REALinfo February 2017

REAL info FEBRUARY ● 2017

News and Resources for MEMBERS

FEATURE

Musings from RAHB CEO George O'Neill – page 2

MLS®/TECHNOLOGY

One listing; two MLS® numbers! – page 3

SERVICES SPOTLIGHT

Realty Shoppe – page 3

RAHB IN THE COMMUNITY

Burlington's bold plans! – page 3

RAHB NEWS

Coming soon: CREA MLS® Home Price Index! – pages 4 and 5 RAHB welcomes new members! – page 5 Gala highlights – pages 6 and 7

MEMBER SERVICES

Professional development for REALTORS® – page 8 Update! Accidental Death & Dismemberment coverage – page 8 REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017 – pages 8 and 9 Realty Shoppe – page 10 Have you used your social media stats kit? – page 11

CREA NEWS

Are you covered? – page 12

MARK YOUR CALENDAR

What's coming up at RAHB – page 12

Empowering REALTORS® to Succeed

News and Resource for Members

MUSINGS from RAHB CEO George O'Neill Established in 1921, the REALTORS Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB) represents more than 3,000 real estate brokers and salespersons from Hamilton, Burlington, and surrounding areas. Members of the association may use the REALTOR® trademark, which identifies them as real estate professionals who subscribe to a strict code of ethics. The Association operates the local Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System and provides ongoing professional education courses for its members. In addition, RAHB is an active participant in the Home Ownership Affordability Partnership (HOAP) and holds an annual auction in support of local charities. Advertisements of local MLS® Property listings and information about the services provided by a REALTOR® can be found at www.REALTOR.ca. More information about RAHB is available at www.rahb.ca. ®

Mission Statement Empowering REALTORS® to succeed.

President

Lou Piriano 905.628.6625 President-Elect

Jack Loft Immediate Past

Donna Bacher

905.304.3303 905.520.1946

Directors

Ann Forbes Arndt 905.574.3038 Nikola Bucalo 905.388.1110 Kathy Della-Nebbia 905.574.4600 Ralph Frisina 905.628.6625 Paul Hammond 905.335.8808 Diane Price 905.308.8333 Andrew Robertson 905.308.8333 Bob Van de Vrande 905.332.4111 Richard Weima 905.637.1700

REALinfo is published monthly by the REALTORS® Association of HamiltonBurlington (RAHB) 505 York Boulevard, Hamilton ON L8R 3K4 T.: 905.529.8101 F.: 905.529.4349 MLS® F.: 905.529.6636 Help Desk T.: 905.667.4650 Realty Shoppe: T.: 905.529.5979 F.: 905.529.7109

I know you are all waiting to hear when RAHB will be going live with our new Matrix MLS® System, and I’m pleased to tell you that we are still on track to cut over to Matrix before the spring market, 2017. RAHB’s Directors and staff have been working diligently over the past several months to deliver this new system.

As you read in this column last month, there have been a few unexpected developments along the way, the most surprising of which came in a letter from ORTIS in late December, just before the holiday. At that time, ORTIS had not committed to listing sharing with RAHB. Since then, however, RAHB and ORTIS have come to an agreement to share listings and are looking to put in place a contract, hopefully to be signed before the end of February, 2017.

RAHB has been very clear about our desire to share listing information on a go-forward basis and about our strong belief that members of all boards and associations are best served by doing so. It’s not just our members who benefit from shared data; all REALTORS® in the regional area benefit from access to a wider pool of listing information. The internet has made information available to all, and your clients and customers expect that you will have the same access to listing information across southern Ontario.

We have said all along that RAHB will share listing data with any board or association on a reciprocal basis. We continue to work to achieve the goal of sharing listings with our neighbours. The more information you have, the better you can serve your clients and customers. And isn’t that ultimately what an MLS® System is all about – co-operatively sharing listing information among REALTORS®?

RAHB will continue to lead the charge to bring the best, most complete compilation of listings for the benefit of everyone. ***** Please don’t forget that RAHB’s REALTOR® CONNECTIONS AGM, Conference and Trade Show is coming up on March 9, 2017!

Register now for this one-day event that has been planned just for you, our members. Check out the details on pages 8 and 9 of this issue of REALINFO.

Email: info@rahb.ca Web site: www.rahb.ca Intranet site: www.realtorlink.ca Editor: Valerie Webster Editorial Assistant: Sheila Sferrazza Design: Maggie Inglis In-house Products: RAHB Print Services

February

REAL info

2

2017

Best regards,

News and Resource for Members

MLS®/TECHNOLOGY

One listing; two MLS® numbers!

As of January 24, 2017, Fusion is no longer accepting For Lease or Sale listings on a single MLS® number. If you have a listing that is for either sale or lease, enter your listing twice – once as a For Sale Only and once as a For Lease Only – so your listing has two listing numbers.

When the property sells, report the sale or lease as appropriate, and then cancel the other listing so that it is no longer active.

SERVICES SPOTLIGHT

Realty Shoppe – your one-stop shop!

Where can you go to buy lockboxes; open house frames and inserts; door hangers; feature sheet stands; riders and clips; stickers; REALTOR®-branded merchandise; Association maps and even office basics like business card holders, pens, paper and paper clips? The RAHB Realty Shoppe, of course!

Located on the lower level of the RAHB office, the Realty Shoppe carries what busy REALTORS® need in their day-to-day real estate businesses. Our products are available to you at very affordable prices because we buy in large enough quantities to allow us to offer the products to you at a very advantageous price.

The Realty Shoppe is a REALTOR®-only store, proudly the first of its kind in Canada. Watch for some exciting developments in 2017 that will make your shopping experience even better!

Come visit us at REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017 AGM, Conference and Trade Show at the Grand Olympia Convention Centre in Stoney Creek – we will be introducing some new products, and you can enter your business card to win some great prizes.

We appreciate your business! On January 30, 2017 we held our annual Member Appreciation Day, with refreshments, giveaways and prizes – Congratulations to Hank Balfoort (RE/MAX Escarpment Golfi Realty Inc.), winner of the Realty Shoppe’s Member Appreciation Day draw for a gift basket valued at $50.

RAHB IN THE COMMUNITY

Burlington’s bold plans!

RAHB was gold sponsor of the Burlington Chamber of Commerce “Mayor’s State of the City Address” on Wednesday, January 25, 2017 at the Burlington Convention Centre.

Mayor Rick Goldring spoke about the city’s “Grow Bold” plan, Innovation Centre, Joseph Brant Hospital expansion and “Love My Hood” the City’s Canada 150 initiative. Follow #MSOTC17 for event highlights!

February

REAL info

3

2017

News and Resource for Members

RAHB NEWS

Coming Soon: CREA MLS® Home Price Index!

RAHB will soon be participating in CREA’s MLS® Home Price Index!

What’s the MLS® Home Price Index?

The MLS® Home Price Index, or HPI, is a tool for gaining a better understanding of the market trends in the residential market in our area, and how those trends compare to the rest of the country.

When we talk about housing prices, we usually refer to trends in average and median sale prices. These measures are readily available and easily understood. However, averages and medians do not always accurately determine trends because:  data can be skewed by outliers  all homes are treated as equal  home “composition” is not taken into consideration The MLS® HPI provides a better measurement of price and price trends for residential properties. It is based on real MLS® listing content from RAHB – that is, the attributes of the listed properties: number of bedrooms, number of baths, number of storeys, etc. The HPI uses that information to calculate what is the average home in an area, and then it can track how that average home price changes over time.

How does it work?

The HPI uses a base – or benchmark – year as a starting point for price comparison. The index base is always 100.

In RAHB’s case, the benchmark year is 2005, so the HPI value for, say, January 2005 is 100. If the HPI value for a single-family home in January of 2011 is 167.1, you know that the value of a typical single-family home is up 67.1 per cent compared to 2005.

Sample Case

 67.1 % January 2005 = 100

January 2011 = 167.1

What’s in it for you?

The real value of the HPI comes with the depth of information available to members. The HPI drills down into areas as well as types of properties – single family, townhouse and apartment. For each area, the HPI defines what the “average” house, townhouse and apartment is. In one area the average single family home might be a 3-bedroom, 2-bath, double garage home, while in another area it is a 2-bedroom, 1-bath home with no garage.

Likewise for the townhouse and apartment categories – the HPI definition is determined by the mix of properties and their features in that area. This allows you to see trends that average or median sale prices just can’t provide.

RAHB will be publishing general information about the HPI, the same way it publishes general statistics, so the public will see what the general trend is. However, RAHB members will have access to much more detailed information, so you will be able to:  help your clients understand home price trends for specific kinds of properties in a given neighbourhood  position yourself as a credible, reliable source of insight into the real estate market  broaden your knowledge of municipal, regional and national real estate markets, and compare trends in those markets

What the MLS® HPI doesn’t do

The HPI will not predict future price trends. It can only be used to track what the trend has been and what it is at the present time.

What’s the next step?

Once RAHB starts reporting the MLS® HPI trends for our area, you will have access to an HPI February dashboard via REALTOR Link®. That’s where you will find the more detailed information the

REAL info

4

2017

continued on page 5

News and Resource for Members

continued from page 4 public doesn’t see. You will find information about housing trends in our area, as well as trends in other cities where HPI is reported.

How did the MLS® HPI come about?

It was pioneered by six founding partners: the real estate boards of Calgary, Fraser Valley, Greater Montreal, Greater Vancouver, and Greater Toronto and the Canadian Real Estate Association. In 2009, the partners contracted with Altus Group to develop the MLS® HPI, which subsequently launched in February 2012.

Since its founding, CREA’s Home Price Index has grown to include data from Regina, Saskatoon, Ottawa, Vancouver Island, Victoria and Greater Moncton, and will soon include some regional MLS® boards and associations, as well as RAHB.

Want more information?

Gregory Klump, CREA’s Chief Economist, will be presenting two knowledge pods on the HPI at REALTOR® CONNECTIONS AGM, Conference and Trade Show on March 9, and will return to RAHB after we launch the HPI to do more information sessions. Watch for more info about the date, time and location of the presentations.

You can also find more information about the MLS® Home Price Index at http://www.homepriceindex.ca/hpi_home_en.html.

RAHB welcomes new members!

The REALTORS® Association of Hamilton-Burlington extends a warm welcome to its newest members from December 15, 2016 to January 23, 2017!

Sean Ferney

Ambitious Realty Advisors Inc.

Tyler Misener

Century 21 New Age Realty Inc.

Mir Rahimi Marck Daood Harun Shaheri

Jim Tatti Christina Musacchia

Danielle McKirgan Lorraine Hughes

RE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Sutton Group Innovative Realty Inc.

Loren Gindl

Dev Brar Roy La Chappelle Lexx Varghese Lucie Brusse

RE/MAX Escarpment Lisa Weber Realty Inc.

Julie Tamayo Field

Homelife Professionals Realty Inc.

RE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Royal LePage Burloak Real Estate Services

Darren Stewart Sean Dawson

Joe Bandula

Emese Zaduban

Judy Marsales Real Estate Ltd.

Glenda Cavan Brad Aitchison

Keller Williams Complete Realty

Cherylene Stimers David Maurice

Keller Williams Edge Realty

RE/MAX Realty Enterprises Inc.

Christopher Climie Deanna Bodden

Royal LePage Niagara Real Estate Centre

Royal LePage State Realty

Nanthadeth Keochanh Royal LePage Macro Realty

Alex Brott

Sage Real Estate February

REAL info

5

2017

News and Resource for Members

Gala highlights RAHB’s annual Appreciation & Awards Gala was an evening to celebrate members for their 25- and 40-years of RAHB membership, to recognize RAHB members who served on RAHB committees and task forces in 2016, and to award members who have gone above and beyond to serve the association and their community.

The Gala took place on Saturday, January 21, 2017 at Michelangelo Event Venue and Conference Centre.

RAHB Volunteers

RAHB President Lou Piriano recognized the three 2016 Directors who completed their terms on the Board – Kim Alvarez, Gary Herron and Paul Martindale. He also recognized the 101 RAHB members who served on committees, task forces and the Board.

Long Service Awards

Long service pins were presented to the newest members of the Long Service Club. 10 members reached the 40-year milestone in 2016 and 42 reached the 25-year milestone!

40 Year Recipients

25 Year Recipients

(l-r) Robert Schinkel, Tamer Fahmi, John Goritsas, Drago Saric Front row (l-r): Richard Deverson, Mike Cusano, Jim Griffen Back row (l-r): Carol DiStefano, Janet Bedford

25 Year Recipients

February

REAL info

6

2017

Front row (l-r): Louis Volk, Rob Cecchetti Back row (l-r): Alison Walsh, Lois Simpson,

Tina Nixon

25 Year Recipients

Front row (l-r): Louie Fabbroni, Darren Van Leeuwen, Mike Mattina Back row (l-r): Alice Liu, Catherine Poirier

News and Resource for Members

RAHB Service Awards

Congratulations to the following RAHB award recipients!

Margaret Reid (Royal LePage State Realty) received the Volunteer of the Year Award, which recognizes a member who has demonstrated exceptional qualities, enthusiasm and perseverance or has gone above and beyond to serve their fellow members.

Margaret has served on various RAHB committees and task forces since joining RAHB and, in fact, has worked on a committee or task every year with only one exception.

She is active on not only RAHB committees and task forces, but in community committees and initiatives as well. Margaret is described as a “true example of leadership and giving”, a mentor with phenomenal patience and as “always available to lend a hand”.

Bonnie Dowling (B. Dowling Real Estate Ltd.) received the Outstanding Community Service Award, presented to a member who has shown outstanding dedication to the real estate profession and exceptional volunteer service to his or her community.

Bonnie is a 33-year member of RAHB, a past president of the Association and an Honorary Life Member. She also received the Volunteer of the Year Award in 2012.

Bonnie has been active in the City of Hamilton Public Health “Community Food Advisors” program for over 20 years. She has served as Chair of the program, and continues to actively participate in a monthly seniors’ lunch program. As well as these current activities, Bonnie has been involved in lunch and children’s food programs, performed cooking demonstrations for seniors and Aboriginal men and others, and promoted healthy lifestyles in the community. Her infectious enthusiasm has made the learning experience enjoyable for others.

Entertainment

Entertainment during the cocktail hour and again during the gala program was provided by magician Mike D’Urzo.

Musical entertainment following the Gala program was provided by the George St. Kitts Band.

February

REAL info

7

2017

News and Resource for Members

MEMBER SERVICES

Professional Development for REALTORS® Designation courses SRS – Seller Representative Specialist – Gareth Jones Tuesday and Wednesday, February 7 and 8, 2017 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. $ 325+HST PSA – Price Strategy Advisor Certification – Gareth Jones Thursday, February 9, 2017 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. $ 199+HST

 NEW

REIC 2600 – Ethics and Business Practice – Mary Jones Tuesday – Thursday, April 18 – 20, 2017 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. $ 625+HST – RAHB members $ 825+HST – Non-RAHB members

Professional Development courses Calculating Square Footage – Mary Jones Friday, February 10, 2017 10 a.m. – Noon $ 30 +HST



Understanding Newer Homes – Andrew McCarthy Wednesday, February 22, 2017 10 a.m. – Noon Free Spot the Fraud – Lou Piriano Tuesday, March 21, 2017 10 a.m. – Noon Free

NEW

 NEW

New GeoWarehouse – Theresa Corindia Friday, March 24, 2017 10 a.m. – Noon OR 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.

Free Power of Sale – Lou Radomsky Thursday, April 13, 2017 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. $ 30 +HST All courses will be held in McCullough Room at the RAHB office (lower level). To register, or for more information, contact Angela at 905.529.8101 x233 or angelam@rahb.ca.

Update! Accidental Death & Dismemberment coverage Upon review of the current Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D) policy, RAHB’s Board of Directors determined the policy did not provide value to the membership. Therefore, effective February 1, 2017, RAHB is no longer providing AD&D coverage for members. Alternate benefits will be investigated.

If you have any outstanding claims, please contact Camryn in the Membership department at camrynh@rahb.ca or 905.529.8101 x251.

Have you registered for REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017 yet?

Don’t forget to register for RAHB’s annual REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017 AGM, Conference and Trade Show before February 23, 2017 to receive free admission* to this event created specifically to help REALTORS® choose success!

Whether you are looking for local home improvement, financial, legal or other real estate service companies for yourself or for your clients, REALTOR® CONNECTIONS has you covered. Our diverse group of tradeshow exhibitors features the products and services you need to succeed as a REALTOR®. We also have three streams of informative knowledge pod sessions on real estate topics that matter to you. And last but not least, we have our fabulous keynote speaker, Stuart Knight, who will teach you how to harness the art of powerful conversation whether you are an introvert OR an extrovert!

To learn more about the knowledge pod sessions, keynote speaker, tradeshow and overall event agenda read the REALTOR® CONNECTIONS brochure at http://bit.ly/2jH0bl8. To register for REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017, visit http://registration.rahb.ca or contact Sheila at the RAHB February office at 905.529.8101 x234 or by email sheilas@rahb.ca. info

* Please be advised that a $45 +HST No Show fee will be charged to those who register to the event but do not attend.

2017

REAL

8

News and Resource for Members

REALT R CONNECTI NS

2017

®

AGM, Conference and Trade Show

CHOOSE SUCCESS AT OUR PREMIER EVENT!

THURSDAY MARCH 9, 2017 7:30 A.M. – 2 P.M. | OPENS 7:30 A.M. REGISTRATION

FREE ADMISSION WITH EARLY BIRD SIGN-UP UNTIL FEBRUARY 23, 2017. $45+HST REGULAR PRICE.

REGISTRATION.RAHB.CA

GRAND OLYMPIA CONVENTION CENTRE 660 BARTON STREET, STONEY CREEK, L8E 5L6

LEARN THE ART OF POWERFUL CONVERSATION WITH KEYNOTE SPEAKER

STUART KNIGHT!

Register now for REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017!

February

REAL info

9

2017

News and Resource for Members

Realty Shoppe Metal sign frames to promote listings and open house showings: Colonial “L” style – 2 pieces

Choice of black or white 31”w x 72”h (11” shank w/stabilizer bar)

Double “H” style – 2 pieces Black only 24 ½”w x 54”h (14” shank) Holds 18”h x 24”w sign inserts

31.10 ea.*

$

Double “H” bottom only Black only

32.05

$

ea.*

Colonial tops only

$

Choice of black or white

Colonial bottoms only

Choice of black or white, 35”h (11” shank w/stabilizer bar)

16.75 ea.*

$

Open house “A” frame Choice of black or white Holds 18”h x 24”w sign inserts

17.00 ea.*

20.35 ea.*

$

25.75 ea.*

$

IMPORTANT NOTICE The RAHB Realty Shoppe will be CLOSED for all business on Thursday, March 9 for REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017!

Visit our booth at REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017 AGM, Conference and Trade Show at the Grand Olympia Convention Centre New products! Show Specials! Great Prizes!

Remember to bring your business cards to enter the draws February

REAL info

10

2017

On January 30, 2017 we held our annual Member Appreciation Day, with refreshments, giveaways and prizes

Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. T.: 905.529.5979 F.: 905.529.7109 E.: realtyshoppe@rahb.ca * All applicable taxes are extra. Prices subject to change.

News and Resource for Members

Have you used your social media stats kit?

In 2016, RAHB introduced a new members-only addition to our monthly real estate stats reports: a social media statistics kit! This kit includes 14 visually-appealing images that feature the latest statistics from selected RAHB communities.

Where can you use the images from this kit? The sky is the limit! Whether it be on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or your own websites and blogs, these images are sure to catch the eye of your current and potential clients while also helping them to better understand the market conditions in their community.

Find the direct download link to your social media statistics kit every month in our RAHB stats email reports. If you have any questions, feel free to contact Carly at carlyp@rahb.ca

Stats Kit: from December, 2016

February

REAL info

11

2017

News and Resource for Members

CREA NEWS

Are you covered?

CREA has prepared a brochure outlining ManuLife Group Insurance benefits for which you may be eligible, and the brochure will be coming to your office in February! Watch for your copy and see what benefits are available to you!

Don’t want to wait til then? You can also visit Manulife.com/creaplans for more information.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR Held at RAHB – 505 York Blvd.

Lower Level room: C – Chambers M – McCullough First floor room: T – Thompson P – Purnell

Board of Directors, Committee and Task Force Meetings

Computer





New Member Computer Training Level 1

ut – 11:30 a.m.

Thursday, February 2 –SC, a.m. old9-O t – 3:30 p.m.

Thursday, February 16 S–olC, 1up.m. d-O -Out– 11:30 a.m.

Thursday, March 2 – C,So9lda.m.

Thursday, March 30 – C, 9 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. 

Matrix Training General Overview (Webinar)

Wednesday, March 1 –S9ola.m. d-Ou–t 11 a.m.

Matrix Broker Loading for Assistants and Administrators (Webinar) 

Thursday, March 2 – 2 p.m. – 3 p.m. 

Broker loading and Matrix Basics (Webinar)



Matrix General Overview (Hands-on course)

Wednesday, March 8 – 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.

-Out– 4 p.m.

Monday, March 20 – M,So2ldp.m. 

Matrix Q&A



Matrix Broker Load (Webinar)

Thursday, March 23 – M, 2:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Monday, March 27 – 2 p.m. – 3 p.m.

Register with angelam@rahb.ca.

February

REAL info

12

2017

Audit Meeting

Tuesday, February 7 – T, 9 a.m. 

Governance Meeting

Wednesday, February 8 – T, 9:30 a.m. 

Board of Directors

Wednesday, February 15 – T, 9 a.m. 

Government Relations

Thursday, February 23 – T, 9:30 a.m.

Professional Development See page 8 for a list of courses.

Upcoming Events 

REALTOR® CONNECTIONS 2017

AGM, Conference and Trade Show Thursday, March 9, 2017 Grand Olympia, Stoney Creek See further details on pages 8 and 9