Volunteer Opportunity: Brown County January Point in Time Count

Help make a difference in our community by joining the Brown County January Point in Time Count on the night of January 22nd. This important effort identifies homelessness trends and ensures resources are effectively allocated.

Date: Overnight, January 22nd-23rd
Shifts: 2-hour volunteer slots from 11:15 PM - 5:30 AM

No experience needed—training materials will be provided.

Sign up to volunteer and make a meaningful impact: http://bit.ly/41kKIMu

Questions? Contact Meaghan Gleason at meaghangleason@newcap.org.

Together, we can help our neighbors in need.

Fair Housing Presentation - Mark Your Calendar!

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Green Bay has shared an excellent opportunity to refresh your knowledge of Fair Housing laws at the federal, state, and local levels—essential for property owners, managers, tenants, and housing professionals alike. Let’s ensure we stay informed and mindful of these important regulations in our daily operations.

Wednesday, January 15th

1:00 PM to 2:30 PM

Diocese of Green Bay, Bona Hall

1825 Riverside Drive, Green Bay

Join the Metropolitan Milwaukee Fair Housing Council for a one-hour presentation covering:

Federal, state, and local protected classes

Common examples of discriminatory practices

How complaints are resolved

Guidance on recognizing and addressing housing discrimination

This event is FREE and open to the public, but RSVP is required to ensure enough seating. Light refreshments will be provided.

Don’t miss this chance to learn and grow while promoting Fair Housing for all!

Let’s work together for an inclusive and fair housing environment!

UPDATED LANDLORD ALERT PROGRAM FEATURES & BENEFITS

Out on our website you will also find a link to the city of Green Bay Police Departments various resources for landlords/managers and tenants.  You can find this link, along with many other resources under our Resources tab, then Landlord links sub-tab below that.

Clicking on this link will take you to a page of many useful links that you can be, or should be using in managing your rental business.

Resources/Landlord Links

If you scroll down to the link called Green Bay Police Department - Landlord Tenant Resources, you can find many city resources at your finger tips.  The one this blog is referring to in particular is called "Email Alerts Sign Up Form".  Clicking on this form explains this program in detail.

We encourage all rental property owners and property managers who have property within the city limits to download this form, fill it out, follow the instructions on the form to register for both police call alerts and inspection complaints.  Staying on top of things like this on a timely basis will allow everyone to be proactive, be mindful of what is taking place at their properties, address anything that is necessary to ensure that all residents can enjoy a quiet and peaceful place to live as well as making sure their property is viewed as a "good neighbor" within the neighborhoods they have properties.

The AANW was very instrumental in the early stages of developing this program initially back in the day, as they say.  It has evolved since then, like everything does, and now also includes being alerted when a complaint is being filed with the city's Inspections Department at your property, if you are registered in this program as outlined in this form.

Consistent with our Community Engagement initiatives, the AANW over the past year has worked with the Green Bay Police Department to help those who are registered in this service to understand what some of these abbreviations mean that come to you via email whenever a police call takes place at your property.  They are not always easy to understand, and we wanted to help take the workload off of both the owners/managers, and the police department to not have to field a ton of phone calls from recipients of this email alert, if some simple upfront explanations might prevent this.

We would like to thank Melanie Skalmoski, Crime Prevention Coordinator with the Green Bay Police Department for putting in the time and effort to create a pdf of these various abbreviated police call codes that can help you identify what took place at your property.  Again, this might help you to not have to call or email to receive more information, but as the first link above explains in that form, this is always an option for anyone to make use of as well.

Click on the link below to open up this PDF of these abbreviations.

Landlord Alert Program - Calls for Service Additional Information.pdf

 We hope everyone finds this information helpful in managing their properties.

Administrative Support

Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin, Inc.

IMPORTANT: UPDATE REGARDING THE CORPORATE TRANSPARENCY ACT (CTA) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND DEADLINE.

In the spirit of "who's on first, what's on second", once again here is the latest on the on-going CTA litigation that has been taking place this month.

Below is an excerpt from the official FinCen.gov website that speaks specifically to what is currently going on...

On December 23, 2024, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit granted a stay of the district court’s preliminary injunction entered in the case of Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc. v. Garland, pending the outcome of the Department of the Treasury’s ongoing appeal of the district court’s order. FinCEN immediately issued an alert notifying the public of this ruling, and recognizing that reporting companies may have needed additional time to comply with beneficial ownership reporting requirements, FinCEN extended reporting deadlines. On December 26, 2024, however, a different panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an order vacating the Court’s December 23, 2024 order granting a stay of the preliminary injunction. Accordingly, as of December 26, 2024, the injunction issued by the district court in Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc. v. Garland is in effect and reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN.

You can read the entire update from FinCen.gov here...

FinCen-Beneficial Ownership Reporting/Filing Deadline Changes...Again

The bottom line is that this is likely to go on for some time and each person has to make their own decision with the advice of their attorney/accountant as to whether they should just sit and wait this litigation back and forth play out, or just volunteer to file now. 

We will continue to monitor this as it unfolds in the court system...

Admin

Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin

 

Corporate Transparency Act Update:

Please be advised, as we reported to you on December 4th the Corporate Transparency Act has been challenged on several fronts since it's inception.  Below is the latest news on this Act, with new "extended filing deadlines" that everyone should be aware of as we look to the new year.

This article was published in The National Law Review as indicated below.

==========================================================================================

The National Law Review

By: Kyle R. Freeny, Marina Olman-Pal, Tiffanie Monplaisir of Greenberg Traurig, LLP -  Financial Regulatory & Compliance News

Tuesday, December 24, 2024

On Dec. 23, 2024, a Fifth Circuit panel issued an order staying the nationwide preliminary injunction a district court in Texas issued against the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), reinstating the effectiveness of the CTA and its implementing regulations in their entirety pending appeal, including, but not limited to the Jan. 1, 2025, deadline for filing of beneficial ownership information (BOI) reports by reporting companies formed prior to Jan. 1, 2024.

In response, FinCEN issued guidance which, among other things, extends a modest additional grace period for pre-2024 companies to file BOI reports. In particular, pursuant to this FinCEN guidance, entities formed prior to Jan. 1, 2024, will have until Jan. 13, 2025, to file BOI reports with FinCEN. Though short-term, this may be welcome relief for existing reporting companies worried about their ability to file over the holidays.

FinCEN also issued the following guidance for companies created prior to Jan. 1, 2025, but after Sept. 4. 2024:

• Reporting companies created or registered in the United States on or after Sept. 4, 2024, that had a filing deadline between Dec. 3, 2024, and Dec. 23, 2024, will have until Jan. 13, 2025, to file their initial BOI reports with FinCEN.
   
• Reporting companies created or registered in the United States on or after Dec. 3, 2024, and on or before Dec. 23, 2024, will have an additional 21 days from their original filing deadline to file their initial BOI reports with FinCEN.

The Fifth Circuit must still review the merits of the appeal. In the meantime, absent further relief by the courts or U.S. Congress, reporting companies should ensure their compliance by the dates indicated above.

====================================================================================

This link will take you directly to the article:

CTA UPDATE: Fifth Circuit Reinstates Corporate Transparency Act; FinCEN Grants Modest Grace Period for Filings

We always encourage you to consult with your own Attorney or CPA in matters such as these, but please do so knowing that at least for now the filing deadlines have been extended as highlighted above.

Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin (AANW.org)

BREAKING NEWS !!

Please make sure you are speaking with your accountant and or attorney to understand what your reporting responsibility is regarding The Corporate Transparency Act.

For most eligible businesses, the filing deadline is January 1, 2025. Those who fail to file by this deadline — or fail to update this information if needed — could face up to two years imprisonment and fines up to $10,000, in addition to civil penalties of up to $591 per day.

However, yesterday a Federal Court blocked the implementation of this act across the United States.  Here is a link to this article that is discussing this:

Federal Court Enjoins Enforcement of the CTA Nationwide; Reporting Companies “Need Not Comply” with January 1 Deadline

Here is another link to learn more about the Corporate Transparency Act from the United States Chamber of Commerce, and note that it now states at the beginning of the article that the implementation of this act has now been halted indefinitely. 

What Every Small Business Needs to Know About the Corporate Transparency Act

As always, we encourage you to consult with your accountant/attorney to understand what you need to do under these circumstances.  

We hope this helps to keep everyone informed about this CTA and the reporting responsibilities.

Rick Van Der Leest

Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin | President

Fox Valley Apartment Association | Director of Government Affairs

LOCAL GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS NOTICE:

The Winnebago County Board of supervisors signs a resolution asking the state to prevent corporations from buying single-family homes... (Click on the link below to learn more.)

Winnebago County Board Passes Housing Related Resolution...

The above is just one of many examples we have discussed over the past few years now why creating and establishing an "Integrated Grass Roots Advocacy Foundation" now more than ever, is critical to making the work done in Madison, and frankly even Washington, that much more effective and efficient as we move forward into 2025 and beyond.

Those wishing to learn more about an integrated grass roots approach, and learn how to engage in this type of advocacy should email us at:  Admin@aanw.org

As we look forward to 2025 we will be laser focused on an Educational Theme of "Back to the Basics".  It is clear that we have more work to do with owners, managers, investors and the general public, given what we are seeing take place judicially across the state. 

In addition to this, we have some new and exciting educational initiatives that we are working on for the new year.  More on this at a later date...

Happy Holidays !!

Rick Van Der Leest

Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin | President

Fox Valley Apartment Association | Director of Government Affairs

MUST READ … Why This Year’s Landlord Bootcamp Event Should Be Viewed as “Mandatory” The Collateral Damage of Koble Investments -v- Marquardt (Koble)

Date:  Friday, October 18, 2024

To:  All Rental Property Owners, Property Managers and Rental Real Estate Investors

If you have been attending our monthly meetings, reading our blog posts, or reading our email communications about Koble Investments, and before that case, Henchey, you understand the concern we have had about the collateral damage these cases were going to have on the rental housing industry, especially Koble since it has now been published and is the law of the State of Wisconsin.

Recall these cases argued that leases which violate Wis. Stat. §704.44, the 10 Deadly Sins, were deemed Void and Unenforceable, and the legal remedy was to award the tenant with all the rent they paid the landlord during their entire tenancy, plus double damages and attorney fees (ATCP 134.08).

We have been following cases that are being argued based on Koble, and as you are aware, the AANW, FVAA, RPA, KLA and the Realtors have filed an amicus (friends of the court) brief asking the Wis Supreme Court to accept Koble’s Petition to hear this case, and ultimately overturn Koble, which was published at the Court of Appeals level.  At this time, we have not seen any movement by the Wis Supreme Court on the petition filed by Koble, and our amicus.

Over the past couple of months now, we have seen a significant number of Plaintiff’s (tenants) attorneys seeking class certification, Wis. Stat. § 803.08, of a number of these cases across the State, including those against owners and managers who operate up and down the Fox Valley.  We have already told you that the Koble case would have detrimental consequences to our industry, and further reduce an already inadequate rental housing inventory across the state.  If these cases now receive class certification, the rental housing industry may not be recognizable in 2025 and beyond.  Those who get dragged into these class action lawsuits may well find their only reasonable solution to be bankruptcy.  This could include, but not be limited to the smaller mom and pop landlords/managers, but also some of the medium-sized operators, and perhaps some of the more vulnerable larger operators.

This is very likely the most consequential judicial action targeted at the rental housing industry of our lifetime.  Now more than at any other time, everyone should sign up for the Landlord Boot Camp, presented by Attorney Tristan Pettit, hosted by the AANW on Friday, November 8^th.  There has been enough change to how Landlord/Tenant Law is being interpreted by the courts, and DATCP, in part because of Koble but not solely, that every member or non-member who follows our association should get signed up before we are Sold Out like we were last year.  You will not find a better value for this Landlord/Tenant Law education than this event, and if you’re not a member, now is the time to take advantage of the non-member special we are offering that combines both membership and the boot camp.  This link will take you to the event on our website, where you can learn more, and get signed up as spots are filling up fast.  AANW 2024 Landlord Boot Camp  (Please note that once this fills up, there is no option to open more spots due to the facility seating limit.)

The Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin (AANW.org)

AANW Members:

Those who have attended our monthly meetings this year have heard the reference on more than one occasion...of the following:

"We must move beyond the narrow, nearly insufficient, and unstainable task of “Making Affordable Housing,” and begin to work on the broader, more sustainable, and meaningful work of “Making Housing Affordable.”  There is a difference, and this must not remain misunderstood by those who advocate for common sense policies that promote the sustainability of rental housing, and those responsible for legislating housing policies."

The above is just a small example of what we cover in our State of the Industry presentation/discussion session.

However, there is likely not a more representative article of the point being made above, than the one offered last week by the CATO Institute.  Entitled:

"The Government’s War on Starter Homes"

Once you read this article, take a step back and ask yourself what will happen down the road when some of these current developments are no longer bound by some local and or state requirement for tax credits and other financial incentives?

At the risk of sounding redundant, until we stop simply throwing money at these housing challenges and instead focus on true Root Cause Analysis and address these challenges head on, rather than treating symptoms, this merry-go-round will never stop.

Please read the article by clicking on the link below, and stop to reflect on our State of the Industry presentations that most recently were made in Aug/Sep.

The Government’s War on Starter Homes

Please note, if you missed this presentation in Aug, email us at Admin@aanw.org to get your name on the list that we are building to host a Zoom session to repeat this for those who were unable to attend the event.  We have had a lot of requests to find a way to repeat this PowerPoint presentation, and we are looking into hosting a Zoom session of this in October.

Thank you,

Rick Van Der Leest

Apartment Association of Northeast Wisconsin, Inc. | President

Register here: https://bit.ly/LandEng