| 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.
Office Closed on Monday, January 16
 Please note that the Suburban West REALTORS Association
office will be closed on Monday, January 16 in observance of Martin
Luther King Day. The office will reopen on Tuesday, January 17 at 8
a.m. Members seeking assistance are encouraged to use the Suburban
West REALTORS Association websit
e or contact the staff on Tuesday.
New Philadelphia Property Tax Rates Delayed
 The citywide property reassessment that had many Philadelphia
homeowners bracing for potentially exponential tax hikes will be
delayed by at least a year, according to the city’s chief tax
assessor, as it will take an extra 120 days to present City Council
with tentative results of its three-year effort to assess all
569,000 properties at market value.
The aim of this project, announced in 2002, is to get rid of
the antiquated and unpredictable formula currently used and replace
it with a system that taxes people on their actually property value.
The project is supposed to be revenue ‘neutral’ but an average of
50,000 homes in newly ‘hot’ areas will experience drastic tax
increases.
The new numbers would come in too late to be part of the 2006
budget; therefore, residents will not receive reassessment notices
until summer 2007 and would not pay bills until 2008. The
reassessment project has cost roughly $5 million. The delay has also
been attributed to Philadelphia’s current heated political climate.
With the bills coming in the summer of 2007, they will miss the
crucial 2007 primary elections, when nominations for all 17 Council
seats and the mayor’s office are scheduled for re-election. However,
David Glancey, chairman of the Board of Revision of Taxes, will not
be around when the bills go out, as he must leave his position by
March 2007 in order to maintain eligibility in the retirement-
incentive program. (Source: Philadelphia Inquirer;
01/11/2006)
Candidates Sought For TLC Television Program
 TLC is seeking candidates to appear on their program "Moving
Up." If you have a current client who is moving sometime between
January 23 and March 30, 2006; have outgoing personalities or
unique, extreme taste in design; and have plans to change the décor
of their new home right away, then this may be a tremendous
opportunity for them. In addition, any REALTORS who successfully
refer a client to the program will receive a credit in the show, and
$150 as a thank you.
If you have any leads, please contact your clients and see if
they might be interested. If so, contact Helen Hong at 212-974-9050,
x203 or email hhong@bbcnyproduction.com
with their contact information.
No Tax Increase in Phoenixville Budget's revision includes no raise in general fund; slight
increases in sewer, fire
Council approved a revised 2006 budget for advertisement with
no real estate tax hike for the general fund for the coming year.
Slight increases were passed for sewer fees and the Fire Fund. In
less than two hours, the newly-seated council, which officially
convened for the first time Tuesday night (1/11/06), hashed out
details and approved the budget, which will be adopted at its
February 14 meeting.
The fiscal plan includes a two-percent raise in the sewer
fees for borough residents, and a 0.066 percent increase in the tax
for the Fire Fund, which averages out to about $6.60 per $100,000
assessed value of property. The final real estate tax millage will
remain at 2.288 percent. The Fire Fund will increase less than a
tenth of a percent, raising the millage from .424 to .49 percent.
(Source: The Phoenix; 01/12/2006)
Memorial Notice
It is with sorrow that we report that Bob Ashleigh passed
away on Tuesday, Jan. 10th. Bob was a long- time REALTOR Member of
the Association. Memorial service will be held on Monday, Jan. 16th
at10:00 AM at the Broomall Reformed Presbyterian Church, 25 Lawrence
Road, Broomall, PA. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to a
medical foundation of your choice, in Bob’s name, or the Alzheimer’s
Foundation.
Employment Notice
Agent at Prudential Fox & Roach, Media office is seeking
an Assistant for 35-37 hours per week. Interested parties should
contact Shelby Charles at 610-745-2273.
Reminders
Have You Signed Up For Your Free Class--All REALTOR
Members are strongly encouraged to register for their free class
from the Association of REALTORS School. Due to the success of the
Association’s merger, we are pleased to leverage our resources to
make this benefit available to our 4,700 REALTORS. Members can
redeem the voucher they received with their dues for any class
scheduled between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2006 (NOTE that
designation and certificate courses are excluded). To use the
voucher, simply identify the MCE course you would like to attend and
call 610- 560-4900. A complete list of 3.5 hour courses are
available at www.realtors-school.com.
Code of Ethics Updated--As of January 1, the 2006 Code
of Ethics is effective. The Code Of Ethics is available on our
website by clicking
here. Remember to take special notice of Standards of Practice
1-13 and 1-15. These two standards were amended significantly to
address issues concerning multiple offer situations. Be sure to
check the January 2006 issue of the "REALTOR News" for a full
explanation of all the changes to the Code of Ethics.
Employment Notice--Associate Broker at Century 21
Norris-Valley Forge in Phoenixville is looking for a part-time
assistant - approx. 25 hrs. per week. Real Estate license is a plus
but not required. Flexible hours available. Interested candidates
should contact Lynne Norris at 610-631-8998 or email at C21lnorris@aol.com .
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 11 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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