{"id":20426,"date":"2019-02-13T10:50:24","date_gmt":"2019-02-13T16:50:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pintailcos.com\/2019-texas-realtors-winter-meeting-wraps-in-austin\/"},"modified":"2019-02-13T10:50:24","modified_gmt":"2019-02-13T16:50:24","slug":"2019-texas-realtors-winter-meeting-wraps-in-austin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pintailcos.com\/web\/2019-texas-realtors-winter-meeting-wraps-in-austin\/","title":{"rendered":"2019 Texas REALTORS\u00ae Winter Meeting Wraps in Austin"},"content":{"rendered":"REALTORS\u00ae in Austin this past weekend were treated to expert speakers, awards ceremonies, networking events, continuing education, and more at the 2019 Texas REALTORS\u00ae Winter Meeting.\nThe event\u2019s opening session was headlined by an all-star economic panel: National Association of REALTORS\u00ae\u00a0Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, Real Estate Center at Texas A&M Chief Economist Jim Gaines, and University of North Texas Real Estate Professor John Baen.\n\u201cWhatever you see in the national figures, Texas will be doing better,\u201d Yun said. But a steady flow of affordable homes is important. Even in a good economy, Yun said, consumers will take a step back if there\u2019s a lack of reasonably priced homes for middle-income families.\nGaines predicted that home sales in Texas will be steady in the upcoming year but not significantly higher than past years. \u201cWe\u2019re going to do fine in 2019 as long as the U.S. economy is doing alright,\u201d Gaines said.\nStill, Baen told attendees that they\u2019d be astounded by what\u2019ll happen to Texas housing prices in the future. The problem isn\u2019t demand, he said, it\u2019s supply. Baen also encouraged REALTORS\u00ae to talk to their clients about the benefits of rental properties.\nAward Winners Honored\nLeslie Rouda Smith was named the 2018 Texas REALTOR\u00ae\u00a0of the Year at the STARs Reception on Monday night. At the Awards Luncheon on Monday, the following members and local associations were honored:\nWilliam C. Jennings Commercial Transaction of the Year: Wheeler Commercial\nEducation Program Awards:\nInnovation Program of the Year: San Antonio Board of REALTORS\u00ae for the Historic Home Specialist Certification Course\nMarketing Program of the Year: Houston Association of REALTORS\u00ae for Member Focus Monday\nSeries or Short Program of the Year: Houston Association of REALTORS\u00ae for Surviving Disruption\nLegal Program of the Year: Bill Evans for Service, Therapy or Emotional Support\nEducator of the Year: Lori Solecki of the MetroTex Association of REALTORS\u00ae\n\nTom D. Morton Award: Kim Lambert of the Greater Lewisville Association of REALTORS\u00ae\nTexas REALTOR\u00ae Good Neighbor Award: Nelvin Adriatico of the Houston Association of REALTORS.\nActions Taken at Board of Directors\nDuring its meeting February 12, the Board of Directors took the following actions:\nApproved election of 2020-2021 regional vice presidents:\nRegion 1 \u2013 Jinger White, Amarillo\nRegion 3 \u2013 Michael Langford, Greater Fort Worth\nRegion 4 \u2013 David Alan Cox, Collin County\nRegion 4 \u2013 Nick Kline, Collin County\nRegion 8 \u2013 Jack Stapleton, Williamson County\nRegion 10 \u2013 Gail Robinson, Brazoria County\nRegion 12 \u2013 Cathy Mitchell, MetroTex\nRegion 12 \u2013 Bill Jordan, MetroTex\nRegion 12 \u2013 Sid Thom, MetroTex\nRegion 13 \u2013 Kim Young, San Antonio\nRegion 13 \u2013 Jan Hicinbothom, San Antonio\nRegion 13 \u2013 Terry Tremaine, MetroTex\nRegion 13 \u2013 Mary Ann Jeffers, San Antonio\nRegion 14 \u2013 Jo Ann Stevens, Houston\nRegion 14 \u2013 Mario Arriaga, Houston\nRegion 14 \u2013 Shannon Cobb-Evans, Houston\nRegion 14 \u2013 Richard Miranda, Houston\nRegion 14 \u2013 Cathy Tevino, Houston\nRegion 14 \u2013 Chaille Ralph, Houston\nRegion 14 \u2013 Shae Cottar, Houston\nRegion 14 \u2013 Troy Cothran, Houston\nRegion 15 \u2013 David Burton, Austin\nRegion 15 \u2013 Bill Evans, Austin\nRegion 15 \u2013 Teresa Scott-Tibbs, Austin\nRegion 16 \u2013 Jennifer Stroh Viescas, Greater El Paso\n\nApproved election of Nick Cantu as interim RVP for Region 11\nApproved the election of the 2020 Texas REALTORS\u00ae Leadership Team: Secretary\/Treasurer Russell Berry, Chairman-Elect Marvin Jolly, and Chairman Cindi Bulla.\nGovernment Affairs Events\nDuring the Public Policy Forum on Saturday, Texas REALTORS\u00ae heard from Senate Education Committee Chairman Larry Taylor, who discussed how the 86th Texas Legislature will address reforming the public school finance system. Taylor highlighted how school finance and property taxes are related and thanked REALTORS\u00ae for leading the discussion.\nOn Sunday, the Governmental Affairs Forum featured keynote speaker Ross Ramsey, executive editor and co-founder of The Texas Tribune. Ramsey provided insight into new dynamics at the Texas Capitol after the November elections and a change in leadership in the Texas House. Attendees also heard from National Association of REALTORS\u00ae\u00a0Senior Vice President of Governmental Affairs Shannon McGahn, Texas REALTORS\u00ae Vice President of Governmental Affairs Mark Lehman, and Brett Finley, governmental affairs director of policy for the San Antonio Board of REALTORS\u00ae. The panelists discussed the important role REALTORS\u00ae play in advocacy at the local, state, and national levels on topics such as local ordinances, statewide legislation, and federal tax policy.\nTexas REALTORS\u00ae leaders recognized several deserving members with Governmental Affairs awards during Winter Meeting.\nThe Political Involvement Committee awarded the 2018 Grassroots Advocate of the Year to Kristy Wages from the Palestine Board of REALTORS\u00ae. Her work on the successful campaign to elect fellow Texas REALTOR\u00ae Cody Harris to represent House District 8 was a great example of on-the-ground engagement.\nThe 2018 Governmental Affairs Outstanding Achievement Award went to the Greater Metro West Association of REALTORS\u00ae for its dedication to fundraising and grassroots political advocacy.\nForums and Classes Highlight Pressing Topics\nAt the Leasing and Property Management Forum, attendees were keen to hear about what to expect in the way of potential legislation to limit or prohibit short-term housing rentals. And Ed Hill of the Texas Workforce Commission gave a presentation about assistance animals and the difficulties inherent in proving or disproving a need for such an accommodation.\nTexas REALTORS\u00ae\u00a0partners CRES, Pearl Insurance, Mondics Insurance, and Preferred Guardian Insurance spoke about risks not covered by E&O insurance during the Risk Reduction Forum. \u201cAuto liability is your greatest risk exposure,\u201d said John Mondics of Mondics Insurance. Chad Wenzelspratt of CRES said cyber liability is a threat to consider and suggested brokers add it to their E&O policy, while Barney Schwartz of Preferred Guardian counseled attendees to stay out of the wiring process. Mark Turner of Pearl Insurance suggested property managers ask to be named as insured on their client\u2019s landlord policy.\nMichael Wilt of the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation gave an explanation of how community land trusts work and their benefits at the Housing Initiatives Forum. In a community land trust, the homeowner owns the improvements (the structure) but leases the land from the trust, allowing affordable housing in perpetuity through tax benefits and deed restrictions. This housing model can reduce displacement, provide long-term stability, provide housing opportunities for the middle class, and mitigate property tax burdens, according to Wilt.\nDuring her class titled \u201cParalysis Analysis,\u201d Candy Cooke encouraged attendees to use all the resources at their disposal to provide accurate information to consumers and showcase their professionalism and experience. Among the sources she cited, Cooke highlighted REALTORS\u00ae Property Resource (RPR) and its continual improvement, nar.realtor for housing statistics, and MarketViewer, the data tool exclusively for Texas REALTORS\u00ae. She also noted that NAR has a library where members can call (800-874-6500) and enlist the help of librarians who may have access to additional databases and information.","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

REALTORS\u00ae in Austin this past weekend were treated to expert speakers, awards ceremonies, networking events, continuing education, and more at the 2019 Texas REALTORS\u00ae Winter Meeting. The event\u2019s opening session was headlined by an all-star economic panel: National Association of REALTORS\u00ae\u00a0Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, Real Estate Center at Texas A&M Chief Economist Jim Gaines, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[108],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t