NAR has recognized that a growing dilemma facing buyers’ agents is the assurance that the listing agent presented their offers.   The following NEW Standard of Practice 1-7 has been added to Article 1 of the Code of Ethics that obligates listing brokers to provide, upon written request of a buyer’s agent, written affirmation that an offer was presented or written notification that the seller waived the obligation to have the offer presented.   

The REALTOR Safe Harbor application and website created and managed the Arkansas Association of REALTORS® is no longer available.  We ask that all members uninstall the application from all devices.

In a critical win for home sales, while the partial shutdown of the federal government is ongoing, the Federal Emergency Management Agency will issue and renew flood insurance policies, reversing an unexpected and controversial ruling the agency released last week. 

CMR members who joined the Association beginning in 2008 got this education as part of their REALTOR® Orientation; however, REALTORS® who joined before 2008 may not have taken it.  It’s a good review of some concepts that are often misunderstood.

Many National Association of REALTORS® members received a solicitation last week, purportedly from the REALTOR® Party, asking for donations to fund medical expenses for a young girl. This solicitation is not from the REALTOR® Party or the National Association of REALTORS®. NAR never solicits donations for personal or individual charities. 

You are if you are using any personal biases to suggest to a buyer where he/she might want to live or not live.

Agents use different approaches to engage in unlawful steering such as:

• Recommending homes to clients for consideration
• Editorializing about areas the client should or should not consider

Annual dues bills for the 3 REALTOR® organizations are not the same as the previous year and are calculated as follows:

If you stage new construction, be aware that a few of our members have had their staging furniture and accessories stolen, and local law enforcement believes an organized theft ring may be responsible.  Furniture is easy to steal from new construction since a truck being loaded with furniture will likely not look suspicious. 

Accurate data entry matters… a lot!

First, it is your fiduciary duty to your seller clients to ensure their property is exposed to all who may be interested.  What might appear to you as a small error, can result in your listing not displaying in searches that other REALTORS® are running for their buyer clients.

The NAR Board of Directors, at their annual meeting in Boston Monday, amended an MLS policy that will require listing brokers to provide cooperating brokers with written notification about the disposition of their offer. The change aligns MLS policy with the Code of Ethics.

First, let’s break it down to see exactly what you are paying:

National Association of REALTORS® - $185
Mississippi Association of REALTORS® - $173.50
Central Mississippi REALTORS® - $169.50

We have created an infographic with quick and easy steps for paying your dues using the new member portal.

Instructions on how to find and login to your new member portal.

CMR's Governmental Affairs Committee works hard to identify legislative issues in our local market affecting your ability to do business.  This past year they discussed and made recommendations to the CMR Board of Directors that we get involved in two issues.

REALTORS® Randy Knouse and Cynthia McCool Knouse are taking supplies to the Panama City area Thursday. The U-Haul will be parked at 100 Depot Drive in Madison.  Please help if you can! 

Jeffrey Dillon - Leading Edge Advisory Board, Larry Edwards - Federal Taxation Committee, Gary Parker - Multiple Listing Issues and Policies Committee, Lynette Praytor - State and Local Issues Mobilization Support Committee, Janice Shows - RPAC Major Investors Council, Schneika Stokes -  Housing Opportunity Committee, and Dorothy Thompson - Professional Standards Committee.

Please overlook the sawdust on the floor while we work toward integration with our new Membership Management software. We are working to get classes, events, offices, agents, and committees automatically updating again. We are aware of missing photos during the transition.

CMR is converting to a new membership management software platform starting on Wednesday, October 3, 2018, at noon.  Because we will not be able to provide proper services to our members during conversion, we are closing the office at that time.

Answer:  Yes.

A seller gets to decide who enters his/her property. Most agents tell sellers at listing appointments that only screened and qualified buyers will be shown the property.

If you have been in real estate long enough to consider it a career, give serious thought to getting your Broker’s license.  The license is not just a path to opening an office and hiring agents. 

A broker’s office policy saved him this week from potential harm.  An out-of-state "buyer," who was unknown to the agent, was offended when an agent would not pick him up.

The CMR and MLS office will be closed Monday, September 3, 2018, in observance of Labor Day.  The office will resume regular business hours Tuesday, September 4, 2018, at 9 AM.

Friday, August 31, 2018, CMR Members should watch their email for instructions on how to log in and cast their votes for the 2019 Board of Directors.

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Buyer’s agent? Yes, if the buyer wants his agent to have it. Listing agent? No. The listing agent should only be given a list of repairs, if any, as a result of the buyer’s home inspection.

The Statute of Frauds requires that all real estate agreements be in writing and signed by the parties to be enforceable. Text messages between agents are merely conversation.