President’s Message
Thank you to all of you who participated in the Strategic
Planning focus groups and sent in your completed surveys. We're very pleased about all the great kudos
regarding the Association staff, our web site, orientation, the office liaison
program as well as the education and seminar offerings.
A huge quantity of information was gathered that will be sorted
and used in developing the Strategic Plan for the coming years. Your feedback will used to design new
programs and enhance the services the Association provides so that you can be
better prepared, educated and informed, to ensure that you, the REALTORS®, stay
in the center of the transaction.
Some of your ideas are already being implemented. To assist you
with your REIL communications, we have added to the newsletter masthead and to
the Association web site the RE Infolink Operations Committee and REIL Board of
Directors representatives from Santa Cruz.
The Office Liaison program will be expanded to include monthly
updates by email from the Association to the liaisons to help keep everyone in
their office updated.
Everyone is welcome to attend the liaison meetings 3 times yearly
at the Association office with the CAR Directors, fresh from the state
meetings. These terrific meetings are
packed with the latest hot topics in proposed legislation, insurance, new laws,
updates on consumer protection topics: structural pest, home inspection, mold,
retrofits and what's going on across the state with REALTORS® and Associations.
At our June 16 liaison
meeting we have as a guest CAR President-Elect, Jim Hamilton. Jim is passionate
about communications and is developing a model liaison program for association
use throughout the state. We're excited about sharing ideas with him and making
the program even more interesting and productive.
June 4, 2003 is "Legislative Day" for REALTORS® in
Sacramento. The Santa Cruz Chapter of
the Women's Council of REALTORS® is assisting the Association in marketing the
event and getting members excited about a one-day bus trip for those who want
to be part of the legislative process, see organized real estate in action, and
have their voices heard. The day includes a morning political convention style
general meeting with REALTORS® from the entire state, lunch and a march to the
State Capitol to meet with our local legislators. One thing is for sure, the bus trip will have plenty of food and
fun!
Our annual general membership meeting for the election of
Officers and Directors is scheduled for June 11, 2003. Association Counsel Lloyd Williams will give
his annual legal update. Mark your
calendars and make your reservations early.
This event usually attracts many members.
The Housing Foundation is coming together quickly. The By-Laws have been finished and sent off for legal review. We are beginning the process of interviewing members interested in serving on the charter Board of Trustees. We'd love to hear from if you are passionate about housing in Santa Cruz and would like to be a part of this new foundation.
I am personally extending an invitation to you to participate in
some of the many exciting happenings around the Association. It's a great opportunity to get to know your
fellow REALTORS® and keep up to date on the continuing changes in our business.
Ronnie Trubek
2003 President
Inside
- New REALTOR® Members
- REALTORS® Making a Difference
- Spring Fling A Huge Success
- Baking Contest Results
- Affiliate Member Spotlight
- Insurance Availability
- State Land Use Legislation
- Mortgage Loan Apps Decrease
- Median Price Up, Sales Down
- New VOW Policy Introduced
- Fair Housing Act Turns 35
- March Existing Homes Sales
- Bill Requires Mold Remediation Coverage
- Credit Horror Stories Needed
- SCAOR Calendar
2003 Spring Fling A Huge
Success
The 2003 spring barbecue was held at the Association on
Wednesday, May 7th. Luckily, the weather held out for our event.
A special treat this year was, “All About,” the Soquel High
School Jazz Band, who performed throughout the event to the delight of all who
attended.
Bob DeAngelo, De Angelo Pest Control, and his crew did a superb
job organizing and cooking the chicken, skirt steaks and sausages. The Board of
Directors was on hand, serving members.
The year was a record-setting event with over 200 members in
attendance. Special thanks to the Affiliate Committee and all our volunteers
who made this year's Spring Fling such a fantastic event!
Baking Contest Results
The Annual Baking Contest took place during the Spring
Fling. All entries were submitted and
judged prior to the barbecue. We had Rick Almaz, Executive Chef at Cafe Rio,
and Beth Robideaux, Pastry Chef at Michael's on Main. All of the desserts
submitted were mouth-watering and the selection of winners was an extremely
difficult task for the judges. The
winners were:
Bar Cookies
1st - Oatmeal Cake Bars, Harry Lake, New
Horizons REALTORS®
2nd - Brownies, Donna Teale,
Sherman & Boone Associates
3rd - Raspberry Dream Bars, Renie Schober,
Coldwell Banker Jackson & Mann
Cakes-Tortes
1st - Apple Pecan Cake, Stephanie Western,
Century 21 Showcase REALTORS®
2nd - Vienesse Chocolate Cake, Linda Bartlett,
Monterey Bay Properties
3rd - German
Chocolate Cake, Gerrie Dyer, Century 21 Cheshire Realty
Pastry/Pie/Tart
1st - Banana Cream Pudding Pie, Emily Ghio-Cato,
SC Title
2nd - Peach Cobbler, Suzanne
Yost, Bailey Properties
3rd - Coconut Pecan Pudding
Pie, Emily Ghio-Cato, SC Title
Overall Winners
1st - Pecan Cake, Stephanie Western, Century 21
Showcase REALTORS®
2nd - Vienesse
Chocolate Cake, Linda Bartlett, Monterey Bay Properties
3rd - Oatmeal Cake Bars, Harry Lake, New
Horizons REALTORS®
Congratulations to all the
winners and “Thank You" to all the participants for their baking efforts.
NEW REALTOR® MEMBERS
Craig Lockwood, Sherman
& Boone Associates
Dana Markowitz, Coldwell
Banker Jackson and Mann
Ray Schneider, Coldwell
Banker Jackson and Mann
Jessica Randolph, Bay Realty
Jess Craig, David Lyng and
Associates
Steve Johnson, Monterey Bay
Properties
Roger Montgomery, Sand
Castle Properties
David Barca, Zip Realty
Nicki Schumacher, Zip Realty
Michael Keller, Network
Alliance Real Estate
Steve Crovo, Unique Homes
and Land
Donald Navarini, Summit
Properties
Dawn Roach, Bailey
Properties
Yuliya Penniman, Bailey
Properties
AFFILIATE MEMBERS
InterWest Insurance
Services, Representative: Marlene Rianda
Tom Brown, Attorney at Law
Comments about an
applicant’s admittance should be submitted in writing to the Santa Cruz
Association of REALTORS®, 2525 Main St., Soquel, CA 95073.
REALTORS® MAKING A
DIFFERENCE...
We applaud Emily Maloney REALTOR®, for her volunteer efforts with
Habitat for Humanity. Back from a trip to Belfast, Ireland, where she took part
in a unique Habitat for Humanity, is attorney Emily Maloney. Thirteen
volunteers from the U.S. joined Catholic and Protestant volunteers to build
homes in an area blighted by poverty and violence. Sixteen homes are expected
to be built. Besides her work on the project, Emily was also involved in
fund-raising for it, pointing out that $50 will buy nails for one house, while
a kitchen sink and worktop is $150 and plasterboard for one room is $35. If
you’d like to help, you can call the local Habitat office at 685-0671 or Emily
at 475-0435.
InterWest Insurance
Services, Inc.
Contacts: Marlene Rianda,
CIC
595 Auto Center Drive #101
Watsonville, CA 95076
Phone: (831) 728-2247
Fax: (831) 722-9304
Marlene Rianda, CIC, born and raised in San Benito County, is
married with two children, a son 18 and a 9-year old daughter. She is involved with 4-H, California High
School Rodeo, and the Church Social Committee.
Marlene has 25+ years insurance experience, and holds the Certified
Insurance Counselor Designation since 1987.
Marlene is currently responsible for the operations of three of
the ten InterWest Insurance offices.
Her local office is here in Santa Cruz County.
Marlene is excited about the opportunity to serve the Real Estate
Insurance needs in this area. She shares this passion with the entire team at
InterWest Insurance. InterWest stands
above the rest with their desire to serve and creatively put together an
insurance program that fits your needs.
Insurance Availability
The ability of California homebuyers to get insurance on a new home
purchase has become more and more difficult in the last few years. There are 3 factors driving the problem:
1) Insurance carriers are
claiming huge losses due to an inability to raise premium rates.
2) The Comprehensive Loss
Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) is reporting mere inquiries as a loss or
claim.
3) The fear generated by
increasing mold and water damage claims.
The following example shows how insurance companies relying on
CLUE reports can harm homebuyers. "One California first-time home buyer
was denied homeowners insurance after a CLUE report revealed that his brother
had filed a water damage claim. The
home buyer had lived with his brother while saving for his home purchase and
had listed his brother's address as his last (address) - that is how the
insurance underwriter connected the claim to him." Inman News,
(www.inman.com) January 23, 2003, Susan Romero.
Because the lack of homeowners' insurance can have a devastating
affect on potential homeowners' ability to purchase a home, C.A.R. has set up
an Insurance Availability Task Force to work on this issue. The goals of the Task Force are to ensure
simple inquiries do not count as a loss or claim on CLUE reports, and that
rates stay affordable.
On February 3, 2003 C.A.R. Leadership met with representatives of
the Insurance Commissioner's office to discuss these concerns. Mr. Garamendi is working on an advisory
letter to address the issues raised during the meeting with the Task Force. C.A.R. will update you when this letter is
made public.
For more information please contact Chris Miller, C.A.R. Member
Mobilization Coordinator, at chrismm@car.org
or 916-444-2045.
State Land Use and
Environmental Legislation
During the 2003-04 session,
state lawmakers are considering several land use and environmental bills of
concern to C.A.R. The bills address such issues as CEQA, oak trees,
agricultural land protection, water and land use, water quality, environmental
law enforcement, native American sacred sites, coastal issues, “smart growth”,
the subdivision map act, and fire safety. For complete details, please
see: http://www.car.org/index.php?id=MzE5MDY=
Save The Date - Annual
Officer Elections and Legal Update with Lloyd Williams- Wednesday, June 11,
2003
Mortgage Loan Apps Decrease
The Market Composite Index of mortgage loan applications, a
measure of mortgage loan applications for purchases and refinancings, for the
week ending April 25 decreased to 1,050.8 on a seasonally adjusted basis
compared to 1,055.8 the previous week, according to the most recent survey by
the Mortgage Bankers Association of America (MBA) released today. On an
unadjusted basis, the Index decreased by 0.3% for the week ending April 25 but
increased 87.7% compared to the same week a year earlier. At 68.4% of total
applications, refinancing activity was unchanged for the week ending April 25
compared to the previous week. The share of ARM activity decreased to 14.3% for
the week ending April 25 compared to 14.8% the previous week.
Median Price Up 15.3% in
March, Sales Decline 3.2%, C.A.R. Reports
LOS ANGELES (April 25) - The median price of an existing home in
California in March increased 15.3 percent and sales decreased 3.2 % compared
to the same period a year ago, the California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.)
reported today. "The median price of a home in California has posted
double-digit gains every month for the last 16 months and hit a new record of
$352,780 in March," said C.A.R. President Toby Bradley. "While
consumers remain concerned about the general direction of the economy, buying a
home continues to be a safe haven for California families." Closed escrow sales of existing,
single-family detached homes in California totaled 567,610 in March at a
seasonally adjusted annualized rate, according to information collected by
C.A.R. from more than 90 local REALTOR® associations statewide. Statewide home
resale activity decreased 3.2% from the 586,230 sales pace recorded in March
2002.
"Year-to-date sales have declined 3.5% compared to last
year's record sales pace, in line with our expectations," said C.A.R. Vice
President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. The statewide sales figure represents what the total number of
homes sold during 2003 would be if sales maintained the March pace throughout
the year. It is adjusted to account for
seasonal factors that typically influence home sales. The median price of an
existing, single-family detached home in California during March 2003 was
$352,780, a 15.3% increase over the revised $305,840 median for March 2002,
C.A.R. reported. The March 2003 median price increased 7.8% compared to
February 2003's revised $327,120 median price.
Highlights of C.A.R.'s resale housing figures for March 2003:
* C.A.R.'s Unsold Inventory
Index for existing, single-family detached homes in March 2003 was 2.8 months,
compared to 2.1 months (revised) for the same period a year ago. The index
indicates the number of months needed to deplete the supply of homes on the
market at the current sales rate.
* Thirty-year fixed mortgage
interest rates averaged 5.75% during March 2003, down from 7.07% in March 2002,
according to the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. Adjustable mortgage interest
rates averaged 3.76% in March 2003 compared to 5.09% in March 2002.
* The median number of days
it took to sell a single-family home was 28 days in March 2003, unchanged from
a revised 28 days for the same period a year ago. Regional MLS sales and price
information is contained in the tables that accompany this press release.
Regional sales data is not adjusted to account for seasonal factors that can
influence home sales. The MLS median price and sales data for detached homes is
generated from a survey of more than 90 associations of REALTORS* throughout
the state. MLS median price and sales data for condominiums is based on a
survey of more than 60 associations. The median price for both detached homes
and condominiums represents closed escrow sales.
* In a separate report
covering more localized statistics generated by C.A.R. and DataQuick
Information Systems, 92% or 370 of 402 California cities and communities showed
an increase in their respective median home prices from a year ago. DataQuick
statistics are based on county records data rather than MLS information.
DataQuick Information Systems is a subsidiary of Vancouver-based MacDonald
Dettwiler and Associates Note: Large
changes in local median home prices typically indicate both local home price
appreciation, and often, large shifts in the composition of housing market
activity. Some of the variations in median home prices may be exaggerated due
to compositional changes in housing demand. The DataQuick tables listing median
home prices in California cities and counties are accessible through C.A.R.
Online at localized data collected by C.A.R. and DataQuick at
http://www.car.org/index.php?id=MzE4OTc=
* Statewide, the 10 cities
and communities with the highest median home prices in California during March
2003 were: Pacific Palisades, $1,187,500; Manhattan Beach, $937,500;
Burlingame, $881,000; Malibu $865,000; Beverly Hills, $857,500; Orinda,
$820,000; Coronado, $795,000; Laguna Beach, $795,000; Carmel, $742,500;
Lafayette, $740,500.
* Statewide, the 10 cities
and communities with the greatest median home price increases in March 2003
compared to the same period a year ago were: Yucaipa, 59.1%; Arroyo Grande,
54.7%; Lompoc, 46.7%; Upland, 41.6%; Benicia, 40.6%; Montclair, 38.6%;
Patterson, 37.8%; El Monte, 36.5%; Castaic, 36.0%; Big Bear Lake, 35.7%.
New VOW Policy Introduced
Access the latest proposed
Virtual Office Web Site policy (April 2003) along with VOW education resources
at http://www.realtor.org/VOW . This
new proposal differs from the proposal released in February 2003 in that the
new proposal incorporates a selective opt-out right that permits listing
brokers to make independent business decisions about whether they will consent
to display of their listings on others' VOWs.
See the May 17 INS report for the results of the Board of Directors'
vote on the VOW policy.
March Existing-Home Sales
Ease To More Sustainable Price
After surging to an
unprecedented record at the beginning of the year, existing single-family home
sales declined in March but remain strong, says NAR. Existing-home sales fell
5.6 percent from February to an annual rate of 5.53 million units in
March. The housing sector is expected
to stay on a healthy track despite a weak economy because of low mortgage
rates, said NAR President Cathy Whatley. For more info, Go To: http://www.realtor.org/PublicAffairsWeb.nsf/Pages/EHSMar03
Fair Housing Act Turns 35,
Bias Persists
The Fair Housing Act, which
turns 35 this month, outlaws discrimination based on race, color, religion,
national origin, gender, family status, age, marital status, and sexual
orientation when renting or selling. More than 25,000 complaints were filed
last year.
http://www.realtormag.com/RMODaily.nsf/All/D0B4F2712
Bill Requires Mold
Remediation Coverage
The Nevada Real Estate
Division is tracking and supporting two bills related to mold. The first,
SB131, requires that any insurance company that provides homeowner insurance
must cover mold remediation costs in its homeowner insurance policies. The
second bill, SB132, would require that all mold inspectors be licensed, with
oversight provided by the Division of Industrial Relations. http://www.realtormag.com/RMODaily.nsf/All/D0A50FCC3
Homebuyers’ Credit Horror
Stories Needed
As you may know, C.A.R. is
sponsoring AB 800 (Kehoe), the "Truth in Credit" Act, which will
force creditors and credit collection companies to correct inaccurate
information on consumers' credit reports or face statutory damages. We're
asking that REALTORS® ask their clients about bad credit experiences when
applying for a mortgage or other consumer loan, and forward their clients'
stories to C.A.R. E-mail Chris Miller
at chrismm@car.org for additional
information.
Graduate, REALTOR® Institute
GRI – 108 - Listing,
Pricing, and Marketing Properties
Friday, June 13, 2003 at the
Santa Cruz Association of REALTORS®
Please call 888/785-4800 for
more information
Women’s Council of REALTORS®
Technology Efficiency and
Effectiveness - Presented by Erik Lichtenstein, Office Depot
Erik will be conducting a
“technology fair” style presentation with of products ranging from laptops to
cameras to handheld electronic organizers.
This presentation has been hailed as “Awesome” and “Worth canceling
anything that may be preventing you from attending” by Warren Winsness, Santa
Clara Association of REALTORS®.
Wednesday, May 21, 2003 -
11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
$23/Members $28/Nonmembers Westcoast Santa Cruz Hotel.
R.S.V.P. to Jennifer Walker by Friday, May 16th wcrsantacruz@yahoo.com or 831/345-3675
City of Santa Cruz Water
Conservation Office
For information about the
new plumbing fixture regulations in the Santa Cruz City water service area, or
to obtain forms, please contact: Francesca or Toby at 420-5230 or visit:
www.ci.santa-cruz.ca.us/wt/wtcon