LUBBOCK ®
REALTOR
www.lubbockrealtors.com
FEBRUARY / MARCH 2014
Phone (806) 795-9533 Fax (806) 791-6529 5015 Knoxville Avenue, Lubbock Texas 79413-4039 2014 Board Officers
FEBRUARY MONTHLY MARKET COMPARISON
Nancy Rawls, President
Categories
Feb 2013
Feb 2014
Percent Change
Total Residential Property Sales
250
219
-12.4%
Total Residential Dollar Volume
$41,288,203
$33,139,748
-19.7%
Rusty DeLoach, President Elect Charles Kearney, Treasurer Jef Conn, Secretary Coby Crump, Chairman of the Board
Average Single-Family Sales Price
$164,495
$151,323
-8.0%
DIRECTORS Cynthia Arriaga, 2013—2014
Median Single-Family Sales Price
$123,000
$126,000
2.4%
Leigh Anne Brozo, 2014—2015
Total Active Residential Listings
1,155
1,043
-9.7%
Vanessa Dirks, 2014—2015
Total Pending Residential Sales
485
304
-37.3%
Frank Harmon, 2013—2014
Months Inventory*
4.1
3.1
-24.4%
Jacky Howard, 2013—2014
*Months inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months sales activity.
Larry Jones, 2014 Tara Newton, 2014—2015
Year-to-Date Comparison
Nathan Jordan, 2014—2015
Categories
Jeff Sellers, 2014—2015
Jan-Feb 2013
Jan-Feb 2014
Percent Change
Susan Shakespeare, 2014—2015
Total Residential Property Sales
477
442
-7.3%
Dan Williams, 2013—2014
Total Residential Dollar Volume
$74,570,372
$66,845,226
-10.4%
Jana Wuthrich, 2013—2014
Average Single-Family Sales Price
$156,332
$151,234
-3.3%
EX OFFICIO DIRECTORS Tim Garrett, 2014—2015 Regional
Median Single-Family Sales Price
$120,000
$124,050
3.4%
Vice President and TAR Director Ann Kearney, 2014-2016 TAR Director John Walton, TAR Director Lifetime
Notice on this information: Multiple Listing Service data is reported to the Real Estate Center at Texas A & M and the National Association of REALTORS® on the eighth of each month. Year-to-date data may be corrected for information reported after the eighth. Neither the association nor its MLS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by the association or its MLS may not reflect all activity in the real estate market.
Dear Association Members: It’s hard to believe the first quarter of 2014 has already passed! As I said at our Installation and Awards Banquet, I am extremely honored to be the association’s 2014 President. The first quarter has been a great one, and I am rolling up my sleeves and getting dirty, so to speak. We still have much work to do – and I ask you to join with me. With our MLS system now fully in gear and tremendous strides in the association’s membership growth, we have forward momentum that provides great opportunity. As an association, our opportunity can only be seen to fruition by working together as a team and finding in ourselves what our own purpose is as a part of that team. I believe that our purpose should be learning, growing, and engaging in what life puts before us each day. Every day, ask yourself, what am I here for? Dedication, focus, purpose, goals, and vision are what make the Lubbock Association of REALTORS® a better and stronger organization. We will continue to face changes this year, but the changes we will see and face are for the betterment of our association. These changes will help us move forward, drive toward our purpose, and become bigger and better association. They will require patience and determination but together, we will face them head on. So I ask you this: what is your role in how we, as an association, will move forward? What knowledge do you have to offer? Knowledge is powerful, but only when it is shared. We must come together to show our value as an association. My hope is that whatever challenges we face or whatever crossroads we encounter, we face them together where we Page 1
unite passionately under a common purpose of unity. As president of the association I will do my best to bring harmony, unity, and teamwork into everyday life of our association. I look forward to hearing where you see your main purpose, because only with open communication can we continue to accomplish great things. Sincerely,
Nancy Rawls 2014 President
Department of Justice Files Suit Against NAR The DOJ has filed suit against the National Association of REALTORS®, challenging the Article 12 of the Code of Ethics. Article 12 grants the listing broker the exclusive right to place a “For Sale” sign on the listed property. The argument is that the majority of sales result from efforts of cooperating brokers and that the exclusive policy is anti-competitive and delays the marketing of the home. To reinforce their case, the DOJ references the fact that cooperating brokers can advertise other broker’s listings on websites under Internet Data Exchange (IDX) rules and should therefore be able to use the power of their own signs to attract buyers to the property as well. Many agents don’t realize that there was a time when a listing would have multiple signs in the yard.
A Warning for Sellers Who Want to Stay Off the MLS Your client doesn’t wasn't to hear “I don’t know” when they ask you whether a contract paragraph applies to him, but if you haven’t been following recent changes to TAR and TREC forms, you may not know the right answer. Here are a few of the recent changes: Notice about listing in the MLS. A new notice in Paragraph 6(C) of the Residential Real Estate Licensing Agreement (TAR 1101) explains to the seller that he or she may be missing out on certain services or benefits provided by the MLS if they choose not to list their property in the service.
MEMBER NEWS Total Members 846 (+6% from projected 2014 membership) 176 Companies │ 670 Salespersons New REALTOR Members Designated REALTORS / Companies Jeanie Brown
Brown Realty
Linda Sadler
Linda Sadler and Associates
Susy Smith
United Country Smith Realty
Wylea Brown
Wylea Brown Realty Group
David Denny
RE/MAX Lubbock (Designated Broker change)
Salespersons Norv Maples
Century 21 John Walton, REALTORS®
Jacoby Madewell
Keller Williams Realty
Kerri Schoonvelt
Brown Realty
Jonathan Klein
Pat Garrett, REALTORS®
Anah Castillo
Keller Williams Realty
Roger Morrow
Exit Realty of Lubbock
Jeremy Dennis
The Sellers Realty
Richard Taylor
Kendra Sutherland, REALTORS®
Netty Narvais
Kearney & Associates, REALTORS®
Zack Watkins
Linda Sadler and Associates
Aaron Bazar
Linda Sadler and Associates
Blake McVean
Tech Terrace Real Estate
Jim Davis
Brown Realty
Amy Franco
Exit Realty of Lubbock
Jimmy Lynn
Century 21 John Walton, REALTORS®
Gary Adrian
Linker, REALTORS®
Cortnee Smith
Keller Williams Realty
La Donna Wichern
Keller Williams Realty
Pam Benedum
Exit Realty of Lubbock
John Darden
The WestMark Companies
Suzanne Thorn
Kearney & Associates, REALTORS®
Austin Connor
Tech Terrace Real Estate (continued on page 3)
Same form, new name. The Buyer’s Estimated Costs form (TAR 1936) didn’t disappear from the forms library, it was renamed Approximation of Buyer’s Closing Costs to more accurately reflect the form’s purpose. These are just a couple of the changes to the TAR and TREC forms. To be well informed, you can watch a replay of the one-hour Page 2
Business Partner Applications Thrifty Nickel
Cindy Eiland, representative
Chimney Tech
Bradley Allen, representative
Hettler Insurance Agency
David Mitchell, representative
Membership Cancellations Designated REALTORS/ Companies
AFTER YOU SHOW… Make sure you’ve left a business card, turned the lights off, readjusted the thermostat back to where it was, and most important—MAKE SURE IT’S LOCKED UP, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY AS THE LAST PERSON IN THE PROPERTY TO MAKE SURE IT IS LOCKED!
Callie Long
Callie Long, REALTOR®
Melva Cogburn
Cogburn Real Estate
Michael Lamberts
Lamberts Real Estate Company
webinar TAR hosted on the topic and download the presentation slides as well.
Randy Mester
Real Living Greg Garrett, REALTORS®
Property Investors and Managers Lunch and Learn
Drew Nippert
Coldwell Banker Rick Canup, REALTORS®
Debbie Johnson
The WestMark Companies
Don Kendrick
The WestMark Companies
Meredith Trevino
Keller Williams Realty
Bill Boon
Keller Williams Realty
Jamie Dillard
Lyons Realty
Tara Euresti
Rush, REALTORS®
Ken Magness
Wolfforth Real Estate
Paul Archinal
G. Larry Rice Properties
Salespersons
Business Partners Ventura Place Security National Mortgage
Date: Wed, April 16th Time: 12:00—1:00 p.m. Cost: Free The Property Investors and Managers Committee is hosting lunch and learns that discuss the chapters from the Texas Association of REALTORS® Residential Property Management Resource. The resource is available to TAR members for just $129.99 through April 15th. It’s a great resource for those that manage their own investment properties. Download your copy at https:// www.texasrealestate.com/for-texas-realtors/riskreduction-tools (log-in required).
These lunch and learns are not just for professional property managers. Agents with their own investment properties can learn from experienced property managers and discuss issues that can be experienced from (continued on page 4) having renters. Members with just one investment property are encouraged to attend.
Days On Market—Back to the Way It Used to Be On Monday, April 7th, Rapattoni will return to calculating Days-onMarket (DOM) to the way it was in Navica. Active, Contingent and Under Contract statuses will be used to calculate DOM. Currently, DOM is calculated using Active and Contingent statuses only. Including Under Contract status will return DOM to the range we previously used prior to the system change. Questions? Contact tonyamiller@lubbockrealtors.com. Tonya is also posting Daily Tips when you log-in to the RapattoniMLS system, so be sure you take a brief second to read them. You’ll learn some great pointers to help you in your business!
Earn the At Home With Diversity Certification Date: Tues, April 22nd Time: 8:30 a.m.—5:00 p.m. Cost: $99—includes 8 hours of MCE credit! Increase your adaptability to all types of clients by addressing issues of diversity, fair housing and cultural differences. Visit www.realtor.org/ designations-and-certifications for more information. See the registration form at the end of this newsletter. Page 3
REALTORS® on the Move
TAR Legal—If it’s not in need of repair, do I have to provide the inspection report that says it is? Q: If a seller and their broker believe a previous inspection report erroneously identifies an item as needing repair, must the seller provide a purchaser with a copy of the report? A: Few brokers and sellers are qualified to determine that an inspector was in error. However, if a seller believes an inspector made a mistake, the seller could ask the inspector to re-examine the item or seek a second opinion from another inspector or expert. If the second opinion conflicts with the first, the seller and broker may provide all information to any subsequent purchaser (including the qualifications of both experts). The seller could then suggest that the subsequent purchaser employ their own inspector to determine the state of the item.
Sylvia Espinoza
The WestMark Companies to MoVaDe Realty
Rodney Allison
Jackson Real Estate to Exit Realty of Lubbock
Valerie Young
Keller Williams Realty to Berkshire Hathaway Home Services
Sue Novak
RE/MAX Lubbock to Sue Novak, Broker
Chaundrea Rhodes
Keller Williams Realty to Jerry Kitten Broker
Alan Dyess
Morris Properties to Eve Darling Realty
Lucia Huff
Wolfforth Real Estate to Real Living Greg Garrett, REALTORS®
Kip Harris
Keller Williams Realty to Progressive Properties
Michelle Kauffman
Kauffman & Humphreys Real Estate to Berkshire Hathaway Home Services
Debora Scott
Kauffman & Humphreys Real Estate to Berkshire Hathaway Home Services
Other Changes
Get more insights into disclosure issues in “12 things you should know about seller’s disclosure” in the March 2014 issue of Texas REALTOR® magazine.
Kauffman & Humphreys Real Estate name to Humphreys & Co. Realty Kyle Fannin, Amy Tapp Realty, change to non-MLS
Texas REALTOR® Health Insurance Marketplace
Leslie Smith, RE/MAX Lubbock, name change to Leslie Francis
As a Texas REALTOR®, you have access to TARinsurance.com. Through this partnership, you can receive free assistance with your Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) questions. Benefits include:
Bill Murfee, Murfee & Sons, Inc., change to non-MLS
Answers to your health-reform questions and help to
determine how you or your family members are affected by the law. Assistance in searching for health insurance plans that fit your lifestyle and budget. Help determining if you will qualify for the new health reform federal subsidies/premium tax credits based on your income. A no-obligation review of your current healthcare coverage to determine if your current plan is considered a Patient Protection and Affordable Care At (PPACA)-qualified plan. Access to low-cost accident medical policies, life insurance, disability income protection and much more.
You can also call this Texas REALTOR® Benefits Partner at 866-394-5456. JANUARY MONTHLY MARKET COMPARISON Categories
Jan 2013
Jan 2014
Percent Change
Total Residential Property Sales
217
223
2.8%
Total Residential Dollar Volume
$32,328,477
$33,705,478
4.3%
Average Single-Family Sales Price
$148,979
$151,146
1.5%
Median Single-Family Sales Price
$119,850
$122,000
1.8%
Total Active Residential Listings
1,231
1,210
-1.7%
Total Pending Residential Sales
257
278
8.2%
Months Inventory*
4.4
3.6
-18.2%
*Months inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months sales activity. Notice on this information: Neither the association nor its MLS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by the association or its MLS may not reflect all activity in the real estate market.
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Convergence or Unintended Consequences The Growing Legacy of Off MLS Marketing By Jeremy Conaway It arrived in the spring 2012, to the collective relief of an entire industry. After five years of unstable and conflicted market conditions the market seemed to finally have “returned,” and with it came the promise of new opportunity and prosperity for all within the industry. A palatable sense of relief flooded across markets as hundreds of thousands of Boomer generation real estate agents realized that they have one more opportunity to make the big time. It quickly became obvious that the market that had returned was nothing like the market that had crashed in the late fall of 2005. Across the country, sales figures dramatically increased while inventories remained extremely low and prices began to precipitously increase. We now know that this activity was being driven by pent up consumer demand, the reticence of homeowners to enter the market, artificially low mortgage rates, and ridiculously low prices. Accompanying these symptoms, and appearing amazingly early on in the new market, were observations that suggested that real estate professionals at both the brokerage and agent levels were demonstrating behaviors that were inconsistent with both their own and the industry’s long-term interests. The most alarming of these behaviors were the “Off MLS” marketing activities that, by early 2013, had rapidly spread, in some markets impacting over 30% of transactions, a level that threatened the stability and function of the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Major markets began to experience brokerage commercials that promoted the availability of “coming soon” properties not yet on the market. There was a growing sense that a rapidly increasing number of real estate professionals were so focused on making up for the lost time and income created by the events of 2005 through 2011 that they are willing to risk destabilizing critical institutions and relationships to meet their objectives. Even after the presence of off MLS marketing and its legal and marketplace dangers became known, few leaders spoke out against it. Brokers expressed fear that any interference would result in “breakage” as agents threatened to play out their eternal “I don’t need no stinking boss” routines. Participating agents created an entire litany of excuses and rationalizations including such soon to become classics as “my clients are requesting this,” “I am protecting my clients against the ravages of incompetent agents,” and “My clients are worried about their privacy.” The real story behind this refusal to take action to stop off MLS marketing practices was actually more personal than professional. The agents who were leading the way by telling real estate consumers across the country “You don’t need no stinking MLS” weren’t “those agents” (the ones everyone loves to accuse of being ill trained parttimers without real passion for the job or love of their clients). The agents leading this new movement were the elite, the vaulted “top producers,” the agents that were seen as “role models” for the rest of the industry. By mid summer of 2013, concern for the negative market, legal, regulatory and relationship ramifications of these behaviors— and the resulting lawsuits—had reached a point where some of the top entities in the real estate industry had began to speak out about the dangers of these practices. The California Association of REALTORS® demonstrated great courage and caring with a fully funded multi-media program that warned California consumers against the dangers of off MLS marketing practices. The brokerage response was taken up by no less a firm than Long & Foster, a national icon in the American real estate industry. Untold amounts of resources were invested in its program to caution consumers in the several states in which it operates that off MLS marketing opportunities were not in their best interest. Both of these organizations and their efforts deserve credit and recognition for demonstrating leadership, “doing the right thing,” and creating leading edge multi media campaigns designed to reach the right people with the right message. Now back to that convergence thing. While the real estate industry was working its way through the various traumas of the past several years another movement was gaining speed, influence and power. Welcome to the world of the community website. A social network community represents and connects people that share common interests in certain areas. These areas can be social, cultural, religious, geographic, academic, lifestyle or special interests in nature. The members of a social network community select individuals from within their network to manage their profiles using the functionality provided by the social network website they use. The common area of interests enables users of the community website to meet new friends and identify like-minded people. Users connect with each other, rate peers and objects, buy and sell things, ask questions, get answers and discuss relevant topics. These connections can be made on a publically accessible website or a subscriber based connection on some a social media network like Facebook.
Page 5
Over the past several years these “community websites” have gained both popularity and sophistication. The research leading up to this piece disclosed that: Many, if not most, neighborhoods now have a website. Many neighborhoods use a public facing website for certain levels of interactivity and the subscriber based functionality, generally requiring subscribers to have at least two sponsors, to deal with more personal and intimate subjects. Participation in many of these sites has grown to include thousands of households. These websites tend to be managed and focused on issues from a woman’s perspective. These websites have become significant trading and merchandising centers. Here is the convergence. Over the past year the consumers who use these social networks have come to an interesting conclusion about their real estate marketing needs. After being told by numerous real estate agents through a whisper in the ear, “you don’t need the MLS, I have buyers,” consumers have come to the following conclusion: if I don’t need the MLS then I really don’t need a real estate agent. I also know buyers and they are coming to our community website everyday. Agents who are caught with their hand in this cookie jar are fond of pointing out that this situation will only work in a hypermarket and it will not last forever. While the logic of this agreement may be correct, its metrics are not. This market will, in all likelihood, last for two more years. During that period of time hundreds of thousands of consumer families will have created a real estate marketing experience that many will find preferable to that offered by these same agents. There is plenty of time for the word to get around and the culture to change. During this same period of time industry, public and lender perceptions of the value of the MLS will also have changed. To protect their positions and businesses these entities will have adjusted to new ways to perform old functions and they will not elect to return to vulnerability. Finally, keep in mind that sophisticated off MLS marketing practices (not the pocket listing) have only been around for about 16 months and they have already had an immense impact. This is without consideration for expanding broker liability, new lawsuits, fair housing assaults and the impact of additional regulation. Two years is forever. Bottom line, brokers must take charge of their firms and their marketing practices while there is still time to turn these trends around. Situations like these call for command and control. Increased regulation is just around the corner and it will use off MLS marketing as its rational. It may be from government agencies, financial realities or just plain old customer demands. It matters not, the destination is all the same.
—Jeremy Conaway is a keynote speaker, conference facilitator, and consultant to the real estate industry. He is President and CEO of RECON Intelligence Services, and can be reached at jeremy.conaway@reconis.com.
DECEMBER MONTHLY MARKET COMPARISON Dec 2012
Dec 2013
Percent
Total Residential Property Sales
275
261
-5.1%
Total Residential Dollar Volume
$41,940,836
$39,937,019
-4.8%
Average Single-Family Sales Price
$152,512
$153,015
0.3%
Median Single-Family Sales Price
$124,900
$130,000
4.1%
Total Active Residential Listings
1,237
1,182
-4.4%
Total Pending Residential Sales
154
273
77.3%
Months Inventory*
4.5
3.5
-22.2%
Categories
*Months inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months sales activity.
2013 vs. 2012 Comparison Jan-Dec 2012
Jan-Dec 2013
Percent
Total Residential Property Sales
3,510
4,175
18.9%
Total Residential Dollar Volume
$519,570,551
$636,116,384
22.4%
Average Single-Family Sales Price
$148,026
$150,000
1.3%
Median Single-Family Sales Price
$120,000
$130,000
8.3%
Categories
Notice on this information: Multiple Listing Service data is reported to the Real Estate Center at Texas A & M and the National Association of REALTORS® on the eighth of each month. Year-to-date data may be corrected for information reported after the eighth. Neither the association nor its MLS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy. Data maintained by the association or its MLS may not reflect all activity in the real estate market.
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AHWD Certification Course Hosted by When April 22, 2014 Lubbock Association Registration 8am of REALTORS® Where Class 8:30am - 5pm 5015 Knoxville Avenue Instructor(s) Lyssa Graham Reynolds Lubbock, TX 79413 This class will be broadcast from the Galveston Association of REALTORS®. Check with the Lubbock Association of REALTORS® for more information.
Registration
AHWD Certification Texas Association of REALTORS®, Inc. Course# 08-00-036-26646 Provider No. 0001
MCE Credit Earn 8 hours of MCE credit
Increase your sensitivity and adaptability to all types of clients through addressing issues of diversity, fair housing, and cultural differences. Visit Realtor.org/Designations-andCertifications for more information.
MCE credit If seeking MCE credit, please bring your real estate license.
Name on TREC license
Public access
TREC license #
This course is open to the public as room allows after all real estate licensees needing MCE credit have been seated.
Primary phone
Special services
Email address
Registration fees
If you require special accommodations to participate, please let us know at least three days prior to the course and attach a written description of your needs.
Members
Refund/cancellation policy
Nonmembers
Full refund if written notification is received by 4/15/2014 . Otherwise, a $25 cancellation fee will be deducted from your refund. No refunds will be issued after 4/21/2014 .
$99
Receipt of registration prior to April 15 is required to ensure you have a manual at the beginning of class.
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After deadline, add $25
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education@texasrealtors.com TexasRealtorsUniversity.com 800 -873-9153 facebook.com/TexasRealtorsUniversity @TxRealUniv txrealto.rs/TRUvideos Mail to Lubbock Association of REALTORS® 5015 Knoxville Avenue Lubbock, TX 79413
Contact Holly McBroom 806-795-9533 806-791-6429 fax hollymcbroom@lubbockrealtors.com
updated 1-21-14
Register by 4/15/2014