Brian DiNardo, NYSCAR

NYSCAR Board Meeting

The NYSCAR Board will be meeting on Saturday, February 4, 2017 at the Desmond Hotel in Albany at which time the officers and directors will be installed. The annual conference planning committee will be meeting in mid-December to get the ball rolling for this year’s conference which will be held at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, June 5-7, 2017. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend! Our education committee will continue to partner with the local chapters to present top-quality commercial education. We are pleased that the association just held three commercial courses over the past two months in Syracuse, Albany and Rochester. The courses were well-received by the participants, which was a great way to close out the year. 

Code of Ethics Reminder: December 31, 2016 deadline approaching quickly!

In order to maintain your Realtor membership, all members must successfully complete an approved Code of Ethics Course of not less than 2 1/2 hours by December 31, 2016. If you have not taken a Code of Ethics course since January 1, 2013, please be sure to do so by the December deadline. You can take an on-line course for free by going to http://www.realtor.org/code-of-ethics/training. Failure to complete training will result in suspension of membership on January 1, 2017 until the requirement is met.

 Fair Housing Licensing Requirement and the New Agency Requirement for License Renewal

Effective January 1, 2017, any real estate licensee who renews their license must have completed 22 ½ hours of approved continuing education, three hours of which must include fair housing and/or discrimination in the sale or rental of real property or an interest in real property along with the updated requirement of at least one hour of law of agency. If a salesperson is within their first license term, they must complete two hours of agency along with the other designated educational hours. This change does not apply to those licensees who are exempt from the continuing education requirement.

To assist you in locating courses or help you determine whether you have already met the requirement, NYS DOS will be placing a list of courses which meet the agency requirement on their website www.dos.ny.gov/licensing. Any existing approved course that contains the topic of agency within the coursework will satisfy either the one or two hour requirement. The division is in the process of adopting regulations that will allow for the approval of 1 hour courses.

NYSCAR Realtor of the Year Nominations

NYSCAR is accepting nominations for Realtor of the Year. The award is to recognize an outstanding active member of the New York State Commercial Association of Realtors for 2016. Deadline for applications is December 15, 2016.

If you would like to nominate a NYSCAR member for Realtor of the Year, please email Ali Mann ([email protected]) or Sherry Marr, ([email protected]) for information.

Education Opportunities

Triple Play Conference: sponsored by the NYS, NJ and PA Associations of Realtors is scheduled for December 5-8, 2016 in Atlantic City, NJ. There are 90 programs to choose from. Go to realtorstripleplay.com for full information and to register.

Code of Ethics and Professional Standards Training: This course, sponsored by the NYS Association of Realtors, is a must for local board/association presidents, directors, executive officers, professional standards administrators and legal counsels, in addition to grievance and professional standards committee members. Any other members interested in learning more about the professional standards process are welcome. The course satisfies NAR’s mandatory ethics training requirement. In this course, you’ll:

• Gain a full understanding of the conduct of ethics and arbitration hearings, enforcement procedures and disciplinary guidelines;

• Learn about the mediation process and its benefits; and

• Explore the mandatory ombudsman program and citation options. 

Upcoming classes include:

March 7 – in Syracuse

March 9 – in Saratoga

March 10 – in Lake Placid

March 27 – in Batavia

March 28 – in Binghamton

6 Hours of CE credit is included. Cost: $125 members/$150 non-members. Registration opens January 2, 2017.

Best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!

Brian DiNardo is the president of NYSCAR and is a NYS licensed real estate broker, DiNardo Realty Corp., East Rochester, N.Y.