PAR president reflects on 2014

“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress; working together is success.”

Those were the words of Henry Ford I shared to end my vision speech after Gov. Tom Corbett installed me as the 91st President of the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors® in January. It’s hard to believe 2014 is now over. I wanted to take this opportunity to reflect on my theme of “Together We Succeed” and highlight some accomplishments of the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors® this past year.

As expected, much of our success can be attributed to our legislative and political advocacy.

Like so many of you, I had real estate transactions that were adversely affected by the Biggert-Waters Act in 2012. In January, I testified at committee hearings held by the state house and senate and also fielded numerous media inquiries on the devastating effect this issue had on Pennsylvania’s housing market. The following month, your PAR leadership met with members of Congress in Washington, D.C., to relay just how burdensome these changes were and our grassroots efforts were rewarded with the passage of the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014.

PAR hosted its first Marcellus Shale Summit in Pittsburgh in April. Industry experts provided valuable insight and attendees had the opportunity to network with other members who work in regions impacted by this economic driver. The creation of PAR task forces on both flood insurance and shale gas will serve to monitor their ongoing impact on our industry.

We initiated meetings across the state with broker/owners to open dialogue with these industry leaders and share updates on our state and federal legislative efforts.

PAR elevated the Realtor® brand by giving property owners a voice as we launched a multi-media campaign to eliminate school property taxes. Real Reform 76 spurred more than 6,500 homeowners to contact their state senators and 650 people to share their personal stories on RealReform76.com. The real property tax reform discussion reached unprecedented levels in the Capitol and the media, due largely in part to PAR’s success in motivating consumers. Although Senate Bill 76 advanced out of the Finance Committee, it did not reach the full senate for a vote before the legislative session ended. I trust PAR will continue to work with other stakeholders to find solutions to this burdensome problem.

PA-RPAC had a 95 percent success rate in this year’s general election. PA-RPAC supported 57 candidates for state Senate and House of which 54 were elected. The General Election also saw key victories for the Alliance for a Better Pennsylvania – PAR’s independent expenditure fund. The Alliance conducted five independent expenditure campaigns and four of the supported candidates won, including two Realtors®. Electing Realtor®-friendly candidates helps when private property issues come to a vote.

We were pleased that Gov. Corbett signed the Mechanics’ Lien legislation, just one of the three PAR-supported bills he signed during the last legislative session. During his tenure, the governor also signed bills eliminating the sprinkler mandate for residential new construction and banning private transfer fees. He was a true advocate for our industry.

Working to strengthen local associations and helping them meet NAR’s new Core Standards is yet another challenge PAR tackled this year. AIM, our association management subsidiary, has assisted with both local association mergers and the day-to-day management of some local boards. PAR is also pleased to provide the new field representative program which will help many associations meet their government affairs needs.

On a personal note, I must tell you how proud I am of PAR’s own Jim Helsel, who was honored with NAR’s Distinguished Service Award this year. Jim was PAR’s state president in 1994, the year I first obtained my real estate license. His dedicated service to our industry at all levels is simply amazing, and I’ve appreciated his wise counsel and leadership by example over the years of my volunteer service.

These are just a few of the many accomplishments we achieved together this year, thanks to the collaborative efforts of our local association leaders and staff, the many members who volunteer time and talents, and our elected line officers and district vice presidents, as well as the skillful expertise of our PAR staff.

Thank you for making this year truly memorable.

Together, we succeeded.