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For Immediate Release: NEW JERSEY REALTORS® VOICE THEIR POSITION ON NATIONAL ISSUESSupport for Mortgage Cancellation Tax Relief Act at top of REALTORS®' agendaEDISON, N.J. - Members from the New Jersey Association of REALTORS® (NJAR®) were among more than 8,000 REALTORS® from across the country who recently attended the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (NAR) annual Midyear Legislative Meetings & Trade Expo in Washington D.C., May 14-19. During the trip, NJAR® members also visited Capitol Hill to meet with congressional representatives to voice their position on federal issues that may affect the real estate marketplace in New Jersey. "The Midyear meetings provide a great opportunity for our members to voice their position to national leaders on issues that may impact the housing industry in New Jersey in order to better serve real estate consumers in their communities," said NJAR® President Bill Hanley. "Having NJAR® members here is a testament to the dedication and commitment REALTORS® have to promoting a vibrant real estate marketplace across the country and in our state." At the top of the agenda, REALTOR® attendees expressed to congressional leaders their strong support for The Mortgage Cancellation Tax Relief Act, H.R. 1876, which was introduced by New Jersey Rep. Robert Andrews (D-1) and Ron Lewis (R-KY) this past April. Under current law, when a lender forgives some or all of a mortgage debt, the borrower is required to treat the forgiven debt as taxable income. The Act would provide relief from this tax to homeowners who most likely have already experienced significant financial losses from a "short" sale (short sale occurs when the outstanding loans on a property are greater than what the property can be sold for) or foreclosure. H.R. 1876 is currently before the House Ways & Means Committee. REALTORS® also discussed the urgency for Congress to appropriate funding to modernize flood maps. With many areas of New Jersey susceptible to flooding that affects hundreds of homeowners each year, REALTORS® raised the importance for updated flood maps in order to correctly identify which properties are located in floodplains. Without updated maps that allow insurance companies to see exactly where a home is in relation to a floodplain, homeowners may have trouble finding adequate and affordable flood insurance, which could delay real estate transactions and make homeownership more costly. During the visit NJAR® members also voiced their support for keeping the long-held Community Choice in Real Estate Act (H.R. 111 / S. 413), legislation that would prohibit mixing banking and commerce. REALTORS® applaud the bill because they believe that if banks were allowed into real estate brokerage, home buyers and sellers could have fewer options, increased loan fees and reduced customer service. NJAR® members also discussed the importance for legislation that would make affordable health insurance available to small businesses and the self employed, and ways to combat predatory lending by urging the Federal Housing Administration to provide borrowers with safer alternatives to riskier mortgages. "It's important to our members and real estate consumers in New Jersey that we keep an ongoing dialogue with our national leaders about our position on federal issues that could impact our housing industry," Hanley added. "This trip has been a great opportunity for our members to help strengthen the unified voice of REALTORS® on these issues. In the end, our ultimate goal is to help protect property owners and their ability to achieve homeownership. That is why we are here and will continue to come back every year." The New Jersey Association of REALTOR® is a non-profit organization serving the professional needs of approximately 55,000 REALTOR® and REALTOR-ASSOCIATE® members in the state. 2007 marks the association's 90th anniversary year. REALTOR® is a registered collective membership mark which may be used only by real estate professionals who subscribe to the REALTOR® organization's strict Code of Ethics and are members of the national, state and local REALTOR® organizations. For more information, please visit www.njar.com. ###
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