The EDGE Information and news that gives you

The EDGE Information and news that gives you an edge in the real estate business In This Week’s “The EDGE” • HAR Preferred for Agent Ratings • There’s Still Time to Act on Patent Trolls • U. S. Housing Markets Stabilize • Houston Market Movements • Designate Yourself for Success “The Edge” is a weekly tool for managers to use to inform their agents and stay current and up-to-date with important real estate industry issues. Brought to you by the HAR Communications Department.

The EDGE Information and news that gives you an edge in the real estate business HAR Preferred for Agent Ratings Are you putting the power of the HAR. com Consumer Research Panel to work for YOUR brokerage? If you are, then your agents are participating in the HAR Client Experience Rating program. Forty-two percent of brokers surveyed told us they prefer participating in HAR’s Client Experience Rating versus Zillow’s agent ratings, while 18 percent believe agents should participate in both programs. The HAR. com Consumer Research Panel was established in 2011 and is now 9, 000 people strong. Check out all the helpful findings of the panel’s surveys at www. har. com/consumerresearch/. We are helping shape the future of real estate in Houston.

The EDGE Information and news that gives you an edge in the real estate business There’s Still Time to Act on Patent Trolls • Attention Houston REALTORS®: We need you to answer this Call for Action! It’s easy to do and takes just a minute of your time, but you need to act soon! • REALTORS® receive threatening demand letters and lawsuits alleging patent infringement based on the use of common business tools such as drop down menus or search alert functions on websites and the scanner function on a copier. These patent trolls buy vague patents and use them to turn everyday business practices into potential lawsuits. • Tell your U. S. Representative to support H. R. 9, the Innovation Act, to stop patent trolls and protect the real estate industry from frivolous lawsuits. • More information is available here: http: //bit. ly/1 HYJt 6 i

The EDGE Information and news that gives you an edge in the real estate business U. S. Housing Markets Stabilize • The U. S. housing market is teetering on the edge of becoming a stable market again, according to the latest Multi-Indicator Market Index (Mi. Mi) from Freddie Mac. • The national Mi. Mi value increased to 80. 3, indicating a housing market that is at the edge of stability, while showing an improvement of 1. 33% from May to June and a three-month improvement of 2. 26%. • Twenty-eight of the 50 states, plus Washington, D. C. , have Mi. Mi values in a stable range, Freddie Mac said. • Ranking in the top five are Washington, D. C. , North Dakota, Montana, Hawaii, and California and Utah, the latter of which are tied. • Making Freddie Mac’s list of the most improved states are New Jersey, Florida, Washington, D. C. , Connecticut, Nevada and Rhode Island. • In addition, 42 of the top 100 metropolitan areas have Mi. Mi values in a stable range, Freddie Mac said. Ranking on that top-five list are: Fresno, California; Austin, Texas; Honolulu; Salt Lake City; and Los Angeles. • “Housing markets are the strongest they’ve been in years with the national Mi. Mi above 80 for the first time since 2008, ” said Freddie Mac Deputy Chief Economist Len Kiefer.

The EDGE Information and news that gives you an edge in the real estate business Houston Market Movements In numerous markets across the country, the S&P/Case–Shiller Home Price Index has indicated that home prices have risen during summer, confirming the trends evident by examining MLS data. That's no surprise from month to month, but it's also true in year-over-year comparisons. As fall draws nearer, we will begin to see some seasonal relaxation, but the market should still look positive when compared to last year. It's been another good year for residential real estate, and that is expected to continue. In the Houston region, for the week ending August 23: • New Listings increased 5. 4% to 2, 302 • Pending Sales increased 17. 2% to 1, 881 • Closed Sales decreased 0. 7% to 1, 781

The EDGE Information and news that gives you an edge in the real estate business Designate Yourself for Success Graduate REALTOR® Institute (GRI-3): Brokerage The GRI designation is a powerful tool to attract and build new business. You'll increase your skill level across the entire landscape of real estate with in-depth training in professional standards, policies and procedures, brokerage and agency relationships and business development. GRI courses may be taken in any order and satisfy your 9 hours of non-legal MCE requirements. TREC rules mandate that each student be on time. Please bring your license number with you on the day of class. TAR provides a one-time, $50 coupon for qualifying students who register through HAR. com. Upon entering a user name and password, HAR will contact TAR to verify whether the coupon is applicable and the credit will be applied immediately. All other courses are at full price. Date: Sept. 10 -11, 14 -15 Location: HAR Central / Bay Area video conference Time: 8: 15 a. m. to 5 p. m. Investment: $295 Register at www. har. com/edu Questions? Call 713. 629. 1900 ext. 6