WARREN KEITH BARNES (Autryville) – Following a hearing, the Commission permanently revoked the broker license of Mr. Barnes effective March 2, 2017. The Commission found that Mr. Barnes, acting as broker-in-charge, managed the properties of various owners; that Mr. Barnes failed to respond to Letters of Inquiry and document requests sent by the Commission; that Mr. Barnes failed to provide owner statements, copies of management agreements, copies of leases, and rent proceeds to various property owners; and that Mr. Barnes failed to maintain documents in accordance with Commission rules. A review of the trust accounts found that cancelled checks failed to identify the purpose for the disbursement; the deposit slips were not designated “trust” or “escrow”; the deposit tickets failed to identify the purpose of the deposit, the property or owner, or the remitter of the monies deposited; and that multiple funds received were being transferred to Mr. Barnes’ personal account, indicating conversion. Finally, Mr. Barnes’ firm was administratively dissolved by the North Carolina Office of the Secretary of State in May 2012, and Mr. Barnes failed to notify the Commission of the firm’s dissolution while continuing to practice brokerage under its name.
CHESLEY G BOWENS, JR. (Raleigh) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Mr. Bowens effective January 1, 2017. The Commission found that Mr. Bowens entered into an Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement with three buyer clients, in which they agreed to compensate Mr. Bowens $1000 for his services; that the Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement was not for a definite period; that the buyers were Spanish-speakers and Mr. Bowens did not speak Spanish; that on December 29, 2015, buyers submitted an offer to purchase a property, with a due diligence period ending January 8, 2016; that the buyers were unable to obtain financing and the sellers terminated the contract; that Mr. Bowens requested that his buyer clients pay an additional commission based on his fulfillment of his duties, but he was not entitled to additional compensation under the terms of the Exclusive Buyer Agency Agreement; that the buyers did not pay the additional commission demanded.
CRAVEN RANDALL CASPER (Morehead City) – Following a hearing, the Commission permanently revoked the broker license of Mr. Casper effective January 30, 2017. The Commission found that on September 8, 2016, Mr. Casper pleaded guilty to one count of Felony Larceny after Breaking and Entering, one count in each of four cases of Felony Obtaining Property by False Pretenses, one count of Felony Identity Theft in each of six cases, and one count of Felony Larceny; that Mr. Casper was sentenced to a maximum of 25 months of incarceration, given credit for 62 days of confinement prior to his plea and ordered to spend an additional 45 days in jail, after which the remainder of his sentence was suspended and he was placed on supervised probation for 60 months; that Mr. Casper was ordered to pay restitution and court costs totaling $34,560.21; that as a condition of his supervised probation, Respondent was prohibited from engaging in real estate brokerage in the State of North Carolina; that Mr. Casper failed to respond to two Letters of Inquiry sent by Commission staff.
CHARLES H. COOPER, JR. (Fayetteville) – Following a hearing, the Commission permanently revoked the broker license of Mr. Cooper effective January 31, 2017. The Commission found that Mr. Cooper, acting as the broker-in-charge of his sole proprietorship, entered into an Exclusive Property Management Agreement with the owner of a residential property and agreed to hold money in trust as a repair deposit to be used pursuant to an agreement by the owner; that, in fact, Mr. Cooper failed to use the deposit to cover repairs, never accounted for the deposit and that between 2011 and 2015, Mr. Cooper provided the owner with annual financial statements that were inaccurate and misleading; that Mr. Cooper wrote seven checks for trust money from his personal bank account rather than from a trust account; that Mr. Cooper placed a stop payment order on some of the checks; that Mr. Cooper failed to provide any trust account documentation to the Commission investigator after requested to do so; that Mr. Cooper transferred funds from his trust account to his personal accounts and made personal purchases using trust monies; that Mr. Cooper deposited rent checks from tenants into his personal account and wrote rental proceeds disbursement checks to the property owner clients from his personal account.
JAMES E. GRIMES (Spring Lake) – By Consent, the Commission permanently revoked the broker license of Mr. Grimes effective March 15, 2017. The Commission found that Mr. Grimes, acting as broker-in-charge of a sole proprietorship, collected and deposited $21,825.70 on behalf of a single property owner client and failed to deliver said funds to his client; that Mr. Grimes collected $21,703 in cash payments belonging to at least seven additional property owner-clients and failed to deposit said funds into a trust account and converted them to personal use; that Mr. Grimes failed to create and maintain trust account records in accordance with Commission rules and, as a result, his trust account had a significant shortfall.
KEVIN EMANUEL GRULLON (Fayetteville) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Mr. Grullon effective April 1, 2017. The Commission found that Mr. Grullon, acting as a dual agent for a new construction residential property, failed to provide a buyer with full and timely disclosure of a $1,500 selling agent bonus.
DESIREE CHARMAINE HILLARD (Charlotte) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the broker license of Ms. Hillard for a period of one year effective February 15, 2017. The Commission found that Ms. Hillard collected a check payable to the firm with which she was affiliated in the amount of $3,780 at the conclusion of a closing on a Friday; that Ms. Hillard took the check to the firm and was told that it could not be processed until Monday; that Ms. Hillard left with the check and on Monday, cashed the check at a check cashing business, and retained the full commission for personal use.
WILLIAM RODNEY HAIRE (Cameron) – The Commission accepted the voluntary surrender of the broker license of Mr. Haire for a period of four years effective February 15, 2017.The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Mr. Haire violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Mr. Haire neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
STEFAN ERIC KOMODOWSKI (Asheville) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Mr. Komodowski for a period of 28 months effective December 1, 2016. Three months of the suspension were active with the remainder stayed until May 1, 2019. The Commission found that in April 2016, Mr. Komodowski pleaded guilty to felony breaking and entering, felony larceny after breaking and entering, and misdemeanor assault on a female; that Mr. Komodowski was sentenced to 127 days incarceration, six months electronic monitoring, and 36 months supervised probation; and that all of the guilty pleas stemmed from entering a residence that Mr. Komodowski had at one time occupied.
ANDREW B. MIDDLEDITCH (Charlottesville, Virginia) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Mr. Middleditch effective March 6, 2017. The Commission found that Mr. Middleditch, on April 27, 2016, entered an Alford plea to one count of felony DUI Manslaughter and one count of misdemeanor DUI 2nd offense within five years in the Circuit Court of Albemarle County, Virginia; that Mr. Middleditch timely reported these criminal convictions to the Commission and to the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation; and that Mr. Middleditch is in compliance with all court imposed requirements.
MARC PAPPALARDO (Raleigh) – The Commission accepted the voluntary surrender of the broker license of Mr. Pappalardo for a period of three years effective March 15, 2017. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Mr. Pappalardo violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Mr. Pappalardo neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
KAITLIN CAROL RUSH (Charlotte) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Ms. Rush for a period of six months effective January 1, 2017. Three months of the suspension were active with the remainder stayed for a probationary period until June 30, 2017. The Commission found that Ms. Rush acted as the listing agent for a property which was owned by an LLC; that her husband was the only member of the LLC; that Ms. Rush and her husband had made substantial renovations to the property; that a buyer contracted to purchase the property, which was to be sold “as is”; that the property failed a final inspection and a Certificate of Occupancy was not issued; that Ms. Rush was aware that the property had failed the final inspection, but failed to disclose that fact to the buyer prior to closing.
RUSH REALTY LLC (Charlotte) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the firm license of Rush Realty for a period of six months effective January 1, 2017. Three months of the suspension were active with the remainder stayed for a probationary period until June 30, 2017. The Commission found that Rush Realty, through its qualifying broker/ broker-in-charge acted as the listing agent for a property that was owned by an LLC; that the husband of the qualifying broker/broker-in-charge of Rush Realty was the only member of the LLC property owner; that a buyer contracted to purchase the property, which was to be sold “as is”; that the property failed a final inspection and a Certificate of Occupancy was not issued; that Rush Realty aware that the property had failed the final inspection, but failed to disclose that fact to the buyer prior to closing.
ANNETTE N. STEWART (Brevard) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Ms. Stewart for a period of 24 months effective December 14, 2016. Two months of the suspension were active with the remainder stayed for 22 months. The Commission found that Ms. Stewart falsely represented to her landlord-client that she only had the executed signature page of a lease from a tenant and failed to deliver the full lease and the pet addendum which were in her possession until after the tenant had taken occupancy; that Ms. Stewart disbursed tenant security deposit funds to the tenant contrary to the written agreement signed by both the landlord and tenant that disbursement would be to the landlord; that an audit of Ms. Stewart’s trust account showed a shortage, deficit spending and a number of violations of Commission trust account rules.
THE REALTY GROUP OF NEW BERN, LLC (New Bern) – The Commission accepted the permanent voluntary surrender of the firm license of The Realty Group of New Bern effective March 15, 2017. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that The Realty Group of New Bern violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. The Realty Group of New Bern neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
LINDA SUE TURNER (Cornelius) – The Commission accepted the permanent voluntary surrender of the broker license of Ms. Turner effective April 12, 2017. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Ms. Turner violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Ms. Turner neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
SHIRLEY MIDDLETON VANSTORY (Greensboro) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Ms. Vanstory for a period of one year effective March 1, 2017. The Commission found that Ms. Vanstory, acting as the broker-in-charge of a sole proprietorship failed to maintain trust account records in compliance with Commission rules; that an audit of Ms. Vanstory’s trust accounts indicated shortages in both her rental and security deposit accounts; that the audit also revealed that Ms. Vanstory improperly paid an employee and purchased office supplies with trust account funds; that Ms. Vanstory failed to provide trust account records to a Commission auditor upon request and failed to return a tenant security deposit or provide the tenant an accounting of its use within 30 days of the termination of the tenancy.
OLEDA WELLS (Whittier) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Ms. Wells for 18 months effective March 7, 2017. The Commission then stayed the suspension for a probationary period until September 7, 2018. Ms. Wells is also prohibited from acting as a broker-in-charge for a period of five years. The Commission found that Ms. Wells, acting as the qualifying broker and broker-in-charge of a licensed real estate firm, took over the rental properties from her son after he failed to renew his broker license; that an audit of Ms. Wells’s firm’s trust account revealed that she failed to collect from her son all tenant security deposits and owner reserves for these properties, which caused a shortage of over $40,000 in the account; that Ms. Wells became aware of the shortage and stopped collecting the full amount of management fees owed to the firm in order to decrease the deficit, which caused her personal funds to comingle with entrusted funds; that the audit further discovered that the bank accounts were not designated “trust” or “escrow”, bank reconciliations and ledger trial balances were not performed monthly, and lack of an audit trail. The Commission notes that Ms. Wells has sold all of the firm’s assets to another licensed entity which has agreed to accept the liability and fully fund the trust account.
MICHAEL V. WELSH (Asheville) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Mr. Welsh for a period of one year effective February 1, 2017. The Commission found that Mr. Welsh owned a rental property in Boone, North Carolina; that the Town of Boone passed an ordinance prohibiting the owners of single-family residential properties from renting to more than two unrelated persons; that Mr. Welsh rented his property to more than two unrelated tenants and the Town sent Mr. Welsh a Notice of Violation for exceeding the occupancy limit; that, despite knowing about the ordinance, Mr. Welsh again rented his property to four unrelated persons; that when the Town discovered the violation, the tenants were forced to vacate the property before the end of their lease term.
CHRISTA MARIE WILLEY (Arden) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Ms. Willey for a period of three years effective June 7, 2017. The Commission then stayed the suspension for a probationary period until June 7, 2020. The Commission found that Ms. Willey, acting as the qualifying broker and broker-in-charge of a real estate brokerage firm, failed to disburse rental proceeds to landlord-clients in a timely manner; that Ms. Willey failed to provide transaction records or ledgers when requested by the Commission representative; that Ms. Willey admitted that she failed to perform reconciliations as required and a trust account inspection of subpoenaed bank documents showed evidence of shortages, and trust accounts not maintained in full compliance of Commission rules; that Ms. Willey has hired an accountant and provided evidence that her trust account is fully funded and being maintained in compliance with Commission rules.
WNC MOUNTAIN PROPERTIES LLC (Arden) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the firm license of WNC Mountain Properties for a period of three years effective June 7, 2017. The Commission then stayed the suspension for a probationary period until June 7, 2020. The Commission found that WNC Mountain Properties, a licensed real estate brokerage firm, failed to disburse rental proceeds to landlord-clients in a timely manner; that WNC Mountain Properties failed to provide transaction records or ledgers when requested by the Commission representative; that WNC Mountain Properties failed to perform reconciliations as required and a trust account inspection of subpoenaed bank documents showed evidence of shortages, and trust accounts not maintained in full compliance of Commission rules; that WNC Mountain Properties has hired an accountant and provided evidence that its trust account is fully funded and being maintained in compliance with Commission rules.
ZOLA ENTERPRISES LLC D/B/A FLAT RATE REALTY SMOKY MOUNTAINS (Whittier) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the firm license of Zola Enterprises LLC effective February 15, 2017. The Commission found that Zola Enterprises took over the rental properties from the son of its qualifying broker and broker-in-charge after the son failed to renew his broker license; that an audit of the firm’s trust account revealed that the firm failed to collect from the son all tenant security deposits and owner reserves for these properties, which caused a shortage of over $40,000 in the account; that the broker-in-charge of the firm became aware of the shortage and stopped collecting the full amount of management fees owed to the firm in order to decrease the deficit, which caused the personal funds of the broker-in-charge to commingle with entrusted funds; that the audit further discovered that the bank accounts were not designated “trust” or “escrow”, bank reconciliations and ledger trial balances were not performed monthly, and lack of an audit trail. The Commission notes that the firm has sold all of its assets to another licensed entity which has agreed to accept the liability and fully fund the trust account.
This article came from the May 2017-Vol48-1 edition of the bulletin.