As State President, Phillips will oversee the council’s activities within New York State and act as a liaison between the regional vice president, the council’s leadership team, and its staff.
“Home sales momentum is building,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.
Inventory for all property types declined in almost all areas, except for Rockland’s condo and co-op markets, the latter with an 84.6% gain. The Bronx led the region for new listings, with a 31.9% increase.
Ever since childhood, even without realizing it, I’ve always lived by the premise of “There’s no such thing as ‘good enough.’” No need to burden readers with the psychology that’s behind my type-A personality and strive-for-perfection compulsion, LOL, but suffice it to say that this is what drives me.
So why am I sharing this in Real Estate In-Depth, and why should you care? It’s because I want you, the members, to understand that when I commit to something there’s nothing casual or half-hearted about it. I am honored and humbled to serve in the role of HGAR President for 2020, and I will put my heart and soul into doing the best job I possibly can for our HGAR members across our entire geography. I welcome all input, ideas, suggestions and participation!
Our HGAR leadership is also not all about me. We have an extraordinary team of dedicated leaders, both on our Executive Committee and our Board of Directors, who are all excited to serve and will work together to make a difference in the member experience. Among our Directors, we have five Regional Directors—for Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange and Manhattan—who are the voice and the representation for our many regions.
One of our key initiatives this year will be defining a series of action steps borne out of our newly created Strategic Plan. Thanks to 2019 HGAR President Ron Garafalo for his foresight to recognize that it was time for a new Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan approved by our 2019 HGAR Board of Directors includes five “pillars”Advocacy, Leadership, Professional Development, Engagement and Success.
I believe that no one pillar is more important than any other; our focus is going to be on implementing all elements of the plan. As a member, you may find that one or two pillars resonate with you more than others, but Engagement without Advocacy, or Leadership without Success would leave us all in a very vulnerable position as we look toward our future.
We currently have five Task Forces in place, one to focus on each pillar, and once their recommendations are received, reviewed and approved, we will be implementing as many of those recommendations as possible throughout the year.
In addition, I have some personal initiatives that I think fit nicely within the scope of the Strategic Plan, and these are already in process. The first is the launch of a new Leadership Accelerator program. As I’ve been explaining it…it took me a good 10 years of volunteering at HGAR and its predecessor organizations before I had a good handle on who all the players are, how things happen, and how the various affiliated organizations all work together. I think we need to develop a new crop of talented leaders now. I don’t think we have 10 more years to wait for those new leaders to be prepared to grab the reins and take this world-class organization of ours into the future. The Leadership Accelerator Program is being designed to take members with innate leadership abilities and ambitions, but without the depth of HGAR experience, to the next level more quickly.
Along these same lines, we are re-launching our YPN (Young Professionals Network) this year. The survey completed last year in preparation for the Strategic Planning process enlightened us to the surprising number of younger agents joining HGAR, and many who are undertaking real estate as a first career rather than as a retirement or part-time strategy. These agents think differently, communicate more directly, and have wide-ranging financial and quality-of-life agendas. I believe it’s our responsibility as industry leaders to provide a support network and means of sharing ideas to these newer agents. Therefore, YPN will be planning a variety of educational, social and charitable events to engage this new generation of Realtor members.
We are also planning activities and events to showcase the unique venues, attributes and attractions of our vast and diverse Hudson Valley geography. We want all members to appreciate and celebrate all our counties and discover their hidden gems. Look for more information on these initiatives and others in the coming months.
If you’d like to get involved, share a suggestion, or offer any other thoughts, you are welcome to e-mail anytime at info@HomesNY.com. Thank you for this incredibly special honor, and I look forward to connecting with more of our members throughout the coming year.
As we enter a new era, HGAR remains steadfast in its commitment to serve and support you—through advocacy, professional development, and programs that empower your business.
Despite representing different parties, Latimer and Lawler share a bipartisan focus on housing policy solutions. Both have expressed support for raising the cap on the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction.
This year, the Annual Meeting will be held separately from Member Appreciation Day, making it more accessible for all members.
Business leaders cannot afford to remain passive; they must engage politically to hold candidates accountable to the needs of the entire community, not just select groups.
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