MAR 2021

OFFICIAL MONTHLY NEWSLETTER FOR SAN ANTONIO AREA REALTORS®

KEEPING POSTEDLegal & Ethics

This article is courtesy of Texas REALTORS®

Are you looking for a way to share your knowledge, energy and passion for the local real estate community? Then consider applying for SABOR’s Board of Directors!

As one of the largest associations in the country, members of SABOR’s Board of Directors are recognized on a local and national level for their dedication to the advancement of the real estate industry and the careers of SABOR’s over 13,000 local REALTOR® members.

The Role of a Board MemberYou may be wondering, what is the job

description of a Director?

The Board of Directors consists of 18 REALTOR® members, serving staggered three-year terms. They may serve up to two consecutive three-year terms.

As the largest trade association in South Texas, and in the top 20 REALTOR® associations in the country, it is a significant commitment to lead this organization.

SABOR Directors are a fiduciary of the association. That means they have a special legal responsibility in connection with the administration, investment, and care of SABOR and its assets. This requires Directors to make careful, good-faith decisions in the best interest of SABOR and its members. Their decisions must be made independently and free of any undue influence from any person or organization, including any other association, MLS or brokerage. They are charged with acting on behalf of the members by determining appropriate actions that best serve the whole membership, while the staff executes the daily management of the Board-directed policies.

Apply to Join SABOR’s Board of Directors Members of the Board of Directors have

duties and responsibilities of governing our association, and the association counts on Directors to participate in deliberating issues that impact our members’ daily business lives.

The Board of Directors has the authority to:

• Approve expenditures of the Association • Set dues • Set public policy positions as they pertain to the real estate industry • Establish governing policies of the Association • Approve member programs, products, and services

Board of Directors meetings are typically held once a month.

How to Apply To apply, simply complete and submit

the online application, and if you meet the eligibility requirements, you will be contacted for an interview with the Local Nominating Committee.

The application is available on member.sabor.com and opens March 1. Applications close on May 7.

If you need assistance, please contact communications@sabor.com.

• Apply to Join SABOR’s Board of Directors • Legal & Ethics: Changes to Delivery of Option Fee• January 2021 Home Sales Are Bright in Greater San Antonio Area• Upcoming Board Events

IN THIS ISSUE:• Welcome New Affiliate Members• Nuts About the Food Bank Peanut Butter Drive Contest• Thank You to Our SABOR Advertisers

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Changes to the Texas Real Estate Commission residential contract forms will go into effect April 1, 2021. Here’s what REALTORS® need to know.

What changes are being made to delivery of the option fee? TREC recently adopted changes to their residential contract forms with respect to the delivery of option fees. Under the revised forms, which become mandatory April 1, 2021, a buyer is required to deliver the option fee to the title company, not to the seller.

What is the deadline for delivery of the option fee to the title company under the revised forms? The buyer must deliver the option fee to the title company within three days after the effective date of the contract.

May the buyer deliver the option fee together with the earnest money? Yes. The option fee and earnest money may be paid separately or combined in a single payment. The amount delivered will be applied first to the option fee then to the earnest money. Any amount of funds remaining after that will be applied to the additional earnest money.

Will the seller have to wait until closing to receive the option fee from the title company? No. Under the revised forms, the buyer authorizes the escrow agent to release and deliver the option fee to the seller at any time without further notice to or consent from the buyer, and releases escrow agent from liability for delivery of the option fee to the seller. The option fee will be credited to the sales price at closing. Note, however, that any disbursement may be conditioned on the collection of good funds acceptable to the escrow agent. Title companies, which are regulated by the Texas Department of Insurance, must comply with “good funds” rules before disbursing option fees.

When am I required to use the updated versions of the TREC residential forms? The updated versions became available for use on a voluntary basis after February 16, 2021. All the updated forms are mandatory April 1, 2021.

Texas REALTORS® is working with all its forms vendors, including zipForm, to ensure the forms are posted prior to April 1. Look for the updated forms to replace the current forms in early March in the vendors’ libraries and on texasrealestate.com. It will be important during this time to note which form you are using to ensure your brokerage practice adheres to the changes in the forms regarding delivery of option fee.

Will title companies be ready to receive option fees? The Texas Land Title Association is working with their members to ensure title companies are aware of the changes and prepared to receive delivery of the option fee.

Which forms were updated?

Not every contract received the same update, so visit trec.texas.gov for specifics.

Changes to Delivery of Option Fee

TXR TREC Name

1601 20-14 One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale)

1603 23-15 New Home Contract (Incomplete Construction)

1604 24-15 New Home Contract (Completed Construction)

1605 30-13 Residential Condominium Contract (Resale)

1607 9-13 Unimproved Property Contract

1701 25-12 Farm and Ranch Contract

1922 36-8 Addendum for Property Subject to Mandatory Membership

SAN ANTONIO (February 16, 2021) – San Antonio and its surrounding communities began January 2021 with a 22 percent increase in home sales compared to January 2020, according to data provided by the San Antonio Board of REALTORS® (SABOR) which reports on all areas contained within the MLS. There were 2,559 homes sold in January 2021 compared to January 2020 with 2,091 home sales.

“The demand for housing typically experiences a slower start at the beginning of each year, but in seeing a consistent and quick rise in home sales, we expect a bright 2021,” said Cher Miculka, SABOR’s 2021 Chairman of the Board. “Bexar County, along with the greater San Antonio areas, provide great housing options for all generations, especially while interest rates are low.”

The average price of homes sold in Bexar County for January was $281,833, with a median price for the year of $245,000. In all of Texas, the average price was $325,376, with a median of $265,000.

In the greater San Antonio area, there were 3,286 new listings, while Bexar County specifically had 2,378 new listings.There were 31,509 total new listings in the state of Texas in January.

In the county comparison, Bexar County’s increase in home sales showed a 23.1 percent increase (1,889 homes in 2021 vs. 1,504 in 2020), which was a higher percentage increase than the other three major Texas counties. Travis County’s home sales increased 17.8 percent (1,011 homes), with Harris County showing a 28.2 percent increase (3,179 homes), and Dallas County displaying a 11.2 percent increase (1,450 homes). The percentage increase is year over year from 2020 to 2021.

January 2021 Home Sales Are Bright in Greater San Antonio Area, According to San Antonio Board of REALTORS®

San Antonio Area January 2021

Total Sales

2,559

Median Price

$259,200

Average Price

$304,009

UPCOMING BOARD EVENTSMarch 2021

A COMPLETE LIST OF COMMITTEE MEETINGS, EDUCATION COURSES AND OTHER BOARD EVENTS CAN BE FOUND ONLINE AT MEMBER.SABOR.COM

WELCOME NEW AFFILIATE MEMBERSWesley Burkholder - Silver Stone Home Inspections

Adam Weber - Fulcrum Pest ControlMolly Neck - Rosenblatt Law Firm

Roy Menchaca - RM Inspections, LLCAdrienne Casanova - My Real Estate Concierges

Jesus Cardona - T.J Moore Lumber YardJohn Dodson - Garner Abstract and Land Co.

Win DuBose - Chicago TitleJoseph Flores - Hondo National BankCharlie Reagor - Texas Title Network

Chad Stary - First State Bank of UvaldeSarah Tafolla - Mission Title

Jae Thompson - Capital Farm CreditJess Yeaman - Texas Farm Credit

[FACEBOOK LIVE] ‘Don’t Miss This’ Mondays: San Antonio Sports

[VIRTUAL] Designated Broker/Manager Meeting

1502[FACEBOOK LIVE] ‘Don’t Miss This’

Mondays: That’s Who We R Campaign With NAR01

SABOR Board of Directors Applications Open01

[FACEBOOK LIVE] ‘Don’t Miss This’ Mondays: Hemisfair Conservancy22

NAR Committee Applications Open01

@SanAntonioBoardofREALTORS

@SABoardREALTORS @saboardrealtors

@SABoardofREALTORS@SABoardREALTORS

company/san-antonio-board-of-realtors

Compete against other SABOR members in our Nuts About the Food Bank Peanut Butter Contest

SWBC Mortgage

Thank You to Our SABOR Advertisers

Gold

Monique BordelonJesse Bugarin

Kevin CrawfordDonna Drayton

Katie Griffin RossJan HicinbothomMarty Hutchison

Trudy Pape

Renae PrettyAnna Ramos

Courtney RosenMindi Stange

Reagan Williamson

ChairmanCher Miculka

Chair-ElectTracie Hasslocher

Secretary/TreasurerSara Briseño Gerrish

Members-At-LargeWilliam Curtis | Marquis Williams

Immediate Past ChairKim Bragman

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Does your company have what it takes to be the winner of SABOR’s peanut butter drive for the San Antonio Food Bank?

Help collect peanut butter donations for the San Antonio Food Bank, while competing against other companies to see who can donate the most jars!

The contest will kick off April 1st and go through June 30th! Submit your team entry form and get started collecting peanut butter!

Why should your company participate? • Help support the over 58,000 people the San Antonio Food Bank serves weekly

• Be a part of helping families that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic

• You could win a really cool trophy, the Peanut Butter Cup!

• And of course, bragging rights!

Contest Dates: April 1 – June 30, 2021

Contest Information: To enter into the contest, simply fill out an entry form, which can be found at member.sabor.com, and

select the size of your company. There will be three categories companies can enter; offices of 1-25, 26- 100, 101 and up. Each tier level will compete against each other and participants can see how they are stacking up with other participants at our leaderboard.

Peanut butter donations can be collected at your offices, dropped off gradually at SABOR throughout the drive (through curbside service), or shipped to SABOR. If dropping off or shipping, make sure to specify which company the peanut butter is for.

First place trophies will be awarded to the companies in each tier with the most donations. Winners will be announced July 7th!

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