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24 November - 7 December 2014
HAPPY THANKSGIVING! In honor of the Thanksgiving holiday, PGCAR offices will be closed this Thursday, November 27 and Friday, November 28. THANK YOU for all your thoughtful service to your community, your customers and your association! We wish you, your families and friends a joy-filled and blessed Thanksgiving! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
CELEBRATE AT THE 6TH ANNUAL HOLIDAY CHARITY EVENT
Tickets are Tax Deductible. $40 Per Ticket or $375 for 10 Tickets Help raise funds to feed Prince George's County families in need! Your tax-deductible $40 contribution will provide much needed food items for local families. As a thank you, you enjoy an evening of networking, fun, a buffet dinner, an open bar, a band and dancing! Better yet, gather your entire office and purchase groups of 10 tickets for a $375 contribution each. Wednesday, December 10 6 pm - 10 pm at La Fontaine Bleue 7963 Annapolis Road Lanham, MD 20706 Purchase your tickets at www.pgcar.org > $40 Contribution per Ticket; $375 Contribution for 10 Tickets Click here for details and tickets > Click here to register as a sponsor > You may also use and share the event flyer and sponsorship flyer. Thank you for your generosity! This is truly the kind of giving that gives back! Thank you to our Charity Event Sponsors! Walter Clews, AmeriSpec Byron Huffman, Byron L. Huffman, P.C. Jane Williams, Primary Residential Mortgage Michael Scaspiguato, Stanley Martin Homes Wanda DeBord, TitleMax LLC Your Name Here > . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Maryland DHCD Announces $100 Million Mortgage Initiative
for Prince George's County: Up To $20,000 Down Payment Assistance Available to Homebuyers At the PGCAR Annual Legislative Breakfast on November 20th, Director Eric Brown of the County's Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), announced the launch of the NEW Maryland Mortgage Program TriplePlay Initiative designed exclusively to assist Prince George's County Homebuyers. The $100 million initiative is intended to help stabilize County neighborhoods by promoting home ownership. "TriplePlay" offers three things:
The lower Maryland Mortgage Program Interest rate, plus down payment assistance, plus a Maryland HomeCredit federal tax credit without the customary fee gives homebuyers three unique financial incentives to purchase a home in Prince George's County. For specific details on this exciting NEW program please visit:
http://mmp.maryland.gov/TriplePlay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
PGCAR 2015 MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL NOW OVERDUE!Renew by Midnight This Sunday, November 30 to Save $50 Late Fee Please renew your dues today at www.pgcar.com/dues. The online invoice can be printed; and you will receive an emailed, itemized receipt immediately after your payment. If paying online, your dues payment will also be automatically added to your online Order History at www.pgcar.com Members Only. Membership renewals were due and payable on October 1, 2014. A late fee will be charged after midnight this Sunday, November 30, 2014. Thank you to everyone who has already renewed for the October 1, 2014 - September 30, 2015 membership year! If not renewed, please renew online today at www.pgcar.com > . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
FOOD AND COAT DRIVEPGCAR is also collecting coats and non-perishable food to give to the needy. Please add a few non-perishable food items to your next shopping trip, or simply open up your closet and pantry. Are you still hanging on to coats that your kids have outgrown, or that you never wear? Another child or adult could be that much warmer through your sharing. A few cans or boxes of veggies, beans, canned meats, cereals, baby food, or any non-perishable food item will bring joy to someone feeling hunger. Please gather any items you can and bring them to the PGCAR offices by Wednesday, December 10 - or to the Holiday Charity Event on December 10! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
AT A GLANCE: 2-WEEK EDUCATION HIGHLIGHTS AT PGCAREarly bird registration is only $18 for 3 CEU classes and $11 for 1.5 CEU classes.
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RENTAL SECURITY DEPOSIT REFORMS ARE PASSEDInterest on Rental Security Deposits is Reduced; Timeframe for Notice of Damages is Extended On Wednesday, November 12, in a 9 - 0 vote, the Prince George's County Council passed much needed rental security deposit reforms. At the encouragement of PGCAR and AOBA (The Apartment and Office Building Association), Council Member Derrick Davis introduced CB 63 - Residential Leases - Rental Security Deposits. The new County law (CB 63) rescinds the County's 4% interest on deposit mandate in favor of the U.S. Treasury rate or the 1½% floor dictated by Maryland law. The new County law also changes the timeframe under which a property owner (landlord) must provide notice of damages to the tenant with the intent to retain a portion of the security deposit. CB 63 extends the notice timeframe in Prince George's County from 30 days to 45 days, which will also be in conformance with Maryland state law. Please take notice; the new state law and County law are effective on January 1, 2015. The PGCAR Single Family Residential Lease (form 1105) will be revised in accordance with the new laws and will be available on January 1st. Until that time please continue to use the current PGCAR lease which follows present day law. Read more > . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
PLEASE TAKE 3 MINUTES TO URGE CONGRESS TO HELP HOMEOWNERSComplete by November 30, to Also Receive Free Homebuyers and Sellers Report The income tax exemption on mortgage debt forgiven in a short sale or a workout for principal residences expired at the end of 2013. Without immediate action by Congress, distressed homeowners will have to pay tax on "phantom income" from forgiven debt when filing their 2014 income taxes. If "The Mortgage Forgiveness Tax Relief Act" is not enacted, hundreds of thousands of American families who did the right thing by short-selling their home or received a much needed loan reduction from their lender will have to pay income tax on "phantom income." And many more families will decide not to go through with short sales or seek workouts, because they would incur new debt (in the form of required taxes) on the forgiven debt. This harms families, neighborhoods and communities. Created following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program filled the void created when private insurers withdrew from the terrorism insurance market. That disruption caused construction projects to come to a halt and commercial property values dropped. That program is now expiring. Fortunately there is bipartisan legislation which passed the Senate by an overwhelming margin of 93 - 4. Senate Bill 2244, the "Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2014," would renew TRIA for seven years, providing certainty in the market that terrorism insurance will be available at affordable rates through the year 2021. In addition, it has a Congressional Budget Office score of "zero." Now it is up to the House of Representatives to act on the bill the Senate has approved. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NEW AGENTS? INTERESTED AFFILIATES?2015 Applications Now Online
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MAKING HOME AFFORDABLE (MHA) PROGRAM WEBINARSSessions are scheduled for both MHA Trusted Advisors and MHA Servicers. Click here to see all scheduled classes. Upcoming sessions: Tuesday, December 2, 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm CheckMyNPV.com Thursday, December 11, 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Trends in Housing Market Recovery and Borrower Demographics Tuesday, Monday, December 15, 3:00 pm - 4:00 pm Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Program Webinar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2014 NAR ANNUAL CONFERENCEEducational Sessions Welcome back to all who attended 2014 REALTORS® Conference & Expo! Even if you were not in New Orleans, you can learn from the recordings at Conference Live 2014.
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A WEALTH OF INFORMATION - 24 X 7! - Find important industry information, as well as details and registration for PGCAR Events and Classes - all at the PGCAR.com Events Calendar.
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- - - CONSUMER'S CORNER - - - Share these items with your customers. SAVE A LIFE. GIVE BLOOD! Thursday, December 18 at PGCAR Recruit your office, customers, family and friends to donate blood on Thursday, December 18 at the next Red Cross Blood Drive at PGCAR. Drop in anytime 9 am - 2:30 pm, or make an appointment online. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SINGLE FAMILY CONTRACTS AND SETTLEMENTS INCREASE IN OCTOBERFrom September to October 2014, Prince George's County single family home contracts increased 9.6%, settlements increased 1.7%, and average sales price increased 0.5% (from $251,051 in September to $252,288 in October). Prince George's county condos contracts stayed even from September to October 2014, while settlements decreased 19.1% and average sales price increased 0.4% (from $106,258 in September to $106,641 in October). For more details, visit www.pgcar.com/stats. National Market News: Existing-Home Sales Rise in October, First Year-Over-Year Increase since October 2013 Audit Shows FHA Fund is Healthy, Time to Lower Mortgage Insurance Premiums, Say REALTORS® REALTORS® Applaud President's Call for Strict Net Neutrality Rule Big Data Will Play an Important Role in the Future of Real Estate and for REALTORS® Changing Demographics Impacting Housing Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SLIGHT DIP IN FIXED MORTGAGE RATES; JUST UNDER 4 PERCENT"Fixed mortgage rates were slightly down as housing starts [PDF] declined 2.8 percent in October below the upwardly revised September rate," noted Frank Nothaft, Vice President and Chief Economist for Freddie Mac. "However, building permits increased 4.8 percent in October after a 2.8 percent boost a month earlier. Lastly, industrial production slipped by 0.1 percent in October, below the market consensus forecast." Freddie Mac reports the following averages for the week ending November 20, 2014: The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.99%, down from 4.01% ~ Last year: 4.22% The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.17%, down from 3.20% ~ Last year: 3.27% The 5-year Treasury-indexed hybrid ARM averaged 3.01%, down from 3.02% ~ Last year: 2.95% The 1-year Treasury-indexed ARM averaged 2.44%, up from 2.43% ~ Last year: 2.61% Freddie Mac's Weekly Primary Mortgage Market Survey > Like PGCAR at www.facebook.com/pgcar to see monthly home sales statistics and weekly mortgage rate reports as soon as they are released! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
SHARE HOMEBUYER SAVINGS FROM PGCAR.COMFirst-time homebuyers, homeowners buying again, Military homebuyers, teachers... There are real estate deals for everyone in Prince George's County. It's easy to find the right information and send links from www.pgcar.com > . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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8300 Corporate Drive, Suite 100 | Landover, MD 20785 | Phone 301.306.7900 | Fax 301.306.8273
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