2023 REALTOR® Champions Club Candidates
The REALTOR® Champions Club allows our members to make an even greater impact in Olympia by giving directly to WA State candidates while continuing your support of RPAC as a Major Investor!
At the 2023 Spring Business Conference Meeting, the REALTOR® PAC Trustees identified the two 2023 REALTOR® Champions Club candidates. They are Senator Ron Muzzall (R-10th) and Representative Kristine Reeves (D-30th). Now that the Legislative Session has wrapped for 2023, our Champions Club Candidates are able to start accepting contributions.
To participate in the REALTOR® Champions Club, you will invest $600 to RPAC and then also directly contribute to either one or both of these campaigns in an amount that totals $400. If you choose to take part in the Champions Club, you will receive the NAR Major Investor benefits and will be recognized as both an RPAC Major Investor and REALTOR® Champions Club member.
At the 2023 Spring Business Conference Meeting, the REALTOR® PAC Trustees identified the two 2023 REALTOR® Champions Club candidates. They are Senator Ron Muzzall (R-10th) and Representative Kristine Reeves (D-30th). Now that the Legislative Session has wrapped for 2023, our Champions Club Candidates are able to start accepting contributions.
To participate in the REALTOR® Champions Club, you will invest $600 to RPAC and then also directly contribute to either one or both of these campaigns in an amount that totals $400. If you choose to take part in the Champions Club, you will receive the NAR Major Investor benefits and will be recognized as both an RPAC Major Investor and REALTOR® Champions Club member.
STEP 1. Visit the campaign donation pages of the 2023 Champions Club Candidates*:
Senator Ron Muzzall (R-10th, Oak Harbor); and Senator Kristine Reeves (D-30th, Federal Way).
STEP 2. Invest $600 to RPAC to be added to both the Major Investor list and the REALTOR® Champions Club roster. Major Investors who partake in this will also be recognized by NAR. If you have already completed this step: Thank You! You can make your investment to RPAC here.
Once you have contributed to the Champions Club candidates, email your receipts to: melissa.purvines@warealtor.org. Your contributions will be confirmed through the PDC and you will be added to the roster!
STEP 3. SIGN UP FOR THE C3 CONFERENCE! Join us June 27-29th, 2023 to experience a lineup of compelling speakers, elected officials and subject matter experts...as well as gain the opportunity to network with advocacy-minded REALTORS® from all over Washington State! PLUS...enjoy some world class cuisine and an inclusive stay at the beautiful Hyatt Regency Lake Washington! Space is limited, reserve your spot today!
Thank you to everyone who participated last year, and to each of you who continue to join this great program! For those who are hearing of this for the first time or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Washington REALTORS® Leadership thanks you for allowing REALTORS® to be the most influential Trade Association on the Hill!
Sincerely,
James Fisher, RPAC Trustees Chair
2023 REALTOR® Champions Club Major Investor
Washington REALTORS®
*Please be sure to list REALTOR® in the occupation field.
Once you have contributed to the Champions Club candidates, email your receipts to: melissa.purvines@warealtor.org. Your contributions will be confirmed through the PDC and you will be added to the roster!
STEP 3. SIGN UP FOR THE C3 CONFERENCE! Join us June 27-29th, 2023 to experience a lineup of compelling speakers, elected officials and subject matter experts...as well as gain the opportunity to network with advocacy-minded REALTORS® from all over Washington State! PLUS...enjoy some world class cuisine and an inclusive stay at the beautiful Hyatt Regency Lake Washington! Space is limited, reserve your spot today!
Thank you to everyone who participated last year, and to each of you who continue to join this great program! For those who are hearing of this for the first time or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Washington REALTORS® Leadership thanks you for allowing REALTORS® to be the most influential Trade Association on the Hill!
Sincerely,
James Fisher, RPAC Trustees Chair
2023 REALTOR® Champions Club Major Investor
Washington REALTORS®
*Please be sure to list REALTOR® in the occupation field.
Washington REALTORS®
Welcome Home Campaign
Welcome Home Campaign
NWMLS: Market Activity Reports
Latest Housing News, Press Release, Infographic & Reports. Stay up-to-date with the latest real estate market data and statistical trends:
- Latest Press Release: "Olympia broker named 2023 chairperson of Northwest MLS Board"
- Statistical Reports: Log in to view or print reports
How to increase access to affordable housing in Washington state
Key Findings
Introduction
It seems every day we hear state officials and politicians talking about the need for affordable housing, both for purchase and for rent in Washington state. Yet the laws and rules imposed by these same officials often have the opposite effect by artificially driving up the cost of housing.
Public policy – state and local laws, permitting, building restrictions and regulations – add on average $144,000 to the cost to construct a new, median priced home.
Until 1990, much of the permitting and zoning in Washington communities was set by regional authorities, who were able to respond quickly and flexibly to local housing needs.
After 1990 state lawmakers moved to centralize permitting and zoning requirements at the state level with the passage of the Growth Management Act (GMA). The result was to wipe out much of the local response to housing needs as communities were
forced to follow the state-imposed policy framework. For that reason much of the increase in housing costs can be directly attributed to the passage of the Growth Management Act.
This study reviews those state-imposed cost-drivers, identifies decisions that have imposed the highest costs, and recommends several key reforms by which the legislature and governing bodies can act to reduce the cost of housing for all Washingtonians.
- The Growth Management Act is driving poor regional planning policy driving up the cost of housing, transportation and goods and services
- Building Permitting is slow and expensive
- Banning the use of Natural Gas will drive up the cost new construction and remodels
- Restrictions on background checks are driving the cost of rent
- Where passed, rent control drives up the costs of rent
- Municipal and State regulations drive up housing rental costs
- Indirect government action increasing the cost of housing
Introduction
It seems every day we hear state officials and politicians talking about the need for affordable housing, both for purchase and for rent in Washington state. Yet the laws and rules imposed by these same officials often have the opposite effect by artificially driving up the cost of housing.
Public policy – state and local laws, permitting, building restrictions and regulations – add on average $144,000 to the cost to construct a new, median priced home.
Until 1990, much of the permitting and zoning in Washington communities was set by regional authorities, who were able to respond quickly and flexibly to local housing needs.
After 1990 state lawmakers moved to centralize permitting and zoning requirements at the state level with the passage of the Growth Management Act (GMA). The result was to wipe out much of the local response to housing needs as communities were
forced to follow the state-imposed policy framework. For that reason much of the increase in housing costs can be directly attributed to the passage of the Growth Management Act.
This study reviews those state-imposed cost-drivers, identifies decisions that have imposed the highest costs, and recommends several key reforms by which the legislature and governing bodies can act to reduce the cost of housing for all Washingtonians.
WASHINGTON: CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT 2
NPSAR Government Affairs Director, Ron Wortham in corporation with Realtors Property Resource (RPR), provides an in-depth look at Congressional District 2. This report shows statistics on Housing Stock, Monthly Housing Costs, Median Values and much more! Follow the link to read the report including Talking Points on how to increase housing inventory, build strong, resilient communities, and 1031 Exchange Myth-busting. Read More At: gad_report.pdf
HOUSING SOLUTIONS FOR WASHINGTON
Make Housing Available and Affordable
It’s time for the residents of Washington across the state to come together and address the numerous obstacles associated with buying and owning a home. For most Washingtonians, home ownership is out of reach because of sky-high prices and low inventory. Whether you live in a rural area or a busy metro neighborhood, opportunities for home ownership simply don’t meet the need.
Practical, proven policies are available now to address this issue. As a state, we simply need to come together and make it happen.
This involves:
It’s time for the residents of Washington across the state to come together and address the numerous obstacles associated with buying and owning a home. For most Washingtonians, home ownership is out of reach because of sky-high prices and low inventory. Whether you live in a rural area or a busy metro neighborhood, opportunities for home ownership simply don’t meet the need.
Practical, proven policies are available now to address this issue. As a state, we simply need to come together and make it happen.
This involves:
- Greater emphasis on planning for the housing we need such as giving zoning options in commercial and residential zones.
- Ensuring urban densities for housing are provided near transit
- Providing long-term funding for long-term planning
- Erase Out-Dated Racial Covenants
Read more at: myneighborwa.com
'Should We Say Good-Bye to Gas Heat?'
The legislation is silent about use of natural gas for cooking and clothes dryers. In an interview, Ramel said lawmakers want to transition those appliances to clean energy as well. However, the details may be worked out later between natural gas utilities and regulators at the state utilities commission.
During the well-attended virtual public hearing before the state House Environment and Energy Committee, Cascade Natural Gas, Puget Sound Energy and the utility trade group Northwest Gas Association raised objections.
"[This bill] would jeopardize energy reliability, drive up costs to customers and put gas industry employees across Washington out of work," said Alyn Spector, energy efficiency policy manager for Cascade Natural Gas. "This is not the time to eliminate good paying jobs."
Business lobbying groups, including the influential Association of Washington Business and the home builders' Building Industry Association of Washington, also voiced their opposition.
"As we saw this summer in California, we cannot take a healthy grid for granted and losses from even short-lived interruption of power supply can run into the billions," said Peter Godlewski with AWB. "Shifting consumers and businesses away from natural gas to electricity puts severe pressure on the electric grid as a time when we’re retiring more generating capacity than ever."
At this juncture it is hard to gauge the prospects for the gas heat phaseout proposal. Inslee, who made combating climate change a central plank of his brief run for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, has the benefit of large, supportive Democratic majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. But the capacity of lawmakers to get much done beyond the basics of passing new state budgets and dealing with the coronavirus pandemic while conducting most business virtually remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, an assortment of West Coast cities are tackling carbon pollution from buildings independently. Around 40 climate-conscious California cities and counties have already passed laws or codes to require new buildings to be all-electric.
Later this week, the Seattle City Council begins consideration of an ordinance to ban the use of fossil fuels for heating in new commercial and large apartment buildings. The proposed policy change does not apply to single family homes and duplexes because the city's energy code that is open for amendment pertains only to commercial buildings. The effective date of January 1, 2022, is much sooner than the state legislature’s proposal in the same vein.
"In Seattle, 35 percent of carbon emissions are from the building sector and they are rising," Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment Director Jessica Finn Coven told state legislators in testimony Friday. "Constructing homes and buildings right the first time reduces the likelihood of costly retrofits in the future."
The Bellingham City Council has also teed up electrification of buildings as part of a broader climate action package. In an email, Bellingham City Council member Michael Lilliquist said the pandemic had slowed down the work, but it is proceeding. He said city staff were running all of the proposed climate measures through a rigorous, multi-step evaluation process.
"We are not yet at the stage to offer specifics that can be incorporated into an ordinance or program," Lilliquist said.
During the well-attended virtual public hearing before the state House Environment and Energy Committee, Cascade Natural Gas, Puget Sound Energy and the utility trade group Northwest Gas Association raised objections.
"[This bill] would jeopardize energy reliability, drive up costs to customers and put gas industry employees across Washington out of work," said Alyn Spector, energy efficiency policy manager for Cascade Natural Gas. "This is not the time to eliminate good paying jobs."
Business lobbying groups, including the influential Association of Washington Business and the home builders' Building Industry Association of Washington, also voiced their opposition.
"As we saw this summer in California, we cannot take a healthy grid for granted and losses from even short-lived interruption of power supply can run into the billions," said Peter Godlewski with AWB. "Shifting consumers and businesses away from natural gas to electricity puts severe pressure on the electric grid as a time when we’re retiring more generating capacity than ever."
At this juncture it is hard to gauge the prospects for the gas heat phaseout proposal. Inslee, who made combating climate change a central plank of his brief run for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, has the benefit of large, supportive Democratic majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. But the capacity of lawmakers to get much done beyond the basics of passing new state budgets and dealing with the coronavirus pandemic while conducting most business virtually remains to be seen.
Meanwhile, an assortment of West Coast cities are tackling carbon pollution from buildings independently. Around 40 climate-conscious California cities and counties have already passed laws or codes to require new buildings to be all-electric.
Later this week, the Seattle City Council begins consideration of an ordinance to ban the use of fossil fuels for heating in new commercial and large apartment buildings. The proposed policy change does not apply to single family homes and duplexes because the city's energy code that is open for amendment pertains only to commercial buildings. The effective date of January 1, 2022, is much sooner than the state legislature’s proposal in the same vein.
"In Seattle, 35 percent of carbon emissions are from the building sector and they are rising," Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment Director Jessica Finn Coven told state legislators in testimony Friday. "Constructing homes and buildings right the first time reduces the likelihood of costly retrofits in the future."
The Bellingham City Council has also teed up electrification of buildings as part of a broader climate action package. In an email, Bellingham City Council member Michael Lilliquist said the pandemic had slowed down the work, but it is proceeding. He said city staff were running all of the proposed climate measures through a rigorous, multi-step evaluation process.
"We are not yet at the stage to offer specifics that can be incorporated into an ordinance or program," Lilliquist said.
