State Candidate Questionnaire

Name

Office Sought

Party Affiliation

District

Cell Phone Number

Email Address

Occupation

Home Street Address/City/State/Zip

Name of Candidate Committee

Campaign Office Street Address/City/State/Zip

Campaign Website

Campaign Manager

Campaign Treasurer

Previous Public Office Held

Previous Public Office Sought

How many volunteers are actively involved right now in your campaign?

If you have a primary, how much do you anticipate spending in the primary election? How much do you anticipate spending in the general election?

As of your last campaign filing, how much has your campaign raised and how much cash does your campaign have on hand?

List endorsements from other organizations you have received to date:

How much will/have you personally contributed to your campaign?

Would you welcome financial support and/or endorsement of the REALTORS Association (RPAC)? If yes, do you have a maximum amount (other than established limits) that you will accept from any single contributor or PAC?

Describe the history and current status of your electoral contest and your campaign.

Why should REALTORS support you?

1. If elected, or re-elected, what will be your top priority?

2. Michigan’s 2022 Statewide Housing Plan shows a need for more than 175,000 new housing units across the state. Whenever and wherever REALTORS® gather, the lack of local housing supply is a point of discussion. Our housing shortage feeds into a number of issues around housing access, availability, and affordability. What are your ideas for the role of the state legislature in addressing Michigan’s housing needs?

3. Michigan currently requires the Sellers Disclosure Form in most residential transactions. This form is an easy way for sellers to communicate with buyers about the known conditions of the property before a sale. Michigan Realtors® and GRAR support the use of this form and providing buyers with additional opportunities for voluntary professional inspections that a buyer and seller might discuss and negotiate around the time of a transaction. Government mandated inspections and testing can add significant cost and delay and even prohibit real estate transactions, often with little benefit to buyers or sellers. How do you feel about government mandated inspections at the time a home is sold for items such as energy efficiency, lead paint, or stopping the transfer of a property based on the condition of a well or septic system?

4. Short-term rentals have existed in Michigan for generations. The right to rent has afforded Michigan residents the opportunity to maximize the value of their property, own second homes, and travel throughout the state. Concurrently, there is a growing trend of local governments enacting zoning policies to ban or severely restrict the ability of homeowners to rent their property for periods of less than 28 days. For nearly 10 years, the Michigan legislature has seen numerous bills aimed at providing a statewide framework around the right to rent and the regulation and taxation of short-term rentals. Should a local government be allowed to use zoning to ban the rental of a residential property on a short-term basis (any period less than 28 days)? Would you support a statewide approach that protected the ability to rent while preserving the ability of local governments to enforce housing codes, register, and inspect short-term rentals?

5. Since the 1980s, Michigan law specifically prohibits local rent control ordinances. Economic analysis and experiences in other states show that rent control policies produce the opposite effect: they result in higher rents, higher prices, and a reduced number of available rental units. It does so by discouraging investment and development in rental housing. Michigan already faces a housing shortage and affordability challenges due to a lack of building. What is your opinion on rent control? Would you support the elimination of Michigan’s current prohibition on local rent control ordinances?

6. As housing availability and affordability challenges continue, there are several legislative proposals aimed at adding regulation and requirements on housing providers. Examples of this are: elimination of criminal background checks, elimination of credit checks, required enrollment in federal housing programs (Section 8), and restrictions on the ability to evict a tenant. As similar laws have played out across the country, these regulations result in less rental units and makes rental housing less available and less affordable. Do you support mandates on housing providers, or would you support incentive programs and adding additional housing supply to increase access to rental housing?

7. Proposal A of 1994 made significant changes to property taxation in Michigan. Michigan’s property tax now caps assessments on all property at the rate of inflation or 5%, whichever is less. When a property sells, the taxable value becomes uncapped and the new owner pays taxes based on the market rate of the property, commonly referred to as the “pop-up tax.” The pop-up is sometimes viewed as a disincentive for sellers that have lived in their home for several years, and it is also sometimes a disincentive to buyers that will pay the new uncapped rate. What do you see as the benefits and/or flaws in this system of taxation? Are there measures you would propose to improve it?

8. In looking at Michigan’s current tax structure we have a state sales tax of 6% and a state real estate transfer tax of .75%. In recent years, there has been discussion on expanding or increasing each of these taxes with regard to real estate transactions. Do you support an expansion of the sales tax to include services? Would you support an increase in Michigan’s real estate transfer tax?

9. LARA administers licenses for more than 60,000 real estate brokers, salespersons, and appraisers in Michigan. As a regulated industry, REALTORS® regularly engage with the Department on licensing issues to protect the public and increase education and enforcement among licensees. Are there benefits to licensing professions, such as real estate? Do you believe that professional licensure is an unreasonable barrier to job growth in Michigan?

10. Michigan’s real estate professionals are primarily independent contractors. Independent contractor status is important to REALTORS® and allows an individual to own their own business, build their own brand and reputation, and set their own hours. Current licensing law recognizes the relationship between a broker and a salesperson as an independent contractor relationship with supervision requirements. Efforts are underway in the Michigan legislature and federally to establish a test that would determine whether an individual is an employee or an independent contractor. The proposed tests are heavily weighted towards the presumption that most workers in Michigan should be classified as employees. Would you support this legislation? If you are in support, do you see room for exceptions to the test?

11. While water quality is an important issue in Michigan, we remain the only state without a statewide septic code. Across the state, REALTORS® and the public deal with a variety of local septic ordinances. There is no uniformity in inspections, definition of failure, or enforcement. Some local ordinances rely solely on inspections at the time of sale or transfer, which can hamper buyers and sellers. Further, point of sale only inspects those properties that transfer ownership, ignoring those that have had the same owner for many years. In addition, new alternative technologies are available in the market that produce cleaner output and allow for more dense development. Local governments have been slow to approve these technologies despite their proven success. Would you support the creation of a statewide septic code to create uniformity in regulation of septic systems including statewide approval of alternative septic systems?