Volume 17, Number 1

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Connecticut Association of REALTORS®, Inc.
111 Founders Plaza
Suite 1101
East Hartford, CT 06108

Tel: 1-800-335-4862
Fax: 860-290-6615

http://www.ctrealtor.com/

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See a full list of CAR departments and staff.

New England REALTORS® Conference
2012 NAR Region 1 Vice President Doug Azarian invites all New England REALTORS® to the 2012 New England REALTORS® Conference being held at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts on February 16-17, 2012. This event promises to be a valuable experience which will include informative sessions with distinguished National Speakers including 2012 NAR President Moe Veissi, NAR General Counsel Laurie Janik and Baseball Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson.  Don’t miss out on this unique networking opportunity for all New England REALTORS®! For more information or to register, visit http://www.nerc2012.com/ or contact Kara Morgan at the Massachusetts Association of REALTORS® at kmorgan@marealtor.com or by calling (781) 839-5523.

2011 Leadership Conference
CAR's Tenth Annual CT REALTORS® Leadership Conference and CE Day were a big success! Thank you to everyone who attended and to all of our generous sponsors.

The Conference had a great line up of speakers which included 2011 NAR President Ron Phipps, NAR General Counsel Laurie Janik, Real Estate Advisor Jerry Matthews and our conference keynote speaker Terry Watson who all helped to make this a memorable event.

Visit here to check out information from some of our speakers, see pictures from the event and get information on next year's event.

The following award winners were recognized at the conference: 

Nikki Blass is the Harry W. Wenz Good Neighbor Award winner for 2011! Read more about Nikki here. 

Mary Ann Hebert, 2011 State REALTOR® of the Year: visit here for more info. 

Congratulations also to the 2011 Local Board REALTORS® of the Year - check out the list here.

Visit the Programs/Events section of our website for a complete list of special programs and events offered by CAR.

Save 25% on New Signs for 2012
Planet Sign Shop is a supplier and partner to over 200 Real Estate Boards and Associations across the USA, Canada and even Hawaii. They stock and sell corrugated signs in all shapes and sizes along with stakes and accessories for all selling/listing needs. They can also make special signs, decals, magnetic signs, banners, business cards, etc.  Planet Sign shop has just raised their discount to 25% for CAR members.  For more information, click here.

Are you Spending Too Much on Your Auto and Homeowners Insurance? 
CAR members can receive up to 30% off auto and homeowners insurance through Bearingstar Insurance. Sign up for a free quote today and see how much you can save. To see how you can take advantage of a 10%, 20% or 30% discount call Bearingstar at 860-682-3333 and tell them you are a member of CAR. For more details, click here.

DISCOUNT UConn Huskies Tickets FINAL GAME
CAR Members receive a significant discount on tickets to select UConn Huskies games. Take advantage of this final offer with only one game left with discounted tickets.  Men's Basketball tickets are $15 (normally $33). Purchase tickets today to see the Husky Men play against Marquette on February 18 at the Hartford XL Center. Quantities are limited, so purchase yours today!  For more details, click here.

View the complete list of Member Benefits on our website. 

CAR Legislative Chair Thanks Licensing Survey Participants
Michael Barbaro, Chair of CAR’s Legislative and Political Affairs Committee, thanks everyone who participated in a recent online survey about the professional competence of Connecticut real estate licensees.  He thanks all of the 1,100 REALTORS® who took time from their busy days to complete the survey and share their opinions and experience. Everyone’s participation was greatly appreciate and provides instrumental help to the licensing standards workgroup.

Visit the Government Affairs section of our website for additional information.

Residential Property Disclosure Form Revised
The CT Department of Consumer Protection has issued a revision to the Residential Property Condition Disclosure Report form. The revision includes new language concerning flood hazard zones, historic districts, information on leased items such as propane tanks, volatile organic compounds found in well water and a new question concerning land use restrictions that may not be easily discovered without a full title search. The form will be available on the CT Department of Consumer Protection’s website soon and is now available on CAR’s website. Listing agents should begin using the new form if they have not already provided a Residential Property Condition Disclosure Report form to a potential seller. If a seller provided a Residential Property Condition Disclosure Report as part of a listing package, but has not yet provided the form to potential purchaser, the seller should be asked to provide disclosure using the new revised form. For further information, please contact CAR’s General Counsel Eugene Marconi at (860) 290-6601 or (800) 335-4862, or marconie@ctrealtor.com. 

Q₂: Game On!
CAR Legal Department’s hottest fun feature, Quiz Question, continues. The prize is a $25 restaurant.com gift card! It’s easy to play! Just read the question, pick your answer, and submit it. Look for Q₂ in the Hotsheet every two weeks and on CAR’s home page  under “The Latest from CAR”. All correct answers go into a hat and the winner’s name is drawn.

Sam Ratner was the winner of the last quiz question. 

Here is the link for this week’s quiz. 

Legal Tip: An Heir and an Executor Have Different Rules.
When it comes to completing and providing the Residential Property Condition Disclosure Report, a listing agent should know that there is a distinction between a seller who is an heir of an estate and a seller who is an executor. The law states that the seller of property must complete the form and provide it to a buyer before that buyer becomes bound by a purchase and sale contract, but the law carves out some exemptions to this requirement. A person who inherits property is simply an heir who happens to be a seller and who may know nothing about the property yet must provide the disclosure form to a buyer; but an executor or administrator of an estate, who also may know nothing about the property, are not required to complete and provide the form. The smart listing agent will know to inform his seller, an heir, of his requirement to complete the form and not require his seller, the executor, to provide it. 

Follow CAR’s Legal Department on Twitter.

Visit the Legal section of our website for more information and resources.

Pending Home Sales Highest in Over a Year and a Half
Pending home sales continued to rise in November, reaching their highest level in 19 months, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) reported late last week.

The trade group’s index of signed sales contracts jumped 7.3 percent between October and November and is 5.9 percent above its level a year earlier. The last time the index was higher was in April 2010 as buyers rushed to beat the deadline for the homebuyer tax credit.

James Frischling, president and co-founder of NewOak Capital, says the latest results are likely to feed the view that there is a recovery going on in the housing market. Read more.

Source: Real Trends

Visit the Media/News section of our website for additional information and resources.

CAR is Giving You a Promotion!
CAR has several promotions running this Spring for savings on your education needs.  Save $30 when you register for all three Green classes being held in April. *Save $15 when you register for both an SFR & HAFA class in 2012. Complete an online or in-person course by May 31 and be entered to win one of several prizes including Dinner of Month, gas cards and BJ’s memberships.  Be sure to read the next edition of Education GPS (Guide to Personal Success) with all the details.  Find your next CAR course here today!

*Courses with a promotion not completed in 2012 will be charged the full price and subject to a transfer fee at time of transfer.  If you don’t attend and complete all classes in the specific promotion, you will be charged the full price of each course you attended.

Invest in Your Future
CAR’s Spring semester begins next month!  We’ll be kicking things off with Appraisal-1 on February 15 in Westport.  This is an excellent way to give your career a boost, learn residential appraisal formulas and how to evaluate competitive properties.  The course is approved for 30 hours of Broker Pre-licensing credit AND 6 hours of elective credit for license renewal.  Click here for more information and to register.  Take advantage of early bird prices and reserve your spot today!  Contact Abby with any questions. 

Are You Prepared to Renew Your License in 2012?
If not, CAR offers a variety of courses online.  We have over 20 exciting courses for you to choose from - each worth three to six hours of elective continuing education credit for Salespeople and Brokers.  How much do you want to save?  $10, $20, even $60?  Save the travel time/expense and take a course in the privacy of your own home, at your convenience and at your own pace.  Check out the online CE classes and packages today.

Go here to review State of CT CE Requirements for Salespeople and Brokers.

RPAC Information
For information on the REALTORS® Political Action Committee and the values of investing in your industry, visit this page.

Visit the RPAC section of the website for additional information about how to invest in the real estate industry.