REALTOR® Resources

...A final message from Association President,
   Tom Ettz -

SEPTEMBER 17, 2004

Fall brings a new season to us in our personal as well as business lives and also marks the end of one CAR Association year and the start of a new one. It has certainly been an honor for me to work for you and represent you this past year as your President! Thank You.

Here's a quick recap of some of our major accomplishments this year:

  1. We successfully completed our 3 major initiatives in the following areas:
    1. Education- we started a local Rookie REALTOR® Society and have held classes attended by more than 170 attendees with another class scheduled soon.
    2. Legislative- we have brought on a Government Affairs Representative to work with our Government Affairs Committee to enhance our proactive involvement in local legislation affecting our Association and businesses. This has been a joint effort by CAR and MAR and is proving beneficial to us.
    3. Community Involvement- We completed the Habitat for Humanity House in Berlin which was started by our Association's fund-raising efforts the prior year. The house was dedicated on June 5th and is now occupied by the Shorter family. (As a side note to our Habitat for Humanity (HFH) involvement, several of our members participated in the construction and dedication of the MAR house in Snow Hill this year and our Association has already committed to the HFH project in Salisbury during the coming year).

  2. The CAR First Annual REALTOR® Picnic was held in July at White Horse Park in Ocean Pines and was offered free to members and their families. The picnic was well attended, very well run and based on comments I received very much appreciated by the attendees. It is my belief that functions like this, every so often, go a long way in helping us to better work together in a very competitive and growing industry that requires much cooperation. After all, we are people first then REALTORS®.

  3. Thanks to your understanding and contributions, our Association was one of the first in Maryland to achieve our 2004 RPAC (REALTORS® Political Action Committee) dollar goal! As I write this message to you, we are at a 41.36% level of member participants contributing to RPAC. If you have not done so yet, please make your contribution now to help us achieve a 50% participation level in 2004!

  4. In March we rolled out the new MLS Rules and Regulations along with a presentation from NAR on IDX and VOW’s. A copy of the new rules and regulations booklet was sent to all members of the Association prior to the kickoff meeting at the Convention Center.

  5. The CAR web site (CoastalRealtor.org) has been upgraded and updated throughout the year and now includes the following information in the Members Only section: the complete MLS Rules and Regulations; CAR financial summary information; CAR Bylaws; annual Awards of Excellence criteria; and current Advertising Guidelines. The web site also provides an easy way to register for the many educational opportunities offered through CAR. If you are having trouble accessing or using the site please call the Board Office at 410-641-4409.

***

Thanks to the Board Members, Committee Chairs & Members, Staff and our Management Company, GCAAR, for helping our Association achieve our goals this past year! But as in any organization, there is always room for improvement. If you see something in our Association that appears to be broken, or if you have a complaint, get involved to help understand and/or solve the situation. The Association is run by and for the benefit of all of us members, so please help make it better by joining a committee and/or volunteering at nomination time to serve on the Board. You can make a difference!

***

Congratulations to Elaine Gordy, our incoming President, and the entire Board of Directors, and Best Wishes for an upcoming successful year of achievement! I am confident that with the same level of help and support I received this past year from the Board, Committees and Staff, 2005 will be an even better year for the Coastal Association of REALTORS®.

Regards,

Tom


 
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