Last year’s subtle campaigning efforts turned out well.  Marge Lindsay was able to secure her position on Arizona Association of REALTORS® Board of Directors from PAR.  Well it’s that time of year again where the Phoenix Association is having their elections and we’re looking for members of PAR’s help.  Only this time, Marge Lindsay has brought her good friend Jim Sexton along.  Both Marge and Jim are running for the Arizona Association of REALTORS® Board of Directors and they need your vote!

If you are a member of PAR chances are you received your official ballot this morning via email from Diane Scherer.  You need the email because it gives you your login information.  In order to vote (only once) you’ll need your NRDS number and your special PAR PIN – both of which are in the email.

My recommendation is find the email, follow the link, copy and paste your NRDS number and your special PAR PIN into the appropriate fields.  Once in, cast up to 7 votes for the PAR Directors and up to 13 votes for the AAR Directors.  The AAR ballot is where you’ll find Jim and Marge.

With your help, Marge and Jim will be representing John Hall & Associates at the state level.  Thanks for your VOTE!!

A new law has created a stir among borrowers, lenders and real estate professionals. Interpretation is difficult, but SB 1271 clearly only benefits the banks. These are the same banks that were making the high risk loans which got us into this financial mess in the first place. The people most hurt by the new law will be individual investors – the little guys.

A perfect example is people who own a vacation home in addition to their primary residence. It is not uncommon for somebody to have a chunk of Gilbert real estate as well as a cabin up north. If the homeowner runs into tough times, for example the loss of a job, the first property they will lose will likely be the vacation home. Under the new law the lender for the vacation home could go after the primary residence of the borrower!

The same scenario holds true if you own the home you live in as well as a rental property. What if your renters move out and you can’t find new renters quickly? If the rental property forecloses, the banks can come after the home you live in.

So real estate lobbyists and the Arizona Association of Realtors are scrambling to get the new law that would make homeowners liable for tens of thousands of dollars on homes lost to foreclosure killed before a Sept. 30 deadline. Let’s hope they succeed.

Nearly Two-Thirds of Voters Back Brewer Tax Hike

Pertaining to the above news story about a recent survey conducted on behalf of the Arizona Association of Realtors, I would like to make the following statement:

I am disturbed by the fact that the Arizona Association of Realtors would commission Public Opinion Strategies, a polling firm that has a dark history of fixing polls to meet Republican agendas. The newly released poll results, boasting 64% of voters back Governor Brewer’s tax hike, is utterly absurd. Only 600 individuals were surveyed in a telephone poll. That is less than 1%, or 0.019331% to be exact, of all eligible registered voters in the State of Arizona. By standard polling protocol, that is a very small window to assess.

What about the other 99.98% of Arizona voters? How would they vote? From all the people I have spoken with in my early campaigning days, most of them disapprove of Brewer’s tax hike and feel that our government is out of control and needs to manage their spending better.

I have a strong feeling that Governor Jan Brewer, the Arizona Association of Realtors, and Public Opinion Strategies is conspiring against the people, in order to influence a special ballot vote in favor of Brewer’s tax increase proposal. Since Brewer took office in January, she has been head strong on increasing taxes and taking more of the people’s hard-earned money away from them.

Update: My original rough calculation was estimated at 3% of a total Arizona voter population. This statement has been corrected after AZ Insider at Sonoran Alliance noticed my calculations were incorrect. After recalculating, the poll results are even less substantial, revealing 600 surveyed individuals equates to 0.019331% of 3,103,747 registered voters, as of July 2009.

(See Most Current Updates Below)

Updated: July 27, 2009

Tom Farley (CEO for the Arizona Association of REALTORS) has been keeping AAR members updated via email as to what is going on with the anti-deficiency bill SB 1271.  If you have missed or didn’t receive said emails, you can find updates on the AAR’s legislation issues website, RalliNOW.

Here’s a quick rundown of what’s been going on and where you can find more SB 1271 information:

On July 16th, the RalliNOW website posted this article explaining the changes between the current law and the new law that is currently set to take effect on September 30, 2009.  The post states:

The current law prohibits a lender from seeking a deficiency judgment against the trustor (foreclosed property owner) if the trust property is 2.5 acres or less and is used as a single one-family or single two-family dwelling.

(…)

After September 29th, SB 1271 will prohibit a deficiency judgment against a trustor pursuant to a trustee’s sale of a trust property that is 2.5 acres or less and is used as a single one-family or single two-family dwelling if both of the following apply:

o   The trustor has lived in the trust property for at least six consecutive months.
o   A certificate of occupancy has been issued for the property.

Four days later, the AAR posted another article on RalliNOW saying they are trying to get this issue revisited by Governor Brewer this week.  They wrote:

Our goals are to narrow the bill’s impact, clarify the statute’s intent and to include an emergency clause in the legislation so that the AAR’s amendments would take effect and overwrite the amendments that SB 1271 made to the Anti-Deficiency statute before it goes into effect on September 30, 2009.

Then last Friday (July 24th) the NY Times spoke up with an article that better explains some of the downsides of the new law.

…the state Realtors group said the legislation goes further than targeting ‘’spec builders.” For example, the changes would roll back protections for foreclosures involving second homes and homes which owners who let relatives live in them, the group said.

The result could more people filing for bankruptcy protection to shed their debts if banks won’t work with them to avoid foreclosures, said Tom Farley, head of the Realtors group.

That spells trouble for a housing industry that is trying to recover in a market burdened by already high foreclosure rates, Farley said. ”It doesn’t bode well for our economic recovery.”

It doesn’t look like we’ve heard the end of this story.  Stay tuned for more news and/or further clarification as to what effects this law will have.

Update as of July 30th:

It looks like Senator Pierce is on our side.  The post from July 29th on the AAR’s website RalliNOW says:

Sen. Steve Pierce, sponsor of SB 1271, feels the bill needs to be fixed due to the unforeseen and unintended consequences of the legislation. He has asked the Legislature and the Governor’s office to repeal the bill so that legislators and industry stakeholder groups can work on a new bill to accomplish the original objective of 1271- to help small community banks in Arizona.

Catherine Reagor has also chimed in with an article on her blog, mentioning banks are holding off on foreclosures until after 9/30 since they might be able to recoup some of their losses.  The current plan of action to fix SB 1271 is to include a recall on the state budget legislation.

SB 1271 update as of August 6th:

Straight from the Arizona Association of REALTORS® CEO Tom Farley’s email to AZ REALTORS®…

The state’s original anti-deficiency language has been inserted into two budget bills (HB 2008 and SB 1024) currently being debated by the legislature which would have the effect on nullifying the passage of SB 1271. HB 2008 has quickly passed the Arizona House of Representatives. SB 1024 is awaiting final vote which could happen August 8th or on the 10th. If for some reason, the Senate Bill fails on final vote, we will immediately focus on our next effort to repeal the law. The banking lobby and at least one member of the legislature are pushing for an amendment to SB 1271, instead of repeal, that would allow it to still apply retroactively to loans already in existence. We have been advised that this action would ultimately be unconstitutional if not unjust.

SB 1271 update as of August 18th:

We just got an issue of the Capitol Insider from the AZ Association of REALTORS.  It included an update on SB-1271, which can be found on the RalliNow website.

The email indicated that the SB 1271 repeal language is heading to the Governor’s office on a budget bill that doesn’t address a sales tax increase.  It’s rumored that Governor Brewer isn’t going to sign a budget that doesn’t address an increase in sales tax, either directly or by vote.

August 25th Update:

Catherine Reagor writes on her blog:

Legislation that would repeal the most debated parts of a new Arizona foreclosure law is sitting on Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer’s desk. She has until close of business Wednesday (Aug. 26th) to act on it.

This process is crazy.  Watching sb1271 play out over the last month has been super educational.  It’s been a play by play in how laws are repealed in Arizona.  It’s so interesting to see all the different angles the lobbyist have to pursue in order to work the system.

August 25th Update (II):

Straight from the Capital Insider email that Jim Sexton received this afternoon:

The Arizona Senate and House of Representatives moved to sine die the 49th Legislature- 3rd Special Session on Tuesday at approximately 1:45pm. This gives Governor Jan Brewer an additional ten days to act on the budget bills sent to her last Thursday. She is to resume talks with Democrats at 3:30pm this afternoon. They are asking for changes in education, DES, DHS and AHCCCS in exchange for their support of the three-year 1-cent sales tax referral. Majority Leadership has said that the Democrat’s price tag is just too high and will not receive bipartisan support at this time. HB 2008, which includes the repeal of SB 1271, is among the budget bills that are still awaiting the governor’s action. It is believed that she will take the full 10 days before acting on any measure, in order to continue to work towards the sales tax referral. We continue to encourage her signature on HB 2008.

Just when I thought this controversy was going to be over today, they pull the Sine Die card!!  It sounds like the next update will come across around Sept. 4th.

SB 1271 Final Update:
(September 4th, 2009)

SB 1271 Repealed

By Tom Farley, CEO           Arizona Association of REALTORS®

Request for the Governor’s Assistance

On Friday, the Arizona Association of REALTORS® (AAR) had a preliminary conversation with Governor Brewer’s staff regarding the impacts of SB 1271 and the need for an immediate fix to this legislation that becomes effective on September 30, 2009.  AAR requested that the Governor amend her current Call for Special Session to include a fix to SB1271 with an emergency clause.  Governor Brewer called the legislature into Special Session to deal only with the historic budget deficit.  The Governor’s staff was receptive to our request and voiced a wiliness to work with AAR, but requested that we provide specific examples of legal issues resulting from SB 1271’s passage and how the bill would impact Arizonans if left unfixed.  The Governor does not have to amend her Call for Special Session to include this issue, so the burden is on us to demonstrate the need for immediate action.  If the Governor agrees with our request, our next job is to convince the legislature to fix the statute. 

Early next week, AAR will deliver a letter outlining the issues as requested to the Governor’s office and formally make the request to amend the Call for Special Session to include this issue.  Our goals are to narrow the bill’s impact, clarify the statute’s intent and to include an emergency clause in the legislation so that the AAR’s amendments would take effect and overwrite the amendments that SB 1271 made to the Anti-Deficiency statute before it goes into effect on September 30, 2009. 

SB 1271 – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Document in the Works

We have received numerous emails and phone calls asking several different questions regarding SB 1271’s interpretation.  We are doing our best to provide those answers in an FAQ document.  But because of several different views by attorneys across our state on how the changes to the statute should be interpreted, AAR is having difficulty providing those answers.

Everywhere you look, you hear of the green movement. Canvas shopping bags, solar panels, “new” light bulbs, electric cars…but how can it help your business?

Don’t miss out on important information that can impact you and your business. Our online Continuing Education partner, The CE Shop, has a NEW CE course “Going Green: The Environmental Movement in Real Estate” which will show you how to take advantage of the environmental movement within your real estate business and continue to add value to your client’s experience and your relationship with them.

The course is approved for CE credit in Arizona (3-general)!

As an added bonus to taking the new Going Green course the CE Shop, located in Fargo, ND, is giving back to help with Flood Recovery efforts.  They will donate 10% of your enrollment fees from today through April 30th to the DMF Red River Valley Flood Fund. All money raised for flood efforts will stay in the region and benefit those served by the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army and FirstLink.

Be sure to use Promotional code: FLOOD

Thank you for your support!

Barbara Freestone
Senior Vice President, Professional & Business Development
Arizona Association of REALTORS®
(Proud Sponsor of RE BarCamp – Phoenix)
255 E. Osborn, Ste 200, Phoenix, AZ 85012
602-248-7787

Holy moly AAR has been moving fast! They’re going about 110 mph down the information highway, the communication highway and the technology highway all at the same time.  Soon after they expanded their online presence to facebook they got their twitter handle up and running.  As soon as they organized all the existing information available to REALTORS® with the Road to Professionalism site, they start sharing new information on AARnews.  The good news is they plan on getting you up to speed with this technology and more at The Road to Success Winter Conference.

Are you a fan of the Arizona Association of REALTORS® page on facebook? As of this morning there were 322 fans!  It’s been up and running for a few months now, and it looks like a great place for AZ agents to communicate.  If you are trying to integrate your real estate business into your social media efforts, know that as soon as you become a fan of any page, all your contacts receive updates.  What better way to stay on top of their mind for real estate than becoming more and more involved with REALTOR® organizations and companies on facebook.

Are you on twitter?  AAR is…well, kind of.  Don’t take any twitter lessons from AAR on how to interact with others.  They are solely using it as a content promoter.  Take lessons from them on that, how to share your content with others.  Twitter is a good way to notify a lot of people there is something new on your website.  If you would like to know when they add new material to their blog or announce updated information – start following them.

Let’s talk about the Road to Professionalism site.  Have you seen it yet?  What an incredibly overwhelming resource of information.  I had no idea there was this much content available to our industry.  I take that back, I had no idea AAR could do such a good job organizing this amount of content.  First they break down AAR and NAR resources into categories like Risk Management, Communication, Real Property Fundamentals, etc.  Then once you dig deeper into those categories you’ll find the content tagged with icons informing you whether the content is for Rookies, Experienced Agents, Brokers, or Managers.  Anyone looking to improve their real estate professionalism will consider this site gold!

Blog – is it still an unknown?  When I hear the term blog – I think “website that has fresh content and encourages interaction”.  That is exactly what AARnews.com is.  It will always have fresh content and it allows readers to comment on articles.  Now you can share your thoughts on the articles that are published in the AZR every month.  What a great way to learn, network and communicate.  Check it out – you may want to subscribe to receive their articles in your feed reader.

Are you overwhelmed by the things AAR is doing online these days?  If so, you are not alone.  Many agents have been asking questions about all this new technology.  Because of this, AAR is designating a big part of The Road to Success Winter Conference to answering technology questions and teaching how to connect the dots between using technology and generating more business.  The Road to Success will merge technology with the basics of building a real estate business.  This is an excellent chance for you to get up to speed if any of the things in this article are a mystery!

[Source: Tucson Weekly] — The payday-loan industry may be on its way out of business in Arizona.  Gay marriage is even more illegal in the state, and once again, voters have rejected the idea of giving lawmakers a raise.  With 99.1 percent of precincts reporting, according to the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office, here are the latest results.

The payday-loan industry suffered a stunning defeat after 59.5 percent of voters rejected Proposition 200, the Payday Loan Reform Act.  Prop 200, which was funded with more than $14 million from the payday-loan industry, would have allowed the industry to continue to operate in the state past 2010, the year in which the law that allowed them to set up shop will expire.

Business owners did not get a break from voters after the stunning defeat of Proposition 202.  The Stop Illegal Hiring Act, supported by a variety of business interests, would have granted Arizona companies additional defenses if caught with illegal workers on their payroll.  However, with the defeat — 59.1 percent of voters were saying no — the state’s employer-sanctions law, said by many to be the toughest in the nation, will remain on the books.

Voters also ensured that they will still be able to increase taxes at the ballot box by overwhelmingly rejecting Proposition 105, aka Majority Rules, which would have required that any statewide initiative that hiked taxes or fees be approved by a majority of all registered voters, not just the ones who cast ballots in the election.  A whopping 65.7 percent of voters rejected the measure…

Gay marriage became even more illegal in Arizona after 56.5 percent of the voters supported Proposition 102, which will amend the Arizona Constitution to limit marriage to being between only one man and one woman.  Arizonans rejected a broader law that would have also banned civil unions and domestic partnerships by a narrow margin two years ago…

State lawmakers will continue to be a bargain for taxpayers after 64.5 percent of voters rejected Proposition 300, which would have increased annual legislative salaries from $24,000 to $30,000.

Proposition 101, aka the Freedom of Choice in Health Care Act, remained too close to call as of Wednesday morning, when voters were rejecting it by just more than 2,100 votes.  If it were to make up the difference and somehow pass, Prop 101 would amend the state Constitution to ban the state from interfering with health-insurance options.

Arizonans will never be required to pay a sales tax on the purchase of a home after voters resoundingly approved Proposition 100, aka Protect Our Homes, which was placed on the ballot by the Arizona Association of Realtors to block the state from charging a real-estate transfer tax, a revenue mechanism in some states.  Some 76.9 percent of voters added this amendment to the state Constitution.

However, buyers of new homes will not be getting a longer guarantee on their houses after 77.9 percent of voters rejected Proposition 201.  Homebuilders successfully argued that the proposition would increase lawsuits and raise home prices…