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The California State Senate will be holding an informational hearing regarding High Speed Rail on Tuesday, March 13, at 7 p.m., in the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro Street.
Senator Joe Simitian will be hosting the hearing and will be joined by Senator Mark DeSaulnier, chair of the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee and Senator Alan Lowenthal, chair of the Senate Select Committee on High-Speed Rail. This event is open to the public, and attendees will have the opportunity to speak during a public comment period following prepared testimony from state officials and others.
Wednesday, May 2, is Legislative Day. This is the day REALTORS® from all over California will meet with their elected officials in Sacramento and discuss critical legislation that can affect REALTORS®, homeowners and private property rights. Members of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® will be participating in this annual one-day event in Sacramento.
Once members arrive in Sacramento, they will receive a special briefing from California Association of REALTORS® lobbyists, REALTOR® leadership and honorable guests. A luncheon will follow the briefing. California Governor Jerry Brown has been invited to speak at the event.
After lunch, SILVAR members will have meetings with all of the legislators in Silicon Valley, including Senators Elaine Alquist, Sam Blakeslee and Joe Simitian, and Assembly members Jim Beall, Paul Fong, and Rich Gordon. At these meetings, our REALTORS® will have the opportunity to discuss important real estate issues, such as private property rights, legal reforms and housing opportunity policies.
SILVAR REALTORS® who plan to attend Legislative Day should register for the event by calling SILVAR at (408) 200-0100, or sign up online at ims.silvar.org no later than Monday, April 23. See flyer for cost and more details.
The proposed fiscal year 2013 budget for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) includes information on upcoming premium increases for the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Due to a provision in the Temporary Payroll Tax bill from late last year, FHA is required to implement a 10 basis point increase to annual premiums for all new FHA loans. In addition, FHA intends to increase premiums on “jumbo” loans (those over $625,500) by 25 basis points (for a total of 35 basis points on those loans).
In order to protect the financial stability of the program, FHA also says it may implement additional premium increases. The budget likewise states that FHA is reducing permitted seller concessions from 6 percent to 3 percent or $6,000, whichever is higher. A proposed rule regarding this is expected later in the month.
The budget revealed that for FY2012 (the current budget year), FHA’s re-estimates of revenues showed that FHA would actually need (for the first time in its history) a subsidy from the federal government of $688 million. Although it now will not request that money because it received more than $1 billion from the settlement with the banks over robo-signing, there will be intense pressure from Congress to re-evaluate FHA and its fiscal position.
For the last several years, FHA has had sufficient reserves to cover claims and losses, but its excess reserves have fallen far below the mandated 2 percent level. It now appears that for the current year, FHA’s losses exceeded its profits, requiring this additional money. The good news is the budget request anticipates the FHA fund will return to full solvency and mandated reserve levels by 2015.
The budget also included premium increases for FHA multifamily loans (221 (d)(4)) by 20 basis points. This won’t apply to loans with Section 8, low-income housing tax credits, or risk-sharing.
Last, the budget cuts contract renewal funding for Section 8 project-based projects. As has been done in the past, FHA will only partially fund renewals of these contracts, and owners expect there to be significant delays in Housing Assistance Payments (HAPs). These funding cuts will need to be approved by Congress.
The fiscal 2013 budget proposal President Barack Obama released this week includes proposals to trim the mortgage interest deduction (MID) and other itemized deductions for wealthier households. As in the previous three years, the proposal is expected to attract little support in Congress.
The proposed budget would reduce the value of itemized deductions to 28 percent for married couples with incomes over $250,000 and individuals with income over $200,000. Currently, depending on the tax bracket these households are in, the value of their deductions could be as high as 33 or 35 percent.
The proposal has never attracted sufficient support from either party, and National Association of REALTORS® President Moe Veissi in a statement yesterday said NAR would strongly oppose this or any proposal that would limit MID and other itemized deductions.
“The mortgage interest deduction is vital to the stability of the American housing market and economy,” Veissi said. “We urge the president and Congress to do no harm” to today’s fragile economic recovery. “The nation’s homeowners already pay 80 to 90 percent of U.S. federal income taxes. Raising taxes on them, now or in the future, could critically erode home values at all price levels.”
The budget request also includes a previously rejected proposal to tax the carried interest of general partners in investment partnerships, including real estate partnerships, as ordinary income rather than as capital gains, which is taxed at 15 percent. If taxed as ordinary income, it could be taxed at a higher rate, depending on the taxpayer’s tax bracket.
Analysts have said that this provision is mainly aimed at general partners of hedge funds, but general partners in real estate partnerships could get caught in it unintentionally. NAR in the past has opposed the tax change.
Overall, the budget request, which is just the opening step in a long process in which Congress will develop a budget for passage, envisions fiscal year 2013 spending of about $3.8 trillion. Of that amount, several hundred billion would be new spending for infrastructure, research and development, and other priorities of the administration. The budget envisions cutting about half a trillion dollars from the defense budget, and another roughly half a trillion dollars through tax law changes, including the NAR-opposed curbs to the value of MID for upper-income households. More savings would come from allowing tax cuts enacted during President George W. Bush’s administration to expire for all households, except those earning less than $250,000.
In all, the administration is saying it would cut the deficit by about $3 trillion over 10 years, plus another trillion dollars from legislation Congress passed in August of last year as part of the budget deal to raise the debt ceiling cap.
Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS®’ (SILVAR) REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program (RSVP) will take place May 7 -11 this year. Volunteers are needed for this special community outreach program, which is dedicated to helping seniors in the communities where SILVAR members work and live.
This year, each district has set aside special days in the week of May 7 – 11 to help seniors in their community:
Cupertino/Sunnyvale District: Wednesday, May 9
Los Altos/Mountain View District: Wednesday, May 9
Los Gatos/Saratoga District: Thursday, May 10
Menlo Park/Atherton District: Wednesday, Thursday, May 9-10
Palo Alto District: Wednesday, Thursday, May 9-10
RSVP is a worthwhile project, and SILVAR REALTORS® and affiliates are encouraged to volunteer their time and skills to help the elderly and the homebound in their respective communities. During RSVP week, REALTORS® and affiliates visit the homes of seniors who are physically and financially challenged and provide free assistance with household tasks like replacing light bulbs, changing furnace filters, washing windows, turning over mattresses, changing smoke detector batteries and other similar household tasks.
RSVP has expanded on the Peninsula and in the South Bay, with volunteers from the Santa Clara County Association of REALTORS® and the Santa Cruz County Association of REALTORS® joining SILVAR and the SAMCAR (San Mateo County Association of REALTORS®) members in this outreach project. The program now serves seniors and the homebound living as far north as Daly City and as far south as Santa Cruz.
“We are really proud that every year our members have stepped up to help the seniors in their community. Last year, a total of 247 volunteers from SILVAR helped 146 seniors in the association’s five districts. This year we hope to significantly increase the number of our REALTOR® and affiliate volunteers,” said Eileen Giorgi, SILVAR’s RSVP Committee Chair.
Volunteer now by clicking on the link below, completing the volunteer application and faxing it to SILVAR at (408) 200-0101. You may also call SILVAR at (408) 200-0100 and ask that an application be mailed to you.
The deadline to volunteer is Saturday, March 31.
RSVP VOLUNTEER APPLICATION
Deadline for seniors to apply for this free service is Thursday, March 15.
RSVP SENIOR APPLICATION
For questions about RSVP, please contact SILVAR at (408) 200-0100.
At the helm of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® this year is Suzanne Yost, a REALTOR® who is passionate about organized real estate and highly values professional standards and the REALTOR® Code of Ethics.
Yost has been actively involved in organized real estate long before becoming a SILVAR member in 2009. Yost was named REALTOR® of the Year in 2006 by the Santa Cruz Association of REALTORS® and Salesperson of the Year in 1982 by San Luis Obispo Board of REALTORS®.
Involvement in organized real estate provides opportunities for REALTORS®, including the tools they need to succeed in business, says Yost. Associations provide education courses to sharpen a REALTOR®’s knowledge and skills, networking opportunities, and valuable information they need to know to assist their clients in making a decision that’s right for them.
Yost said SILVAR’s Government Affairs staff, the local government committees and Political Action Committee have been successful in warding off proposals that would hurt REALTORS® and homeowners, like business license taxes, transfer taxes, time of sale restrictions, sign ordinances, rent control, zoning, to name a few.
Yost is a graduate of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Clara University School of Law. She is a broker associate with Alain Pinel Realtors in Los Gatos. She is also a trainer for new agents and a statewide instructor of real estate continuing education classes.
Yost has served as a California Association of REALTORS® Director and as member and chair of a number of NAR and C.A.R. committees. At SILVAR, she chaired the Professional Standards Committee in 2009, joined the Board of Directors in 2010, and co-chaired the Bay Area REALTOR® Leadership Academy (BARLA) in 2011.
In the 32 years she has been practicing real estate, Yost has witnessed three housing market downturns. She is certain the market will come out of this one. “This downturn is lasting longer than the others, but the market will bounce back again. I’m already seeing positive things happening,” says Yost.
Yost advises fellow REALTORS® to “stay positive, get back to basics, and get involved.”
As members take advantage of the opportunities SILVAR offers, they also can give back to the Association and their community. Most of all, Yost wants all members to adhere to the REALTOR® Code of Ethics, because “it’s what defines a REALTORS® and sets us apart from other licensees.”
There are unlimited possibilities in real estate, says Yost. This is her theme for 2012: A Year of Possibilities. She wants SILVAR’s members to take hold of these possibilities and run with them.
The 2012 leadership team of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS (SILVAR) was installed Jan. 12 at Villa Montalvo in Saratoga. California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.) treasurer Chris Kutzkey administered the oath of office to the association’s 2012 president Suzanne Yost and the board of directors.
The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® represents over 4,000 REALTORS® and affiliates engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
Yost is a broker associate with Alain Pinel Realtors, Los Gatos. Also on the leadership team are Carolyn Miller (RE/MAX Real Estate Services), president-elect, and Phyllis Carmichael (Coldwell Banker), treasurer.
In addition to the three lead officers, the following members sit on the 2012 board of directors: Gene Lentz (RE/MAX Distinctive Properties), past president; Jeff Bell (Coldwell Banker), Region 9 chair; Chris Isaacson (Coldwell Banker), Menlo Park/Atherton District chair; Cassie Maas (Luxor Real Estate Group), Los Gatos/Saratoga District chair; Niki Miller Maroko (RE/MAX Real Estate Services), Cupertino/Sunnyvale District chair; Jane Volpe (Midtown Realty), Palo Alto District chair; Denise Welsh (Intero Real Estate), Los Altos/Mountain View District chair; John Tripp (Foundation Trust), NAR director; David Barca (Alain Pinel Realtors), Bill Moody (Referral Realty), Bill Rehbock (Coldwell Banker), Bryan Robertson (Sereno Group), David Tonna (Alain Pinel Realtors), directors at-large; and Richard Miller (RateComb.com), affiliate chair.
A graduate of California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo and Santa Clara University School of Law, Yost was named REALTOR® of the Year in 2006 by the Santa Cruz Association of REALTORS®, Salesperson of the Year in 1982 by the San Luis Obispo Board of REALTORS®, and has served as director and chair of a number REALTOR® committees at the national and state level. She was SILVAR’s 2009 Professional Standards Committee chair, a 2010 board director, and 2011 co-chair of the Bay Area REALTOR® Leadership Academy. Yost is a Los Gatos resident.
The 2011 Appreciation Awards were presented to Julia Truesdale Keady (Alain Pinel Realtors), REALTOR® of the Year; Richard Miller (RateComb.com), Affiliate of the Year; Eileen Giorgi (Alain Pinel Realtors), Spirit of SILVAR; and SILVAR board attorney Dave Hamerslough (Rossi, Hamerslough, Reischl and Chuck) and Vickie Naidorf (legal counsel for Coldwell Banker), President’s Award.
As 2009 president, Keady spearheaded the Bay Area REALTOR® Leadership Academy, a leadership program designed to identify, train and develop existing and emerging leaders to serve and advance organized real estate. She was also recognized as 2011 C.A.R. Region 9 chair. Presenting the award, 2011 president Gene Lentz noted Keady “has performed in an exemplary fashion in every single committee or assignment that she has been given. They take huge effort and dedication.”
Affiliate of the Year Miller was recognized for “unequivocally embracing and adopting the principles, goals, and purposes of the association.”
As chair of the REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program (RSVP), a free REALTOR® service assisting senior homeowners with household tasks, Lentz said Giorgi, who also served as 2011 president of the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Trust, “personifies the essence of this award, through her hard work in making RSVP the success it is today.”
Lentz thanked Hamerslough and Naidorf for educating REALTORS® on legal issues and for their efforts in updating the association’s PRDS Forms purchase contract and creating the counties’ advisory.
G-Fee hikes could mean $15 a month more.
The law signed by President Obama two weeks ago to extend the payroll tax cut and maintain Medicare payments and unemployment benefits uses increases in the fees charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to guarantee mortgages to help offset its costs. The law also uses funds from premiums charged for insurance on FHA loans. As a result, the Federal Housing Finance Agency has directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to increase their guarantee fees effective April 1 and will remain in effect through September 30, 2021.
The National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) opposed the increase in fees to pay for non-housing-related purposes. Lenders who choose to pass this increase on to borrowers will likely increase the rate offered to a borrower by .1 percent sometime before April 1. Analysts estimate the increase in cost over 30 years to be between $4,000 and $5,400 on a $200,000 loan, or $11-15 per month.
Charitable Foundation Trustee Lydia Kou presented a $2,000 check to Myllicent Hamilton, board director of the Westwind 4-H Handicapped Riding Program, a 2011 grant recipient, at this morning's Palo Alto District tour meeting.
The Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation, the charitable arm of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR), donated $53,500 in the form of grants and scholarships in 2011. The Charitable Foundation is a trust which makes grants available to organizations from donations by members and friends of the local trade association.
The 2011 grant recipients are non-profit organizations that help homeless and low-income individuals and families in Silicon Valley. They include Assistant League of Los Gatos/Saratoga, Community Health Awareness Council (CHAC), Edgewood Center for Children & Families, Friends of Deer Hollow Farm, Housing Industry Foundation, JW House, JustREAD (on campus of Mountain View/Los Altos Union High School District), Partners for New Generations, Peninsula Association for Retarded Children & Adults (PARCA), ProjectREAD – Menlo Park, West Valley Community Services, Westwind 4-H Handicapped Riding Institute and YWCA of Silicon Valley.
As part of its annual Scholarship Program, the Charitable Foundation likewise presented a $1,000 grant to each of 18 graduating seniors from public high schools in Silicon Valley. The Foundation has been assisting students with the scholarship grants for the past 12 years. The Charitable Foundation grants included donations from SILVAR’s districts to their local community nonprofit organizations.
“Like last year, our local nonprofits have been hit hard by the weak economy and continue to need our help. We thank our members and friends for being so generous in their support of the Foundation this year,” said John Tripp, 2012 president of the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation. “We urge our members to continue their support this year, so we can continue our commitment to the welfare and prosperity of communities where we live and work.”
The Charitable Foundation trustees meet quarterly to evaluate grant applications. Serving on the 2012 Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Board of Trustees are Tripp, Lehua Greenman, Jimmy Kang, Lydia Kou, Carolyn Miller and Susan Sweeley.
Non-profit organizations operating within the areas served by the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® are eligible for grant consideration provided they meet the evaluation criteria below. Grant applicants are evaluated on the following guidelines:
• The community need for the expenditure, as well as the number of people who will be served;
• The impact on the recipient organization;
• The location of the community served; (Although requests for state, national and international projects are considered, preference is given to projects with a more local base.)
• The financial soundness and efficiency of the organization;
• Accuracy and completeness of the application;
• The structure of volunteer organization and level of volunteer support; and
• Appropriate use of the Foundation’s previous grants (if applicable).
For more information and details about the Charitable Foundation grants, visit www.silvar.org or call SILVAR at (408) 200-0100.
Here are some of the REALTORS® who attended the Military Residential Specialist Designation course at SILVAR.
The Military Residential Specialist Designation course offered at SILVAR this month was well-received. SILVAR REALTORS® who attended the all-day course, taught by instructor Buddy West, learned about the unique real estate needs and challenges facing military families, how to help military personnel and their families achieve their housing goals, and how to make military families aware of their options.
SILVAR 2011 Education Committee Chair Carolyn Miller said the Military Residential Specialist Designation course is especially valuable for REALTORS® because as more members of the military return home, they will be taking advantage of Veterans Administration loans. She noted many veterans have been out of the military for a long time and have never used their entitlements.
“We need to be prepared to help them, and this class prepares us to help military personnel and their families achieve their dream of home ownership,” said Miller.
Miller said she is very happy with the high attendance in different courses SILVAR offered this year. “I am really pleased that REALTORS® are taking advantage of these classes,” said Miller. “By investing in these classes, REALTORS® are investing in themselves.”
SILVAR offers a host of educational programs for members, such as new member orientation classes, license renewal courses, PRDS Forms online, PRDS contract classes, continuing education, and special designation classes. The Association will continue to expand its course selection for its members in 2012.
Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® says ... 