Commission Meeting of July 20, 2022

Pending Cases: The Commission entered into consent agreements to suspend 6 licenses, closed cases without action against 2 licensees, revoked 1 license, accepted the voluntary surrender of 2 licenses, and ordered hearings in cases involving 14 licensees.

License Applications Involving Character Issues: License applicants who have character issues such as prior criminal convictions or disciplinary action by another licensing board are separately considered by the Commission. Decisions are made based upon criminal background checks, information supplied by the applicant, and in-person interviews.
Total candidates considered: 8; total approved: 7.

License Examination Results: A summary of key data relating to persons taking the exam for the first time is provided below:

Legislative Report: The Director of the Regulatory Affairs Division reviewed with the Commission the Legislative Report, noting bills that are currently pending in the General Assembly that relate to real estate brokerage, occupational licensing, or other matters of interest to the Commission.

Potential Litigation: The Commission voted to meet in closed session pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 143-318.11(a)(3) to discuss potential litigation.

License Renewal Progress: Staff reported that as of June 30, 2022, 92% of licensees had renewed their licenses, as opposed to 94% at the same time last year. Staff reviewed with the Commission the numbers of licenses expired, those marked inactive due to failure to complete annual CE requirements and of those, the number designated as brokers-in-charge (BIC) or BIC eligible.

Education Provider and Instructor License Examination Performance: Staff reported on education provider and instructor renewal and license examination performance over the prior fiscal year. They provided detail on the impact and effect of the Commission’s 40% rule, including data indicating that a significant number of instructors and education providers had improved the overall performance of their students on the license examination.

Report on License Numbers: As of July 1, 2022, there are 116,600 brokers and firms licensed by the Commission, as follows:

• Active Brokers 78,499
• Active Provisional Brokers 5,290
• Brokers-in-Charge 16,917
• BIC-Eligible Brokers 5,668
• Inactive Brokers 23,145
• Inactive Provisional Brokers 5,856
• Firms 14,738
• Limited Nonresident Commercial Brokers 218

Next Commission Meeting: The next Commission meeting will be held at 9:00 a.m., Wednesday August 17, 2022, and can be viewed via Zoom online video.

NC REAL ESTATE COMMISSION MEETS IN DURHAM

The North Carolina Real Estate Commission met at the JB Duke Hotel in Durham, NC July 20-21 as part of its initiative to reach out to real estate licensees across the State. The meeting was led by the Commission’s Chairman, Wendell Bullard, a Durham broker specializing in commercial real estate brokerage, land, and residential transactions. Bullard welcomed Durham area brokers, Realtors®, education providers and members of the public to the Commission’s monthly business meeting.

Senator Mike Woodard joined the meeting and provided a legislative update to the Commission members, staff, and guests in attendance. Also in attendance were Cindie Burns, incoming president of the Durham Regional Association of Realtors® and the Association’s CEO, Shelia Willis.

Along with its other business, the Commission considered a variety of applicants for real estate broker licenses, settlements of complaints involving broker misconduct, and the performance of education providers in connection with real estate courses.

The Commission members thanked Mr. Bullard for his service to the real estate profession throughout the past year. The Real Estate Commission is responsible for licensing and regulating North Carolina real estate brokers in order to protect the public interest in their real estate brokerage transactions.