BEACH BARN REALTY & DEVELOPMENT, INC. (Emerald Isle) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the firm license of Beach Barn Realty & Development effective June 1, 2002. The Commission found that Beach Barn Realty & Development failed to maintain monies belonging to others in a trust account and to properly and adequately maintain trust account records for their clients, tenants and customers.
WILLIAM R. BROWN (Pineola) – The Commission revoked the broker license of Mr. Brown effective June 1, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Brown, as broker-in-charge of a brokerage firm, failed to account for and remit to his principals all funds of others received by him and failed to create and properly maintain trust account records required by Commission rules. The Commission also found that Mr. Brown engaged in improper, dishonest and fraudulent conduct in misapplying funds and misusing his firm’s trust account to convert to his own use the funds of another company.
DANA L. CALLAWAY (Statesville) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the broker license of Ms. Callaway effective May 16, 2002. The Commission found that Ms. Callaway admitted to misappropriating funds from the trust accounts of the real estate firm with which she was associated. The Commission further found that Ms. Callaway paid partial restitution, but failed to pay the balance secured by a promissory note on or before its due date.
JAMES T. CALLIHAN (Myrtle Beach) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Mr. Callihan for a period of six months effective June 10, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Callihan, as broker-in-charge, continued to operate a firm and renew its license each year despite the prior revocation of the firm’s certificate of authority to do business in North Carolina by the Secretary of State’s office. The Commission also found that Mr. Callihan, as broker-in-charge, delegated his trust account duties to others and failed to see that trust account records were properly maintained as required by the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules.
HERBERT B. CONNER (Matthews) – The Commission accepted the voluntary surrender of the broker license of Mr. Conner for a period of one year effective November 1, 2002. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Mr. Conner violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Mr. Conner neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
RICHARD K. DUFF (Carolina Beach) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the broker license of Mr. Duff effective August 1, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Duff, as broker-in-charge of a real estate firm, failed to provide to owners of rental property under his management monthly statements and to account for funds collected from tenants.
RICKEY D. EPPERSON (Winston-Salem) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the salesperson license of Mr. Epperson effective May 16, 2002. The Commission then stayed the suspension for a period of six months effective May 16, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Epperson failed to provide full disclosure of a prior criminal conviction on his application for a salesperson license, although he subsequently disclosed the conviction on an application for a broker license.
FEDERAL POINT REAL ESTATE (Carolina Beach) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the firm license of Federal Point Real Estate effective August 1, 2002. The Commission found that Federal Point Real Estate, a real estate brokerage firm, failed to provide to owners of rental property under its management monthly statements and to account for funds collected from tenants.
MICHAEL D. GREENE (Hickory) – The Commission accepted the permanent voluntary surrender of the salesperson license of Mr. Greene effective August 1, 2002. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Mr. Greene violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Mr. Greene did not admit misconduct.
WILLIAM R. HALBERSTADT (Charlotte) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Mr. Halberstadt effective June 10, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Halberstadt, in advertising a house he had listed, misrepresented the square footage of the living area and buyers relied on that representation in purchasing it. The Commission noted that while Mr. Halberstadt’s representation was material, it was not intentional and that the appraised value of the property was consistent with the price paid by the buyers.
ANN HANCOCK (Oxford) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Ms. Hancock effective July 1, 2002. The Commission found that Ms. Hancock sold a house and lot with the representation that an incomplete apartment could be completed and occupied and that the property was suitable for use as a bed and breakfast inn. The Commission found that applicable zoning restrictions forbade use of the apartment as a separate residence and required special permission for use of the property as a bed and breakfast inn.
REID A. HARRIS (Emerald Isle) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the broker license of Mr. Harris effective June 1, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Harris, as broker-in-charge, failed to maintain monies belonging to others in a trust account and to properly and to adequately maintain trust account records for his clients, tenants and customers. The Commission also found that Mr. Harris failed to report a criminal conviction as required by Commission rules.
JOHN J. HIRCHAK, et. al. (Castle Hayne) – By Consent, the Commission accepted the voluntary surrender of the broker license of Mr. Hirchak for a period of one year effective June 1, 2002. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Mr. Hirchak violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Mr. Hirchak neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
EUGENE W. JOHNSON (Charlotte) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the broker license of Mr. Johnson effective August 15, 2002 and subsequently issued him a salesperson license. The Commission found that Mr. Johnson obtained a firm license and operated the firm after it was administratively dissolved. The Commission further found that Mr. Johnson failed to maintain trust account records as required by Commission rules and that he commingled the funds of others with his own.
JANCIE L. MACMICHAEL (Sylva) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Ms. MacMichael for one year effective June 10, 2002. The Commission then stayed the suspension for a probationary term of one year. The Commission found that Ms. MacMichael, as broker-in-charge of her sole proprietorship, failed to properly maintain trust account records so as to establish a clear audit trail. The Commission noted that Ms. MacMichael has since corrected her trust account records and ceased her property management business.
DAWN J. MCCALL (Balsam Grove) – The Commission accepted the permanent voluntary surrender of the salesperson license of Ms. McCall effective August 1, 2002. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Ms. McCall violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Ms. McCall did not admit misconduct.
REBECCA K. PADGETT (Fallston) – The Commission revoked the salesperson license of Ms. Padgett effective August 1, 2002. The Commission found that Ms. Padgett, while enrolled in a broker pre-licensing course, consulted course review materials during the final examination when she was not permitted to do so under the rules established for the examination.
GEORGE W. PHILLIPS, II (Pittsboro) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Mr. Phillips effective July 25, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Phillips, in applying for a real estate license, omitted pertinent information from his application, including several outstanding judgments that had been levied against him. The Commission also found that after Mr. Phillips was licensed as a salesperson, he failed to disclose that disciplinary action had been taken against his auctioneer license.
BERTHA F. PYNE (Greenville) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Ms. Pyne effective July 25, 2002. The Commission found that Ms. Pyne, acting as a notary public, performed an improper notarization in a real estate transaction and that the North Carolina Secretary of State revoked her notary commission.
ANN H. SCOTT (Wilmington) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Ms. Scott effective June 13, 2002. The Commission found that Ms. Scott did not disclose to the seller of property she had listed the precarious financial situation of a buyer she procured.
SUZANNE B. SMITH (Boone) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the broker license of Ms. Smith for a period of one year effective July 1, 2002. The Commission then withheld imposition of the suspension effective July 1, 2002 for a probationary term of two years. The Commission found that Ms. Smith failed to safeguard the MLS password of her broker-in-charge after leaving the firm and thus facilitated access to and alteration of the firm’s MLS listings by an unauthorized individual.
MICHAEL S. STEWARD d/b/a STEWARD PROPERTY MANAGEMENT (Clayton) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the broker license of Mr. Steward effective October 1, 2002. It further ordered that Mr. Steward may apply on or after December 30, 2002 and before May 2, 2003 for reinstatement of his real estate salesperson license on certain conditions. The Commission found that Mr. Steward, while acting as a rental manager, converted monies held for landlords and tenants to his own use. The Commission noted that Mr. Steward cooperated with the Commission investigation and restored the missing funds to his trust account.
PHILLIP J. STEWART, JR. (Winston-Salem) – By Consent, the Commission reprimanded Mr. Stewart effective June 1, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Stewart, while a broker associate with a realty firm, placed the signatures of six of his customers on agency disclosure documents in four transactions. The Commission also found that no consumers appear to have been harmed as Mr. Stewart disclosed all agency relationships at the time of the transactions.
MATTHEW W. SYKES (Hamlet) – The Commission revoked the broker license of Mr. Sykes effective June 7, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. Sykes made a false statement on his application for a broker license, failed to report criminal convictions to the Commission and had been convicted of issuing worthless checks and possession of drug paraphernalia.
PAUL TAN (Cary) – The Commission accepted the voluntary surrender of the broker license of Mr. Tan for a period of one year effective June 12, 2002. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Mr. Tan violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Mr. Tan neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
DALE H. WARD (Boone) – The Commission accepted the voluntary surrender of the broker license of Mr. Ward for a period of two years effective August 1, 2002. The Commission dismissed without prejudice allegations that Mr. Ward violated provisions of the Real Estate License Law and Commission rules. Mr. Ward neither admitted nor denied misconduct.
WILLIAM L. WHITE (Wrightsville Beach) – By Consent, the Commission revoked the broker license of Mr. White effective July 1, 2002. The Commission found that Mr. White, in dealing in transactions on his own account, failed to retain earnest money deposits in separate bank accounts, commingled those funds with his own money and was unable to return the earnest money deposits when the sales contracts did not close.
TAMMY J. WRIGHT (Greensboro) – By Consent, the Commission suspended the salesperson license of Ms. Wright for a period of one year effective August 1, 2002. The Commission then stayed the suspension for a probationary period of three years effective August 1, 2002. The Commission found that Ms. Wright pled guilty to felony possession of cocaine and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. The Commission noted that Ms. Wright reported these convictions to the Commission as required and participated in an intensive rehabilitation program.
This article came from the October 2002-Vol33-2 edition of the bulletin.