Welcome to the Realty Investment Association of California

Our 45th year of "Success through Cooperation!"

RIAOC Meeting agenda includes Early-Birds, Legal, Legislative, Financial News and a Speaker.

Next Meeting is: 5/21/2013 - Larry Steinberg, The Steinberg Financial Group
“The Politically Incorrect View of the Economy”

5/28/2013 - DARK

Our Current Workshops are: The LISTING and the LAND Workshops - If you have interest in learning how to do commercial, land or investment real estate, please attend one of these workshops. We will share our knowledge and help you learn how to list and market your listings by helping you learn the "ins and outs" of the investment real estate business.

Network Meeting 7:30 A.M.; General Meeting 8:30A.M. Workshops at 9:30.

News & Announcements -

The 10 steps to saving the Constitution come from the Heritage Foundation’s newsletter.

Don't miss the Ronald Reagan Page or The Star Spangled Banner (sung the right way!)(again by Daves Highway)

Quote of the Week: "Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did." --Newt Gingrich
Business Tip of the Week: Don't be afraid to take small risks. Just spend the time to test things out. And trust your gut. Often our gut instincts lead the way to the success we've been looking for.

From Brent Kenefick-Johnson Capital: Brent Lister
In last month’s newsletter, Scott Graber of our Denver office discussed the role the Fair Housing Administration (FHA) plays in the multifamily finance market. He also provided an overview of some of the recent changes FHA lenders must adhere to when making loans to borrowers under the various FHA programs. This month’s Viewpoint provides a brief comparison of FHA financing to financing backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as well as a more in-depth look at the timeline and process of a FHA loan. Read more of Lister's perspective.

INFO THAT HITS US WHERE WE LIVE... Both taking opportunities and making them have driven the housing market recovery to new accomplishments. For Q1 this year, existing home sales were at their highest level since Q4 of 2009 and new homes sales were the highest since Q3 of 2008. Last week, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported Pending Homes Sales were up 1.5% in March and up 7.0% compared to March a year ago. In fact, this measure of contracts signed on existing homes has now been above year-ago readings for 23 months in a row! Courtesy Joseph (Joe) Grunebach, Mountain West Financial, 951-544-6419.

The NAR's chief economist said, "Contract activity has been in a narrow range in recent months, not from a pause in demand but because of limited supply." He added: "Job additions and rising household wealth will continue to support housing demand." Finally, the 20-city composite of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index for February came in UP 9.3% versus a year ago. This was the highest annual growth rate since May 2006. In addition, all 20 cities showed price gains for at least two months in a row. That hasn't happened since early 2005.

Quick Tip: 5 Things to Do in 2013:
After the long Thanksgiving holiday, it’s tempting to take your foot off the pedal and coast into 2013. But, I encourage you to make the most of these last few weeks of the year. Don’t wait until January 1st to get started for the year – the time is now. Here are 5 quick and easy things to do...(Read More)

Multifamily - The multifamily sector continues to dominate the national commercial real estate market, fueled by gains in employment throughout the past year. Now in its seventh quarter of growth, this market is attracting the attention and capital of investors across the nation, reporting a 20% year-over-year gain in sales to $53.41 billion. Strong demographics are fueling this trend: the U.S. Census Bureau expects that the population most likely to lease multifamily units—20-to-34-year-olds—is expected to grow by 2.4 million by 2018.(Read More)

California Regional MLS now serving more than 71,000
Nation's largest MLS expanding access to CoreLogic's Matrix to all members - Andrea V. Brambila, 10/28/12. Inman News®
A local Realtor association in the Los Angeles area has joined the largest multiple listing service in the nation, bringing the MLS's membership to more than 71,000 agents and brokers. The addition of the Glendale Association of Realtors, which has about 1,400 members, brings the total number of associations that belong to California Regional MLS (CRMLS) to 35.Glendale has signed a multiyear agreement to provide CRMLS's MLS platform and a myriad of other products and services from CRMLS to its members. Those products and services...(Read More)

Industry Speaks Up, Demanding Action on Fiscal Cliff
As the nation teeters on the edge of the fiscal cliff, a handful of commercial real estate organizations have reached out to our elected officials to encourage them to do something—anything—to prevent the freefall. The approach is a departure from previous lobbying efforts..(Read More)

The Fiscal Cliff: What It Means for Housing and Home Builders,(RISMedia) - At the end of 2012, a number of tax and spending policies are scheduled to change. Taken together, these changes may exert a strong fiscal drag on an already fragile macroeconomic environment depending on the actions of Congress. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke calls this the “fiscal cliff.” Tax policy analysts call it “taxaggedon.”Regardless of its name, it represents the next dramatic policy deadline in Washington. Under present law, in 2013 the 2001/2003 tax cuts expire, the payroll tax cut expires, extended unemployment benefits end, and federal government spending levels decline due to last summer’s Budget Control Act.If implemented, these changes would have large consequences for housing and...(More)

The 3.8% Tax Is Not a Real Estate Transfer Tax-By Heather Elias, N.A.R.
Yes, a tax. But not a sales tax. It's a tax on investment income. It’s a tax on a very narrow band of investment income for high-wealth households (those who earn $250,000 in a joint return or $200,000 as an individual) that could come into play on the sale of a house if the sales gain is more than $500,000 for a married couple or $250,000 for an individual.Even in the unlikely event the sales gain is more than that amount, the tax would only apply based on other considerations having to with the household’s income and its tax situation.
Click here for a Top Ten Things You Need to Know About the 3.8% Tax.
Or, you can read more in our original 2010 article on it at Realtor.org.

NEW California Disclosure Law Requires Notice to Buyers regarding availability of Pipeline Maps - Effective: July 1, 2013
Name of Bill: AB 1511 – Notice Regarding Gas and Hazardous Liquid Transmission Pipelines
Signed by Governor: July 13,2012
Requirements affecting Real Estate Industry: Requires residential real property contracts to include the following notice –

NOTICE REGARDING GAS AND HAZARDOUS LIQUID TRANSMISSION PIPELINES
This notice is being provided simply to inform you that information about the general location of gas and hazardous liquid transmission pipelines is available to the public via the National Pipeline Mapping System (NPMS) Internet Web site maintained by the United States Department of Transportation at http://www.npms.phmsa.dot.gov/. To seek further information about possible transmission pipelines near the property, you may contact your local gas utility or other pipeline operators in the area. Contact information for pipeline operators is searchable by ZIP Code and county on the NPMS Internet Web site.
The new consumer notice language is similar to the advisory language that is in Natural Hazard Disclosure (NHD) Reports  from your provider. Please check to be sure you are covered.

Any opinions or suggestions herein contained are not intended to represent those of RIAOC .This Update is intended to be for general educational purposes only.  One should not consider relying upon anything in this Update or on this website without the advice of legal counsel or your C.P.A.

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