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The MAR director elections closed on September 26th at midnight and the results were announced at MAR's Delegate Body Meeting. The newly elected MAR directors are as follows Elaine Schraudt, District 1, Eric Wegner, District 4, Carl Kaminski, District 6, Robert Taylor, Jr., District 9, Claire Williams, District 11, Mary Ross, District 14 and Marie Gamber, district 15. During the Delegate Body Meeting, Claire Williams was also elected as an NAR Director.

MAR thanks all the candidates as well as all the members who took the time to cast their votes.

MAR CEO Featured in Crain's Article

MAR’s CEO Bill Martin is featured in this week’s Crain’s Detroit Business. In the article, Bill explains the resources that MAR is putting forth for the state elections. In supporting Proposal 4 and trying to defeat Proposal 5, MAR is estimating to spend approximately $1 million.

Budgeting Strategies for Irregular Incomes

Living on an irregular income from commissions can make managing money a huge challenge. Here are some tips for spending smarter when you have a variable income. Most of them come from Dave Ramsey, author of The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness.

Develop a budget based on the lowest income you would reasonably expect during a month. Then create a prioritized spending list. As the money comes in, cover the necessities first, then work your way down the list.
Set aside at least 30 percent of gross pay in a separate bank account to make quarterly tax payments.
Prepay bills when there is money available. While it’s theoretically better to put the money in a savings account and pay the bills when they are due, most people don’t have enough self discipline to take that approach.
Try to avoid regular payment commitments. For instance, instead of joining a health club that requires a monthly fee, opt to pay the daily rate – or pay off the whole year when the money’s available.
Don’t spend the money until it’s in the bank. Too many things can go wrong.

A big THANK YOU goes out to all the local associations who put in the time and effort to organize and assemble gift baskets for the annual RPAC silent auction held at this year’s MAR Convention. The auction was a huge hit, and brought in over $10,000 for RPAC! The hard work and effort the locals put in to these gift baskets is truly appreciated, and participants had a tough time deciding on which baskets to bid on.

Top bidders who won baskets took home great prizes, such as weekend getaways, sporting event tickets, artwork, and much more. RPAC, the only grassroots and issues mobilizing tool that exists to protect and promote the tradition of home ownership and real estate investment, would not be successful without the participation of the local associations in events like the auction. Again, thank you!

MAR’s Achieve 2007 has been set for January 18 – 19 at the Ritz-Carlton in Dearborn.

This two-day conference is designed to assist REALTORS® in developing and recognizing the skills and performance of local and statewide leadership by translating positive strategies into winning business results. All local association leaders are invited and encouraged to attend. In continuing with its tradition of bringing in nationally respected speakers, MAR has enlisted the help of Roger Turcotte and Jeff Crilley as speakers at this year's event.