IN THIS ISSUE
INDUSTRY NEWS AND EVENTS
- Headline News
- Commercial Real Estate Experts Offer Insights on Hot Tech Tools and Trends
- Call For Speakers: Commercial Real Estate Online Convention
- Do you Give Back to Your Community?
PUBLIC POLICY UPDATES
- NAR President’s Podcast: 2007 Legislative Agenda
- NAR President Pushes For Healthcare Bill on the Hill
- Senate Banking Committee Holds a Hearing on Terrorism Insurance
- FDIC Extends ILC Moratorium on Applications From Commercial Firms
- U.S. House Passes Meth Cleanup Bill; Senate to Follow Suit
RESEARCH, RESOURCES, LEGAL
- Retail Real Estate Report Put Vegas with Lowest Vacancy
- Commercial Real Estate Growth Holds Steady
- Have a Sticky Land Use Issue in Your Area?
- New Guide to Understanding Downzoning
- Commercial Broker Lien Law Guide
AFFILIATE NEWS
- 2007 NAR Resort Symposium
INDUSTRY NEWS AND EVENTS
HEADLINE NEWS
Headline News.
COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE EXPERTS OFFER INSIGHTS ON HOT TECH TOOLS AND TRENDS
The commercial real estate-focused Technology & Intelligence Briefing podcast and CD enclosed with your copy of the REALTORS® Commercial Alliance Report features Rich Boyle, CEO of commercial listing portal LoopNet, on the current state and future of commercial online investment listing aggregation. Rich is followed by Randy Hertz, the 2006 National President of the REALTORS® Land Institute, with his insights on the latest tech tools to deliver high-quality brokerage and management services to land owning clients. And to wrap things up, Jon Tull, CEO of eReal Estate Integration Inc., presents the state of the art for distilling commercial real estate information into useful decision making tools and reports. Subscribe to the podcast from iTunes or REALTOR.org or contact rca@realtors.org to order a free audio CD with the interviews. Learn more.
CALL FOR SPEAKERS: COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE ONLINE CONVENTION
Share your expertise and industry knowledge with thousands of commercial real estate professionals at CommercialSource.com. The RCA is hosting the second online convention and tradeshow exclusively for the commercial real estate industry. Launched last year, CommercialSource.com had more than 14,000 commercial real estate professionals from across the U.S. and Canada registered for the 7-day online event, logging more than 81,000 visits. For more information and an application form Click here. The deadline for submissions is April 27.
DO YOU GIVE BACK TO YOUR COMMUNITY?
REALTOR® Magazine is seeking nominees for the eighth annual Good Neighbor Awards, which recognize commercial and residential REALTORS® who impact their communities through volunteer work. Five winners will be recognized at the REALTORS® Conference & Expo in Las Vegas and will receive travel expenses to attend the show and a $10,000 grant for their community cause. Volunteer work might include affordable housing initiatives, youth mentoring, homelessness prevention, or anything else that makes a community a better place to live. Entries must be received by May 25.
Learn more.
PUBLIC POLICY UPDATES
NAR PRESIDENT’S PODCAST: 2007 LEGISLATIVE AGENDA
In her latest podcast, NAR President Pat Vredevoogd Combs highlights the progress of the association’s 2007 Public Policy Agenda, which focuses on three goals: creating affordable housing opportunities, protecting consumers in the real estate transaction, and enacting health care insurance legislation. To listen to the podcast, click here.
NAR PRESIDENT PUSHES FOR HEALTHCARE BILL ON THE HILL
NAR president Pat Combs participated in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s Health Roundtable earlier this year held by the new committee chair, Senator Edward Kennedy (D-Ma.). Ms. Combs highlighted the challenge that the self-employed, including real estate firms and agents, face today finding affordable health care coverage. Although last year’s small business health plan (SBHP) legislation supported by NAR and the small business community is unlikely to be advanced this year, NAR and the broad-based SBHP coalition of small business trade representatives continue to push for alternative legislative proposals. To read Ms. Combs’ full statement click here. For more, CONTACT: Marcia Salkin, 202/383-1092.
SENATE BANKING COMMITTEE HOLDS A HEARING ON TERRORISM INSURANCE
The Senate Banking Committee held its first hearing on Terrorism Insurance on February 28th to review the federal terrorism insurance program's success in ensuring the continued availability of terrorism coverage and the inability of the insurance market to function properly with out a federal backstop in place. Chairman Chris Dodd (D-CT) made clear that ensuring the economic security of the nation in the face of terrorist threats was a top priority of the committee and that ensuring the availability of terrorism insurance was an important component of that goal. Ranking Member Richard Shelby indicated a preference for greater reliance on the insurance industry and the private sector to provide terrorism coverage.
NAR, in its statement for the record made the following points:
- The continued availability of terrorism insurance is vital to the continued health of the commercial real estate markets.
-
The long term solution should include coverage for nuclear, biological, chemical and radiological events.
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The distinction between foreign and domestic acts of terrorism should be eliminated.
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The insurance industry and the private sector should play a greater role in funding the federal government's terrorism insurance backstop program.
Legislation is expected to be introduced in the coming weeks. Click here to view the statement. For extensive information on Terrorism Insurance visit the Field Guide on Terrorism and Real Estate. For more information contact: Tom Heinemann 202/383-1090.
FDIC EXTENDS ILC MORATORIUM ON APPLICATIONS FROM COMMERCIAL FIRMS
On January 31, 2007, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) extended, for commercial firms, its moratorium on industrial loan company (ILC) applications. ILCs are a special type of state-chartered, federally-insured bank that may be owned by commercial firms.
NAR has strongly urged the FDIC to extend the moratorium to give Congress sufficient time to decide whether to tighten or close the ILC loophole. Rep. Paul Gillmor (R-OH) and Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) have introduced H.R. 698, the "Industrial Bank Holding Company Act of 2007." Under the bill, only financial firms (those with no more than 15 percent of revenues from commercial activities) could apply to own an ILC .On January 31, 2007, NAR President Pat Vredevoogd Combs sent a letter to FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair thanking the FDIC for extending the moratorium, explaining that commercial ownership of banks results in inherent conflicts of interest and unfair competition and puts the financial system at risk. To view the press release, please click here. To view NAR's letter to the FDIC (98K PDF file), click here. For more information, please CONTACT: Jeff Lischer 202/383-1117 or Lynn King 202/383-1156.
U.S. HOUSE PASSES METH CLEANUP BILL; SENATE TO FOLLOW SUIT
The House of Representatives, on Feb. 7, passed the Methamphetamine Remediation Research Act of 2007, by a vote of 426-2. The bill requires the EPA Administrator, in consultation with the National Institute for Standards and Technology, to establish voluntary guidelines for the remediation of former meth laboratories. These guidelines are to be used to assist state and local governments in cleaning up property that housed meth labs. The bill also requires EPA to conduct research on various clean up methods. The Senate is expected to pass similar legislation. For more, CONTACT: Mark Washko, 202/383-7526.
RESEARCH, RESOURCES, LEGAL
RETAIL REAL ESTATE REPORT PUT VEGAS WITH LOWEST VACANCY
Las Vegas has the tightest retail real estate market in the country, according to NAR's latest Inside Retail report. At 2.6 percent, the Las Vegas retail vacancy rate was the nation's lowest at the end of 2006. Four California markets were next: Orange County at 2.9 percent; San Jose at 3.1 percent; Oakland at 3.6 percent and San Francisco at 4.2 percent. All this and more is reported in the January Issue of "Inside Retail" -- available to NAR members only. Reports on industrial, office and multi-family real estate are also available. Read more.
COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE GROWTH HOLDS STEADY
A forward-looking index for the commercial real estate market, the Commercial Leading Indicator for Brokerage Activity, has increased for seven consecutive quarters and is holding at the highest level on record, NAR says. David Lereah, NAR’s chief economist, says growth in the commercial real estate sectors appears to be reaching a plateau. “The rate of expansion has been fairly tame over the last three quarters, which means that growth in commercial real estate sectors is likely to be modest,” he says. The index rose 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter to a level of 120.1 from an index of 120.0 in the third quarter, and is 1.8 percent above the fourth quarter of 2005 when it stood at 118.1. Learn more.
HAVE A STICKY LAND USE ISSUE IN YOUR AREA?
REALTORS® sell more than homes and commercial properties – they sell communities. This is why state and local REALTOR® associations are becoming involved more than ever before in land use decisions. NAR’s Land Use Initiative provides you with a quick and thorough analysis of pending land use legislation or regulations. The analysis is provided by the preeminent land use law firm Robinson & Cole. All free of charge to you. For more information, click here or contact Bob McNamara, 202/383-1268.
NEW GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING DOWNZONING
The practice of downzoning is used to restrict the amount of development a property, usually by reducing the allowable density of the property. It holds a number of advantages and disadvantages for both communities and REALTORS®. Find out more about what downzoning is, the issues behind it, and its impacts on property values, click here.
COMMERCIAL BROKER LIEN LAW GUIDE
NAR’s library offers an updated field guide on REALTOR.org providing links to Commercial broker lien laws that have been passed in 21 states. Commercial broker lien laws allow liens to be filed on commercial properties for the full payment of commissions. In states that have enacted commercial lien laws, there has been a dramatic decline in commission collection litigation and arbitration. Learn more.
AFFILIATE NEWS
2007 NAR RESORT SYMPOSIUM
Ride on out to picturesque Vail, Colorado, June 24-26, and join other successful resort and second-home specialists for education and networking tailored to your business at the 2007 National Association of REALTORS® Resort Symposium: Rocky Mountain Round-up! Each prior symposium (Cabo San Lucas, Cape Cod, and Hawaii) has sold out, so register today! Learn more.
Report compiled by Bobbie Albrecht, balbrecht@realtors.org, 312/329-8464.
QUESTIONS on this report? Visit the INS FAQ and online feedback area on REALTOR.org. Click here.
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