David Phillips

PAR’s new Executive Vice President, David Phillips, CAE, RCE, begins today.

Prior to joining PAR Phillips was chief executive officer of the Charlottesville Area Association of REALTORS® in Virginia. He has been actively involved in REALTOR® organizations at the local, state and national levels for more than 19 years. Phillips is active at NAR and is the chair of the Association Executives Committee.

A PAR Task Force chaired by past PAR president Bob Hay and facilitated by Donna Garcia of NAR selected Phillips from a pool of more than 120 candidates.

Phillips replaces Patrice Merzanis, CAE, RCE who is stepping down after seven years as EVP.

Andrew Wooten

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REALTOR® safety week is September 12-18 but according to Andrew Wooten, the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) safety instructor, REALTORS® should discipline themselves to incorporate a safety routine into their daily lives.

“A REALTOR’s® comfort level is very important when meeting a client and showing a property,” Wooten said.

He added if a REALTOR® feels uncomfortable with a client he should make an excuse and leave.

“Unfortunately, as we work with folks who have been victimized in our industry they’ve all said that right before the attack happened  they felt uncomfortable and something didn’t feel right,” Wooten said.

“Listen to yourself, trust yourself. You are your best weapon,” added Wooten.

Local and national news organizations including National Public Radio’s (NPR) All Things Considered, CBS’s Moneywatch, Associated Press (AP) and Bloomberg Business Week ran stories on the study results.  The story ran in more than 60 local newspapers, radio and television stations, industry blogs and online news sites.

The study was picked up by so many news organizations because the topic is so timely and important, said Thea Hocker, PAR director of marketing and communications. “It’s a testament to PAR that our research is being covered by national media,” she said, adding, “The findings were important enough to warrant telling the story across the country.”

The research showed that job loss and unexpected medical bills topped the reasons contributing to home foreclosures in Pennsylvania. In the past, many blamed subprime lending as the primary culprit in foreclosures.

“This study is significant because it gives voice to those most affected by the foreclosure crisis. It represents a significant number of Pennsylvanians who have personally experienced foreclosure in some way,” said Joel Searby, SGS pollster.  SGS interviewed 500 people across the state who encountered home foreclosure in the past 12 months and another 500 people who live in neighborhoods where home losses were steep.

REALTORS® have free access to the Gonzales Group Experience, a multicultural website which is a repository of multicultural information, according to Dan Carrillo, managing partner of the Gonzales Group.

“The website is a compilation of the research we’ve done and public information that we’ve repackaged,” said Carrillo.

When Carrillo polled REALTORS® across the country, REALTORS® said they wanted definitive information about the multicultural market.

“They asked for very specific information that they could find in one place that would help them grow their market share in these growing markets,” Carrillo added.

The Gonzales Group Experience can be accessed through PARJustListed.com or parealtor.org.

The growing multicultural market in Pennsylvania offers untapped business for REALTORS®, according to Dan Carrillo, managing partner of the Gonzales Group. Carrillo, with the multicultural market research firm, said that the Hispanic and Asian markets will most likely drive the potential home-buying population in the coming years. “One size does not fit all,” Carrillo said. “REALTORS® really need to have a business plan that is very specific to the demographics in their market.” Carrillo estimated by 2014 the Hispanic population will grow another 20 percent and the Asian population by 15.5 percent. In Part two of our series, Dan Carrillo will discuss the new benefit for PAR members, the Gonzales Group Experience.

Business casual does not mean business sloppy, according to Anna Wildermuth, founder of Personal Images Incorporated. Wildermuth says business casual should be a relaxed form of professional dress. “No flip-flops, no shorts or plunging necklines,” said Wildermuth. “You shouldn’t dress like you’re going clubbing or like you’re getting ready to clean the garage.” Wildermuth said when meeting with a client you want them to view you as a professional business partner. “Look at your top producers, look how they dress and mirror that,” Wildermuth added.

Five hundred Pennsylvanians who encountered home foreclosure during the last 12 months were surveyed by Florida-based polling firm Strategic Guidance Systems (SGS) between June 22 and 27, 2010.  Fifty-seven percent of the sample said their household had experienced a wage-earner’s job loss in the 12 months prior to their foreclosure, while 47 percent said they had been hit by unexpected medical bills. Thirty-six percent indicated they had other “unexpected bills.”

Subprime mortgages, which many regarded as the main culprit in the meltdown of the U.S. housing market, appear to have played a minor role in Pennsylvania foreclosures. Forty-one percent of survey respondents held prime fixed-rate mortgages and 12 percent had prime adjustable-rate loans. Only 14 percent carried a subprime mortgage.

“It’s clear that housing market conditions are closely tied to economic conditions, especially employment. Subprime mortgages have never really driven foreclosures in Pennsylvania,” said Austin Jaffe, Ph.D., PAR’s consulting economist and head of the Department of Insurance and Real Estate at the Smeal College of Business at Penn State University.

“The study represents a significant number of Pennsylvanians who have personally experienced foreclosure in some way.  They’re people from all walks of life, various socio-economic backgrounds and all parts of the Commonwealth,” SGS pollster Joel Searby said.

 Many of those surveyed also did not know about the state and federal programs available to those undergoing the foreclosure process:

• 67 percent of respondents “never heard of” the federal Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program (“HAFA”)
• 57 percent never heard of the federal Making Home Affordable program
• 61 percent were unfamiliar with the Homeowner Equity Recovery Operation program of the PA Housing Finance Agency.

Ninety-one percent of those surveyed said they attempted to contact their lender about a solution to their pending foreclosure but 48 percent said their lenders were “not at all” willing to work with them. The 30 percent who worked with their lenders said it made no difference. Nineteen percent said it “made things worse.”

Most of the survey respondents were between the ages of 40 and 59. At the time of foreclosure, 71 percent had lived in their home for more than five years. Forty-one percent of the sample personally experienced foreclosure; 57 percent narrowly avoided or are currently in foreclosure.

The survey has a margin of error of +4/-4 percent.

The association commissioned the study to understand the impact foreclosures have on individual Pennsylvanians, said Don Roth, PAR president.

The study was funded by a grant from the National Association of REALTORS®.

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Victoria M. Lowry

The first person from Pennsylvania, District 8 Vice President Victoria Lowry, was selected for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) 2011 Leadership Academy class.

Broker/owner of Liberty Realty in Pittsburgh, Lowry said, “I think the education that NAR gives you is first rate. To take advantage of training at the national level can only help me in promoting the real estate industry.”

The nine-month Leadership Academy is designed to nurture and inspire new leaders. Participants gain and expand upon existing leadership skills and abilities while learning more about NAR.

Lowry serves on PAR’s Legislative, Specialized Practices and Convention and Marketing Advisory committees and is a past NAR director. She is a past president of her local association, the REALTORS® Association of Metropolitan Pittsburgh. Lowry holds the Certified Property Manager (CPM) and the Green designations and the At Home With Diversity (ADWD) certification and is active with Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM). She is also a REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) Golden R and a President’s Circle member.

The first session is this week in Chicago and will focus on The Pacific Institute Excellence in Leadership course, which teaches habits for personal and professional efficacy.

Since the Academy was formed in 2008, 80 REALTORS® have graduated and many advanced to serve in volunteer leadership positions.

An unprofessional image can sometimes break a sale, according to Anna Wildermuth, founder of Personal Images Incorporated. The former REALTOR® said that a firm handshake, smile and eye contact is critical in building a professional image and is key in creating relationships with clients. “If they tend to have a quiet demeanor make sure you don’t intimidate them or if they’re very outgoing make sure you can mirror them, so they feel there’s a connection,” said Wildermuth. Being organized and looking well-pressed is also vital to creating and maintaining a professional image, Wildermuth added. Next week in the second part of the series, Wildermuth shares tips on professional attire for client meetings.

This growing multicultural market offers untapped business for many Pennsylvania REALTORS®. To help members better understand the traditions and cultures of these diverse clients, PAR is offering its members access to a multicultural information website, the Gonzales Group Experience®.

The association has partnered with the Gonzales Group™, a leading business development agency and multicultural market research firm, to provide members free access to the Basic Level membership to the website for one year. PAR members will receive an individual code via e-mail in order to access this site at no cost.

The website will provide detailed information, research and surveys to help REALTORS® increase their business and better serve these emerging markets.

“I’m excited about the launch of this joint venture with the Gonzales Group. Members will find this website offers useful content about the multicultural markets in Pennsylvania,” said Tony Brown, chair of PAR’s Equal Opportunity and Cultural Diversity Committee. “Ultimately, this will equip us to close more transactions and increase our business’ bottom line.”

The website is part of PAR’s Multicultural Strategic Plan which was developed by PAR’s Equal Opportunity and Cultural Diversity Committee and approved by the board of directors last year. As part of the plan, PAR has conducted focus groups and a statewide survey of REALTORS® to learn more about REALTORS® and multicultural markets.

“PAR is committed to helping its members continue to meet the changing needs of consumers,” said PAR President Don Roth. “Access to this multicultural website will provide invaluable insight into demographic trends throughout the Commonwealth.”