Nearly all young renters eventually want to buy a home and a convincing majority still view homeownership as part of their American Dream, according to a new quarterly consumer survey released by the National Association of REALTORS (NAR). NAR’s inaugural Housing Opportunities and Market Experience (HOME) survey tracks topical real estate trends.Learn more here. 

The National Association of REALTORS has received reports that sophisticated email scams are targeting the real estate industry. Criminals are hacking into the email accounts of either the real estate agent or another person involved in the transaction and using information to get someone, usually the buyer, to make a fraudulent wire transfer. NAR Legal Affairs has developed a checklist to help you recognize and avoid this type of fraud. Learn more here.

Privately-owned housing starts in November fell 8.5 percent for the Northeast to 130,000, according to data released by the U.S. Commerce Department. October’s total was 142,000. Building permits for the Northeast saw no change in November, remaining at 131,000. Learn more here.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo has announced that he will deliver the State of the State address and present his 2016-17 Executive Budget in one combined presentation on Wednesday, Jan.13, 2016. The governor will use the speech to outline his legislative and budget priorities for the year. The address will be followed by the release of his Executive Budget. Learn more here.

On Monday, Dec. 21, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the appointment of Robert F. Mujica as director for the New York State Division of the Budget. Mujica served in the state Senate for 19 years and was most recently the chief of staff for former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos and secretary for the State Senate Finance Committee. The state Budget Division is a critical state agency that is charged with working with the governor to present an annual fiscal plan for consideration by Legislature. Read more here.

The Tuesday, Jan. 19, NYSAR Radio show will cover advertising issues. Tune in at 10 a.m. on Jan. 19 on your PC or Mac by using the player on theNYSAR Radio page.You will need to be logged in to listen.If you have not yet created your account with the website, you will need to click on "New User" on the Member Login page and follow the prompts. Find more information as well as a list of links to play NYSAR Radio from any of your mobile deviceshere.

The NYSAR Mid-Winter Business Meetings will be held Feb. 7-11, 2016, at the Desmond Hotel and Conference Center in Albany, NY. Committee meetings, inaugural dinner, the General Session and more will be featured. The deadline to reserve a hotel room using NYSAR’s discounted room rate is Friday, Jan. 8. To learn more and to register, click here.

The 2016 training will emphasize NAR’s Code of Ethics and Professional Standards hearing procedures. Attendees will gain an understanding of ethics, arbitration and mediation as well as the new mandatory Ombudsman program and citation options. In addition to six hours of CE credit, this course also satisfies NAR’s mandatory ethics training requirement. Click here for more information on dates and to register today. 

NYSAR’s newest Member Perks partner, HealthiestYou, is a health and wellness delivery innovator that puts you in control of your healthcare by giving you 24/7 access to U.S. Board-certified physicians via phone, email or video who can diagnose, treat and prescribe medications. For as little as $9/month for individuals and families, you’ll have unlimited doctor consultations and access to their wellness platform. VisitCarolinaTelehealth-NYSAR.comfor more details or to enroll today. Also, register now for a webinar on Thursday, Jan. 21 at 2:30 p.m. to learn more about HealthiestYou!

You have until Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016 to shop the NYSAR exchange for health insurance options in 2016. USI Affinity’s dedicated sales representatives will help you navigate the plan options and find the coverage that best suits your needs. Remember, you will face tax penalties if you do not obtain coverage. Also, if you miss open enrollment, you will not be able to obtain health insurance until the next open enrollment period unless you qualify for a special enrollment. Shop the NYSAR exchange at http://www.myrealtorinsurance.com/nysaror call USI Affinity’s dedicated sales representative Ned Cox at 888.834.3713 for more information. Click here to watch a recent webinar about how to best navigate open enrollment season.

For the fourth consecutive year, NYSAR has exceeded our RPAC fundraising goal. In fact, we raised $811,054, representing 104-percent of our goal. This tremendous fundraising feat was accomplished by the generous investments made by 15,278 New York REALTORS, representing 99-percent of our 2015 participation goal. Congratulations to the 27 local boards who achieved their fundraising goal and the 16 boards who achieved their participation goal. To view the final board-by-board derby results, click here.

2015 Long Island Board of REALTORS President Laura Copersino submitted the high bid of $300 for 4 VIP skating passes to the world-famous Rockefeller Center Ice Rink. The passes included express access to the ice, hot beverages and  refreshments. Thank you Laura for supporting RPAC at the Major Investor level ($1,000)!