GeoWarehouse® will be performing maintenance from Friday, November 30 at 10 p.m. to Saturday, December 1 at 2 am.
During this maintenance window of four hours, users will not be able to access the GeoWarehouse® Solution while their team works on the following enhancements:
A new one-page PDF Report-the Basic Client Report-which contains the most essential information
Ability to insert your business card into the PDF Reports
Easier condo and townhouse search
Ability to insert static street view image in PDFs
Map window displays saved LRO is now supported across multiple browsers
In addition to the above outage, GeoWarehouse® has scheduled maintenance to POLARIS database the following weekend: Friday, December 7 at 9 p.m. to Sunday, December 9 at 9 a.m.
Please note that during this window, you will be able to use GeoWarehouse® to conduct property searches and to purchase e-store products other than statutory reports (Parcel Register, instrument images, and plans).
GeoWarehouse® appreciates your patience and understanding; if you have any questions call 416.360.7542 or 1.866.237.5937, or email GeoWarehouseFeedback@teranet.ca.
Have you received your RAHB Annual Election Meeting (AEM) package? It was e-mailed to all voting members yesterday, Tuesday November 20. The package includes all the information you need about the election and the meeting agenda. You can also view it by clicking on the button below.
Here’s how the election process will shape up between now and the election meeting:
Tuesday November 27- Thursday, November 29 Electronic voting available
Monday, December 3 Deadline for receipt of proxies
Wednesday, December 5 Annual Election Meeting
Plan to come to RAHB’s Annual Election Meeting on December 5! On the agenda are:
CREA President Barb Sukkau: Keeping REALTOR.ca the Preferred Choice for Consumers
CREA General Counsel Bill Harrington: The Business of Ethics – What’s In It For Me?
Proposed Bylaw amendments
Election Meeting
Installation of 2019 Board of Directors
Presentation of Scholarships in Memory of Karan Barker
RAHB Year in Review
Royal Botanical Gardens
8:45 a.m. Registration
9:30 a.m. Meeting begins
Check the election package for complete details about the election timeline, the meeting agenda and candidates for election to the 2019 Board of Directors which are listed alphabetically and not by rank.
Enjoy a 10 per cent discount on Friday, November 23 on Shoppe products purchased in person at the Realty Shoppe (some restrictions apply and while quantities last).
Check out some of the new items in the Shoppe below.
The REALTORS® Association of Hamilton-Burlington reported 1,035 sales of residential properties located within the RAHB market area were processed through the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System in October, 2018.
On October 15, Habitat for Humanity Hamilton experienced a massive theft when over $10,000 worth of supplies and equipment was stolen from its warehouse. Items taken include compressors, saws, nail guns, cordless drills and copper pipe. Habitat for Humanity was in the midst of building a home in downtown Hamilton on Wilson Street and the theft will affect that, as well as other projects.
Habitat for Humanity Hamilton is appealing to the community for donations of new or slightly used tools, as well as monetary contributions. The REALTORS® Association of Hamilton-Burlington will be donating financially to the organization, and if you would personally like to donate pleasecall 905-560-6707, or e-mail their CEO Sean Ferris directly at sean@habitathamilton.ca.
You can review your current – and past – RAHB invoices, print the invoices and even print your full 2018 invoice of charges, payments and HST paid to RAHB any time you want – it’s easy!
1. From your Single Sign On (SSO) dashboard at my.rahb.ca, click on the RAHB Education/Account Services icon (it’s in the second row of icons on your dashboard).
2. Sign in to your account (this is a temporary step until full launch of this member portal).
Note: Contact Corporate Services at 905.529.8101 for assistance if your password doesn’t work.
3(a). When you are on the new Member Portal, look for Account Balances in the upper right of the screen:
Click on Pay Now. Don’t worry – you don’t have to pay your account right away! Clicking on this button will allow you to see your account details.
3(b). Alternatively, instead of clicking on Pay Now, you can hover over the green Member tab at the top of the page, and choose My Account to view your account. This will take you to the same page as using the Pay Now link.
4. On your My Account page, you will see your monthly charges. If you see only the current month, these are charges you are accruing during this month. These charges have not yet been billed, so you do not owe this amount yet.
If, however, you see more than one month, then the earlier months have not yet been paid, and you owe those amounts.
(You can pay your invoice amounts by selecting the document numbers you would like to pay, then clicking on the green Pay $ button. You will enter your credit card number, security code and expiration date – the rest of the information about you will be pre-populated. Click on the Next button to process your payment. Once your payment is processed, you will receive a confirmation e-mail.)
5. To view the details of your current or past account information, click on the Date Range History tab at the top of the page.
6. Insert the date range you wish – you can enter the dates or use the calendars to the right of the boxes. Once you click Update, you will see your all of your charges, payments and HST for the date range you specified. For your taxes next year, you will want to use January 1, 2018 – December 31, 2018.
7. Print your invoice using the Print icon at the top right of the page.
Note: There is a History tab at the top of your page. You can use this button to view all charges/payment history inclusive of HST. Use the Date Range History tab as described in steps five, six and seven to view/print your payment history with the HST broken out.
In October, RAHB’s Member Engagement Committee (MEC) hosted the final two 2018 RAHB Open Forums in Burlington and Hamilton. In total, 107 members came out for a morning of information and networking.
MEC Chair Laura Doucette moderated the events which each included a presentation by local speakers, RAHB updates (with supporting hand-out materials), Q & A with RAHB CEO George O’Neill, and committee members highlighting their upcoming events.
The presentations were delivered by the Mobility Hubs Planning Team from the City of Burlington and the Economic Development Division from the City of Hamilton. The Hamilton Open Forum was recorded in its entirety and can be viewed on the RAHB member Facebook page.
The events were supported by sponsors Underwriters Alliance, The Personal Group, City of Hamilton, Ross & McBride LLP and Gail Sylvester Mortgages.
RAHB President Jack Loft recently had a healthy lunch with Darlene and Wayne Foster of Royal LePage Signature. Wayne is also a pilot with Air Canada and he was preparing for a flight to Paris. Darlene and Wayne opened an office in downtown Stoney Creek and invited Jack to have lunch across the street at The Powerhouse Restaurant. Both Darlene and Wayne want to ramp up professionalism in the industry, they want to see an adherence to sign by-laws and advertising. Darlene is not too sure about electronic lock boxes but she may be willing to try!
For your chance to have lunch with the RAHB President, please e-mail your name to president@rahb.ca.
Cannabis Legislation: What Ontario REALTORS® Need to Know
Starting today, growing cannabis at home is legal. To make things easier for Ontario REALTORS®,OREA has assembled information that REALTORS® need to know about cannabis legalization.
And SAVE-THE-DATE:OREAwill be hosting a REALTOR® Cannabis Legalization Webinar on Wednesday, October 24, 2018 at 11 a.m.
Tune in to hear OREA’s Government Relations and Forms experts discuss cannabis legalization and what REALTORS® need to know about this important policy change. You’ll also have an opportunity to ask questions.
The Ontario Municipal Election is this Monday, October 22, 2018 and we encourage all RAHB REALTORS® to vote for those who represent you, your family, your community and your clients.
Please see below for links to where you can find candidate information for each of the areas within our RAHB market, as well as general voter information for those areas:
On September 28, the Association released this notice:
Members Be Aware: Suspicious Caller for Rentals and Referrals
A RAHB member office has been contacted by a man who expressed an interest in renting a house or apartment and also in introducing contacts in exchange for a referral fee. The interaction raised a number of red flags for the Broker of Record.
The details of the exchange included:
The gentleman, who said he is 64 years old, expressed an interest in renting a house or high end apartment.
He also said he would introduce the salesperson to a number of potential clients from other parts of the world, and that he has many contacts and opportunities for which he wants a referral fee.
When told that referrals can be paid only to licensed registrants, he said he is a lawyer and has approval from RECO.
He was at times aggressive in his requests.
He went by a name which, when searched online, produced links to articles about his history of not paying rent and about charges of fraud.
The incident has been reported to the Hamilton Police.
Please exercise caution if you experience a similar exchange, and consider reporting the incident to the police.
On September 27, 2018, the City of Hamilton Rental Licensing Sub-Committee voted in favour to establish a rental licensing pilot project in Wards 1 and 8. This recommendation will go before the next City of Hamilton Council, with anticipated implementation within the first quarter of 2019.
RAHB voted against rental licensing in the City of Hamilton for several reasons, including: a lack of clarification on the process, uneven zoning by-laws throughout the City of Hamilton since amalgamation, a lack of incorporating the Maple Leaf Strategies Report containing 25 recommendations to address the issues (above and beyond), a lack of plan moving forward, etc.
Please see below for information from the City of Hamilton’s for the rental licensing pilot project, as presented to the Rental Housing Sub-Committee:
LICENSING BY-LAW
This option is intended to assist and support in bringing low density rental properties into conformity and compliance with standards and lessen enforcement challenges presently in existence. An owner occupied low density dwelling unit with three or fewer bedrooms rented within the same dwelling will not require a licence to rent individual rooms (three or fewer) as this is allowed under current zoning regulations.
Considerations in developing a Low Density Rental Housing Licensing By-law and Program include:
Potential Requirements under a Licensing By-law:
(a) Owner to provide proof of ownership and contact information (principal residence), company information
(b) Property management plan
(c) Proof of insurance
(d) Local management contact info (for out of town owners)
(e) Self/City inspections for compliance with the City’s Property Standards and Yard Maintenance By-laws
(f) Electrical safety inspection
(h) Floor plan for the building
(i) Property/yard maintenance plan
(j) Parking plan
(k) Licence fee
(l) Consent to Inspection
Pilot Project Summary
FTEs
Associated Costs – FTEs
By-Law Amendments Required
Inspections
Exemptions
Fee
Rental Licensing
3
$347,463
Yes
Yes, consent for inspection provided by building owner.
An owner occupied unit with 3 or fewer bedrooms rented within the same dwelling unit.
$200 annually
ADVANTAGES OF LICENSING
Apply specifically to low density rental housing (5 units or less)
Apply equally to existing and new low density rental housing (5 units or less)
Require regular inspections
Require proof of insurance
Be funded by rental housing provider
Safer legal properties to rent
Potential reduction of enforcement costs to tax base
Possible elimination of unsafe, non-compliant properties from market
Early awareness of requirements allows for collaborative compliance
Competition from unsafe, non-compliant properties reduced
Housing stock is maintained
Inspection enforcement encourages preventative maintenance, which is more cost effective than deferred maintenance, and thereby helps owners maintain their properties
Housing inhabited by the most vulnerable populations, which is frequently the worst housing, is inspected annually
Poorly maintained, substandard housing can have a negative effect on neighboring property values
DISADVANTAGES OF LICENSING
Financial costs associated with a licence, passed on to tenants, higher rents
Financial costs associated with insurance, passed on to tenants, higher rents
Financial costs associated with bringing a property into compliance passed on to tenants, higher rents
Potential loss of rental income due to enforcement
Potential loss of affordable housing stock
May have an impact on affordable housing
Licensing rental housing may not be effective in addressing behavioural issues
Residential rental licensing should not be considered as an alternative to enforcement of existing by-laws
UNKNOWNS OF LICENSING
Although consent of entry written into regulation, unknown if tenants/owners will allow inspection
Compliance rates – follow-ups could be time consuming
Actual rental homes in Pilot Project area – 1,500 to 2,000 units estimated
RAHB is in contact with City of Hamilton staff to obtain more specifics on the plan moving forward and will provide those to RAHB members as they are obtained.
If you have any questions, please contact Wendy Stewart in the RAHB office at wendys@rahb.ca or 905.529.8101 x295 for more information.
