What s Inside. Greater Antelope Valley Association of REALTORS 1112 West Ave M4 Palmdale, CA 93551

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1 Greater Antelope Valley Association of REALTORS 1112 West Ave M4 Palmdale, CA A monthly publication produced by the Greater Antelope Valley Association of REALTORS What s Inside PAGE 1 Save the date Installation 2015 PAGE 2 President s Message PAGE 3 GAVAR Upcoming Events PAGE Resolution : Save for a House? PAGE 5 GAVAR New Members PAGE 6 SentriLock Tips and Tools PAGE 7 GAVAR December New Member/ Dues Date Reminder

2 A message from your 2015 GAVAR President This is a year of change for the association! The change is happening now with a new lockbox system being implemented the first weeks of January. This new system adds so much more flexibility to the lock box system and a simpler way to obtain the key with still keeping control. I want to congratulate the members for embracing the change! The other major change will be the new MLS system. With the official launch beginning the first week of March, it is our goal to run parallel until March 30 th. While both systems will be running during March, I strongly encourage you to jump right in and start using the new system. I found it to be easier to navigate than our current system with a lot more power and improved features. Numerous classes will be offered so everyone should have an opportunity to attend. FBS (our new MLS vendor) will also be offering train the trainer classes if an individual office would like to send someone to be a designated trainer for the office. The winter C.A.R. s meetings will be held in Indian Wells the last week of January. GAVAR s leadership holds some key positions at C.A.R. - our membership is very well represented and your voice is being heard at the state level. If having your voice heard is something you want to do in person, you may have that opportunity during the April C.A.R. s meetings and Legislative Day in Sacramento. This is always a great day to get the REALTOR voice heard. Another great way to get the REALTOR voice to be heard is to invest in the REALTOR Action Fund. As REALTORS, we are advocates for private property rights. Please take the time to invest as every dollar counts - those who donate prior to the end of February will be entered into a drawing that will take place at the March General Membership Meeting (full details are available on the GAVAR website ). I had the opportunity to attend the NAR meetings and convention in New Orleans in November after much controversy and many rewrites, the Board of s approved the drafting of a proposed aspirational Code of Excellence as a part of a wide ranging set of recommendations to raise the bar on REALTOR professionalism. For an in depth look at the proposed change, can you click on the following link: ( ) The final language will be presented at the NAR meetings in Washington, D.C. in May. Positive changes are happening to the market with year over year price increases and sharp decline in NODs and foreclosures. The papers are saying it is more affordable to own vs. renting and the economy is better in general with Real Estate leading the way! Wishing you a blessed and prosperous Greg Galli.

3 Antelope Valley Upcoming Events GAVAR Upcoming Events Saturday, January 17 th City Of Lancaster Martin Luther King, JR. Day of Service (661) for more details Friday, January 23 rd NAHREP Installation Location: John P. Eliopulos Hellenic Center th St West, Lancaster, CA :00p.m.-9:00p.m. Saturday, January 24 th City Of Palmdale- Season of Service Project Desert Dazzle Illegal Dumping Cleanup 12yrs or older Location: Ave R and 70 th St East Monday, January 14 th Friday, January 16 th Lockbox Exchange Location: GAVAR Office 1112 West Ave M4, Palmdale, CA Hours: 9:00a.m.-12:00p.m. 1:30p.m.-3:30p.m. Friday, January 16 th GAVAR Installation of Officers Location: John P. Eliopulos Hellenic Center th St West, Lancaster, CA :00p.m.-10:00p.m. Monday, January 19 th GAVAR Office Closed Observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day Wednesday, January 21 st Last Day to pay MLS dues without late fee 5:00p.m. Friday, January 30 th Last Day to pay REALTOR dues without late fee. 5:00p.m. Tuesday, February 17 th GAVAR New Member Orientation Location: GAVAR Office 1112 West Ave M4, Palmdale, CA :00a.m.-12:00p.m.-REALTOR Orientation 1:00p.m.-3:30p.m.-MLS Orientation

4 Many people make New Year s Resolutions as the calendar flips from December 31 st to January 1 st. Often times, at the top of the list (along with trimming the waist line) is saving money and paying down debt. Many people do so with a goal in mind a nice vacation, a new car, or even a new home. Maybe this year you are saving for your downpayment for a new home, or know someone who is Resolution: Save for a House? The majority of home buyers use savings as a downpayment source 65 percent of all buyers (81 percent of first-time buyers, 57 percent of repeat buyers). Using savings as a downpayment source has increased in prominence over the last 14 years as buyers are relying less frequently on the proceeds from the sale of their primary residence. Saving for a home can take time for home buyers. Among recent home buyers, 37 percent saved for six months or less, 15 percent saved for six to 12 months, and 10 percent saved for 12 to 18 months. Home buyers often make sacrifices on their path to homeownership. 72 percent cut spending on luxury or non-essential items, 56 percent cut spending on entertainment, and 45 percent cut spending on clothes There is a light at the end of the tunnel for those saving. Eightyeight percent of recent home buyers financed their home purchase. The typical downpayment was 10 percent for all buyers, but six percent for first-time home buyers and 13 percent for repeat home buyers. The payoff for home buyers is worth it. Seventy-nine percent of recent buyers believe their home is a good financial investment, and many believe it is a better financial investment then stocks. Aside from the financial investment, buyers were able to successfully complete their goal which was just to own a home of their own.

5 Tips and Tools Always assign your REALTOR lockbox to the listing. There are many benefits to assigning your lockbox to a listing. With the box assigned, it will be much easier to locate the appropriate box on the website when looking at your list of lockboxes. This will also allow the lockbox access report to show the assigned listing address Set up showing notifications. You can get a text message or notifying you that there has been a showing at your properties. And best of all you control when you receive them. Notifications can be received as they come available, or in a comprehensive daily . Always hang your REALTOR lockbox vertically. Whether the box is on a door, a hand rail, or another location, you will want to hang the box vertically. The box is designed to allow water to pass through, should it be exposed to rain. If the box is laying on its side or back, it could gather water inside the box and become damaged or non-functional. Renew your card after assigning a lockbox to a listing, or making any customization changes. Your card is a messenger between the lockbox and the website. To ensure that all information gets to the website, it is best to renew your card after taking any actions at a lockbox. Renewing the card several times a day, or before the expiration date, will not hurt the card. Set up Card Expiration notifications. When you enable this setting, you will receive a message the day before your SentriCard expires. You can choose to receive the message as an , a text message, or both! Link your SentriCard to your Mobile Phone. You can link your SentriCard and mobile phone by calling our support line at After linking your mobile phone number to your SentriCard you won t be prompted to enter your SentriCard serial number anymore when you call SentriLock s Customer Care Team. This allows for faster assistance when calling our automated line or live support. If further assistance is needed, you can obtain free support from SentriLock in one of the following ways: SentriLock Card Utility or REALTOR Lockbox Web Site: The best way to reach SentriLock support is via our support website. Click the Support button on the toolbar in the REALTOR Lockbox Web Site or SentriLock Card Utility. Click Add Ticket to send a message to SentriLock Support. You can send to SentriLock support on your own or from the Tech Support Page. Telephone: If you prefer to contact SentriLock support via the telephone, call our toll free number: We are available 7 days a week from 8am Midnight EST.

6 GAVAR December New Members The following is a list of persons who applied for REALTOR membership in the month of December 2014 & were approved by the Board of s pending fulfillment of all membership requirements Autry, Derrick Barton, Patricia Breul, Debi Cacciacarne, Amy Ellis, John Estrada, Francisca Freire, Dennis Gardner, Theresa Gastelum, Zandra Powell, Thomas Shawmiou, Manipha Stall, Michelle White-Beebe, Laureen Right 4 U Property Management HomeBased Realty JohnHart Corp. Keller Williams Realty A.V. Century 21 Yarrow & Associates AV 5 Star Realty Century 21 Yarrow & Associates Keller Williams Realty Tehachapi RE/MAX All-Pro Realty Executives Platinum Coldwell Banker A Hartwig Company HomeBased Realty Keller Williams Realty A.V. Next new member Orientation & Rapattoni Training: Tuesday, February 17 th, 2015 GAVAR Reminder Board MLS Dues Due January 21 st 2015 by 5:00 P.M. REALTOR Dues Due January 30 th 2015 by 5:00P.M

7 2015 Board of s President President- Elect Secretary Treasurer Immediate Past President Greg Galli, CRS, GRI, SRES, e-pro Chuck Linn, SRES Robin Gillins, GRI, SFR, SRES Debi Seitz, CRS, GRI Marvin McKinnon, CRS, GRI, SRES Candy Havlock, SRES, SFR Mike Watson Ann Trussell, GRI, E-PRO, SFR Pat Bruce Yvonne Haynes, GRI Fabian Terracciano, CRS, GRI Michele Hunt, CRS, GRI, e-pro, SFR Rob Talbot Association Staff Chief Executive Officer Pamela Vose, RCE PamelaVose@gmail.com Executive Assistant Lori Williams LoriWGavar@gmail.com Administrative Assistant Susan McGuire SusanMgavar@gmail.com MLS/Membership Admin Nataly Garcia Natalygavar@gmail.com Government Affairs Diane Carlton DianeCgavar@gmail.com Rapattoni MLS Tech Support Support ID:1576 SentriLock Support Support support@sentrilock.com 1112 West Avenue M4 Palmdale, CA Phone: Fax: Website: