February 2018 CEO Report
Wow, we are already in the middle of March! It is hard to believe that we will soon be in Columbus for the spring legislative meetings. I will attempt to recap the sessions that we have had in the past month.
On February 16th several members of the legislative committee meet with State Repersentivies Steve Arndt and Dick Stein to discuss our Boards position on House Bill 211, the Home Inspection Bill. The meetings went well, and we were able to get the commitment of support from both of the Representatives on the bill. I am happy to report that the House Economic Development, Commerce, and Labor Committee reported out to the full house, HB211 which creates the Ohio Home Inspector Board and requires licensure of home inspectors. We will continue report on the progress on the bill as it works its way through the House. If passed by the full House it will then move to the Senate.
On Febuary 19th I had a luncheon meeting with Ed Dolinsky,Kristine Burdick, and Jeff Russell. Also attending from our Board was Steve Mack and DJ Swearingen. They are on the NORMALS Board of Governors and wanted to inform us of the changes at NORMALS. CHRIS MLS has merged with NORMALS, and they now are looking to see if they could become our MLS provider. We told them we would report to our Directors and follow up if we wanted any further information.
Our Professional Standards training class was held on February 21st at our Board Office. We had excellent attendance at this training.
On February 23rd I attended an RPAC Programs Task Force Meeting for the Ohio REALTORS in Columbus. The purpose of the RPAC Task Force would be to review: Ohio REALTORS per member goal and its effect on the Local Board Entitlement Program, Recognition Levels, and all RPAC State Awards programs (100% of Goal and Category Awards). It has been many years since the Per Member Goal, Recognition Levels and the RPAC Awards have been reviewed. There have been many changes in Ohio’s Local Boards/Associations that necessitate a review of these issues. Also, with changes in NAR’s calculation of percent participation by state associations, leadership believes serious consideration needs to be given to changing our per member RPAC goals.
The group had Discussion on the following topics;
- Currently, the Ohio per member goal is $10 per member
- NAR does not recognize PAC participation until a member contributes $15
This creates a Conflict because a board could have full member participation according to Ohio but not NAR minimums. By not suggesting a minimum contribution that is recognized by NAR as participating, Ohio does not get credit for those opting only to give $10.
Some other items for consideration:
- Should Ohio increase the per member amount to $15, bringing our minimum contribution in line with what NAR recognizes as participation?
- Would raising the per member share to $15 increase Ohio’s overall participation rating?
- Increasing the per member amount will impact how board entitlement dollars are calculated
I attended the 2018 Presidents Circle Conference from March 1st thru March 4. The President’s Circle is a group of REALTORS who contribute directly to REALTOR-friendly candidates at the federal level. Political Action Committees, like RPAC, can only legally contribute $10,000 per election cycle to a congressional candidate. The President’s Circle Program supports REALTOR Champions—members of Congress who have made significant achievements in advancing the REALTOR public policy agenda. The President’s Circle Program allows REALTORS to contribute beyond RPAC dollars and increase the strength of the REALTOR's voice on Capitol Hill. This is an annual event and Ohio had 25 members who were President Circle members in 2017.
On March 7th we held training for RPR at the Board office in three sessions, and we received great reviews on this program.
On the 14th we held New Member training for agents that have recently joined our Board. We have sent out invitations to our State officials for our dinner in Columbus scheduled for April 10th at Tony’s at the corner of Beck and High Streets.
Respectfully submitted,
David W Freitag RCE, CEO
FAOR Charitable Foundation Donation
Fran Hartenfield, Board member of Fish and Loaves in Bellevue, OH graciously receives a donation from the Firelands Association of REALTORS Charitable Trust. Each of our five counties allocates money for charities of their choice within their county.
Lake Erie Foundation
The Lake Erie Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization established in 2016 to sustain and protect the waters of Lake Erie. The Lake Erie Foundation is the result of the combining of two organizations, the Lake Erie Waterkeeper and Lake Erie Improvement Association, that advocated for Lake Erie protection and improvements for many years. Leaders of these pioneering organizations recognized that a combined long-term sustainable effort would be more effective in protecting the entire lake. Our mission is to “create and maintain a healthy Lake Erie now and forever as defined by drinkable water, recreational contact, and edible fish.”
Len Partin, Broker for Jack Bradley Realty in Port Clinton is a member of the Lake Erie Foundation Board. They are looking for additional members who believe that sustaining and maintaining the beauty of Lake Erie is important. For more information on joining this important group, please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to contact Jeanette Polacholski, Membership Director.
2018 Committee Sign Up
COMMITTEE REQUEST FORM
Dear REALTOR® and Affiliate Members,
Want to sign up for a specific committee? Signing up to help is a great way to be involved and meet new people! The following is a list of Committees that are in need of helpful volunteers; please enter your choices below, numbering them one through five, one being your first and most important choice. If you are willing to serve as Chairperson, please denote that selection with an asterisk (*). If you are currently serving on a committee and wish to remain on that committee for 2018, please include this in your selections. 2018 President Steve Mack and Vice-President Scott Myers will do their best to honor your requests.
On the other side you will find a description of each committee.
_____ Affiliate Committee (Affiliates Only)
_____ Commercial & Industrial
_____ Community Service
_____ Continuing Education
_____ Equal Opportunity in Housing
_____ Finance
_____ Forms
_____ Golf Outing
_____ Grievance Committee – Realtors Only (Requires mandatory training)
_____ Legislative & Political ____________________(For which County, City)
_____ Member Services & Awards
_____ MLS Advisory
_____ MLS Broker (Must be FAOR & MLS Broker Member)
_____ Professional Standards – Realtors Only (Requires mandatory training)
_____ RPAC Fundraising
_____ Scholarship
Name _____________________________________Office_______________________________________
Phone # _____________________________ E-mail_____________________________________________
Please Fax to 419-625-3442, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and/or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or drop off at the office.
September 2017 CEO Report
The past month was busy with events and meetings that I will try to summarize in this report. On August 23rd, we held our 2017 RPAC Cruise and Legislative Reception. We had our best attendance and I glad to report we have collected over $15,000 from this year’s cruise. This year we increased our number of major donors by 2 and we have 8 NAR Major donors! We had 2 of our area State Senators, 3 State Representatives, and United States Congressman Jim Renacci in attendance. This year we also increased the number of attendees from other Boards. This event has gained a reputation as first class and we continue to get positive feedback.
On September 6th, we held our 3rd General Membership meeting of the year, and we had Peg Ritenour, OAR Vice Legal Services as our speaker. She went over several important issues that are happening in our Industry at this time. She talked about the coming soon issues and that many of the surrounding MLS’s have formulated policy and rules to deal with is new marketing method. We also had our Director candidate Frank Corder speak to the members who were present. The floor was opened for nominations for the upcoming election and there were none.
The MLS committee held a meeting on the 13th of September to discuss the coming soon issue. MLS Director Connie Knerr presented the documents that had been compiled using information gathered from surrounding MLS’s. These had been reviewed by our Board Attorney. After a lengthy discussion, the committee voted to pass this on to the Directors for a vote. We have scheduled a video conference with Rapatonni during our September directors meeting to answer any questions on this new input field.
The Board held a Safety class at REALTOR hall on September 14, to help educate members. Administrative Assistant Leslie Bixby, worked with Perkins Police Chief Rob Parthemore and Sandusky Police Sargent Ron Snyder to develop this program. The class included video and lecture segments along with questions and comments from the attendees. The class was well received and there was a discussion on holding a class on self-defense in the future.
The Ohio/Kentucky REALTORS joint convention is being held in Cincinnati September 23/27. Our Board has a large contingent of members who have signed up and we will have great representation at the event.
I will be discussing with the Directors the bids I have received for landscaping and cosmetic repairs to our parking lot to remove the cement barriers.
We will be working on our Awards Banquet to be held October 10th at Schedel Gardens in Elmore.
Respectfully submitted,
David W Freitag RCE, CEO
