Official Publication of the St. Louis Association of REALTORS速
速 The Voice for Real Estate速 in St. Louis with nearly 8,000 members strong. May 2011
Volume 7 - Number 5
SLAR Member Nation Wide Open House Info
3
page
2011 RPAC Trivia Night page 12
Contents
St. Louis Association of REALTORS®
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12777 Olive Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63141 (314) 576-0033 – main line (314) 576-7143 - fax www.stlrealtors.com
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2010 Board of Directors Executive Committee Nate Johnson, President Donna Zerega, Vice President/ Treasurer Gail Brown, Member at Large David Morris, Commercial DivisionPresident
Glenn Vatterott, President-Elect Elizabeth Braznell, Secretary Letty DeMay, Immediate Past President Fred Kratky, Executive Vice President/CEO
Nationwide Open House Young Professionals Network Update
Affiliate Corner
Legislative Report
Directors Elizabeth Braznell, REALTOR® Director (2011) Mickey McNearney, REALTOR® Director (2012) Gail Brown, REALTOR® Director (2011) Michele Sloan Mulford, REALTOR® Director (2012) Mike Travaglini, REALTOR® Director (2011) L. K. Wood, III, REALTOR® Director (2012) Barry Upchurch, REALTOR® Director (2011) Bob Bax, REALTOR® Director (2013) Tiffany Hamilton, REALTOR® Director (2011) Sue Middendorf, REALTOR® Director (2013) Sandy Hancock, REALTOR® Director (2012) Carole Mulina, REALTOR® Director (2013) Barb Keathley, REALTOR® Director (2012) David Townsend, REALTOR® Director (2013) Janet Judd, REALTOR® Associate Director John D. Williams, REALTOR® Director (2013) Mike Rouhani , REALTOR® Associate Director Shelly Clark, Affiliate Director LaWanda Elgin, REALTOR® Associate Director
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Education 18-23 Membership Report
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SLAR Sold Stats
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Calendar of Events
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St. Louis Association of REALTORS® Staff Executive Vice President/CEO Office
Legislative
Fred Kratky, Executive Vice President/CEO Patty Bommarito, Executive Assistant fkratky@stlrealtors.com pbommar@stlrealtors.com Direct line: (314) 590-2319
Celeste Rueter, Governmental Affairs Director crueter@stlrealtors.com
Admissions, Grievance & Ethics Chris Woods, Senior Vice President Operations, Ethics & Professional Standards cwoods@stlrealtors.com Direct line: (314) 590-2306 Judy Partsch, Receptionist Jacquelyn Koessel, Admissions Assistant jpartsch@stlrealtors.com jkoessel@stlrealtors.com
Commercial Division Susan Wagner, Commercial Division Vice President swagner@stlrealtors.com Direct line: (314) 590-230 Tina Luehrmann, Commercial Assistant tinal@stlrealtors.com
Education, Room Rentals, Contracts & Forms Karen Dunn, Education Director Monica Pingel, Assistant kdunn@stlrealtors.com mpingel@stlrealtors.com
REALTOR® Shoppe Hours of Operation Monday - Friday 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. For advertising information, please contact Foley Publications at 1-800-628-6983 or visit www.foleypub.com
Ali Pauluhn, Public Affairs Coordinator apauluhn@stlrealtors.com
Membership, Finance & REALTOR® Shoppe Rick Capelli, Senior Vice President of Membership & Finance Katie Benz, REALTOR® Shoppe/ SUPRA Administrator rcapelli@stlrealtors.com Direct line: (314) 590-2313 kbenz@stlrealtors.com Kim Russell, Bookkeeper Tammy Williams, Membership Assistant krussell@stlrealtors.com twilliams@stlrealtors.com
Public Relations Connie Chartier, Vice President of Public Relations cchartier@stlrealtors.com Direct line: (314) 590-2304
Matt Newport, Website / PR Coordinator mnewport@stlrealtors.com
Mid-America Regional Information Systems (MARIS)
1714 Deer Tracks Trail Ste. 200, St. Louis, MO 63131 (314) 984-9111 www.marisnet.com Paul Prince, President David Price, Vice President & Systems Manager pprice@marisnet.com dprice@marisnet.com Denise Bielicke, Controller Pattie Elkins, Accounts Receivable Clerk dbielicke@marisnet.com paelkin@marisnet.com Tracey Yost, Membership Manager Jason A. Darrough, Systems Support Specialist tryost@marisnet.com jdarroug@marisnet.com Robyn L. McPherson, Training Coordinator Katie Otto, Public Relations Manager rmcphers@marisnet.com kotto@marisnet.com Nikki Craig, Receptionist ncraig@marisnet.com
Commercial Information Exchange (CIE)
301 Sovereign Ct., Suite 109, Ballwin, MO 63011 (636) 230-6243 www.stlcie.com Bonnie Devine, President/CEO Judith Jakuboski, Executive Assistant bonnie@stlcie.com judith@stlcie.com
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Nationwide Open House Weekend Join thousands of REALTORS® around the nation and hold an open house on the weekend of June 4th & 5th, 2010! Encourage your buyers to visit and your sellers to participate. As an added touch you can identify the open house with REALTOR® & Open House balloons.
in June? The Nationwide Open House Weekend offers buyers a stress-free way to visit homes for sale in different neighborhoods where they might want to live. For sellers, the weekend provides a high-visibility effort to promote traffic and drive home sales.
In addition, SLAR is partnering with the St. Louis PostDispatch, who are offering tremendously low discounts for ad spots for both agents and brokers. For more details, contact Angie Nagy at angie.nagy@lee.net or call 314-744-5789.
P.S. Don’t forget to check-out RealtorOpen.comSLAR’s Exciting New Marketing Tool for your Business! The St. Louis Association of REALTORS® has launched its RealtorOpen.com site, a FREE marketing tool designed to enhance the exposure of your Open House listings. Simply enter your Open House information on MARIS just as you always have, and your listing will show up on the RealtorOpen.com site for consumers to view. If you have any questions, please contact the Public Relations Department at 314.576.0033.
SLAR’s REALTOR® Shoppe is offering its members discounted prices on all Open House Balloons/Kits, Open House Shaped signs and Open House Riders, in celebration of the Nationwide Open House. The sale will begin on Wednesday, May 25th thru Friday, June 3rd. To place an order, contact Katie Benz at kbenz@stlrealtors.com or call 314.576.0033 ext. 339. Note: All items ordered must be picked-up at the REALTOR® Shoppe. Hurry though as supplies will be limited! How is this weekend different than any other weekend
Put the power of Chase to work for your clients At Chase, we’ll work closely with your clients to find a loan that meets their needs. We have a wide variety of loans and special programs for military personnel, union members and more. And you’ll get the dedicated, personal service you want to help grow your business. To find out more, call Bryan Bergjans at (636) 735-2117 or Terra Ritchie at (636) 735-2114.
All home lending products are subject to credit and property approval. Rates, program terms and conditions are subject to change without notice. Not all products available in all states or for all amounts. Other restrictions and limitations apply. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. ©2011 JPMorgan Chase & Co. 13546R 0411
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REALTOR Magazine Seeks Good Neighbor Nominations Five winners will receive $10,000 grants and national publicity REALTOR® Magazine is seeking your help in identifying nominees for the 2011 Good Neighbor Awards. The program--now in its 12th year--recognizes REALTORS® whose extraordinary commitment to community service has helped make their communities better places to live.
honorable mentions will receive $2,500 grants.
In November, five winners will be announced in REALTOR® Magazine and will be recognized at the 2010 REALTORS® Conference & Expo in Anaheim. Five winners will receive a $10,000 grant for their community cause, travel expenses to the convention, and extensive publicity to benefit their cause. In addition to the winners, five
For additional information, contact Sara Geimera at 312-329-8296 or by email- sgeimer@realtors.org.
Eligible activities include any volunteer work that helps improve the quality of life in a community. Attached are links to frequently asked questions as well as the Good Neighbor entry form. Deadline for entry is Friday, May 20, 2011.
Click here to download the entry form
Click here to get answers to frequently asked questions
Click here to view videos of past winners
Crack Team - Missouri, LLC “We Fix Broken Basements”
Affiliate Members of the St. Louis Association of REALTORS® (636) 625-3554 (888) 687-5765 Fax (636) 625-3735 www.crackteam-missouri.com
If your basement Leaks, Seeps, Drips, Leans, Bows or Bulges, We can fix it!
Serving St. Charles, North St. Louis, Warren, Lincoln and Jefferson Counties in Missouri We Accept:
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2011 Is Off to a Great Start! The Young Professional Network St. Louis Chapter (YPN) has started off 2011 with a bang! We had a busy month of March, and the support we received was amazing! Our March events started off with our One Year Anniversary Celebration which took place at Lucas Park Grille. Following our One Year Celebration was the 30 Under 30 Top REALTOR® Panel at the Missouri Athletic Club. We were very excited to have such a great turnout and see so many new faces! Due to all the positive feedback, we have decided to make this a yearly event. A special thank you to our panelists for sharing their secrets to success!
St. Louis Chapter
Friday, June 10th: Round Table Discussion on Technology Shortcuts Need a quick app to get things done? Need a faster way to “Touch” your clients? Looking to grow your business? Then this round table discussion is for you! We will have experts waiting to show you the ‘technology shortcuts’ to become even more successful. This seminar will take place at SLAR from 9:00 – 11:00 a.m.
Friday, September 23rd: Kickball Tournament at Tower Grove Park Get your teams together and bring your competitive spirit! This tournament will be held at Tower Grove Park from 10:00 a.m. till?? You won’t want to miss this, so mark your calendars!! More details to follow. YPN would like to congratulate their newest Advisory Board Members – Matt Kastner of Threshold Properties and Ben Cherry of Manor Real Estate. For information on joining this organization- please contact YPN at ypnstl@ gmail.com. Amanda Divito Parle of Remax Alliance in Arvada, Colorado; Jenifer Garcia of Garcia Properties in St. Louis, MO; Lauren Mitrick of Jameson Real Estate in Chicago, IL.
YPN – St. Louis Chapter would like to thank all of those who made the above events so successful! Thank you for your continued support and we hope to see you at our upcoming events:
Thursday, May 19th: YPN supports RPAC Please come out and help YPN support RPAC. This event will be held at Bar Louie in the Central West End from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. A special thanks to our sponsor USA Mortgage for providing complimentary appetizers and drink specials.
Smiling for the camera from (L- R): “30 Under 30” Panelist Amanda Divito Parle; SLAR YPN Chair Tiffany Hamilton, and “30 Under 30” Panelist Lauren Mitrick.
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NewsFlash MARIS will be implementing a new automated system to help find and track violations. MLS Data Checker im¬proves the accuracy and completeness of MLS data. MLS Data Checker is a powerful web based software that automatically validates the quality and accuracy of the data entered into MLS. The program is configured to find violations according to MARIS MLS policies. Once the new system is in place, agents may receive automated e-mails from compliance@marisnet.com. There will still be a Report Violations button within the MLS listing where agents can click and report violations. Watch for more information to come over the next several weeks including the announcement of when we will go live with the new system of tracking violations. MARIS Rules and Regulations can be found on our web¬site. Log in to www.marisnet.com, and then click on Rules/ Regs. If you have questions please e-mail Katie Otto at: kotto@marisnet.com
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For the latest information, please visit us online.
www.STLrealtors.com
It’s official!
A preapproval you can rely on Get the most out of the time and effort you spend showing and selling homes. Work with credit-checked, ready-to-buy customers who have a written PriorityBuyer® preapproval decision from Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. Our PriorityBuyer preapproval decision is the shortest distance between the opening offer and the closing table, because it’s: • Reliable preapproved financing in clearly specified loan amounts and terms on official Wells Fargo letterhead. • Reassuring that you’re dealing with serious buyers who’ve already completed the application, credit check, and first decisioning phase. • The easiest way to separate firm leads from questionable offers. Make a PriorityBuyer preapproval decision your first order of business with each new customer relationship. Tell your buyers to call us today. Chesterfield, MO • 636-730-3310 Imperial, MO • 636-467-2230 St. Peters, MO • 636-922-9810 1. PriorityBuyer® preapproval is based on our preliminary review of credit information only. We will be able to offer a loan commitment upon verification of application information, satisfying all underwriting requirements and conditions, and providing an acceptable property, appraisal, and title report. This information is intended for real estate professionals only and is not intended for distribution to consumers or other third parties. Information is accurate as of date of printing and is subject to change without notice. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage is a division of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. © 2010 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. AS479181 12/10-3/11
Glen Carbon, IL • 618-650-7500 Shiloh, IL • 618-632-2600
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Affiliate Corner Important HB 553 Updates! The Home Inspectors in the State of Missouri are opposed to HB 553 (licensing of Home Inspectors). Here are some of the reasons.
Inspector litigation because of the low numbers of cases filed. Case in point is that the industry is serving the public well.
• Having additional fees and regulations on small businesses men in a down market will put many companies out of business. Inspection companies that are currently still in business are barely keeping their heads above water.
• ASHI ensures that consumers are getting well qualified inspectors. ASHI has set precedent nationwide for its standards of practice, ethics, and certification process. It is the only organization of its type that is certified by NOCA. (National Organization of Certifying Agencies).
• There is no demonstrated need for licensing of Home Inspectors. Specifically, there is no huge cry from the residents of Missouri of poor inspections and massive law suits. On the contrary, the BBB has only 414 complaints nationwide on home inspectors and of those, 267 have been resolved without litigation. The Missouri State Attorney General does not even track Home
• HB-553 is convoluted and confusing. It will do harm to the industry and make it difficult to do business in general for the inspector/owner. Information provided by St. Louis Association of REALTORS®’ Affiliate Chair - Shelly Clark. She can be reached at Shelly@CardinalSurveying.com
Property Insurability Forum The St. Louis Association of REALTORS’® Affiliate Committee will host a complimentary Forum on “Property Insurability” on Thursday, May 26, 2011 at 1:30 pm in the lower level Education Center. Join members of the Affiliate Committee’s Speakers Bureau as they cover important property insurability topics that you need to know such as, Clue Reports, items that affect insurance rates, home owners insurance and policy riders, using your home warranty as
insurance and flood insurance. The St. Louis Association of REALTORS® welcomes Affiliate Committee guest speakers Mike O’Shea of O’Shea Ward Insurance Group, Mark Naeger of Mark Anthony Group, LLC and Beale Luebben of Buyers Protection Group Home Warranty. Please register online at www.stlrealtors.com or fax registration form to 314.576.7143.
Here we grow again! Insight Title Company is proud to introduce Barbara Seerey as the newest addition to our team of Title Professionals. Barbara Seerey has joined the Insight team as vice president and escrow operations manager. Barb will work with the escrow department to continue Insight’s tradition of exemplary customer service and strong company growth. “It is extremely exciting to join a creative, innovative and people-oriented organization dedicated to the development of long-term client relationships. Every member brings passion, insight, integrity and an element of fun. It is a perfect fit!”
Barb Seerey
(314) 744-7014 bseerey@insighttitle.com www.insighttitle.com
Your Interests, Our Insight.
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Legislative Report Chesterfield Passes New Ordinance Restricting All Types of Recreational Vehicles
REALTORS® Urge Congress to Approach GSE Reform Slowly
Chesterfield’s City Council recently passed an ordinance restricting property owners from storing recreational vehicles unless they are garaged. Temporary offstreet parking is limited to 72 hours per occurrence with no more than two occurrences per month, and temporary on-street parking is limited to 24 hours per occurrence with no more than two occurrences per month will be allowed. The Chesterfield ordinance defines a recreational vehicle as “any type of vehicle used primarily for recreational pleasure. Examples include, but are not limited to: travel trailers, motor homes, boats, jet skis, etc. This term shall also include the trailers used for transporting recreational vehicles. Recreational vehicles shall include any mobile structure designed for temporary occupancy, but shall exclude manufactured homes.” For questions regarding this ordinance, please contact Celeste Rueter, SLAR Governmental Affairs Director, at 314-590-2307 or crueter@stlrealtors.com.
The National Association of REALTORS® today urged Congress to move cautiously when reforming government-sponsored enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Pre-Sale Inspections We are continuing to monitor municipal requirements for pre-sale re-occupancy inspections. Some municipalities are requiring owners (and agents) to order re-occupancy inspections prior to or shortly after listing a home. Please contact Celeste Rueter at crueter@stlrealtors.com with any occurrences as we are working to change these unconstitutional ordinances.
NAR Meets with FTC on MARS Rule On March 16, 2011, NAR staff met with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to discuss how obligations that exist under real estate brokerage agreements can be incorporated into and made consistent with the Mortgage Assistance Relief Services rule (MARS). The FTC acknowledged that the current rule’s requirements present problems in a real estate brokerage context and agreed to work with NAR to develop additional guidance. Please check back often with the NAR Law and Policy page as NAR is continuing to work toward modifications of the rule. http://www.realtor.org/letterlw.nsf/ pages/0211mars
Reforming America’s housing finance market can only be achieved through a forward-looking, comprehensive approach that supports the housing and economic recoveries, said NAR President Ron Phipps in testimony before the House Subcommittee on Capital Markets today. “As the leading advocate for home ownership, NAR strongly agrees that the existing system failed and that reforms are needed; however, redesigning a viable secondary mortgage model that will protect taxpayer dollars and serve the country’s home owners today, and in the future, can only be achieved through a methodical, measured effort,” said Phipps, broker-president of Phipps Realty in Warwick, R.I. NAR is concerned that without a comprehensive plan for reforming the secondary mortgage market, proposed legislation to quickly constrain Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac before an adequate replacement secondary mortgage market mechanism is established will further disrupt the still fragile housing market recovery. “REALTORS® agree that increasing private capital in the mortgage finance market is necessary for a healthy market and for reducing the government’s involvement; however, proposed legislation that relies only on private capital to operate the secondary mortgage market will slow, if not stop, the housing and economic recovery,” he said. Phipps testified that the pendulum on mortgage credit has already swung too far in the wrong direction and is hurting consumers and the economy. He added that quick decisions aimed at punishing certain market players will only punish the taxpayers by constraining their ability to access affordable mortgage financing, and that making it harder for those who can afford a safe mortgage does not further the goals of the recovery. “Home ownership is a pillar of our economy. NAR research shows for every two homes sold, a job is created, providing needed revenue to both our state and
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local economies. This must be considered when debating the future of federal housing policies,” said Phipps. He added that overreaching rules, like the qualified residential mortgage (QRM) exemption, could further curtail access to affordable credit and will only slow economic growth and hamper job creation. “The QRM is likely to shape housing finance for the foreseeable future, and we believe that Congress intended to create a broad QRM exemption from the 5 percent risk retention requirement to include a wide variety of traditionally safe, well-underwritten products,” said Phipps. “Congress chose not to include a high down payment among the criteria it specified in the Dodd-Frank Act. A poor QRM policy that does not heed their intentions will only increase the cost and reduce the availability of mortgage credit.” The National Association of REALTORS®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing 1.1 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. (Washington, DC, March 31, 2011)
Fannie Offers Incentives for HomePath Properties On April 11, 2011, Fannie Mae announced new buyer and selling agent incentives in connection with the sale of Fannie Mae-owned properties (HomePath properties). A buyer of a HomePath property to be used as the buyer’s primary residence can receive up to 3.5% of the final sales price to be used toward closing costs. A selling agent bonus is available in four states— California, Washington, Arizona, and Texas. In these four states, a bonus is being offered to selling agents who represent a buyer who will use the property as a primary residence. For properties in California and Washington, the selling agent bonus is $1,000. For properties in Arizona and Texas, the bonus is $500. To qualify for either incentive, the buyer and, for properties in one of the four states, the selling agent must meet certain requirements, including the following. The buyer and selling agent incentive must be requested at the initial offer submission. The initial offer must be submitted on or after April 11, 2011, and the property sale must close on or before June 30, 2011. The buyer must use the property as a primary residence (auction, pool and investor sales are excluded). Check the HomePath website for more details at http://www.homepath.com/
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Congress Repeals 1099 Reporting Rules The Senate has passed H.R. 4, a bill that repeals the small business 1099 reporting requirements that were enacted as part of the Health Care reform and the landlord reporting requirements enacted in 2010 as part of a Small Business bill. The measure passed on a strong bipartisan vote of 87 - 12. Similarly, the House had passed its version with a vote of 314 - 112. The House and Senate versions are identical, and President Obama has announced that he will sign the bill. The repeal is drafted as if the provisions had never been enacted. Thus, it is a complete and total repeal.
Agencies Release Draft of QRM Rule On March 29, 2011, NAR staff attended an FDIC board meeting during which they approved the-soon-to-beproposed rule on risk retention, implementing section 941 of the Dodd-Frank Act. Section 941 requires lenders that securitize mortgage loans to retain a percentage of the risk unless the mortgage is a qualified residential mortgage (QRM) or is otherwise exempt. The draft proposes a 60 day comment period after publication in the Federal Register and tentatively indicates a June 10th deadline. Definition of a QRM: • The proposed QRM rule would require an 80% LTV, which requires a 20% down payment. • The proposed rule would also limit the mortgage payment to 28% of gross income and 36% of all debts. • Mortgage loan qualify as a QRM only if the borrower is not currently 30 or more days past due on any debt obligation. • Borrower must not have been 60 or more days past due on any debt obligation within the preceding 24 months. • Borrower must not have, within the preceding 36 months, been through bankruptcy, foreclosed on, engaged in a short sale or deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, or been subject to a Federal or State judgment for collection of any unpaid debt. NAR has already raised concerns about the impact these standards will have on the pricing, terms, and availability of non-QRM loans to otherwise creditworthy borrowers, including low and moderate income borrowers.
More Fun than Fools at 2011 It’s difficult to take April Fool’s Day seriously. If you were one of the nearly 250 attendees at the 2011 REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) Trivia Night, you know what I mean. SLAR was full to capacity with enthusiastic RPAC supporters on April 1st. Dedicated members dressed according to the April Fool’s Day theme and, in some cases, caused quite a stir. Charlie Sheen was everywhere, appearing on t-shirts, masks, and table decorations. Staff had to dispel rumors about Carole Baras’s “impending” retirement. Despite tables full of hilarious gags, it was members Carolyn Mantia, Shelly Clark and Danielle Bond
Members at the Best Decorated Table pose for a group shot.
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who came away with the Best Decorated Table prize for their “Cubs Win 2011 World Series” themed table. It was a banner evening for Carole Baras; her RE/MAX table came in first place and she won the Best Dressed prize. Coming in last, the Mantia/Clark/Bond table was duly punished for their Chicago Cubs prank. Excellent categories and questions devised by Trivia Master and SLAR member Marc Levinson kept the evening fun and frivolous and the members on their toes. Thank you to everyone who came to the event! Attendance practically doubled this year and, with your help, we raised close to $6000 for RPAC (the most ever at a Trivia Night)! You made it clear that on April Fool’s Day, SLAR members are
Bob Bax and the Prudential Alliance Team enjoyed the festivities.
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1 RPAC Trivia Night really just fools for RPAC. The RPAC Committee would like to thank all of our wonderful sponsors beginning with our extremely generous Bar Sponsors, USA Mortgage (Stephanie Todd) and Insight Title (Vivian McBride). Thank you also to our Round Sponsors- Cardinal Surveying (Shelly Clark), BPG Home Warranty and Inspection (Beale Luebben), MoKan Title (Kerri Polk and Laura Montroy), Celeste Rueter, and Continental Title (Missy Palitzsch). We would like to thank Mulligan Sponsors Old Republic Home Protection (Pamela Primm) and American Eagle Credit Union (Danielle Bond). Thank you Continental
Title (Rebecca Meier) for sponsoring the Dead or Alive game and to everyone who donated items to the silent auction: Doug Beals with GE Supra, Letty DeMay, the REALTOR® Store, and USA Mortgage. The staff of the Legislative Department hopes to see everyone at this year’s upcoming RPAC events (the Auction is June 16th!) and at their Trivia Night next year!
Charlie Sheen was out in force. Unfortunately, the “winning” theme did not prove true for member Terry Gannon’s table.
Boxes of Ding Dongs went to the last place table. SLAR member Carolyn Mantia looks reluctant to share.
Urban Affairs Committee Learns How to Live
and beyond. After Ms. Gray’s presentation, Alderman Joe Vollmer of Ward 10 stopped by to greet the committee and thank them for visiting his livable ward. He also updated the committee on the recent development projects in the 10th Ward. Celeste Rueter, SLAR Governmental Affairs Director, gave a short introduction to the National Association of REALTORS® Smart Growth Program on livable communities. For more information or to sign up for the free smart growth magazine On Common Ground, visit www.realtor.org/smartgrowth.
The first Thursday of April took the Urban Affairs Committee to the Southwest Garden Neighborhood Association (SWGNA). Executive Director, Dana Gray gave a presentation on “Livable Communities.” Far from simply highlighting the charming aspects of the Southwest Garden Neighborhood – an area encompassing the Garden District and The Hill – Ms. Gray explained how the area daily demonstrates livability. By Ms. Gray’s definition, livability refers to a resident’s ability to function within a community without the regular use of a car. The livable community is pedestrian and bicycle friendly and features stores and businesses within walking/riding distance of residences. Ms. Gray demonstrates her neighborhood’s livability every day. After totaling her car ten months ago, she elected not to replace it and now walks or bikes to her destinations. The committee learned a great deal about livability and how the movement is spreading to other neighborhoods in St. Louis
The Urban Affairs Committee would like to thank Dana Gray and the Southwest Garden Neighborhood Association for hosting our meeting. The committee would also like to thank Sean Zalmanoff with USA Mortgage for sponsoring breakfast at the April meeting. We hope everyone can join us at next month’s Urban Affairs meeting on May 5th as we celebrate Cinco de Mayo! Have questions about or want to join the committee? Contact Ali Pauluhn in the Legislative Department at apauluhn@stlrealtors.com or at (314) 576-0033 x 317.
St. Louis’ #1 Mortgage Bank A Better Way to Buy a Home! Mark Cooper
Doug Schukar President / CEO 12140 Woodcrest Executive Dr. St. Louis, MO 63141 314-628-2000
Branch Manager (Creve Coeur) 314-628-2191
Tom Sinak Branch Manager (Arnold) 314-494-1215
Jeff Pfitzer Branch Manager (Jefferson County) 314-220-4945
Tracey Rohlfing Branch Manager (O’Fallon) 314-307-2825
Hamid Hamrah Branch Manager (Old Town St. Charles) 636-757-6000
Mark Mihal Branch Manager (St. Louis County) 314-373-1500
Ron Mueller Branch Manager (South County) 314-628-2055
Sean Zalmanoff Branch Manager (St. Louis City) 314-361-9979
John Farmer Branch Manager (Kirkwood) 314-985-0137 MAMP
REALTOR® Report
Welcome New Members
DESIGNATED REALTOR®
(Previously DESIGNATED REALTOR®)
Nancy Jackson, RE/MAX Results
COMPANY NAME CHANGE:
REALTOR®
Shen Wang, E Z Solutions LLC
(Previously REALTOR® ASSOCIATE)
Christina W. Vescovo, Priority Realty, LLC John Guletz, Stivan Realty, LLC Jack C. Davis, Jack C. Davis Real Estate Charles J. Partee, Innovative Realty, LLC Eugene Waldo McNeil, Eugene Waldo McNeil Lena Y. Like, KRB Realty Harvinder S. Pujji, Pujji Realty Loren Lane, Property Source Kelly J. Nelson, Case Properties
AFFILIATE: Jerrod Nash, USA Mortgage James R. Uxa, USA Mortgage Ronald F. Mueller, USA Mortgage Katherina DiMartino, USA Mortgage Linda Rosso, American Eagle Credit Union Dennis Tate, Flat Branch Home Loans Sandra Kinworthy, Blue Collar Real Estate & Investments Nathanial Klein, Pillar to Post Jessica Waeltz, Wells Fargo Private Mortgage Banking Edward W. Brown, Guardian Home Inspection Services
DESIGNATED REALTOR® Aida E. Fuentes, Soly Mar Realty LLC James Manning, STL Real Estate DESIGNATED REALTOR® DUAL MEMBER: Jeffrey J. Winzerling, Universatile Realty
(primary membership is under Envoy Commercial Real Estate)
REALTOR®
(Previously REALTOR® ASSOCIATE)
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(Previously Wang Realty)
Laura Breitenstein, The Hermann London Group
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(636) 294-0651
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Reform and Long-term Extension of National Flood Insurance Program Needed
The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is essential to a properly functioning real estate market. It ensures access to affordable flood insurance for 5.6 million American home and business owners in 21,000 communities nationwide where the insurance in required to obtain a federally related mortgage.
Recently, the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity held the first hearing on legislative proposals designed to reform the NFIP. NAR reaffirmed its long-standing support for strengthening the NFIP for the long-term to prevent undermining the real estate market recovery.
NAR strongly supports reauthorizing the NFIP for a minimum of five years. The current authority expires September 30, 2011. This authority is the latest in a long line of stopgap measures that have exacerbated uncertainty in recovering real estate markets. Since September 2008, authority for the NFIP has been extended nine times and twice was allowed to expire for multiple weeks at a time, immeasurably shaking investor confidence. During the June 2010 “lapse” more than 45,000 transactions were delayed or cancelled according to NAR survey data.
Additionally, NAR supports strengthening the long-term viability of the NFIP by expanding coverage to include business interruption and loss of residential use which encourages participation, indexing coverage limits which have not been updated despite inflation since 1994, and ensuring that the owners of repetitive loss properties pay insurance rates that reflect the full risk to the property. These reforms will help increase funds for the NFIP, help property owners recover form flood losses, and decrease future federal assistance when underinsured properties suffer flood losses.
While some groups have called for the NFIP to be privatized, NAR strongly opposes any efforts to move the program towards privatization. The NFIP was created and continues to address an on-‐going failure of the private market to provide access to affordable flood insurance. The private market would guarantee neither the availability nor the affordability of property insurance to protect against flooding, one of the most expensive natural disasters in the U.S. Without this program, the only way for many owners to rebuild after a flood would be for the federal government to provide post-‐disaster rebuilding assistance – using taxpayer dollars.
NAR will continue to seek the major reforms that are necessary to strengthen the long-‐term viability of the program and looks forward to working with the Subcommittee to ensure the continued availability of affordable flood insurance.
For more information on the NFIP and NAR's actions, please visit http://www.realtor.org/politicaladvocacy/nfip.
REALTOR速 Report
SLAR Sold Stats
RESALE (EXISTING) HOME SALES St. Louis City/County March
Under 29999 30000 - 39999 40000 - 49999 50000 - 59999 60000 - 69999 70000 - 79999 80000 - 89999 90000 - 99999 100000 - 119999 120000 - 139999 140000 - 159999 160000 - 179999 180000 - 199999 200000 - 249999 250000 - 299999 300000 - 349999 350000 - 399999 400000 - 449999 450000 - 499999 500,000 - 749,999 750000 - 999999 1000000 - 1249999 1250000 - 1499999 1500000 - 1999999 2000000 - 2999999 3000000 and over Totals
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Single-Family Units
Condominium/Cooperatives
Number of Bedrooms 2 or 3 4+ less 118 81 11 26 27 5 13 19 3 11 19 1 12 16 3 11 13 3 14 24 7 9 19 5 21 31 13 20 28 13 15 24 11 8 26 18 2 19 16 4 37 35 3 13 21 0 7 19 1 5 20 0 6 14 0 1 11 1 1 20 0 1 6 0 0 3 0 0 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 289 417 264
Number of Bedrooms 2 or 3 4+ Total less 4 0 1 5 3 0 0 3 2 0 0 2 4 0 0 4 3 1 0 4 2 1 0 3 4 0 0 4 7 0 0 7 8 3 0 11 9 3 0 12 10 5 0 15 5 2 0 7 3 4 0 7 7 3 0 10 4 1 0 5 1 1 0 2 1 2 1 4 2 0 0 2 2 1 1 4 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 84 28 4 116
Total 210 58 35 31 31 27 45 33 65 61 50 52 37 76 37 26 26 20 12 22 7 3 3 3 0 0 970
2009 - 2011 Average Price and Homes Sold |
Active Listings (includes all unsold homes) Single-Family Condo/Co-op Listings Listings End of Month End of Month 124 8 51 4 53 3 49 5 60 8 54 11 88 22 67 24 128 47 148 45 136 34 124 44 77 26 142 33 132 35 63 13 63 11 32 2 31 5 84 16 29 5 10 0 8 2 11 1 3 1 2 0 1769 405
Sales Pending (Under Contract) Single-Family Listings End of Month 122 43 31 25 20 20 26 24 39 34 35 33 29 52 25 18 16 15 6 23 7 4 6 2 0 0 655
Condo/Co-op Listings End of Month 1 2 2 4 4 1 5 3 7 8 8 4 6 3 2 3 4 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 71
Area 1-349 Residential, condo/cluster Coop
2009 Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep
2010 Average Price Homes Sold Median Price Month $149,471 823 $93,500 Jan $139,404 899 $101,000 Feb $162,192 1117 $112,900 Mar $161,522 1196 $124,400 Apr $178,771 1441 $135,000 May $192,295 1612 $152,900 Jun $188,309 1689 $145,000 Jul $177,110 1412 $133,950 Aug $176,712 1448 $138,250 Sep
2011 Average Price Homes Sold Median Price Month $161,133 702 $115,000 Jan $161,133 867 $109,000 Feb $161,133 1354 $132,000 Mar $161,133 1484 $134,950 Apr $161,133 1741 $145,000 May $161,133 1511 $165,000 Jun $197,225 1035 $145,000 Jul $182,918 1045 $135,000 Aug $183,892 1057 $127,500 Sep
Oct
$166,241
1617
$133,000
Oct
$180,930
976
$117,325
Oct
Nov
$165,855
1504
$130,250
Nov
$175,938
913
$123,625
Nov
Dec
$174,398
994
$125,500
Dec
$181,462
1005
$128,900
Dec
$169,357
15752
$131,625
$172,430
13690
$130,450
Average Price $162,201 $173,312 $156,720
Homes Sold 696 746 1086
Median Price $106,000 $119,000 $110,000
$164,078
2528
$110,000
Pending 524 577 726
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REALTOR® Report
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Calendar of Events May
June
5
WCR Luncheon Hilton St. Louis Frontenac
2
WCR Luncheon Hilton St. Louis Frontenac
10-4
NAR Mid-Year Meetings Washington D.C.
16
RPAC Auction Orlando Gardens - Webster Groves
30
Memorial Day Observed SLAR Closed
22-24 MAR Business Conference Ameristar Casino - St. Charles
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OCTOBER 4 - OCTOBER 31, 2010
Homes from Missouri & Illinois DETAILS ON THIS PROPERTY Page 3
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