| Weekly News Service
Providing the Latest Association and Local Real Estate
Information
The Weekly News
Service is an exclusive benefit available to members of the Suburban
West REALTORS Association. Featuring both Association news and local
real estate industry information, the Weekly News is a service meant
to benefit all members of the organization.
Welcome Reception for 2006 Board of Directors on January
12
 All members are invited to attend the Suburban West REALTORS
Association’s Welcome Reception for the 2006 Board of Directors and
the Association’s new Chairman, Harrison “Bud” Tyson. This special
event will be held on Thursday, January 12 at the Waynesborough
Country Club in Paoli from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. While it provides
an opportunity to meet the leadership of the organization, this
event also is a great chance to network with other members.
Additionally, the reception features a one- hour open bar, butlered
hors d’oeuvres, carving stations, and a delectable dessert buffet.
Please note that optional valet parking will be available.
The cost for the event is $65 and black tie is admired. To
register online, please access the Online Payment Center by clicking
here. Once logged on, just click on the link for event calendar
and follow the link for the Welcome Reception.
You can also register by calling Vinnie Pagnini at 610-
560-4800 or email vpagnini@suburbanwestrealtors.com.
Media Property Taxes to Rise After 25 years of No
Increases
The ax finally fell on the Media Borough property tax rate,
which had stood for more than a quarter of a century. Council agreed
to raise the property tax from .29 mills in order to balance the
budget and build capital reserve. Members authorized the
advertisement of the ordinance, which will set the rate at 1
mill.
The problem of having an artificially low tax rate for years
is the perceived shock when it is raised at all, let alone the
percentage council suggested. But numbers can be misleading.
Property owners now pay $36 annually for a home assessed at
$125,000. That will rise to $125 The final budget should be adopted
during the scheduled December 15 meeting. (Source:
CountyPressOnline; 12/06/05)
Deadline To Donate Toys is December 16
 The Suburban West REALTORS Association is pleased to continue
to coordinate an effort among our members to donate toys to
underprivileged children in our metropolitan area. Currently, all
members are encouraged to bring at least one new unwrapped,
non-violent toy to the Association’s office in Malvern. The
organization will continue to accept donated toys through Friday,
December 16. All gifts that we receive will be distributed to
deserving children and families through three organizations:
Dreuding Center (Project Rainbow), Head Start and the Weatherly Day
Center. For more information, please contact Vinnie Pagnini at
610-560-4800 or email vpagnini@suburbanwestrealtors.com.
NAR Files Motion to Dismiss Antitrust Lawsuit
The National Association of REALTORS on December 6 asked a
federal district court to dismiss an antitrust complaint by the
Department of Justice against NAR’s policy governing the display of
multiple listing service information on brokers’ Internet sites on
the grounds that the government sued over provisions in a
predecessor policy that has since been rescinded and that the new
policy that replaced it is clearly pro-competitive.
The motion filed in the US District Court for the Northern
District of Illinois claims that “opt out” provisions in the NAR
policy do nothing more than permit individual entities to make
independent decisions whether to authorize the display of their
listings on competitors’ Web sites.
For the latest information on this continuing story, please
log on to www.realtor.org.
What REALTORS Are Saying About e-PRO
 “As a person with 10 years of previous IT background, I
started e-PRO with the attitude that it would just be a refresher of
items that I had already seen, done, or heard about. From the first,
I knew that this course would be something special. It was geared
toward technology, but in more of a marketing sense, how to take
that technology and use it to prosper in the real estate industry. I
have learned a lot of good information and will be putting it to
good use.“
The e-PRO course was designed for REALTORS by REALTORS. The
course has proven valuable to REALTORS just learning about
technology as well as to those with advanced computer knowledge. To
find out if the on line e-PRO course will benefit your career, plan
to attend a FREE “Introduction to e-PRO workshop” on Friday,
December 16, 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. at the Association’s Malvern office.
The seminar will introduce you to the concepts presented in the
course and help you decide if this certification is one you want to
pursue at this time. Attendees will also receive a $30 discount off
the online registration fee.
To register for the FREE 90-minute Introduction to e- PRO
seminar log into the Online
Payment/Registration Area and click on events. Or call
610-560-4800.
Reminders
Get a Head Start on Your License Renewal at the
Springfield Country Club—The Association of REALTORS School is
taking its classes on the road. On December 15, members are invited
to the Springfield Country Club for a complete day of classes that
will provide a total of 7 hours of Continuing Education Credit and a
complimentary lunch for $70 (Note that members can sign up for
classes individually for $35 each). The morning class, beginning at
9:00 a.m., is Everything You Should Know About RESPA.
The afternoon class, beginning at 1:30 p.m., is
Professionalism, Ethics & Standard Forms. For more
information on the classes or to register, please call 610-560-4900
or click
here.
Employment Opportunity—Small Real Estate office in
West Chester, established over 40 years, that deals in commercial,
residential sales and property management is seeking organized,
detail oriented Administrative Assistant. The successful candidate
must be proficient in MS Office and have a working knowledge of
general bookkeeping and QuickBooks. Real Estate license is a plus
and flexible hours are available. Interested candidates should
contact Thomas Spackman at 610-692-2424 or fax resume to
610-692-2718.
Important Phone Numbers & Websites
- Association of REALTORS School: 610-560-4900 (www.realtors-school.com)
- REALTORS Legislative Alliance: 610-981-9000 (www.rladirect.com)
- Suburban West REALTORS Association TECH HOTLINE:
800-704-7240 (email: techhotline@att.net) (8:30 am to 8
pm, Monday to Friday)
- PAR Legal Hotline: 800-727-5345 (9 am to 10 am &
1 pm to 3 pm, Monday to Friday)
- Suburban West REALTORS Association Website: www.suburbanwestrealtors.com
- SUPRA Support: 877-699-6787 (8 am to 10 pm,
Everyday)
- TREND: 610-783-4650 (www.trendmls.com)
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