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SRES® CLIENT ASSURANCE PROGRAM HELPS SENIORS CHOOSE REALTOR® The Senior Advantage Real Estate Council® (SAREC®) on Friday announced an innovative new program that will enable senior homebuyers and sellers to electronically verify the professional and state licensing status of its Seniors Real Estate Specialist® (SRES®) designees. Through an agreement with SquareTrade, a leading provider of online trust infrastructure, the SRES® Client Assurance program empowers seniors to electronically conduct a third-party credentials verification before engaging a REALTOR® when buying or selling a home. "Seniors are increasingly concerned with the potential for fraud or other forms of financial abuse," said SAREC® Senior Advisor Nathan Booth. "SAREC's Client Assurance program is the first -- and only -- program offering senior homebuyers and sellers an enhanced level of security and assurance that no other real estate designation is able to offer. With just one click, SAREC's Client Assurance program empowers seniors to proactively verify their REALTORS®' credentials prior to forming a relationship." SAREC® is owned by Real Estate Business Services Inc. (REBS), a subsidiary of the California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.).

LATEST VERSION OF WINFORMS® AND STANDARD FORMS NOW AVAILABLE The latest version of WINForms® software and C.A.R. forms can now be downloaded from C.A.R. Online (www.car.org). In addition to the semiannual form updates and many feature enhancements, the new WINForms® software has an expiration date of March 31, 2005, giving WINForms® users two additional months to use the product prior to renewal. Click on the link below for instructions to download the latest version of WINForms® Desktop software.

2004 MARKS NINTH CONSECUTIVE RECORD YEAR FOR CONDO SALES Sales of existing condominiums and cooperatives were at the second highest pace on record during the third quarter, according to a recent NAR report. While existing condo and co-up sales decreased 2.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 990,000 units, sales were 5.2 percent above the 941,000-unit level of sales activity in third quarter 2003. The median existing condo price was $197,000 in the third quarter, 18.0 percent higher than the same quarter in 2003. By comparison, the median-priced existing single-family home was $188,500 in the third quarter, up 7.7 percent from a year ago. In the West, existing condo and co-op sales declined 3.7 percent from second quarter to an annual rate of 258,000 units in the third quarter, but sales were 3.2 percent higher than one year ago. The median price in the West was $244,400, up 20.5 percent from the third quarter of 2003.

C.A.R.'S EXECUTIVE VP, PAST PRESIDENT RECEIVE PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS C.A.R. Executive Vice President Joel Singer is the recipient of NAR's 2004 William R. Magel Award of Excellence. The award was presented to Singer at the 2004 REALTORS® Conference & Expo in Orlando by NAR President Walt McDonald. Established in 1983 to honor the memory of William R. Magel, the annual award is given to the person who has "excelled in the role of association executive of a local or state association of REALTORS® and who is active in the REALTOR® Organization." "Joel is one of the most dedicated people I've ever known in real estate. His tireless work, his commitment to duty and his innovation are exemplary in the real estate industry. His drive and devotion to the real estate organization have propelled the California association to a great level of excellence. I'm proud to have served with him," said McDonald. C.A.R. Past President and former Dept. of Real Estate Commissioner Bob Karpe is the 2004 recipient of the Glenn T. Seaborg Award. The award, named after the former University of California chancellor and 1959 Nobel Prize-winning scientist Glenn Seaborg, is given to a past Cal football player for his career accomplishments. Karpe, who was an All-Coast tackle on Cal's 1951 Rose Bowl team and graduated as the class valedictorian in 1952, has been one of the nation's leading real estate executives for the past four decades. Since 1976, Karpe has been chairman of the board of the Karpe Real Estate Center in Bakersfield. He served as California's real estate commissioner from 1971-75 and as president of the Government National Mortgage Association in Washington, D.C., from 1981-84.

Information provided by - C.A.R. Newsline is published by the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, a trade association representing more than 135,000 REALTORS® statewide.