2015 REALTOR® Caucus Lends an Ear and a Hand

A record-setting 170 Arizona REALTORS® converged on the Tempe Mission Palms Hotel for the 2015 REALTOR® Caucus on September 3.

“It was great for members across the state to gather as a group,” said Nicole LaSlavic, VP of government affairs for the Arizona Association of REALTORS® (AAR).

“The caucus was an opportunity to be heard and help guide future legislative initiatives,” added Liz Harris, who will serve on the SouthEast Valley Regional Association of REALTORS® (SEVRAR) board of directors in 2016.

“Caucus gives us a chance to present the issues we’re facing in our communities to AAR and the Legislative folks,” REALTOR® Emmy Simpson, Tierra Antigua Realty in Tucson told her friends on Facebook.

“We talked about HOAs and solar,” posted Designated Broker Margie Wilson, Hometown USA in Chandler. Many more topics were discussed during this annual day-long gathering.

Dr. Mark Dotzour, former chief economist and director of research for the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M, was one of two guest speakers. He spoke about the economic outlook for the residential real estate market.

“It’s an incredible time to buy a home,” concluded Associate Broker Holly Mabery, Realty ONE Group Mountain Desert, who said she loved Dotzour’s perspective on interest rates in the graph below.
Over lunch, Senator John McCain, R-Ariz. addressed a packed house at the Palm Ballroom and took questions from a handful of REALTORS® including David Johnson, Bianca Melgoza and Robert James.

McCain applauded a temporary injunction blocking the EPA from enforcing the “Waters of the U.S.” regulation that could impact Arizona’s real estate industry. “He is a good friend to property owners in Arizona,” added SEVRAR’s 2016 President-Elect Craig Peck.

The senator was presented with a Friend of the REALTORS® award for his support.