Press Releases

Bay Area Multicultural Real Estate Summit Shows Unity of Purpose in Diversity

- For Immediate Release -

San Mateo, CA - For the first time in the history of California's real estate industry, 11 associations of real estate professionals came together on Oct. 25 to hold the first Bay Area Multicultural Real Estate Summit. The summit brought together Bay Area real estate practitioners, government officials and service providers in an educational conference format focused on dissemination of information, demographic trends, financial reforms and business practices which affect the fast growing multicultural real estate communities in the counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara.

The 11 organizations included seven ethnic real estate associations - Asian Real Estate Association of East Bay, Chinese American Real Estate Association, Chinese Real Estate Association of America, Filipino American Real Estate Professionals Association, National Hispanic Real Estate Professionals of San Francisco and Silicon Valley, South Asian Real Estate Association of America, three REALTOR® associations -  Bay East Association of REALTORS®, Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS®, San Mateo County Association of REALTORS® and Fidelity National Financial.

Over 300 people attended the event, which was held at the Elks Lodge in San Mateo. The initiative was strongly supported by the National Association of REALTORS®, California Association of REALTORS®, San Jose Association of Realtists, with Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, Stewart Title of California, Chicago Title, Old Republic Title, Land America Title, C.A.R., Asian International Real Estate Expo & Conference and Pre-Paid Legal Services as sponsors.

Introductions were made by SAMCAR President Geoffrey Craighead. The summit program included a presentation on the state of the real estate industry by California Department of Real Estate Commissioner Jeff Davi, a panel discussion composed of experts in the industry, a class on preventing foreclosures, followed by a wine and cheese reception.

Comprising the panel were Davi, Freddie Mac Expanding Markets Manager Sergio Barajas, C.A.R. State Legislative Chair Steve Goddard, Julius Nyanda of SJAOR and Asian Real Estate Association of America Chair Allen Okamoto. Senior Fidelity National Financial’s Senior Vice President for Market Development Pablo Wong moderated the panel discussion. Jorge Carcamo, president of NAHREP-SF, and Patricia Lindo, president of NAHREP-SV, delivered the Powerpoint presentation on “Preventing Foreclosures.”

The clear message derived from the summit is the economy is strong and the experts see it unlikely that problems in the real estate market will spill into a recession. Real estate is cyclical and the market will turn around again, like it always has, with the greatest opportunities resting on the growing ethnic populations. The panelists stressed education as the key for Realtors and homebuyers, especially those who find themselves at risk of foreclosure. All were in agreement that news about California’s real estate market, particularly the Bay Area market, has been too negative and agents need to educate their clients about the true picture and potential of real estate in the Bay Area. They also stressed housing affordability issues should be raised at the local level.

“Real estate has carried California in the last 12 years and could not sustain the kind of growth in sales and prices we had the last few years, regardless of the credit crunch, the subprime market and rise in foreclosures, which are merely casualties of a market that couldn’t sustain what we had,” according to Davi. “The economy is good and we’re not coupling this downturn with a recession.”

The DRE Commissioner said there are 547, 300 licensed real estate agents in California today, up from 269,000 in 1991, but he predicts the number will drop in the near future. Already the number of new licensees has dropped from 1,000 to 35 per week. 

Both Davi and Goddard advised real estate professionals to re-organize, re-plan, retool to become more effective, more efficient, and to take listings that are realistic. Goddard said even as the market slows down, agents should continue to “think real estate. That’s how you keep getting better.” He advised them to weed out their client data base, keep in touch with their 50 best clients, and use this time to improve their skills.

Panelists observed future growth and opportunities in real estate will lie with ethnic minority groups. “Clearly over time, the non-white population is where growth is occurring and where you should focus,” Davi told real estate professionals.

AREAA’s Okamoto indicated the Asian market is one of the emerging markets, with Chinese Americans being the most populous, Indians second, and Filipinos third. This ethnic group has strong credit ratings and business opportunities, but many are linguistically isolated. Thirty percent of the Asian population in the San Francisco area is linguistically isolated, said Okamoto.

Barajas said there are products out there that can help educate agents and expand their understanding about how to market a product and gain access to emerging markets.

Nyanda predicted it will be a long stretch before things improve in the foreclosure market. He announced since November 2006, 166 lenders have had to close their business.

Nyanda and Barajas said there are a number of lenders who are willing to work with troubled homeowners, key is education and linking with local providers so that homeowners will be educated about their foreclosure options.

“I don’t believe it is government’s role to bail out people for their mistakes,” said Davi. However, he stressed victims of fraud should immediately file complaints with the DRE, so criminals can be prosecuted. He also said the state should direct troubled homeowners to people who can help them, so they are not misinformed.

“Fifty percent of those with pending foreclosures don’t even call a lender if they are in trouble,” said Davi. “Tell your clients to call their lender and ask to get connected to the foreclosure department. If we can get people to do it early, we’ll have a lot less foreclosures. There are options out there.”

All panelists agreed California needs to increase its conforming loan limits and it is important to raise this issue and the problem of housing affordability at the local government level – to their city councils,  county boards of supervisors, as well as state officials.

“The summit was an opportunity to build bridges with a unique platform of bringing everyone together, so that at the end of the day, it’s not your ethnic background that matters,” said Lindo, who also serves as chair of SAMCAR’s Cultural Diversity Committee and head of the summit steering committee. “We have more things in common than differences and we are all focusing on the same problems and goals, and that is to help everyone, regardless of their ethnicity, achieve the American dream of homeownership.

“The summit was able to address real issues and enabled us to learn how to educate our consumers so they don’t fall prey to predatory practices and, in turn, elevate our standards of service in  reaching our consumers.”

Lindo said she and representatives of the summit’s founding associations hope to make the summit an annual event.

The San Mateo County Association of REALTORS® (SAMCAR) is a professional trade organization representing over 3,800 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula. SAMCAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in San Mateo County.

The term "REALTOR®" is a registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and who subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.

For further information, please contact Julie Ziemelis, Director of Public Affairs, e-mail , or phone (650) 696-8214.

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