en-us Sun, 01 Aug 2010 04:09:59 -0400 Sun, 01 Aug 2010 04:09:59 -0400 kansasrealtor.com http://kansasrealtor.com/rss/KAR_Articles.xml http://kansasrealtor.com/rss/KAR_Articles.xml webmaster@kansasrealtor.com (Managing Editor) 60 KAR Articles Overland Park, KS Last week, the REALTORS PAC endorsed Republican candidate Kevin Yoder for U.S. Congress in Kansas 3rd congressional district. The REALTORS PAC is affiliated with the Kansas Association of REALTORS, the states largest professional trade association representing over 8,000 members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. Following individual interviews with candidates running in the Third Congressional District and a thorough evaluation of the candidates respective backgrounds and voting records, the Kansas RPAC Trustees voted unanimously to endorse Kevin Yoder and provide him with a financial campaign contribution for the 2010 Primary Election. Kevin Yoder is the right man to fight for lower taxes, fiscal responsibility and policies that promote economic and job growth in Congress and the REALTORS PAC is proud to endorse him, said Kansas City Regional Association of REALTORS PAC Chair Pat Tholen, a REALTOR from Leawood, Kansas. We believe that Kevins strong record of championing lower taxes and pro-growth policies will be a huge asset for the small business community in the halls of Congress. Given the current state of our economy, 13 trillion in national debt, and a soaring jobless rate, the Democratic leadership in Washington has clearly forgotten that small business is the engine that drives this economy, says Yoder. It is an honor to receive the support and endorsement from the REALTORS. Washington has a spending problem, and business owners all across America are footing the bill. It is time for some changes in our government and with the support of small business owners across the district and groups such as the REALTORS, I am confident my campaign will be successful and we can work together to bring about change and new leadership in Washington. Kevin Yoder has served in the Kansas Legislature for 8 years, representing parts of Overland Park and Leawood. He also serves as chairman of the Appropriations Committee and worked to craft a balanced budget without additional tax increases. Kevin and his wife Brooke live in Overland Park. Wed, 21 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article303.html#1280650199 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article303.html Last week, the REALTORS PAC endorsed Republican candidate Tracey Mann in his election bid for the First Congressional District. The REALTORS PAC is affiliated with the Kansas Association of REALTORS, the states largest professional trade association representing over 8,000 members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries. Following an individual interview and a thorough evaluation of Traceys background as a REALTOR in the commercial real estate industry and position on REALTOR issues, the Kansas RPAC Trustees voted overwhelmingly to endorse Tracey and provide him with a 5,000 maximum contribution for the 2010 Primary Election. Tracey Mann is the right man to represent the hard-working Kansans of the First Congressional District in Congress and we are proud to endorse him, said Kansas Association of REALTORS President Brian Jones, owner of Jones Heritage REALTORS in Pittsburg, Kansas. Tracey will be a strong leader and advocate in Congress for lower taxes, fiscal responsibility and other pro-growth policies that will result in economic growth and jobs for Kansans. This endorsement comes at a time when Mann is surging in the polls and seems to have the most positive momentum in the race to fill Congressman Jerry Morans seat. A recent KWCH 12 SurveyUSA poll shows Mann in a statistical tie for first place within the margin of error. This is up 16 points from the same poll completed in late February. Mann continues to travel extensively throughout the First District discussing his Mann Plan as part of his Restoring the American Dream Tour. Manns group of grassroots supporters has taken his message to over 17,000 doors in less than six weeks. I am humbled and honored to receive the endorsement and have the support of the REALTORS PAC. As a businessman I understand how government bureaucracy, a crushing tax burden and red tape can weaken the Kansas economy. We need new leadership in Washington that will fight against Washingtons spending addiction and help bring some Kansas common sense values to Congress. I am asking Kansans in the 1st District for their vote on August 3rd, stated Mann. Tracey Mann has deep roots in Kansas, not politics. Tracey is the 5th generation to be raised on the family farm in Quinter. He served as Congressman Jerry Moran's first intern in Washington and also as Student Body President at K-State. Tracey and his wife, Audrey, live in Salina where he is a commercial real estate agent. Wed, 21 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article304.html#1280650200 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article304.html Watch a quick 3-minute to see why protection of the trademark REALTOR is so important and how you can tell immediately if you're using the term appropriately. Its a great video for your sales meeting!! Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article297.html#1280650201 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article297.html On June 25, HUD issued a new interpretive rule that imposes severe restrictions on the ability of a real estate licensee to accept compensation from a home warranty company under RESPA. As a result, all REALTORS should immediately review the terms of any marketing agreements they have entered into with home warranty companies to ensure they are not violating RESPA, which could result in various criminal and civil penalties including a fine up to 10,000 per violation and a year in prison. For more information on this important issue, . Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article298.html#1280650202 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article298.html Earlier this year, the Kansas Legislature passed legislation that imposes various new regulations on homeowners associations in Kansas. Once the statute goes into effect on January 1, 2011, all homeowners associations in Kansas will have to be governed and operated in accordance with these new standards. If you would like more information on these changes, . Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article299.html#1280650203 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article299.html If your license is currently up for renewal, you might have noticed that the Kansas Real Estate Commission has changed the notification procedures for license renewals. Starting this year, the Commission has stopped sending a paper copy of the renewal application with license renewal notifications. Instead, you will receive a postcard notifying you that your real estate license needs to be renewed and directing you to complete the online application that can be found on the Commissions website. If you do not have access to a computer, you may still contact the Commission to request a paper renewal application be mailed to you. Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article300.html#1280650204 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article300.html REALTOR Magazine talks with the heads of three of the top 100 brokerages in a 5-minute video to learn what they did in 2009 to help them continue growing despite the downturn. Sharing their strategies are Helen Hanna Casey of Howard Hanna Real Estate, Jeff Lashinsky of ZipRealty, and Trudy Moore of HomeSmart. . Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article301.html#1280650205 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article301.html Over the last few months, many Kansas REALTORS have reported being contacted by a foreign buyer who is interested in purchasing a property with cash. Following a rapid set of events, the foreign buyer will seek to steal money from the REALTORs escrow or trust account using a fraudulent check or wired funds. Please briefly review the contents of this notice and closely scrutinize any email communications you receive from buyers that fit the profile discussed in this notice. The scheme begins with an email message from the foreign buyer explaining that they are interested in permanently relocating to Kansas and would like to purchase property with cash from an investment account. Following the initial communication, the foreign buyer will mail a check or wire funds from a foreign bank account for the earnest money and a substantial down payment to the REALTOR. Unfortunately, the check or the wired funds originate from a bank account that does not exist and the funds are fraudulent. As soon as the funds are deposited in the brokers escrow or trust account, the foreign buyer suddenly cancels the transaction and demands the immediate return of the deposited funds. Once the funds are wired back to the foreign buyer, the domestic bank holding the REALTORs trust account will identify the original check or wired funds as fraudulent and the REALTOR will be defrauded out of the money that was refunded to the foreign buyer from the escrow or trust account. In order to avoid becoming a victim of these types of fraudulent schemes, never enter into one of these transactions without consulting your supervising broker and company legal counsel and watch out for the following red flags: Cash offer from a foreign buyer drawn from a foreign bank account; Foreign buyer insists on email communications and will not agree to conduct business over the phone; Provides a passport and account statement as proof that the funds reside in a foreign bank account; and Initial email communication contains typographical errors and poor grammar. Mon, 19 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article302.html#1280650206 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article302.html Legal Hotline Attorney Vern Jarboe answers frequently asked questions from Kansas REALTORS about their transactions. REBR Legal Hotline is available in the ! Only 150 will keep you and your entire firm in touch with Vern Jarboe, the REBR Legal Hotline Attorney all year long! Contract - Liability of Spouse Question: You have a situation where a spouse was a co-owner of property but had not signed the note. You indicate the spouse had also not signed any kind of personal guarantee. Answer: Generally speaking, liability on a note extends only to the persons who actually have signed the note. Obviously a personal guarantee would extend liability to those who sign that as well. However, on the facts as you have them, it would not appear there is any exposure to debt on the part of the wife in your situation. Contract - Lender-Seller Demands Question: You have a situation where a lender is the owner of property and desires to sell the same. The lender is demanding that the buyer have pre-application approval through them even if they have a loan somewhere else in order to accept the offer. Answer: Obviously, the owner of a property is free to make any demands on the other party to the contract that the parties can agree to so long as it does not violate some law. I know of no law that this tactic violates. From the seller/lender standpoint it would appear they are just trying to make sure they have a qualified buyer before getting themselves into contract. Ethics - Commission Rate Difference Question: You have a situation where the seller wants to impose a different commission rate for a specific buyer. You and the other broker involved apparently are in agreement on those terms. Answer: There is no particular violation of law in situations such as this so long as the two brokers understand what is going on. This is not a situation where it is an adjustable commission rate under your MLS rules. This just reflects a specific agreement on a specific property between two particular consumers. If you list the property and place it in the MLS then you need to make sure that the broker you are working with on this particular transaction understands that the posting to the MLS does not modify the agreement in this circumstance. Contract - Modification Pre-Closing Question: You have a situation where the parties are in contract and generally prepared to close. The buyer wants to close early and has offered an addendum where buyers are being reallocated to the seller. Answer: Obviously, because the parties are already in contract the seller need not agree to such a change. The seller needs to look at it from a business standpoint and decide whether or not an early closing and/or risking no closing are worth the situation with the buyer. Contract - Earnest Money Versus Lawsuits Question: You have a situation where there may be a default under the terms of the contract. The form you are using indicates that the seller may elect to take either the earnest money or pursue other rights. Answer: Generally, the seller should obtain independent legal advice to evaluate their prospects for litigation as opposed to simply taking the earnest money. That assumes, of course, that the buyer is willing to surrender the earnest money. As you know, once the parties are in contract there is no way to modify the contract except by consent of both parties. License Law - Agent Purchase Own Listing Question: You have a situation where an agent listed a property and the listing agent would now like to buy the property. The only issue that exhibits itself in these facts is whether or not you can assure that the seller is acting of their own volition. Answer: You need to make sure that they will not later complain that the agent somehow took advantage of them. There is no sure bet in this regard. You need to do the best you can to document the fact that you advised the seller to get independent advice, suggest an appraisal if appropriate and indicate that the agent purchasing their own listing may well make a profit. The original listing agreement needs to be terminated or assigned to another designated seller's agent within your firm. The listing agent who is going to buy their own listing needs to be a buyer agent for themselves. License Law - Record Keeping Requirements Question: You have a question about doing broker price opinions and recent changes by the Real Estate Commission regarding record keeping requirements. The Real Estate Commission has ruled that broker price opinions and comparative market analysis (BPO and CMA respectively) are in effect real estate transactions and records need to be retained. This then raises the question of whether or not preparing a BPO or CMA creates an agency relationship. Answer: It will not create an agency relationship unless you also take an agency relationship agreement with the seller. Preparing a broker price opinion for a bank on a property that you have listed as a seller agent is not a conflict so long as you are not preparing different information for the bank than you have given to the seller and so long as you advise the seller of what you are engaged in. If the seller objects then you probably should not prepare the broker price opinion. Miscellaneous - Errors and Omissions Insurance Question: You have a question about how claims under Errors and Omissions Policies are handled. Answer: Generally, these polices are written on a claims made basis. This means that an insurance policy applies which covered the agent at the time a claim is made. This may not be the same policy that applies if it were looked at from the date of the transaction. In your situation, an agent has moved from company A to company B. Under the terms of most litigation, the broker with company A may well get sued and that broker's E O policy applied. If the salesperson is also sued, then the policy with company B may well apply. Miscellaneous - Stimulus Tax Credit Question: You have a question about how the tax credit from the stimulus program applies. Answer: Tax advice should always be rendered by the individual's personal tax preparer. Generally, I can tell you that the tax credit will not apply in rental situations but only applies to the acquisitions. License Law - Doing the Paperwork Without an Agency Agreement Question: You have a licensee working for you who prepared the paperwork so that a buyer could acquire a for sale by owner property. The agent did not charge a commission. The agent also indicated that the agent had no agency relationship in the transaction and did not complete the agency parts of the contract. Answer: This would appear to be a violation of the license law. If you do not have a listing or buyer agency agreement then you are working as a transaction broker. The fact that the agent did not charge a commission does not change the agency issue. It is my understanding that the agent did this contrary to your direct instructions. As to whether or not it is appropriate for you to take any action against the agent, you need to look at your independent contractor agreement to see what it allows you to do. Tue, 13 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article296.html#1280650207 http://www.kansasrealtor.com/news/article296.html