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REALTOR® Expo Booth Winners

10/13/2023

🥁… drum roll please! We had terrifically decorated vendor booths at the 2023 Member Meeting and REALTOR® Expo  at Stovehouse. The theme was 🇺🇸DESTINATION USA🇺🇸 and the vendors understood the assignment. During the EXPO, attendees had the opportunity to vote on the top three BEST BOOTHS based on creativity, decor, and engagement. Congratulations to our best booth winners!🏆🚗🛣️

🥇Overall Best Booth (Area 51) Redstone Federal Credit Union
🥈Second Place (Las Vegas): Certainty Home Lending
🥉Third Place (Area 51): Movement Mortgage North Alabama
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Voices of Fair Housing

04/28/2023

Each April for Fair Housing month – and throughout the year – HAAR is committed to not only offering opportunities for our members to become better experts on equity and inclusion, but we also promote the Realtor brand to the region as defenders of Fair Housing.
This April, we brought you the perspective of Realtors and other Fair Housing leaders in our community on how we can be better defenders of Fair Housing. Please see below for a roundup of the full month of “Voices of Fair Housing”.
Every moment REALTORS® and those who support the real estate market spend on being better stewards of Fair Housing is a moment our clients and community are better served. Thank you to our members for their relentless dedication to the equity, inclusion, and anti-discrimination.

Voices of Fair Housing: Chris Hulser, HAAR President

Voices of Fair Housing: Alana Beaugez

Voices of Fair Housing: Antonio McGinnis

Voices of Fair Housing: Natsuki Tani

Voices of Fair Housing: Pamela Bass

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Recapping Stress Awareness Month

04/28/2023

April is Stress Awareness Month and for the past four weeks, HAAR has shared tips to relax and decompress in The Weekly newsletter and on our social channels. Take a look below at a recap of our top five tips to reduce stress below.
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Voices of Fair Housing: Pamela Bass

04/28/2023

For #FairHousingMonth, HAAR will be profiling local REALTORS® and leaders in the industry on their FH Story.

"It could be game-changing for our industry if we all played our part."

Pamela Bass, a local REALTOR® and HAAR member, says Fair Housing becomes her story when representing her clients and tenants.
“I have a few tenants who struggle with obtaining housing, and they always seem to believe it’s due to their race,” said Bass.
Bass said she is always excited to fulfill the purpose of allowing her tenants and clients to have equal housing opportunities. Her company and team are committed to adhering to the 1968 Fair Housing Declaration.
Bass believes our community can better protect Fair Housing by building support for a housing strategy and staying updated on the rules and of the proclamation.
“It could be game-changing for our industry if we all played our part,” said Bass
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Voices of Fair Housing: Natsuki Tani

04/21/2023

For #FairHousingMonth, HAAR will be profiling local REALTORS® and leaders in the industry on their FH Story.
This week we are featuring Natsuki Tani, local REALTOR® and HAAR member. When asked what Fair Housing means to her, Tani said, “Fair Housing means that everyone has a FAIR opportunity to purchase a home and not be discriminated against in anyway.”
Tani is a first generation American whose parents immigrated to the U.S. from Japan.
“We have dealt with our fair share of racism, so anytime I work with families of different ethnicities, religions, or backgrounds, I make sure they never question whether they are treated properly or not.” said Tani.
Tani believes raising awareness of different cultures, religions, and backgrounds through festivals and event would be a great addition to the strides already being made to promote the rules of Fair Housing.
She encourages our community to increase volunteer events for citizens that benefit different charity groups representing people with disabilities and more to better protect our laws on Fair Housing.
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Voices of Fair Housing: Antonio McGinnis

04/14/2023

For #FairHousingMonth, HAAR will be profiling local REALTORS® and leaders in the industry on their FH Story. 🧡
This week, we are highlighting Antonio McGinnis, the Executive Director/CEO of the Huntsville Housing Authority. McGinnis’s goal for Fair Housing this year is to collaborate more with local lenders to ensure residents can use all sources of income that they are granted, so that families can choose where they are going to raise their children. He stresses that to protect Fair Housing, we need to have more conversations on housing, so that the community at-large is educated on updated Fair Housing practices.

“I believe landlords just don’t understand they are violating laws, so they treat people in any kind of way,” said McGinnis. “It is important to stay on top of Fair Housing rules and laws because they change all the time. ”

Huntsville Housing Authority’s mission is to develop and preserve a high standard of safe, affordable housing for qualifying individuals and families, free from discrimination. HHA believes housing is a basic need and the foundation for a successful life. HHA’s dedicated staff, along with community partners, will promote neighborhood revitalization, self-sufficiency, and assist our families in achieving long-term economic success and a sustained high quality of life.
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Voices of Fair Housing: Alana Beaugez

04/11/2023

For #FairHousingMonth, HAAR will be profiling local REALTORS® and leaders in the industry on their FH Story. 🧡
This week, we are featuring Alana Beaugez from Alabama Housing Finance Authority! Alana emphasized that Alabama Housing Finance Authority’s Fair Housing Story relies heavily on REALTOR® partners, who interact directly with home-buying clients, to communicate the value and tremendous savings of the programs AHFA offers.
Everyone who meets fundamental income limits is equally eligible for these programs. AHFA’s loan process is “colorblind” since they seldom meet customers face-to-face.
“The Alabama Housing Finance Authority exists to make homeownership dreams come true. But this isn’t a goal we can accomplish alone says”, Alana Beaugez, Business Development Specialist at AHFA.
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RPAC at Work: NAR Engaged on Rental Housing Issues

01/27/2023

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began and stay-at-home orders were put into place, rental housing has […]

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Realtors® Learn How to Better Serve Veterans in the Community

10/12/2022

Realtors® across North Alabama will gather next week in honor of Veterans Day to earn a new certification; Military Relocation Professional (MRP). An official certification through the National Association of Realtors®, MRP gives local Realtors® the expertise to provide the best level of relocation assistance to military professionals and their families.

In tandem with the Redstone Arsenal, a U.S. Army Installation in Huntsville, North Alabama is home to thousands of veterans and service members. Hundreds of Realtors® will be ready to assist military families in and out of the area by having a working knowledge of the processes and procedures required to relocate.

The MRP courses offered by the Huntsville Area Association of REALTORS® (HAAR) will be held on two different days. The first course starts on Thursday, Oct. 20th from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Trash Pandas Stadium, and the second course on Friday, Oct. 21st from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Gunter’s Landing. Both classes are currently sold out with a waiting list.

 

“Realtors® with an MRP certification ensure their veteran clients are taking advantage of the programs and benefits they can access in the homebuying process. We recommend any buyer or seller hire a Realtor® professional, and that’s especially important for our veterans relocating to North Alabama,” said HAAR President, Isaac Winkles.

After completing the MRP certification, Realtors® will understand the basics of VA financing, use demographics of the military market to determine service offerings for sellers and buyers, and identify services that help military sell or find and purchase suitable homes.

The MRP courses will commence just weeks before Veterans Day on November 11th. By hosting these courses, HAAR hopes to educate Realtors® on the ways to properly serve our veteran and military families by making the relocation process a smooth transition for all.

HAAR informs, influences, and empowers a thriving real estate market by focusing on advocacy, education, and connections.

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IT Services Being Discontinued Dec 31st

08/05/2022

NOTICE: August 1, 2022
Effective December 31, 2022, the Huntsville Area Association of REALTORS® & ValleyMLS.com will discontinue our IT service offerings provided by Tammy Owen and David Cruse. This includes: working on computers, networks, and in-office/on-site support. Tammy and David will now focus their talents on projects internally to continue to push ValleyMLS.com and HAAR to the forefront of MLSs and Associations nationwide.
MLS support staff will continue to be available to troubleshoot any issues with MLS technology or Association software needs. They may be reached at MLSsupport@valleymls.com . 
After December 31, 2022, Tammy and David will not be available to fix cell phone, tablet, laptops, desktops, IT, network, or unrelated real estate software needs.
The ValleyMLS Board of Directors approved this recommendations June 15th, 2022 after it was studied for several months. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you.
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