Greater Milwaukee Association of REALTORS®



GMAR Board Of Directors

Thursday, January 15, 2015 • 12:00 PM

GMAR Headquarters

Meeting Agenda

|State Sen. Paul Farrow, Candidate for Waukesha County Executive |15 Min |

|Dana Karrow, GMAR Youth Foundation President |15 Min |

| | | | |

|Consent Agenda |P 2 |Approval | |

| | | | |

|Reports | | | |

|Chairwoman | |Information |5 Min |

| | | | |

|Treasurer | | | |

|November 2014 Financials |P 12 |Approval |10 Min |

| | | | |

|President |P 15 |Approval |20 Min |

| | | | |

|Departments | | | |

|Government Affairs | |Information |10 Min |

|Promotions | |Information |5 Min |

|Professional Standards | |Information |10 Min |

| | | | |

|MLS | |Information |10 Min |

|Old Business | | | |

|None | | | |

|New Business | | | |

|None | | | |

|Adjourn | | |1:30 PM |

|Important Upcoming Dates: |

|REALTOR® & Government Day – Wednesday, March 11th, Monona Terrace, Madison |

|ST. Paddy’s Day Dash (Youth Foundation) – Sunday, March 15th – Hart Park, Wauwatosa |

|REALTOR® Home & Garden Show – March 20th – 29th – WI Exposition Center, State Fair Park |

* Indicates information will be available at the Directors meeting. Updated: 1/9/2015 4:50 PM

GMAR Board Of Directors

Consent Agenda

1. It is moved, seconded and carried to approve the minutes of the Board of Directors meeting from November 20, 2014. p. 3

2. It is moved, seconded and carried to approve of the 37 new members who have applied to become members of the GMAR and paid the appropriate fees. p. 11

GREATER MILWAUKEE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING MINUTES

Thursday, November 20, 2014 • 12:00 PM

GMAR Headquarters, Wauwatosa, WI

1. Call to Order

Chairman Bob Larson called the meeting to order at 12:00 PM with a quorum present for the transaction of business.

Present: Bob Larson, Chairman; Betsy Head, Chair-Elect; Mike Kollmansberger, Corporate Secretary; Tina Balaka, Past-Chair; Roxanne Platz, Treasurer; Mike Fonz, Kel Svoboda, Joan Read, Jeff Joseph, Linda Schulteis, Jennifer Burns, Tom Sykora, Vickie Kelsall

Staff Present: Mike Ruzicka, President; Scott Bush, VP Operations; Marne Stuck, GAD, Caitlin McCrory, Communications Director

Excused: Cindy Fleming, Kathy Martello, Dale Marciniak

2. Consent Agenda

A. Minutes of September 18, 2014 Board of Directors Meeting

B. New Member Report (84 new members)

M/S/C to approve Consent Agenda.

3. Reports

A. Chairman’s Report

Bob Larson publicly gave the Association’s condolences to Betsy Head after the passing of her husband and fellow REALTOR®, on November 7th.

Mr. Larson thanked the outgoing directors: Linda Schulteis, Tina Balaka, Jeff Joseph and Mike Fons. He also congratulated the newly elected Directors: Roxanne Platz and Vickie Kelsall, who are returning to the Board, and Amy Curler and Arthur Mays, who are newly elected. Additionally, Kaye Erdman will join the Board as the 2015 representative from the former Kettle Moraine Association of REALTORS® which merged with the GMAR this past summer.

B. Treasurer’s Report

1) Finances – Roxanne Platz reviewed the GMAR’s October 2014 finances.

Statement of Financial Position – As of October 31, 2014, GMAR had $1,555,150 in Cash & Investment Balances, up $128,686 from last year. This increase was due primarily to exhibitor deposits for next year’s Home & Garden Show being collected a month earlier than last year.

Accounts receivable were up $90,584 compared to 2013, again primarily because of next year’s Home & Garden Show exhibitors. Prepaid expenses were up $60,162 compared to last year due to a higher facility deposit for the 2015 Home and Garden Show.

Total Assets were $3,286,003 which was up $266,891 compared to 2013.

On the Liability side, accounts payable were up $16,253 mainly due to dues payable to NAR. Unearned revenue was up $261,740 because of the 2015 Kettle Moraine dues payment and 2015 GMAR dues received and 2015 Home & Garden Show income. Accrued expenses were down $33 compared to last year. The long-term mortgage liability was down $30,268 which is the amount of principal to be paid on the mortgage in 2014. Overall, Total Liabilities were up $247,692 compared to 2013.

For the month ending October 31, 2014, GMAR had Net Income of $168,073, up $51,337 from last year. Overall, Total Net Assets were $2,060,517; $19,200 higher than the same point in 2013.

Statement of Activities – Membership: We budgeted for a 90% renewal which was 3,220 members and we actually had 3,202 members renew which equates to an 89% renewal. Through October, R/DR new members are way ahead of last year’s numbers. There have been 535 new R/DR members through October, 2014 and last year there was a total of 466 new R/DR members.

Promotions: Home & Garden Show: Through October, $874,594 of income and $615,857 of expenses have been recorded for a net income of $258,737. The budgeted net income for the Home and Garden Show was $260,854.

Public Policy and Professional Standards expenses were mostly all personnel costs, incurring expenditures primarily in Labor and Overhead.

Products (Wisconsin Real Estate Supply): Product sales through October, 2014 were around $8,000 higher than the sales through October, 2013.

The Leadership section includes expenditures for meetings, committees, officer expenses, strategic planning, NAR Home Buyer and Seller survey and NAR meetings.

The Administrative section includes investment and rental income and expenses for professional fees, salaries, fringe benefits, building, insurance, occupancy, property taxes, general office expenses and depreciation.

The bottom line showed Excess Receipts Over Expenditures of $168,073, which will be used up in the coming months. Last year our net income was $116,737 for the same time period. The budgeted net income (loss) is ($5,385) which includes $2,000 for capital outlay.

M/S/C to approve the unaudited Statement of Financial Position (Balance Sheet) and Statement of Activities as of October 31, 2014, and recommend placing on file for audit.

2) 2015 GMAR Budget – Mike Ruzicka presented the proposed 2015 GMAR Budget.

Membership - Dues. The largest source of net revenue for the Association will be up $69,000 compared to 2014. 3,595 members were billed for dues for FY 2014. 3,991 were sent dues bills for FY 2015 (including 234 KMRA members). We are projecting a 90% renewal rate, which would result in 3,592 members on January 1st.

The Association is expecting new member totals of 464 REALTORS®, 50 Designated REALTORS®, and 20 Affiliates during the year. The GMAR budgeted conservatively, although the numbers are above the 2013 budget, but not quite as high the 2014 actual numbers were.

Events. Discontinuation of the Tech Forum and replacing it with a REBarCamp. That and the Brewers Tailgate Party are designed to be break-even events, Golf Outing revenue should be positive to the tune of $7,000, and the Holiday Party is usually a little in the negative. The new Tiki Party finished negative $900.

Communications. The GMAR will revive a program the Association had discontinued during the recession, spending $50,000 on a public awareness campaign designed to educate consumers that REALTORS® have access to the best, most accurate information.

Additionally, the Association created a new budget item for the Kettle Moraine Council. We calculated $25 for each GMAR member in Washington County (250) for a total of $6,250 for the KMC to spend as it sees fit. It will be adjusted as members join the Association.

Promotions – The 2014 REALTORS® Home & Garden Show (HGS) came back strong from the setback seen in 2013. After a positive 2014 and some staff changes, the Association expects 2015 to be about even or slightly ahead. [Note: about 78% of HGS revenue is from booth sales.] For the 2015 HGS the staff is expecting net revenue to be just over $250,000.

Other Shows consists of the Downtown Diggs (formerly Open House). Again this year, the GMAR relied on social media and BID #21 Milwaukee Downtown to successfully spread word of the event. The only significant expenditures were in staff time. The Association plans to utilize the same strategy for 2015. Similar to past years, the number of events in the region will be expanded when the economy warrants.

WRA Educational Partnership the Association expects income to be flat for 2015. Youth Foundation income and expenditures are flat.

Public Policy – Income in Public Policy is exclusively sponsorships for the bus for REALTOR® & Government Day. On the expenditure side, the section has a line item for the bus, lobbying licenses, subscriptions to Gov’t Affairs-related publications and .

The Association plans to sponsor the MMAC’s Milwaukee Nights (MKE & DC), and is planning to sponsor a few WisPolitics and Public Policy Forum events to keep the GMAR’s brand and image before regional policymakers and elected officials.

Products – Sales in the Wisconsin Real Estate Supply store have been down significantly since 2007. The 2014 budget was flat from 2013, but actual sales in 2014 were better. Now that the market bottom appears to be behind us, the GMAR should see a sustained increase in business. Hopefully that trend will continue as a new staff person comes on board to help with store marketing.

Professional Standards – 2015 PS revenue will be flat from 2014. 2014 was budgeted to increase, because arbitration filings are expected to increase as the business climate improved. The rest of the department is all personnel expense.

Leadership – Expenses were flat for National Meetings and GMAR Officer (and President) Expenses. An expenditure was maintained for Directors to attend the WRA Convention. Expenses related to Meetings for the Directors and Committees are flat. Leadership Department has an expense for the Directors to attend the WRA Management Conference and Bucks tickets.

Administrative – The largest number of budget items is in the Administrative category. Revenue in this section consists of Interest Income, Rental Income, contributions toward Salaries and Miscellaneous Income. Interest income is expected to be flat.

Rental Income. Over the last few years, the GMAR had taken a huge hit in rental income. For 2015 the Association is looking at rental income to increase by $2,262, which is a welcome outcome compared to the 2014, when income was reduced by $24,000 from 2013.

Salary income is stable at $32,200 ($30,000 from WRA for our GAD and $2,200 from the Youth Foundation). Salary expense is up $25,279, up 4.3%.

On the expenditure side, Professional Fees for our audit, bank service charges, attorney’s fees, and WRA’s accounting/bookkeeping fee, Postage, Insurance, Miscellaneous Expenses and Telephone expenses are flat. Office Supplies, Staff Education, Computer Services and Duplicating Services down a little. Internet Communications are down $20,000 after our website upgrade in 2014. Personal Property Taxes, Property Taxes, Occupancy (i.e. gas, electric) and Maintenance & Repairs, Depreciation are flat. Interest-Building is flat at $18,000 again in 2014, after renegotiating our rate down in 2012.

General Reserves is an account the GMAR created to set aside 3% of our dues revenue. That contribution was eliminated in the 2012 budget, but reinstated for 2013. The 2015 contribution is set at $23,000, up from 2014’s $21,517.

Currently the Association is looking at a bottom line of $740 in the black. A year ago The GMAR had a $73,000 deficit, which was expected to shrink as revenue outperformed conservative expectations.

As the GMAR does each year, the budget will be revisited in July to make any necessary adjustments.

C. President’s Report

Mike Ruzicka reported the following in addition to his written memorandum to the Board of Directors:

1) REALTORS® Association Name Change – You may recall at the September Directors meeting, the Board voted to oppose the ORA’s name change to the “North Suburban REALTORS® Association.” The GMAR has been notified by NAR that the Ozaukee REALTORS® Association (ORA) is requesting mediation as an alternative to a hearing on their name change. Assuming that mediation is a form of negotiation, the staff is not sure how the Association would “give” anything relative to their requested name. Mr. Ruzicka suggested the Association maintain its opposition to the OAR’s name change and testify as such at the May NAR meeting, when a hearing would be held.

M/S/C to communicate with NAR that the GMAR is still opposed to the proposed OAR name change due to the confusion it would cause members within the region, as well as consumers. However, the GMAR will offer to mediate with the OAR, under the condition that the GMAR can still go to a hearing over the matter at the May 2015 NAR meeting.

2) Recruiting Members – The staff has been working on a plan to recruit members. Essentially, it calls for communicating with potential members on a monthly basis about the benefits of being a GMAR member. The GMAR would send a monthly email detailing the context of all the events, emails, etc. that the GMAR had sent to members the previous month, with the message, “You could get all of these benefits at the GMAR too,” or something like that, and include a transfer form.

Mr. Ruzicka, Scott Bush, Marne Stuck also plan to go to office meetings to explain what is going on at the NAR, WRA and GMAR levels, regarding professional standards, government affairs, Code of Ethics/Code of Excellence standards, and other topical issues. The goal is to inaudibly contrast what the GMAR offers and provides to other associations.

3) 2015 Board of Directors Election - The GMAR Election for new directors ran from October 12th – 18th. There were 6 members on the ballot, competing for 4 positions. The top 4 finishers were:

• Roxanne Platz

• Amy Curler

• Vickie Kelsall

• Arthur Mays

Mr. Ruzicka said that he would meet with those who are new to the Board in the coming weeks to give them a brief orientation and what to expect as a Director, as well as Kaye Erdman, who will be the KMRA representative for 2015

M/S/C to approve of the GMAR 2014 Board of Directors election results.

4) GMAR Nominating Committee & Future Directors - At the last Directors meeting Mr. Ruzicka informed the Board that the Nominating Committee had discussed changing the GMAR Directors election process.

Mr. Ruzicka explored a few options, noting there are about as many ways to elect Directors as there are associations in the country. The popular election-style the GMAR has traditionally used to elect new directors is probably the most common. For new models, many members are most familiar with the WRA version, which was adopted in the late 1990s. It involves:

• Dividing the state into seven regions

• One representative from the three largest statewide companies

• One representative from each of the largest companies in each of the 7 regions

• Regional representatives from each of the 7 regions, depending on the member population of each region

• 7 executive committee members

• 3 past-chairs

• 3 outside directors

Mr. Ruzicka has a Real Trends AE Council meeting in December, and he plans to poll the group for more options.

One aspect of the Director selection process that Mr. Ruzicka said cold be explored is setting some qualifications beyond what we require now. For example, should requiring that Directors have a broker’s license, or management experience, or have sold at least $X of real estate.

The consensus of the Directors was, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” with regard to the system the GMAR uses to select new Directors.

5) Educational Programs – The staff is planning to host some educational programs that raise awareness of the tax benefits of homeownership among REALTORS®. A broker mentioned that that during the boom years, no one needed to explain the benefits of ownership, and during the recession, prices and interest rates were so low, buying on the cheap had its own benefits. But, now buyers are questioning the value of homeownership and the tax advantages are a huge part of that value.

Mr. Ruzicka pointed out that, given that 37% of members are new since 2010, and 70% joined after 2000, hosting a few educational programs on the benefits of the MID, 1031 exchanges, etc. will benefit members.

Additionally, the next registration period for the Affordable Care Act will soon be upon us, and the GMAR is planning to host educational programs to help members evaluate their health care options.

6) Code of Excellence - As part of a wide-ranging set of recommendations to raise the bar on REALTOR® professionalism, the NAR Board of Directors approved the drafting of an aspirational Code of Excellence to be brought to the board at a future meeting for approval.

The goal is to raise the practice of real estate measurably through increased training in the competencies that consumers value:

• stewardship of property listing data

• privacy and security of consumer information

• advocacy of property rights

• community involvement

• technology

After extensive debate some related provisions were also passed:

• Change the frequency of NAR’s Code of Ethics educational requirement from every four years to every two years, starting in 2016

• Add a biennial Code of Excellence education requirement and mandate continual updating of the training

• Help members strive to be proficient in data content and have efficient access to the broadest range of data available

• Develop an industry standard that would allow consumers to evaluate REALTORS® fairly and accurately (rating program).

7) NAR Resources & Grants – The staff recently met with a professional grant writer to have her submit grant proposals to NAR for:

• Diversity Initiative Grants – fund programs that increase diversity and build and expand relationships with multicultural real estate organizations, and address fair housing issues.

• Housing Opportunity Grants – up to $5,000 to support programs and activities that create housing opportunities.

• Smart Growth Grant - up to $15,000 to support efforts that position REALTORS® as leaders in improving their communities by advancing smart growth through projects.

• Placemaking Micro-Grant – Up to $2,500, to help plan and implement smaller and inexpensive Placemaking activities in your community.

• RPAC Fundraising Grant for Local Associations – Up to $5,000 annually to help fund special RPAC fundraising events and activities.

• RPAC Professional Phone Grants – contact non-investors and increase RPAC Participation.

• Issue Polling & Research – Use these polling and research services to help you determine if an issue campaign is viable and what approach you want to take in a campaign.

8) GMAR Contribution to Milwaukee County Historical Society – The GMAR has contributed its past historical document to the Milwaukee County Historical Society for safe keeping and posterity, rather than house the documents in the Association’s building. The MCHS recently provided the GMAR with an inventory of the items they hold.

D. Departments

1) Government Affairs

Marne Stuck reported:

a. Code Compliance Update-GMAR is working closely with WRA and NAR on this issue. WRA is working on legislation for the 2015-2016 legislature on possible elimination of Point –of-Sale Inspections. They will work closely with us and other areas around the state who are seeing problems with POS requirements. GMAR and WRA is also working with NAR on statewide polling which hopefully can be used with lobbying efforts on this issue. Mrs. Stuck should have more information at the January meeting.

b. Mrs. Stuck proposed a new policy for the chairmanship of the GMAR’s Concerned REALTORS® Political Action Committee (CRPAC) and the GMAR Public Policy Task Force.

Starting in 2015 the immediate Past Chairman will automatically become the chair of the Public Policy Task Force and the Past Chairman, one year removed, will become the CRPAC Chairman.

| |2013 |2014 |2015 |2016 |

|GMAR BOD Chairman |Tina Balaka |Bob Larson |Betsy Head |Roxanne Platz |

|PPTF Chairman | |Tina Balaka |Bob Larson |Betsy Head |

|CRPAC Chairman | | |Tina Balaka/ Jeff|Bob Larson |

| | | |Joseph | |

2) Promotions

No Report was given.

3) Professional Standards

a. Scott Reported that he was looking at NAR’s Ombudsman program as another process to resolve complaints and avoid lawsuits.

b. The NAR procedures manual will be adopted in January or March 2015 with selected modifications for the GMAR’s procedures and conformity state law.

E. MLS

Chris Carrillo discussed the following:

1) The NAR MLS Policy Committee has mandated that MLSs adopt the RETS API to require more efficient transfer of data.

2) The News Corp. purchase of , parent of , does not break or change, in any way, the operating agreement that NAR signed with in 1999.

4. Old Business

No Old Business was discussed.

5. New Business

A. 2015 Executive Committee Election

1) Mr. Larson stated that Roxanne Platz had agreed to be Chair-Elect (Chairwoman in 2016), Mike Kollmansberger agreed to be Treasurer and Vickie Kelsall agreed to be Corporate Secretary for 2015.

Mr. Larson asked if any other board member wished to be considered for any of the posts up for election as well. With no one asking for consideration, a motion was made, seconded and passed unanimously to approve the motion. The 2015 Executive Committee will consist of:

• Betsy Head, Chairwoman

• Roxanne Platz, Chair-Elect

• Mike Kollmansberger, Treasurer

• Vickie Kelsall, Corporate Secretary

• Bob Larson, Past Chairman

A. Youth Foundation Officer Election

1) Per the bylaws of the Youth Foundation, the GMAR Board of Directors elected the following candidates to posts within the Youth Foundation:

• Dana Karrow, President

• Jean Dahl, Vice President

• Tom Witkowski, Treasurer

• Scott Bush, Secretary

• Joanne Marks, Arts Committee Chair

• Jill Meier, Education Committee Chair

• Elizabeth Feustel, Social Services Committee Chair

• Michelle Genaw, Fundraising Committee Chair

• Peter M. Stefaniak, Director at Large

• Heiden Lydia, Director at Large

• Paul Nikolic, Director at Large

6. Adjourn

The meeting adjourned at 1:43 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Mike Ruzicka

President

New Member Report

37 REALTOR® and Affiliate members for approval (DRs - 5; Rs - 23; As - 9)

|Adrienne |Shill |Cherry Creek Mortgage |

|Amy |Kalas |Morgan Stanley |

|Andrew |Briggs-Sedlachek |The Real Estate Co, Lake & Country Inc |

|Andy |Derwinski |Cherry Creek Mortgage |

|Anthony |Winneshiek |Signature Realty |

|Beverly |Haney |Homestead Realty Inc~Milwaukee |

|Bob |Tarantino |Badgerland Real Estate |

|Cheryl |Miller |Boss Realty LLC |

|Cheryl |Floryance |Mortgage Partners |

|Christina |Wuerzberger |Premier Point Realty LLC |

|Christine |Jurich |First Weber Group, Realtors~BK |

|Danielle |Ireland |RE/MAX Realty Center~Oconomowoc |

|Donna |Kenner |Shorewest, REALTORS~Downtown |

|Elizabeth |Green |First Weber Group, Realtors~MF |

|Greg |Schliesmann |Cherry Creek Mortgage |

|Jorge |Barreiro |Barreiro Appraisls LLC |

|Joseph |Banske |Cherry Creek Mortgage |

|Judy |Hearst | |

|Katherine |Kral |Morgan Stanley |

|Kathleen |Marciniak |Suzanne Powers Realty Group |

|Kelly |Brandstatter |Shorewest, REALTORS~MNM Falls |

|Kristin |Leister |First Weber Group, Realtors~MF |

|Lauren |Donofrio |Coldwell Banker Elite |

|Lisa |Lindsay |First Weber Group, Realtors~NPW |

|Lolita |Uriona |Century 21 Affiliated~Oak Creek |

|Lori |Kendrick |Realty Dynamics |

|Matthew |Wallace |Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT (West Bend) |

|Maura |Sullivan |Sullivan Appraisals |

|Michael |Argeropoulos |Riverwest Realty Milwaukee |

|Nicholas |August |Morgan Stanley |

|Nicole |Schemehorn |Realty Executives Integrity~Brookfield |

|Scott |Thomas |Frontier Title & Closing Services LLC |

|Shealia |Conway |SQC Realty LLC |

|Stephanie |Callaghan |Shorewest, REALTORS~Racine |

|Stephen |Green |HomeWire Realty |

|Wendy |Helmers |Powerhouse, LLC |

|William |Lucas |Keller Williams Realty~Milw |

November 2014 Financial Statements

Statement of Financial Position

As of November 30, 2014, the GMAR had $1,782,291 in Cash & Investment Balances, up $953 from November 2013.

Accounts receivable were up $25,976 compared to 2013, primarily because of contracts for 2015 Home and Garden Show exhibitors. Prepaid expenses were up $52,988 compared to 2013 due to a higher facility deposit for the 2015 Home and Garden Show.

Total Assets were $3,547,239 which was up $67,172 compared to 2013.

On the Liability side, accounts payable were down $3,251. This account is mainly dues payable to NAR. Unearned revenue is up $97,816 because of the payment from the Kettle Moraine REALTORS® Association for 2015 dues for former Kettle Moraine members and 2015 Home and Garden Show income. Accrued expenses were up $32. The long-term mortgage liability was down $30,268, which was the amount of principal to be paid on the mortgage in 2014. Overall, Total Liabilities were up $67,172 compared to 2013.

For the month ending November 30, 2014, GMAR had Net Income of $115,430, up $34,745 from 2013. Overall, Total Net Assets were $2,009,667; $2,844 higher than the same point in 2013.

Statement of Activities

Membership: For 2014, we budgeted a 90% renewal rate (3,220 members), 3,202 members renew which equates to an 89% renewal rate. Through November 2014 new members are way ahead of last year’s numbers, with 557 new Rs/DRs. The 2013 total was 466 new R/DR members.

Promotions: Home and Garden Show: Through October, $874,594 of income and $615,857 of expenses have been recorded for a net income of $258,737. The budgeted net income for the Home and Garden Show was $260,854.

Public Policy expenses were mostly comprised of a contribution to the NAR Political Advocacy Fund, news subscriptions, event sponsorships, and memberships, with the remaining expenses primarily being personnel costs.

Professional Standards were basically all personnel costs, incurring expenditures primarily in Labor and Overhead.

Products (Wisconsin Real Estate Supply): Product sales through November 2014 were around $5,000 lower than the sales through November 2013.

The Leadership section includes expenditures for meetings, committees, officer expenses, strategic planning, NAR Home Buyer and Seller survey, NAR meetings and WRA convention.

The Administrative section includes investment and rental income and expenses for professional fees, salaries, fringe benefits, building, insurance, occupancy, property taxes, general office expenses and depreciation.

The bottom line shows Excess Receipts Over Expenditures of $115,430. Last year our net income was $80,685 for the same time period. The budgeted net income (loss) is ($5,385) which includes $2,000 for capital outlay

November 2014 Balance Sheet

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November 2014 Statement of Activities

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MEMORANDUM

To: GMAR Board of Directors

From: Mike Ruzicka, President

Re: January President’s Report

Public Awareness Campaign P 17

As I mentioned at previous Director meetings, the GMAR is proceeding with the MLS/GMAR public awareness campaign that will make consumers aware of the inaccuracies in many “recreational” real estate portals (i.e. Zillow & Trulia), and direct them to WI .

The GMAR budgeted $50,000 for this effort for 2015. Chris Carrillo and I have met with Eichenbaum & Assoc - which the GMAR used for its past campaigns - to look at campaign options. The radio and online campaign is expected to begin at the end of February and go until mid-June.

GMAR Public Relations

We have been working with Monica Baer, with Baer-Carlson Communications, for the last two years to highlight the real estate market and solicit area media outlets with real estate-related stories.

We are currently developing a database of potential media stories and would like your thoughts on trends in the industry, recent happenings and other ideas for stories. Here are a few examples to spur your thoughts:

• Technology in real estate (drones, etc.)

• First-time homebuyer market rebounds in 2015

• Female realtors

• Single female purchasers

• April Fair Housing Month

• Impact of Interest Rates

Member Focus Groups

We plan to host a handful of member focus groups in the months ahead to gauge members’ opinions and concerns with their business. We plan to invite a varied array of members, including new agents, experienced agents, and geographically distributed.

I would welcome any questions you may have that would help pull information and insight from the agents we interview.

These types of focus groups usually yield a gold mine of information, much of it detailed, on what is happening in members’ lives. I will provide the Directors with a summary of the focus group results at subsequent Board Meetings.

Integrity of Real Estate Contracts

Betsy Head received an email from a member concerned about the indifferent and casual attitude clients have toward contracts that they sign.

The member gave instances of a buyer and seller backing out of a signed contracts and one asked her, “is it really worth it to go after the?”

We would like to hear your thoughts on how the GMAR can help members prevent and deal with these types of situations.

Conducting educational programs (i.e. articles, videos) explaining that a contract does mean something and that parties on the other side of the transaction, and the agent(s), have legal recourse was an idea floated during the Executive Committee meeting.

GMAR Economic Summit

The 3rd GMAR Economic Summit will be on Tuesday, January 13th. If we continue this type of event in 2016, we will look for a large media partner to help promote the event.

2015 Home & Garden Show

You may recall that Beth Smith retired from the GMAR at the end of 2014, and we are separating her position into two different ones. We hired Karen Brienzo last fall to take over the booth sales portion of Beth’s position.

As of 12/31/2014 we sold 196 booths, with sales of $449,370 for the 2015 HGS. A year ago, on 12/30/2013 we sold 193 booths for $438,905 in sales. The $10,000 in extra revenue is due to sales of end-cap and high-traffic booths to past exhibitors.

With the builders show this weekend (Jan 9-11) we should see a pickup in sales in the coming weeks up to the NARI show in February.

The other half of Beth position was dealing with the administrative side of running the show. We will be hiring someone to help out in that capacity in the next two weeks.

Recurring Status Reports

GMAR Member Communications P 18

GMAR Member Involvement P 20

MLS Membership Stats P 22

2014 GMAR Directors Roster P 23

2014 GMAR Calendar P 30

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| |

GMAR Member Involvement

| |2010 |2011 |

|Kathy Martello |Joan Read |Joe Horning |

|RE/MAX Realty 100 |Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage |Shorewest, Realtors |

|W178N9358 Water Tower Place, # 200 |626 E Ogden Avenue |17450 W. North Ave. |

|Menomonee Falls, WI  53051 |Milwaukee, WI 53202 |Brookfield, WI  53045-4337 |

|O  262.255.9200 M 414.550.3617 |O 414.277.9500 |P 262.827.4200 M 262.640.0925 |

|kmartello@ |joan.read@ |jhorning@ |

|NRDS: 90031322 |NRDS: 90006480 |NRDS: 90096259 |

|(3yr term from Exec Roundtable) |(3yr term from Exec Roundtable) |(3yr term from Exec Roundtable) |

|Bob Larson, Past Chair |Betsy Head, Chairwoman |Roxanne Platz, Chair-Elect |

|First Weber Group, Realtors |Realty Executives Integrity (2nd Term) |First Weber Group, Realtors (2nd Term) |

|1507 E Sunset Drive (2nd Term) |412 E Silver Spring Drive |2750 Golf Rd, Suite A |

|Waukesha, WI  53189-8203 |Whitefish Bay, WI 53217 |Delafield, WI 53018-2063 |

|O  262.522.7773 M 262.370.8018 |O 414.906.4500 M 414.967.7700 |O 262.646.6800 M 262.370.7767 |

|blarson@ |betsyhead@ |rplatz@ |

|NRDS: 90029647 |NRDS: 90050499 |NRDS: 90028348 |

|Dale Marciniak |Cindy Fleming |Vickie Kelsall, Corporate Secretary |

|RE/MAX Realty 100 (1st Term) |First Weber Group, Realtors (2nd Term) |Century 21 Affiliated (1st Term) |

|10303 W Oklahoma Ave |17345 W. Bluemound Road |1033 N Mayfair Rd, Suite 321 |

|Milwaukee, WI 53227-4135 |Brookfield, WI 53045 |Wauwatosa, WI 53226-3442 |

|O 414.327.7020 M 414.429.2344 |O 262.782.3110 M 262.424.5711 |O 414.543.5403 M 262.332.2233 |

|dale@ |cindyfleming@wi. |vkelsall@ |

|NRDS: 90024500 |NRDS: 90017596 |NRDS: 90010989 |

|Mike Kollmansberger, Treasurer |Kel Svoboda |Arthur Mays |

|Shorewest Realtors (1st Term) |Century 21 Affiliated (1st Term) |Realty Among Friends (1st Term) |

|921 Meadowbrook Rd |1033 N Mayfair Rd, Suite 321 |8301 W Lisbon Ave |

|Waukesha, WI 53188-7315 |Wauwatosa, WI 53226-3442 |Milwaukee, WI 53222 |

|O 262.548.9393 M 262.271.5702 |O 414.543.5403 M 414.213.9014 |O 414.444.2696 M 414.975.7796 |

|mikek@ |kel@ |amays@ |

|NRDS: 90076658 |NRDS: 90098433 |NRDS: 90051977 |

|Jennifer Burns |Tom Sykora |Amy Curler |

|Realty Executives Integrity (1st Term) |Coldwell Banker Residential Brkrge (1st Term) |First Weber Group (1st Term) |

|810 Cardinal Ln, Suite 110 |11303 N Port Washington Rd |1720 Clarence Court |

|Hartland, WI 53029-2390 |Mequon, WI 53092-3411 |West Bend, WI 53095-8543 |

|O 262.369.8900 M 262.617.9333 |O 262.241.4700 M 262.573.7323 |O 262.335.6280 M 414.550.6849 |

|jennifer@ |tom.sykora@ |acurler@ |

|NRDS: 90076496 |NRDS: 90023055 |NRDS: 90019647 |

|Kaye Erdman |At Large |At Large |

|First Weber Group |To Be Appointed By Chair-Elect |To Be Appointed By Chair |

|1720 Clarence Ct | | |

|West Bend, WI 53095-8543 |(Term Exp 12/31/2015) |(Term Exp 12/31/2016) |

|O 262.335.6280 M 262.707.4966 | | |

|kerdman@ | | |

|NRDS: 90082569 | | |

2015 GMAR Meetings & Events Calendar

Update: January 9, 2015

January

1 GMAR Fiscal Year begins

6 GMAR Orientation

8 GMAR Executive Committee Meeting/Conference Call

13 GMAR Economic Summit

15 GMAR Board of Directors Meeting – 12:00 Noon, GMAR Headquarters

22-23 WRA Board of Directors Meeting – Madison Club, Madison, WI

26 February Newsletter Deadline

27-30 Inman Connect – New York, NY

TBA GMAR Youth Foundation Board Meeting – GMAR

February

1 Super Bowl

3 GMAR Orientation

16 GMAR Audit – Wegner & Assoc.

23 March Newsletter Deadline

March

3 GMAR Orientation

11 REALTOR® & Government Day – Monona Terrace, Madison, WI

12 GMAR Executive Committee Meeting/Conference Call

15 Youth Foundation’s St. Patrick’s Day 5K – Hart Park, Wauwatosa, WI

19 GMAR Board of Directors Meeting – 12:00 Noon, GMAR Headquarters

20-29 91st REALTORS® Home & Garden Show – Wisconsin Expo Ctr, West Allis, WI

23 April Newsletter Deadline

April

1-3 COVE MLS Meeting – Baltimore, MD

7 GMAR Orientation

TBA GMAR Youth Foundation Board Meeting – GMAR

27 May Newsletter Deadline

29-5/1 RealTrends Gathering of Eagles – Denver, CO

30 GMAR Executive Committee Meeting/Conference Call

May

1 WRA Board of Directors Meeting – WRA Headquarters

TBA MLS Board of Directors Meeting

5 GMAR Orientation

7 GMAR Board of Directors Meeting – 12:00 Noon, GMAR Headquarters

12-16 NAR Mid-Year Meetings – Washington, D.C.

22 Deadline for NAR Committee Applications

26 June Newsletter Deadline

June

2 GMAR Orientation

15 Brewers Bash – Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI

18-19 WRA AE Conference – Arbor Vitae, WI

TBA Budget Review

22 July Newsletter Deadline (announce GMAR BOD Applications)

TBA Downtown Diggs

July

1 GMAR BOD Candidate Applications available to members

7 GMAR Orientation

9 GMAR Executive Committee Meeting/Conference Call

TBA GMAR Youth Foundation Board Meeting – GMAR

16 GMAR Board of Directors Mtg – Ironwood Golf Course

16 GMAR Summer Golf Outing – Ironwood Golf Course

27 August Newsletter Deadline

August

1 WRA BOD Meeting – TBA

4 GMAR Orientation

TBA Kettle Moraine Council Golf Outing – Scenic View CC, 4415 Club Dr, Slinger, WI

10-11 NAR Leadership Summit – Chicago, IL

20 GMAR Tiki Party – Boomers, Pewaukee, WI

24 September Newsletter Deadline

28 GMAR Nominating Committee Meeting – GMAR Headquarters

31 Last day for GMAR BOD Candidates to submit Applications

September

1 Nominating Committee notification of BOD Candidates to membership

1 GMAR Orientation

10 GMAR Executive Committee Meeting/Conference Call

TBA MLS Board of Directors Meeting

15-16 WRA Convention – Wisconsin Dells, WI

17 GMAR Board of Directors Meeting – 12:00 Noon, GMAR Headquarters

22 October Newsletter Deadline

30 GMAR Board of Directors Write-In Candidate Deadline

October

6 GMAR Orientation

TBA GMAR Youth Foundation Board Meeting

11-17 GMAR Board of Directors e-Election

26 November Newsletter Deadline

TBA Budget Review Meeting

November

3 GMAR Orientation

11-16 NAR Convention – San Diego, CA

12 GMAR Executive Committee Meeting/Conference Call

19 GMAR Board of Directors Meeting – 12:00 Noon, GMAR Headquarters

19 GMAR Youth Foundation Annual Meeting – 11:30 AM, GMAR Headquarters

23 December Newsletter Deadline

December

1 GMAR Orientation

3 Chairwoman’s Holiday Party & GMAR Annual Mtg – Potowatomi Casino

10 WRA Management Conference – Country Springs Hotel, Waukesha, WI

21 January Newsletter Deadline

31 GMAR Fiscal Year ends

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