Tuesday Tidbits: Home Inspections

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Here at DCAR, we want to make your jobs easier. That’s why we’ve started up our Tuesday Tidbits series, a weekly email that will provide you with a useful, relevant piece of information that will hopefully come in handy as you work. First was wire fraud. Next up: home inspections.

Much of the information we use in these emails comes from the National Association of REALTORS® publication RealtorMag. We encourage you to browse through their content for other useful tips.

Home Inspections

A home inspection is one of the many important steps to be taken before a prospective buyer purchases a home. But it’s imperative that you know what to look for and what to ask when the time comes, otherwise your buyer could be left unhappy.

What Questions to Ask Home Inspectors

The National Association of REALTORS® offers a guide to home inspections, which is linked below, that features five questions buyers should be asking of their home inspectors. Check out the link for more information on each of these questions, and make sure to check out the rest of the site for helpful information.

  1. What do you check? Home inspectors are limited to “visual, general inspections,” and it’s important the buyer knows what is not covered in the inspection.
  2. What do you charge for an inspection? Always find out the cost of the inspection you’re getting before you hire an inspector.
  3. How many inspections have you done? Everybody has to start somewhere, but experience matters, especially if there are “unusual home features” involved.
  4. Can I come along during the inspection? NAR says it would be a red flag for the inspector to not want the buyer to join for the inspection.
  5. Can I view a sample report? A sample report can show how a potential problem is cited in an inspection, which can help give perspective.

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The information expressed herein is intended to serve as a general resource guide for the members of the District of Columbia Association of REALTORS® and is subject to change. While the District of Columbia Association of REALTORS® strives to make the information in this email as timely and accurate as possible, the Association makes no claims or guarantees about the accuracy or completeness of the contents, and expressly disclaims liability for any errors and omissions. This information should not be taken as legal counsel.

Tuesday Tidbits: Wire Fraud

Posted by & filed under Tuesday Tidbits.

Here at DCAR, we want to make your jobs easier. That’s why we’ve started up our Tuesday Tidbits series, a weekly post that will provide you with a useful, relevant piece of information that will hopefully come in handy as you work. First up: wire fraud.

Wire Fraud

Wire fraud is one of the most common and devastating problems REALTORS® face on a day-to-day basis. This most frequently manifests in the following form:

  • The hacker breaks into the email of somebody involved in the transaction (you, your clients, other agents, etc.)
  • The hacker learns all about the buyer and the transaction
  • Right before closing, the hacker sends a fake email, which looks identical to previous real emails, to the buyer with revised instructions on how to wire the money for the sale
  • As soon as the money is wired, the account is closed, the hacker disappears completely and the money is gone forever

How to Avoid Becoming a Victim of Wire Fraud

Most importantly: Never click links in emails you don’t recognize!

Of course, that won’t keep you completely safe. Part of what makes hackers so dangerous is their ability to impersonate senders you do recognize. It helps to be vigilant and double-check to make sure the email address is the one you think it is.

For example, emails coming from DCAR staff will always come from either @dcrealtors.org or @gcaar.com; if you get an email from somebody at @dcrealtors.com, that’s a fake!

But if a hacker has gained access to a legitimate email address, it can be especially difficult to spot a red flag.

REALTOR® Mag has created a guide to help you keep hackers out of your email, which is linked below, but the ever-important first step is simply to educate yourself and others involved in a transaction:

“When it comes to a real estate transaction, you have so many different players, and all it takes is one person in that transaction who isn’t aware of the signs of fraud to make the whole thing implode,” says Jessica Edgerton, associate council of the National Association of REALTORS®. “As the initiators of a transaction, you can spread the word about these security problems to everyone in the transaction who needs to know about it.”

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The information expressed herein is intended to serve as a general resource guide for the members of the District of Columbia Association of REALTORS® and is subject to change. While the District of Columbia Association of REALTORS® strives to make the information in this email as timely and accurate as possible, the Association makes no claims or guarantees about the accuracy or completeness of the contents, and expressly disclaims liability for any errors and omissions. This information should not be taken as legal counsel.

Coming Soon: The New DCAR Office!

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Coming Soon: The New DCAR Office!

DCAR has called 500 New Jersey Avenue its DC home for several years now, but we have exciting news: We’re one step closer to opening our brand new DC office! The tenants moved out this past weekend; now, we’re getting ready to begin work on the building to make sure it’s in tiptop shape. It’s a day we’ve long awaited, and we’re thrilled to be able to report this development.

The office is located at 1615 New Hampshire Avenue, near Dupont Circle, and we’ll have the entire third floor to ourselves.

Happy closing day to DCAR! We are excited to announce that we will be moving to 1615 New Hampshire Ave, NW towards the…

Posted by District of Columbia Association of Realtors – DCAR on Monday, July 17, 2017

See it on the map!

Among the amenities planned for the new DC headquarters are offices for some of our employees, private work space, a reception area, a 40-person classroom and a store well-stocked with all your REALTOR® needs. More details on the amenities will come soon, but we’re looking forward to sharing the information with you as we get it.

Colin Johnson, the 2017 DCAR president, issued the following statement Monday morning:

“We at DCAR, with combined design input from GCAAR, set out to build a space that not only serves today’s needs, but offers flexibility for future growth and association needs. The space features expandable meeting areas for large or small groups. It features entertainment/reception space for events for Association or outside organizational needs. We worked with several local groups in assisting in providing lessons learned to ensure we can take advantage of changing commercial needs in DC market space. We also worked with a local shared space company to provide insights for potential flexible office space needs. The vision for the first purchase in our more than 100-year history was to reflect proudly on the hard work and smart strategic thinking by members from the past, while capturing the mission to advocate, protect and promote the interests of our members and the public we serve. This new space will now be an added tool to ensure We continue to be the voice of real estate in the District, and aid us in ensuring homeowner rights are preserved.”

More details will be provided as we get them, and we hope to be able to give an estimated move-in date soon, but we wanted to share this excellent news with you as soon as we got it.

Until then, you can always reach us at our current DC office (500 New Jersey Ave. NW) or our Rockville office (15201 Diamondback Dr.), or you can contact us individually.

Welcome to the new DCAR!

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WELCOME TO THE NEW DCAR

The brand new DCAR website is here!

There are other changes in the works, some of which have already occurred behind the scenes, some of which are happening now, and others are coming in the near future, but we wanted to take a brief moment to re-introduce ourselves to you, whether you’re one of our more than 2,800 members, or simply a member of the public who wants to know who we are and what we do.

The District of Columbia Association of REALTORS®, also known as DCAR, has been around for more than 100 years. We won’t go into the history of our association here, because we have all of that in full detail right here. Make sure to acquaint yourself with the association via our history book and videos.

If you’re unclear of what it is exactly that we do, either in the long term or on a day-to-day basis, perhaps this will help. In (very) short: We fight for the things that are important to REALTORS® in the District. But don’t let that simple understatement speak for itself; take a moment to read through some of the work that we do to get a feel for what DCAR is.

The Association is headed by CEO Ed Krauze, Government Affairs Director Katalin Peter and Communications/Member Outreach Specialist Bryan Frantz. In addition, many of our members spend countless hours volunteering to help guide DCAR in its various endeavors, and we would be nothing without their incredible work. You can see who we’re talking about here.

DCAR is sometimes confused with GCAAR, the Greater Capital Area Association of REALTORS®. DCAR exclusively deals with DC matters, while GCAAR deals with DC matters and Montgomery County matters, but there is more to it than that. A more thorough explanation of the distinction between the two associations, and a breakdown of how the REALTOR® association structure works, can be found here.

Much of what we do concerns legislative affairs. Put simply: We fight to protect the rights of homeowners, we work to make sure only necessary regulations regarding property rights are passed, and we help make it easier to put people in homes. For a brief summary of where we stand on some of the most pressing issues at any given time, head over to our policy positions page.

While our work most often requires time spent at the Wilson Building, the home of DC government, sometimes we’re asked to give public comment outside of the hearing rooms. For example, we spent some time with NBC4 over the past few months to help shine a light on a law we’re working hard to get amended. You can find links to those appearances, and any other media information you might need, here.

If you need any tools or tips on buying, selling, renovating or renting out a home, our resources page has plenty of good information for you to browse.

And if you’re just totally lost by all the many acronyms and abbreviations thrown around on this website, hopefully our glossary will clear things up for you.

That’s just a quick tour of DCAR. There’s plenty more to the association, and its members, and we hope you’ll spend the time taking a look around the new website. If you have any questions, comments, suggestions or anything else to say, please let us know. Here’s how to reach us.

Thanks, and come back soon!

1-Stop Shop: Government Resources

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1-STOP SHOP: GOVERNMENT RESOURCES

The DC government is a complicated beast, to be sure, but we’re here to help. Across our new website, we have a number of resources that aim to help you find the government information you need, or, when appropriate, to put you in contact with various government representatives.

For starters, make sure you head over to our quick-hitting explainer on the ins and outs of the DC government. It has information on how the actual system works, who is in charge of what, as well as some agencies and services that would be relevant to REALTORS®, homeowners, renters and others. You can find that guide here.

There are 13 DC Councilmembers — one for each of the city’s eight wards, four at-large Councilmembers that are voted upon by the entirety of the District and the Chairman, who is also elected by the city as opposed to a particular ward or subset — and along with the mayor, they are the primary governmental body for the city. They craft legislation, debate it, amend it, pass it and work to fund it.

If you ever need to get in touch with one of your Councilmembers, whether it be your ward Councilmember or an at-large Councilmember, you can find their contact information here. Sometimes, DCAR will appeal to its members to reach out to their Councilmembers regarding a particular piece of legislation or a specific issue at hand.

Moving away from the governmental bodies, there are many important resources we have on our website that can be useful to you on a day-to-day basis. For example, if you’re looking to purchase a home, our guide of homeownership programs in the District has a great deal of information that you’ll want to peruse. Many of those, such as the Home Purchase Assistance Program (HPAP), are government-backed programs that would not exist without the work of the Council.

And if you need information on zoning regulations, historic districts and more, our compilation of useful links will be helpful.

If there is anything else you need that you can’t find on our website, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at contact@dcrealtors.org. We’re always willing to help!

A Day of Significant Importance: A Review of DCAR’s 2016 Advocacy Day

Posted by & filed under For Homebuyers & Renters, For Policymakers & Media, For REALTORS.

DC REALTORS® Left a Clear Message of Cooperation

Since 2014 DCAR has visited the DC Council at the John A. Wilson Building to work with our council members. Our third visit covered transfer and recordation taxes and modernizing TOPA. Our goal for this year’s Advocacy Day involved sending the message to the Council that the value of home ownership is boundless. As people settle their roots in the District, families can flourish, schools would improve, and businesses may thrive in a stable ecosystem anchored by a healthy housing sector. Your State Association also wanted to convey our desire to continue working together in 2017 to increase homeownership, improve the rental market for everyone involved. Additionally, we nailed down the importance of recordation and transfer tax relief to future DC homeowners and cut through regulatory hurdles.

Read more »

Realtors® Learn How to Navigate Financing Programs in DC

Posted by & filed under For Homebuyers & Renters, For REALTORS.

Home ownership is never beyond reach when buyers have the tools necessary for financial assistance.

Dreams Are Possible

Homeownership is one of the best ways to build wealth and equity. Most importantly, it facilitates the mobility families need to move up or down the housing spectrum depending on their needs. The prospect of owning a home is not some far-off fantasy. That is especially true when there are so many assistance options available. Today families of many different economic backgrounds can own a home, and DCAR brought in the experts to show our members what programs are available.

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DC REALTOR 2016 Election Guide

Posted by & filed under For REALTORS.

DCAR Encourages Each of its Nearly 3,000 Members to Vote Early or On Election Day for the 2016 General Election

Voters started lining up at One Judiciary Square on October 22nd to make their vote count in the 2016 General Election. Over 7,000 votes have been tallied for an election that holds tremendous weight on the world stage. Even DC itself could make history in the statehood fight. Read more »

DCAR Speaker Series Recap – The State of DC’s Environment

Posted by & filed under For Homebuyers & Renters, For REALTORS.

This month’s Speaker Series covered the perils of mold, radon and lead contamination.

Mold, radon and lead contamination can often hide in plain sight, and there are ways to protect your homes. This month’s Speaker Series had all the information our members needed. If you couldn’t make it, we’ve provided resources for you. DCAR hosted the District’s Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) to talk about what our members can do to protect their homes and listings from the negative effects of lead, mold, and radon. Read more »

Legislative Alert – Public Hearings Set For New Rental Bills

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DC Rent Update

Public Hearings Scheduled For October 19

Recently, the DC Council passed a rental late fee bill that we successfully amended on a number of fronts. The legislation caps late fees at 5% or less and standardizes a five-day ‘grace period.’ DCAR worked with Councilmember Anita Bonds (I-At Large) on both issues to scale the framework to levels that are acceptable to the REALTOR® community. Now DCAR is active on a new set of rental bills. Read more »