Today’s meeting featured a scrumptious spread of food and beverages provided by Lisa Justason of LandAmerica Home Warrantyand NHDs.Yum!

http://www.landamhomewarranty.com/  or call 1 800 443 5599

Lisa’s phone number is 1 818 841 2320 or cell phone (530) 863 0616. She spoke about her company’s several key differentiations from their competition, which includes the fact that if there is a service visit in which no repair is required, the customer is not charged for the deductable.

Our mortgage minute was provided by Becky Isner of Amerigroup, who pointed out that many buyers have been taking their time shopping (no kidding!) and may find their original pre-qual  is no longer any good due to rapid changes in mortgage requirements. She urges you to have your buyer re-qualify if it’s been a few months, they’ve been shopping till you’ve been dropping…

She also mentioned the movement afoot to make give first time homebuyers the ability to monetize their $8000 tax credit for use as a down payment by using a bridge loan. As of now, we are hearing conflicting news about this idea, so hold off on any announcements or plans. Perhaps it simply makes too much sense.

She also took a moment to remind everyone of the book drive and other activities planned for Juniper Academy by the Active Affiliate group. Realtor Don Wilkins heard a comment about the number of homeless kids in this school, and wrote this:

“There was a comment this morning that Juniper was 90% homeless children. This is incorrect. Juniper unfortunately has 34 children that report to be homeless out of 234 students Kindergarten to 8th grade.  Both the Juniper and Cypress school principals have worked very hard to provide stellar academics and an educational environment to stimulate all children, no matter what income or status level they are in. Both principals welcome real estate agents and the community to visit their schools to see firsthand what dynamics they have to offer. Feel free to contact me or the school district if any questions, as a board member for the Redding School District I can provide you with accurate information or the people to go to for such.

Don J. Wilkins  227-9639  Redding School District 225-0011

Still, 34 homeless kids in our town is about 34 too many, no matter how you count it. We all know that the staff of Juniper is doing a terrific job in the face of tough times, and we thank Don and the Active Affiliates for working together help make things better for kids in our community. Please join them!

Ron Largent served up a reminder of next week’s softball epic. Come on out and be an all star!

Another of our community-minded local Realtors, Patte Jelavich, asked me to pass along this information to you:

            The volunteers for the Children’s Summer Reading program at the Redding Library are requesting citizens deliver empty cereal boxes to the children’s department at 1100 Parkview from now until July 1st.  The bags inside should be removed and the boxes flattened.  Their intended use is for a craft project that will be part of the program.

Thank you, Patte

Barry Savage got up and spoke for few minutes in opposition to the proposed new High Voltage Powerlines that are being planned to cross our area by the Transmission Agency of Northern California (TANC). He and others invite you to become educated, and to form an opinion about this project, as any determination will have an impact on local real estate values. You can start at the TANC website:

www.tanc.us

And then you can check out the opposition to the project at:

www.stoptanc.com and www.stoptanc.org

The comment period has been extended to May 31. Make your voice heard.

I need to take a moment here as Communication Chairman to note that we’ve seen a few MLS bulk e-mail messages lately that are relevant discussion, but which clearly violate the MLS rules. Specifically:

12.5.1 Misuse of MLS Bulk Email.  The Bulk E-Mail system is restricted to the marketing of real property and is governed by rules provided by the National Association of Realtors and the California Multiple Listing Rules and Regulations.  Bulk E-Mail is not to be used for advertising personal property, service announcements, influencing or directing discussion….

Which is not to say that we don’t all want to hear from you. In fact, and many others would like to hear more of your opinions, and about your various projects, and service recommendations. That’s why we established the private online Social Networking site for the Shasta Board of Realtors on Ning. You can get an invitation from me just by asking, or from Tracy at the board office. New MLS rules may make violations of rules subject to swift fines, so respect the MLS rules. And please do contribute over at the social network site. We want to hear from you.

Our featured guest was Earl M. Salter EA.  He covered a broad range of topics of great interest to all agents, including 1031 exchanges, First Time Homebuyer tax credits, and tax implications for Loan modifications, Short Sales, and foreclosure. It was a fast paced meeting, and Earl is an engaging and entertaining speaker. We have scanned and posted his handouts here, so you’ll want to look those over.

Earl Salter - Tax Deferred Exchanges.pdf (369.82 kb)

Earl Salter - First Time Homebuyer Scenarios.pdf (98.54 kb)

Also, we are trying something new. We recorded Earl’s presentation with his permission, and are presenting it to you here in its entirety as a Podcast. You don’t need to have an iPod or IPhone to hear it. Your computer should recognize the file and play it automatically through your computer speakers. The presentation is fast paced and well worth your time. It’s just about an hour. So grab a cup, and give a listen. You’ll be glad you did.  Thanks Earl!

Link to Podcast HERE. It's a big file, so you may need to be patient, depending on your connection speed and other factors.

It was another excellent and informative meeting. Next week is attorney Jody Burgess for risk management, and the following week is the fraud investigator from the DA’s office. Be there! Skip Murphy