NAR: Northeast Existing-Home Sales Spiked by 8.5% in November; Prices Rose Nearly 10%
“Home sales momentum is building,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.
Rockland County Executive Ed Day recently announced two staffing changes that took effect on Oct. 2. Jim Elcik, Director of Consumer Protection, is retiring and will be replaced by current Principal Assistant County Attorney Kimberly Von Ronn. Elcik was first named Director of Consumer Protection in January 2019.
Prior to being named director, he was a former United States Marshal who rose through the ranks beginning as a Deputy US Marshal in January of 1991 before retiring in May of 2018 as Assistant Chief Deputy US Marshal for the Eastern District of New York. Elcik brought a renewed focus on enforcement within the Office of Consumer Protection that County Executive Day is confident the new director will continue.
“Jim did a phenomenal job as our Consumer Protection Director, investigating nearly 700 complaints last year alone—a 50% increase from the year prior. Those investigations resulted in 142 prosecutions for unlicensed contracting and resulted in $88,000 being returned to homeowners. That’s up 80% from 2021. While Jim’s retirement is undoubtedly a loss for our county, he will be capably replaced by current Principal Assistant County Attorney Kimberly Von Ronn,” said County Executive Ed Day. “Kim has served in her position since 2021 and I am fully confident in her abilities to continue protecting consumers here in Rockland.”
During her time as Principal Assistant County Attorney, Von Ronn was pivotal in developing and launching the county’s new Office of Buildings and Codes (OBC) which included crafting the policies and procedures in this first-ever initiative by the state, in addition to overseeing the prosecution of New York State Fire Prevention and Building Safety Code violations, managing attorneys and litigation assistants, and providing managerial support to the director.
“Kim Von Ronn has done an incredible job assisting my administration in launching this entirely new Office of Buildings and Codes, a near-insurmountable mission in a village best described as ground-zero for illegal housing problems in our county,” said County Executive Day. “After seeing how seamlessly she took on some of our most egregious landlords putting lives at risk, I have no doubt she will lead Consumer Protection with the same veracity.” The Director of Consumer Protection job pays $128,285 annually.
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