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The RPAC Trustees held a conference call on Monday, July 12th, and solidified Primary Endorsement requests for both House and Senate. In total, there were 70 of 110 House endorsements, 31 of 38 Senate endorsements, and 3 of 15 Congressional endorsements. The rest of the endorsements will take place after the Primary on August 3rd. Thank you to all of the local associations that have participated in this process, we appreciate it! Be watching your mailbox for voter cards next week containing information on endorsed REALTOR® candidates.
June Average Home Sale Prices Show Dramatic Improvement
Michigan home sale prices rose 11% over 2009 figures; the average sale price of a home in Michigan rested comfortably at $113,000 in June, 2010, up nearly $13k over May, 2010.
While overall home sales dipped by 3.4% from May, the quality of those sales showed notable improvement. Michigan REALTORS® remain optimistic the sales price increase indicates a continuing trend of upward momentum in the housing market. Year-to-date home sales for 2010 are 3% over the 2009 sales in June of last year, contributing to this positive trend.
The Hillsdale, Detroit, Down River, Clare-Gladwin, and St. Joseph County Associations all reported significant increases in average home sales, with many also reporting increases in overall home sales for the month of June.
For more information on housing statistics, please visit the Michigan Association of REALTORS® website:
By Andrew Wooten, president of S.A.F.E.
With summer comes baseball games, beach time, barbecues and vacations. But summer also brings more dangerous situations than any other time of the year. The FBI reports that violent crime rates are highest in the July and August. New York Police Department states that crime is heaviest in the summer because hot weather and school closures draw more people into the street, leading to greater potential for crime. Home invasions increase during the summer months due to lighter security-namely, open windows and homes left empty during vacations. So how do you protect yourself, your belongings and your office during the most dangerous season of the year?
Step One: Be Aware!
In the summer we all tend to relax our attitudes. Days are longer and we stay so busy that we tend to forget simple things. Stay alert and remember the basics:
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Lock your doors and windows. Don't forget to keep the door from your garage to your home locked, especially if you keep your garage door open.
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Keep your car locked at all times and don't forget to close your sunroof!
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Put things away in your car. Don't leave anything of value in sight (purse, wallet, laptop, camera, iPod, GPS, etc.).
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Park in a well lit area. Even if you arrive during daylight, it might be dark when you leave.
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Keep your car serviced and always have at least a half tank of gas.
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Prepare your roadside emergency kit and keep it handy in your car.
Safety at Summer Social Events
Summer is the time to attend lots of outdoor events including parties, barbecues and sporting events. There are many opportunities to meet new people and network. But that doesn't mean letting your guard down! Criminals frequent social events looking for their next victim.
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Don't give your personal information to a stranger. This includes access to your social networks. They could easily stalk you by reading your Facebook posts or tweets.
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The old saying "there's safety in numbers" is still true. Take a buddy!
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Don't wear flashy jewelry or clothing that is too revealing.
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Don't park where you can get blocked in.
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Keep your purse and wallet in a secure location.
Safety During Vacations
We all look forward to our summer vacations. But whether you are going on a cruise, staying at a resort or just heading to the next state, you must take precautions before you leave and while you're away from home.
Securing Your Home
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Install motion sensor lights around the outside of your home.
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Put indoor lights on timers so they come on at different times, making it appear as if someone is home.
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Have a trusted neighbor or friend collect your mail and newspapers.
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Pay someone to cut your lawn and pick-up any litter or trash.
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Engage the garage door lock before you leave (use the lock on the wall box or on the main device overhead).
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Lock up or shred papers with any sensitive information before you leave, including bank statements, credit reports, receipts, credit card statements and tax returns.
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Be sure your trusted neighbors know you are away so they can keep an eye on your home.
Staying Safe While Away
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Never show large amounts of cash or traveler's checks. If you must carry it, keep it hidden
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When using Wi-Fi in a hotel or other public place, be careful with what information you are transmitting-and what information might be accessed on your laptop or mobile device while your Internet connection is open. Remember these are public airwaves. Anyone could be tapping into them.
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Use the hotel safe. There is no need to carry more cash, traveler's checks or jewelry than needed. If it will fit, you can also secure your laptop inside the safe.
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Be aware of pick pocketing. It does still happen! Be sure you secure your wallet and purse at all times.
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Hold onto all your receipts. Match them with your credit card and bank statements when you get home and watch for any charges or withdrawals you did not make.
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Be aware of your social media posts while away. You may be letting a criminal know there's no one home to prevent a break-in.
Safety at the Office
You've heard most of my office safety tips, but they are worth repeating and repeating again:
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Keep the blinds closed in your office windows. Criminals won't know all the treasures inside if they can't see anything. (Plus, it will help keep those air conditioning bills lower!)
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Outer office doors and windows should be kept closed and locked. I know we want to open them to let in the fresh summer air, but safety must come first.
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Lock all file cabinets that hold staff or clients' personal information. During summertime there are more people coming and going in your office, so it's important to keep files locked at all times.
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"Lock" computers by requiring a password to log on. Also require a different set of passwords to access documents or programs with sensitive information.
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Use your shredder!
Above all else, trust your instincts. If a situation doesn't feel right, it probably isn't. If that walk through the parking lot is giving you a shiver down your spine, turn around and go back inside the restaurant or hotel lobby. No matter how busy you are, you are never too busy to be safe!
With the help of McClelland & Anderson, we are taking the most recently asked questions from our legal hotline and putting them in E-news. We will be featuring a different question each issue.
QUESTION: I just entered into a listing agreement with Sellers that is likely to end up to be a short sale. I plan to make this fact known when I enter the listing into the MLS. Should I get my Sellers’ permission to do this?
ANSWER: YES. Entering information that the sale of the home will be a short sale may affect the Sellers’ ability to sell the home, therefore, you should get their permission before entering that information into the MLS. (Note that some MLS rules require the disclosure of a potential short sale when “reasonably known.”)
The remaining participants in the Michigan Property Data Query for REALTORS (MIPDQR) voted recently to discontinue this shared data solution. MIPDQR, which was launched in 2007 with support from MAR, provided a unique opportunity for REALTOR members to view listing data from participating associations using a proprietary web service. MIPDQR was successful in encouraging members to explore data sharing arrangements for a nominal per member cost.
Many participating associations have moved onto other data sharing solutions, although several discontinued the service as part of cost savings initiatives within their local associations. At its peak, MIPDQR served fifteen local associations representing over 12,000 REALTORS across Michigan.
By Susan L. Reid (Small Business Trends)
Recently, I did an informal survey of 250 women entrepreneurs asking them this question: “What’s the number one thing you do to boost your productivity?”
Listed in David Letterman’s reverse “Top Ten” order, here are the top ten ways women entrepreneurs boost productivity:
10. Write out your to do list the night before.
Don’t wait until morning to make your list. Write your list the night before. Allow the process to percolate while you sleep. Then, when you wake up, it’s as if you’ve had an eight-hour head start on your day.
9. Prioritize your daily list using the “ABCD and E” method.
A = must do
B = should do
C = would be nice to do
D = delegate
E = eliminate
8. Wake up early and get off to a good start.
Wake up early to set the tone for your day. This allows you to get into the swing of things at an unhurried pace. Establish a morning routine that is of greatest benefit to you, not just to your family.
7. Delegate everything possible.
If it isn’t directly making you money, delegate it to someone else. Turn over data entry tasks, packing and shipping, and answering non-essential emails and calls to a competent administrative professional. Not sure if you should turn something over? Ask yourself, “Can this task be done by someone else, or does it need my direct attention?” As an entrepreneur, your job is to concentrate on what is of most value to you and your business success, not on errands.
6. Know your energy peaks and valleys.
You are in control of your business. You get to say when, you get to say how, and you get to say how long. As an entrepreneur, you aren’t locked into a 9 to 5 workday. You can start work at the crack of dawn, go to the gym in the afternoon, and outline a new product idea in the evening. Schedule work activities, family time, and personal quiet time around the natural ebb and flow of your energy peaks and valleys.
5. Find a way to love what you do.
If you love what you do then you are more apt to be productive because you are fully engaged. No matter what you’re doing at any given time, find a way to love doing it.
4. If in doubt, throw it out.
Make liberal use of your waste can and recycle bin. Regularly go through files and throw out or shred material that is outdated or no longer relevant. There is no need to save everything “just in case” you’ll need it later. Trust that if you throw something out today and you need it in the future, you’ll be able to get your hands on it again.
3. Break up projects into tasks.
If you have something on your to do list that’s been there for a long time, realize that it’s probably not a task. It’s a project. To do lists are for discreet tasks. When you put a project on your list, you’ll feel bogged down and productivity will slow. Many of the women entrepreneurs surveyed use business strategist Brian Tracy’s method for breaking up projects into easy-to-do tasks:
First, list the finished result you want.
Next, map out every single step of the project.
Then, put the steps into order, moving the important steps to the front.
Now, delegate tasks and assign responsibilities.
Finally, track the progress of the project.
2. Give 80% of your attention to what is important and 20% to what is urgent.
As an entrepreneur, your job is to discern the difference between what’s important and what’s urgent. To figure out the difference between the two, ask yourself, “Will focusing on this move my business forward and make me money or will I just be putting out fires?”
Dealing with the urgent all day is draining. Dealing with the important is energizing. Make sure you’re giving 80% of your time and attention to what’s important each day.
1. Focus on one thing at a time.
The number one thing women entrepreneurs do to boost productivity is… focus on one thing at a time. Although women are known to be exceptional multi-taskers, those surveyed said they were able to get more done when they focused on one thing at a time. Starting and stopping in the middle of things was frustrating for them and meant that not much was completed at day’s end.
Tip: If focusing on one thing at a time is challenging for you, have a pen and paper nearby. That way, if something pops into your head, just write it down and get right back to the task at hand.
What is the number one thing you should do to boost your productivity? As you’ve just seen, among the 250 women entrepreneurs I surveyed their answers ranged from prioritizing their daily to do list to learning to break projects up into smaller tasks to delegating everything possible. Decide which of their favorite techniques will help you the most, and start implementing them right now. You’re sure to boost productivity for yourself and your business.
The Michigan Association of REALTORS® stocks a wide variety of standard real estate forms and publications for members real estate transaction needs. MAR’s real estate forms library contains disclosure statements; agency forms; lead based paint forms; listing agreements; sales contracts; closing statements; and sample language for miscellaneous transactions.
MAR also stocks brochures and publication to keep you and your customers in the know with informative brochures and guides. To view samples or place an order, visit the real estate forms and publication library online at: http://www.mirealtors.com/content/forms.htm.
MAR’s real estate forms are available in electronic format through ZipLogix. To order electronic versions, please visit: http://www.zipform.com/; or call 866-MY FORMS (866-693-6767).
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