GHAR IS NOW ACCEPTING AMERICAN EXPRESS
Great news, GHAR is now accepting the American Express card as a payment option along with Visa, MasterCard, cash or check. Please remember credit card payment can only be processed with a minimum of $20.00 or more. If you have any questions, please feel free to call the Association office at 364-3200.

AWARDS NIGHT - March 14, 2008 - Theme is Lucky Stars - Space is Limited, Call Today!
Mark your calendar and make your reservation now by calling the Association Office at 364-3200 to attend the Association’s largest event of the year. If your office is using a sign up sheet to register the office, please register using the Office Sign Up Sheet.

Awards Night 2008 will be held on March 14, 2008 at the Sheraton Harrisburg-Hershey (formerly the Wyndham and the Marriott). Reception starts at 6:00 p.m. followed by dinner at 7:00 p.m. Cost is $40. Meal choices are Seared Red Snapper with Caramelized Shallot Beurre Blanc OR Grilled Delmonico with Caramelized Onions, Horseradish, and Natural Jus. Please contact the Association with any specific dietary restrictions. We will do our best to accommodate your needs.

Please Note: Reservations received after February 29 will be accommodated on a space available basis only. Reservations made and not cancelled 48 hours in advance will be billed regardless of attendance. Affiliate members who are sponsors of Awards Night may register now. Non-sponsoring affiliate members may register after March 6.

At Awards Night, the Association honors the affiliate of the year, Hall of Fame recipient, outstanding new sales associate, sales associate of the year, REALTOR^® of the year, top producer for both commercial and residential sales, and all of the Winners Circle recipients. The top ten members selling the most units will be given the Top Unit Awards.

Awards Night Sponsors:
Thank you to our Platinum Sponsors: Central Penn Multi-List, Inc., Cody Financial Mortgage Services, Inc., First Horizon Home Loans, The Patriot-News Company
Thank you to our Gold Sponsors: A' n S Company, Inc., Jack Gaughen REALTOR^® ERA, Peter Jones of Countrywide Home Loans, RE/MAX Realty Professionals, Inc., Wells Fargo Home Mortgage
Thank you to our Silver Sponsors: B & T Inspections, Inc., Lawyers Realty, LLC, Montour Home Comfort Services, National City Mortgage, Orrstown Bank, Salzmann Hughes, PC, Sovereign Bank

MANAGEMENT ISSUES BREAKFAST - April 4
The Management Issues Committee has finalized plans for its first educational event of the year. The Management Issues Breakfast, featuring a panel discussion on Advertising Issues on the Internet, is scheduled on April 4. The panelists include Robbin Crossley, CPML; Stan Laskowski. Caldwell & Kearns and Legal Counsel for CPML and Marty Manion, Pennsylvania Association of REALTORS^®. They will be discussing Craigslist, MySpace.com, where do listings go, and how can you minimize your liability when advertising on the internet. In addition to the program, the Foundation will be distributing information on the Capital Campaign.

The breakfast will be held in Keystone Room C of the Radisson Penn Harris Convention Center, Camp Hill. Registration opens at 8:15 am, breakfast and the program starts at 8:30 am. Cost is $20. Brokers and managers may register by contacting Cindy Cuddeford at cindy@ghar.info or by calling 364-3200. Reservation deadline is noon on April 1.

ORIENTATION
Orientation is required for all new REALTOR^® members. You must meet this requirement within the first two offerings of applying for membership. Learn what it means to be a REALTOR^®, your obligation to abide by our Code of Ethics, and the many benefits and services that the Greater Harrisburg Association of REALTORS^®has to offer. A boxed meal is provided by the sponsor of the orientation.

Orientation will be held on the following dates and times:
April 24, 2008 from 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. sponsored by Wells Fargo Home Mortgage
(Registration begins at 10:45 a.m.)

Remember failure to attend orientation as required may result in paying an additional application fee.

REMINDER FROM THE PA TREASURY DEPARTMENT
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Treasury Department has asked GHAR to remind all our members that the deadline for filing unclaimed property reports is April 15, 2008. According to information provided by the Treasury Department, "unclaimed property is any financial asset left with a holder without activity or contact for a period of five years (with exceptions)." The Department's information also says that "state law requires that all financial institutions, government agencies or other businesses, organizations and entities, also known as holders, must file unclaimed property reports and turn over unclaimed property to the Treasury Department annually for the prior year. If, however, holders do not have any unclaimed property to report, they should file a none report by April 15 to be in compliance with the law. Currently, trusts, estates, sole proprietorships and organizations with 501 C(3) status are exempt from filing negative reports if they have no reportable unclaimed property." For more information on this issue, please contact the Association.

ICI Breakfast - April 3
The April ICI Breakfast is sponsored by DeSanto Realty Group. The breakfast will be held at the Crums Mill Road Corporate Center. Josh Vail, Director of Business Development for Welton Street Investments, will be speaking on the topic "NAR Exemption for Compensation of Commercial Brokers and Agents and Tenant-in-Common Investors". Registration is at 7:50 a.m. Breakfast begins at 8:00 a.m. Reservations are required by noon on Wednesday, April 2. Register online at www.ghar.info or call 364-3200.

SAVE THE DATE - ICI Happy Hour on Thursday, April 17!
On Thursday, April 17, the ICI Board of Directors will be hosting the spring 2008 ICI Happy Hour! The event will run from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Dorado in Camp Hill. Registration for the event will begin soon - please watch for more information in future Weekly E-mail. If you are interested in being a sponsor for this event, please download and complete the sponsorship sign-up form on the GHAR Web site.

GREATER HARRISBURG REALTORS^® INSTITUTE

GHRI BI-WEEKLY EMAIL
To help decrease the size and scope of the weekly email, the Association has decided to send out a separate email highlighting upcoming classes held at the Greater Harrisburg REALTORS^® Institute. Look for the email to be sent out the second and fourth Mondays of each month.

CE DEADLINE - May 31, 2008
All licensees licensed prior to December 1, 2007, are required to take 14 hours of continuing education by May 31, 2008.

NAR QUADRENNIAL ETHICS DEADLINE - December 31, 2008
All REALTORS^® are required to take 2 1/2 hours of ethics training between January 1, 2005 and December 31, 2008. GHAR will be tracking that everyone meets the deadline. For more information on the quadrennial ethics deadline and which classes are approved, please see the GHRI Bi-Weekly Email or call the Association at 364-3200.

Upcoming Foundation Events!
Keep an eye out for upcoming Foundation events this spring and summer. Look for the Annual Miniature Golf Tournament in the month of May and the Annual Golf Tournament in June. As with all foundation events sponsorships are available. If you are interested in being a sponsor for an upcoming Foundation event email Sara Bloss, at sara@ghar.info or call the Association at 717-364-3200.

The official registration and financial information of the Greater Harrisburg REALTORS Foundation may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling toll free, within Pennsylvania, 1-800-732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.

TRAINING FOR THE REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONAL WITH DICK BETTS!
CPML is presenting 2 days of seminars on getting the most out of your Smart Phone. Classes will be held in the GHAR building, 424 N. Enola Dr, Enola. Call CPML at 761-8440 to register.

Thursday, April 17
9 am – 10:30               Everywhere is My Office
10:30 – Noon               Newest/Latest/Greatest Technology Out There
1 – 4 pm                       Real Estate Fundamentals
4 – 4:45 pm                  FREE e-PRO Workshop (with details of the on-line course and CE credit available)

Friday, April 18
9 am – noon                 Beyond Fundamentals
1 – 4 pm                      Smartphones for REALTORS^®

$25 for one class ~     $40 for 2        ~ $75 for all classes

PARAGON TRAINING SCHEDULE
Training classes have been scheduled on the following dates for the PARAGON system:
                            March 13
                            April 10
                            May 29
                            June 5

Basic class will be held at 9:00 am. The Basic Class covers simple searches, descriptions of terms used in the PARAGON system, introduction to input sheets, CPML input rules for paragon as well as system requirements. The Basic Class also provides a brief look at the financial program.

Advanced class will be held at 1:00 pm. The Advanced Class covers creating CMA's and using the Contact Manager to manage clients as well as send automatic emails.

You need only attend one day, but you may attend more than one class if you choose. Please call the CPML office at 761-8440 to reserve a time. Classes are held at the new GHAR office at 424 N. Enola Drive, Enola, PA 17025.

PAR Excellence Club Award
Are you a star in the field of real estate? Then PAR is looking for you! The PAR Excellence Club Award honors REALTORS^® who have shown a high standard of excellence through professional and community involvement, sale activity and education. Visit the PAR web site at www.parealtor.org to obtain an application form or call 1-800-555-3390 today for more information about the Club Award.

EPA SEEKS COMMENTS ON TMDLS PROPOSAL FOR PAXTON CREEK Watershed
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public comments on a proposal to establish Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for the Paxton Creek Watershed. Anyone interested in reviewing the proposal and/or submitting comments should visit the EPA’s Web site to review a copy of the proposal. The comment period for this proposal is March 4 through April 3, 2008. The EPA also intends to hold a public meeting regarding this proposal on March 19, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the Lower Paxton Township Municipal Building, 425 Prince Street, Harrisburg. Please contact Sherri Pursel for more information on this issue.

HUD Announces NEW FHA AND Conforming loan limits
On March 6, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published new FHA and conforming loan limits, based on median home prices as mandated by the Economic Stimulus Act signed by President Bush in February. According to a report from the National Association of REALTORS^®(NAR), new loan limits for FHA and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are now calculated at 125 percent of the HUD published median prices, with a floor of $271,050 and $417,000, respectively, not to exceed $729,750. The new FHA loan limits can be accessed online. To find the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac conforming loan limits, on the HUD site choose "Fannie/Freddie" in the drop-down menu called "Limit Type."

NAR Quickfacts (as published in the NAR Internal News Service e-publication):

What This Means for Housing, REALTORS®, and the Economy
NAR research points out that increasing FHA loan limits will help an additional 138,000 Americans achieve the dream of home ownership and will allow nearly 200,000 homeowners to refinance and potentially keep their home. In addition, NAR believes that increasing the loan limits for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will bolster the housing finance market, which continues to be severely stressed, by providing an immediate infusion of much needed liquidity to the nation’s mortgage market.

An economic impact study conducted by NAR in January 2008 estimated that increasing the GSEs’ conforming loan limits would result in as many as 500,000 refinanced loans and could help reduce foreclosures by as much as 210,000. In addition, over 300,000 additional home sales could be generated, housing inventory would be reduced and home prices would be strengthened by two to three percentage points.

Why HUD Took This Action
HUD was mandated in the Economic Stimulus Act to publish new loan limits within 30 days of the bill's signing by President Bush on February 13.

How HUD Calculates Its Median Home Prices
HUD median home prices differ from those published by NAR. That is because HUD uses a variety of sources and different areas to calculate the median home price.

Who Will be Affected
Increased loan limits will have a wide impact. The added liquidity in the mortgage market will help to make mortgages more easily available. Receiving direct helped will be borrowers in high cost areas who previously had no recourse except high- cost jumbo loans, and those with high-cost loans who can refinance into lower interest rate loans.

PRESIDENT BUSH SIGNS ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGE INTO LAW
On February 13, President George W. Bush signed the economic stimulus package into law. The legislation, which was approved overwhelmingly by Congress last week, will provide monetary payments to most American households and also provide grant tax incentives for business investment. Along with these major components, the bill also includes the National Association of REALTORS^® request for GSE and FHA loan limit increases. NAR strongly supported these increases in order to assist the national housing market. For more information, please visit the NAR Web site.

UPDATE: OPEN RECORDS LEGISLATION AMENDED!
On February 11, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives unanimously approved an amendment to Senate Bill 1. This bill, more commonly referred to as the open records legislation, had been making its way through the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Under the old language, the legislation would have barred counties and other government entities from selling “complex and extensive data sets, including geographic information systems or integrated property assessment lists” to another person for commercial purposes. Therefore, some of the information, often compiled by MLSs as a service to its members, would no longer have been available. The amendment approved by the full House modified the language to allow MLSs to continue acquiring that data and integrating it into their systems. Once the House approved the amendment, it unanimously passed the bill and sent it back to the Senate for concurrence on the amendment. The Senate unanimously approved the amended version on February 12, and the legislation is now awaiting final signing by the Governor. Thank you to all members who responded to the PAR Call-to-Action and contacted their state Representatives about this critical issue. Without your assistance, we would not have been able to win this major victory! For more information, please contact Sherri Pursel.

SWATARA TWP. TO MODIFY FEES SCHEDULE
On March 12, the Swatara Township Board of Commissioners will consider an Ordinance amending the Township’s Fee Schedule. The proposed Ordinance details all the new fees for the Township. The Commissioners will consider the Ordinance at their meeting on March 12, which is set to begin at 7:00 p.m. at the Township Building. To receive a copy of the public notice, which details the changes, or for more information, please contact Sherri Pursel.

SUSQUEHANNA TWP. TO AMEND PA CONSTRUCTION CODE ORDINANCE
On March 13, the Susquehanna Township Board of Commissioners will consider an Ordinance amending the Township existing Pennsylvania Construction Code Ordinance. The amendment would modify the Ordinance to require inspections for “accessory buildings of more than 200 square feet and for decks less than 30 inches above grade”. The amendment Ordinance also provides for the “application of the Ordinance to repairs and alterations to residential buildings”. The Board of Commissioners intends to consider the Ordinance at its meeting, which is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. at the Susquehanna Township Municipal Building, 1900 Linglestown Road, Harrisburg. Please contact Sherri Pursel for more information.

SIGN-UP to be a MUNICIPAL Political CONTACT!
The GHAR Municipal Political Contacts Task Force (MCTF) is still searching for volunteers to be Municipal Political Contacts. As a Political Contact, GHAR will work with you when issues impacting REALTORS^® and the real estate industry arise in your municipality. The Task Force’s goal is to identify REALTORS^® from each municipality in our tri-county area to be Political Contacts. We are still in need of contacts for the following municipalities:

If you are interested in participating in this vital program, please contact Sherri Pursel.

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