2014 Year in Review: Article style

As we ring in 2015, I wanted to take a look back and see what you, our reader, enjoyed the most on PARJustListed.com. Our 2014 Year in Review highlights the top 10 articles from the past 365 days according to the data. (If you remember, I ran a similar article on September 1 and received positive feedback. Hence why we’re here today.) The following top 10 articles were published in 2014:

Supreme Court rules on disclosure of murder-suicide
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court rules that a murder-suicide in a property is not a material defect that a seller needs to disclose to a buyer.

Facebook debuts new ‘save’ feature
You may be able to keep better track of your clients’ posts with this new Facebook feature.

Tragedy reminds Realtors® of open house dangers
NAR reminds those working that open houses can be a great sales tool, however, hosting one also exposes you to numerous unfamiliar people.

Bulb mandate: What homeowners need to know
Say goodbye to the old-style light bulb. Effective January 1, production of 60- and 40-watt incandescent light bulbs ended.

RESPA violations could land you in prison
The authorities are aggressively prosecuting RESPA violations, and those who continue to disregard the obligations of RESPA could face serious fines, loss of their license to practice their profession, and even prison time.

Best of the Hotline: a sale and settlement contingency gone awry
A buyer wants out of her existing contract to purchase a different home. Can she terminate her contract? Does she get her deposit back?

New Agreement tweaks 10-5-2 formula
I am sure you are excited about the release of the new PAR standard residential Agreement. Regardless of your excitement, it will be in your hands soon, if not already. None of the changes are dramatic, but as with previous releases, it is an improvement.

Best of the Hotline: Max LTV – an appraisal contingency?
When it comes to filling out the mortgage contingency clause, few Realtors® are confused about identifying the interest rate, term, loan amount or points. That is far from the case when it comes to understanding what to use as the maximum LTV.

New mortgage rules take effect
New mortgage rules written by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) went into effect last week, requiring lenders to verify that borrowers can repay their mortgages.

Best-kept secrets of realtor.com®
Bob Greenspan, vice president of industry relations for realtor.com®, shared his seven best-kept secrets of realtor.com® with PAR members last month in Harrisburg.

To round out this review article, I want to highlight four articles with honorable mentions. These articles were posted in previous years, but continue to rank high in traffic on PARJustListed.com:

Disposing of abandoned property: A reprieve for landlords
For decades, landlords and property managers have been looking for guidance on how long and how carefully they have to store property that was left under (oftentimes) hostile conditions.

Can a landlord charge a pet security deposit for a service animal?
Disability discrimination occurs if a landlord refuses to make a “reasonable accommodation” in rules, policies, practices or services when such accommodation is necessary to afford a person with a disability the equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling.

Criminal convictions and the practice of real estate
Each month, applicants for salesperson licenses line up awaiting an interview before the State Real Estate Commission’s Enforcement Committee. The subjects of these interviews are felony and misdemeanor convictions that occurred recently or many years ago. More times than not, the conviction will not block access to a license.

How to handle real estate transactions involving a power of attorney or an estate
When asked to list a property by an executor or other non-owner, your job is to obtain a copy of the correct documentation before taking any other action. You cannot operate on word alone.

I hope you enjoyed our 2014 year in review. Be sure you’re receiving useful tips and industry information daily by registering for our emails. Happy New Year!