First Time Home Buyer Rebate Voluntarily Deferred
LOUISIANA REALTORS • April 30, 2018
As of Monday, April 30, House Bill No. 383 was voluntarily deferred in the House Appropriations Committee at the request of Louisiana REALTORS® and the author. Due to state budgetary issues, we do not anticipate this legislation being able to complete the legislative process. Therefore, the bill will not advance any further this session.
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House Bill No. 383 would have likely passed if the measures had been adopted to balance the budget in the 2018 First Special Session. While many committee members were in favor of the bill, they were hesitant to vote in favor of a bill with a large fiscal note just after having cut other programs in the budget. "As an organization, we did not want to subject our friends to criticism for voting for a bill that we know will not advance during these uncertain budgetary times," said Norman Morris CEO.
Representative Paula Davis has agreed to file a resolution encouraging the Legislature to explore and support efforts to assist first-time home buyers in future sessions. "The 500-plus REALTORS® who converged on the Capitol last week deomonstrated the importance of assisting first-time home buyers and ensured the likelihood of successful legislation to assist these buyers in the future," said Kim Callaway - Director of Legal & Governmental Affairs. "We greatly appreciate your efforts, which will go a long way in advancing this legislation in the future," said Callaway.
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NAR is pleased to share the latest consumer guide that explains the concept of home staging, offers DIY staging tips and missteps and shares the latest NAR member sentiment on how staging can help buyers better visualize the property as their future home and potentially net sellers a higher price. As a reminder, all guides in this series are available for download—in both English and Spanish—on facts.realtor . Please allow up to two weeks for the Spanish version of the latest resource to be translated and uploaded. For ease of reference, below is a list of the most recent guides: NEW: Staging Your House for a Sale Spotting Deepfake Scams in Real Estate Are You Ready to Invest in Real Estate? Thinking of Selling? 7 Factors to Consider How to Make Your Home More Energy Efficient Thank you for your continued engagement with the “Consumer Guide” series and for sharing the resources with prospective clients to ensure they have the information they need to find success in their home buying or selling journey. Remember that these guides are for informational purposes only and are not meant to enact or change any existing NAR policy. Be on the lookout for the next consumer guide, which discusses home mortgage options that allow buyers to fold in renovation costs.
With legislative work wrapped for week two of the session, here is your look back at what took place inside the halls of the Capitol. This week was defined by one major theme: workforce. Across both chambers, lawmakers moved a substantial package of measures focused on workforce development and reforms to Louisiana’s labor and workers’ compensation systems. House Labor Committee One of the busiest areas of activity was the House Labor Committee, which met Thursday morning and took up a slate of bills tied to employment policy, workforce structure and independent contractor issues like measures on portable benefits. The committee’s work underscored the broader push this session to modernize Louisiana’s workforce. Workers’ Compensation Reform The conversation around workers’ compensation reform also gained serious momentum. On the House side, additional labor-related bills addressed independent contractor definitions and other employment law issues. This week marked one of the first major pushes of the session on labor and workforce policy. House & Governmental Affairs Beyond labor-focused legislation, activity also continued in other key committees. In the House & Governmental Affairs Committee, lawmakers advanced multiple bills dealing with the timing of bond and tax elections. Tax, Commerce and Property Looking back at the broader week-two agenda, the Legislature also began considering several tax, commerce, and property-related measures, including proposals impacting property tax assessments, homestead exemptions, and the issues affecting private property. While workforce dominated the week, these issues are starting to gain traction as the session moves forward. A portion of our legislative package will be heard next week as HB 468 moves to the House Commerce Committee and HB 292 moves to the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee. Be on the lookout for any potential calls-to-action for these, or any other upcoming bills. Please view the weekly bill tracking report provided by our lobbying team over at Harris, DeVille and Associates.
