Fund News and Alerts

By: Rene Rutan, Manager, Events &  Affiliate, REC & Realtor® Relations

Florida ARECs Recognizes Patricia Nugent

On May 4th, I had the honor of presenting an award on behalf of Florida ARECs to Fund Member Pat Nugent.  It’s been over ten years since former Fund CEO Jimmy Jones, Fund General Counsel Melissa Murphy and I worked closely with Pat and others to design the statewide umbrella organization to support the real estate councils.

07/03/2024

RECs Host Realtor® Roundtables

In late Spring the Attorneys’ Real Estate Council of Palm Beach County and Broward Attorneys’ Real Estate Council hosted Real Estate Round Tables for members of RWorld, the Realtors® of Broward, Palm Beach & St. Lucie.  The events featured ten tables, each focused on a unique topic and hosted by one or two real estate attorneys.  Multiple rounds lasting twenty minutes provided agents the opportunity to sit with an experienced attorney and discuss the issues they cared most about.

07/03/2024

The Jacksonville Area Real Estate Council organized a road trip in April to the Wildlight development in Nassau County, along with real estate agents seeking their Wildlight Certified Realtor® designation.  REC Members enjoyed lunch and networking with Realtors®, the developer and approved builders at Rayonier’s headquarters.  They heard a presentation on the neighborhoods and amenities planned for this 24,000-acre development along the St. Mary’s River separating Florida and Georgia.  Attendees were able to grab a pint at Mocama Brewing, the onsite craft brewery and then take a trolly ride through the development.

07/03/2024

The Florida ARECs Realtor® Education Library Guide has been updated to include a number of new 
programs, including:

07/03/2024

As Florida has embraced technological advancements in the notarial process by allowing online notary publics to perform remote online notarization (RON), certain scenarios recur for Fund Members, leading to questions about Fund Underwriting approval requirements. The most frequent questions posed by Fund Members involve the requirements for Fund Underwriting RON approval when the signer is a foreign national. These situations require additional analysis as opposed to scenarios where the signer is a United States citizen. 

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07/01/2024

By Rene’ Rutan, REC Relations Manager, The Fund & Florida ARECS

"Homeownership promotes stability and healthy outcomes, builds intergenerational wealth, and ultimately is fundamental to America's promise of opportunity,” said Assistant Secretary for Housing and Federal Housing Commissioner Julia Gordon in HUD’s press release celebrating this year’s National Homeownership Month.

06/12/2024

Title insurers are routinely called upon to insure loans on property before, during, and after construction. The priority of the loan is of paramount importance to the lender in every instance. Florida’s Construction Lien Law, Sec. 713.13, F.S., contains the concept of the notice of commencement. The notice of commencement marks the beginning of construction and establishes a single point in time to which any liens filed against the property relate back. A notice of commencement is valid for one year (or longer if so provided). Its primary purposes are to create an equal playing field for all who work on a project and eliminate disputes over the priority of lienors’ claims filed at various times during construction. A notice of commencement can create a challenge to the loan priority if it is recorded and unexpired prior to a mortgage in a current loan transaction. 

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06/03/2024

This 2-hour FREC-accredited program provides a deep dive into changes in condominium law since the Surfside collapse. Agents will learn what they need to do to avoid liability when representing a buyer or seller in a condominium transaction.

05/28/2024

The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Joins the Department of Commerce in Issuing Implementing Rules to Florida’s Foreign Interest Law.

On Mar. 15, 2024, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) issued rules implementing the provisions of Ch. 2023-33, Laws of Florida, relating to the interests of foreign principal ownership of agricultural land. The FDACS rules went into effect on Apr. 4, 2024, and are in Ch. 5J-27, F.A.C. The rules mirror in many ways the implementing rules issued earlier this year by the Florida Department of Commerce (FDOC) relating to the interests of foreign principal ownership of non-agricultural real property. The FDOC rules are in Ch. 73C-60, F.A.C. This article will highlight some key aspects of the FDACS and FDOC rules. 

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05/01/2024

Did You Know? Fund integrations with closing software can be used to place, check and receive orders, CPLs and jackets, and submit and pay policies seamlessly. Talk about a time saver!

04/11/2024