January 2012

Advocacy Reaches Out to Municipal Officials

It’s a proactive move to be a resource on REALTOR® issues and the housing market

Mike Scobey  |  Assistant Director, Advocacy and Local Issues

IAR’s team of nine local Government Affairs Directors (GADs) working around the state often find themselves in an adversarial position with local government officials because of the nature of the issues that come up. For example, we fight against onerous city ordinances like fire sprinkler mandates and sign bans, and many of the municipal proposals involve heavy regulation of real estate transactions. The GADs have tried to change that adversarial role by being a source of helpful information with the municipalities.

Toward this end, the first issue of a new Advocacy Program-funded newsletter called On Common Ground in Illinois was sent to village and city officials in over 1,300 Illinois communities statewide. The goal is to help local officials see REALTORS® as a resource on public policy. Highlighted in the newsletter is information on the housing market (including an invitation to view the “Why I Buy” website:  www.whyibuy.org), data on economic indicators, timely information on recent state legislation as well as on housing opportunity and economic development issues.

• To get a copy of this newsletter, contact Aimee Bick at abick@iar.org.

For Your Sellers: New “Getting It Sold” Brochure
IAR members can order the FREE brochure “Getting It Sold - Your Resource for Staging Curb Appeal and Selling Success!” which addresses the seller’s side of the changing real estate market with information on what consumers can do to improve their chances of attracting a buyer and get their home in selling shape so that REALTORS® can do their job marketing the property. It includes a do’s and don’ts showing checklist and five ways to improve curb appeal.
Order in packs of 25 from the IAR REALTOR® Store (just shipping charges apply) or download it from the Advocacy Program area of the IAR website: www.illinoisrealtor.org/advocacy/downloads.

NEW! IAR Website on Economic Indicators in Illinois | http://sgsanalytics.com/IARecon/
IAR has developed a new website which displays a variety of economic indicators for the state and for various regions in Illinois. The site contains data on general housing statistics (such as median home values, vacancy rates), housing economics (median monthly housing costs, median gross rents) and unemployment/employment information (unemployment rates, median household income, etc.). Data sources include the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The data is compiled by Strategic Guidance Systems (SGS), an IAR Advocacy Program consultant, which IAR also uses for local issue campaigns and RPAC-related activities.