NARPM 2021 Education Classes are Open for Registration!

#NARPMSmart will improve your property management business! 2021 Education Courses are open for registration and here's the January & February 2021 lineup!

• Risk Awareness
• Profitability and Owner Relations
• Intro to Maintenance: Covering the Basics of Standards, Codes & Safety
• Maintenance Beyond the Basics
• Office Operations - Policies & Procedures
• Personnel Procedures Advanced
• Personnel Procedures Essentials - Hiring and Firing
• NARPM 101

Click HERE to see even more classes and sign up today! Members receive a 5% discount on course fees, when you register for 2 or more courses at a time.

This year's Christmas gathering was one to remember. 

We celebrated good friends, our leaders and sweet relationships in a wonderful setting with lots of laughs.  The venu was beautiful and the Housotn skyline magnificent.  If you missed the Houston Chapter December event, we missed you too! 

Have no fear we are already planning for 2021 and we expect it to be an eventful and powerful year for even more change and opportunities to grow our businesses.  Join us this coming January 21 for our first meeting and get onboard learning, networking and engaging.  Watch for the agenda and who will be presenting in the new year. Merry Cristmas and Happy New Year too!

FHA EXTENDS FORECLOSURE AND EVICTION MORATORIUM FOR SINGLE FAMILY HOMEOWNERS FOR ADDITIONAL TWO MONTHS

Extension Through August 31, 2020, Provides More Security for Homeowners Impacted by the Coronavirus Outbreak

WASHINGTON - Today, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced a two-month extension of its foreclosure and eviction moratorium through August 31, 2020, for homeowners with FHA-insured Single Family mortgages. This extension provides additional security and peace of mind to homeowners that they will not lose their homes while they are trying to recover financially.

FHA’s Single Family foreclosure and eviction moratorium extension applies to homeowners with FHA-insured Title II Single Family forward and Home Equity Conversion (reverse) mortgages, and continues to direct mortgage servicers to:

• Halt all new foreclosure actions and suspend all foreclosure actions currently in process, excluding legally vacant or abandoned properties; and
• Cease all evictions of persons from FHA-insured Single Family properties, excluding actions to evict occupants of legally vacant or abandoned properties.

“While the economic recovery is already underway, many American families still need more time and assistance to regain their financial footing,” said HUD Secretary Ben Carson. “Our foreclosure and eviction extension means that these families will not have to worry about losing their home as they work to recover from the financial impacts of COVID-19.”

“FHA is committed to working with borrowers impacted by COVID-19 and this second extension of the foreclosure and eviction moratorium is another sign of the unprecedented steps HUD is taking to assist those impacted by this terrible pandemic,” said Acting Federal Housing Commissioner Len Wolfson.

Homeowners with FHA-insured mortgages should continue to make their mortgage payments during the foreclosure and eviction moratorium if they are able to do so, or seek mortgage payment forbearance pursuant to the Coronavirus Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES) Act from their mortgage servicer, if needed.

Pursuant to the CARES Act, FHA requires mortgage servicers to:

• Offer borrowers with FHA-insured mortgages up to a year of delayed mortgage payment forbearance when the borrower requests it. FHA does not require a lump sum payment at the end of the forbearance period
• Assess borrowers who receive COVID-19 forbearance for its special COVID-19 National Emergency Standalone Partial Claim before the end of the forbearance period. The COVID-19 National Emergency Standalone Partial Claim puts all deferred mortgage payment amounts owed into a junior lien which is only repaid when the borrower sells the home, refinances the mortgage, or the mortgage is otherwise extinguished.

https://www.hud.gov/press/press_releases_media_advisories/HUD_No_20_081

Check out this video in which Marc shares 3 unique ways in which property management companies can proactively help residents during COVID-19.

Is it possible for your property management company to not only survive, but also to thrive during the COVID-19 crisis?

In order to make 2020 a successful year we recommend having a plan. This PM Survival Guide is designed to assist your property management company with creating that plan

Rather than worrying and having anxiety, focus on what you can control. These are 5 parts of your business you can start to control today.

check out this great Survival Guide here:

June 11, 2020 • News

Written By: Lisa Noon, CAE, RCE

We’re hearing more and more about companies being contacted by law firms with complaints about the company’s website and its compliance with ADA Title III rules. These types of what are called “drive by” complaints can be hard to fight and very expensive for a property manager, so it’s always a good idea to periodically check your website for compliance. How do you do that? Here are a few tips:

• Go to WAVE, a reputable web accessibility evaluation tool that you can access free of charge. All you have to do is type in your website address and in seconds, you’ll have a report that shows exactly where errors and alerts appear. Don’t be surprised if your logo gets flagged for missing alternative text – this is fairly common! The goal is to bring your error count down to as close to zero as possible; if it’s really high, you could be in danger of receiving a demand letter from a plaintiff’s attorney.
• Add an accessibility policy to your website. In 2020, not having a policy page has been a common source of complaint and lawsuit. The more specific you can be, the better – click here for a useful article with a sample policy.
• Test your website with actual users who are disabled. What does that mean? Typically, the ADA looks for ways you can make your website easier for those with visual limitations, physical disability (are not able to use a mouse or keyboard), or have hearing disability. Some specific examples of each are:

Visual – the viewer could have the ability to increase text sizes or magnify the screen, change background and text colors (for those who are color blind), or the ability to have the computer read web pages out loud. For example, you should always have text behind every graphic on your page, even if it’s your logo, so it can be read aloud to the user. Is your site compatible with screen reader technology?

Physical – can the user tab through menus and links through their keyboard instead of the mouse?

Hearing – do you provide transcripts of audio information and captioning for videos?

• Hire a consultant to remediate your website. There are no plug-ins, toolbars, widgets or any other immediate ‘fixes’ that will make your website instantly accessible. Ask your consultant if your site complies with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Levels A and AA – the most common measures of what constitutes an accessible website.
• Remember that some states and even some localities have their own accessibility laws, so check with your attorney to see if that might apply to your company’s site.

This list is not all-encompassing; needless to say, there is a lot to ensuring a compliant website, and it may even require a complete redesign. Watch for an article in the upcoming July 2020 issue of Residential Resource for more information.

Copyright © 2020 National Association of Residential Property Managers®. All Rights Reserved. Do not reprint without permission. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought dramatic change to the way REALTORS® are doing business today and will do business for years to come. With that in mind, HAR has assembled the greatest thought leaders from the real estate industry to present a series of virtual events designed to prepare our REALTOR® members for the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead in this new environment.

Click Here for full lineup!

When Will In-Person Open Houses Return to HAR.com?

The HRIS board (which is over HAR.com and the MLS) voted to begin displaying in-person open houses again when the governor declares Phase 2 of the state’s reopening plan. That is expected to be Monday, May 18, assuming the numbers he is reviewing look like progress is being made. We have everything in place to be able to immediately reenable the entering of in-person open houses in Matrix and the display of them on HAR.com as soon as he declares Phase 2.

In the meantime, we are recommending that any REALTOR who holds an in-person open house also consider doing a Virtual Open House (www.har.com/virtual). There is still a significant part of the population that is not yet ready to go to an in-person open house, so holding a Virtual Open House as well allows you to reach both groups of people, which maximizes your exposure to potential buyers. Plus, the Virtual Open House is recorded so interested consumers can view the property outside of just the hours you are holding the in-person open house. To date, 634 Virtual Open Houses have been held with nearly 4,200 people in virtual attendance.

ICYMI: Even With Increased Testing, Texas’ Positive Case Percentage is Declining

Texas has been focused on reopening responsibly, and our efforts to increase testing capacity and contact tracing efforts have allowed our citizens to safely return to work.  Because of increased testing, we have seen an increase in positive cases – as to be expected. The great news is, even with increased testing, the positivity rate is down. This means that even though we are testing more people, the percentage of people testing positive is decreasing. Source: Texas Department of State Health Services In fact, the positivity rate has decreased 15% since Governor Abbott began reopening Texas, and it’s down 2/3 from its peak in April. Over the weekend, the positivity rate dropped below 5% for the first time since the beginning of April.  Just as important as positivity rates are COVID-19 hospitalization rates. In my home of Montgomery County, hospitalizations have shown a downward trend since May 1st.  Source: Montgomery County Public Health District.  In the state overall, hospitalizations have not spiked since the state reopened, and there are currently 17,000 available beds.  Plus, Texas has the lowest death rate per capita of the top ten U.S. states by case count. Bottom line? While the mainstream media continues to manipulate the statistics and distort facts to misrepresent the situation in Texas, we’ve been able to open up our economy safely, without an increase in positive case percentage.

Exclusive Interview With Dr. Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist

In the current climate, there is a lot of misinformation and uncertainty in the marketplace. In this episode, Brian welcomes back NAR Chief Economist Dr. Lawrence Yun to get an update on the ongoing effects of the Coronavirus on the economy and housing. Informed by the very latest data, this special podcast will give you clarity and perspective on today’s real estate landscape.

Tune in Tuesday, May 5 at 12:01 a.m. PDT on your favorite podcast app!