The Commission Names Minerva Mims as Its First DEI Officer

The North Carolina Real Estate Commission is excited to welcome Minerva Mims as its first new Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Officer.

Mims holds a Juris Doctor from North Carolina Central University School of Law (2011).  She brings to the Commission a wealth of experience in legal education, legal research and writing, and compliance. In addition to her legal and compliance background, she has been a real estate licensee for over 5 years.

In her new role, Mims will focus on evaluating the Commission’s current diversity and inclusion initiatives and recommending strategies that align with the Commission’s DEI goals. She will also be responsible for raising awareness among licensees and the public, as well as supporting and implementing policies, programs, processes and initiatives to meet the Commission’s diversity-related objectives across the real estate brokerage profession.

The Future of Real Estate Technology

Presentation Wednesday October 12 @ 11:00 am

The North Carolina Real Estate Commission is exploring coming developments in real estate technology that affect the real estate profession. In order to understand some of the new technology trends and developments, the Commission has asked national speaker and real estate technology trainer Craig Grant to do a presentation at the regular October Commission meeting.

Craig Grant is the CEO of the Real Estate Technology Institute – RETI.us. A graduate of the University of Florida, Grant speaks regularly on real estate technology topics at conferences and events throughout the country and often conducts education for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), state REALTOR® associations, and national franchises.

On Wednesday, October 12^th at approximately 11:00 am Grant will be sharing a presentation with the members of the North Carolina Real Estate Commission on, “The Future of Real Estate Technology,” addressing such topics as:

• Developments and trends in smart houses and residential construction
• The use of crypto currency and NFTs in real estate transactions
• Augmented and virtual reality as a means of showing homes and delivering brokerage services
• Big Data, PII,Cybersecurity concerns vital to the real estate industry

You can watch the Commission meeting on Wednesday, October 12^th beginning at 9:00, or log on any time before 11:00 for this presentation. Simply use the link on the home page of the Commission’s website at NCREC.gov. We hope to see you there!

Employment Opportunities Available

Are you interested in joining the staff of the North Carolina Real Estate Commission? From time to time, employment opportunities become available. They are posted on the Commission’s website under the “About Us” tab.

We currently have available the following position:

Information Officer – Responds to telephone and written inquiries from real estate licensees and consumers.  Please apply on or before October 7, 2022.

Auditor –  Audits and inspects real estate brokerage trust account records state-wide.  Please apply on or before October 7, 2022.

Click here for more information.

Do I Need a Firm License?

Have you created an LLC, corporation, partnership, or other type of business entity for your brokerage business or for receiving compensation? If so, you need to apply for a firm license.

To complete a firm license application, you must:

• provide the registered legal and assumed name(s) for the entity;
• provide the SOSID assigned by the NC Secretary of State (not applicable for partnerships); 
• provide physical and mailing addresses for all office locations;
• designate a Qualifying Broker (QB)*; and 
• designate a Broker-in-Charge (BIC) for each office location.

*Commission Rule 58A .0502 dictates that a firm must have one principal who holds a broker license on active status in good standing; that broker must serve as the qualifying broker (QB).  The QB is responsible for:

• designating and assuring that there is a BIC for each office location;
• renewing the real estate broker license of the entity each license year;
• retaining the firm’s pocket card at the firm;
• notifying the Commission of any change of business address or legal or trade name of the entity:
• notifying the Commission of their change of status as qualifying broker; 
• securing and preserving the transaction and trust account records of the firm whenever there is a change of the broker-in-charge;
• retaining and preserving the transaction and trust account records of the firm upon their termination as qualifying broker;
• notifying the Commission if, upon the termination of their status as qualifying broker, the firm’s transaction or trust account records cannot be retained or preserved; and
• notifying the Commission regarding any revenue suspension, revocation of authority, or administrative dissolution.

To apply for a firm license, go to www.ncrec.gov and click on Apply for a Firm License.

If you have further questions about the firm licensing process, contact the Education and Licensing Division at 919.875.3700.

Current Stats: Monthly Licensee Count as of September 1, 2022

2022-2023: Update Courses for Specialty Practice

Did you know that there are specialty versions of the Update course that focus on different practice areas, such as commercial brokerage or property management?  Each year, the Commission determines what topics will be addressed in the next license year’s General Update (GENUP) and Broker-in-Charge Update (BICUP) courses, and Commission staff develops course materials based on the Commission’s directives.  Once the course materials are finalized, Commission Rule 58H .0403(f) permits education providers (EPs) and approved instructors to create specialty versions of the content. 

Per the rule, the development of a specialty Update course is a joint effort between the EP/instructor and the Commission, and all content is jointly owned. The EP or instructor must receive the prior written consent of the Commission to make modifications to the content, and all modifications must relate to the same subject matter and educational objectives as the prescribed Update Course content.

When developing a specialty version of the Update course, an EP or instructor must evaluate the subject matter to determine if the prescribed Update course content meets the needs of their targeted group of brokers.  For example, if the prescribed course includes a topic like agency, the topic would be applicable to brokers in all specialty areas, so it would remain in the specialty versions.  However, the examples and/or discussion questions might be altered to make the topic discussion more relatable to a targeted group of brokers.  

In contrast, if one of the topics in the prescribed Update course is not directly applicable to the targeted group of brokers, an entirely different topic may be substituted.  For instance, if a prescribed Update course focuses on home inspections, the subject matter may not be applicable to commercial brokers. Therefore, another “commercial-specific” topic may be substituted in the commercial specialty version.  

Commission Rule 58H .1702(a) requires brokers to complete eight credit hours of real estate continuing education (CE) courses each year, comprised of a 4-hour Update course, either GENUP or BICUP, and a 4-hour elective course.  Whether a broker takes the standard version or a specialty version of the Update course, the broker must ensure they are taking the appropriate version based on their license status.  Provisional brokers and “full” brokers who do not have BIC Eligible Status must take a GENUP course.  A broker with BIC Eligible Status must take a BICUP course to retain BIC Eligible Status.

Currently, there is one specialty version (Commercial) of the Update course, and there are GENUP and BICUP versions of both.  Brokers may choose to complete multiple versions of the Update course in a license year, but they will receive credit for only one Update course. The completion of additional Update courses will not satisfy the elective course requirement or provide “rollover” credit. Are you interested in registering for the Commercial version of the Update Course?   Go to the CE Course Schedules page on the Commission’s website to search for upcoming courses.  Update courses are only delivered in person and via synchronous distance delivery (aka, “live-online”).

Also, Commission rules do not limit the number of specialty versions that can be created. EPs and approved instructors who are interested in developing a specialty version of the Update course should contact the Education & Licensing Division at educ@ncrec.gov or 919.875.3700.

Hurricanes and Vacation Rentals

With hurricane season well underway, a review of the laws governing hurricanes, evacuations, and vacation rentals is appropriate.

1. The first and most important thing to remember is that when state or local authorities order a mandatory evacuation of a coastal area, tenants occupying vacation rental properties must comply with the order. Evacuations are ordered to protect human life and health and are not undertaken lightly. Brokers managing vacation rental properties should support state and local authorities by encouraging and facilitating tenant compliance with evacuation orders.
2. When a vacation tenant complies with an evacuation order, they are generally entitled to a refund of a share of the money they have paid for the rental (rent, security deposit, taxes, etc.) prorated for each night the evacuation order was in effect.
3. There is an exception to this rule, however. If the tenant was offered travel insurance that covered the risk of mandatory evacuation, then the landlord has no obligation to refund the tenant’s money. To trigger the exception, the cost of the insurance offered cannot exceed 8% of the cost of the vacation rental and the policy cannot exclude the particular storm. It is important to note that some vacation rental insurance companies exclude coverage for storms that have been named by the National Hurricane Center prior to date the insurance was purchased. If a storm is named prior to the purchase of travel insurance and, if the insurance will not cover the tenant for losses or damages resulting from a mandatory evacuation or from damages and losses caused by the named storm, then the tenant is entitled to a refund from the landlord of all monies paid.
4. If, following the storm and after any mandatory evacuation has been lifted, the landlord or their broker cannot provide a promised rental property to a vacation rental tenant – whether the reason is that the house was significantly damaged or that it is inaccessible due to damage to, or closure of, roads or ferries – the tenant is entitled to either a refund of his money or the substitution of a reasonably comparable property at the same cost. This refund may come in the form of a paid claim against travel insurance. Tenants and vacation rental managers are encouraged to read and understand the limits of coverage being offered.
5. Go to readync.org, which provides emergency management planning tips including information about current mandatory evacuations.
6. Go to ncdoj.gov/price-gouging-law-in-effect-in-north-carolina-2/ for information about price gouging laws following the declaration of a state of emergency in North Carolina.

Employment Opportunities Available

Are you interested in joining the staff of the North Carolina Real Estate Commission? From time to time, employment opportunities become available. They are posted on the Commission’s website under the “About Us” tab.

Click here for more information.

Staff Appearances

Christy Evans, Consumer Protection Officer, spoke at the Union County Association of REALTORS meeting on August 4.

Jean Hobbs, Auditor/Investigator and Brian Heath, Consumer Protection Officer, spoke at the Canopy REALTOR Association meeting on August 12.

Sheryl Graham, Consumer Protection Officer, spoke at the Lake Norman Realty office meeting on August 17.

Remote Electronic Notarization is Here to Stay

On July 8th, Governor Cooper signed House Bill 776 into law, authorizing Remote Electronic Notarization (aka Remote Online Notarization or “RON”) once again in North Carolina. 

In 2020, temporary legislation was enacted to allow for Emergency Video Notarization after the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated social distancing.  However, that legislation expired last year. 

With the signing of House Bill 776 into law, the ability to use Emergency Video Notarization is restored until 6/30/2023. The Emergency Video Notarization law allows a regular notary to perform acknowledgments and oaths/affirmations for a person located in North Carolina using live/real-time video conference technology to verify the person’s identity. 

In July 2023, a new Remote Electronic Notarization program will be implemented. The new statute defines Remote Electronic Notarization in North Carolina moving forward, creating a new category of notary, the remote electronic notary.  These notaries can perform notarial acts without the requirement to be in the physical presence of the signer.  They are required to use remote communication technology platforms that are secure, capable of recording and geolocation, and licensed by the NC Secretary of State. The Secretary of State has been tasked with creating rules to implement the program and technology platform for an effective date of July 1, 2023.

The restoration of Emergency Video Notarization and the new Remote Electronic Notarization program may affect the way some law offices handle closings.  Please check with your closing attorney if you have any questions about how this law might change the real estate closing process.