On March 21, President Barack Obama signed the "Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act" into law. This law repeals FEMA’s authority to increase premium rates at time of sale or implementation of a new flood map, and refunds the excessive premium to those who bought a property before FEMA warned them of the rate increase. The bill limits premium increases to 18 percent annually on newer properties and 25 percent for some older ones. Additionally, the bill adds a small assessment on policies until everyone is paying full cost for flood insurance.

For a section by section analysis of the "Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act," click here.

Housing sales in New York State slowed during February with closed transactions falling 5.9 percent compared to February 2013, according to the housing market report released by the New York State Association of REALTORS. The statewide median sales price continued its growth trend, increasing by nearly 7 percent compared to last February.

Click here to learn more.

Privately-owned housing starts in February were at a seasonally adjusted rate of 75,000 for the Northeast, down 37.5 percent from January 2013, according to data released by the U.S. Commerce Department. Building permits for the Northeast in February rose 6.3 percent to 102,000.

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Legislative leaders announced last week that they will seek to add $500 million in state spending to the 2014-15 state budget for the fiscal year that starts April 1 with $240 million designated to go toward extra aid for education, $64 million for higher education, and another $59 million to be put towards the state’s health care spending including Medicaid.

No deal has been reached on Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s property tax freeze proposal, with the both Senate and Assembly proposing alternate plans. Negotiations on the final budget will continue throughout the next week with the final budget due on or before April 1.

NYSAR is actively working on the legislation below in the New York State Legislature:
• Citizen Suits (A.7155 – O’Donnell/S.675 - Avella). To view NYSAR’s Memorandum in Opposition, click here.
• Study & Stay Progam (S.6699 - Valesky). To view NYSAR’s full Memorandum in Support, click here.

Click here to learn more.

The Tuesday, April 8, NYSAR Radio show will cover fair housing in honor of April being Fair Housing Month. Tune in at 10 a.m. on April 8 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.

In an effort to make sure our members are fully informed about the latest industry and association news and events affecting their business, NYSAR members are automatically subscribed to many of our emails. Using this tool, you may opt-in or out of the association’s e-newsletters and announcements to best meet your needs.

The Resort and Second-home Property Specialist (RSPS) course will be offered April 2 at the LIBOR REALTOR Service Center in Woodbury, NY. This course gives you the knowledge and skills you need to specialize in: buying, selling, or managing second homes in a resort, recreational, and/or vacation destination; and properties for investment, development or retirement.

Click here for more information or to register.

"Global Real Estate: Local Markets" and "Global Real Estate: Transaction Tools" – Certified International Property Specialist (CIPS) courses – will be offered April 3 and 4, respectively, at the REALTOR Service Center in Jackson Heights, NY. The CIPS designation gives you the knowledge and expertise to conduct business with those from other countries and cultures.

Click here for more information or to register.

Take advantage of NYSAR’s newest Member Perks partner, Taxbot, to keep more of your commissions through tax deductions! The Taxbot mobile app offers you the ability to track business mileage and expenses with your iPhone or Android smartphone or tablet, and turn those expenses into IRS compliant tax deductions. Click here to learn more.

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 http://www.savewithups.com/nysar or call 800-325-7000 to enroll.

Once again RPAC of NY will return to Citi Field to lend our support to the New York Mets. The event will be on Friday, April 25, and features a ticket to the game in the exclusive Party City Deck, located feet from the action in left field at field level. The Party City Deck offers bar stools and regular seats. Every ticket also includes complimentary food and beer service throughout the game! Contact Derick King, NYSAR political affairs coordinator, for complete details at dking@nysar.com or 518-463-0300 x238. Click here for a flyer with more information.

Sharon won the March RPAC auction item, Brookstone’s mobile charging station, with the high bid of $400. Thank you Sharon for investing in RPAC at the Major Investor level ($1,000) this year and for your service as an RPAC Trustee! The April RPAC auction item will be announced in the weeks ahead.