DESIGNATED
REALTOR
®
ISSUE 3: June 2019
REALTORS® HEAD TO THE HILL
NJREALTOR.COM
Realtors Day ®
in Trenton
Monday, June 24
9:30 a.m. - 12 p.m. (Program) 12:30 p.m. - 3 p.m. (State House Visit)
HISTORIC TRENTON MASONIC TEMPLE 100 Barrack Street, Trenton, NJ
$15
per member
$125
for table of ten
Brunch is included with ticket
Join New Jersey Realtors® for our 2019 Realtors® Day in Trenton! This is the perfect opportunity to hear from your elected officials and the opportunity to network with like-minded advocates. We’ll be discussing issues that impact the real estate industry.
Featured Speakers Include: Senate Republican Leader
Governor
Senate President
Tom Kean
phil murphy
Stephen Sweeney
I M P O R TA N T D AT E S & D E A D L I N E S
JUNE
11 Executive Committee
Meeting: 11 a.m.
JULY Realtors 4 NJ Closed
AUGUST ®
Office
Independence Day
of Directors 11 Board Meeting: 1 p.m.
16 Father’s Day
SEPTEMBER
Financial 14 National Awareness Day
10 Executive Committee
30 National Beach Day
of Directors 10 Board Meeting: 1 p.m.
Day of 21 First Summer
Meeting: 11 a.m.
20 Realtors
®
Care Day
27 Realtor -Palooza ®
WHAT’S BUZZING IN REAL ESTATE?
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That’s Who We R, the National Association of Realtors’® consumer campaign, is accepting Realtor® stories. The campaign hopes to put a spotlight on Realtors® and wants you to get involved. Submit your story here.
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Realtor.com laid out 11 of the most affordable suburbs of big cities. New Jersey made the list twice and deemed Hillside, N.J. the most affordable New York City suburb and Gloucester City, N.J. the most affordable Philadelphia suburb. Hillside’s median list price is $272,000 and Gloucester’s is $86,700. Read the article in its entirety here.
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Videos are performing increasing well for agents, especially on Facebook. According to moxiworks.com, videos posted on Facebook are reaching 135 percent more people than a regular image. Learn more about how to optimize your Facebook posts here.
4
According to the Style Staged & Sold blog by REALTOR® Magazine, neon is making a comeback in home décor. Throw back to the 1980s with neongreen bath towels or a neon-pink accent chair. Read more about this trend here.
Millennial buyers are skipping the traditional starter home and going right for a forever home, according to Realtor.com. They may have bigger down payments, but hope to stay in their home for life. Read more here.
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At the National Association of Realtors® 2019 Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo, Mark Calabria, the new FHFA director, discussed with Realtors® about his vision for the future of Government Sponsored Enterprises with Realtors®. NAR also had the opportunity to discuss their housing finance reform plan of ensuring reliable and affordable mortgage capital. Read more here.
7
Amazon Alexa can be used for more than listening to NJ Realtors® Flash Briefing. Alexa can be used in the office to keep track of your calendar, as a licensing study tool, for agent safety, and more. Read REALTOR® Magazine’s article Make Alexa Your Ally: 6 Ways Brokerages Can Use Voice Tech.
Designated REALTOR® | JUNE 2019 | 1
Realtors® Head to Washington I
n mid-May NJ Realtors® Leadership Team, association members, and association staff members traveled to Washington D.C. for the 2019 National Association of Realtors® Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo.
It was beautiful weather in D.C. as 10,000 Realtors® ascended the capitol steps to make sure their voices were heard in support of their businesses and homeowners across the country. The New Jersey team of advocates met with almost all federal representatives of the Garden State, and they are confident their concerns about pertinent issues such as flood insurance, health insurance for independent contractors, and taxes were acknowledged. “I am hopeful after sitting down and meeting with our members of Congress our issues will be addressed,” said New Jersey Realtors® President Ilene Horowitz. “The real estate
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industry is the foundation of New Jersey’s economy and I cannot stress that enough.” Attendees of the legislative meetings had the opportunity to celebrate Realtors® Political Action Committee’s 50th Anniversary. Two New Jersians were inducted into the RPAC Hall of Fame Class of 2018: Eugenia Bonilla and NJ Realtors® Vice President of Government Affairs Doug Tomson for their contribution of $25,000 to RPAC. We would also like to congratulate NJ Realtor® Randy Ketive who was awarded the Meritorious Service Award for her work as a Federal Political Coordinator (FPC) for Sen. Frank Lautenberg and Rep. Josh Gottheimer. The award is given to two FPC’s each year out of 535 Realtors® who hold the position. Congratulations Randy!
Another standout event was New Jersey Realtors® Mid-year reception. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, NJ Realtors® members, and NJ Realtors® staff were in attendance in addition to staff from most congressional offices. The room was filled to capacity and provided attendees the opportunity to speak with representatives in a more casual setting. This year, President Trump attended the conference and addressed nearly 2,000 Realtors®. NAR has invited the sitting President regardless of political party to the expo each year and President Trump was the first to attend since 2005. He highlighted the value of Realtors® in the home buying and selling process and discussed deregulation efforts that could possibly benefit the real estate market. The National Association of Realtors® That’s Who We R® consumer campaign was in full swing throughout the meetings
as well. NAR President John Smaby sported his campaign gear and attendees loved it. That’s Who We R® merchandise is now available through the Realtor® Store. The NAR Board of Directors decided at the meetings the campaign will continue through 2022. At the same NAR Board of Directors meetings, Charles Oppler from Franklin Hills was elected President-elect and Drew Fishman from Absecon was elected Regional Vice President for Region 2. Congratulations to both of them! The main goal of the Realtors® Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo is to take an active role in the industry and sit down with our state’s federal representatives. As a nonpartisan organization we thoroughly enjoy sitting down with our elected officials from year to year. Join us next May for the 2020 Realtors® Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo and advance the real estate industry.
Designated REALTOR® | JUNE 2019 | 3
Realtors® Plant Roots with the Boys and Girls Club of Trenton BY ERIN MCFEETERS
W
hat was once a vacant lot on Centre Street in Trenton, New Jersey is now an educational community garden for the Boys and Girls Club. The Boys and Girls Club of Mercer County offers countless indoor activities and programs for children, however, they struggled to have outside play time because of the lack of safe parks and outside areas in the city. The club acquired a vacant lot across the street from their Trenton location with the goal of transforming the parcel into an educational garden so children in their programs could learn and thrive in an outdoor environment.
Realtors® commemorated their first anniversary in their Trenton Headquarters by donating $5,000 to the project. “It’s important as Realtors® to get involved in the communities we work and live in,” said New Jersey Realtors® Housing Opportunity President Christina Clemans. “Trenton is our state capital and children in the city deserve somewhere safe to learn and grow.”
In 2016, NAR President Tom Salomone announced a partnership with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. President Salomone knew Boys and Girls Clubs, like Realtors®, are a part of the fabric that makes up every community across the nation.
NJ Realtors® recently launched a consumer campaign titled Plant Roots with a Realtor®. The campaign has a goal of explaining the benefits of using a Realtor® because it’s more than a house—it’s a community, a neighborhood, and a place to roots. In April, the NJ Realtors® Housing Opportunity Foundation took this initiative to the most literal level when the Trustees, NJ Realtors® 2019 President Ilene Horowitz, and NJ Realtors® staff members made their way to the Boys and Girls Club to volunteer.
The NJ Realtors® Housing Opportunity Foundation had worked with the Boys and Girls Club on previous initiatives and took special interest when they learned about the Garden Project. The foundation then donated $5,000 towards the cause plus pursued a $5,000 Placemaking Grant through NAR for a small library to add to the garden project plans. Additionally, NJ
Under the direction of the Trenton Boys and Girls Club President and CEO David Anderson and Facility Director Rickey Woods, volunteers built raised garden beds, paved an entrance path, installed raspberry trellises, painted, and put together a small library to house books about gardening and nature.
Designated REALTOR® | JUNE 2019 | 4
Just a month later the club held their official ribbon cutting ceremony. Children from the community, Trenton City Council members, donors, NJ Realtors® Housing Opportunity Foundation Trustees, and NJ Realtors® staff members attended to see the unveiling of the newest addition to their community. When you arrive at the garden entrance the colorful fence made of bicycle parts created by Boys and Girls Club bicycle program coordinator, Wills Kinsley, immediately catches your eye. The outdoor space now consists of educational areas including a library and growing area, a pavilion with bleachers, a storage shed for gardening tools, gardening beds to plant fruits and vegetables, and a play area with space for soccer.
In addition, they created a native plant forest to teach children about what naturally grows in New Jersey’s climate and a rain garden for children to have hands-on experience with conserving natural resources. Children of Trenton will now have the opportunity to enjoy outdoor activities in a safe environment, plus learn about plants, animals, insects, and gardening throughout the process. NJ Realtors® Housing Opportunity Foundation is proud to collaborate with the Boys and Girls Club of Mercer County and looks forward to continually investing in community projects across the state.
&
e v Sa the
presents
Women
NEW JERSEY
e t a D
October
2
Galloping Hills Country Club Kenilworth, NJ
Registration opens in August
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Real·tor noun
An expert who will search for your dream home. Help find you one. And then volunteer in your neighborhood to make it better. Ask your home search app to do all that.
REALTORS® are members of the National Association of REALTORS®