GSAR Hot News - Homeowners gain nearly $10K in equity on average during the pandemic

Top Headlines for September 25

Homeowners gain nearly $10K in equity on average during the pandemic

CoreLogic reported this week that U.S. homeowners gained more than $620 billion in equity during the 2020 second quarter as home prices climbed. According to its Home Equity Report, homeowners saw an average gain of $9,800 in equity and those homeowners with mortgages saw an equity gain of 6.6 percent during the past year. Learn more here.

NAR: National home sales reach '2006 levels'

National home sales "climbed to the likes of the 2006 housing boom days," according to the National Association of REALTORS® report this week. “Home sales continue to amaze, and there are plenty of buyers in the pipeline ready to enter the market,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “Further gains in sales are likely for the remainder of the year, with mortgage rates hovering around 3 percent and with continued job recovery.” Read more here.

Governor extends commercial eviction moratorium

Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued Executive Order 202.64 last week to extend the moratorium prohibiting the initiation of a proceeding or enforcement of an eviction of any commercial tenant for nonpayment of rent or a foreclosure of any commercial mortgage for nonpayment of such mortgage through Oct. 20, 2020.

Watch NYSAR's Legal Update and General Session on Oct. 5 via Zoom

NYSAR's Virtual Business Meeting delivery means that it is very easy for members to benefit from NYSAR Legal Counsel Anthony Gatto's Legal Update and the General Session with Sean Carpenter on Monday, Oct. 5. Gatto will cover a variety of legal and regulatory topics designed to help brokers and members reduce their risk. Carpenter will present "Leave Your Mark." Learn more about all the free sessions being offered and register here.

MLS Tips

Matrix X update is live

The Matrix X update debuted on Wednesday with new features including:

New map layers for listing statuses, tax sales, and distressed properties.
An updated look for the contacts module as part of CoreLogic's incremental approach to providing a clean new UI across the entire application. Each contact’s record has been expanded from its old accordion-style format to become a new, dedicated page. Multiple tabs provide access to various information within the contact profile, and new widgets provide insights into the contact’s use of the portal
A modern user interface with changes like My Matrix is now where Home used to be, and Settings, Help, Mobile and Logout were moved under the “Utility Menu.” (Click on your name to get there).
A wider search speed bar.

Learn more in this Matrix X brochure and through these videos:

Matrix Quick Tip - Navigation Menu (Matrix X+)

Bradford Tax Seminars will be offering "Tax-Reduction Strategies for the Real Estate Professional" via Zoom on Wednesday, Sept. 30, at 9:30 a.m. The course will cover new tax deductions for 2020 including the new 199A deduction, new car deduction and more. After the seminar, you'll have what you need to bring to your accountant to qualify for thousands of dollars more in deductions. The session will be presented by Kelly Clark, who is a business consultant and training specialist with a proven background in education and business management. Learn more and register here.

Education

Free Matrix courses help you be more efficient when working with your MLS

Plan now to take three, free courses next week that will help you become more proficient and efficient in using Matrix tools. Register by emailing the GSAR Education Department.

Matrix Intro Part 1

September 30 - 9 - 10:30 a.m.

Get started with Matrix, one of the most important tools in your real estate toolbox! You'll learn how to use all of the buttons, widgets and menu options on the homepage. Different methods of searching and working with your contacts will also be covered. Formal training in Matrix will save you time and frustration. You'll want to attend "Matrix 1 Intro Part 2" to learn about some advanced features. (Zoom class. 1.5 CEU)

Matrix Intro Part 2

September 30 - 11 a.m. -12:30 p.m.

This is a continuation of Matrix Intro Part 1. Learn some of the advanced features of Matrix. Topics include setting up your Hotsheets and Market Watch reports. You'll also learn about entering and editing listings, how to search public tax records and the Realist database, and how to print address labels for your prospecting mailings. (Zoom class. 1.5 CEU)

Matrix 2: Auto email and customization

September 30 - 1:30 - 3 p.m.

This class will help you save time and make your life easier by showing you how to automate client/customer contact and how to customize your Matrix account. Keep your contacts up to date by setting up automatic e-mails - let Matrix do the work for you! Did you know that you can reverse prospect and track active listing activity? You'll learn how to do that and more in this class. (Zoom class. 1.5 CEU)

Watch for these October CE classes

GSAR will be offering a variety of continuing education classes during October including:

Oct. 8 - Standards-Based Real Estate Photography - Level I, 9 a.m. to noon.

Oct. 13 - The 7 P's to Getting a Buyer Representation Agreement Signed, 9 a.m. to noon.

Oct. 15 - Instanet: The Fundamentals, 9 a.m. to noon.

Oct. 20 - Standards-Based Real Estate Photography Level II, 9 a.m. to noon.

Save the dates and watch for registration details.

NAR podcast offers safety tips

As REALTOR® Safety Month draws to a close, NAR's "Safety Tips for REALTORS® with Donny Allen" podcast offers information you can put to use to enhance your personal safety.

Changing the way we learn: Zoom proficiency will be the key to earning CE credit into 2021

When it comes to education, the events of 2020 have made it clear that REALTORS will need to master Zoom for remote learning to ensure they are able to earn their required continuing education credits. This will be especially important for licensees who will no longer be "grandfathered in" as of June 21, 2021. Every licensee must meet the CE requirements to keep their license. As with in-person CE classes, Zoom classes have specific requirements including being visible on camera for the entire session and signing 10 minutes before the session starts. To learn more about using Zoom for CE classes, please watch the video.

Education links

View the complete monthly schedule

Weekly webinars and classes weekly calendar on members side of cnyrealtor.com

Thanks to our sponsors

Member Benefits and Events

Congratulations to GSAR Golf Outing winners

More than 100 members enjoyed a great day on the course during in the annual GSAR Golf Outing at The Links at Erie Village last week. GSAR thanks its sponsors who helped make the day a success! Congratulations to the golf winners:

Mixed Division

1st - Tami Hoffman, Ted Kelly, Sean Pease, Jonnie Nickles

2nd - Kurt D'Angelo, Gabrielle DiMora, Kathy Walton, Chris Madden

3rd - Brian Dietrich, Cheri Scicchitano, Greg Scicchitano, Joe Pistel

Men's Division

1st - Steven Hunsberger, David Baritell, Jon Taylor, Bennet Baritell

2nd - Randy Holbrook, Sr., John Gorzyski

3rd - Ryan Yamini, Mike Harper, Zach Johnson, Joey Kalil

Closest to the pin

Men -Sean Pease

Women -Sheila Hovey

Longest drive

Men - Scott Ellison

Women - Nicole McNeilly

NAR Conference and Expo registration open

Registration for NAR's first-ever virtual REALTORS® Conference & Expo from Nov. 2 to 18 is now open. The schedule will feature governance meetings, education sessions, networking opportunities and expo. Learn more here.

Save these dates! Upcoming Events!

Oct. 5 -- NYSAR Legal Update (10 a.m.) /General Session 2 p.m.) via Zoom

Nov. 2-18 - NAR Conference and Expo (virtual)