August 2014
The NAR Government Affairs Directors Newsletter
The GADFly is produced by the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® to provide Government Affairs Directors (GADs) at state and local REALTOR® associations with tools, news and information to help you serve your members. To add one of your staff members to the distribution list, or to be removed, contact Kyle Lambert London at klambertlondon@realtors.org/202-383-1203.
In This Issue...
Mark Your Calendars RPAC Deadlines – Individual and State Recognition 2014 GAD Institute Wrap Up Hot Topic Alert REALTOR® Party Tools, Services and Updates NAR’s Economist Outlook Blog
Mark Your Calendars
RPAC Fundraising Partnership Program GrantsDon’t forget, the deadline to apply for 2014 RPAC Fundraising Grants for State and Local Associations is quickly approaching, turn in your grants before September 15th, to fill out a grant form click here.
Contact: RPAC Staff at rpacpartnership@realtors.org/202-383-7581 New AE and GAD Orientation – October 6th & 7th, Washington, D.CAre you a new Government Affairs Director or do you have a new Government Affairs person on your team? Looking to find out what services NAR provides and how they can help GADs in their role? Here’s the opportunity! On Monday, October 6th and Tuesday, October 7th NAR will be hosting its semi-annual New AE & GAD Orientation in Washington DC. This day and a half session is intended for those new to the world of REALTOR® government relations and new to the REALTOR® Party Initiative. If your association does not have a Government Affairs Director, or has new staff assisting with government relations activities, and you are interested in increasing your association’s community outreach, political, RPAC, and grassroots advocacy efforts, this informational orientation is for you!
Contact: Kyle Lambert London at klambertlondon@realtors.org/202-383-1203
RPAC Deadlines – Individual and State Recognition
2014 President’s Circle UpdateThe President’s Circle has launched all four Rounds of targets to President’s Circle members. Members may invest $500 in Round 1 and $500-$2,000 in Rounds 2-4. All $2,000 in President’s Circle funds is due by Sept. 30 in order to count toward your state’s total number of President’s Circle members. President’s Circle members who complete their $2,000 AND their RPAC Major Investor contributions by September 30th will receive early information on the February 2015 President’s Circle Conference in Arizona.
Current PC Roster Contact: Jessica Naake at jnaake@realtors.org/202-383-7510 or Maggie FitzGerald at mfitzgerald@realtors.org/202-383-1078 REALTORS® Conference & ExpoTo be recognized as a 2014 major investor prior to the REALTORS® Conference and Expo, the full major investment amount must be completed with 30% received at NAR by October 17, 2014. All states must ensure that funds have been submitted to NAR by this deadline to ensure proper recognition at the 2014 REALTORS® Conference and Expo in New Orleans, LA. For state specific fundraising goals, please click here. Realtor.org login and password required.
Contact: Desta Wallace at dwallace@realtors.org/202-383-7509 RPAC Local Board Recognition NAR RPAC is thrilled to announce we will be recognizing Local Boards in addition to State and Territory Associations for their outstanding fundraising efforts this year in New Orleans. The top three local associations will be recognized in each of the four size categories (see below for details). For full details on local, state and territory recognition, please click here. For a local association to be eligible for recognition, they must be active on the PAC management system.
Contact: Jessica Naake at jnaake@realtors.org/202-383-7510 or Laura Camp at lcamp@realtors.org/202-383-7531
2014 GAD Institute Wrap Up
2014 GAD Institute - Recap, Presentations and PhotosIf you missed the GAD Institute in Burlington, Vermont, you can get a flavor of the programming and activities by visiting the GAD Institute website. Power Point presentations and handouts are available, as well as a full listing of attendees. Whether or not you attended, we would like you to respond to the Institute evaluation form (which will be sent soon to all GADs under separate cover) in order to give us better insight into your educational and networking needs.
For a complete list of the programs, speakers and information on the Institute, please visit the website for additional details.
Contact: Kyle Lambert London at klambertlondon@realtors.org/202-383-1203 Thank You from RPAC RPAC would like to thank those who invested at the GAD Institute. Participation increased from 51% to 65%.
Interested in Serving?If you liked (or didn’t like) what you saw at the GAD Institute, consider serving on the GAD Advisory Group. The GAD AG serves as the governing body for the GADs as well as plans the topics and speakers for the GAD Institute. We will be filling several vacancies on this group in the coming weeks. If you are interested in participating, please contact Kyle Lambert London by August 15th.
Contacts: Kyle Lambert London, Staff Executive at klambertlondon@realtors.org/202-383-1203 Hot Topic Alert
Appraisal Management CompaniesIn March 2014, six federal agencies proposed new rules on how states monitor the operations and activities of appraisal management companies. Overall the proposed rules were minor and generated favorable support among the real estate industry—NAR included. States without existing AMC regulation may rush to push laws in place prior to finalization of the federal rules so that local AMCs are not barred from any aspects of the local market.
http://www.realtoractioncenter.com/for-associations/state--local-issues-resources/ Contact: Adriann Murawski at amurawski@realtors.org/202-383-1068
REALTOR® Party Tools, Services and Updates
The Time Is Now! – State and Local Independent Expenditure ProgramIs your state going to be requesting funds from the NAR State and Local IE Program for the General Election (November 4)? Now is the time for you to be talking to NAR staff about your campaign plans and to start filling out your IE applications. The new on-line IE application can be found on the REALTOR® Action Center here.
Contact: Julienne Uhlich at juhlich@realtors.org/202-383-1235 Drones for Real Estate? Not Yet, Says the FAAAs you may know or have heard, although there is great interest among real estate professionals to use or hire drones to take aerial photos for use in marketing real estate, commercial drone use is prohibited by the FAA. At a minimum, there is great uncertainty about the matter, and the FAA definitely takes the position that commercial drone use is prohibited unless the FAA has issued a permit to the user. But here are interesting articles about the issue:
http://realtormag.realtor.org/daily-news/2014/06/27/drones-used-for-real-estate-photos-could-be-grounded.
http://www.realtor.org/field-guides/field-guide-to-drones-and-real-estate. Contact: Russell Riggs at rriggs@realtors.org/202-383-1259; Lesley Walker at lwalker@realtors.org/312-329-8834; Ralph Holmen at rholmen@realtors.org/312-329-8375
GAD Directory – Thanks for Your Updates!
Thanks to those who sent us updates to the Online GAD Directory! We are working on your corrections now. Since this directory is not available through NAR’s REALTOR® Database System (NRDS), we need YOUR HELP to keep this directory as accurate and current as possible. Please visit the directory and update or eliminate records, or add your GAD contacts who may be missing. Thank you for helping us to keep yours, and your colleagues’, information as current and robust as possible.
Contact: Kyle Lambert London at klambertlondon@realtors.org/202-383-1203
REALTOR® Champions Course - UpdateLast May we previewed Selecting and Electing REALTOR® Party Champions following the GAD Meeting at the REALTOR® Party Conference and Trade Expo. This course is intended for staffers and REALTOR® members who interview, select and support REALTOR® Champions running for public office. While we were planning to roll the offering out widely to state and local associations this summer, it is still undergoing some fine-tuning with staff and additional RPAC information. The plan is to unveil the offering to NAR’s RPAC Trustees in December and then roll the course out widely in 2015. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us.
Contact: Kyle Lambert London at klambertlondon@realtors.org/202-383-1203
REALTORS® Expect Modest Price Growth in Next 12 Months, Based on June 2014 REALTOR® Survey Lenders Note Impact of Higher FHA Fees NAR Identifies Best Purchase Markets for Aspiring Millennial Homebuyers Existing-Home Sales Up in June, Unsold Inventory Shows Continued Progress Contact: Meredith Dunn at mdunn@realtors.org/202-383-1207
Message from the GAD Chair
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| David Stark Public Affairs Director, Bay East Association of REALTORS® |
It’s a great time to be a GAD. Homeownership is top-of-mind with the American public. Policy makers keep eyeballing real estate transactions as a piggy bank or a way to save the world. And, NAR has placed advocacy at the core of their value proposition. REALTOR® leaders at the GAD Institute told us NAR spends $27 million on advocacy, and GADs are at the center of this initiative. Let’s rise to the challenge and use our time and talents to bring our profession to a new level.
I ask each of you to take an active role in making the most of GAD Nation. Apply for the GAD Advisory Group; share your ideas for content at the GAD meeting in New Orleans; suggest ways for us to more effectively communicate with each other.
Finally, thanks and kudos to the team that made the GAD meetings during the last year and our 2014 Institute valuable experiences: NAR staffers Kyle Lambert London, Beth Brittingham, Becky DeVaughn, and Brittany Haywood, and the 2013-2014 Advisory Group: Christine Berger, Robert Broome, Ryan Castle, Isaac Chavez, Emily Chenevert, Jaclyn Dearien, Amy Fisher, Matthew Leger, Christopher MacDonald, Mark Quarry, Derek Ramsay, Jenny Reese, Katrina Spaulding, Shanna Terroso, Doug Tomson and our 2013-2014 GAD Chair Nathan Gorton.
Questions or ideas? Email davids@bayeast.org or call: 925-730-4068
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SAVE THE DATE
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Leadership Summit August 17 - 19 Chicago, IL |
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New AE and GAD Orientation October 6th and 7th NAR Building Washington, D.C. |
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2015 Government Affairs Directors Institute July 15 - 18, 2015 Hilton Salt Lake City Center Salt Lake City, Utah |