PAR’s consulting economist Dr. Austin Jaffe says price stability and reduced foreclosures are contributing factors needed to stabilize the economy. Jaffe says it’s time to get back to basics. Although home prices won’t increase, they will stabilize in time. Jaffe believes we will be heading toward a time of low rates of appreciation and moderate borrowing, “View housing as a place to live instead of a place to trade up to,” Jaffe said. “That may be the concept of the housing market in the next decade.”

Duration: 2:58

Like

Unlike

Robb Heering, who founded the first nationwide Hispanic real estate franchise, says he opened Casa Latino because there was a tremendous need for understanding diverse cultures in real estate. Heering tells REALTORS® that understanding another culture is sometimes more important than learning the language. “Learn something about the Hispanic culture, the Asian culture and learn something about other minority cultures in this country,” Heering said. “Open your doors, open your arms and you’ll do great.”  Since opening in 2005, his company has experienced triple-digit growth with more than 80 locations nationwide.

Robb Heering (Photo credit: Stuart Leask)

Duration: 2:58

Heering recently moderated a panel at the PAR January Business Meetings. He recommended reading the books in the Kiss, Bow or Shake Hands series to learn more about different cultures.

REALTOR® Kim Wood

Social media helps REALTORS® establish relationships. Kim Wood, PAR member and social media trainer, has used her social media connections to create “tweet-ups” and “meet-ups” to get to know potential clients and other REALTORS® in person. “You can’t forget the basics, getting face-to-face with our clients or potential clients and developing that relationship further,” Wood said.

Duration: 2:40

Like

Unlike

Pennsylvania homebuyers can once again benefit from additional funds being made available by the PA Housing Finance Agency (PHFA). The Tax Credit Advance Loan Program (TCA) allows loans of up to $6,000 for first-time homebuyers and homebuyers who want to upgrade. Kate Newton, PHFA’s director of homeownership programs, says homebuyers will get a zero percent interest loan if they repay the loan by June 2011.

Duration – 2:30

Building an instant rapport is essential for REALTORS® who meet different types of clients every day. Rossi, a professional speaker and trainer from North Carolina who spoke at Triple Play REALTOR® Convention and Trade Expo in December said, “The REALTOR® who listens to people’s needs has a better chance of building that instant rapport than one who doesn’t. They are also held in a higher esteem with buyers and sellers.”

Rossi (Picture from RossiSpeaks.com)

The new version of the PAR Agreement for the Sale of Real Estate (ASR) is set for release in mid-to-late January. REALTORS® who have reviewed the document are pleased with the revisions, according to Mike Barth, PAR’s standard forms specialist. In part two of our series, Barth discusses the changes to the form regarding inspections and deposits.

REALTORS® will notice changes on the revised PAR Agreement for the Sale of Real Estate (ASR). The new version is set for release in mid-to-late January. In part one of our series, Mike Barth, PAR’s standard forms specialist, discusses some of the more apparent revisions. According to Barth, the biggest changes are evident in the broker blocks and mortgage contingencies.

“The outside has to be staged to get the buyer inside,” said Barb Schwarz, creator of the home staging industry. In part three of our series on home staging, Schwarz, who’s been staging properties for 35 years, says that it’s important to tackle the simple chores of landscaping like edging, weeding and pruning trees to make the property look crisp.

Register at PARCIE.com

The Pennsylvania Association of REALTORS® Commercial Information Exchange (PAR•CIE) allows REALTORS® to list and easily search for commercial properties. John Derham, chair of PAR’s Commercial, Industrial and Investment Committee and senior managing director of Cushman and Wakefield in Philadelphia, said for just $28 a month, members can access and post commercial listings statewide. “In the real estate business, data is a very important part of being a successful REALTOR®,” Derham added. “The CIE is very beneficial for PAR members.”

Duration: 2:59

Foreclosures have not reached the crisis level in Pennsylvania as they have elsewhere, according to Dr. Austin Jaffe, PAR’s consulting economist and director of real estate studies at Penn State University. “Although the foreclosure rate may be increasing, the magnitude is much less severe,” Jaffe added. 

RealtyTrac ranks the commonwealth 34^th among the 50 states in the number of foreclosures, well below the national average.

Like

Unlike