Carrier Firms has changed. The new photo identification cards contain the same wording format as the previously issued cards, however, the material and coloring have changed.

All cards now being issued will utilize the new format. The new design of the cards contains revised security features built into the cards."

Today’s NYSAR Radio show will take a look back at legal issues in 2013. Tune in at 10 a.m. this morning 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.

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

New legislation now requires all homeowners receiving a Basic STAR exemption to register with the New York State Tax Department in order to receive the exemption in 2014 and subsequent years. Homeowners will not have to register in order to receive their 2013 STAR exemptions and will not have to re-register every year.Based on the information provided in the registration process, the Tax Department will monitor homeowners’ eligibility in future years. Registration will continue through December 31, 2013. 

Click here to register.

Gain a full understanding of ethics and arbitration hearings, enforcement procedures and disciplinary guidelines during the 2014 Code of Ethics and Professional Standards Procedures Training. The Code of Ethics and recent changes adopted by NAR’s Board of Directors and Delegate Body will also be covered. In addition to 6 hours of CE credit, this course also satisfies NAR’s mandatory ethics training requirement. 

Click here for the schedule and registration form.

Time Warner Cable recognizes the vital connection you provide to their potential customers and wants to reward you for your referrals. To get started, you first need permission from your broker to present clients with this opportunity. Then, register yourself and gain access to the online referral portal. Your clients will appreciate the time-saving concierge services and a free standard installation, while you earn award points that can be redeemed for thousands of exciting awards, such as electronics, travel awards and luxury gifts, or even donated to charity. You can even choose to use your points to make donations to either the NYSAR Housing Opportunities Foundation or New York State Real Estate Education Foundation (NYSREEF).

For more information or register as a referrer, visit www.twcablerealty.com/nysar.Click here to watch a brief video about the program.

With the changes resulting from the Affordable Care Act, NYSAR knows that understanding your health insurance options is more confusing than ever before. Fortunately, NYSAR Member Perks partner and insurance administrator USI Affinity is here to help guide and support all NYSAR members towards making the best health care decisions. Get your questions answered today by calling USI Affinity at 888.834.3713.

RPAC kicked off the 2014 fundraising year in Atlantic City with the successful RPAC High Rollers Suite. The New York State, New Jersey and Pennsylvania Associations of REALTORS joined forces to host the RPAC High Rollers Suite in conjunction with Triple Play. The suite was complete with a barista, hot food, beverages, shoe shine, professional photographer, chair massages, manicures, roulette and blackjack lessons and more for a minimum $250 investment in RPAC. In addition, we offered several auction items that raised even more for RPAC. All told, RPAC of New York took in nearly $10,000 in investments and pledges during the one-day event!