DOS provides guidance on amended PCDS form

The amended Property Condition Disclosure Statement (PCDS) went into effect Wednesday, June 14, 2023. NYSAR inquired with the DOS how the amended form may impact current listings taken prior to June 14, 2023. Below is a summary of the response from DOS.

Section 462 of the Real Property Law (RPL) provides, in part, “Except as is provided in section four hundred sixty-three of this article, every seller of residential real property pursuant to a real estate purchase contract shall complete and sign a property condition disclosure statement as prescribed by subdivision two of this section and cause it, or a copy thereof, to be delivered to a buyer or buyer’s agent prior to the signing by the buyer of a binding contract of sale. A copy of the property condition disclosure statement containing the signatures of both seller and buyer shall be attached to the real estate purchase contract.” N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 462(1) (McKinney)(emphasis supplied).

If a contract of sale has already been executed with the signed disclosure, then the seller met his/her obligation. If the seller provides the disclosure, at listing, but there is no “buyer” yet, such disclosure is likely not effective since it was not signed by the “buyer” as required under 462(1). When the “buyer” signs the disclosure, it should conform to the law at the time it was given. Therefore, if a listing was taken prior to June 14, 2023 and the PCDS was provided by the seller but it was not signed by the buyer prior to June 14, 2023, the new amended PCDS must be used instead. The seller would need to fill out the amended PCDS under these circumstances.

If you have any questions, please contact the NYSAR Legal Hotline. The Legal Hotline is available Monday-Friday from 9:00am-4:00pm at 518-436-9727.

Take Action Now — Urge State Senate to remove cold call restrictions during a State of Emergency.

With only a few days left in this year’s legislative session, your action is needed – Urge your State Senator to pass S.412/A.6680. (Please make sure to respond to this Call for Action in addition to any others sent recently on this topic, as this is new – Thank you for your continued advocacy!)

The State Assembly already unanimously passed the bill which would clarify the ability for licensed real estate professionals to conduct telemarketing business practices during states of emergency when it is found that such services would not impair or mitigate said state of emergency. In order for this bill to become law, the State Senate must also pass the bill.

Throughout the pandemic, and still today, REALTORS® have been shut out of conducting cold calls due to declarations and extensions of multiple states of emergency to address gun violence, health concerns brought on by COVID-19, and most recently to support asylum seekers. This is directly impeding real estate business operations, which are completely unrelated to the declared states of emergency – Real estate licensees may not make any unsolicited phone calls to a member of the public during a statewide state of emergency.

To complete the NYSAR Call For Action, click here. Thank you for your advocacy efforts!

Urge state lawmakers to remove cold call restrictions on licensed real estate professionals during a State of Emergency

With less than 2 weeks left in this year’s legislative session, your action is needed – Please urge your state lawmakers to PASS legislation S.412/A.6680, which clarifies the ability for licensed real estate professionals to provide telemarketing services during states of emergency when it is found that such services would not impair or mitigate said state of emergency. This legislation does not in any way impede state efforts to address current states of emergency.

Click here to complete the Call for Action!

Thank you for your advocacy efforts!

Sales continue to fall amid fluctuating interest rates and low inventory

Albany, NY – May 18, 2023 – With interest rates continuing to be in flux and inventory of homes reaching record lows, closed sales across New York continue to fall, according to the housing report released today by the New York State Association of REALTORS®.

Closed sales plummeted 29.6 percent last month from 9,857 homes in April 2022 to just 6,944 units in April 2023. Pending sales were down from 12,209 homes in April 2022 to 10,599 units last month, representing a 13.2 percent decline. New listings of homes fell 23.4 percent in year-over-year comparisons, from 17, 021 homes last April to just 13,040 listings in April 2023.

Inventory of homes for sale dropped to just 31,177 units In April, representing a 14.3 percent decrease from the 36,369 homes available last April. This is the lowest number of monthly homes available in New York State since Showing Time started recording housing statistics in January 2007.

Interest rates continue to fluctuate, starting April at 6.28 percent on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, but ended the month at 6.43 percent. According to Freddie Mac, the monthly average on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage settled in at 6.34 percent – slightly down from the 6.54 percent average last month.

Median sales prices of homes dipped marginally from $400,000 in April 2022 to $389,000 just last month. This represents a decrease of 2.8 percent.

Additional data is available at http://www.nysar.com/industry-resources/market-data.

State lawmakers introduce first-time homebuyer savings account bill following NYSAR Lobby Day

Following NYSAR and REALTOR^® Lobby Day advocacy efforts, legislation that would create a NYS first-time homebuyer savings account program (A.6933/S.6574) was introduced this week in the Assembly by Assembly member Phil Ramos (Suffolk). The bill would allow individuals and families to take a state income tax deduction on annual deposits into the account (up to $5,000 for individuals and $10,000 for couples). Senator Jeremy Cooney (Rochester) carries the bill in the Senate. Support for this bill was one of NYSAR’s legislative priorities during its May 2 REALTOR^® Lobby Day in Albany.

NAR adds new Fair Housing Requirements as Legislative Meetings close

National Association of REALTORS® new-member applicants must now complete two hours of fair housing training and existing members must complete two hours of fair housing training every three years as a condition of REALTOR® membership. The new requirement was approved by the association’s Board of Directors at its May 11 meeting. The three-year cycle coincides with NAR’s existing Code of Ethics training requirement and begins in 2025. For more from the NAR Legislative meetings, click here.

Final NYS Budget Summary

Late Wednesday, state lawmakers approved a $229 billion state budget, nearly a month after the April 1 deadline. Much of the delay in a final budget plan was due to disagreements in the Legislature over Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Housing Compact proposal to boost housing construction, changes to the state’s bail reform laws, and consideration of additional tenant protections, including “good cause” eviction. In the end, all housing policy was excluded from the budget, raising the possibility that the issue of housing and tenant protections could be taken back up before the Legislature adjourns in June.

The final budget includes a new mandate on all new construction to be all-electric beginning December 31, 2025 for buildings seven stories or less, and larger buildings by December 31, 2028. Other major items in this year’s budget include modifications to the state’s bail reform laws to allow judges more discretion to set bail in violent cases, an increase in the state’s minimum wage to $17/hour downstate and $16/hour upstate by 2026 and then annually indexed to inflation, a new lead paint certification process for rentals outside of NYC, and allowing the revival of 14 charter schools in NYC. NYSAR will be monitoring expected regulatory proposals to implement the new electrification and lead certification laws and will be providing our perspective during any public comment periods. For a summary of this year’s state budget, click here.

Register for the 2nd Annual Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Summit

A two-day Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Summit, co-hosted by seven REALTOR® associations, including NYSAR, will be held June 5-6 at the Sleepy Hollow Hotel & Conference Center. Explore your understanding of DEI within your personal and professional career, review the correlation between fair housing and DEI, how DEI makes business sense, and the implicit biases that continue to plague the real estate industry.

To register and learn more about the event, click here!

NYSAR Pre-Lobby Day Issues Briefing Live Zoom: April 28 at 11a.m.

REALTORS® are invited to attend virtually NYSAR’s Pre-Lobby Day Issues Briefing Live Zoom on Friday, April 28 at 11 a.m. for a legislative overview and to learn more about the issues we will be speaking to state lawmakers about on NYSAR’s Lobby Day on Tuesday, May 2. You will also have the opportunity to ask any questions you may have about Lobby Day. Registration is not required. For the Zoom meeting link, click here.

Lack of inventory hampers NY housing market again in March

Albany, NY – April 20, 2023 – For the 41^st consecutive month in year-over-year comparisons, housing inventory dropped across the Empire State, helping to slow the New York housing market even further, according to the housing report released today by the New York State Association of REALTORS®.

Inventory of homes for sale dropped to just 30,298 homes compared to 34,605 available homes last March. This marks a 12.4 percent decrease. There hasn’t been an increase in housing inventory in year-over-year comparisons since October 2019.

Closed sales fell 28.4 percent across the state from 10,664 sales in March 2022 to only 7,633 units last month. Pending sales were down as well, dipping 11.2 percent from 12,519 sales last March to 11,118 homes in March 2023. New listings plummeted to just 13,228 units last month, down 22.9 percent from the 17,166 listings in March 2022.

According to Freddie Mac, despite dropping the last three weeks of March, the monthly rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was up slightly from 6.50 percent in February to 6.54 percent last month.

Median sales prices of homes dipped slightly from $401,500 in March 2022 to $377,000 just last month. This represents a decline of 6.1 percent.

Additional data is available at http://www.nysar.com/industry-resources/market-data.

Lobby Day registration still open

NYSAR Lobby Day is scheduled for Tuesday, May 2, 2023 at the Empire State Plaza, Meeting room 6 in Albany. Join your fellow REALTORS® from across the Empire State to advocate in front of your lawmakers and discuss real estate related priorities that matter in your area and across the state. Lobby Day is a FREE event and travel reimbursement is available. Don’t be left behind – make your REALTOR® voice heard! Learn more.

To read NYSAR’s Lobby Day FAQ sheet, click here.

Take Action – Urge state lawmakers to OPPOSE ‘good cause’ eviction legislation

On Thursday, March 2, the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court ruled to uphold a lower court’s decision to overturn the City of Albany’s local “good cause” eviction law, finding that such protections can only be approved at the state level. Following this decision, state lawmakers are considering including these additional eviction protections in the state budget. NYSAR is actively opposing statewide “good cause” eviction legislation along with a coalition of other real estate related organizations, called “Homeowners for an Affordable New York.” You can make your voice heard by visiting the coalition’s Call for Action website here and urge state lawmakers to oppose “good cause” eviction legislation.