April 2012 Newsletter

April 2012 e-Newsletter

Board of Governor’s Report

Your Board of Governors held a meeting on March, 29, 2012 and the following is a brief synopsis of the discussions, to keep our membership appraised of issues we are dealing with on your behalf:

• The membership survey was discussed in detail and whereas the overall feedback was positive, the Board felt there was room for ongoing improvement;
• As a result, the Board will examine highly focused themes, seek out quality speakers and ensure better communication with the Chapters moving forward;
• The Board had a discussion about our membership and the need for our organization to think differently as times are changing and thus we need to embrace it;
• The Board revisited the Terms of Reference for the Climate Change Committee to see how, if need be, the mandate therein relates to our Strategic Plan; and
• Your Institute supports and embraces social media and subsequently, welcomes you to join us on our Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter pages.

The Board encourages all of our members to consider putting their names forward in the upcoming REIBC elections. Please take note that completed nomination forms must be received at the REIBC offices no later than April 24, 2012.  

Our Board exists to serve our membership, so please feel free to contact any of your Governors at any time.

In closing, I offer a friendly reminder that our Recognition Dinner and Annual General Meeting are being held on June 14, 2012.

Hope to see you there,

Wayne Yu, CCIM, FRI, CLO, CRES, R.I.(B.C.)

Board of Governor (2011 - 2012)

REIBC Goes To The Legislature

In October and November of 2011, REIBC embarked on a Government Relations Program that saw Executive Officer Brenda Southam meeting and talking with a number of MLA’s.  Brenda met over 15 MLA’s in person and spoke to 10 on the telephone. During her visit with Linda Reid, MLA for Richmond East, Linda invited Brenda and President Nathan Worbets to the Legislature.    

On April 18, 2012, Nathan and Brenda met Linda in the legislative dining room and they were joined by Rob Howard, RI, MLA of Richmond Center.  Lunch was great and Linda talked about her favourite project that she has been involved with as an MLA, which is working with the Salvation Army and the Rotary Club of Richmond to see the Rotary Hospice House open.  It took a number of public consultations, years of negotiations, and today the hospice is open and serving the people of Richmond at the end of their lives.  The Rotary Hospice House is owned and operated by The Salvation Army. The Hospice is recognized as the residents’ home, and staff  make every effort to provide a safe, home-like atmosphere.  The Rotary Hospice House realizes it has a role to play in the community, and that community involvement can enhance the holistic care given.

Linda also noted that the connection between REIBC and the government needs to be strengthened, so we should make a presentation to Caucus.  This will be followed up in the near future.

During the parliamentary session on April 18, 2012, Linda spoke about the Real Estate Institute of British Columbia, and introduced President Nathan and Brenda. Below is Linda Reid, MLA, Richmond East, Deputy Speaker of the House; REIBC President Nathan Worbets, RI; Brenda Southam, EO, REIBC; and Rob Howard, RI, MLA Richmond Centre.

2012 REIBC Education Symposium

Great turn out, fantastic speakers! The day started off with an engaging and entertaining keynote from Vaughn Palmer on BC politics, there were 6 concurrent presentations, and we ended the day with Cameron Muir’s Economic Outlook keynote and after event drinks. There were a lot of opportunities to learn something new, network and enjoy great food. Jesse Azucena from Suncorp Valuations won the door prize for an overnight stay at the River Rock Casino & Resort including brunch. Next year's event will be held jointly with BCAAIC - watch for further information. 

Below is a photo of Vaughn Palmer chatting informally during the morning coffee break. See 22 more photos on our website within the Events Photo Gallery. 

Nanaimo Chapter’s First Pub Night

Members met at the Old City Station Pub on April 12^th. Nancy Peterson, who planned and attended, tells us it was a fun event! Everyone had such a great time meeting other members that they started discussing what other chapter events they would like to hold. So watch your inboxes for the next Nanaimo event.

Door prize winners: Clayton Moore, MHPM Project Managers Inc., Susan McGougan, Remax of Nanaimo, Michael Englouen, BC Assessment and Drew Reidy, BC Hydro.

REIBC Up Coming Events

REIBC Annual General Meeting

The Annual General Meeting of the Real Estate Institute of British Columbia will be held on Thursday, June 14, 2012 at the Terminal City Club located at 837 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, BC. 
 
The meeting will begin at 5:00 p.m. for the purposes of: 

1. Receiving and considering the Financial Statements of REIBC for year ending March 31, 2012 and the Auditors Report thereon
2. Appointing auditors for the ensuing year
3. By-law amendments
4. Transacting other business as may properly be brought before the meeting

A quorum of 25 members present must be achieved for the meeting to take place.
We look forward to seeing you there.

Recognition Dinner

Register now for the Annual Recognition Dinner on June 14, 2012.  It will be held at the Terminal City Club at 837 West Hastings Street in Vancouver.  All the details are in our Events section of our website.

Special thanks to BCREA for sponsoring this event!

Would you like to sponsor the Recognition Dinner too? Contact Anna Austin, REIBC Marketing & Communications Coordinator at 604 685-3702, ext 103 or aaustin@reibc.org.


19th Annual Golf Tournament

Please mark your calendars and plan to join us on Wednesday June 20th, 2012 for our 19th Annual REIBC Golf Tournament in support of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of British Columbia and Yukon.   Once again, this year’s tournament will be held at the beautiful Northview Golf and Country Club, Ridge Course in Surrey, B.C.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of British Columbia and Yukon grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy.  We can make wishes come true with your support.

Register online http://www.reibc.org/cgi/page.cgi/_calendar.html?evt=15.  Sponsorships will also be available.  For further information please contact Maureen at 604-685-3702 Ext. 102

Industry Events

2012 Vancouver Urban Forum

Vancouver Urban Forum - fourth Wave Urban Reform is being held on June 6, 2012.  Over 20 Urban thinkers will be speaking at this conference. For more information go to: http://globalcivic.org/vancouver-urban-forum/

Extreme Makeover – Whole Building Retrofits Breakfast Panel

There are over 5,000 high rise buildings in major Canadian cities and tens of thousands worldwide. A staggering number of these buildings are now 30 years or older and in need of complete retrofits if they are to continue to perform efficiently and remain attractive to tenants. What is industry doing to meet this challenge? What is the opportunity for incorporating energy efficiency practices and achieving operational efficiencies and cost savings? And what are the challenges we are going to face in the future retrofitting the new buildings of today?

Many in industry are seeing renewal as an opportunity and are now developing whole building retrofit programs aimed at addressing the challenge. “Extreme Makeover: Whole Building Retrofits” will bring together building owners and experts from building sciences, architectural design, engineering, operations, and management to discuss one of the great challenges facing the building sector in the 21st century. Brought to you by Light House Sustainable Building Centre in partnership with BOMA BC.

Date: Tues, June 5th 7:30am-10:00am
Location: Downtown Vancouver
Tickets: $65 including tax and a full buffet breakfast.
Register and learn more at http://marketinsights2012.eventbrite.com

Hot Topics in Social Purpose Real Estate

There will be presentations featuring local experts on social purpose real estate and illustrative case studies on buying, leasing, developing and planning real estate.  Workshops are from 5:30 to 8:00pm and cost $25 per session.  
Sponsored by the SPRE Table.
April 24, 2012 Effective Architectural Programming 
May 8, 2012  To Hold, to Sell, to Redevelop: a Question of Real Estate 
May 15, 2012 Leasing or Buying: Co-location or Solo – What Will Work for You?

Registration: http://www.socialpurposerealestate.net/events-calendar

Industry News

The Real Estate Foundation of BC announces their 2012-2013 Board of Governors:

• Kelly Lerigny, Chair – BCREA appointee
• Eileen Smith, Vice-Chair – Real Estate Council appointee
• Scott Ullrich, Real Estate Institute of BC appointee
• Harpreet Bhatti, BC Minister of Finance appointee
• Charles Scott, BC Minister of Finance appointee

 
Cascadia Green Building Council 
Check out their latest newsletter for industry news and events. There are a lot of upcoming events! http://tinyurl.com/cgw2xl7

Concert Properties Newsletter
Concert Properties has acquired the Queen Victoria Hotel in Victoria, BC. Details in their April newsletter http://concertproperties.com/sites/default/files/Blueprint%202012%20-%20April.html

The Vancouver Observer
Winner of the Canadian Online Publishing Awards for Best Online-Only Articles has lots of articles on real estate topics.  Here is a recent article they wrote about BC's new home ownership measures and what this means for prospective homeowners, (http://ht.ly/aai0r).

Student Connections

Are you a student member?  Visit our Student Connections sections on the web site.  We have over 30 professional members ready and waiting to speak to you about your future career in real estate.  Check them out here!

Climate Change

Tell us what you would like to read concerning our environment and its changes that affect real estate.  Any suggestions are more than welcome.  If you find an interesting article fellow REIBC members would also enjoy, please forward it to us. Please email suggestions and links to info@reibc.org.

Professional Excellence Program

Have you completed the Professional Excellence Program?  This is a great tool that REIBC has provided for you, the members, to evaluate your soft skills.  Log onto the website and in the large box on the bottom left, click on the program.  It will take you about 20 minutes to complete and will give you great feedback right away.  This is a confidential program and no one sees the answers but you.