January 2015 CPARealtor News

EALTOR NEWS VOL. 6 / ISSUE 1 JANUARY 2015

EDUCATION ~ SERVICE ~ INTEGRITY Register Now for our NAR-sponsored

In this Issue: CPAR Calendar

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Letter from your President

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AE Corner

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Community Outreach

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New CPAR Members

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2014 CPAR Awards

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Meeting Recap, NAR News

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Business Partner Spotlight

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CPAR News

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Business Partners

Employer-Assisted Housing Class!

Free for all CPAR Members. Members register HERE. Just $10 for Non-Members. Non-Members register HERE. Lunch will be provided.

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Like us on Facebook! www.facebook.com/ CentralPascoRealtors

NAR’s Employer-Assisted Housing Class is a unique class to help you unlock a new market as well as to help address workforce housing issues in your community.

Register today!

The EAH class will help you to:

Click here to SUBSCRIBE to the CPARealtor News

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Increase your name recognition

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Expand your client base

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Gain referrals

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Enhance your professionalism

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Strengthen your community

Jan. 28th from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm Pebble Creek Golf Club 10550 Regents Park Drive Tampa, FL 33647 Cost: Free to CPAR Members, $10 for Non-Members (lunch included) Click HERE to register on our website

Make Reservations for upcoming CPAR events 27642 Cashford Circle, Ste. 110 ~ Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 www.cparfl.com ~ Phone 813-406-6081 ~ Fax 813-712-2865 ~ info@cparfl.org 1

CPAR Board of Directors DIRECTOR Louise Richardson

PRESIDENT Lynn Mooney

TREASURER Vicki Derbes

PRESIDENT-ELECT Dwight McDonald

PAST PRESIDENT Toby Caroline

DIRECTOR Jack Buckley

Sun ‘n Fun Realty TobyParadise@aol.com

Pro-Active Realty TheCoordinator45@gmail.com

DIRECTOR Patsy Peterman

DIRECTOR David Chen

DJDerbes@BHHSFloridaProperties.net

Seagrass Realty Patsy@SeagrassRealEstate.com

Florida Capital Realty DChen4649@yahoo.com

SECRETARY Gerald Collings

DIRECTOR Pete Rundel

BUSINESS PARTNER LIAISON

SouthShore Homes & Properties Lynn@LynnMooney.com

Pro-Active Realty LouiseRichardson71@gmail.com

Berkshire Hathaway Home Services VDerbes@BHHSFloridaProperties.com

International Realty Plus-Tampa Bay EmailMyBroker@verizon.net

VICE PRESIDENT Dennis Derbes

Berkshire Hathaway Home Services

SouthShore Homes & Properties GeraldC0123@gmail.com

Ruth Peeples

First American Title Company RPeeples@firstam.com

Action 100 Realty Pete@PetesRealty.com

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CPAR Office Closed

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Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

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Florida Realtors® Mid-Winter Business Meetings Renaissance Orlando Resort

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Employer-Assisted Housing Class 11 am—3 pm, Pebble Creek

Save the Date February 11: Lunch ‘n Learn (11:30 am—1:30 pm, Pebble Creek Golf Club) February 19: Expanded Housing Opportunity Class (1:00 pm—5:00 pm, Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay) February 25: New Member Orientation (1:00 pm—4:00 pm, Location TBA) 2

From your President a word from the PREZ...

2015 is here for your Association - it is a “new dawn, a new day, new year and we are feeling good” (Click Here). CPAR is committed to bringing you the best of everything that can enhance your education, customer and client relationships, and increase your income.

CPAR (Dwight McDonald, President-Elect) is coordinating two courses that will give you guidance on how to move your business to another level. The EAH (Employer-Assisted Housing) Class will give you guidance on increasing your name recognition, expanding your database, gaining referrals, and enhancing your Lynn Mooney professionalism. Click Here to make a reservation. The EHO (Expanding Housing Opportunities) Class on February 19 will give you the knowledge to identify and explain affordable housing opportunities and their benefits to your clients, identify assistance programs, and build partnerships.

CPAR (Dennis Derbes, Vice President) will be bringing you information in February on “Taxes and the Mistakes Independent Contractors Make in Preparing their IRS Filings,” led by Paula Rose, Atlas Tax and Accounting. March will bring a session with Sue Dutcher (First American Title) on the Dodd-Frank Act and how it affects you and your business.

Coming soon is a CE class on Linked In and how to use it for your business. Kim Dickey will also be returning with a CE class, the topic of which will be announced soon.

CPAR’s Outreach schedule (Director Louise Richardson) is being formulated. Do you have ideas that you feel that CPAR should consider implementing? Contact Louise at Outreach@cparfl.com.

All of CPAR’s programs and events are for ALL of its members, including the educational ones that have subject matter which appears to be just for Realtors®. The better educated you are, the more successful you will be and the better CPAR will work for you.

Are you passionate about something? Volunteer to bring it to the Association for consideration and possible implementation if it is not already in place. Contact our AE, Vanessa Frost, at Vanessa@cparfl.com or call 813.406.6081.

Until February, Lynn

Book Review by Lynn Mooney Takin' Care of Business: The Big Idea for Small Business

by Brian Buffini and Joe Niego This is a must read for anyone in business. You’re never too old or too young to be successful in business. The disciplines in this book are attainable (only if you read and implement). Let the light bulb go on and start “Takin’ Care of Marketing, Sales, Daily Disciplines, Customers, Money and much more.” The book is only 142 pages. … “Customers who have had an exemplary experience with a business are usually bursting to tell others about it.” … “If you give your clients an extraordinary experience, not only will they loyally return to your business time after time, but they’ll also tell others about you.”

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AE Corner

Join a CPAR Committee—Helping Others Helps You! CPAR has committees that keep the association running smoothly and help us reach out to the community. We need your participation to make CPAR grow and fulfill its potential. Expand your skills and create networking opportunities while making a difference in Pasco County. Here are some of our committees and contact information for their chairpersons: Vanessa Frost

Membership ~ Jack Buckley ~ thecoordinator45@gmail.com Advocacy ~ Robert Kane ~ robkane76@gmail.com Professional Development and Education ~ Dwight McDonald ~ education@cparfl.com Outreach and Affordable Housing ~ Louise Richardson ~ outreach@cparfl.com Young Professionals Network ~ David Chen ~ dchen4649@yahoo.com Events ~ Ruth Peeples ~ rpeeples@firstam.com

Thank you to our 2015 Sponsors Elite

My Florida Regional ~ Merri Jo Cowen

Platinum

Embrace Home Loans ~ Tyler Cain and Scott Slone First American Title ~ Ruth Peeples

Gold

IERNA’s Heating & Cooling ~ Julie Rinaldi National Property Inspections ~ Lynne Tonte Sandon Mortgage ~ Rick Sandon Security National Mortgage ~ Ray Williams WCR Tampa Chapter ~ Shannon Damschen

Silver Centennial Bank ~ Nancy Pupello Eagle Mortgage ~ Karen Calhoun Herbert H Landy Insurance ~ Joe Flynn Hillsborough Title ~ Joellyn Robles Market Prime Mortgage ~ John Farris Mason Title ~ Mary Turner Peeples Maintenance Repairs ~ Ron Peeples Prime Protection ~ Joed Hassani Rainbow International Restoration ~ Steve Dumas Tampa Home Inspection ~ Bobb Courtman Two Men and a Truck ~ Eugenia Parlow 4

Community Outreach Community Outreach The CPAR 2014 Angel Tree program was a success! We were provided with the names of 28 children from the Pine View Elementary and Middle schools in need of a smile on their faces this holiday season. Our members stepped up, along with some additional agents from Berkshire Hathaway Florida Properties in Wesley Chapel. Over 200 gifts were wrapped, bagged and tagged to be distributed to the children prior to the school closing for the holiday break. These are difficult times for Vicki Derbes many families and it was a great feeling to help in some small way to allow these children to be “children” at Christmas. We also received gift cards to provide to a few of the parents who were struggling to put food on the table. Again, thank you so much for everyone who helped make this a successful event.

Vicki Derbes delivers gifts to Pine View Middle School

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Welcome New CPAR Members

Realtors® BHHS Florida Properties Group ~ Wesley Chapel Glendora Merchant Justin Joseph Robin Walker

Florida Realty Nell Petty

Victor J. Cruz Victor Cruz

People’s Choice Realty Charlotte Stoking

Florida Luxury Realty Euler Pereda

Business Partners 4D Building Solutions Tom Rinicker

Know It Now Inc. Bill Hyatt

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2014 CPAR Awards Outgoing President Toby Caroline presented the 2014 CPAR Awards at our December membership meeting. We also shared in a fun Yankee Swap gift exchange, where members opened and “stole” each other’s gifts. We also concluded our food drive for Metropolitan Ministries and were able to give the charity organization a check for $430, which was raised from class fees collected for Kim Dickey’s November CE Class “The Art of Controlling the Sale.”

Complete list of Award Recipients: Realtor® of the Year ~ Margie Bradley Mentor of the Year ~ Dennis Derbes Business Partner Company of the Year ~ First American Title—Ruth Peeples Award of Excellence—Committee Chairman (Juanita Dennis Award) ~ Louise Richardson Bill Moorer Humanitarian Award ~ Harold Sample President’s Award ~ Lynn Mooney Honor Circle Award ~ Patsy Peterman Rising Star Award ~ Pete Rundel Outstanding Dedication Award ~ Lynne Tonte Total Dollar Volume ~ Toby Caroline Total Number of Transactions ~ Pete Rundel

Toby Caroline presents the Realtor® of the Year award to Margie Bradley

Outreach Committee members Ruth Peeples, Vicki Derbes and Louise Richardson show food donations and a $430 check for Metropolitan Ministries

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Members of the 2014 Board of Directors pose with outgoing President Toby Caroline

CPAR Membership Meeting Recap At CPAR’s Lunch ‘n Learn meeting on Jan. 8, Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey presented us with information on ongoing and upcoming Pasco projects. We also learned from CPAR Business Partner Scott Smith (We’ve Got Your Customers) the importance of having an account with Google My Business, where customers can find information about your company and also leave reviews. Be sure to come to our next meeting on February 11th at Pebble Creek Golf Club, where Paula Rose of Atlas Tax & Accounting will teach us how to avoid common tax mistakes made by independent contractors.

Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey discusses Pasco projects

Links to documents provided by Commissioner Starkey: Pasco County Strategic Plan Pasco County Major Projects Capacity Projects

Resurfacing Projects Pasco Market Areas

Scott Smith shows members the benefits of Google+

Consumers Will Have Access to FICO Scores Bank of America and J.P. Morgan Chase, two of the largest lenders in the U.S., have agreed to start showing some of their borrowers their FICO scores for free. FICO scores are a key metric lenders use to decide who to lend to and what interest rate to charge.

President Barack Obama announced the move on Monday at the Federal Trade Commission, emphasizing the importance of making these "once-secretive scores" more transparent to millions of consumers. In February 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau called on large credit-card lenders to make credit scores more available to consumers. CFPB says it received complaints from consumers who couldn't access their credit score.

FICO scores are used in about 90 percent of consumer-lending decisions, according to financial services research firm CEB TowerGroup. Consumers can purchase some of their scores, but everyone has several FICO scores — and they can't necessarily see the one the lender is using.

By knowing their credit score, consumers can take steps to improve it over time, which may result in greater loan savings and making credit more available to them, financial experts note.

Bank of America says that it will begin providing its consumer credit-card users with their FICO score later this year. Ally Financial plans to offer car-loan customers their score in February and roll it out to all customers in the summer. Chase plans to offer FICO credit scores at no charge to the roughly 10 million users of its "Slate" credit card.

FICO, through its growing list of partnerships, told The Wall Street Journal that it expects nearly 60 million consumers in the U.S. to soon have access to their FICO scores.

Source: “Millions More to See Their FICO Scores,” The Wall Street Journal (Jan. 12, 2015) 8

CPAR Business Partner Spotlight How To Get Home Buyers Calling YOU! According to a Google Consumer Survey conducted this year:  Half of people begin their formal home search 6-12 months in advance, with about threequarters starting within a year of the purchase.  Two in three researched prospective agents extensively online prior to working with them.

Question: What does this tell us?

Answer: That those that show up have a HUGE Head Start over those that don't!

Add in the Fact that 90%+ of home buyers search online during their home buying process and we can all agree that it's no longer just Nice to be found online, It's an Absolute Must if you want to stay in front of this market!

7 Strategies to Get Home Buyers Calling You 1.

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Know Who Your Ideal Client Is and What They Are Searching For Set Up Your Website the Right Way Set Up Your Google Plus Page the Right Way Directory Listings Reviews Content Creation Strategy (Photos, Videos, Blog Posts, etc) Social Media Strategy to Push Out Content

Who Is Scott?  15+ Years Building Local Businesses  Founded Sales Company in 2003 and Grew It to $10Million+ in Sales  Founded We've Got Your Customers in 2009 to help Build and Save Local Businesses Scott L Smith Local SEO Consultant We've Got Your Customers 813-400-1105 http://wevegotyourcustomers.com When You Absolutely, Posi vely Have To Be Found!

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Personal Computer System Backup FAQ How important do you consider file / OS backups?

I consider backup very important because my Windows system has about 60 GB files, and some files are very important, and one bit of damage to those files can cause the whole Windows system to malfunction. The easiest way to solve this kind of problem is preventive care – backup which takes about 30 minutes for 60 GB files.

David Chen

Is it necessary to clone an entire hard drive or just backup data files?

Every system usage and configuration is different. It depends on the system usage and how the system is configured to decide whether it is necessary to clone an entire hard drive or just backup data files. To me, my Windows system usage is important, changes are frequent, and my Windows system is configured to backup the whole system, which is simple, easy, and takes less time to backup the whole system which is the clone of the entire hard drive of my Windows system.

How often should backups be performed?

Every system usage and configuration is different, especially how frequently the files and system are changed. I do backups every Friday evening. However, sometimes before and after important application and system update, I do additional backups, too.

What kind of backups should be performed (full every time, full followed by several differentials, full followed by several incremental)?

I configured my Windows system to do full backups every Friday evening which makes restoring easy.

What media do you use for backup storage, and where do you keep the media?

I use a USB portable hard disk as backup media and keep it in my fire safe.

Is it necessary to test a backup?

Yes. It is necessary to test a backup. By using a USB portable hard disk as backup media and configured full backup, the restore is very easy to verify whether the backup works or not.

Refresh Yourself with Calm.com Sometime today, you're going to need a break. Might we recommend you use Calm.com to help you with that?

Calm.com is a website (and app) which provides soothing scenery, ambient music, and guided meditation options to help you center yourself.

Better than the waterfall and aquarium screensavers of the old days, Calm allows you to configure a relaxing experience for a pre-determined amount of time, and can be a welcome break from the endless stream of news, email alerts, and social media distractions.

Why not try a 2-minute Calm session right now?

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Business Partners Thank you for your support!

Chris Black 813‐782‐1777 Tom Rinicker 813‐300‐5027

Affordable Home Inspec on of Tampa Bay Steve Whallen 813‐948‐4176

Alberta Bland 813‐875‐1200

James Ward, 813‐770‐8459 Jason Roux, 813‐787‐9590

Rebecca Lynn Walker 813‐390‐0140

Doug Drozd 813‐949‐5131 Darren Anderson 813‐996‐0604

Joellyn Robles 813‐287‐2130

Karen Calhoun 813‐966‐3081 Sara Allen 727‐526‐5338

George Cooper 813‐340‐8363

Emerald Inspec on Service, LLC George Swatzbaugh III 352‐322‐2700

Brian Arrighi 813‐251‐2921

Mitchell Rothenberg 813‐632‐0550 Tyler Caine, 813‐380‐8487 Sco Slone, 813‐295‐4660

Helen Schwetz 727‐329‐2000

Nancy Pupello 904‐477‐7011

Cindy Maxie 813‐961‐3391

Angela Miller 352‐521‐0141

Julie Rinaldi 813‐948‐6355

Janalee Jones 813‐376‐3618 11

Business Partners Thank you for your support!

Bill Hya 727‐415‐8305

Tony Hedayat 813‐960‐7378

Brian Finucane 813‐362‐8453

Joseph Flynn 352‐350‐2477

Law Offices of Mercedes Gonzalez Hale

Sco Goldsborough 813‐363‐6745

Lauria Grant III 813‐994‐1471

Mercedes Gonzalez Hale 813‐973‐8900 Joed Hassani 813‐704‐0493

Tampa Home Inspec on Bobb Courtman 813‐909‐9516

John Farris 813‐867‐4820

Steve Dumas 813‐907‐0503 Mary Turner 813‐264‐6110

Ruth Peeples 813‐968‐5170

Randy Mabry 727‐942‐9363 Jodie Wilson 863‐602‐3845 Shelly Grover, 727‐519‐4710

Lynne Tonte 813‐973‐2004 Michael Mar n 407‐878‐1238

Ron Peeples 813‐774‐2386

Ray Williams Mike Williams Nathaniel Bi man 727‐724‐5438

Wendy Bechtelheimer 813‐839‐4250

Sco Smith 813‐748‐8008 12

Did you know?

NAR allows Local Board of Choice…

Regardless of office location, Realtors® may join any local real estate association they choose.

READY FOR A CHANGE? Contact Dwight McDonald, CPAR President-Elect, for answers to all your CPAR and membership-related questions.

813-629-6954 ~ emailmybroker@verizon.net CPAR offers the same benefits as other local real estate associations: ~ My Florida Regional MLS membership

~ New Member Orientation

~ Supra Active Keys, eKeys, and Lockboxes

~ Social events for fun and networking

~ Professional Development Education and CE credits

~ Public Advocacy

~ Office convenient to North Tampa, New Tampa, Wesley Chapel, and Land O’Lakes

~ Community Service opportunities

Compare and Save!

CLICK HERE

for more information and applications on our website

CPAR 1

Membership Dues & Fees Local Dues (Primary Membership)

~ Fast start for new agents ~ Lower startup costs ~ Orientation for new agents ~ Low primary and secondary dues for transferring brokers

EPAR 3

PRO 4

WPBOR 5

$75.00

$120.00

$115.00

$168.00

$170.00

Florida Realtors® Dues & Issues Advocacy

$126.00

$126.00

$126.00

$126.00

$126.00

NAR Dues & Public Awareness Campaign Assessment

$155.00

$155.00

$155.00

$155.00

$155.00

$356.00

$401.00

$396.00

$449.00

$451.00

Application Fee (Local)

$75.00

$195.00

$110.00

$150.00

$250.00

Application Fee (Florida Realtors®)

$30.00

$30.00

$30.00

$30.00

$30.00

Business Partner/Affiliate Dues (Primary Membership)

$90.00

$195.00

$150.00

$250.00

$250.00

Total Annual Dues

Attention Brokers!

GTAR 2

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Information obtained from CPAR 10/1/14 Information obtained from GTAR 10/14/14 3 Information obtained from EPAR 10/28/14

Information obtained from PRO 10/14/14 Information obtained from WPBOR 10/14/14

Central Pasco Association of Realtors® 27642 Cashford Circle, Ste. 110 ~ Wesley Chapel, FL 33544 www.cparfl.com ~ Phone 813-406-6081 ~ Fax 813-712-2865 ~ info@cparfl.org 13