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June 5th, 2007 9:19 AM by Ron Mastrodonato

FAR 2007 Member Profile looks at the ‘typical’ Florida Realtor

ORLANDO, Fla. – May 23, 2007 – If you’re a Florida Realtor reading this news story, there’s a 59 percent chance you’re female, a membership segment that has increased 6 percent since 2005, according to the Florida Association of Realtors’® (FAR) 2007 Member Profile. Another finding: Even with the current market slowdown, a higher percentage of members (90 percent) are “very certain” they’ll remain active for at least two years – 3 percent higher than during 2005’s hot real estate sales market.

Other items of note:

In Florida, 68 percent of Realtors hold a sales agent license, and 21 percent hold a broker license.
The typical Realtor (72 percent) considers residential her primary specialty, has been in the business for eight years and has a home office (73 percent).
68 percent of Realtors have a Web site for business purposes, a marked increase since 2005 when only 43 percent maintained their own Web site. In addition, 8 percent currently have a blog and 6 percent plan to start a blog in the future.
15 percent have a 100 percent commission compensation split with their firm, unchanged since 2005. But 72 percent have a percentage commission split, up from 70 percent in 2005.
Median gross personal income, overall, fell over the past two years. In 2007, income from all real estate activities was $47,400 compared to $53,309 in 2005.

The 2007 Member Survey, conducted by NAR researchers, looks at many characteristics of Florida Realtors, including business activity; income and expenses; office and firm affiliation; and demographic characteristics.

To view the entire study, downloadable in PDF format, go to floridarealtors.org and click on “FAR Market Research” under Quick Links.

© 2007 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Development, measured by the foot?

NEW YORK – May 23, 2007 – New Urbanists maintain that homeowners are more likely to abandon their cars if neighborhood blocks are shorter than 600 feet. However, a new study by the RAND Corp. that looks at the Congress for New Urbanism’s New Urbanism Smart Scorecard and the 1995 National Personal Transportation Survey reveals that other design elements are more likely to encourage pedestrianism.

According to the research, residents are more likely to walk if the streets are designed in a grid pattern and have four-way stops. Neighborhoods with mixed-use zones featuring four or more types of businesses are also more likely to attract pedestrians.

The study indicates a jump in pedestrianism in communities with more than 14 residential units per acre but found more people willing to walk in communities with seven units to 11 units per acre than those with 11 units to 14 units per acre.

Rob Boer of the RAND Corp. notes, “We will need to examine whether these [criteria] have to be done in concert in order to have a big impact on walking. We also need to explore whether people who are interested in walking may seek out certain types of neighborhoods.”

Source: Builder (05/07) Vol. 30, No. 7, P. 44; Sullivan, Jenny

© Copyright 2007 INFORMATION, INC. Bethesda, MD (301) 215-4688

Growing technology sector boosts housing

WASHINGTON – May 24,2007 – The country's high-tech industry added nearly 150,000 new jobs in 2006, according to “Cyberstates 2007,” an annual report detailing trends in high-tech employment and wages.

The report, published by AeA, a trade association representing all segments of the high-tech industry, is based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The addition of high tech jobs often translates into an influx of well-paid newcomers to an area, according to Matthew Kazmiercak, AeA’s vice president for research – and that means more potential homeowners.

"This is the second year in a row that the tech industry has added jobs," Kazmiercak says. "Not only do these jobs make critical contributions to the U.S. economy, but they pay extremely well." The average tech industry wage is 86 percent more than the average U.S. private sector wage.

In fact, in 48 states the average high-tech wage is at least 50 percent more than the average private sector wage, and in 10 cyberstates this differential is more than 90 percent, observed William T. Archely, president and CEO of AeA.

With the addition of 150,000 jobs, total tech industry employment increased to 5.8 million in 2006. Tech sectors adding the most jobs were:

* Software services, up for the third year in a row, added 88,500 jobs.
* Engineering and tech services added 66,300 jobs, putting employment in the field at an all-time high.
* The semiconductor industry added 10,900 jobs.

Overall, 40 states added tech jobs in 2005, the most recent year that state-by-state data is available. California led the country in net job creation; Florida saw the second-largest gain, adding 10,900 tech jobs. The rate of job growth, at 4 percent, was highest in Florida, followed by Virginia at 3 percent. Virginia has the highest concentration of tech industry workers as a percentage (8.9 percent) of the private sector work force. Leading states by high-tech employment were, in order: California, Texas, New York, Florida and Virginia.

Unemployment rates for tech jobs also remain below other occupations. The unemployment rate for electrical engineers was 1.9 percent and 2.5 percent for computer and math occupations in 2006.

For more information, go to: http://www.aeanet.org/PressRoom/prjj_cs2007_US1.asp

Source: REALTOR® Magazine Online, Camilla McLaughlin

© 2007 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS

NAR grants support diversity initiatives

WASHINGTON – May 24, 2007 - Ten local and state Realtor® associations received Diversity Initiative Grants at the National Association of Realtors® Midyear Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo last week. The grants, totaling $40,450, are awarded to help fund outreach efforts to minority consumers and bring more cultural diversity into association membership and leadership.

NAR established the Diversity Initiative Grant program in 2004 to provide financial support for Realtor association programs and activities that position them as leaders in their increasingly diverse communities. Grants of up to $5,000 are awarded twice a year to local and state Realtor associations. Since 2004, 63 grants totaling more than $195,000 have been awarded through the program.

“Realtors build communities, and through the Diversity Initiative Grants program, state and local Realtor associations are better able to prepare their members to connect with and understand America’s diverse population, and ultimately earn the confidence of the homebuyers and sellers they serve,” said NAR President Pat V. Combs.

The 2007 Diversity Initiative Grant award winners are:

* Council of Residential Specialists, Chicago: $5,000 to encourage diversity programming among the Council’s chapters and to broaden the educational and networking opportunities for members and students so they can better serve consumers.

* Greater Tampa Association of Realtors, Tampa, Fla.: $5,000 to educate members on the fundamentals of the lending process, identify the tactics of mortgage predators and avoid predatory lending.

* Kitsap County Association of Realtors, Silverdale, Wash.: $3,900 to update the association’s Web site to feature fair housing issues, host a symposium aimed at educating minorities on employment opportunities in real estate and hold a home buyer workshop.

* Mainstreet Organization of Realtors, Downers Grove, Ill.: $1,550 to work with the local fair housing advocacy agencies to develop a pocket guide that will address common questions about fair housing.

* Rockford Area Association of Realtors, Rockford, Ill.: $5,000 to launch a consumer awareness campaign aimed at the community’s Hispanic homebuyers and sellers.

*Orange County Association of Realtors, (Laguna Hills, Calif.): $2,500 to support a homebuyer fair targeted at the city’s growing Latino and Asian population.

* Rhode Island Association of Realtors, Warwick, R.I.: $5,000 to develop an awareness campaign targeting the area’s minority populations to educate them about the dangers of predatory lending.

* Santa Clara Association of Realtors, San Jose, Calif.: $2,500 to sponsor an event and invite members of minority real estate organizations to educate and prepare members to serve a diverse population of home buyers and sellers in the area.

* South Broward Board of Realtors, Pembroke Pines, Fla.: $5,000 to cosponsor a two-day symposium with educational seminars and consumer home buying information in multiple languages.

* Washington Association of Realtors, Olympia, Wash.: $5,000 to identify and engage real estate agents serving minority populations and help develop local chapters of the Asian Real Estate Association of America and National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals.

For additional information on the At Home with Diversity course or to download a Diversity Initiative Grant application, visit www.realtor.org/diversity. Grant applications for the next round of awards are due by Oct. 5, 2007.

© 2007 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

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Posted by Ron Mastrodonato on June 5th, 2007 9:19 AM

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