Blaine W. Morris - Pacific Union

Jun 04

Just Listed! 31 Porto Bello, San Rafael, $499,000

By Blaine Morris Marin Real Estate News, San Rafael Real Estate News

Convenient Location and Waterfront Neighborhood

Pride of ownership and a super convenient central location await at this spacious townhome in the Porto Bello waterfront community. The 2BR/2.5BA property includes an updated kitchen with granite countertops and newer appliances. All three bathroom also have granite countertops, newer fixtures and tile work. The large living room has a cozy fireplace and opens to a nicely landscaped private patio, perfect for indoor/outdoor living. The community has a pool and also features a boat dock. Great light throughout, with vaulted ceilings in the large bedrooms. The unit has an oversized 1-car garage plus one additional assigned space. Close to 101, Whole Foods, and Trader Joes. Turnkey and move in ready. Everything you need for your active Marin lifestyle!

Offered at $499,000

Jun 03

“It’s On with SASM”, Housing Density Bill AB-1537 Faces Uncertain Outcome in the Senate – MAR Monday Memo 06/02/14

By Blaine Morris Legislation, Marin Association of Realtors, Marin Community News

Good morning MAR members!

Back to the regular work week today, after last week’s nice 4-day version, which followed the ever-popular three-day-weekend. There is certainly something in the air…it sure feels like summer!

A short memo this week to commemorate the start of my favorite time of year.

First of all, don’t forget to vote tomorrow. The REALTOR Party needs you out there, doing your part to participate in the most important part our democracy. It doesn’t matter what your opinion is, just get out there and make your voice heard. Did you know that in California there are more than 36,000 REALTORS who are not registered to vote? I find that really hard to believe, and I hope very much that we have a disproportionately small share here in Marin. Hopefully, you’re registered to vote…now get out there and vote tomorrow! And if you’re not registered to vote, here’s where you can change that right now: <<http://www.car.org/governmentaffairs/getinvolved/rparty/registertovote/>>

The first thing to bring to your attention this week is that “it’s ON with SASM.” That’s the text I received last week from MAR CEO Andy Fegley. SASM is the Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin. SASM is working on draft policy to take to its individual sanitary districts in and around Mill Valley mandating point-of-sale sewer lateral inspections which will result in mandatory repairs.

SASM knows that MAR is 100% opposed to point of sale ordinances. CEO Fegley has been meeting with the district’s leadership, advocating for an approach to fixing this problem that won’t take 50 years to solve. 50 years is how long it takes for all the homes to turn over in Mill Valley. We’ve told them that “best practice” by REALTOR members generally includes a sewer lateral inspection during an escrow, and that inserting the government into this escrow process is horribly, horribly unproductive.

Just talk to our colleagues who sell properties in Sausalito and they will tell you all you need to know about sanitary district policy run amuck.

I’ll keep you in the loop on MAR’s efforts. Frankly, this is going to be a hot topic throughout Marin, as the Ross Valley Sanitary District is looking to mandate the same point-of-sale ordinance…they’re just not as far along. NAR and CAR will both support us in this effort to advocate for a more real and holistic solution other than making REALTORS responsible to solve their agencies’ infrastructure problems.

On to the ongoing housing density front. MAR CEO Andy Fegley, Past President Kay Moore and I visited with Supervisor Kate Sears last Friday. Supervisor Sears represents Kay Moore’s district and she is the 2014 President of the Marin Board of Supervisors. We were brainstorming on how to help advance AB1537, which is Assemblyman Marc Levine’s bill to reduce the default density of Marin from “Metropolitan” and 30-units-per-acre to “Suburban” and 20-units-per-acre. This bill recently passed the Assembly on a strong bipartisan vote of 62-4. Supervisor Sears testified in favor of the bill at Assembly committee hearings at the end of April, along with CEO Fegley and myself.

Now the bill faces an uncertain outcome in the Senate, where the senior staffer on the Senate Housing Committee seems particularly unfavorable to the bill. Another issue is that right now, and for nearly the past two years, Marin has been without representation at the state Senate. Did you know that? Redistricting that occurred a couple of years ago resulted in Marin not having a state Senator for two years. And we won’t have a Senator until we finally elect one in November. More on that later. In the meantime, MAR has maintained a positive relationship with Senator Noreen Evans from Sonoma County. She has been acting in something of a caretaker role for our orphaned county.

Net-net, we have to push a bill through the Senate without our own Senator. I knew we were in this orphaned state. That fact came up last year when MAR was advocating for the passage of SB30, which was the state tax relief bill for sellers of distressed properties. Senator Evans offered her support on that bill. It never really hit home with me, however, until right now. We are reaching out to Senator Evans again, and we’re working with Assemblyman Levine and the Board of Supervisors to work to shepherd this bill through the Senate.

I reminded Supervisor Sears about Governor Jerry Brown’s comments to the 3,000 REALTORS on hand at CAR Legislative Day in Sacramento on April 30th. The Governor advocated for local control to the REALTORS: “People in Modoc do things differently than people in Berkeley…let them make their own decisions.” My sense is that Governor Brown is worried about other things than a bill on housing density here in Marin. But since the Governor appointed Supervisor Sears to her seat when the late Supervisor Charles McGlashan passed away in 2011, I figured she must know someone on his staff, and who knows how that might help?

The two-year Legislative calendar concludes at the end of August. If AB1537 doesn’t pass the Senate by then, it’s back to square one when the Legislature convenes for a new session next year. And the Legislature is on recess the whole month of July. So we’ve really just got June and the first couple of weeks in August to get this bill through the Senate. MAR intends to testify once again at the not-yet-calendared committee hearings. I’ll keep you informed of our progress.

Finally, I want to plant the seed that now is the time to think about getting involved at MAR next year. More on this next week, as Nominating Committee Chairperson Judy LeMarr will be leading the process. If you’ve wanted to serve on a committee, chair a committee, or be on the Board of Directors, the process for next year will unfold in the coming months. It’s a richly rewarding opportunity to serve your colleagues and your community. And it’s good for business!

That’s it for now.

I wish you a safe and prosperous week!

Blaine

May 27

Should You Include a Picture of the Buyer in a Offer Packet? MAR Monday Memo 05/27/14

By Blaine Morris California Association of Realtors, Marin Association of Realtors, Marin Real Estate News

Good morning MAR members!

Safely back in Marin this week after spending two of the prior three weeks on the road…it’s good to be back home. I was looking forward to a nice quiet three day weekend, but many of you responded with new listings this week! Alas, our customers don’t care about three day weekends…other than the fact that they have an extra day to look at homes. So back to showing and listing properties.

I’m going to find a quiet moment this weekend to honor those who have served our country…Happy Memorial Day everyone! Coming from a certain generation, most everyone in my family from the generation before me served in the military. My father Warren served in the Marine Corps in the Korean War, and both uncles on his side of the family served, Uncle Ray in Korea and Uncle Blaine in World War II. My Grandfather Blaine served in Europe in World War I, nearly 100 years ago. Plus my longtime stepfather Allen Coates was a full-bird Colonel in the Army, and he served in an artillery brigade in Korea.

I say all of this because it’s easy to forget the sacrifices made by those who came before us. Take a little time this weekend to honor those who served our country. And wish for a safe return home to those currently serving. As President Lyndon Johnson said on this day in 1966 (my first Memorial Day as a 3 1/2-month-old!): “On this Memorial Day, it is right for us to remember the living and the dead for whom the call of their country has meant much pain and sacrifice.”

Thank you to MAR member Chelsea Ialeggio for her feedback on pictures of buyers in offer packets. One of her clients wanted to include a nine-page letter filled with pictures of the family with an offer. These buyers shared that all their friends looking for homes were sharing similar letters and pictures. Chelsea shared that she had been advised throughout her career to not include pictures, as it creates opportunities for possible discrimination concerns.

Letters are fine, but regarding pictures my response to Chelsea was that to my knowledge there was no part of the REALTOR Code of Ethics preventing this practice, and that it is more of a broker risk management issue. I still feel that way. Last Thursday, however, I asked MAR CEO Andy Fegley to find out CAR’s position on the matter. Andy called June Barlow, CAR’s Chief Legal Counsel. June just happened to have a conference call set up that afternoon with the entire CAR legal staff and agreed to pose the question.

After that call, here is what June came back with: “I spoke with the hotline attorneys during their meeting and they confirmed that it is problematic from a fair housing perspective for real estate agents to participate in activities, such as including photos, that may put the seller in a position to discriminate or facilitate discrimination based on familial status or marital status or even race or other protected class. Universally we advise against it. However, none of us knew of a specific bulletin or advisory that speaks to the issue about photos in particular, though that doesn’t mean one does not exist. Regulation 2780 does list many variations of fair housing violations that could cause one to lose a real estate license. There are quite a few in there that may cover this activity.”

So, to repeat, as far as I know, it’s not against any specific REALTOR policy that we’ve been able to find, but my advice is to tread very carefully with this issue and speak to your broker about your company’s policy. I know during my time in the business it has been against the policy of my brokers.

In the category of “odds and ends”, I thought it would be useful to share some info from a presentation given a couple of weeks ago by CAR CEO Joel Singer in Sacramento during the mid-year meetings.

Joel compared the housing downturn we’re just emerging from as “just as bad as the Great Depression.”
The early years of the recovery were the strongest, and the current number of sales he is seeing is not performing as he would expect.
Appreciation is moderating. There is a current “pause” in appreciation is due to the recent rise in interest rates, general economic components, and the fact that affordability has decreased statewide.
Inventory has improved but remains tight. Inventory is essentially all existing homes; there are almost no new homes.
During the downturn, in California we lost a million households that “should exist”. During the housing boom of the mid-2000s, “new household creation” peaked at 300,000 new households created annually. During the downturn, “new household creation” bottomed out at 30,000 new households created annually.
California needs to “replace lost housing that should have been created over the past 5-6 years, but we are not doing so.”
The market is over-relying on investment sales. Currently, statewide, 25% of sales are “investment sales”. Normally, that figure is 6-10% of sales. First-time buyers should be able to buy, but they can’t compete. Demand is not a problem, but the share of first time buyers is alarming. Pent-up demand is not resulting in sales. There is nothing to sell them, and when there is, these first-time buyers are competing with investors with cash.
Along that line, the share of first-time-buyers should be higher than it is right now. He would like to see it over 40%…even 50%. At the current rate, which is around 38%, we are not seeing a healthy, “ladder-like” market
With all of that said, first-time-buyers remain our hope once again. Millennials view homeownership as a positive thing at essentially the same rate as the Gen-X and Baby Boomer generations before them. The level of student debt, however, is staggering, and is holding back Millennials from being able to buy.
The homeownership rate is dropping statewide. In the US, the homeownership rate is 65.4%. It’s in the mid-50%s right now in California. He bemoaned the fact that in California we are nearly 50% renters.
There is political fallout as we become a renter society. Low homeownership rates in San Francisco have a profound effect on public policy in SF, with homeowners being a small minority of the population.
And rents are continuing to go up because new homes are not being constructed…and the future demand for housing is not going to lessen.
The good news is that the attitudes of homeownership remain positive…but people continue to leave California over the cost of housing. Young families, the Millennials, want to buy houses and participate in the California dream. We need more supply. In California, we need 165,000 new units of housing annually, which will create a balance of supply and demand. We are currently only building 65,000 units, which is leaving us a staggering 100,000 units short.

So let’s all go find some more listings and do our part to improve these numbers!

I wish you a safe and prosperous week.

Blaine

May 12

CAR Highlights, MAR General Membership Meeting Tuesday, May 13th – MAR Monday Memo 05/12/14

By Blaine Morris California Association of Realtors, Legislation, Marin Association of Realtors

Good morning MAR members!

So many buyers, so many listings, so many offers! Everyone I know is running around at a frenzied pace, but it does seem that more properties are coming on the market.

I’m looking forward to seeing many of you at the MAR General Membership meeting tomorrow, Tuesday May 13 at 9:30 AM, at Embassy Suites in San Rafael. The featured speaker is Sarah Sutachan, who is the Manager of Broker and Real Estate Finance Outreach for CAR. This is the “economic update” traditionally provided by Leslie Appleton-Young. MAR member Steve Dickason will be giving his always-informative and valuable Marin Market Update.

This week, after Tuesday’s MAR General Membership meeting, MAR CEO Andy Fegley, Federal congressional key contact Kay Moore and I are off to Washington DC for the National Association of REALTORS mid-year meetings. We will be meeting with Congressman Jared Huffman’s staff and briefing them on all of NAR’s matters before congress. I will be reporting back on the results of those meetings next week.

Andy Fegley and I also visited with the City of San Rafael again last week in our ongoing effort to eliminate the increased “double jeopardy” we are seeing in their resale inspection practices. I feel like we are making some real progress and we certainly have their attention at the highest level of city staff. City staff had a department-wide meeting to work to improve the process, and they shared a list of their initial thoughts to improve.

MAR’s main concern is the specific instance where non-compliant items that were missed in prior resale inspections…years ago..are being forced into compliance today…years later…after being missed previously by San Rafael. Buyers thus made purchase decisions based upon incorrect reports generated by San Rafael. Buyers and sellers have a reasonable expectation that these mandatory inspections they are paying for are correct. They finally seem to be listening to us, and I believe there will be some meaningful reforms in the near future. Thomas Ehrens, chief building inspector, did ask me to relay two things to MAR membership: (1) they don’t enjoy the process of forcing compliance…he said that there is no pleasure in the “gotcha” moment; and (2) they absolutely are not in the resale inspection business for the money generated by their compliance efforts. In fact, they likely lose money in that part of their business.

First off, I need to get something off my chest. What’s up with everyone “pre-opening” escrows? It really does seem like everyone. I get it if you’ve got a squirrely property that needs research, or a short sale, but why does every squeaky clean home with no mortgage and no easements have an opened escrow too? I just don’t get it. Yes, as a listing agent I like to control who is doing the escrow, and yes I like to send business to my friends. But the buyer is paying for title insurance and the escrow fee in Marin. Let the buyers use who they want. Just my opinion, I felt like sharing.

Thank you for all your feedback on the auction report I shared last week. Based upon the feedback, I gather we’re all learning and picking our way through the…dynamic…business practices of our friends in the auction business and the bankers that use them. If anyone knows anything important that I didn’t share…please share! Like all of us, I’m trying to understand this new emerging business model.

As promised, here are some of the highlights of the CAR meetings in Sacramento earlier this month:

Governor Jerry Brown kicked the whole thing off with an early appearance at about 9:15 on Wednesday’s legislative day. Always entertaining, he seems to be picking up on a current issue here in Marin and likely elsewhere in the state: local control. The Governor advocated for more local control, “Let decisions get made locally. People in Modoc do things differently that people in Berkeley. Let them make their own decisions.” I think we can all get behind that as far as housing density here in Marin. Unfortunately, the Governor and the Legislature don’t always see things the same way…

On legislative day, the Marin contingent joined many of our colleagues from the North Bay Association of Realtors (NorBAR) to meet with Assemblyman Marc Levine’s staff to promote CAR’s position on a number of bills before the legislature:

AB 2416, which allows employees with a wage dispute to record a lien against an employer’s property, even though no connection with the property itself is required, no notice is required, and thus no due process. It’s like a mechanic’s lien with abbreviated notice, and it allows this wage lien to be a “super lien” ahead of other liens. This will cloud title, obviously. Other legal remedies already exist, and CAR opposes AB 2416.
AB 2039 relates to last week’s discussion about indemnity clauses that lenders and auction companies are forcing on sellers and listing brokers. Again, this is where an online auction is used to “validate” the sales price in a short sale. In essence, the lender forces the seller and listing agent to turn over the listing for an online auction, and also forces those parties to indemnify the auction company against any wrongdoing during the rest of the transaction. AB 2039 prohibits this indemnification language, and CAR strongly supports this bill.
SB 391 has been around for a while, the better part of two years, and CAR has been fighting against it much of the time. This is the bill that adds a document recording fee to most real estate-related documents that do not relate to a sales transaction. Think refinancing. Or changing title status after the death of a family member. These fees will go toward funding affordable housing. In the “death of a spouse” example, these new fees could add up to an additional $440 bourdon on the surviving spouse. CAR supports affordable housing, but feels that it’s a society-wide issue and the bourdon should be shared across all segments of society, not just property owners. Further, they’re calling it a “fee” (to cover costs directly related to the transaction), but it’s really a “tax” (because they’re moving the money to pay for something else). All part of a scheme to only need a simple majority to pass rather than a super majority for a tax. CAR continues to strongly oppose SB 391.
Finally, AB 2169 seeks to validate existing legislation that REALTORS and licensees are “independent contractors” and not “employees”. There are existing regulations that go back decades that state just that, but in a recent lawsuit a judge ignored those precedents and unilaterally decided that because brokers supervise their agents, then those agents must be employees. AB 2169 seeks to clarify that supervision does not necessarily equal employment. Most all of us are indeed independent contractors, and AB 2169 seeks to clarify existing law. CAR strongly supports AB 2169.

CAR CEO Joel Singer had a great presentation on the current state of the Real Estate economy in California, and I’ll share some of the highlights of that presentation in the coming weeks.

That’s it for now, I’ll let you know how things go at NAR in Washington, DC.

I wish you a safe and prosperous week!

Blaine

May 07

CAR Update: AB1537, Online Auctions, MAR Monday Memo 05/05/14

By Blaine Morris Legislation, Marin Association of Realtors, Marin Community News, Marin Real Estate News, Uncategorized

Good morning MAR members!

What a week! September in April…whew. I spent last week in Sacramento at the CAR Legislative Day and Spring Business Meetings, and it was hotter here in Marin than in Sacramento. Frankly, it was downright perfect in the Central Valley, cooler than the last two years when I’ve been there.

Be sure to mark your calendars for next Tuesday, May 13 at 9:30, which is MAR’s general membership meeting at Embassy Suites in San Rafael. Our guest speaker will be Sarah Sutachan, who is the Manager of Broker and Real Estate Finance Outreach for CAR. Since I’ve been an MAR member, one of the biggest meetings of the year has always been when Leslie Appleton Young is the featured speaker. Leslie is CAR’s Chief Economist, and always brought valuable perspective to the statewide and Marin markets. Leslie, who lives in Los Angeles, is paring down her travel schedule and is somewhat passing the torch to Sarah, who is a valuable member of her staff. Join me and the rest of MAR’s leadership team to welcome Sarah Sutachan and gain valuable market perspective that you can use in your business today and get the most recent market info for your clients. MAR member Steve Dickason will also be delivering his valuable Marin Market Update. Registration is only $10, and it’s open online. Click here to register online.

I’d also like to take a moment to share my support for our dear colleague and longtime MAR member Marie Whitemore. Her 7-year-old granddaughter Gabrielle unfortunately is suffering from a very serious and inoperable brain tumor. This little girl just underwent chemotherapy and is now beginning a more aggressive treatment…an expensive treatment that is not covered by insurance. The Talbert family from the peninsula had a similar situation with a family member battling a similar condition, and the Talbert family has generously offered to match every donation dollar-for-dollar. I’d like to encourage all of us to support the family however we can. For more info, please click here . The entire MAR family’s thoughts and prayers are with Marie and Gabrielle.

And what a week in Sacramento. Lots of CAR business before the legislature, I’ll get that legislation next week.

The big day for me was Wednesday, where MAR CEO Andy Fegley and I attended and testified at two different Assembly committee hearings in support of Marin Assemblyman Marc Levine’s bill AB1537, which relates to the minimum density for housing developments in much of Marin. Levine’s bill lowers the minimum density from 30 units to 20 units/acre.

Currently, Marin is lumped in with San Francisco and Oakland as being “metropolitan” and is something of an anomaly in the Bay Area with minimum zoning at 30 units per acre. I knew that Sonoma and Napa were designated as “suburban” at 20 units/acre. What I didn’t know is that Santa Clara County…the Bay Area’s most populous county…is also designated “suburban” at 20 units/acre.

Levine’s bill corrects that anomaly and re-designates Marin as “suburban” at 20 units per acre. Last Wednesday, Andy and I, along with Supervisor Kate Sears and members of Bridge Housing and other agencies that historically have been against this type of change joined forces to support Levine’s bill. AB1537 passed unanimously through the Housing Committee and then passed through the Local Government Committee. MAR testified in support at both meetings.

MAR strongly supports this bill, and we are doing everything we can to assist Assemblyman Levine’s efforts to win passage. The bill has progressed further than similar bills have fared in the past, and we plan to continue our efforts to support its passage.

The most fascinating session of the week at CAR was the Public Policy Forum. The topic was online auctions. Rick Sharga, the Executive VP at Auction.com generously made himself available for this meeting, which was absolutely packed and standing-room-only. And I learned SO MUCH!

(this is a long account, sorry, but so much valuable info was shared and all the MAR members are talking about auctions)

-Auction.com sold 35,000 properties online last year, with the vast majority going to investors.

-Auction.com is a licensed broker in 48 states.

-Google just invested $50M in Auction.com, and now owns a 4% stake. That investment values Auction.com at $1.2B. Google will be helping Auction.com improve its mobile platforms.

-Speaking of mobile, Mr. Sharga shared a story about an investor in India who learned that he won an auction. He contacted Auction.com to verify that he could finalize his cash purchase on his phone. From India.

-It’s written into their Auction.com’s contract that “shill” bidders are part of the process. Mr. Sharga’s first response was that “shill is such a nasty term.” They call it “seller bidding”. It’s perfectly legal, but ethically dubious in my opinion. Meaning, if the auction slows down, or doesn’t get to the reserve, Auction.com will place a shill bid, in an attempt to get you to bid higher. It’s not a real bid, and thus you are competing against yourself. Can you imagine? In my mind, that’s the same as a listing agent telling you there is “another offer” or “multiple offers” when there really isn’t one. Gigantic breach of our REALTOR Code of Ethics. But since Auction.com is not a REALTOR member, the Code of Ethics does not apply. CAR currently has sponsored a bill before the legislature to outlaw shill bidding.

-That 75% of Auction.com’s business is generated by investors.

-That most of Auction.com’s clients are not interested in anything other than cash buyers.

-That Mr. Sharga himself declared that Auction.com was “not ready for the consumer market.”

-In regards to CAR-sponsored legislation AB2039, Mr. Sharga admitted that “our contracts need work” and “we were never set up to work with consumers.” AB2039 seeks to prohibit the current practice of indemnification clauses in the cases of short sale lenders seeking to use Auction.com to “verify” the short sale price. As many of you know, Nationstar has been incorporating this “verification” process as part of their standard short sale process. As the listing agent, you are required to sign a contract that indemnifies Auction.com of any liability during this auction process. Net-net, as the listing agent, you and your broker are carrying the entire liability for any wrongdoing by Auction.com, even though at that point in the process Auction.com basically controls the listing. AB2039 prohibits this indemnification practice, and CAR is working very hard for its passage.

-Among other investors, Auction.com and Nationstar happen to share a single common investor. Go figure. Fortress Investment Group is the majority owner of Nationstar, and Fortress Investment Group is also a major investor in Auction.com. Mr. Sharga called that a “coincidence”, and said that there is no financial relationship between Auction.com and Nationstar other than the “buyer’s premium” that Auction.com is awarded when a property sells through its platform. So he says.

-Mr. Sharga didn’t want to comment on a similar arrangement that has resulted in a current investigation where Benjamin Lawsky, superintendant of the New York Department of Financial Services is seeking to clarify the relationship between another auction site, Hubzu, and mortgage servicing firm Ocwen Financial. Seems that Hubzu was spun off from Ocwen in 2009. Mr. Sharpa encouraged us to Google Mr. Lawsky’s investigation of Hubzu. It’s quite an interesting search, you should Google it yourself.

-Mr. Sharga shared that the reason for this short sale price “verification” is because the “servicers feel that they’re getting ripped off.”

Which brings us to…

-In regards to the new practice of loan servicers in short sales requiring the property to go onto Auction.com to “verify” the price, in California 75% of the properties that go through this verification are sold to someone other than the original offeror, with a 15-20% “uplift” in the price. He was pretty adamant about that “uplift”. Mr. Sharga answered a question that I had: if the original offeror on the property has to increase his/her price to get it via the auction, that person does NOT have to pay the 5% buyer’s premium. That’s about the only good thing I heard at this session.

-For many auction properties, Mr. Sharpa acknowledged that there is a current disconnect between the initial bidding price and the actual reserve. Meaning the property is actually not for sale at the price that is entered into MLS.

The meeting went on and on and on, to the point where they had to stop it with many people still in line to speak.

Next week, I’ll give you a rundown of the rest of the CAR meeting.

That’s it for now.

I wish you a safe and prosperous week!

Blaine

Apr 28

Housing Density – Larkspur SMART Station Area Plan, Updates on San Rafael City Resale Inspections and Sewer Laterals. MAR Monday Memo 04/28/14

By Blaine Morris Marin Association of Realtors, Marin Community News, Marin Real Estate News, Regulations

Good morning MAR members!

Lots of new listings last week. It seems that sellers are finally getting the message that people are looking to move!

One final reminder that the memorial service for MAR member and Novato icon Mike Di Giorgio is one week from today, Monday May 5th, from 11AM-1PM at Novato City Hall. As I mentioned previously, Mike’s family has asked MAR member and Novato Councilwoman Denise Athas to share stories of Mike’s business life, and has asked for anecdotes and personal stories about Mike from our members. For those of you who might have a good story to share, Denise has asked that you contact her via email at DAthas@aol.com.

This week, the rest of MAR’s California Association of Realtors Board of Directors members and I will be in Sacramento for the CAR’s Legislative Day (Wednesday) and the Spring business meetings through Saturday. If there is any pressing matter that you’d like CAR’s leadership to be aware of, please let me know and we will take it to Sacramento. If you’d like to join us for Leg Day, Governor Jerry Brown will be addressing us on Wednesday morning.

San Rafael City Resale Inspections

I must say, it’s been very quiet this past week+. Prior to our meetings with San Rafael’s City Manager and building department a couple of weeks ago, I was receiving daily calls…often multiple calls. Now it’s like someone turned off the faucet…no calls. In fact, one of our colleagues made it a point to tell me what a delightful inspection he had with San Rafael, when he was expecting the worst. If you’re still having issues, I do want to know.

MAR CEO Andy Fegley and I will be meeting with San Rafael again next week…a meeting they asked for. They have asked us to bring any suggestions for improving their process. My message is going to be consistent with our last meeting: please don’t penalize homeowners for things that San Rafael missed in the past. It is San Rafael’s choice to require a resale inspection. Since they do require it, we as the real estate community take the inspection very seriously. As such, if the city misses something and people make the biggest financial decision of their life based upon that inspection, buyers and sellers have a reasonable expectation that the mandatory report is accurate. If the report is inaccurate, San Rafael needs to offer a path to compliance if they missed something.

It’s as simple as that. With all of that said, perhaps they’ve made some changes based upon our last meeting. From where I’m sitting, the membership has been much quieter on this subject.

Housing Density– Larkspur SMART Station Area Plan

As I mentioned about a month ago, MAR has drafted and passed a housing density policy statement, which you can read right here <link>. A few weeks ago, MAR’s Local Candidate Recommendation Committee met with both Supervisor Susan Adams and San Rafael Councilman Damon Connelly, who are running for Supervisor in District 1 (most of San Rafael from Central San Rafael north). We also met with Supervisor Judy Arnold who is running for re-election in District 5 (Novato). Supervisor Arnold’s opponent, MAR member Toni Shroyer, elected to not visit with MAR.

As you might imagine, much of the discussion focused on housing, housing density, and the vision for Marin going forward. We asked all the candidates about their thoughts on the big density issue on the table right now, the development plan for the Larkspur Landing, ferry terminal and SMART train station. Up to 900+ units. The “Larkspur SMART Station Area Plan.” The Environmental Impact Report (“EIR”) for this project is open for public comment until early June. The decision on what to do rests on the shoulders of the Larkspur Town Council. Here is the link to the plan, as well as instructions for offering your comments: http://www.larkspurcityhall.org/index.aspx?nid=157

MAR took a position last summer in opposition to Plan Bay Area, because of the top-down planning approach it favored, rather than local control. MAR is in favor of local control.

So here we are…local control time. There was a spirited, standing room only community meeting this past Saturday at Bacich School in Kentfield, with supervisor Katie Rice in attendance. The challenge that Supervisor Rice is facing…a challenge that every resident of Ross Valley is facing…is the same challenge that every resident of Marin who drives on 101 is facing: namely, this proposed development is going to affect every one of us. It’s going to be decided by the Honorable Larkspur Town Council, the elected leaders of Larkspur’s 12,000+ residents. But it’s going to affect all of us, from a traffic, parking, water and sewage standpoint.

With that as the premise, we asked the Supervisor candidates their opinions about this plan. All were quite wary based upon the past year’s public dialogue. The only countywide agency with a stake in the decision is the Transportation Authority of Marin. But ultimately it will be up to Larkspur.

The Environmental Impact Report public comment period goes until June 2nd. MAR will be encouraging the Larkspur Town Council to consider the impact of this project on the county at large. MAR encouraged the Supervisor candidates to take into consideration the county-wide impacts, and to offer input when appropriate.

And MAR encourages you, our members, to make your voices heard on the subject. The public comment period is open. Please comment on it. This proposed project is going to affect all of us, so please weigh in with your thoughts.

More on Sewer Laterals

Briefly, in addition to the Mill Valley Area covered by the Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin (SASM), now it seems that Ross Valley Sanitary District (RVSD) is also now considering point-of-sale sewer lateral inspections. At their meeting last week, it was brought up as an advisory matter. MAR has shared the rationale of its opposition to point-of-sale inspections with both agencies. After receiving MAR’s input, SASM postponed an advisory vote on the subject. We shared the same feedback with RVSD last week.

This subject could quickly morph into something very, very large as it relates to the Marin real estate community’s ability to conduct business in arguably the county’s largest economic driver.

Stay tuned. As I like to say, we are on it.

That’s all for now, next week I’ll have a report from CAR for you.

I wish you a safe and prosperous week.

Blaine

Apr 24

Just Listed! 190 Butterfield, San Anselmo, $719,000

By Blaine Morris Marin Real Estate News

190 Butterfield San Anselmo

Your own private oasis awaits at this special property! The sweet 2BR/1.5BA home offers so many possibilities! Set way back behind outbuildings and across a bridge, you’re a world away at this well-maintained home. Wood floors with a flat yard. Great light and mature trees on a big lot, you will enjoy privacy and a wonderful lifestyle! Outbuilding currently used as home office/studio with a storage room/wine cellar under…lots of room for gear, toys–perfect for people with stuff! Sale includes approved plans for a 3BR/2BA single story expansion/remodel. Close to trails, perfect for hikers, bikers and nature lovers. Award-winning Ross Valley schools, you’re only a block away from Brookside school. The perfect home base for your active Marin lifestyle, with a plan to grow as your needs change!

Apr 22

San Rafael Resale Inspections, Point of Sale Sewer Lateral Inspections and SASM, Upcoming CAR Meetings. MAR Monday Memo 04/21/14

By Blaine Morris California Association of Realtors, Marin Association of Realtors, Marin Community News, Marin Real Estate News, Regulations

Good morning MAR members! Happy Easter, Happy Earth Day!

With tax day blessedly behind us…so many buyers, so few houses, where is the inventory? Likely many listings in the coming weeks, but way more buyers than houses right now! The practice of auction-like pricing seems reasonable for our sellers, but it’s making so much work for so many whose buyers don’t really have a shot. Ten offers means nine sets buyers, nine agents and probably 7-8 mortgage brokers who all come away empty-handed. At least we’re all staying busy…

Last week’s big news–that the Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin is considering a model ordinance for the various agencies that fall under its advisory umbrella–generated a lot of discussion among our member community. MAR has been in touch with many relevant stakeholders, sharing our opinion that point-of-sale inspections are not the solution. Point of sale inspections will result in a 47-year resolution to an immediate problem, and the very real and substantial issue of shared laterals leaves many unanswered questions. SASM needs to come up with a real plan. The vote that was going to occur last Thursday did not occur, and SASM is seeking more of MAR’s input into the process. Stay tuned.

The other big continuing issue is the ongoing San Rafael resale inspection matter. Thank you to all of you who have contacted me with feedback. It’s edged every other matter aside as far as feedback is concerned. I literally get several calls a day. While every individual case is different, MAR is advocating on our collective behalf.

To that end, MAR CEO Andy Fegley and I met last Wednesday with San Rafael City Manager Linda Mackel, and two key members of her team: Paul Jensen, the Community Development Director, and Thomas Ahrens, head of the building department. I’ll describe it as a good meeting, but with a lot of loose ends that remain untied. But they did give us an hour, and listened intently to our feedback and they took a lot of notes and asked a lot of questions.

Again, thank you for all of your feedback as I had a ton of specific, timely, recent info to share. They were largely aware of every case we discussed. They also acknowledged that there has been a material uptick in the complaints with the enforcement process, though City Manager Nancy Mackel did not seem to be aware of the magnitude of homeowner and MAR member frustration.

My message remained simple: (1) It is because of San Rafael’s decision to have resale inspections that we find ourselves where we are; (2) there is no statewide regulation calling for resale inspections, and most municipalities don’t have the requirement; (3) because of San Rafael’s requirement for resale inspections, we all put a lot of weight in their content, and people inform what is often the largest financial decision they make based on the info in this report; (4) if San Rafael requires these inspections, and gets them wrong (in the past), and people make hundreds-of-thousands or million dollar decisions based on the contents, do not come back and penalize the new homeowner (and future seller) for mistakes or omissions that San Rafael made with its mandatory report in the past; (5) this new level of compliance enforcement for sometimes decades-old improvements are creating uncertainty, slowing escrows, and hindering commerce in the largest economic driver in the City of San Rafael.

The first Principle in MAR’s Fair Principles for Resale Inspections is “Consistency” and the second is “No Double Jeopardy”. We obviously have a current disconnect with these two principles right now. MAR is all for compliance, but if San Rafael is going to suddenly escalate the rigidness of its compliance requirement, it can’t suddenly change the way it does business and not expect substantial pushback.

San Rafael must create a smooth path to compliance, with allowances for situations, permit fees and penalties that exist today because of San Rafael’s mistakes and omissions in the past.

To his credit, Paul Jensen quickly followed up with us last Thursday to schedule a follow up meeting, and asked us for specific recommendations for improvements. I expect to be meeting with them again early next month.

Please keep sharing your stories. It’s hard to get resolution on every situation, or any one situation, but collectively they help me paint the clear picture of a broken process.

Finally, the California Association of REALTORS Spring Meetings and Legislative Day are next week. As I’ve said in the past, these are amazing meetings, particularly the Wednesday morning session when Governor Jerry Brown addresses the CAR Board of Directors, and later on Wednesday when the REALTOR Party makes its positions known and heard to our elected officials and their staffs. For more info on Leg Day, click here: http://www.car.org/governmentaffairs/getinvolved/legislativeday/. I hope to see many of you in Sacramento next week!

MAR’s members on the CAR Board of Directors include myself, President-Elect Matt Hughes, Katie Beacock (who is also Chair of CAR’s Region 4, of which MAR is part), Kay Moore and Mary Kay Yamamoto. If you have any concerns you’d like us to take to CAR on your behalf, please contact one of us. That’s it for now. I wish you a safe and prosperous week!

Blaine

Apr 14

San Rafael Resale Inspections, Point of Sale Sewer Lateral Inspections and SASM, and Mike Di Giorgio. MAR Monday Memo 04/14/14

By Blaine Morris Marin Association of Realtors, Marin Real Estate News

Good morning MAR members!

Let’s go Giants!! It was great to get out to AT&T Park last week to see our San Francisco Giants back in action! 2014 is an even-numbered year, so let’s keep the tradition alive with another Championship parade down Market Street next fall!

So much to write about, so little space…another busy week at MAR.

MAR was saddened to learn last week of the passing of MAR member and Novato community icon Mike Di Giorgio. I had the pleasure of serving on MAR’s Governmental Affairs Committee the last few years with Mike, who always had the unique perspective as an elected community leader. Sometimes as the rants on a local issue would reach a fevered pitch, Mike would be there with levity reminding us that these elected leaders generally are doing the best they can to satisfy many disparate interests. Mike was at all three Government Affairs meetings this year, and none of us had any idea about the extent of his illness. A true pro, and serving to the very end, Mike was there for his community. He will be sorely missed at MAR, Novato, and all of Marin.

To that extent, MAR member Denise Athas asked me to share info about the memorial service celebrating Mike’s life. It will be held at the Novato City Hall on May 5th from 11AM-1PM. Denise has been asked to speak at the service about Mike’s business career, especially real estate. She is seeking anecdotes and personal stories that MAR members might have about Mike. For those of you who might have a good story to share, Denise has asked that you contact her via email at DAthas@aol.com.

On to the business of MAR.

First of all, I hear you. We hear you.

Several weeks ago I mentioned an unnamed municipality whose resale inspection process had seemingly run amuck. It’s our good friends and neighbors at the City of San Rafael. I hear you, MAR. Honestly, I think I’m hearing from just about everyone getting a resale inspection in San Rafael this spring. The story I hear goes something like this: the seller of a house bought the house 4/6/8 years ago, and a resale inspection was conducted, with no problems noted. Now they are selling their house, and San Rafael is coming out and finding loads of inadequately permitted work from before the seller purchased the home, and is demanding as-built permits, penalties, remediation, fines…it goes on and on. I hear you. It’s a big mess, and something has changed in the compliance requirements of San Rafael. Or at least the enforcement of those requirements.

MAR CEO Andy Fegley has met individually with both City Manager Nancy Mackel and Mayor Gary Phillips in the past couple of weeks, and has shared MAR’s frustration. Both Andy and I are meeting this week with Nancy Mackel and her team in the building department to give examples and share our members’ frustration with San Rafael.

Over the past couple of years MAR has crafted a policy called Fair Principles of Resale Inspections (you can read it here ). I encourage you to print out and read this, and also to print out a copy for your frustrated clients. It’s a number of common sense principles, and most any reasonable person will think they sound pretty reasonable. If our clients start quoting from this document as they work with San Rafael, it will lend more credence to our position. We pushed back very hard at another town last year with this Fair Principles document, and issues in that town have quieted down to almost nothing.

I will report back on this next week.

Now, the Big News of the Week.

On the Friday before last, MAR CEO Andy Fegley was summoned to meet with the Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin (SASM). This is an advisory group with no direct authority but which seeks to steer the agenda of each of the smaller sewer boards in the general Mill Valley Area. SASM is considering a model ordinance that among other things will mandate point-of-sale sewer lateral inspections…just like our friends in Sausalito have.

MAR, CAR and NAR are strongly opposed to additional point-of-sale requirements. If you think the occasional water heater strapping requirement is a nuisance, imagine having to replace a sewer lateral before you can close an escrow.

Furthermore, it’s not a effective solution. Did you know that it takes 47 years to turn over the housing stock in Mill Valley? What SASM is suggesting is a 47-year-long solution to a current problem.

MAR supports coming up with a solution to this problem. Point-of-sale just isn’t the way to do it. Standard of care for our members has most of us doing sewer lateral inspections right now anyway.

To that end, MAR has provided SASM with a 10-year plan to resolve this problem. A real plan. They know where we stand. There is a SASM board meeting this Thursday night, where they were planning to vote on this model ordinance. Late last week, after learning of our strong opposition and what we plan to do to promote that opposition, MAR was told that the vote “might not come up at the next meeting.”

Stay tuned, MAR! We may need your help to get our position heard loudly and clearly. MAR has been successful in pushing back on sewer lateral point-of-sale inspections in the past, and we will do so again.

MAR’s Lunch and Learn Series

With the help of our valued affiliates, MAR is launching a lunch and learn series to aid our members with timely and useful info that you can use in your business today. First up is Peter Posert of Sun First Solar. On Monday, April 21st Peter will be presenting “Pathways to Solar Power, All You Need to Know about Solar Power for your Clients”. Click here to sign up for this event , and look for more Lunch and Learn sessions throughout the coming year.

Finally, I also want to make good on a promise I made to MAR member Andy Falk a couple of weeks ago about a cause he is passionate about. Andy has been working with the homeless and precariously housed people in San Rafael. Right now, he is working with the Downtown Streets Team whose members could really use some bikes (and locks). Mobility is a big issue for indigent people, as taking the bus can be expensive for minimum wage people. He has asked for us Realtors to be on the lookout for unwanted bikes at our listings. You can contact Andy directly at 415-250-8025 or andyfalk2112@yahoo.com and he will arrange for pickup and dropoff. Every bike will help, and it might just be another step in de-cluttering our listings!

That’s it for now!

I wish you a safe and prosperous week.

Blaine

Apr 07

HR-4208 FHA Loan Limits and Finding the Right Buyer – MAR Monday Memo 04/07/14

By Blaine Morris Marin Association of Realtors, Marin Real Estate News, Regulations

Good morning MAR members!

It sure is crazy out there, full-on springtime anxiety season for our buyers…a mad rush to get to every new listing and get those offers in. The good news is lots of new listings! I’m running from one end of the county to the other on a daily basis, like everyone…hurry hurry hurry…offer offer offer! We’re all busy, which is great!

Early last month, I relayed to you that Kay Moore, Katie Beacock and I went to visit Congressman Jared Huffman in late February. Among other things in that meeting, we shared with Representative Huffman the importance of passing flood insurance reform, and also the importance of retaining the higher loan limits on FHA loans. He was aware of the flood bill, but he said he was not fully briefed on it yet. He did agree that these loan limits are essential for buyers here in high-cost Marin.

It feels good to see results from these meetings. After our meeting with Representative Huffman, on March 4th, the house passed the flood insurance relief bill, and on March 21st, President Obama signed that bill into law.

As for the loan limits, earlier this week Representative Huffman’s office alerted Kay Moore that the congressman was co-sponsoring HR-4208, the “Stabilizing FHA Loan Limit Calculations Act of 2014”. This bill is still in its infancy, but it’s great that our leaders hear us and respond to the needs of our industry.

MAR’s new CEO Andy Fegley has been super busy during his first five weeks on the job. He has been in morning-to-night meetings around the county, introducing himself to local elected and appointed leaders. He has been in regular contact with Assemblyman Mark Levine’s office, reminding them of MAR’s strong support for Assemblyman Levine’s housing density bill, AB 1537, which reduces the state mandated housing density in Marin from 30 units per acre to 20 units per acre. Last week, I signed a letter of support for the bill and Andy delivered it to Assemblyman Levine’s office in time for that letter to be included in the legislative package for upcoming committee hearings.

It’s another way that our voices are being heard by our leaders here in Marin and also in Sacramento. Please let us know other things we should be taking to the CAR Sacramento Business Meetings later this month.

It’s gearing up for election season, and candidates for office will be visiting with MAR’s Local Candidate Recommendation Committee in the coming weeks. The big races are for two county supervisor seats and also for seats on the Ross Valley Sanitary District. Please let us know if you have specific concerns or questions that you would like us to be asking these candidates.

I just visited an old friend this past Friday, by beloved 1986 BMW 635csi. It was always our 3rd car, used for fun and weekend driving. I purchased it used in 1997 with low mileage and perfect condition, and kept it until it was time to move on in the fall of 2010. It was a sad departure, but as the years wore on I wasn’t driving it much, sometimes for months at a time. My wife convinced me that it needed to go to someone who would drive it and give it the love that it deserved.

I was very diligent about who I would sell it to. Ultimately, a military security officer from Lawrence Livermore Labs contacted me and told me that he had been looking for this type of care his whole driving life…literally since he was 16. Now that he had somewhere to put it, he’d been looking for one for 3 years. It was love at first sight, he had brought cash, we did the deal and away they went. I took pictures and with a heavy heart waved goodbye.

He has stayed in touch, and was going to be in Marin and wanted to bring the car by to show me what he’s done. I told my wife that morning that I was going to see the 635. Sherman had sent me pix over the years, he’s fixed some things and generally showered the car with love. My wife told me on Friday morning, “you sold the car to the right guy.” Needless to say, when Sherman brought the car by my office it was immaculate, we took it for a spin, I took a couple of pictures and that was that. I really do feel like I sold it to the right guy. He is still so happy to this day!

I tell you all of this because it’s often the same thing in our business. It feels good to sell a house to the “right buyer”. We often talk about having the “right buyer”, looking for the “right buyer”. When that comes together, it brings us great satisfaction.

One of the best scenarios for me is when I find a house for a couple expecting their first child. You find them a house, they settle in, the baby comes, and it’s everything they wanted. I had the good fortune to have one of these buyer scenarios late last year: pregnant couple, got them into a short sale, got the deal approved and closed about six weeks before the baby came. I live in the neighborhood, but haven’t seen them since the baby. I ran into the wife and baby finally about ten days ago, she was SO happy. Loves the house, loves the neighborhood, loves the neighbors. I came away thinking about what I’m writing now, so nice to see the young family in their happy house.

The next day, coincidentally, I ran into the husband while walking my dog. He too was so happy. Loves the outdoor life, loves the trails, loves the lifestyle. He was beaming. He thanked me for everything. He earnestly told me that “my life is perfect right now.” I had just had a difficult day…ok a bad day…and that little moment turned it all around. He made my day. And that’s what it’s all about.

We truly are blessed to be in this business in Marin. Thank you for indulging my story.

That’s it for now.

I wish you a safe and prosperous week!

Blaine

Blaine Morris

ABOUT BLAINE MORRIS