The document provides information on upcoming events and deadlines for the New Jersey Association of REALTORS® (NJAR®) from September to November 2013. It also includes a short legislative update on bills being tracked by NJAR® that could affect real estate issues in New Jersey, and encourages REALTORS® to get involved in their professional association.

3. CONTENTS
September 2013
Features
Above and Beyond 10
by Michelle Hofmann
The Importance of Teamwork 12
by Marcus A. Wally
Make Safety a Priority in Your Business 14
by Colleen King
Online Reviews: Risk and Reward in a Connected World 16
by Joe Dysart
NJAR® Educational Foundation Awards over $56,000 19
in Scholarships to 39 Students
NJARHOF Supports Local Communities 20
by Alexandra Damon
Departments
President’s View: REALTOR® Safety Before a Sale 4
by Tina Banasiak
Message From the CEO: Get Involved in & Get to Know 5
Your REALTOR® Association
by Jarrod C. Grasso
NJAR® Events and Deadlines 6
Legislative Update: The Special Edition 8
by Douglas M. Tomson
Board/Association News 23
New Jersey REALTOR®
A publication ofthe New JerseyAssociation ofREALTORS®
295 Pierson Avenue, Edison, NJ 08837
Phone: (732) 494-5616 Fax: (732) 494-4723
Website: www.njar.com
Monthly except for combined January/February
and November/December issues
Jarrod C. Grasso, RCE
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Allison Rosen
DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS
Advertising Sales
The Cyphers Agency
(410) 280-5451
2013 OFFICERS
Christina “Tina” Banasiak PRESIDENT
Cindy Marsh-Tichy PRESIDENT-ELECT
Eugenia “Jean” Bonilla FIRST VICE PRESIDENT
Genette Falk TREASURER
2013 DIVISION OFFICERS
Graeme W. Atkinson ASSOCIATION OPERATIONS
Tg Glazer COMMUNICATIONS AND
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Carol Anderson INDUSTRY ADVOCACY
John Terebey Jr. PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT
Angela Sicoli PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
The New Jersey Association of REALTORS® (NJAR®) provides
legal and legislative updates as well as information on a
variety of real estate related topics solely for the use of its
members. Due to the wide range of issues affecting its
members, NJAR® publishes information concerning those
issues that NJAR®, in its sole discretion, deems the most
important for its members.
Thecontentandaccuracyofallarticlesand/oradvertisements
by persons not employed by or agents of NJAR®
are the sole responsibility of their author. NJAR® disclaims
any liability or responsibility for their content or accuracy.
Where such articles and/or advertisements contain legal
adviceorstandards,NJAR® recommendsthatREALTORS® seek
legal counsel with regard to any specific situation to which
they may seek to apply the article.
Articles and/or advertisements appearing in the New Jersey
REALTOR® express the personal views of the respective writers
and are not an official expression from the New Jersey Association
of REALTORS® or New Jersey REALTOR ® magazine. All rights
reserved. Reproduction prohibited without permission.
Postmastersendform3579ChangeofAddressto:Editor,New
Jersey REALTOR ®,295 Pierson Avenue, Edison, NJ 08837. Non-
member subscription $10.00 annual. Member subscriptions
allocated from annual dues: $3.00.
NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 3

4. As important as our businesses are, each September we are reminded that there is something
much more valuable to REALTORS® across New Jersey - our safety. At the beginning of fall each
year, as many offices around the state work themselves out of their summer routine and back
into a fall schedule, the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® recognizes REALTOR®
Safety Month with important information and resources for members to take advantage of.
Take a few minutes this month to really evaluate your safety plan and make sure you are
as prepared as you can be, should you ever find yourself in a bad situation. The first step
is to make sure you and your office have a devised, strict and updated plan for safety. If it
doesn’t exist yet, now is the time to create it.
As REALTORS®, it's easy to find ourselves working independently much of the time.
While it's fine to keep your transactions between you and your broker, make sure your
office is involved and informed of your day-to-day activities and vice versa.
A little preparation can go a long way. The number of people REALTORS® interact with on a
daily basis is greater than most other professionals in the work force, which put us at a greater
risk of finding ourselves in an unsafe situation. If you feel uncomfortable with anyone or in
any situation, remove yourself from it. There’s no reason your business should come before
yourself – no matter what. But, as the article "Make Safety a Priority in Your Business" on page
14 explains, there is a great difference between being prepared and being paranoid.
Someone in your office should know where you are and roughly how long you will
be there at all times. This way, a prolonged absence will always be noticeable to your
coworkers and they will know how to get in touch with you. With new clients, always
meet them first in your office and introduce them to a coworker or two. Get information
about any prospective clients before you show them a listing and consider making copies
of their drivers’ licenses.
There's no reason to believe, as a REALTOR®, you will find yourself confronted with a
dangerous situation, but there's also no reason to not prepare for such an occurrence.
Having common sense and the ability to read people - which REALTORS® inherently have -
will go a long way for your well-being. Be your own best advocate!
For more about REALTOR® Safety Month, visit realtor.org/topics/realtor-safety. n
PRESIDENT’S VIEW
REALTOR® Safety Before a Sale
By Tina Banasiak
NJAR® President
4 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com

5. NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 5
As summer winds downs and we get back to the fast-paced business world, I encourage
you to stop for a moment and think about your “extra-curricular” activities. No, you
may not be a high school or college student anymore, but those outside activities and
hobbies still matter! They’re good for your soul and your business.
Maybe you’re a new member to the New Jersey Association of REALTORS®. Maybe
you’ve been a member for some time. In either case, I encourage you to get involved in
the REALTOR® world and get to know the inner workings of the organization – whether
at a local, state or national level.
What you’ll find is that you are among some of the most dedicated, hard-working
individuals in the industry and you will be able to affect change alongside them.
And, within each level of the REALTOR® family, you’ll learn that there are so many
options for involvement based on your interests. If you’re into politics, we have the
legislative, political affairs, and RPAC committees at the state level. Technology your
forté? Consider becoming a member of the communications and public relations or
technology committees.
The benefits are bountiful – you’ll become incredibly familiar with the value of
your NJAR® membership, you’ll make new connections, you’ll lend your expertise
on issues that matter to you, and you’ll show your clients that you’re dedicated to
your profession.
At the state level, you can access the committee selection application online at
njar.com. The application period will close Nov. 8 and those selected to serve on
committees will be notified in late December for one-year terms beginning in
January 2014. If you have questions about the process, contact NJAR® Executive
Services Coordinator Kristen Render at krender@njar.com or (732) 494-5616.
I also encourage you to volunteer beyond the REALTOR® Association with an
organization that has special meaning to you. Whether it’s supporting fundraising,
research and awareness for a disease a loved one has suffered from, helping shelter
animals or doing an outdoor cleanup, you can make a difference in your communities.
Check out opportunities with the NJAR® Housing Opportunity Foundation as they
are always seeking volunteers for various projects throughout the state. Not
only will you be doing good work, you’ll make new connections and demonstrate
what being a REALTOR® truly means. n
Get Involved in & Get to Know
Your REALTOR® Association
By Jarrod C. Grasso
NJAR® Chief Executive
Officer
MESSAGE FROM THE CEO
“Never doubt
that a small
group of
thoughtful,
committed
citizens can
change the
world; indeed,
it's the only
thing that
ever has.”
-Margaret Mead

6. NJAR® Events & Deadlines
Sept. 1, 2013 – Nov. 30, 2013
6 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com
Sept. 2 NJAR® Office Closed - Labor Day
Sept. 4 Celebrity Chef Fundraiser
6:00-9:00p.m. REALTOR® Political Action Committee
Rumson, N.J. • (732) 494-4708
njar.com/story/161/
Sept. 10 NJAR® Executive Committee Meeting
11:00a.m. NJAR® Executive Officers Meeting
NJAR® Presidents-Elect Meeting
Edison, N.J. • (732) 494-5616
Sept. 10 NJAR® Board of Directors Meeting
1:00p.m. Edison, N.J. • (732) 494-5616
Sept. 10 Annual Delegate Meeting
New Jersey Association of REALTORS®
Edison, N.J. • (732) 494-5616
Sept. 19 New Jersey REALTORS® Care Day
North Central Jersey Association of REALTORS®
& Middlesex County Association of REALTORS®
along with NJAR® Housing Opportunity
Foundation, Inc.
Various locations throughout north N.J. and
Middlesex County
NCJAR at (973) 425-0110, MCAR at (732) 442-3400
or NJAR® (732) 494-5616
Sept. 20 NJAR® Good Neighbor Award Application Due
5:00p.m. Edison, N.J. • (732) 494-5616
njar.com/story/339
Sept. 23 RPAC of New Jersey Deadline for NJAR® Circle of
Excellence Sales Award® Credit
njar.com/account
Oct. 15 Early Bird and Registration PLUS Deadline for
Triple Play REALTOR® Convention & Trade Expo
REALTORStripleplay.com
Oct. 16 October Special Election
elections.nj.gov
Oct. 16 2013 Leadership Seminar
9:00a.m. New Jersey Association of REALTORS®
Edison, N.J. • (732) 494-5616
Nov. 5 Election Day
njar.com/story/531
Nov. 8 NJAR® Committee Selection Forms Due
njar.com/forms/committee.php
Nov. 8-11 Rise to New Heights 2013 Conference
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
San Francisco, Calif.
realtor.org/convention.nsf
Nov. 15 Pre-registration deadline for Triple Play
REALTOR® Convention & Trade Expo
REALTORStripleplay.com
Nov. 28-29 NJAR® Office Closed – Thanksgiving
Are You a Good Neighbor?
NJAR® Wants to Thank You!
Submit an application for yourself or another deserving
REALTOR®. Download the entry form & complete rules
at njar.com/story/339.
Deadline: September 20, 2013
Each day, REALTORS® are paving the way for a better
tomorrow. NJAR® want to recognize your outstanding
service efforts so share your story – you could receive
funding for your deserving charity!
The 2013 NJAR® Good Neighbor Award winners
will receive donations to their community service
organizations of choice, as follows:
First Place - $2,500
Second Place - $1,500
Third Place - $1,000

8. 8 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE
Legislative Update:
The Special Election
By Douglas M. Tomson
As part of my job, I have the privilege of speaking to REALTORS® across the
state on a wide range of political topics. Recently, the topic I’ve enjoyed speaking
about the most is the upcoming U.S. Senate election to fill the unexpired term
of late Senator Frank Lautenberg. I would be remiss if I didn’t note that Senator
Lautenberg was a friend to the REALTORS® and a constant advocate on
homeowner’s issues during his numerous years of service. In addition to losing
a friend, the timing of his death set off a chain reaction critical for New Jersey
and REALTORS® due to the upcoming issues that Congress must tackle.
The questions that I get most often are, “Why a special election in October
and why does it matter?” In true New Jersey fashion, our laws are extremely
confusing about the process in which we must replace a U.S. Senator. In fact,
upon examination, the laws actually conflict with each other.
The only area where they agree is that New Jersey’s Governor Chris Christie was
charged with appointing a replacement, which he did – Jeff Chiesa, the former
State Attorney General, is now the first Republican U.S. Senator representing
New Jersey in 30 years.
The conflicting area of the laws has to do with the special election process. Some
believed that Christie could appoint Senator Chiesa to serve until a November
2014 special election, while others thought the special election should take place
this November. In a move that surprised many, Gov. Christie announced that a
special primary election would be held on Aug. 13, with an Oct. 16 general election
to fill the seat. For the first time in memory, New Jerseyans headed to the polls on
a Tuesday in August and will do the same on a Wednesday in October, and finally a
Tuesday in November. Voter turnout and voter apathy will be interesting after this
election is over.
RPACof
NewJersey
Where Every Dollar Counts
$600,000
$550,000
$500,000
$450,000
$400,000
$350,000
$300,000
$250,000
$200,000
$150,000
$100,000
$50,000
$644,025
$334,087
*As of August 1, 2013

9. NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 9
New Jersey Legislative Bills
Douglas M.Tomson
Douglas M.Tomson is
NJAR®’s Director of Government
Affairs. He can be reached
at (732) 494-4720 or
dtomson@njar.com.
The following are some of the bills NJAR® is tracking that may be
heard in the upcoming months of the New Jersey legislative session.
A3915 – Singleton (D7), Green (D22)
Establishes the “Mortgage Assistance Pilot Program.”
NJAR® Position: Support
This bill establishes a new Mortgage Assistance Pilot Program to allow homeowners
with negative equity and in mortgage default to lower their principal to reflect
current market value of their home. NJAR® supports this legislation as a means to
provide homeowners with another method of avoiding foreclosure and staying in
their homes as well as to preserve property values in the same neighborhood.
A S S E M B LY B I L L H I S T O R Y:
3/7/2013 – Introduced and referred to Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee
6/6/2013 – Reported out of committee, referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee
A3921 – Barnes (D18), Ramos (D33)
Changes type of development requiring CAFRA permit from DEP.
NJAR® Position: Oppose
This bill reduces the number of residential units for homes and parking spaces for
businesses that would be needed in order to trigger the requirement that a Coastal
Area Facility Review Act (CAFRA) permit be obtained before work could be done on
a property in such a zone. NJAR® opposes this legislation as it makes the process for
home and business owners to do work on their properties more cumbersome in
CAFRA areas.
A S S E M B LY B I L L H I S T O R Y:
3/14/2013 – Introduced and referred to Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee
5/13/2013 – Reported out of committee, referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee
A4235 – Johnson (D37), Caputo (D28)/S131 – Rice (D28),Van Drew (D1)
Allows a gross income tax credit to certain taxpayers for capital improvements
made to principal residence.
NJAR® Position: Strong Support
This bill provides certain taxpayers with a 10 percent gross income tax credit toward the
cost of improvements made to their primary one or two-family home. NJAR® strongly
supports this legislation as it will assist in revitalizing New Jersey’s homes in New
Jersey’s older neighborhoods.
A S S E M B LY B I L L H I S T O R Y:
6/13/2013 – Introduced and referred to Assembly Housing and Local Government Committee
S E N AT E B I L L H I S T O R Y:
1/10/2012 – Introduced and referred to Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee
10/15/2012 – Reported out of committee with amendments, referred to Senate Budget and
Appropriations Committee
SUPPORT MONITOR OPPOSE
Why does all this matter?
REALTORS® have an additional reason to be
concerned about this election. As you know, we
recently launched a Call for Action to send letters
to your members of congress about a “blank slate”
tax reform proposal by Chairman of the Senate
Finance Committee, Max Baucus (D-MT) and Ranking
Member Orrin Hatch (R-UT). This proposal mirrors
the path outlined by Ways and Means Chairman Dave
Camp (R-MI) in the House of Representatives.
What is the blank slate?
A “blank slate” means that as a starting point, all
tax expenditures – including tax deductions such
as the mortgage interest deduction, tax exemptions
such as the capital gains exemption on the sale of
a primary residence, and tax credits such as energy
efficiency tax credits – will be removed from the
tax code. Senators will have to request tax
expenditures be added to the reform legislation.
Using the “blank slate” approach allows the
Senate Finance Committee to highlight the
just how much tax rates could be reduced by
eliminating all the tax expenditures. Adding
any tax expenditures back into the code would
ratchet the rates up.
As stated by our NAR President Gary Thomas, “At
the end of the day, we are in the business of building
communities, and these communities need both Main
Street and Maple Street to equally thrive to keep our
economy healthy and strong. The long tradition of
tax incentives that encourage homeownership and
commercial investment in real estate are a cornerstone
of our economy and must be preserved.” n

10. 10 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com
When Brian Groetsch secured his real estate license in
2004, he had an undergraduate degree and wanted more
education. But something stopped him.
“My philosophy when I started in real estate was to try and
get some experience before I continued with my education,
but that was the wrong approach. I waited longer than I
should have. I should have started the GRI and other
certification and designation classes right away, because
they were integral to obtaining the skills to be successful,”
Groetsch, ABR, CRS, GRI, SRES, e-PRO, broker-manager
for RE/MAX at the Shore in Cape May, N.J., explains.
“When you start in the business, you don’t know anything.
In essence, you don’t know what you don’t know, and you
can get trapped into the individual views of your office or the
management or the owner. But by stepping out and getting
designations, I met instructors and other students from
different offices. I learned how things are done in other areas.
I got involved,” Groetsch says.
Building on
educational networks,
Groetsch moved into
politics, serving two terms
(2011 and 2012) as president for the Cape May County
Association of REALTORS®. He made headlines as the CMCAR
REALTOR® of the Year in 2012. Today, as a member of the
board of directors for the New Jersey Association of
REALTORS®, Groetsch encourages peers to use education
and activism as stepping stones to success.
The effort, Groetsch says, won’t be lost on consumers. “They
know that you’ve taken an active role in the industry, and
that has an impact on their perception of you. They really
view you as a true professional,” Groetsch says.
Bob Jaekel, director of Ho-Ho-Kus, N.J.-based New Horizons
School of Real Estate, agrees. Jaekel, a broker of record for
RRML Realty Group in Fort Lee, N.J., has been teaching
real estate courses for 33 years. He says it’s common for
professionals to undervalue education. Still, Jaekel says
practitioners who take a broker’s course often earn twice
as much as their peers. One reason: “They are networking
with other professionals,” Jaekel notes.
Recent statistics support Jaekel’s view. In 2012, the National
Association of REALTORS® Member Profile showed that
the median income of sales professionals with at least one
designation was $50,000 – $21,400 higher than those
without a designation.
The lure of money is great, but with practitioners struggling
to balance life and work, carving out time for an extra class
beyond standard continuing education licensing requirements
(12 units every two years) can be a challenge. An e-Pro course
(epronar.com) can run two days
and cost $239. And a 150-hour
broker course can take 10-weeks
(two days per week; 8 a.m. to 3:30
p.m.) and costs $999.
Eileen Meehan, ABR, BPO, CLHMS,
CRS, e-PRO, GRI, SFR, a broker-associate
with Keller Williams Valley Realty in
Woodcliff Lake, N.J., says Graduate REALTOR®
Institute classes are a must for new agents. “What
I learned during my GRI course gave me a huge
advantage in terms of professionalism and knowledge in the
business,” Meehan says.
Jennifer Brito, ABR, e-PRO, GRI, a sales associate with
Gilsenan & Company in Ridgewood, N.J., suggests the
Accredited Buyer’s Representative® designation for associates
working with buyers. “I felt the more education I had, the
more I would be able to help with issues and better serve my
clients. And the ABR was the one designation that was most
useful,” she says.
Above and Beyond
By Michelle Hofmann
From securing a designation to volunteering at the local level, practitioners
say self-improvement ventures pay dividends above and beyond the sale.

11. Meehan says the Short Sale and Foreclosure course allowed
her to adapt to recent market shifts.
“We had never really seen short sales up until a few years
ago. So that was something I chose to do over the ABR,”
she explains.
While you can’t sidetrack your business and focus
on education, some brokers set one educational
self-improvement goal each year and move toward
it during an annual real estate convention.
In December, Catherine “Cathy” Farrell, a broker-manager
with Ward Wight Sotheby’s International Realty in Avon by
the Sea, N.J., attended one of the Certified Real Estate
Brokerage Manager (crb.com) designation and certification
classes offered during the 12th Annual Triple Play REALTOR®
Convention & Trade Expo to move closer to securing her
CRB designation.
“It is hard to schedule time for education, but it’s really
important. It is important to lead by example. That is why I
am working toward getting that designation. It’s important
to show that I have taken the time to educate myself at the
broker level,” Farrell says.
From Dec. 9 through 12, designation classes and continuing
education selections will be offered again during the 2013
Triple Play REALTOR® Convention and Trade Expo
(realtorstripleplay.com) at the Atlantic City Convention
Center. Registration opens in September.
Both Farrell and Meehan say volunteering is another
vehicle for self-improvement that has the added benefit
of enhancing business.
Whether she is serving as a team member for the Northern
New Jersey’s RealSource Association of REALTORS® MLS
Users Committee; ripping out bathrooms to help local
residents during a Rebuilding Together Bergen County
(rebuildingtogetherbergen.org) event; shoveling mud out
of basements in flood-damaged residences; or helping
students with special needs during Keller Williams’ Red
Day (kw.com/kw/redday.html), an annual event where
branch offices close for one day to allow KW staff to
volunteer and serve local communities, Meehan says the
work is rewarding.
“Keller Williams’ Red Day is about giving back to the
community that brings us our business. It is a great profile
thing, but it isn’t about how it is going to benefit us,”
Meehan notes.
Farrell currently serves on the board of directors for the
Coastal Habitat for Humanity (coastalhabitat.org) and is the
co-chair of the Sept. 26 Coastal Habitat for Humanity Golf
Classic, an annual fundraiser at the Jumping Brook Country
Club in Neptune, N.J.
As a secretary at Coastal Habitat for Humanity she attends
one meeting a month and helps oversee various committees
that report to the board. In the wake of Superstorm Sandy,
Farrell says the group’s focus has shifted from building
homes to rebuilding 100 homes by the end of 2013.
“For me it more about giving back to the community and
meeting new people who I would not have been involved
with prior to volunteering. It has really increased my
sphere,” Farrell says.
Self-improvement advocates say the time invested is time
well spent.
“Not only do you educate yourself and learn about issues
that affect the industry or homeownership or private
property rights, but your clients can see it. When you are
able to speak on a topical issue and convey to them the steps
that your organization is taking to make a difference, that’s
invaluable. As an investment it has paid off. I have gotten so
much more out of it than I could ever put in,” Groetsch says.
Thinking about volunteering? Find an organization you are
passionate about and start by making a manageable time
commitment (one to two hours each week or each month)
to avoid getting overwhelmed. And stick with what you
know. Brito had an established volunteer record with the
College Club (collegeclubofridgewood.org) when she started
selling real estate in 1995. Formerly known as the College
Club of Ridgewood, the 500 member non-profit was founded
in 1913 to provide needs-based grants and interest-free loans
to students. Brito was club president from 2007 to 2009 and
plans to start her 10th season in November as part of the set
construction crew readying the stage for the annual
February song-and-dance fundraiser for Ridgewood High
School scholarships. Brito admits that the work can be hard,
but she says her involvement with the club enhances her
business.
“Anything that can give you a leg up is a good thing. It’s a
good way to differentiate yourself from people who don’t do
anything other than work,” Brito says. “Just recently, I got a
listing through somebody I know in College Club. She
contacted me and said, ‘I know how you think and how you
work and would like you to list my house,’ ” Brito recalls.
Ultimately, practitioners say, no matter the channel for
self-improvement – volunteering, politics or education –
advancing your profile is smart business.
“In an industry that has a relatively low threshold of entry,
the consumer values a professional. And I think more than
anything, that’s what my service to the associations and the
education and designations and certifications I have earned
have done. They work together to present a professional
image to the consumer,” Groetsch says. “And that leads to
business.”
For a list of upcoming continuing education programs and
designation courses, visit njar.com/events. n
NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 11
Michelle Hofmann is an award-winning real
estate writer based in Los Angeles. She can be
reached at michellehofmann@earthlink.net.

12. 12 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com
We all know how important relationships are in business.
In real estate, the same holds true – we must build solid
relationships with community members, loan officers,
contractors, clients – the list goes on and on.
In order to become a top producer in any industry,
it’s important to create and develop a strong network
of reliable individuals. As professionals we must be
as reliable and dependent as we trust our associates
to be – it works both ways.
Working in real estate can sometimes feel like a 24/7
job. As agents are often independent contractors within
an office, it is far from a 9-to-5 profession. REALTORS®
go wherever and whenever they are needed to make that
sale, help that client and close that deal. For many
professionals, a work-life balance is a far-off dream,
but working together and as a team can ease the
stress on you as an individual, multiply your work
efforts, and at the same time, increase productivity.
“It is critical for us to learn how to balance work
and family life, set boundaries between work
and home, and reconnect with your family.
We must discover how working less can lead
to greater productivity and much more,” the
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
cautions.
Essentially, relationships are what drive
business, and developing and nurturing
them can help with the ever-elusive work-life
balance and ultimately lead to more success.
The most obvious place to start is within your own office.
Whether it’s helping out another salesperson when
they’re swamped, covering the front desk when needed

13. NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 13
or shadowing your broker to learn all you can, remember
you’re all on the same team. Your attitude matters, so keep
it positive. It will not go unnoticed and likely others will
follow suit.
Perhaps sometimes overlooked – since many REALTORS®
are independent contractors – is the relationship building we
must do with other REALTORS® , inside and outside the office.
While many REALTORS® find competition and ambition a
healthy part of professional life, REALTORS® rely on each
other in many different facets of the industry. REALTORS®
count on referrals, both providing and receiving from sources
around the state, country and across the globe. While these
other REALTORS® may in some ways be competition, they
are also part of the same circle. In fact, as of press time, NAR
membership totals 1,008,659. We are players on a strong,
solid team of more than one million members.
A strong listing agent must have well-developed relationships
with other agents in order to have those listings shown and
sold. Other REALTORS® should be thought of as business
partners – not competitors – because without them, we have
very little business. We all rely on each other to show and sell
our listings through the local MLS, which, throughout the
nation, are how most listings are sold.
Keep in mind that if a local agent needs a favor, try and help
out. If you can, you should. You are building a long-term
relationship and hopefully they will not forget you went out
of your way for them next time you need help. Think of
helping out your fellow REALTORS® as part of your public
relations plan.
As a REALTOR® , not only do you rely on referrals from
clients, but many professionals rely on you to refer them
to your clients. You’ll quickly see that when you refer your
client to an honest, talented contractor, both parties will be
satisfied. In return, you can feel comfortable asking them
for referrals as well.
Once you have a group of reliable affiliates on your team –
loan officers, surveyors, attorneys, house cleaners, tax
advisors, and others – your business will grow and so will
theirs. It is a mutually beneficial relationship. You will all
be critical players in delivering exceptional customer service
and making sure all questions, concerns and needs of your
client are met.
Relationships are critical to your long-term success in the
real estate business. Burning bridges or going stag can feed
an ego for a week or two, but one person cannot sell or buy
a house – it takes a slew of professionals, time, decisions
and decision-makers. We need them and they need us. Once
you come to terms with the fact that you are all on the same
team as the client, you can start building the foundations of
career-long relationships. Having smooth, easy transactions
with other professionals while maneuvering through the
home buying process will not go unnoticed by your client,
either. Anything you can do to make their experience quicker
or easier will be appreciated and likely a strong reason for
them to refer to someone they know on the hunt for a home.
If you nurture relationships with banks, contractors,
electricians, plumbers, etc., they can be some of your
strongest allies and biggest referral generators. Just having
one more professional on your side of the fence opens your
business to a whole new network of people and can help you
produce more each year.
NAR’s website, realtor.org, has abundant information to
help REALTORS® develop a team attitude and approach
to their business, even if they have been brought in as
independent contracts “Customer satisfaction can only be
achieved through a team process. If the customer doesn't
get satisfaction from the real estate company, it’s unlikely
he or she will be happy with the associate. Customer
satisfaction for the entire company isn’t easily achievable
unless the team is working together. Associates can’t take
a ‘this isn’t my customer’ view; they should see every
customer of the company as their customer and serve them
if necessary,” reads Convincing Independent Contractors to
Be Team Players from realtor.org.
Check out NAR’s article titled Tips for Building Team Spirit,
which is a step-by-step guide to help set up your office for
teamwork success. A few simple tips can help you start your
journey to empower your coworkers to work together and
take responsibility for the success of the company, as opposed
to yourself.
It may be your sale, your client and your deal, but take a
few moments to remember all of the help you have gotten
along the way and how the relationships you have bred and
built have helped you get to where you are today. If you’re
craving teamwork, speak up. Sometimes it just takes one
person to make a big change. n
Marcus A. Wally, MBA, is an active REALTOR®
in Florida who teaches education classes around
the world. He can be reached at (904) 669-1081
or marcus@newworldrealty.com.

14. 14 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com
Make Safety a Priority
inYour Business
In any profession, it is important to make
sure you are following important safety and
security procedures to give yourself the
best odds of avoiding a bad situation. For
REALTORS®, the same is certainly true.
Based on the sheer number of people you
will likely come in contact with as you
show listings and host open houses, it is
important for all REALTORS®, regardless
of where you work, to be aware of your
surroundings and keep your own safety
a priority.
Every September, REALTOR® Associations
across the country unite to keep their
members informed and aware of the safety
risks that REALTORS® face. The NATIONAL
ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® offers a
myriad of resources when it comes to helping
REALTORS® be prepared for their profession.
Visit realtor.org/topics/realtor-safety today
and make sure you and your coworkers are
prepared for whatever comes your way.
Stick to the Schedule
Make sure someone in your office knows
where you will be and how long you will be
there. Whether your boss or assistant has
your schedule and a way to reach you, or
your office expects you to check in every
two hours, keep someone up-to-date on
where you’ll be at all times.
TrustYour Gut
If something doesn’t feel right about a
situation or a client, listen to yourself –
you can be your best warning sign.
Don’t Sacrifice Safety for a Sale
If you get a bad feeling about something,
don’t follow through. Better safe than sorry
– no sale is ever worth your physical safety
or peace of mind.
Be Aware ofYour Surroundings
It can seem trivial, especially in “safe”
neighborhoods, but make sure you take a
good look at what’s going on around you.
Check out the neighbors, the cars and the
people. It pays to take a few moments and
really get a good grasp of where you are. If
you’re showing a house, make sure you
know where your prospective clients are at
all times. When showing clients through a
home, make sure they are always walking
in front of you, so no one has the
By Colleen King

15. NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 15
opportunity to surprise you from behind. Keep your focus on
the client and the situation, rather than the house.
Partner Up
Hosting an open house? Double up. Bring a colleague or
bribe a friend or relative with coffee or dinner to stay with
you for a few hours.
Learn WhoYour Prospective Clients Are
Have potential clients fill out an identification form
before you show them a listing and always meet them
at the office first. This way if something doesn’t sit right,
you have some information to rely on.
Travel Independently
Take your own car to listings, so you are never in a
position where you have to be with someone longer
than you want to be. Always lock your car doors. Crime
can happen anywhere, it does not necessarily have to
be a bad neighborhood for a bad situation to unfold.
MarketYour Services, NotYourself
Being a REALTOR®, your personal marketing plan is
imperative to your business, but be careful with the
information you disseminate. Market your professional
services, not your personal style or personality. It’s
important to distinguish yourself from your competitors
but also keep your personal life guarded and your own.
Along those lines, make sure the information you put
out on social media is not more information than the
public needs. Keep your personal information personal,
not everyone needs to know when you’re going on
vacation or how you’re home alone for the night.
Social Media isVirtual Representation of
Yourself
Once you get the hang of Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest
and other social media sites, it’s easy to let it get out of
control. Whether you use the platforms to market your
business or keep your friends updated on your personal
life, it’s important be careful the type and how much
information you put out.
Keep in mind that anything you put on social media is a
virtual representation of yourself and potentially your
business. With that in mind, make sure the information
you send out is about your business, not yourself. Going
away on vacation for two weeks? That’s a good thing to
put in an out-of-office email reply, but maybe not necessary
to update your Facebook status. Don’t give would-be
criminals easy access to the fact your house will be empty
for two weeks. Instead, you can post on Facebook about
your trip upon your return.
Stuck at an open house and no one is showing up? If
you’re going to tweet about it, it’s probably best to let
the Twitterverse think you’re in a bustling open house
full of potential buyers rather than sitting alone at a
publicized location for the next two hours.
Keep your personal information personal. It sounds
simple, but it’s helpful to remind yourself that your life
does not need to cross over into your business and the
less it does, the less vulnerable you are. Remember to
keep your guard up at all times, whether it be showing
a listing, hosting an open house or conversing on social
media. It doesn’t hurt to exercise a little caution every
now and then.
PassYour Security Knowledge Along
Does your office have a safety protocol plan? If they do,
make sure you review it at least once a year to make
sure it’s effectively being used and not antiquated. If
your office does not have one, offer to implement it.
It will be a great selling point for your office and even
better for your résumé.
Download the office safety resources on realtor.org – these
include the agent identification form, agent itinerary, the
office safety action plan and the prospect identification form.
Make sure the front desk in your office is always stocked
with these forms and advocate for your coworkers to not
only use them, but make them a part of the normal business
routine.
Don’t limit your safety knowledge to yourself, include your
(already vetted) clients. Keep them up to date with helpful
home security tips. They’ll appreciate your concern and will
likely put those tidbits to use.
While most REALTORS® will never experience a situation
where their safety is threatened, it’s better to have prepared
for nothing at all than be caught in an unfavorable situation.
If you make safety an integral part of your business plan,
you’ll be ready. n
Colleen King is NJAR’s® Communications Coordinator.
She can be reached at cking@njar.com.

16. With online reviews now a staple of the virtual world, New
Jersey REALTORS® have quickly learned that just a few,
influential commentators can trigger soaring profits for their
businesses – or just as easily cause them to crash and burn.
Essentially, online reviews can become a critical factor in the
future of your real estate business overnight. Those who are
out in front of the trend advise every realty company to play
a proactive role in how its business is perceived in online
reviews.
“Perception is reality,” says Felix Nazario, a REALTOR® with
RealtyMarket Expert Advantage in Fords, N.J. “And there’s
never been a time where this is more relevant than now.
More and more people are obtaining their information on a
person, business, place, home – you name it – on what they
read online.”
Paul Gillin, author of The New Influencers: A Marketer’s
Guide to the New Social Media, agrees. “Blogs, discussion
boards and other forms of interactive media are the most
cost-effective customer feedback mechanism ever invented.
You won’t get a representative sampling of your customers,
but you will get your most
passionate customers.”
Moreover, most of those who specialize in providing
online review services to REALTORS® and others business
professionals say old school businesses need to realize
that today’s sophisticated web surfers demand complete
transparency from businesses when it comes to reviews.
In practice, this means they expect to see a mix of negative
and positive reviews on any realty they’re researching
online. If they don’t, they’ll think your ‘positive reviews
only’ stance is a sham.
Indeed, Bazaarvoice (bazaarvoice.com), a major leader in
online review services, has built its entire business on the
precept that without complete transparency on the web, a
REALTOR® or any other business is doomed to be viewed by
today’s online consumer as untrustworthy.
“As people become more tech-savvy and hyper-social, they
expect brands to listen and respond to their attitudes,
preferences and behaviors – and they want to form
relationships with the brands that do this well,” says Lisa
Pearson, chief marketing officer at Bazaarvoice. “The
opportunity for marketers is to create online, offline and
mobile experiences that engage consumers all along the
purchase path, capture authentic conversations, and forge
relationships that help brands to anticipate consumer needs
to create products they want now.”
Of course, even in a laissez-faire online world, it’s still
important to resort to legal tools when you discover
someone is badmouthing you or your company unfairly.
That reality was brought home with resounding clarity
earlier this year when the now-defunct site,
realtor-complaints.com, cropped up, sporting numerous
false complaints about innocent REALTORS®.
Pressure from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
helped shut the site down – it’s simply a collection of
advertising links right now. But the experience has left
many REALTORS® wondering, “What are people saying
about my business online, and what can I do about it?”
“Consumers have much more power,
now, to tell the world about bad
experiences, and they're taking
advantage of that,” says Robin
by Joe Dysart
Online Reviews: Risk and Reward in a
Connected World
16 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com

17. NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 17
Taylor Roth, a REALTOR® at Prudential New Jersey Properties Moretti
Division in South Plainfield, N.J. “So, it's important to scan the Web
periodically, to see if any negatives have been recorded against you.”
Fortunately, REALTORS® can work with service providers like
BazaarVoice to proactively create a forum for reviews on their website,
which will allow both negative and positive reviews to appear, and
enable them to respond to both the negative and positive as an
authentic online business.
Moreover, REALTORS® who may be smarting from a spate of unfair
and unfounded negative online reviews can rebalance the mix by
turning to online review service providers that specialize in soliciting
positive reviews only.
Essentially, service providers in this space solicit positive, written
feedback from your most satisfied customers, and ensure those
accolades show up on your website, blog and across social media.
KudosWorks (kudosworks.com) offers such services, as does
Zuberance (zuberance.com).
You’ll also want to investigate a wide variety of social media listening
tools – both free and paid services – which you can use to track your
brand online, and further protect it, according to social media experts.
Stop one for social listening tools is Google Alerts (google.com/alerts).
This tool enables you to monitor anything that shows up in Google
search engine returns that mention your realty, your name, or any
number of keywords you establish. It’s free and easy to use, with an
unlimited number of alerts.
Not surprisingly, Facebook has its own tool for helping you monitor
what’s going on with your page on its service, known as Facebook
Insights (facebook.com/insights). Among other things, Insights can
track how people are discovering and responding to your posts.
Twitter recently added its own analytics tool as well, but the service
is basic (ads.twitter.com). There are several services worth
mentioning that offer expanded looks at your handle. TweetLevel
(tweetlevel.edelman.com) and TweetReach (tweetreach.com) both
offer free analytics and search the ‘Twitterverse’ for mentions of you
or your company. Additionally, Twitalyzer (twitalyzer.com) is another
analytics service that offers a free glimpse into your impact in the
Twitter world as well as an expanded paid service that measures
against 50 metrics for $99 per month.
If you’re both monitoring and participating in social media,
HootSuite (hootsuite.com) may be the ticket. It’s a comprehensive
tool that allows your reality to manage its social media identities
on an unlimited number of social networks, as well as track what’s
being said about your realty across all significant social networks.
HootSuite offers free accounts with limited features as well as paid
accounts, with pricing beginning at $9.99 a month.
Meanwhile, larger companies may want to take advantage of more
sophisticated social media listening tools. These solutions go beyond
simple tracking of key words and keyphrases. Instead, they track
social media using natural language analysis. This method offers
KeyTools for MonitoringYour
Online Reputation:
General Web Monitoring:
Google Alerts – google.com/alerts
Social Media Monitoring, Multiple
Networks:
HootSuite – hootsuite.com
Klout – klout.com
Kred – kred.com
Crimson Hexagon – crimsonhexagon.com
Evolve24 – evolve24.com
NetBase – netbase.com
Brandwatch – brandwatch.com
MutualMind – mutualmind.com
Converseon – converseon.com
Facebook Monitoring:
Facebook Insights –
facebook.com/insights
Twitter Monitoring:
TweetLevel – tweetlevel.edelman.com
TweetReach – tweetreach.com
Twitalyzer – twitalyzer.com
Twitter Counter – twittercounter.com
realties insight into the deeper meaning of posts
and interactions on the social web – rather than
just basic glimpses at sentences that contain
certain keywords.
Highly rated solutions at this level include
Crimson Hexagon (crimsonhexagon.com),
evolve24 (evolve24.com) and NetBase
(netbase.com), according to Zach Hofer-Shall,
an analyst with market research firm Forrester
(forrester.com).
Experts add that once you get your listening skills
in order, you should establish a thorough social
media policy, especially if you have any employees
posting comments about your business online.
One caveat: just be sure that the policy reads
more like a friendly guide, rather than a stern
warning, says Janet Fouts, author of The Social
Media Coach. Otherwise, you’ll likely kill the very
spirit behind social media.

18. Essentially, don’t “write a huge document that strangles any
hint of spontaneity from your team,” Fouts adds. “Quite the
opposite. A corporate policy lets them know what they need
to know to communicate the company message effectively,
and what they should and should not to.”
Experts also recommend you keep the following aspects of
social media in mind:
• Let it go: Once you agree to play in the social media arena,
realize you’re simultaneously agreeing to lose some control
over your business’ image. Given all the interactivity on the
networks, as well as the tens of thousands of cacophonous
voices, it’s inevitable. Accept the ground rules, social media
experts say, and instead focus on the medium’s benefits.
• Lose the filter: If you plan to run every post for Twitter or
Facebook by your attorneys, save yourself the trouble and
don’t do social media at all. “Social media doesn’t work like
this,” Fouts says. “If your statements appear to be canned
or professionally produced, it’s bound to fall flat. Let the
team know the facts when a new product comes out, or
you reach a noteworthy milestone. Then let them put it
into their own words.”
• Build a better wheel: Luckily for you, scores of top
companies and corporations have already agonized
over the drafting and creation of social media policies.
Get a gander at more than 100 of those policies at the
Social Media Governance website available at
socialmediagovernance.com/policies.php.
• Define the rose: Like many things, social media is in the
eye of the beholder. Some think of it as just Facebook and
Twitter. Others include what’s posted on blogs, internal
wikis and even what’s on the company’s customer service
Q&A database. “You need to spell that out so that everyone
is operating under the same definition,” says Lisa Barone,
co-founder, Outspoken Media. “Once that’s squared away,
provide an explanation of what social media means to your
company,” she adds. “Why are you investing resources in
participating? What do you hope to get out of it and how
are these tools helping you? That company mantra or
philosophy will be invaluable in quickly leading employees
out of murky water.”
• Dress for success: Before your first tweet, decide if staff
should post only using online personas that clearly identify
themselves with the firm – such as @TINAwidgetcompany
– or if they can use their after work personas as well. The
danger of being too free and easy? A fired or disgruntled
employee can do great damage to a firm using an online
persona not owned by the company, but was used in the
past to represent the company.
• Distinguish between personal and corporate views: In the
casual world of social media, staff can be tempted to mix
personal views with official company dogma. Guard against
this, experts say. You don’t want to turn on the morning
news to find that a key employee has dismissed the moon
landing as just another conspiracy hoax – all under your
company’s logo.
• Schedule a date for HR and legal: While social media
offers human resources a new treasure trove for background
checks, there are many social media activities HR should
simply avoid – including reading opinions about politics
and religion on Facebook and the like – when making
hiring decisions. Here, guidance from attorneys really
could save your firm untold headaches.
• Don’t forget about that other job: If Facebook and Twitter
are considered work, many employees may conclude that
staying glued to both social networks all day is perfectly
reasonable. Instruct otherwise. “As great of a tool as social
media is, it can also become a colossal time waster,” Barone
says. “Let it be known that the company will be monitoring
employee social media use -- and actually do monitor it –
and that abuse will be handled appropriately.”
• Post signs for ‘No Man’s Land’: Even the best-intentioned
staffer can destroy a commercial property company with
a single post that should have remained confidential. Be
pro-active and make sure “that they know what they can
say, what they can’t, and what you’d absolutely hang them
from their toes for if they ever muttered,” Barone says.
• Don’t poke the crazy: Inevitably, staffers are going to
come across that odd character who will do everything
in his/her power to provoke a flame war – a seemingly
unending game of tit-for-tat that will leave your
commercial property business looking amateurish at best.
Employees need to know “where the line is, and how,
exactly, they should react when someone they’ve never met,
and whom they were only trying to help, turns around to
call them a huge moron,” Barone says.
Adds Walter Smolenski, president, Hallmark REALTORS®:
“Real estate in 2013 depends upon social media, and
knowing what others are saying about you gives you the
opportunity to capitalize on the good and minimize the
bad. Social media is the first place a client will report a
problem or a complaint, and it's imperative that business
owners use this feedback to improve customer relations.
Responding to clients via social media not only minimizes
problems but also builds trust and loyalty.” n
Joe Dysart is an Internet speaker and business
consultant based in Manhattan. He can be reached at
(646) 233-4089, joe@joedysart.com, or joedysart.com.
18 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com

19. NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 19
NJAR® Educational Foundation Awards over
$56,000 in Scholarships to 39 Students
The NJAR® Educational Foundation awarded 39 students with more than $56,000 in scholarships to use toward furthering
their education. The scholarships, which are awarded annually, ranged from $1,000 to $3,500, were presented on
Jun. 11 at the Board of Directors meeting at the Pines Manor in Edison, N.J. Congratulations to all recipients!
Nutter/Schwartz Award, Sponsored by
Burlington Camden County Association of
REALTORS®
Joanna Garcia of Westampton, N.J.
Cape May County Association of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Ruth McCormick
Samantha Zelinski of Marmora, N.J.
Eastern Bergen County Board of REALTORS®
Jennifer Chan of Upper Saddle River, N.J.
Gloucester/Salem Counties Board of
REALTORS®, in Memory of Rick Zammer
Megan Merbach of Deptford, N.J.
Greater Union County Association of REALTORS®
Jennifer Amador of Westfield, N.J.
Hunterdon/Somerset Association of
REALTORS®, in Memory of David H. Malo
Serena Tarapore of Morganville, N.J.
Hunterdon/Somerset Association of
REALTORS®, in Memory of Frank R. Freehauf
Cole Mozelesky of Raritan, N.J.
Hunterdon/Somerset Association of
REALTORS®, in Memory of Claudia Pascale
Tyler Sloan of Manchester, N.J.
Jay P. Okun Foundation Award
Brendon Perry of Ramsey, N.J.
Charles J. McNerney Fund
Siobhan Brooker of Woodcliff Lake, N.J.
Meadowlands Board of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Barbara Vernieri
Jack Janick of Princeton, N.J.
Mercer County Association of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Jerry Lancaster
Kelsey Daniels of Pennington, N.J.
Middlesex County Association of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Anne Mika
Julie Varughese of Old Bridge, N.J.
Middlesex County Association of REALTORS®
Jasmine Cheung of Edison, N.J.
Richa Patel of Monroe, N.J.
Monmouth County Association of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Anthony J. Camassa
Taylor Caldwell of Oceanport, N.J.
Nancy F. Reynolds Memorial Award
Jeremy Kao of Tenafly, N.J.
Jasmine Fels of Columbus, N.J.
New Jersey Multiple Listing Service, Inc.
Justin Corbalis of Princeton, N.J.
Thomas Flannery of Manasquan, N.J.
NJAR® Educational Foundation Award
Michael McArdle of Oceanport, NJ.
John Hatzell of Collingswood, N.J.
Abigail Sobieski of Whippany, N.J.
Lyndsey Morris of Highland Lakes, N.J.
Alexis Siciliano of Ocean, N.J.
Jessica Hoffman of West Deptford, N.J.
NJAR® Staff-Sponsored Award
Tina Marie Murphy of Galloway, N.J.
Edward A. Ward Award, sponsored by North
Central Jersey Association of REALTORS®
Brittany Jeffers of Wyckoff, N.J.
Dean Gallo Award, sponsored by North
Central Jersey Association of REALTORS®
Ashlin Orr of South Orange, N.J.
Michael A. Campbell Award, sponsored
by North Central Jersey Association of
REALTORS®
Winnie Wen Yu Wan of Edison, N.J.
Alex DeCroce Award, sponsored by North
Central Jersey Association of REALTORS®
Michael Robinson of Northfield, N.J.
Ocean County Board of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Gertrude M. Stefanik
Carly Cavagnaro of Kinnelon, N.J.
Passaic County Board of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Norman Kailo
Eric Van Assen of Wayne, N.J.
RealSource Associations of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Nancy Larsen
Jenna Malley of Woodcliff, N.J.
RealSource Associations of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Joan Massey
Sarah Malley of Woodcliff, N.J.
Robert F. Ferguson, Jr. Memorial Award
Summer Du Rosenfeld of Weehawken, N.J.
Stefanik Family Award,
in Memory of Gertrude M. Stefanik
Shana Maw of Manahawkin, N.J.
United Association of REALTORS®,
in Memory of Nicholas Yannuzzi
Danielle Siminerio of Manalapan, N.J.
William J. Carlton Memorial Award
Katherine Thomas of Hamilton, N.J.
The 2014 scholarship application
will be available in December.
For more information about the
Educational Foundation, contact
Teresa Tilton at Teresa@njar.com
or visit njaref.com.

20. 20 • NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com
By Alexandra Damon
NJARHOF Supports Local Communities
The NJAR® Housing Opportunity Foundation, Inc. focuses
on volunteerism and promoting safe, affordable housing
throughout the state. The Foundation is actively sponsoring
and involved in various housing projects around the state
and strives to promote homeownership in the Garden State.
NJARHOF proudly sponsored a home build through the
Cape May County Habitat for Humanity, donating $40,000
toward a home for the Wakefield Family in Whitesboro,
as well as hundreds of
volunteer hours. More than
60 REALTORS® from across
the state signed up to
partake in the build,
trading in their usual
business attire for T-shirts,
jeans and work boots to
participate in the grittier
side of the housing
business.
To further support the build
and family, the entire staff
of NJAR® stepped out of the
office and picked up hammers and nails in June to assist
with a variety of projects for the home. In the backyard,
staffers build a shed from the ground up, first laying the
floor, then framing the structure and adding siding. Inside,
staff cleaned the house of accumulated debris from weeks
of work and covered the hardwood floors for protection
for the continuing work. Out front, staff worked tirelessly,
digging deep holes and cutting boards for planned front
and side porches.
The renovations continued through the end of July and
culminated in a special dedication ceremony, which officially
welcomed the family to their new home. The dedication took
place on Jul. 31 and it was attended by NJARHOF trustees,
NJAR® leadership in addition to volunteers, town officials
and other representatives involved.
New Jersey REALTORS® Care Day
Due to the success of the REALTORS® Care Day pilot
program last year, NJARHOF is proud to announce that
this event will be expanded upon for 2013. NJARHOF, along
with the North Central Jersey Association of REALTORS®
will host the second New
Jersey REALTORS® Care
Day on Thursday, Sept. 19.
NCJAR REALTOR® crews
will work in locations in
Essex, Morris, Somerset
and Union Counties.
Additionally, the Middlesex
Association of REALTORS®
has also decided to join
in the efforts, and host a
REALTOR® Care Day in their
county on the same date.
The New Jersey REALTORS® Care Day will include all-day
home-repair projects that assist homeowners with critical
exterior home repairs as well as provide adaptive and safety
modifications for the elderly and disabled.
If you’d like to volunteer or get additional information
please contact NCJAR at (973) 425-0110, MCAR at (732)
442-3400 or NJARHOF at (732) 494-5616. n
Alexandra Damon is NJAR®’s Marketing Coordinator
as well as NJARHOF’s Manager. She can be reached
at adamon@njar.com.
NJAR® staff is pictured with NJARHOF President Chris Clemans and the
future Wakefield home.

21. NJARHOF President Chris Clemans carrying boards with her co-workers.
NJAR® staff prepping boards for the future deck and porch.
Cape May County Habitat for Humanity Executive Director
Shawn Lockyear (second from left) and Cape May County Habitat
for Humanity President Anne Leahy (right) present NJAR® CEO
Jarrod Grasso (left) and NJARHOF President Chris Clemans
(second from right) with the Habitat for Humanity Golden
Hammer award for their efforts.
NJAR® staff building a shed.
The Wakefield family with office members from Chris Clemans
Sotheby’s International Realty.
NJAR® Leadership and NJARHOF Trustees are pictured with the
Wakefields and Cape May County Habitat for Humanity Executives.
NEW JERSEY REALTOR
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Board/Association News
NEW JERSEY REALTOR
®
• September 2013 • www.njar.com • 23
The Monmouth County Association of REALTORS® recently
completed its year-long initiative to collect nonperishable food
and monetary donations for The FoodBank of Monmouth and
Ocean Counties. MCAR members donated and collected
money at various events throughout the year and presented
a check to the Foodbank for $10,811.75.
The donation will provide the FoodBank of Monmouth and
Ocean Counties with more than 30,000 meals and help the
127,500 individuals currently being served by the FoodBank.
MCAR Raises Funds for FoodBank
The Eastern Bergen County Board of REALTORS® Young
Professional Network recently celebrated its third anniversary.
For the anniversary, the YPN launched a workshop series
focusing on four topics: “Have & Needs,” “The Art of
Negotiating,” Making Money through Dialogue” and
“Branding Yourself.”
The YPN also recently completed a community service project
for the senior living residence of River Edge in April for national
Fair Housing Month. They painted and refurbished common
living spaces and bedrooms for senior tenants.
EBCBOR YPN Project
M A R K E T P L A C E
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Ten times a year, REALTORS® statewide
depend on New Jersey REALTOR® as a key
source of industry news. Approximately
40,000 strong, New Jersey Association of
REALTORS® (NJAR®) members are
a key professional business audience
throughout New Jersey.
For more information or to reserve space,
call Cindy Stambaugh at 410.647.5869
We offer classes for:
Salespersons • Brokers • Appraisers
Continuing Education • Title, Life,
Health, Property & Casualty Insurance
Mortgage Loan Originator (MLO)
Day, Evening and Saturday Classes
Serving Bergen, Essex, Hudson
and Passaic Counties
201-843-PASS (7277)
www.kovatsschool.com
(L-R) MCAR Equal
Opportunity Co-chair
Donna Bennett, Director
of Development for the
FoodBank of Monmouth
and Ocean counties
Lina Keegan and MCAR
Equal Opportunity
Committee Co-chair
Diane McCarty were
on hand for the check
presentation.
The EBCBOR YPN network recently celebrated its third anniversary.