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 Nelson Janes  Thursday, October 14th, 2010  Starting in 2011, C.A.R. will be adding a $49 assessment to dues billings. Reprinted here is the information that C.A.R. has posted on their website.
Q. What is the new REALTOR® Action Assessment and when will it become effective?
A. It’s a $49 assessment that will go into effect with the 2011 dues billing cycle.
Q. How will the assessment appear on the dues billing statement?
A. C.A.R. is working on a revised dues billing statement for 2011 for those members billed directly by C.A.R. and for those Associations who use the C.A.R.-produced billing statement.
Q. Is this assessment mandatory?
A. Yes. A member may decide to satisfy the assessment in one of two ways: (1) By either making a voluntary contribution to the State REALTOR® Action Fund, which will be put into C.A.R.’s political action committees [California Real Estate Political Action Committee (CREPAC) and/or the California Real Estate Independent Expenditures Committee (CREIEC)], or be used for other political activities, or (2) by opting to send the funds to the C.A.R. general fund for political purposes.
Q. Why was the assessment needed?
A. Whether it’s the legislature looking to tap REALTORS®, the transaction, or our industry for additional sources of funding, placing restrictions on private property rights or on our right to conduct business, organized real estate must be continually vigilant in Sacramento to ensure that our interests are fairly represented.
This is even truer in today’s fiscal environment, with politicians searching for every available means to cut the state’s ballooning deficits and produce a balanced budget. C.A.R.’s opponents — the trial lawyers, for example — spend millions of dollars every year to fund candidates and legislators who support legislation creating additional liability for our members, increasing the likelihood of litigation and making it more difficult and more costly to be in business.
C.A.R.’s California Real Estate Political Action Committee (CREPAC) used to be in the top 10 of political action committees (PACs) in California. It now ranks 37th, according to a recent study of PAC spending in California. Special interest groups, including many supported by public finances, outspend CREPAC on a regular basis. The political assessment adopted by the C.A.R. Board of directors will help rectify this growing imbalance.
Continue reading: California Association of REALTORS’® Government Relations Assessment
Daniel Allen Tuesday, August 17th, 2010
 Steve Goddard - 2010 C.A.R. President Dear C.A.R. Member,
Summer is coming to a close and with it brings the expiration of one of California’s tax credits. As of this writing, California’s first-time home buyer tax credit expired effective midnight, August 15. That announcement came after the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) realized it had received more than enough applications to cover the $100 million allocated for eligible first-time home buyers. It is encouraging to learn that more than 33,000 Californians have taken advantage of this credit.
When working with your buyers, keep in mind that the FTB will continue to accept applications for the state’s New Home Credit. As of this writing, the state had received 12,090 reservation requests and applications, which is expected to utilize nearly 80 percent of the $100 million allocated to this program. The FTB will stop accepting applications for that program once it determines it has received sufficient applications and requests. You can follow that tax credit’s status at http://www.ftb.ca.gov/individuals/New_Home_Credit.shtml.
One tradition for me and many of your colleagues is your Association’s annual Tech Tuesday and CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO. The event always presents top-line speakers and sessions, plus a chance to learn new business skills and technologies that will aid you in adapting to a market that is still in recovery mode. This year’s event, Oct. 5-7 at the Anaheim Convention Center, has been revamped, and if you’re a regular attendee, you’re in for a surprise: The content and the format are radically different. If you’ve never attended, plan to—you won’t be disappointed. Social media, millennial movers and shakers, cloud computing, and two new workshops, “speed dating” and a ReBar Camp, will take center stage. You can pick and choose sessions a la carté-style or choose one of our four educational tracks and stay in a designated lane during the event—your choice. This event is free, but registration is required. If you haven’t registered for CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO 2010, take a few minutes to sign up today by visiting http://expo.car.org or calling toll-free (800) 242-2732. Tech Tuesday, which precedes CALIFORNIA REALTOR® EXPO, has a separate paid admission and offers a full day of technology training, will be held Oct. 5 at the Anaheim Convention Center.
Continue reading: Your August Message from C.A.R. President Steve Goddard
Steve Goddard Thursday, July 15th, 2010
Steve Goddard - 2010 C.A.R. President Dear C.A.R. Member,
Good news bears repeating.
President Obama recently signed a bill extending the closing deadline for the federal
home buyer tax credit to Sept. 30, 2010. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® estimates that as many as 17,700 home buyers in California would not have received the tax credit without the extension. Perhaps you know someone who now will benefit from this legislation.
The president also signed HR 5569, the National Flood Insurance Program Extension Act of 2010, funding the program through Sept. 30, 2010—good news for homeowners in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley and other 100-year floodplains. As you know, flood insurance is required for mortgages on properties in a 100-year floodplain. Congress has allowed the program to lapse three times this year, forcing many real estate transactions to be put on hold and, in some instances, cancelled. What happens in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., really does matter to your business.
The passage of these two pieces of legislation—which C.A.R. and NAR advocated for—demonstrates the importance of REALTOR® involvement in government. Legislative wins such as these require a focused and relentless presence at the state and national levels.
C.A.R.’s advocacy in the political arena this year also helped preserve property profiles after title companies stopped providing them in reaction to a letter issued by the Department of Insurance; thrice defeated a 3-percent independent contractor withholding proposal that would have accelerated income tax payments for our members; and defeated point-of-sale retrofits proposed through several pieces of legislation that could have added as much as $20,000 per home prior to closing escrow.
Continue reading: Your July Message from C.A.R. President Steve Goddard
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