Greetings Members and Happy Holidays. I’ve been receiving many questions about the NAR Quadrennial Ethics requirement lately. Please be advised that this is the last quadrennial ethics cycle ending December 31, 2016. Beginning in January the cycle will run on a biannual basis. That means you have to take NAR Ethics between January 2017 and December 2018 to satisfy NAR’s requirement.
SCAOR’s NAR Ethics audit has been completed and if you did not receive an email from me, you are good to go! Those of you that did and sent verification that you took NAR Ethics, thank you. There is still time. If you need to take NAR Ethics please register at the SCAOR Store or give the office a call and we will assist you.
Please remember that if you take your classes from another provider other than SCAOR, SCOAR will not have a record of the class you took. This becomes very important when it comes to the NAR Ethics course. To avoid getting caught up in the next audit, please forward a copy of your certificate to the SCAOR office upon completion and we will be sure to enter it into the system.
SCAOR’s 2017 Professional Development Calendar is almost complete. We have some exciting courses coming your way. So, be on the look out. Details coming soon.
I know some of you like to take your classes online. Please visit SCAOR’s website for valuable savings. This month the CE Shop is offering 40% off, but you have to visit the SCAOR website in order to receive your savings.
New Team functions will be rolling out in the MLS starting December 5th. We have taken the list of teams that we requested by November 21st that were submitted and approved by the Brokers and built the new system. Things will continue to function the same as they have with a small exception, all users will have there own MLS ID’s and will instead work as the Team.
What does this mean?
If you were currently the team head you would change your name from “John Smith” to “Team Awesome”. You no longer will do this and instead will function as an alias of your team. You will then enter yourself as the co-listing agent for tracking in the MLS.
Statistics will now follow your individual career as well as the Teams. If you have any questions please contact us at support@scaor.com
2016 is coming to a close and what a year it has been. Our organization has made great strides this year. I would particularly like to thank the Board of Directors, the Committee volunteers and our SCAOR staff for all of the hard work and time they put in to seeing our organization move into the future. The CEO Search Committee worked long and hard recommending our new CEO, Merritt Burke, who is bringing a new vision and ideas. SCAOR will be joining the 80,000 agents of Bright MLS to better serve our clients and afford our members a much larger presence online.
We have had a eventful year and we look forward to continuing to grow our organization with our incoming President Brigit Taylor. Thank you for a great year!
This is your ultra-fast, easy dose of the latest tech that can help your life as a REALTOR®. Whether it’s using the MLS, Mobile Apps, or surfing around, we’ll give you the tools you need each Tuesday.
Tech Tip Tuesday – #044 – Getting Started with Cloud Storage Using Google Drive
Today’s Tip:
Ever hear about Cloud storage, but don’t know where to begin? Let us walk you through the steps to getting started with Google Drive. Click here for Original Video Credit.
As SCAOR CEO, I am proud to announce that the SCAOR BOD voted on November 17 to join Bright MLS. The vision of Bright MLS is to create the next era MLS that preserves compensation and cooperation, promotes the expansion of an orderly and efficient marketplace, and provides participating brokerage firms greater control of and access to their listing content. Bright MLS is a regional MLS that will have 36 combined REALTOR Association shareholders in six states plus the District of Columbia. The commencement date for the new MLS is January 1, 2017; however SCAOR will convert to Bright MLS in late 2017. The BOD will decide the official conversion date at a future meeting. The next BOD meeting is January 18, 2017 at 9 am.
The benefits to joining Bright MLS are as follows:
More expansive marketplace / no overlapping markets
Innovation with more effective technology
Consumer facing website
One MLS system, fee, set of rules and data feed
Receive products beyond MLS and Public Records
RESO compliance
7-day technology support
From a financial standpoint, SCAOR will benefit with a 3-year Contract with the ability to terminate service in each year. SCAOR will be compensated in each year to offset reduced MLS income. Additionally, only founding associations receive the benefits of input into key decisions on rules and policies including listing statuses, data fields and more. Non-founding associations will pay a higher standard fee in the future. The agreed upon monthly MLS will be $35. Broker reward payments are projected but not guaranteed.
To conclude, it is my goal to coordinate an orderly transition from the current MLS to Bright MLS at the end of 2017. More information on the transition and financial considerations will be communicated to members through the weekly communications and the monthly SCAORcard. At this point, it looks as if MLS dues will be prorated for six months on July 1, 2017.
This is your ultra-fast, easy dose of the latest tech that can help your life as a REALTOR®. Whether it’s using the MLS, Mobile Apps, or surfing around, we’ll give you the tools you need each Tuesday.
Tech Tip Tuesday – #043 – Scanning Your Documents With Microsoft Lens
Today’s Tip:
When you’re on the go, it’s great to be able to save any document you want. Microsoft offers their free Lens app for iPhone & Android platforms. Check it out!
Did you know that the RPR app is an awesome value of your SCAOR membership? Why, you ask? Because RPR’s app is like no other found in the real estate industry.
Here are three reasons why the app should become your go-to-tool:
Built exclusively for REALTORS®, and offered as a member benefit, RPR’s app offers on-the-go access to a nationwide, parcel-centric database of both residential and commercial properties, including dynamic data and robust reporting for a multitude of data sets.
Residential agents can use their locations to easily search and analyze on-and-off market properties, valuations, tax and mortgage info, distressed data, flood zones, mapping, demographics, schools, neighborhoods, and market trends. Plus, they can instantly send client-friendly reports … anytime, anywhere.
New! Commercial practitioners can now use the app to access commercial property characteristics, ownership data, transaction history, legal descriptions, tax info, pre-foreclosure and foreclosure activity, street and satellite views, and more. Plus, RPR’s Commercial Property, Trade Area or Best Business reports can be instantly downloaded and/or emailed to a client.
By the way, we’ve created a cool infographic that highlights the features of the app’s commercial mode. Check it out!
This is your ultra-fast, easy dose of the latest tech that can help your life as a REALTOR®. Whether it’s using the MLS, Mobile Apps, or surfing around, we’ll give you the tools you need each Tuesday.
Tech Tip Tuesday – #042 – Registering for SCAOR 2017 Installation Using Member Portal
