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HAPPY LABOR DAY
The PGCAR office will be closed on Monday, September 3, in observance of Labor Day.
We wish you a happy and safe holiday! |
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| VOTE FOR YOUR 2008 OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS |
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ONLINE VOTING IS NOW OPEN . . . and continues until 12:00 p.m. Noon on Monday, September 17, 2007. Before casting your ballot, please read the candidate biographies by clicking on the name of each candidate here, or by following the "Next" arrows at the bottom of each candidate biography page. Then click on the "Vote" check to the right. There is also a link on the home page of www.pgcar.com to go directly to the Online Voting log in. |
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To access the ballot, use the same user name and password used to enter the Members Only section.
User Name: first two letters of your first name along with your last name.
Password: now your NRDS ID.
(Example: Mary Brown: User Name - mabrown; Password - 123456789).
If you have difficulty accessing the Web site, please use "Forgot your password or username link?" or contact the association office for assistance at 301-306-7900. All primary and secondary REALTOR® members are qualified to vote. |
SAVE THE DATE!
This year's Installation of Officers and Directors will be held at Martin's Crosswinds on September 20th with a reception at 6 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m. You will be receiving an invitation by email soon. When ticket sales open, there will also be a link from the PGCAR Events page.
| IN MEMORIAM |  |  |
We extend our sincerest sympathy to the family and co-workers of William "Bill" Gloster of Troese Title, who passed away last week. Services were held on August 23, 2007. Please keep his family in your prayers.
| NEW AND REVISED CONTRACT FORMS FOR PRINCE GEORGE'S |  |  |
Prince George's County has revised and added several forms in 2007 to meet new DLLR and County legislation, disclosure requirements, and other legal changes. For example, the Disclosure and Notice Addendum (DNA) form has been revised. Below are SOME of the County changes from this year. All new forms are available in the PGCAR.com Members Only section and on ZipForm. Do a Forms Check-up to make sure you have all of the latest!
| New & Revised Prince George's Contract Forms |
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| DUES BILLING | | |
Membership renewals have been mailed and may be paid online with a credit card. Dues must be received no later than November 30, 2007 in order to prevent a late charge.
Online dues renewal will be available September 1, 2007! Pay online and enjoy the convenience of receiving an itemized receipt within a few minutes via e-mail.
| NC FLEXES ITS REGULATORY MUSCLE - And Why You Should Care | | |
North Carolina pioneered predatory lending regulation and recently took a similar role by passing subprime rules with bi-partisan support in just four months. Full story >>
| NAR ANNUAL CONFERENCE & EXPO |  |  |
There are NO LIMITS to what you can gain at the 2007 REALTORS® Conference & Expo, November 13-16 in Las Vegas, Nevada. With hundreds of programs, networking opportunities, cutting edge technology, and more, you can customize your Conference & Expo experience to your needs and interests. Grow professionally and personally while gaining inspiration to be your very best. Special guests:
James Taylor Lou Holtz Bill Cosby Doris Kearns
It's the 2007 Conference & Expo, and what happens here, helps you everywhere!
| REAL ESTATE "OASES": MARKETS THRIVING IN TOUGH TIMES | | |
Home prices may be flat or anemic in many parts of the country, but not in as many places as you might assume from listening to the evening TV newscasts. Prices are up in dozens of metropolitan markets - two out of every three, according to the latest study. Furthermore, in most metropolitan areas, there are oasis-like micro-markets that are outperforming national and regional trends. Full story >>
| WHAT STATES HAVE THE HIGHEST CLOSING COSTS? | | |
As a general rule, the states with the highest populations tend to also have the highest mortgage-related fees, with New York and Texas in first and second place both in closing costs and population. Maryland and the District of Columbia rank 19th and 22nd, respectively, in mortgage-related fees. Full story >>
| UPCOMING MRIS SECURITY | | |
| A triple layer of security, known as Secure Login, will soon be made available to all MRIS users. Each subscriber will be issued a key fob-sized SAFE MLS token at no additional cost, which will display a fresh, one-time-only password to be entered upon logging into MRIS. You will need the token in order to log into Matrix, Keystone, and MRIS.com. |
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| Federal Law Prohibits Most Referral Fees to Unlicensed Persons | | |
More than a few real estate agents are confused about the laws governing referral fees. Some don't even know that there are any laws governing referral fees. Some know, but don't care. Full story >>
| MAR ANNUAL CONFERENCE & TRADESHOW - COMING SOON! | | |
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The MAR Annual Conference being held September 10th - 12th in Ocean City is the largest trade show and conference for real estate and affiliated industries in Maryland. Show up early for Sunday Golf, the RPAC Shark Attack Party and other Sunday Fun Day events.
Register now!
Make your Hotel Reservations!
Trade Show Volunteer Opportunity - The Maryland CRS is looking for people to help man their booth during the MAR Convention. If you are available to help and are interested in volunteering, please contact Sonatta Camara of Keller Williams Preferred Properties at 301-333-4444. Thank you!
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September 9 - 15, 2007 marks the fifth annual REALTOR® Safety Week. Every day REALTORS® are put at risk while fulfilling the requirements of their jobs. To help protect members, NAR emphasizes simple habits that REALTORS® can employ to reduce their risks on the job.
| CONTINUING EDUCATION | | |
Reminder! DC licensing for real estate salespersons must be renewed by August 31!
Sign up for multiple classes here!
Not licensed in DC yet? Register for this Thursday's DC License Exam Preparation Course. You can earn ALL of Your Continuing Education requirements for both the Maryland and DC license renewals right here at PGCAR!
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Code of Ethics Case Study:
Case #3-1: Rules of MLS May Not Circumvent
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REALTOR® A complained to his Board of REALTORS® that procedures in the Board's Multiple Listing Service permitted REALTORS® participating in the Service to evade their obligations under Article 3 of the Code of Ethics. His specific complaint was that, as exclusive agent of Client B, he had filed the client's property in the Multiple Listing Service. Other REALTORS® participating in the Multiple Listing Service had contacted Client B directly to make appointments to show the property and to transmit offers to purchase it, without REALTOR® A's knowledge or consent. When REALTOR® A objected to this conduct, the officers of the Multiple Listing Service had cited the MLS rule that held that placing property in the Service had the effect of listing the property with the MLS, and authorized the MLS to refer it to other Participants as subagents, who were then free to transmit offers directly to the client. REALTOR® A's complaint emphasized that his objection was primarily to the rule of the Multiple Listing Service.
The complaint was referred to the Directors of the Board of REALTORS®, who asked the Chairperson of the Board's Multiple Listing Committee to attend a special Directors' meeting on the subject. At the meeting, it was pointed out that the contested rule of the Multiple Listing Service, which had not been submitted to the Board of Directors for approval, was in conflict with Article 3 of the Code of Ethics and with the nature and purpose of the MLS itself, since the MLS did not provide brokerage services and could not function as an agent of sellers. The Multiple Listing Service was directed to rescind all procedural rules that permitted the Service or any of its Participants to intrude upon the agency status of any REALTOR® holding an exclusive listing.
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SPOTLIGHT SPECIAL
BE IN THE SPOTLIGHT FOR FREE!
That's right - FREE! Write an article that would be of interest to real estate consumers and have it published in the Official Homes Section of The Prince George's County Association of REALTORS® brought to you by The Gazette. This is a special pullout FULL COLOR supplement reaching over 127,000 homes and businesses in Prince George's County.
| Article Deadline |
Monday,
Sept. 10 |
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Space Reservation
& Ad Copy Deadline |
Tuesday,
Sept. 11 |
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Publication
Date |
Thursday,
Sept. 27 |
If you are interested in writing an article or placing an ad, please contact
Heidi Lamere at 301-731-2134, 240-888-7509 or hlamere@gazette.net.
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