Pending Cases: The Commission entered into consent agreements to suspend 11 licenses, accepted the voluntary surrender of 3 licenses, voted to extend to a later date cases involving 2 licenses, closed cases without action against 9 licensees, left cases pending involving 9 licenses, revoked 1 license, and ordered hearings in cases involving 21 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: 10; total approved: 8.
License Examination Results: A summary of key data relating to persons taking the exam for the first time is provided below:
Individuals Tested for the First Time | ||||
Took prelicense course | Hold license from another state | |||
March 2023 | April 2022 through March 2023 | March 2023 | April 2022 through March 2023 | |
# Tested | 598 | 5955 | 15 | 242 |
% Pass both sections | 51% | 49% | N/A | N/A |
% Pass National section | 79% | 78% | N/A | N/A |
% Pass State section | 60% | 55% | 20% | 40% |
Legislative Report: The Director of Regulatory Affairs reviewed the Legislative Report, summarizing 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.
Annual Rulemaking: Staffed reviewed the recommendations on proposed rules, which if adopted would be effective July 1, 2023. See the Commission’s homepage for more information about proposed rulemaking.
BIC Focus Groups: The Director of Regulatory Affairs reviewed a report on the BIC Focus Groups and surveys and asked Commission members to consider what actions and next steps they might like to pursue relating to the span of control of brokers in charge.
Educators Conference: The Director of Education & Licensing provided a report on the March 21 Spring Educators Conference noting that 335 people attended the conference. Stephanie Walker was awarded the 2023 Larry A. Outlaw Excellence in Education Award. The total conference cost is $6,121.74 against a budget of $36,000.00.
License Exam Statistics: The Director of Education & Licensing provided a report on the third-quarter license exam statistics noting that the monthly pass rate in March was 69%, pulling the yearly average pass rate up to 63%. Only eight instructors are currently performing under the 40% pass-rate threshold.
Real Estate Manual: The Director of Education & Licensing reported that Staff completed the 2023 edition of the Real Estate Manual, which is being printed and set for release in six weeks. The Director of Education & Licensing noted that there are some issues with the online manual, including that page numbers cannot be added to the book. Staff is researching options to improve the online delivery platform, including alternate providers.
Report on License Numbers: As of April 1, 2023, there are 127,978 brokers and firms licensed by the Commission, as follows:
Next Commission Meeting: The next Commission meeting will be held at 9:00 a.m., Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in the Commission’s office in Raleigh and is open to the public. It also can be viewed via Zoom online video.
Interested in obtaining a real estate license?
Take a look at the syllabus for the Broker Prelicensing Course that is posted on our website. It is the basis for all NC Prelicensing courses and has recently been updated to reflect current laws, rules, and forms. Available education providers and course schedules are searchable under the Education tab on our website.
Solar Panel Loan Assumption
There have been several questions about solar panels in recent consumer calls. It is important to note that solar panels are typically attached to the property in a permanent manner and are generally considered to be a fixture that will remain with the home. If the parties use the standard residential contract form, it states: “ALL EXISTING FIXTURES ARE INCLUDED IN THE SALE AS PART OF THE PURCHASE PRICE, FREE OF LIENS, UNLESS EXCLUDED IN SUBPARAGRAPHS (d) OR (e)”. This means that if there is an existing lien on the solar panels, the seller should pay it off prior to or at the sale of the home, unless the parties agree otherwise in their contract. If a seller requires, as a condition of the sale, for the buyer to assume the seller’s responsibility for a solar panel lien, this is a material fact that should be disclosed to the buyer prior to their making an offer, including the lien amount they are to assume.
You are invited!
The monthly Real Estate Commission meetings are always open to the public, and you are invited to attend in person or online via Zoom. The meeting tomorrow is in Edenton at the Historic 1767 Chowan County Courthouse. A Zoom link will be available at ncrec.gov in the morning.
Educators Conference Review
The 2023 Spring Educators Conference – NCREC Trek, was held last month before a sold out crowd of over 300 instructors. Thank you to all who attended, for dedicating yourself to learning, improving and increasing the success of your students. Educators learned about licensing and education stats, benefits of course audits and SMART learning objectives, optimizing zoom waiting rooms and gamification through Flippity, the importance of following the syllabus and how to engage the unengaged. Congratulations to Stephanie Walker, this year’s recipient of the Larry A. Outlaw Excellence in Education Award. If you were unable to attend and need education credit, there is a brand new instructor development workshop (IDW) being released this month. Visit the Education tab on our website for more details. If you are a licensed instructor and have education questions or concerns, join us at our next Educators Town Hall Meeting 5/3/23 at 3pm.
Rental Fraud Concerns
Similar to our recent warnings about increases in wire fraud, seller fraud and deed fraud, consumers and brokers should also be aware of rental scams. Many rental fraud scams take place online or through social media targeting would-be renters, asking them to send money upfront for deposits before even viewing the property, and then disappearing once the money has been sent. View this recent consumer article on our website to learn how to spot red flags and avoid becoming a victim. If you are already a victim of a rental fraud scam you should contact the Attorney General’s office to report the scam, as well as local law enforcement.
You are invited!
The monthly Real Estate Commission meetings are always open to the public, and you are invited to attend in person or online via Zoom. The meeting this month is April 19th in Edenton at the Historic 1767 Chowan County Courthouse. A Zoom link will be available at ncrec.gov on the day of the meeting.