The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board is an association of more than 2,900 real estate professionals who live and work in the communities of North Delta, Surrey, White Rock, Langley, Abbotsford, and Mission.

The Fraser Valley experienced a return to typical home sale levels plus an early surge in new listings in January, according to the latest figures from the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board.

Paul Penner, President of the Board said, “Compared to last January, the market has returned to balance. Consumers continue to take advantage of the affordability created by lower interest rates.”

There were 981 sales processed on FVREB’s Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in January, an increase of 152 per cent compared to the same month last year when 389 sales were processed. There was also a 46.8 per cent increase in new listings, 2,941 compared to 2,003 during January last year.

The White Rock RCMP credit Realty Watch, the community crime prevention program of Lower Mainland REALTORS®, for helping them locate a missing, vulnerable senior within one hour of asking for their assistance.

Efforts by Fraser Valley REALTORS® to promote public interests have resulted in two national awards from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA).

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, the sixth largest in Canada out of 95, received CREA’s 2008 Ethics Award at its annual general meeting in Ottawa, April 3, for its Excellence through Ethics program.

Three weeks later, at CREA’s Political Action Committee (PAC) Days, on April 27, the Board was also the recipient of the Most Innovative PAC Program Award in recognition of efforts in lobbying all levels of government to raise homebuyers’ awareness of the challenges in determining whether a property was ever used as an illegal drug operation. Board President, Paul Penner, accepted the award on behalf of all Fraser Valley REALTORS®.

REALTORS® are leading an effort to achieve standardized reporting and remediation of properties that have been used as illegal drug operations (IDOs) in Fraser Valley communities.

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) hosted a forum, October 16, attended by over 100 stakeholders involved in the issue of marijuana grow-ops and clandestine drug labs and their impact on housing and communities. The event was held at the Coast Hotel and Convention Centre in Langley.

“Currently, it‘s very challenging for anyone – home buyers, REALTORS®, landlords, property managers – to effectively research a property’s history,” said FVREB President Kelvin Neufeld. “There are inconsistent methods of reporting whether a property was a grow-op and inconsistent standards of remediating them. We’d like to see that changed so that people are able to readily find that information on properties they’re considering purchasing.”

REALTORS® across Canada are now required to collect personal identification and information from their clients in order to comply with federal legislation. These new federal laws and regulations took effect June 23, 2008 and are aimed at combating money laundering and terrorist financing activities. As part of the federal Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA), financial institutions and REALTORS®, among other professionals and services, must identify customers who conduct financial transactions.

Under the new rules, REALTORS® must obtain, record, and retain the personal information of their clients, including their full legal name, address, date of birth and occupation. To do this, they will ask for a government-issued identification document such as a driver’s licence, passport, or residency card.