Weekly Facts Blog – December 14, 2009

GTAR/NORES HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
Tuesday, December 15: Office closes at 3:00 p.m.
Thursday, December 24: Office closes at 12:00 p.m.
Friday, December 25: Office is closed all day
Thursday, December 31: Office closes at 12:00 p.m.
Friday, January 1: Office is closed all day

December 24 to January 4 — Board Store Closed for Inventory
The GTAR/NORES Board Store will be closed for inventory from noon Thursday, December 24 until noon on Monday, January 4, 2010, so please plan ahead. This will not affect Key and KeyBox purchases.

LATE: 2010 GTAR Annual Dues
The deadline to pay your 2010 GTAR annual dues without penalty was November 30, 2009; a $20 late payment fee has now been added to your account. You can pay by credit card online at tulsarealtors.com; on the main Member Services page, click on the yellow View/Pay Bill bar, then click GTAR–Accounts Receivables, and follow instructions to pay. Payment can also be made by calling the GTAR/NORES office at 918-663-7500 during business hours or by mailing a check, payable to GTAR, to P.O. Box 470603, Tulsa, OK 74147. After business hours you can drop payments in the mail slot located inside the front entrance foyer of the GTAR/NORES office.

CANCELLED!
If you are scheduled for one of the classes below, please go online and enroll for a future class. Log in to tulsarealtors.com and click the red Education bar on the main page. All classes are held in the GTAR Computer Lab.

CANCELLED:MarketLinx 2: Monday, December 14, 1:00 – 4:00 p.m.
CANCELLED: MarketLinx 3 (Prospect Gateway): Wednesday, December 16, 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.

Get Your Required CE Hours in January
Don’t wait until the end of your 3-year licensing period to get your CE hours! Take advantage of a slow month and knock out all 12 OREC required core CE hours; classes in all four categories (HOT, FHR, PSC, BRA) will be offered at GTAR in January. For details and online registration, log on to tulsarealtors.com; on the main Member Services page, click the red Education bar, then click Register for Classes. All classes are in the GTAR Training Center and cost $15 pre-registered or $20 the day of class, unless otherwise indicated.

Thursday, January 7: What the 2010 RESPA Changes Mean to Me and My Business (HOT)
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. with instructor Attorney Monica Wittrock. The new RESPA changes become effective January 1, 2010. Think the changes won’t affect you as a real estate professional? Better think again! Click Here for Course Details

Tuesday, January 12: Fair Housing and Ethical Practices (FHR)
1:00 – 4:00 p.m. with instructor Kathryn Jones.

Thursday, January 21: REALTOR® Ethics (PSC)
1:00 – 4:00 p.m. instructor TBA; this class is free but space is limited and pre-registration is required.

Monday, January 25: OK Broker Relationships (BRA)
1:00 – 4:00 p.m. with instructor Ann Lloyd.

GTAR/NORES Inclement Weather Policy for Classes
We are entering that time of year when the weather does not always work in our favor; therefore, GTAR/NORES has established the following inclement weather policy for all education classes at GTAR (CE, Computer, New Member Orientation, etc.): If Tulsa Public Schools are closed the day of a scheduled class, the GTAR/NORES class is cancelled. It doesn’t matter if it’s a morning or afternoon class. Depending on the type of class being cancelled, the class will either be rescheduled for a future date or a full refund will be issued. Please be sure to check one of the local news channels the night before and/or morning of a scheduled class for school closings.

TulsaRealtors.com Web-Email Upgrade
GTAR/NORES is finalizing plans for a TulsaRealtors.com WebE-Mail upgrade. This upgrade should address the Web-Email issues some users have been encountering, and will allow for a more stable email environment and less problems for the user when using TulsaRealtors Web-Email at http://mail.tulsarealtors.com. These changes will not affect users of mail clients such as Outlook or Outlook Express. The current track for this upgrade to be released is early January 2010.

KIMVoice
GE Security just released a new version of KIMVoice. This upgrade provides new features and the framework for future improvements. The new version required a few minor changes to the way DisplayKey and eKey users log in to the system and get update codes: 1) After logging into KIMvoice with their key and pin, the user will be sent directly to their primary board; the keyholder, after selecting option 1 for update code, then needs to select the appropriate board to get an update code; their primary board will always be the first selection followed by their cooperating board names. 2) ActiveKEY users after logging in with their key and pin will appreciate the new feature of only needing to enter 1 update code to update their key for all boards they have access to open keyboxes.

OREC Commissioner Nominations Sought
OAR is asking for input on possible nominees for two positions on the Oklahoma Real Estate Commission (OREC): One position is a Broker position and the other is the School Representative position. Nominees will be considered from Congressional Districts One, Two, Three, and Four. If you are interested, please contact Janie Bays at jbays@tulsarealtors.com or 918-663-7500, to request the criteria and application.

REALTOR® Applications
Comments on the following REALTOR® applicants should be submitted by REALTOR® members to the Membership Committee, c/o GTAR, PO Box 470603, Tulsa, OK 74147.

Tomas Barrientos, TuCasa Realty, LLC (First Publication)
Valorie Farley, Farley Realty, LLC (Second Publication)
Gary Willis, associated with United Country – Willis Realty (Second Publication)

MLS Waiver Request:
Angela O’Malley, Vicki Berg Property Manager (Second Publication)
Ryan Hoskin, Vicki Berg Property Manager (Second Publication)