Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to our entire GSBOR Membership!
As 2017 comes to an end, we can reflect on what we have been able to accomplish throughout the year. Nothing is accomplished alone. You need the help and support of a talented team around you, working on common goals. That has been our goal since January, to bring the 2,000+ members and the 200+ brokers to trust each other and work together for the betterment of our organization and industry. We created transparency in our decisions and made sure that everyone’s voice would be heard.
Here are a couple highlights, among many, that took place in 2017:
We hired a new CEO, Miles Noennig, to manage GSBOR. Miles has been key in all the successes we have achieved in 2017. Many of us have known Miles for years. He has served as a local president and was 2016 President of Missouri REALTORS®. Some members may not realize that our staff at GSBOR manages two other associations besides our own, in addition to our Regional MLS, SOMO. Running the association has many moving parts and Miles, who is very well respected by his peers, is the right person for the job!
We created a Leadership Academy which will help us develop future leaders to ensure that our organization remains viable and stronger for years to come. Our industry is constantly evolving and we need to be visionary and receptive to the changes ahead.
Another meaningful change is the adoption of the new Missouri REALTORS® (“MR”) Residential Sale Contract. This was a lengthy process that started in January. A statewide task force was created with one goal in mind, to come up with a better form that would include the best practices from GSBOR, St. Louis REALTORS® Board and the rest of the State. GSBOR was well represented by Jeff Parker, Michael Jacques and myself. Throughout the year, we reported back to the GSBOR brokers, asking for their input and advice. By September, we had the finished product and the Missouri REALTORS® Board of Directors approved the new forms. At GSBOR, we had five broker meetings throughout this process and in December 2017, the DRs (Brokers) made a motion to recommend to the GSBOR Board of Directors to adopt the new MR Forms on January 1st, 2018 and to sunset the GSBOR Forms on March 1st, 2018. This decision received 100% support when it went to a vote of brokers. Change is difficult, but change is inevitable. I am proud of how the process took place and I am also extremely proud that there was 100% support from the brokers and 100% approval from the BOD. We have had eight training sessions, with total attendance exceeding five hundred brokers and agents, thus far and we will continue to train as necessary. On January 3rd, we will have two “Train the Trainer” sessions. They will be geared towards brokers, managers and staff. We hope to have everyone interpret the contract in a similar fashion. We also hope to understand potential situations that will arise once the contract forms are in the marketplace and how to best resolve these potential issues. We will also be providing training to all our affiliates so they understand the Finance, Title and Inspections sections, in addition to the rest of the contract. We are ALL a team helping our customers and clients accomplish a mutual goal and, if we are all on the same page and work together, our clients will be better served. New training dates for January will be announced within the next couple of weeks.
It has been a privilege and an honor to serve as your president in 2017, and I hope that we have left our association in a better place. Michael Jacques, our 2018 President, will do an EXCELLENT job leading our association to become stronger and better served.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!
Antonio
Antonio Serrano
GSBOR 2017 President
417.224.7200
