On January 30, 2014, the United States Senate voted 67-32 to approve the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act (S. 1926), sponsored by Senators Menendez (D-NJ) and Isakson (R-GA).

This bipartisan legislation calls for a 4-year timeout on rate increases triggered either by a property's sale or a flood map update for a property with previously grandfathered rates. The National Association of Realtors provided Congress with expert testimony suggesting that many of these increases are excessive and inaccurate. The bill also creates a flood insurance advocate within the Federal Emergency Management Act (FEMA) to investigate home owner complaints of multiple different or excessive rate quotes.

The Senate vote sends the measure to the House of

Mariya Oldfather has been named a 2013 Five Star Real Estate Agent, a level of excellence achieved by fewer than 7 percent of the real estate agents in the area. This is the third year in a row Mariya has been awarded the distinction.

Mariya's selection is the result of a process that included a rigorous regulatory and consumer complaint review, and an evaluation of objective criteria associated with real estate agents who provide quality services to their clients.

This honor reflects Mariya's hard work and dedication. Congratulations!

The Oldfather Group's impressive performance in 2013 secured them one of the brokerage's Top Producing Team awards, as well as a spot as one of the top 10 Realtors in Sussex County. The team successfully closed 85 transactions valued at over $30MM in 2013, with 23 additional settlements already on the books for early 2014. The group now includes recently promoted Chief Buyer Consultant Adam Linder who has helped select and train four new agents - Jamie Haldas, Nancy Capps, Celia Benjamin and Donna Atsidis. Chuck Seaman, who sold 20 homes in 2013, is focusing on listings and, along with Amy Pietlock, will be taking on more responsibilities in 2013. Grace Nelson, Cheryl Vogl and Janice Fendrock round out the team and will continue providing client support

The holidays are in the rear view mirror, the cold weather has set in and, for many of us, we've begun counting the days until springtime. In the real estate industry, we also have a tendency to sit back during the first quarter of the year and sort of get our ducks in a row for the spring and, eventually, for the busy summer season.

But, according to the National Association of REALTORS, the period with the highest number of online real estate searches on average is actually the first month of the year!

Seriously, January? Who knew?

But there it is in black and white. According to Google, not only does January feature the highest number of real estate searches annually, but it's also a number that increases an average of 39 percent from