NC REALTORS® Government Affairs Staff Provides 2016 Legislative Wrap-Up

Legislative Wrap-Up

Late last Friday night, legislators adjourned their “short session”, holding to their previously stated goal of being done prior to the July 4th holiday. Throughout their more than four months of session, numerous pieces of important legislation were considered, with many reaching the Governor’s desk. How did our REALTOR® fare and what still needs work as we go into next year’s session?

REALTOR® Priority Legislative Victories

HB 151 Vacation Rental Act Changes [Sent to the Governor]: This bill makes much needed changes to the Vacation Rental Act by clearly delineating the role of the broker and property owner. It also includes a provision that allows military personnel who have received reassignment or deployment orders to terminate existing rental agreements.

HB 287 Amend Insurance Laws [Sent to Governor]: This bill includes changes to consent to rate and other homeowner’s insurance provisions which will provide more transparency to homeowners.

HB 728 Real Estate Commission Fees [Sent to the Governor]: Through this legislation, the Real Estate Commission was given the ability to increase application fees for new applicants. They will now charge $100 per new applicant, which is the actual cost for the NC REC. It also allows the Commission to increase new applicant fees to up to $200. Finally, the Commission was given the ability to increase the cost of renewals to $60 with future $5 increases annually by rule change.

HB 959 Map Act Changes [Sent to the Governor]: Following the court’s ruling in Kirby v. NCDOT, deeming the Map Act corridors void, this legislation prevents DOT from holding, in perpetuity, real property without paying the landowner. It also makes changes to the price to be paid to the property owners in a new corridor.

HB 1030 2016 Appropriations Act [Sent to the Governor]: This year’s budget maintained and supported all NC REALTORS® priorities, including protection of the funding for the Housing Trust Fund, Historic Preservation Tax Credits, and Film Grant program. Also, an additional $5 million was allocated for the Workforce Housing Loan Program for the next year, bringing the total appropriation to $20 million.

SB 326 Rental Registration and Inspections Changes [Sent to the Governor]: This bill limits what local governments can do in rental registration programs while continuing to allow the local governments to protect the safety and welfare of its communities.

SB 600 Appraisers Reasonable and Customary Fees [Signed by the Governor, 6/30/16]: This legislation mandates that appraisers be compensated in a customary and reasonable manner by appraisal management companies as required by the Federal Truth in Lending Act. It also requires that the NC Appraisal Board develop rules to enforce this mandate.

While we were successful in these pieces of legislation, we also unfortunately fell short in our efforts on private process servers, private road maintenance, and eminent domain. Each of these issue received significant discussion by both chambers but the differences between each proposal were not able to be resolved prior to adjournment. Going forward, your Government Affairs team will be working on each of these items to prepare for next year’s long session. We will be engaging in numerous outreach activities to show the true impact of each of these issues on REALTORS® and consumers so that we can tell these stories to legislators.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who have taken part in our advocacy efforts this year. From those of you who have come to Raleigh to speak with your legislators individually or as part of Legislative Day to those who interact with them in your home communities, your advocacy is important and we could not have achieved the successes that we have without them. And just because legislative session is over doesn’t mean we don’t still need your advocacy! Keep watching your email for new opportunities to tell the REALTOR® story to elected officials.

In the coming weeks, we will be releasing our annual legislative summary video and brochure.

City Council Tables Public Hearing on Sign Ordinance

A motion was made by Councilman Kirk deViere to table the public hearing on the proposed revisions to the City of Fayetteville Sign Code. Some of the revisions need further clarification by council.  The public hearing will resume on August 22 @ 7:00 p.m. in the city council chambers.  You can sign up to speak prior to the meeting or arrive 15 minutes before the meeting begins.

The following changes are proposed as they relate to the real estate industry.

Freestanding Signs & Banners

  • A total of no more than three (3) open house real estate off premises freestanding signs or banners are allowed
  • Signs are limited to four square feet in area and four feet in height
  • Banners are limited to twelve square feet in area and seven feet in height
  • These signs and banners pertaining to a specific residential property may be displayed between Friday and Sunday when open house real estate events are being conducted for that property sometime during those days
  • Signs and banners shall not be placed on public property or anywhere in the public right-of-way
  • Signs and banners shall only be placed on private property with the prior consent of such property owner and shall indicate the contact information of the responsible broker on each sign or banner
  • Up to four (4) inflatable balloons of up to one foot in diameter may be affixed to each sign but not to banners
  • These provisions also apply to residential sales offices when they are open between Friday and Sunday

Directional Real Estate Signs

  • City-approved generic directional real estate sign not exceeding 2 sq. ft. in area and 30 inches in height may be placed in the right-of-way at or near the corner of the nearest through street to direct the public to properties for sale
  • One (1) such sign shall be allowed for each intersection and shall be removed upon sale of the affected property or properties

Other Business:

The Cape Fear River Overlay District has been adopted.

Background – The City of Fayetteville on May 23, 2016, amended certain provisions of the Unified Development Ordinance Overlay Zoning Districts.  The City Council determined that the Cape Fear River Overlay District was in the best interst of the citizens regarding public health, safety and welfare.

Purpose – Overlay created to conserve, promote and manage those areas on both sides of the Cape Fear River within the corporate limits.  Standards will ensure that new development is compatible with and enhances the unique river resources.

click below for a link to the zoning map ↓

capefearriveroverlaydistrict

Pictures from Legislative Day in Raleigh

A great time was had by all during NC REALTORS® legislative events.  The Legislative Reception was held at the North Carolina History Museum with a surprise visit from Govenor Pat McCrory.  Legislative day was a success with visits from the Cumberland County delegation.  A tour of the old NC Capitol was provided to Fayetteville REALTORS® from Representative John Bradford (Mecklenburg).  One picture below was taken from Governor McCrory’s desk.  The governor was a former basketball referee and the picture was taken with the young Michael Jordan.

2016-06-22 10.56.54-1 2016-06-22 10.40.25

2016-06-22 10.38.12 2016-06-22 10.28.48

2016-06-22 10.04.032016-06-21 18.02.072016-06-22 10.23.16

2016-06-22 09.07.03 2016-06-21 18.06.29

 

2016-06-21 15.48.58 2016-06-21 15.44.19

2016-06-21 15.45.26 2016-06-21 15.42.41

2016-06-21 15.42.54 2016-06-21 18.33.46

 

 

NC REALTORS – Legislative Meetings in Raleigh

Fayetteville Regional Association of REALTORS members in attendance:
Zan Monroe, Dave Evans, Jay Dowdy, Chet Oehme, Laurie Linder, Rosemary Buerger, Cheryl Spears, Pat Spears, Jimmy Townsend, Wendy Harris, Gene Cooper, Marva Moore, Latonia Parks, Richard Bonfanti, Lynn Dahnke, Jane Cannon, Debbie McFayden, Angie Hedgepeth

North Carolina REALTORS® convenyed in Raleigh last week for their annual legislative day meetings and visits with the state delegation.  Fayetteville Association REALTORS® met with Representatives John Szoka, Marvin Lucas, Elmer Floyd and Billy Richardson and Senator Wesley Meredith.

The following talking points were discussed during meetings with the Cumberland County delegation and all other North Carolina delegates.

Private Road Maintenance – Senate Bill 778

  • Seeks to alleviate some of the problems presented by “orphan roads”, especially when they fall outside of municipal boundaries
  • Performance bonds for future developments to ensure that the necessary road work is completed up to state standards and ultimately accepted by NC Department of Transportation in the road system
  • Requires that NCDOT work with each county to develop a database which includes the classification (public/private) for each road in the county

Private Process Servers

  • Allows private process servers to serve summary ejectment notices
  • Private process can easily correct this government inefficiency, creating private sector jobs around the state
  • 33 states offer private sector alternatives to summons delivery in eviction cases
  • Private-sector option would reduce the workload for officers

Underground Storage Tank Fund

  • Last year, legislators ended funding for the state’s Noncommercial Underground Storage Tank Fund
  • By ending the fund, property owners are now left to pay for the removal of the tank and remediation of any pollution, a cost which can be significant
  • Legislators are encouraged to restore the funding for this valuable program

Click below to view entire talking points document↓

2016 NC REALTORS Legislative Talking Points

National Association of REALTORS ® – CALL FOR ACTION!

CALL FOR ACTION! Tell the Senate to Get to Work for Future Homebuyers View e-mail in browser
Dear Member,

Take action now to urge your Senators to pass H.R. 3700, the “Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016,” a bill that makes needed reforms to the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) condominium loan program, federal-assisted housing programs and Rural Housing Service loan programs.

Bottom Line:  This bill makes buying a condo A LOT easier by expanding opportunities for first-time homebuyers and streamlining rural housing programs for low-income rental residents.

The House of Representatives passed this bill unanimously with a bipartisan vote of 427-0 and now we need the Senate to act!

Thank you for your support on this important legislation!

 NAR maintains a separate email system to communicate our national news and programs. If you would like to manage those subscriptions and optin/optout of those communications please click here to login to Realtor.org.