Just when you thought you’ve known everything about real estate and the agents you’ve come to hire for their services just to sell your property or to help you buy a new house to move into – think again. You may be generous enough to give gifts to your real estate agent without knowing that it is against the law.
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According to Title 12, Section 2607 of the US Code, kickbacks and unearned fees are strictly prohibited to be received by the real estate agents in exchange for their services. This means that real estate agents should only earn from the services they have rendered to a particular client – no more, no less. Real estate agents charged of receiving kickbacks from real estate vendors can face felony as it can be brought at either state or federal level.
Despite the mandates of the law, there are still real estate agents who fail to comply with these rules. However, it is always wrong to paint all real estate agents with such one color. Not all real estate agents make more money by receiving kickbacks. In fact, the top-earning real estate agents have solid reputations of making money just by rendering their expertise and helping real estate vendors find their much-awaited buyers and by assisting prospective buyers find their ways to their much-sought properties.
Since 1974, real estate agents have been restricted to get any kind of favor from real estate vendors. The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) guides real estate agents from all over the United States including those who serve Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, and Washington DC area in Maryland. Real estate agents from these communities are well-governed by code of ethics and standards making them respected individuals in the real estate industry. They know how receiving kickbacks would affect them. They know its consequences and how they would deal against the law when they turned sides against it. They respect their licenses and would not do anything to destroy the reputations they have built for years, even if the temptations of kickbacks are considered one of the fastest money-making schemes.
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