REALTOR® Community Involvement Spotlight: Deneka Vallius

Louisiana REALTORS® • March 23, 2021

REALTOR® Spotlight: Deneka Vallius

Deneka Vallius

Deneka Vallius had an introduction to both real estate and hard work at a young age. A first generation Haitian-American, she watched her immigrant father work his French Quarter job with relentless focus, saving to invest in his first rental property. Once that goal was achieved, he kept pushing forward with Deneka right at his side, acting as a translator between her father and his tenants. While most kids were studying only what could be learned at school, she was getting a crash course in property management and picking up the skills and knowledge that she would one day use to help not only her south Louisiana neighbors, but Haitian citizens as well.


Finding Her Career in Real Estate


While attending Tulane University and earning her degree in public relations, Deneka began to take some elective real estate courses. She thought it may be a good fit given her background in property management, and she was right. By 2011, she had earned her real estate license and was increasingly taking note of the housing and financial struggles that were surrounding her area. As the daughter of an immigrant and someone with an empathetic nature, Deneka recognized that this was a space in which she could make a significant, positive impact.

Developing a Passion for Community Outreach


Chief among the challenges she saw was a simple lack of information. Low-income families and individuals were completely unaware of the programs available to help them achieve home ownership and greater levels of financial security. Deneka’s solution: knowledge! She knew that if she could reach these individuals and teach them about their options, she could help them improve their situation. In turn, she began to host free financial literacy and homebuyer classes. She became increasingly involved with the affordable housing community to ensure that home subsidies provided in New Orleans would continue to be accessible, and when COVID-19 struck, she aided clients with their unemployment claims, even when she had to do it via Skype or Zoom from another country!


Charitable Work in Haiti


During the early months of the pandemic, Deneka stayed in Haiti, near members of her extended family. Of course, being the person she is, this was far from a break in her work. In addition to continuing to help her clients back home, she dove headfirst into her recently established nonprofit organization, the Ayiti Cheri Foundation.


Having witnessed firsthand the language barriers that her father faced, Deneka started her foundation to help other young Haitian school children avoid the same struggles. With most speaking Haitian Creole at home and French in school, an alarming number of young children are unable to advance their education due to language obstacles. To address this, Ayiti Cheri Foundation offers services like afterschool tutoring, courses in English as a second language, and resources to Haitian parents who wish to learn French.


Moving Forward as a REALTOR® and Activist


While Deneka’s professional ambitions will surely continue to evolve, so will her community involvement and outreach. It’s her passion. In her own words, “We should all have an open ear. We as REALTORS® need to stop saying no. The word ‘no’ in the low-income community is what keeps everyone at that bottom.” We agree, Deneka, and we hope more REALTORS® will follow your lead!


NOMINATE A REALTOR®

2026 Legislative Session Scoop - Week 7 Recap

By Louisiana REALTORS® • April 24, 2026
Week seven of the 2026 Regular Session was one of the most active weeks yet for legislation affecting the real estate industry. Louisiana REALTORS® remained heavily engaged as lawmakers advanced bills dealing with property disclosures, appraiser liability, rent regulation, insurance, blight, redevelopment and other issues that directly affect real estate professionals, property owners and consumers across the state. One of the most important bills this week was HB 1166 by Rep. Kim Carver , which would require disclosures for vacant residential property. The bill was reported from House Commerce with amendments on a 14-0 vote and then amended on the House floor, ordered engrossed, and passed to third reading. Louisiana REALTORS® testified on the bill in committee and worked closely with the author to better posture the legislation. Amendments advanced by our team were accepted by the author, helping improve the bill while preserving a practical disclosure framework that increases transparency without creating unnecessary confusion in the transaction process. Another closely watched issue this week was consumer-fee disclosure legislation. HB 617 by Rep. Mandie Landry moved this week, advancing from House Commerce and then the House floor, while HB 580 , another hidden-fee disclosure bill touching real estate transactions, remains pending. Louisiana REALTORS® is opposed to these measures in their current form to the extent they apply to real estate professionals because they are not well-tailored to the realities of real estate transactions, where many costs are negotiated, variable or controlled by third parties. Louisiana REALTORS® testified in opposition to the bills we oppose and is actively working with the author to better posture the legislation and remove real estate professionals from its scope altogether. On HB 472 by Rep. Alonzo Knox , the rent stabilization bill, the author is expected to try to bring the measure back before the committee next week with amendments. Even so, Louisiana REALTORS® remain opposed to the bill on principle. Price gouging is already illegal under existing law, and government-imposed rent regulation is not the right answer to housing affordability challenges. Louisiana REALTORS® testified in opposition to the bill and continues to oppose the measure because policies like this risk discouraging investment, reducing housing supply, and creating further market distortions rather than solving the underlying problem. HB 468 by Rep. Troy Hebert , which regulates the wholesale of residential real property, remains pending in the Senate Commerce Committee and continues to be an important bill for the industry. Likewise, HB 1027 by Rep. Troy Hebert , dealing with appraiser liability, had a strong week, passing the House 90-0 and moving to the Senate. Both measures are significant because they promote greater clarity, consumer protection and confidence in the real estate marketplace. Blight and redevelopment issues also remained active. HB 284 by Rep. John Wyble , which would allow certain local governments to expropriate blighted property through a declaration-of-taking process, remains subject to call and continues to raise serious concerns about private property rights. By contrast, HB 214 and HB 217 by Rep. Chance Henry , which create tax incentives for the rehabilitation of blighted property, represent a more constructive redevelopment approach by encouraging reinvestment rather than expanding government taking authority. Insurance legislation also remained a major focus this week, with multiple bills heard that could affect homeownership costs, market stability and post-storm recovery. Measures dealing with Louisiana Citizens assessments, pre-suit insurance claim review, the Fortified Homes Program and insurance market transparency all carry real implications for affordability and transaction viability. In Louisiana, insurance remains one of the most important issues affecting the real estate market, and Louisiana REALTORS® continues to closely track that legislation. Taken together, week seven showed that Louisiana REALTORS® remains actively engaged where it matters most: supporting practical transaction standards, protecting private property rights, testifying for and against legislation when necessary, pushing back on unworkable regulation and rent-control-style policies, and advancing policies that strengthen housing opportunity and market stability across Louisiana. Please view the weekly bill tracking report provided by our lobbying team over at Harris, DeVille and Associates.

Consumer Guide Update: Navigating Interest Rates Shifts

By Louisiana REALTORS® • April 23, 2026
NAR is pleased to share the latest consumer guide helping buyers navigate shifting interest rates. The one-page guide covers how lenders set rates, the impact of small shifts on monthly payments and strategies to get the lowest rate possible. 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: Navigating Interest Rate Shifts Financing a Renovation When You Buy Staging Your House for a Sale Spotting Deepfake Scams in Real Estate Are You Ready to Invest in Real Estate? 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 looks at how solar installations may impact home sales transactions.

2026 Legislative Session Scoop - Week 6 Recap

By Louisiana REALTORS® • April 17, 2026
Louisiana REALTORS® spent week six of the Legislative Session actively engaged on several bills at the Capitol impacting core industry priorities, including private property rights, affordability, redevelopment and transaction-related regulations. Most of the meaningful activity remained in the House, where lawmakers continued advancing measures with direct implications for the real estate market. HB 284 by Rep. John Wyble , which would authorize certain local governments to expropriate blighted property by declaration-of-taking, failed on final passage in the House Tuesday by a 48-47 vote, and remains subject to reconsideration. Meanwhile, HB 472 by Rep. Alonzo Knox , which would authorize rent stabilization at the local level, was voluntarily deferred in committee following testimony from Louisiana REALTORS® and our partners at the Louisiana Apartment Association effectively ending its path this session. This marks a significant win, as rent control policies do not address housing supply challenges and instead risk further market distortion. In House Commerce, several key bills moved forward. HB 1027 by Rep. Troy Hebert , which clarifies that appraisers are not liable for a seller’s failure to meet smoke and carbon monoxide detector requirements, passed committee unanimously and is now slated for a House floor vote. This common-sense measure protects appraisers and helps preserve efficiency in the transaction process. HB 673 by Rep. Tammy Phelps , which would have imposed new security camera mandates on certain blighted properties, was also voluntarily deferred following industry opposition. Additionally, HB 426 by Rep. Phelps , which addresses criminal blighting and expands enforcement liability, remains under consideration. Louisiana REALTORS® is monitoring this bill closely to ensure efforts to address blight do not unintentionally discourage investment or redevelopment. We continue to track broader market integrity and redevelopment efforts. HB 468 by Rep. Hebert , addressing residential wholesaling, has now moved to the Senate after unanimous House passage. HB 217 by Rep. Chance Henry , which provides tax incentives for the rehabilitation of blighted property, also remains active in the Senate and represents a constructive approach to redevelopment. Looking ahead, the House Commerce Committee will consider HB 1166 by Rep. Kim Carver next week, which addresses disclosure requirements for vacant residential property. Louisiana REALTORS® supports clear, consistent consumer disclosures and have been working closely with the author and the Louisiana Real Estate Commission to ensure the bill is structured to promote transparency while maintaining practical standards and avoiding unintended liability for real estate professionals. Overall, the House carried the bulk of real estate activity this week, while the Senate saw limited movement on major REALTOR® priorities. As the session continues, Louisiana REALTORS® remains focused on protecting private property rights, opposing harmful market interventions, supporting responsible redevelopment and advancing policies that strengthen real estate transactions for both consumers and our members. Please view the weekly bill tracking report provided by our lobbying team over at Harris, DeVille and Associates.
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