“I will never hold an open house alone again!”
A 28-year old female member (who would like to remain anonymous) had a harrowing experience this past Sunday when a man parked near the Upper Arlington condo where she was holding an open house, waited until her customers left, tried to hide when spotted, then tried to get in – but she’d locked the door. The man was African American, around 35 years old, about 6’ tall, was wearing a dark gray jumpsuit and dark gray hoodie, and drove a gray car with black tinted windows. “I had a bad feeling as soon as I saw him. And it doesn’t matter the color of his skin, it was his eyes – they were blood shot red. I was terrified!” There was another open house in the same complex held by a male REALTOR®, but the man didn’t visit that open house. “I just want to warn other females – don’t hold open houses alone!” The police have been contacted.

See more at: https://www.columbusrealtors.com/alerts/default.aspx

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08/17/2016

Reported to Columbus REALTORS®

Erik Hiss, Keller Williams Capital Partners, reported that a suspicious looking woman was spotted sitting in her car taking pictures of a Clintonville home. She claimed to be an appraiser and when asked for what company, she said “Got it. Thanks!” and sped off. She looked to be in her early- to mid-fifties, wore eye glasses with plastic rims, had longer, sandy colored hair and she didn’t look real professional. Her hair was pulled back and she was wearing a t-shirt. She was driving a tan/beige 90’s model Ford Taurus/Mercury Sable with a yellow “student driver” sticker on the back of her car, and the camera she was using looked like an older (bigger/boxy) digital camera. Wouldn’t have thought much of this, except for her odd behavior, and it’s just another reminder that if you encounter suspicious activity – trust your gut – and contact your local police department.

See more at: https://www.columbusrealtors.com/alerts/default.aspx

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08/11/2016

Final Update – 8:45am – 6/24/16 – Columbus REALTORS® Member Service Center reports that Supra functions and updates are now operational.

Previous message:
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The Columbus REALTORS® Member Service Center reports:

Currently Supra is having a problem with the automatic updates for the keys. You may be able to get an update code from Kim voice at 1-888-968-4032 or on SupraWEB.  However, we have received reports of extended delays and update failures using these methods.

When Supra comes back online fully, these options should allow for updates.

If you have any questions please contact Supra support at 800-545-9601.

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06/23/2016

Robert E. Willett was charged and convicted of abduction in 2013 and was scheduled to be released on June 11, 2016. Robert E. Willett has used at least 2 aliases, Bill Parks, and Tim Ramsey when setting up meetings with various real estate agents for house showings in northern Ohio. He has been known to be at open houses as well, illegibly signing the guest book, and typically staying to the end, being the last to leave. Even though this happened in another part of the state, we thought you should be aware of this man. Extreme caution should be taken when scheduling appointments with unknown clients and open house showings.  News story  Akron/Cleveland AOR notice

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06/16/2016

We are sad to report that Joseph P. Remlinger, a broker with Discovery Realty and member of Columbus REALTORS®, was shot and killed yesterday while trying to collect overdue rent from one of his tenants (per Columbus Dispatch article). The tenant and another man have been arrested and charged with murder and arson. We have members who are involved in all aspects of the business and are in and out of places that can jeopardize their safety. Please, please incorporate safety precautions in your daily activities. Click here for real estate safety information.

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06/03/2016

In addition to wire fraud issues, REALTOR® e-mails are being hacked and bogus e-mails (with the subject line “contract”, “real estate offer”, “addendum”, “wire”, etc.) are being sent from the hacked e-mail account to other REALTORS® and to people outside of the Association. Once you click on the link in the e-mail, it will take you to another online service (i.e. google docs, etc.) that requests your login/password which the hacker will then use to gain access to your personal information. Please be cautious when opening e-mails! If your e-mail has been hacked, click here for information on how to report it to the FBI.

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05/24/2016

View the entire article by clicking here:

http://www.columbusrealtors.com/NewsDetail/Closing-Scam-involving-wire-fraud

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03/29/2016

Read article here

https://www.columbusrealtors.com/Alerts/default.aspx

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03/18/2016

Read article here

https://www.columbusrealtors.com/Alerts/default.aspx

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03/15/2016

The Columbus REALTORS® Recognition and Sales Awards Committee is seeking nominations for Broker, Salesperson, Affiliate, Rising Star, and Citizen of the Year, and we encourage and welcome your suggestions!

As an association member, you have a valuable opportunity to assist Columbus REALTORS® in recognizing one of our own, and quite possibly an individual you work with every day. Please take a moment and think about someone you feel has and continues to make a difference to both the central Ohio and Columbus REALTOR® communities, and then nominate them.

The deadline for nominations is Monday, Feb. 29, 5p. Please contract Lynn Hackworth at (614) 475-4000 ext. 248 or lhackworth@columbusrealtors.com with your nominee(s).

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02/12/2016