September 2, 2026

Tri-County Suburban REALTORS® is excited to announce that the 2026 Annual Membership Meeting will return to Springfield Country Club on Wednesday, October 21st!

The Association is excited to welcome Steve McClatchy, a keynote speaker and author of two National Bestsellers Decide and Leading Relationships. A renowned leadership expert and performance improvement specialist, Steve helps professionals work smarter, communicate more effectively, build stronger relationships, reduce stress, and lead with greater impact. Through engaging stories, strategies, and actionable takeaways, attendees will learn how better decision-making, stronger communication, and intentional leadership can improve both personal and professional success.

If you are in business today, you are in the business of relationships, and in the age of AI threatening the future of work there are things that AI will never be able to do for you. Steve's keynote, titled Leading Relationships, is guaranteed to change the way you work, interact, solve problems, innovate, manage, and lead your business.

The skills of communicating effectively, working with diverse multi-generational teams, setting clear expectations, giving feedback, navigating differing opinions, resolving conflict, working remotely, and holding others accountable can be the most important skills you will ever develop. In this presentation you will learn the keys to success in each of these areas and how to build relationships strong enough to handle the pressures and tensions inherent in building, leading and/or being a part of a dynamic, engaged, fast changing, high-performance, creative, collaborative team.

Alongside Steve McClatchy, there will be an Affiliate Expo featuring 20 vendors, door prizes, an induction ceremony of the 2026 REALTOR® Emeritus class, a recognition ceremony of the 2026 Leadership Development Program graduates, a recognition ceremony of the 2026 “Making a Difference: Community Service Awards” winners, networking with fellow industry professionals, and more! 

The Annual Membership Meeting will also be the last available opportunity to vote in-person for the 2027 Board of Directors Election - candidates will be announced on September 9th. 

Tickets sell out for this event every year, register today via your Member Portal, once logged in scroll over "Events" and then click on "Upcoming Meetings".

Tri-County Suburban REALTORS® will be closed beginning on Friday, September 4, 2026 at 3pm through Monday, September 7, 2026 for Labor Day. The office will reopen at 8 am on Tuesday, September 8, 2026.

September is REALTOR® Safety Month—a time to make safety a priority, refresh your routines, and take advantage of resources designed to help you stay safe on the job. REALTORS® regularly meet new people, enter unfamiliar properties, host open houses, and work independently, making it essential to have a safety strategy in place. The National Association of REALTORS® emphasizes knowledge, awareness, and empowerment as the foundation of REALTOR® safety. This month, take a few minutes to strengthen your safety habits, learn from experts, and make sure you’re using the tools and resources available to you.
Here are three ways to make the most of REALTOR® Safety Month:
The FOREWARN application gives you the ability to have instant due diligence on prospective clients. In seconds, with as little information as a phone number or name, you can verify a prospect’s identity, criminal records, bankruptcies, liens, judgments, address history, and property records all in one place.

FOREWARN has launched a Community Hub to help agents make the most of their member benefit! The FOREWARN Community Hub includes: a quick guide to using FOREWARN, search tips and FAQs on how to get the most out of the app and get answers to common questions, and videos to see how FOREWARN can help protect you and your business or watch a testimonial video to see how it has helped others.  

FOREWARN is hosting two complimentary trainings during Safety Month. Registration is available here or via the flyer below. 

Want to take your safety knowledge a step further?
Join us for a FREE REALTOR® Safety Seminar, REALTOR® Safety: Awareness, Prevention & Self-Defense on September 17 for expert guidance and strategies you can put into practice in your day-to-day business. This interactive session will be led by Shannon Diiorio, a REALTOR® member, past Board member, and First-Degree Black Belt (Shodan), and Michael McClain, a REALTOR® member and retired Philadelphia Police Officer. Together, they will share professional experience, personal safety strategies, situational awareness techniques, and hands-on self-defense instruction designed specifically for real estate professionals.

Ready to expand your business beyond residential? Transitioning from Residential to Commercial Real Estate is an official CCIM Institute course designed for residential REALTORS® interested in exploring commercial real estate.

This course is designed for residential real estate brokers aspiring to broker or invest in commercial real estate or who are interested in practicing both residential and commercial real estate, with a focus on building a versatile skill set. Participants in this course will learn to:

If your license was issued on or after December 1, 2025 – November 30, 2027, you are in your FIRST renewal cycle. The Pennsylvania Real Estate Commission has developed 14 specific hours of mandatory continuing education for licensees in their first renewal cycle. This course does not satisfy that requirement. 

The share of first-time buyers in the market hit a new low in July, according to recent Bright MLS surveys of buyers' agents. Among buyers that closed in July, just 36.7% were first-time homebuyers, a share that has been steadily declining since the beginning of the year and is lower than it was last July.

First-time buyers are being sidelined by elevated mortgage rates and high home prices. In the Bright MLS footprint, the median home price has risen by 23% over the past five years. In July, the median sold price was $450,999. Assuming a 10% downpayment, an interest rate of 6.7% on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, and average property tax and homeowners’ insurance, the median monthly payment is nearly $3,200. A homebuyer would need an income of nearly $140,000 to qualify to purchase the median-priced home under standard underwriting assumptions.

First-time Buyers Spend More Time Looking

More than one in five (20.4%) first-time buyers who bought in July had been looking for more than six months. By contrast, just 13.4% of repeat buyers searched for six or more months before successfully closing on their home in July.

Even though there are most listings coming on the market across the Mid-Atlantic, it is very difficult to find affordable entry-level homes. According to Bright MLS area buyers’ agents, nearly half of first-time homebuyers toured 10 or more homes before buying in July, compared to just 23.2% of repeat buyers.

While starter home affordability is improving in many parts of the country, it is still very difficult for first-time homebuyers to find an affordable home, especially in high-demand neighborhoods.

For the full article courtesy of Bright MLS, click here.

Upper Darby Township Council passed a lead-poisoning-prevention ordinance requiring properties built before 1978 to be certified lead safe or lead free. Amrinder Singh, director of Licenses and Inspections, said the ordinance includes rentals, child care facilities, and condemned or unsafe properties, and applies to properties subject to real estate transfer inspections and use and occupancy requirements. The ordinance requires all rental properties to be tested and certified lead safe or lead free with a license renewal, all houses to be certified at transfer, and all child care facilities to be certified on license renewal. The purpose of the ordinance is “to identify and address lead-based hazards before children, families, residents, homeowners and other occupants are exposed to preventable harm,” Singh said. A certified third-party professional would verify structures are lead safe or lead free. Beginning Jan. 1 all rentals in the township will need to be tested. Non-rental homes would be tested at the time of property transfer. That certification would be renewed every three years for rentals, Singh said. Once found lead free, the status would remain with the property through future owners. The township will establish a fee for rentals to carry out the program.
Source: Daily Times; 8/21/2026 

September 15th | 2:30 pm - 6:00 pm 
Developer’s Forum and Happy Hour – PhilaPort Cruise Terminal |
(SOLD OUT! Email mcarlin@tcsr.realtor to join the Waitlist.)
Stinger’s Waterfront, 401 S. Swarthmore Ave, Ridley Park, PA 19078
PhilaPort Cruise Terminal, 4 Atlantic Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19053

September 17th | 10:00 am - 11:00 am 
Bright MLS Mastering Listing Entry I Virtual Webinar
Virtual via Bright MLS

September 17th | 10:00 am - 12:00 pm 
REALTOR® Safety: Awareness, Prevention & Self-Defense
Association of REALTORS® School, Malvern 

September 23rd, October 5th, October 14th, October 19th (4 Day Course)
| 10:00 am - 12:00 pm (Each Day)
Real Estate Office Management (Broker Required)
Association of REALTORS® School, Malvern 

October 5th | 8:00 am - 9:30 am 
Big Changes Are Coming to Appraisals: What Every REALTOR® Needs to Know
Virtual via Zoom

Contact Us
610-560-4800
info@tcsr.realtor

Office
1 Country View Road
Suite 201
Malvern, PA 19355