I was charged by a local investment group (California) a 1% up front referral fee to invest in a condo project (Tenn). The project has since gone belly up. I did receive my money back for the actual investment, but not from the investment group that pitched the deal in the first place. My questions are; Is it legal for them to charge an advance fee for referring me to the selling broker and are they legally required to refund the referral fee they already collected?
Investors Choice Property Management - Sacramento, CA
Property Management the way it SHOULD be.
You should check with the Department of Real Estate rules and regulations, as this sounds like it could be an ethics violation. Good luck.
Nov 01, 2008 08:29 AM
Preferred Home Brokers - Brea, CA
Broker Associate ,CRS,GRI,SRES, Brea,CA, Orange Co
Hi Phil,
Interesting, however my answer is I'm not sure. Yes, I'd also check with the CA DRE, because receiving an ADVANCE FEE requires a specific endorsement (on a r.e. license) from the Dept. of R.E. It's generally considered to be a protection for consumers.
As for ethics, that's a REALTOR membership issue, not a licensing issue. In CA we are licensed as agents or broker, not REALTORS. We become REALTORS as a result of membership. However advance fee is more likely a legal issue that would come under the jurisdiction of the DRE.
Nov 01, 2008 09:05 AM
Keller Williams - Simpsonville, SC
Welcome to Active Rain! I hope you find this site as informational and entertaining as I have!
Nov 01, 2008 11:55 AM
Real Estate TeamMates - Miami, FL
Phil....Welcome to ActiveRain. This is a great community to network with others as well a great place to learn from other's experiences and knowledge. I've enjoyed it; I hope you enjoy it as well. Congrats on your first post.
Nov 01, 2008 12:47 PM
Keller Williams Southern Arizona - Tucson, AZ
Tucson, AZ Realtor
Welcome! Sharing your perspective makes Active Rain what it is, an unlimited educational resource. The more you express who you are and what makes you tick the more people will know, like, and trust you. And will probably refer you. Just like anything else in life the "Giver's will Gain".
Nov 01, 2008 04:52 PM
Van West Realty - Greenville, SC Realtor -Short Sale Expert! - Greenville, SC
Kirk Westervelt, Broker In Charge, Van West Realty - CDPE - Short Sale Agent - Home for Sale - Greenville, Simpsonvil...
Hello and welcome to Active Rain! I encourage you to learn from others, share your knowledge and experiences with all of us, enjoy yourself, and try to log in and join us in the Active Rain community as frequently as possible. I look forward to your future blogs and comments! Take care, --Kirk.
Nov 01, 2008 05:28 PM
Van West Realty - Greenville, SC
Co-Founder/Co-Owner
Hello, welcome to Active Rain! This seems like a wonderful environment to network as well as learn from others. I hope you enjoy yourself and participate often in the Active Rain environment!
Nov 01, 2008 05:40 PM
Keller Williams Greater Omaha - Omaha, NE
Welcome to ActiveRain!
If you would like a few tips on getting the most out of ActiveRain, please visit my blog Welcome to Active Rain. It has a few simple steps of what to do now that you have joined.
If you ever have any questions, just let me know.
Troy Trumm
Nov 02, 2008 12:33 PM
Keller Williams Realty - Spartanburg, SC
Great start on ActiveRain! Welcome and thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas.
Nov 02, 2008 09:44 PM
Keller Williams Realty, Spartanburg, SC - Spartanburg, SC
Welcome to the Active Rain community. This is a great site with lots of information. Have fun with it and hope to see more of your blogs soon! We have a team of four outstanding full time agents to assist your buyers and sellers in Spartanburg/Greenville, SC. Again, welcome to AR!!
Nov 02, 2008 11:21 PM
RE/MAX Preferred Realty Ltd. - Windsor, ON
Hi Phil, Welcome to AR, Be a Blogholic and start writing your own blog soon on AR. All the best for your RE business. This is the right place for customers, friends, realtionships etc.
Best - Sash
PS: FREE blog traffic strategy video...Hope this will help you... click here
Nov 02, 2008 11:43 PM
KEIRE Realty Group - Manassas, VA
Principal Broker/Owner
Hello Phil,
Welcome to Active Rain and congrats on your first post! The opportunities to learn and network are incredible here. Best of luck to you!
-Keith
Nov 03, 2008 03:50 PM
RE/MAX Results - Omaha, NE
Welcome to Active Rain, you've joined an excellent site to receive free marketing, share ideas, and network. Have fun and enjoy yourself. Good luck.
Nov 06, 2008 03:25 AM
---Preferred Lifestyle Advisors--- - Lancaster, PA
Mountain Realty
Welcome to Active Rain. This is a great place to learn and share with others. IF ever you were to have any questions then feel free to contact us and we'll try to help. Please take a look at our blog for links to valuable information in our sidebar that you can use to navigate this extensive network. Subscribing to our blog is also a great way to read our blog straight from your home pages. We also suggest taking a look at the Active Rain Wikipedia group for resources that may be valuable to you. We hope you have a great day in the Rain! All The Best-
Sincerely, Active Castellum
Dec 02, 2008 01:50 AM
Fred Griffin Real Estate - Tallahassee, FL
Licensed Florida Real Estate Broker
Welcome back to ActiveRain!
I encourage you to take another look at the website. Surf some blogs, leave some comments. Better yet, post a Blog.
Best to you!
Jul 04, 2015 01:30 PM
Comments(15)