On March 17, 2020, the Sacramento City Council adopted an emergency ordinance to establish a temporary moratorium on evicting tenants unable to pay rent due to a loss of income caused by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). This moratorium will end once the Governor’s Executive Order N-28-20 issued on March 16, 2020 terminates on May 31, 2020, unless it is extended. View the details of the moratorium here. Additional city specific Eviction Moritoriums can be found on our Plan of Action Page ..read more

We understand that during these uncertain times it is important to stay informed, but with so much information that changes daily it is difficult to sort through everything. Therefore, our staff has been working diligently to stay on top of all the useful and relevant resources for our members to access through one page on the SAR website. You can find the links to this information on our ‘Plan of Action’ page, such as current updates from CEO Dave Tanner and the Executive Committee. This page also includes every jurisdiction that has passed an eviction moratorium in our area of representation ..read more

On March 23rd in an effort to provide market liquidity during the coronavirus emergency, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to provide alternative flexibilities to satisfy appraisal requirements and employment verification requirements through May 17, 2020. Fannie and Freddie will use alternatives to reduce the need for appraisers to inspect the inside of homes at a time when an increasing number of states have issued shelter-in-place directives or ordered the closing of non-essential businesses. This will allow for purchases and homes to be refinance ..read more

These are unprecedented times. With that has come uncertainty and concern, but SAR is here to help our members in any way possible. So are our statewide and nationwide organizations. Recently the United States passed H.R. 6201 "Families First Coronavirus Response Act" to provide relief for the nation during this crisis. Below you will find the most important takeaways for Major Provisions Affecting REALTORS®, Brokers, and Real Estate Associations. We hope that this can serve as a resource as you begin to see how this will impact you and your business moving forward ..read more

The IRS issued guidance Thursday, April 9th, to grant deadline relief for both 1031 like-kind exchanges and opportunity zone investments that are already underway. Both of these programs are designed to promote economic growth in communities, and NAR made the case that investors in these programs should not be harmed due to the effects of COVID-19 ..read more

Update: SAR Staff is pleased to announce that Sacramento County has updated their Public Health Order, and included our recommendation that occupied residences are now able to be shown. The order becomes effective at 11:59 p.m., May 1, and will be in effect until 11:59 p.m., May 22, 2020, or until it is extended, rescinded, superseded or amended in writing by the Health Officer. The language now reads, “Service providers that enable residential transactions (including rentals, leases and home sales), including, but not limited to, real estate agents, escrow agents, notaries and title companie ..read more

In the world of COVID-19 it seems like everything is constantly changing. Initially the federal governement published a list of essential services during this time of restricted activity. It did not include real estate as an essential service ..read more

The Sacramento City Council voted and passed a budget proposal for Measure U funds earlier this month. Unlike a typical city budget vote, this one received a great deal of attention and controversy due to the exclusion of two districts when determining which local projects an initial $16 million from Measure U would fund. These are projects throughout Sacramento that Mayor Darrell Steinberg referred to as “early wins ..read more

The National Association of REALTORS® evaluated their membership demographics and compared certain aspects from 2017 to 2018 and found some interesting changes. In that one year, there was a 4% increase in the number of female REALTORS® and a 5% increase in net income for REALTORS® overall. REALTORS® continue to see an overall growth in diversity of membership as a growing number of minorities and women are entering the profession. Since 2001, there has been a 20% increase in females and a 120% increase in minorities. The infographic below shows recent findings of who makes up their membershi ..read more

As 2019 comes to a close, we want to make sure we update you on the legislation that becomes law on January 1, 2020. It has been a busy year for our Government Affairs Team, but we know that these pieces of legislation have important impacts on your business ..read more