February 26, 2009 Issue
Avery-Watauga Association of REALTORS Recognizes Professional Contributions
Area real estate professionals gathered at the Broyhill Inn in Boone on Tuesday, February 24, to celebrate accomplishments in a general membership meeting of the Avery-Watauga Association of REALTORS. The highlight was the announcement of the REALTOR of the Year by last year’s recipient, Tim Holland. In her report, President Carole Cox emphasized the association’s history of supporting the local area.
“Giving back to our Avery and Watauga communities is an important mission of our association,” said Cox. “As good neighbors to the communities we serve, we give scholarships to high school students, provide monetary support for local charitable organizations, support nursing home residents with Christmas stockings and Easter baskets and help Santa surprise local children at Christmas.”
According to association member Jim Dorman, this legacy of community support was overlooked by officials in Avery County during the recent campaign on the land transfer tax.
“It is unfortunate that when REALTORS opposed a land transfer tax, our record of support for local education was set to the side. From scholarships to funding after-school meal programs, we’ve demonstrated tangible and ongoing support of local schools,” said Dorman. “We opposed the land transfer tax because it would have singled out one group of people—people who sell their homes or other real estate—thus placing a disproportionate burden of school construction costs on this one group of citizens. We feel strongly that a small percentage of county residents should not be singled out to pay for services that benefit everyone in Avery County.”
Cox then focused on the work of the National Association of REALTORS (NAR), who believe stabilizing the housing market will help the nation’s economic future. She said through NAR, the local association is supporting legislation that will lower mortgage interest rates and unclog the credit market, extend the home buyer tax credit, make increased loan limits permanent and increase liquidity in both the commercial and residential real estate market.
Locally, Cox said now is a good time for consumers to “get off the fence” and purchase. Lenders have indicated they have money for financing the purchase of real estate, mortgage rates are low and the selection of property is good.
Cox reported that progress on the association’s name change to “High Country Association of REALTORS” is moving forward, and she hopes the change will be official later this year.
The local organization of Avery-Watauga Association of REALTORS is composed of more than 650 members in Watauga and Avery counties and the surrounding area who maintain a marketplace where buyers and sellers can safely transfer property under the guidance of a professional held to standards of excellence.
For more information, click to www.awaronline.org.
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