Real Estate professionals guide to legal questions.

WWW.MIREALTORS.COMFEBRUARY 2018

HOTLINE

A publication of Michigan Realtors®

Real Estate

professionals

guide to legal

questions.

LEGAL HOTLINE FAQ

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 03

Michigan Realtors®:

Welcome to the inaugural publication of the Michigan Realtors® Legal Hotline Companion.

For several years, your Legal Hotline attorneys have been compiling the most common

questions posed by Realtor® Members. From the best practices associated with Earnest

Money Deposits to the rules governing Oer & Acceptance, and many more in between,

the Legal Hotline continues to be an extremely helpful resource in staying attuned to the

issues that matter to you. is Legal Hotline Companion is intended to provide answers

to many of the questions that you face out in the real estate marketplace. As the rst of its

kind, the Hotline Companion will continue to grow over the years through subsequent

publication, as an organized and portable reference tool in support of your business.

On behalf of your Michigan Realtors® Legal Team, we sincerely hope you view this as a

signicant addition to the various legal resources that Michigan Realtors® develops and

distributes. Over the past few years it has been a concerted eort to multiply and diversify

the various ways in which we develop and distribute legal research and analysis to our

membership. As we begin 2018, we celebrate new legal education initiatives like this

publication, as well as the Michigan Realtors® On Demand Legal Continuing Education,

and Season 2 of the very popular Letter of the Law Video Series. Based on your feedback,

we will continue to build upon legal education as a key value proposition for all Michigan

Realtors®. We wish you much success in 2018!

welcome

Brad Ward, Esq.

V.P. of Public Policy

and Legal Aairs

Brian Westrin, Esq.

Director of Public

and Legal Aairs

04 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

LEGAL HOTLINE FAQ

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 05

frequently asked questions in 2017 06

agency 08

buy and sell agreements 10

commissions/administrative fees 15

condominiums 16

disclosure 17

do not call/telephone solicitations 21

earnest money deposits 22

fair housing 26

foreclosures and short sales 28

general licensing issues 30

listing agreements and buyer agency contracts 34

lotteries/raes/games of chance 36

property management/leases 37

real property taxes/transfer taxes 39

respa and other federal regulatory issues 41

title issues 43

miscellaneous 45

additional legal resources 46

table of contents

This publication provides legal resources from the Michigan Realtors® Legal Team. Opinions expressed in signed feature

articles are those of the author and do not necessarily reect the viewpoint of Michigan Realtors®. Advertising of property,

services or products herein does not imply endorsement by the Michigan Realtors®.

Address letters, address changes and inquiries to: Michigan Realtors®, 720 N. Washington Ave., Lansing, MI 48906:

800.454.7842: Fax 517.334.5568. www.mirealtors. com: e-mail [email protected]. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to

the Michigan Realtors®, 720 N. Washington Ave., Lansing, MI 48906

06 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

advertising

I have a real estate sales team that advertises under the name, “Smith Team.” I have heard that I soon will

have to change my advertising so that the team name is not larger than my broker’s name. Is this correct?

YES. Starting on January 1, 2018, in all advertisements, the business name of the employing broker must be in

equal or larger size type than the name of the associate broker, salesperson, or team.

oer & acceptance

I listed a home for $300,000. My seller has received a full price oer and wants to counter it at $310,000.

Can he do this?

YES. Even if a full price oer is presented to the seller, he or she is not obligated to sell it at that price and can

counter at a price that is higher than the listing price. (A listing broker may be entitled to a commission even

if the seller does not accept a full price oer.)

I made a full price oer on a house on behalf of my buyer. e oer stated that the seller had until 5:00

p.m. on Friday to respond. e listing broker emailed me and said that the seller would not respond until

Monday because he has an open house scheduled for the weekend and he wants to see if any more oers

are made. Doesn’t the seller have a duty to respond “yes” or “no” to my oer before then?

NO. ere is no legal duty for the seller to respond to any oer. However, the seller cannot “accept” an expired

oer; rather any “acceptance” aer the expiration of the oer would be deemed a counteroer that your buyer

could either accept or reject.

inspections

My seller was home when the inspector showed up with the buyer’s agent. e seller was told that he

could not be present during the inspection. Is this true?

NO. ere is no law that requires the sellers to leave their property during an inspection.

disclosure

I represent buyers who terminated a purchase contract aer discovering black mold in the house. I

now have another interested buyer who would like to make an oer on the same home. e listing

agent said that I cannot tell my buyer about the prior buyers’ discovery of mold because I obtained that

information during a prior agency relationship. Is this true?

NO. As a buyer’s agent you have a duciary duty to notify your current client of any issues that you know of

about the property. While most buyers’ agency agreements expressly provide that the agent will not disclose

condential information learned through another agency relationship, the information about the discovery of

black mold is not “condential” as to the rst buyer. Information known to both a seller and a potential buyer

is not “condential” as to either.

frequently asked questions in 2017

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS IN 2017

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 07

earnest money deposits

I am the listing broker. I always ask the cooperating broker for proof of the earnest money deposit. Is

the cooperating broker obligated to provide proof in the form of a copy of the check?

NO. ere is no law requiring the cooperating broker to provide proof of the earnest money deposit. You

could, however, make this requirement part of the purchase agreement.

promotional incentives

Based on a large volume of questions on promotional incentives, the following reference was created to

emphasize the basic rules.

1. If an incentive program does not involve any element of “chance,” then it is permissible.

EXAMPLE: A broker may oer a commission rebate or discount to every seller who lists with him before

a particular date.

2. If an incentive program involves both “consideration” and “chance,” then it is not

permissible. (e question of whether there has been “consideration” is typically

determined by whether or not the promotor gained some type of nancial benet from the method

of entry.)

EXAMPLE: A listing broker may not oer a chance to win a new car to every seller who lists with him

before a particular date.

3. If an incentive program involves “chance,” but no “consideration,” then it is permissible unless it is

being used to promote a specic piece of real estate.

EXAMPLE: A listing broker may not oer everyone who visits his open house for 123 Main Street a

chance to win a gi certificate.

donations/referral fees

Can I agree with my church that I will donate $500 to every member of my church who lists and sells their

home with me?

NO. While you can agree to make a charitable donation for every property you list and sell, you cannot

pay a fee to an organization for referring its members to you. e fact that the organization is a religious or

charitable organization does not change the analysis.

Can I advertise a program whereby I agree to donate $500 to my local high school booster club for every

home I list and sell?

MAYBE. If the promotion is advertised broadly in the community (e.g., in the local newspaper), the

promotion is probably permissible. If, on the other hand, the promotion is advertised only in the local

booster club’s newsletter, it may be viewed as an unlawful referral fee. In the latter case, the booster club may

be viewed as referring business to you in exchange for a donation. Again, the fact that the booster club is a

community service program does not change the analysis.

08 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I represent a buyer who has made an oer of

$150,000 on a house listed at $180,000. e

listing agent called and told me that the sellers

were rejecting the oer and that the sellers

would take no less than $170,000. My buyer then

submitted an oer for $170,000, which the sellers

promptly accepted. Although everyone in this

transaction is happy, my broker believes that the

listing agent breached a duciary duty owed to

the sellers by telling me the bottom line price

the sellers were willing to accept. Is my broker

correct?

POTENTIALLY, YES. Michigan case law has held

that a broker representing a seller may not suggest

to a purchaser that the seller will accept less than

the stated price. Harvey v Lindsay, 264 Mich 118

(1933). Under your circumstances, unless the

sellers gave their agent permission to disclose the

minimum price that they were willing to accept, the

listing agent may have breached a duciary duty

owed to her sellers.

I am a buyer’s agent. My clients had their

attorney review the oer aer I wrote it but

before it was presented to the sellers. e lawyer

is asking for many changes to the oer which,

in my opinion, will make it unacceptable to the

sellers. How should I advise my buyer-clients?

Do not ever advise a client to ignore the advice of

counsel, even if the advice of counsel seems like bad

advice.

I am an agent in an oce that practices

designated agency. I am currently a designated

agent for seller. I also represent someone as a

designated buyer agent. My buyer is interested in

making an oer on my listing. Is it possible to be

a dual agent in a designated agency oce?

YES. It is possible to be a dual agent in a designated

agency oce, but you must get both the buyer and

the seller to consent in writing. Without informed

consent you have unconsensual dual agency and

will forfeit your right to a commission.

I am a listing agent for a real estate rm that

practices designated agency. Myhusband works

at the same rm and he is the designated agent

of a buyer who wants to make an oer on one of

my listings. Can we do this or are we required to

enter into a dual agency arrangement?

While the law does not expressly prohibit a

husband and wife from acting as designated agents

on opposite sides of a transaction, we would

strongly advise against it. If a problem later arises in

connection with the transaction or the property, it

may be dicult to convince the parties (oracourt)

that the parties received the full range of duciary

duties from their respective designated agents.

I represent someone who is interested in leasing

a house. Am I required to provide an agency

disclosure form?

YES. e agency disclosure law denes a real

estate transaction as one involving the sale OR

LEASE of real estate consisting of not less than

one or not more than four residential dwelling

units or a building site for a residential unit. MCL

339.2517(11)(g).

Is it true that an agency disclosure form is not

required for commercial property?

YES. e law requires an agency disclosure form

only if the property in question includes one to

four residential dwelling units or a residential

building site. MCL339.2517(11)(g). Note that some

commercial property includes residential dwelling

units. Disclosure would be required for those types

of properties.

agency

AGENCY

I am a real estate salesperson purchasing a home

for myself. Can I act as a transaction coordinator

in this purchase?

NO. According to agency law, a transaction

coordinator is an agent that represents neither the

buyer nor the seller. Under these circumstances,

you are the buyer of this property and clearly

cannot hold yourself out as a “neutral” transaction

coordinator.

I am representing clients with the sale of their

home. I received a call from someone who is

interested in making an oer on my client’s

home. May I represent that potential buyer as a

transaction coordinator?

NO. A transaction coordinator

does not represent either party,

but is a neutral party. You

cannot both be a transaction

coordinator and listing agent

in the same transaction. In this

circumstance, you could work

with the buyer as a customer,

rather than a client.

I own a brokerage which

practices traditional agency.

Would it be possible to have

one of my agents represent

the seller and another of my

agents represent the buyer in

the same transaction without

establishing dual agency?

NO. In the above

circumstance, all of the agents

in the rm would be dual

agents. In order to have your

agents represent the buyer

and seller exclusively, your

rm would have to practice

designated agency.

Our oce represents the rm’s clients as

designated agents. Cancompensation be oered

to sub-agents through the MLS? We were told

that no one can be the agent for the seller, unless

the seller signs a piece of paper specically

naming them as a designated agent.

Your rm can act as designated agents and oer

sub-agency through the MLS to cooperating

rms. is is not an attempt to create an agency

relationship between the cooperating rm and the

seller. Instead, it is an oer of sub-agency oered by

your rm, i.e., broker to broker.

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 09

10 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

My seller was home when the inspector showed

up with the buyer’s agent. e seller was told that

he could not be present during the inspection. Is

this true?

NO. ere is no law that requires the sellers to leave

their property during an inspection.

I listed a home for $300,000. My seller has

received a full price oer and wants to counter it

at $310,000. Can he do this?

YES. Even if a full price oer is presented to the

seller, he or she is not obligated to sell it at that price

and can counter at a price that is higher than the

listing price. (A listing broker may be entitled to a

commission even if the seller does not accept a full

price oer.)

e purchase agreement provides that the seller

shall surrender possession of the home on

August 1st at 12:00 a.m. Is the seller entitled to

possession for the entire day on August 1st?

While the weight of authority seems to be that

12:00 a.m. (or midnight) marks the start of the new

day, this understanding is by no means uniform.

For this reason, to avoid confusion, Realtors® are

encouraged to avoid using this deadline in contracts

and instead use 11:59 p.m. or 12:01 a.m.

My buyer made an oer that the seller countered.

Before we could respond, the listing agent sent

me a text stating that her seller was withdrawing

the counter oer and going with highest and

best. Can a counteroer be withdrawn in a text

message?

YES. e seller may withdraw the counteroer at

any time prior to receipt of an acceptance by any

means of communication.

I represent a buyer who entered into a purchase

agreement with a 15-day inspection contingency.

During the inspection, the buyer discovered

numerous defects with the property. My client

still wants to purchase the property but only if

the seller remedies the defects. Can my buyer

force the seller to do this?

PROBABLY NOT. While inspection contingency

clauses vary, typically an inspection contingency

clause gives the buyer the option of moving

forward with the purchase agreement as written

or terminating the purchase agreement. A buyer

can request that a seller make repairs, but typically

cannot require the seller to do so. And some

inspection contingency clauses permit the seller to

terminate the purchase agreement if the buyer even

makes such a request. Abuyer needs to carefully

review the language of the inspection contingency

clause prior to making such a request.

My seller received an oer for $200,000 and

countered that oer at $210,000. Aer the

counteroer had been delivered to the buyers’

agent, but before the buyers responded to the

counteroer, the seller decided not to take

a chance and withdrew his counteroer and

accepted the buyers’ oer for $200,000. I have

been told that the buyers will not honor the

contract. Don’twe have a binding contract?

No. e sellers’ counteroer operated as a rejection

of the buyers’ oer. Once an oer has been

rejected, it is “terminated” and cannot thereaer be

resurrected and accepted. Legally, where you are at

now is the seller has oered to sell the property on

the terms originally proposed by the buyer, which

oer can be accepted (or rejected) by the buyer.

buy and sell agreements

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 11

I am representing a buyer in the purchase of a

home. I was told there were two other oers and

that we should submit our “highest and best

oer.” Mybuyer’s oer was not accepted and

now my buyer is demanding to see the other two

oers. Is the seller legally required to show us the

other oers?

NO, the seller has no legal obligation to let your

buyer see the other oers.

I represent a buyer who put in an oer on a home

where there were multiple oers. My client’s

oer was not accepted. We have reason to believe

that my client’s oer was in fact the “highest and

best.” Are we entitled to see a copy of the oer

that was accepted by the sellers in order to verify

that it was the “highest and best” oer?

NO. Moreover, it does not matter whether the

accepted oer was in fact the “highest and best.”

As long as the sellers did not engage in unlawful

discrimination (for example, on the basis of

national origin), they were not required to accept

the “highest and best” oer or otherwise treat

all oers equally. A “Primer on Multiple Oers”

prepared especially for buyers in this situation is

available on MR’s website.

I am representing a buyer in connection with

the purchase of a home. eagreed upon closing

date is “on or before” January 4th. My client is

ready to close and wants to schedule the closing

date earlier than January 4. Is the seller obligated

to close at an earlier date?

NO. is language is typically interpreted to mean

that while the parties can agree to close prior to the

stated date, neither party can be required to do so.

e seller just sent a counteroer and now has

received a better oer. Can the seller rescind his/

her counteroer?

A counteroer can be rescinded up until the time

it has been accepted. erescission must reach the

buyer or the agent for the buyer before the seller or

the agent for the seller receives an acceptance.

e listing ticket included an item and the buyers

assumed that it was therefore included in the

transaction and didn’t expressly reference that

item in the purchase agreement. Now the sellers

say that they are taking it with them because the

buyers didn’t contract to buy the item. Are they

right?

e status of an item that is not specically

contracted for depends on the item. If the item

is a xture, then it becomes a part of the real

estate and transfers to the buyer even if not

specically included in the purchase agreement.

egeneral denition of a xture is something

that cannot be removed without damaging itself

or its surroundings or that becomes useless when

removed. When an item is not a xture, but

personal property, the answer is less clear. Where an

item was specically mentioned in the listing ticket,

but was not mentioned in the purchase agreement,

a seller’s attorney could argue that since the listing

ticket is not an oer, it cannot be accepted and the

item is not included in the sale. A buyer’s attorney,

on the other hand, could argue that a listing ticket

is in fact an advertisement and that a buyer should

be entitled to rely on the fact that the home, if

purchased, will include all advertised items. ere

is simply no all-purpose correct answer to this

question. In order to avoid disputes, buyers’ agents

are encouraged to include all items in the purchase

agreement, either by specically mentioning them,

or by simply expressly incorporating all items listed

in the listing ticket.

Our seller/client has entered into a purchase

agreement, but now does not want to sell. My

client has asked us to gure out a way to get him

out of the deal.

While you may know from your experience some

way to get your client out of the deal without

liability, resist the urge to provide this type of legal

advice. e appropriate answer to this question is to

tell your client to speak to an attorney.

BUY AND SELL AGREEMENTS

12 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I have a listing on a home owned by a married

couple. Currently, the wife is out of town on

business but they want to accept an oer. Can the

husband sign the contract on the wife’s behalf

and make this a binding contract?

NO. In order for there to be a binding contract,

both the husband and the wife would have to sign

the purchase agreement. He would be able to sign

on her behalf if she were to execute a power of

attorney that expressly grants him that power. As

an alternative, to facilitate signatures from out-of-

town parties, oen a contract expressly states that

the parties may sign and deliver an acceptance

electronically.

I am a REALTOR® representing sellers on the

sale of their house. ey entered into a purchase

agreement with a buyer yesterday. Today

the buyer’s agent called me and said that the

buyer wishes to exercise his three day right of

rescission. Does such a right exist?

NO. ere is no three day right of rescission on a

contract for the sale of real estate.

Does a buyer’s agent have a legal right to present

his client’s oer to the seller or at least be present

when his client’s oer is presented to the seller?

NO. ere is nothing in Michigan that grants

such a right. Sellers can determine whether or

not they wish to entertain an oer directly from a

cooperating agent.

My sellers have a purchase agreement signed

with Buyer A. BuyerB has now made an oer

on the same property that the sellers consider

to be a better oer. Buyer A has proposed an

amendment to his purchase agreement asking

to purchase some of the sellers’ outdoor lawn

furniture and pool equipment. e sellers believe

that the purchaser’s proposed amendment

reopens the terms of the contract. e sellers

want to rescind the purchase agreement with

Buyer A and enter into a purchase agreement

with Buyer B. Does Buyer A’s proposal of an

amendment to the existing purchase agreement

reopen the contract such that my sellers may

terminate it?

NO. Some REALTORS

have the misconception

that if an amendment to an existing contract is

proposed and rejected, the purchase agreement

is terminated. Ordinarily this is not the case. If

a proposed amendment to a contract is rejected,

the purchase agreement remains in full force and

eect. One party can neither change the terms of

a purchase agreement nor terminate the purchase

agreement without the consent of all parties

to the transaction. Note that the rules may be

dierent when the proposed amendment relates

to the removal of a contingency, depending on the

wording of the contingency. Suppose, for example,

the purchase agreement provides that if the buyer

does not waive the inspection contingency in

writing within 10days, the purchase agreement

shall be null and void. On the 10

day, the buyer

presents the seller with a proposed addendum in

which the seller is to agree to make certain repairs.

e seller may take the position that the purchase

agreement is null and void, because the buyer

did not waive the inspection contingency within

the timeframe set out in the purchase agreement.

Again, however, the eect of the buyer’s request

that the seller make certain repairs depends on the

wording of both the contingency and the proposed

addendum and the timing of same.

I submitted an oer to an agent listing a home. e

listing agent told me state law requires that a pre-

approval letter was necessary in order for an oer

to be valid. Is this true?

NO, while sellers may require a pre-approval with

any oers they consider, there is no state law that

requires a pre-approval in order for an oer to be

valid.

I am a REALTOR® who represents a buyer.

My buyer became interested in a property and

wanted to make an oer. I contacted the listing

agent and he told me that an oer had been made

for less than full price. My buyer really wanted

this property and decided to make a full price

oer. It is my understanding that since my buyer

made a full price and terms oer, the seller must

sell him the property. Am I correct?

NO. e Michigan Court of Appeals has held that

a listing does not constitute an “oer” and cannot

therefore be “accepted.” Eerdmans v Maki, 226 Mich

App 360 (1997). It should be noted however, that

depending on the terms of the listing contract, a

seller who rejects a full price and terms oer may

nonetheless be obligated to pay a commission to the

listing broker.

I represent the sellers as a listing broker. An

oer came in from another oce but my seller is

currently out of town and cannot be reached. e

seller authorized me via telephone to accept the

oer on my seller’s behalf. Is this an enforceable

contract?

NO. A broker can sign a binding purchase

agreement on behalf of the buyer or seller only if

he has explicit written authority to do so. Verbal

authority over the telephone would NOT be

sucient. A listing agreement by itself does not

give the broker authority to bind his/her principal

to a contract for the sale of land absent explicit

language granting such power. Weitting v McFeeters,

104Mich App 188 (1981). Moreover, the written

authorization must be very specic. e agent’s lack

of written authority renders the purchase agreement

void and does not bind either party unless it is

ratied by each. Baldwin v Schiappacasse, 109 Mich

170, (1896).

BUY AND SELL AGREEMENTS

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 13

14 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

My buyer client made an oer on a house listed

by another company. elisting agent told me

that he had called his seller and that the seller

had accepted my client’s oer. I never received

the written acceptance and I have since found

out that the seller entered into a contract with

another buyer. Mybuyer believes that he should

get the house because of the verbal acceptance of

his oer. Is he correct?

NO. e statute of frauds requires that a contract

for the sale of real estate be in the form of a signed

written document in order to be enforceable. Since

the so-called acceptance came through verbal

communications between the seller, the listing

agent, and the buyer’s agent and was never reduced

to a signed writing, the contract is unenforceable.

MCL 566.108.

I am a real estate salesperson representing a

buyer. We submitted an oer on a home to the

listing agent and 2 days later the listing agent

sent me a text message indicating that his seller

had accepted my buyer’s oer. Later that same

day I received another text from the listing agent

stating that the seller had decided to go with a

better oer. My buyer is angry and believes the

seller accepted the contract through the text

message. Am I correct?

NO. Since it is a contract for the sale of real estate,

the statute of frauds requires there to be a signed

writing in order to have an enforceable contract.

A text message from the listing broker notifying

you that the seller has accepted the oer would

not satisfy this requirement. It has no more eect

than if the listing broker had called and told you

the seller had accepted your client’s oer. (Ifthere

had been a text message directly from the seller

stating “Iaccept,” your buyer would have a better

argument, particularly if the purchase contract

expressly provided for electronic signatures.)

I am the listing REALTOR®. An oer was made

by a buyer that was well below the listing price. I

telephoned the buyer’s agent to tell him that my

seller has rejected the oer. e agent said that

it is necessary for the seller to reject the oer in

writing. Is this true?

NO. A seller has no legal obligation to reject an oer

in writing or to even respond to an oer at all.

I am representing a buyer who has made an oer

on a home. e seller countered our oer with a

clause stating that the buyer waives his right to

inspect the property. Is this permissible?

YES. e seller is free to propose such a clause in a

purchase contract and it is up to the buyer to either

agree or reject such a provision.

We received an oer on a listing, and it was

accepted by the seller. Wedelivered it back to the

buyer’s agent two days ago. Now we have been

advised that the buyer refuses to bottom-line the

purchase agreement. Can the buyer walk away

from the deal and get his earnest money deposit

back?

e buyer certainly cannot walk away from the deal

and get his earnest money deposit back by simply

refusing to bottom-line receipt of the purchase

agreement. Unless the specic purchase agreement

requires a bottom-line signature in order to form

a contract, the contract between the buyer and the

seller is formed when the seller signs the oer and

delivers his acceptance to the buyer or the buyer’s

agent. Traditionally, the practice of bottom-lining

has been done to assure that REALTORS

can prove

that they complied with Rule307 which requires

a licensee to provide a fully executed copy of the

purchase agreement to the seller and buyer.

I presented an oer from my buyer; however, the

listing agent told me that the oer was not valid

since the buyer’s signature was not witnessed. Does

an oer to purchase real estate require a witnessed

signature?

NO. ere are no legal requirements for witnessed

signatures in a contract for the sale of real estate.

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 15

I am a salesperson and I formed a corporation for

tax purposes. I have told my broker that I want him

to make all future commission checks payable in the

name of my company. Is this possible?

NO. Rule 201(3) states:

Associate broker and salesperson licenses shall only be

issued to individuals.

Since salespersons’ licenses can only be issued to

individuals and brokers can only pay commissions

to real estate licensees, a salesperson cannot receive

commission checks from his broker in the name of

a corporation or other entity. A real estate broker’s

license, on the other hand, may be issued to an

individual or to an entity. An associate broker with

one real estate company could set up a corporation,

obtain a broker’s license for that corporation and ask

the real estate company for which he works to issue

his commission checks in the name of his corporation.

is option is not available to licensed salespersons.

I am representing a seller in the sale of his residence.

My seller now has seller’s remorse. I have heard that

brokers can le liens on real estate in order to collect

commissions. Is this true?

NO. e Commercial Real Estate Broker’s Lien Act

allows brokers to le liens for a commission owed

in connection with the sale or lease of commercial

property. Since you have a residential listing, ling a lien

could result in a lawsuit for slander of title.

I am a broker who had a salesperson recently leave

my company on good terms. She is now with another

broker but had a number of pending transactions that

are now scheduled to close. I would prefer to pay her

directly instead of going through her new broker. Can

I pay my former salesperson directly for these sales?

YES. You can make these payments directly to your

former salesperson. e Occupational Code states:

If an individual earned commissions or other income

while employed by a real estate broker, it is not

grounds for disciplinary action under section 2512

for that broker to pay those commissions or income to

that individual, regardless of whether that individual

is now employed by another real estate broker or is no

longer licensed. MCL 339.2510(2).

I have a listing agreement with my sellers for the

sale of their home. Sellers entered into a purchase

agreement with Buyer A. We were all set to close but

then the sellers stopped returning my calls. I recently

learned that the sellers were planning to close on the

property “secretly” and without my involvement in

an apparent eort to avoid paying the commission. I

intend to le a lispendens on the sellers’ property to

secure my commission. Is this acceptable?

NO. Ordinarily, a REALTOR

has no right to le a lien

on residential property in order to protect his or her

claim to a commission. In order to le a lien, aperson

must have a contractual or statutory right to le a lien.

Because the penalties for wrongfully ling a lien on real

property are severe, a REALTOR

should never le a

lien on real property without the assistance of a lawyer.

I have heard dierent things about whether or not a

brokerage rm can charge administrative fees. Are

these fees permissible?

YES. At one time, some argued that RESPA prohibited

brokers from charging administrative fees in addition

to a percentage commission and/or that the legality

depended upon how the fee was described in the listing

contract. A United States Supreme Court decision made

clear that such fees are not prohibited under RESPA

(and that it does not matter how the fees are described).

Of course, a REALTOR

must have an agreement with a

buyer or seller in order to charge such a fee.

I received an oer through a buyer’s agent who

is a participant in my MLS but never showed the

property to his buyers. It turns out that his clients

contacted the sellers directly and arranged a showing

without a licensee present. e buyers then contacted

the buyer’s agent and asked him to write up an oer.

Do I have to pay the buyer’s agent commission if he

did not show the house?

YES. An oer of compensation through an MLS does

not require that the agent bringing the buyer show the

buyer the house. An agent may qualify as procuring

cause even if he or she did not show the house to the

buyers.

commissions/administrative fees

16 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

My agent is representing a seller in the resale

of a residential condominium unit. e agent

representing the buyer has faxed me a note

stating that the buyer wants to terminate the

purchase agreement pursuant to their nine-day

right of rescission. Can the buyer rescind?

NO. e nine-day right of rescission under the

Condominium Act is only applicable to the initial

sale of a residential condominium unit from the

developer to the rst buyer, i.e., the sale of a brand

new unit. MCL559.121. e Condominium

Act provides that in connection with an initial

sale, a purchase agreement shall not become

binding until 9 business days aer the purchaser

is provided copies of all of the condominium

documents. us,while in the case of the initial

sale, the approval of the condominium documents

is automatically a contingency, for resales, a buyer

needs to explicitly include this contingency in the

purchase contract. MCL 559.184.

I currently represent buyer who is looking to buy

a condominium unit as an investment/rental

property. e condominium documents provide

that the units must be owner-occupied. Can a

condominium association prohibit an owner

from renting his units?

YES. A condominium restriction prohibiting the

rental of units is enforceable.

I represent a buyer in connection with the

purchase of a site condominium. eunit he is

buying does not have a fence. He wants to build

a fence on this property. How can we nd out if

this is this allowed?

e project’s condominium documents,

typically the bylaws, should state which type of

improvements are allowed to a unit. Your buyer

should review the condominium documents to

see if there are any prohibitions on fences in the

condominium project. Condominium bylaws are

recorded along with the

master deed. If the

documents are unclear

about building a fence,

your buyer should

consult a lawyer.

I have a client whose

condominium association

has foreclosed a lien for

non-payment of dues. How

long is the redemption

period?

e redemption period

for a foreclosure by the

association of co-owners is

six months from the date

of sale unless the property

is abandoned which will

reduce the redemption

period to one month.

condominiums

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 17

I am listing vacant land. Should I have my seller

complete a vacant land disclosure form?

Sellers of vacant land are not legally required to

provide a disclosure form. Sellers who do provide

vacant land disclosure forms should be cautioned

against making any representations where they

are unsure. Unlike with the statutorily required

residential seller’s disclosure form, a seller could be

held liable for an innocent misrepresentation made

in a vacant land disclosure form.

My seller says that her basement leaked ten years

ago, but that she had some grading work done,

and it has not leaked since. Can she answer “no”

to the question about basement leaks on the

Seller’s Disclosure Statement?

No. e Michigan Court of Appeals has said that

given the wording of this specic question (i.e.,

“Has there been evidence of water”), there is no

time limitation. (In that specic case, the sellers

were required to disclose the fact that the house had

ooded 26 years ago.)

On the Seller’s Disclosure Statement, my sellers

indicated that the microwave was in working

order. e purchase agreement said nothing

about the microwave. Is the buyer entitled to the

microwave?

No. e Seller’s Disclosure form specically states

that “the items below are included in the sale of

the property only if the purchase agreement so

provides.” is language was added to the form

some years ago to specically address this question.

A local township is selling a residential property.

Is it required to ll out a seller’s disclosure

statement?

NO. Governmental entities are exempt from the

Seller Disclosure Act.

My seller bought a house at sheri’s sale. Now

that the redemption period has expired, he has

decided to list it for sale. Is he exempt from the

Seller Disclosure Act?

NO. e foreclosure exemption from the Seller

Disclosure Act applies only if the lender acquires

the property through foreclosure and not to

third-party purchasers.

I currently have a property listed by the heirs of a

man who died in his house as a result of a spider

bite from a brown recluse spider. Does my seller

have to disclose this information?

Unless a prospective buyer asks if someone died

in the home, you do not have to disclose this

information. However, if there is a history of

infestation in the home, the seller must disclose that

in the seller’s disclosure statement.

I am listing a 10-acre residential property that is

traversed by a utility easement. e easement will

service a housing development in the near future.

Is my seller required to disclose this easement?

YES. e Seller Disclosure Act requires that a seller

of residential property disclose any easements

aecting that property.

I have a client who is selling a residential

property (1 to 4 residential units) that is owned

by a limited liability company. Is he exempt from

having to provide a seller disclosure statement?

NO. Residential properties owned by a limited

liability company are not exempt from the Seller

Disclosure Act.

disclosure

18 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

Is a landlord required to provide a Seller’s

Disclosure Statement in connection with a

residential lease that is longer than one year?

NO. A seller disclosure statement is not required

in connection with a residential lease of real estate

unless it is a lease with an option to purchase.

(On the other hand, an agency disclosure form is

required in connection with a residential lease.)

e owner of the home I am listing inherited the

home from her father. Shedoes not live in the

home but legal title is in her name. Does there

need to be a seller’s disclosure statement?

YES. While property owned by an estate is exempt

under the Seller Disclosure Act so long as the

personal representative does not live in the home,

once the property has been distributed from the

estate to the heir, itis no longer exempt.

My clients are selling an 8-unit apartment

building. Are they required to provide a seller

disclosure statement and/or a lead based paint

disclosure form?

e sellers of the apartment building are only

required to provide a lead based paint disclosure

form. e Seller Disclosure Act does not apply

to apartment buildings with more than 4 units;

however, the Lead Based Paint Disclosure Act does

apply to all apartment buildings.

I am currently listing property and an in-house

buyer made an oer. Anagent from another

company called and I told them that my seller

was reviewing an oer. e agent asked if it

was an in-house oer and said that I had an

obligation to disclose if it was. Is there a law that

requires me to disclose that it is an in-house

oer?

NO. ere is no legal duty to disclose whether any

oers your seller has received are in-house oers.

(In certain circumstances, such disclosure may be

required pursuant to the Code of Ethics Standard of

Practice 1-15.)

Do sellers have to disclose if a home is modular?

ere is no law which requires a seller to volunteer

the fact that his home is a modular home.

A widow put her home in a trust and named

her two children as successor trustees. Aer her

death, one of the children moved into the home

temporarily until it could be sold. Does there

need to be a seller’s disclosure statement?

YES. e trustee who is residing in the home must

complete a seller’s disclosure statement. Only non-

occupant duciaries are exempt under the Seller

Disclosure Act.

e buyer’s lender has requested a copy of the

seller’s disclosure statement and the lead based

paint disclosure. Am I legally required to give

copies of these documents to the bank?

e buyer’s lender can certainly require these

documents as a condition of making the loan.

I am listing an REO property. e bank is

exempt from providing a seller disclosure form,

but I am being told by the agent representing the

buyer that my client must provide a signed seller

disclosure form that has the word “exempt” on it.

Is this true?

NO. ere is no provision in the Seller Disclosure

Act that requires an “exempt” party to provide a

form.

I have a seller-client who is the trustee of a

property owned by her parents’ trust and in

which she currently resides. I seem to recall

from continuing education courses that she is

not exempt from the Seller Disclosure Act. Am I

correct?

YES. e Seller Disclosure Act exempts transfers

by a nonoccupant duciary in the course of the

administration of a trust. Since in your situation the

trustee lives in the property, she is not exempt from

the Act. MCL 565.953(d).

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 19

I am representing a seller of a house and some

land. e state has approved construction of

a wind farm adjacent to my seller’s property.

Construction will begin this coming spring.

Must this be disclosed?

MORE THAN LIKELY YES. e Seller Disclosure

Act has a section that specically asks whether

there is “farm or farm operation in the vicinity; or

proximity to a landll, airport, shooting range, etc.”

While there is no denitive answer to this question,

it is certainly a reasonable interpretation that a

future wind farm would fall within this description.

Remember also that the ultimate decision as to

whether something should be disclosed should

always be le to the seller-client. A listing agent

who advises her seller-client that something

need not be disclosed has arguably assumed

responsibility for any later problem that arises.

I have a seller who is selling a house built in

1980. e buyer’s agent said that my client

must provide a Lead-Based Paint Seller’s

Acknowledgement (MRFormL-1) stating that

the house was built in 1978 or later. Is this true?

MR has created Form L-1 whereby the sellers

acknowledge that their home was built in 1978 or

later and is therefore exempt from the Lead-Based

Paint Disclosure Law. However, the form is

provided as a risk reduction measure only to

document what the seller represents the age of

the house to be and a seller is not required under

the law to provide such a form. e law only

requires that if the home was built prior to 1978,

a seller must complete a Lead-Based Paint Seller’s

Disclosure Form (MR Form L-3).

DISCLOSURE

20 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I am currently listing a residential property for a

client that has relocated to another state through

the company for whom he works. I told him that

I would ll out the Seller’s Disclosure Statement

on his behalf since he is out of town. Is this

permissible?

Agents should never ll out the Seller’s Disclosure

Statement on behalf of their seller-client. If an error

is later discovered, the agent may nd herself in

a position in which both the buyer and seller are

pointing ngers at her.

My sellers are not going to provide a Seller’s

Disclosure Statement because they have never

lived in the residence, but have only used it as a

rental. Is this proper?

NO. Sellers are not exempt from Seller Disclosure

Act requirements just because they have never lived

in the property. Sellers who have owned and leased

a residence must nonetheless ll out the Seller’s

Disclosure Statement to the best of their knowledge.

e list of exceptions can be found in Section 3 of

the Seller Disclosure Act. MCL 565.953(3).

My client is selling his house to one of his

nephews. He believes that he is exempt from the

Seller Disclosure Act because he is selling his

home to a relative. Is he correct?

NO. e Seller Disclosure Act contains an

exception for transfers made to a spouse, parent,

grandparent, child or grandchild. MCL 565.953(f).

No such exception exists for transfers to other

relatives.

I am a REALTOR® representing a licensed

builder who is selling a house that he has built.

e builder currently resides in this property. Is

he exempt from the Seller Disclosure Act?

NO. e builder would have been exempt from

the Seller Disclosure Act had he not resided in the

property. Section 565.953(i) exempts a transfer

from a licensed builder ONLY if it is a newly

constructed residential property that has not been

previously inhabited.

I am a REALTOR® representing a seller in the

sale of a vacant parcel of land that is zoned

residential. An agent representing a buyer has

requested a Seller’s Disclosure Statement. e

buyer’s agent claims that a Seller’s Disclosure

Statement is required for the sale of all

properties that are zoned residential. Isthis

true?

NO. e Seller Disclosure Act applies only to the

transfer of not less than 1 or more than 4 residential

dwelling units. MCL 565.952.

I am representing a seller in connection with a

short sale transaction. It is my understanding

that short sale transactions are exempt from the

Seller Disclosure Act. Am I correct?

NO. Short sale transactions are not exempt from

the Seller Disclosure Act. However, if a lender

acquires the property through foreclosure or a deed

in lieu of foreclosure, the lender is exempt from the

Seller Disclosure Act.

I am a REALTOR® that is listing a residential

property that is owned by a non-prot

organization. It is my understanding that non-

prots are exempt from the Seller Disclosure

Act. Am I correct?

NO. Non-prot organizations do NOT fall within

any of the Seller Disclosure Act exemptions. Your

seller will need to provide a Seller’s Disclosure

Statement.

I am a REALTOR® representing a bank that is

selling a property that it has repossessed through

the foreclosure process. e bank tells me that

it is exempt from both the Michigan Seller

Disclosure Act well as the Federal Lead Based

Paint Disclosure requirements. Is this correct?

is is partially correct. e bank is exempt

from the Michigan Seller Disclosure Act but it is

not exempt from the Federal Lead Based Paint

Disclosure requirements.

Under the Michigan Seller Disclosure Act, both the

foreclosure sale itself, and the subsequent resale

by the lender to a third party, are exempt from the

disclosure requirements. MCL 565.953(c).

As to the Federal Lead Based Paint Disclosure Law,

while the original foreclosure sale is exempt, a

subsequent resale from the lender is not.

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 21

I have heard that it is illegal for a real estate agent

to call someone who is selling their house “for

sale by owner” if they are on the federal “Do Not

Call” list. Am I correct?

MORE THAN LIKELY YES. An agent can call

a FSBO under limited circumstances based

on a ruling by the Federal Communications

Commission (FCC). e FCC ruled that agents

can call FSBOs who have a sign in their front yard

with a telephone number on it, ONLY if they have

a client who is interested in purchasing that seller’s

property.

e FCC’s ruling states:

“[w]e nd, however, that calls by real estate agents

who represent only the potential buyer to someone

who has advertised their property for sale, do

not constitute telephone solicitations, so long as

the purpose of the call is to discuss the potential

sale of the property to the represented buyer. e

callers, in such circumstances, are not encouraging

the called party to purchase, rent or invest in

property, as contemplated by the denition of

‘telephone solicitation.’ ey are instead calling in

response to an oer to purchase something from

the called party.” (FCC05-28; CG Docket No.

02-278, 2/10/05.)

I am a REALTOR

who has hired an unlicensed

assistant. I am having my assistant make cold

calls to prospective sellers. I have made sure that

my assistant has veried that these prospective

sellers are not on the Do Not Call List. Can my

assistant make these calls?

NO. Under Michigan license law, an individual

must be a real estate licensee in order to make cold

calls to prospective sellers.

I oen keep track of the expiration of other

companies’ listings so that I can call the seller

immediately and hopefully persuade the seller to

list with me. Isthis permissible?

Yes, however, before calling such a seller, you need

to make certain that the seller is not listed on the

federal do-not-call registry. Also, both federal

and Michigan law requires that rms with agents

who use this practice need to maintain a company

specic do-not-call registry – i.e., a list of persons

who have indicated that they do not wish to receive

calls from your particular company.

I run a real estate oce and I would like to call

past clients to see if they are interested in buying

new properties or selling their current one. Can

I call these clients if they are on the Do Not Call

Law registry?

Since you have a past business relationship with

your clients, you may call them for up to 18 months

aer the end of the relationship unless and until

they ask you to not to call again. In addition, if a

prospective client on the Do Not Call registry calls

you to inquire about your services, you may call

him for 3 months unless and until he asks not to be

contacted.

do not call/telephone solicitations

22 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I am the listing broker. I always ask the

cooperating broker for proof of the earnest

money deposit. Is the cooperating broker

obligated to provide proof in the form of a copy

of the check?

NO. ere is no law requiring the cooperating

broker to provide proof of the earnest money

deposit. You could, however, make this requirement

part of the purchase agreement.

I am representing the sellers in the sale of their

house. ere have been some delays and the

buyer is asking for yet another extension. My

sellers will only give the buyer an extension if the

buyer agrees to a $2,000 non-refundable deposit.

I have heard that non-refundable deposits are

illegal. Is this true?

NO. A buyer and seller can certainly agree that a

deposit will be non-refundable. You will want to

make certain that this is explicitly stated in the

contract so that there can be no argument about the

parties’ intent.

I represent a buyer who had a signed purchase

agreement. Just prior to the closing date, the

buyer suered buyer’s remorse and chose not to

purchase the property. e sellers are upset and

want the earnest money deposit, but the buyer is

disputing the fact that the sellers are entitled to

the EMD. e sellers have also put their house

back on the market. I was told that the sellers

could not relist their house when there is a

dispute over the EMD. Am I correct?

NO. e fact that the buyer and sellers are in a

dispute over the EMD does not prevent the sellers

from relisting. However, if the buyer has not

clearly indicated that he will not go forward with

the purchase, the sellers should consult with an

attorney before binding themselves to a second

purchase agreement.

I am representing a seller of a home who is

entering into a purchase agreement that would

allow the buyer to move in before the closing.

e seller has requested that the buyer make a

$10,000 non-refundable earnest money deposit

directly payable to the seller, which the buyer is

willing to pay. Can this be done?

While legally this can be done, this arrangement

does present a number of potential issues. For

example, what happens if the seller is unwilling or

unable to go through with the sale of the home?

How will insurance/casualty risks be handled? For

these reasons, both parties should be encouraged

to seek the advice of counsel before proceeding

forward.

My business model is such that my brokerage

rm never holds buyers’ earnest money deposits.

Am I nonetheless required to maintain a trust

account?

NO. You are only required to maintain a trust

account if you are holding money belonging to

others.

I represented a buyer in a transaction that

ultimately did not close. e seller agreed to

release the earnest money back to the buyer. Can

I mail the money back to the buyer or must I

deliver it in person?

ere is no requirement that you deliver the earnest

money in person.

I am acting as a transaction coordinator in a

real estate transaction. I was told that I am not

allowed to hold an earnest money deposit in such

a transaction. Is this true?

No. ere is no prohibition against transaction

coordinators holding earnest money deposits.

earnest money deposits

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 23

EARNEST MONEY DEPOSITS

I represent a buyer who has entered into a

purchase agreement. My buyer was not satised

with the home inspection and has decided not to

buy the house. e purchase agreement clearly

states that if the buyer is dissatised with the

inspection report he can terminate the contract

and receive a full refund of his earnest money

deposit. e sellers disagreed with the buyer

and have stated that they want the earnest

money deposit. I’m of the opinion that I can

release the money to the buyer based upon the

clear language of the purchase agreement. Am I

correct?

NO. Rule 313(6) states:

Disbursement of an earnest money deposit shall

be made at consummation or termination of the

agreement in accordance with the agreement

signed by the parties. However, any deposit in the

trust account of the broker for which the buyer

and seller have made claim shall remain in the

broker’s trust account until a civil action has

determined to whom the deposit must be paid, or

until the buyer and seller have agreed, in writing,

to the disposition of the deposit. e broker may

also commence a civil action to interplead the

deposit with the proper court.

Since the sellers are making a claim to the earnest

money, you cannot release the money to the buyer.

e fact that it seems quite likely that the buyer

would prevail in any litigation over the earnest

money deposit does not mean that you can release

the earnest money to the buyer over the objection

of the sellers.

Six months ago the buyers refused to go forward

with the purchase of my sellers’ home. e deal

is dead, but the earnest money in still in dispute.

Aremy sellers prohibited from selling their

home to someone else as long as the earnest

money is in dispute?

No. e status of disputed earnest money has

no eect on your sellers’ right to sell their home.

e earnest money dispute does not create a lien

upon the property, nor does it entitle the buyers

to prevent a subsequent sale. esellers should,

however, contact an attorney if there is any chance

that the buyers are still claiming a right to purchase

the home.

I am a real estate broker and I have heard that

some other brokers in my area are allowing their

salespersons to hold the earnest money checks

until there is a binding purchase agreement

signed by all parties. It is my understanding

that salespersons are required to turn over these

checks to their brokers’ upon receipt. Am I

correct?

YES. e Occupational Code provides:

A real estate salesperson shall pay or deliver to the

real estate broker, on receipt, a deposit or other

money paid in connection with a transaction in

which the real estate salesperson is engaged on

behalf of the real estate broker. MCL 339.2512(k)

(ii).

Note that the Code does not contain any denitive

time deadline for turning over a check to a broker.

It only requires a salesperson to turn over the check

“on receipt.” While we don’t think it is necessary

for a broker to require a salesperson to drive over

to the broker’s house at midnight to deliver a check

the salesperson just received, on the other hand

a broker should not have a policy that permits

a salesperson to hold a check until the purchase

agreement is accepted. e broker, however, is not

required to deposit the check in its trust account

until the purchase agreement is accepted.

I am representing a buyer to a purchase

agreement in which the buyer and seller have

agreed that the earnest money is to be held by

a title company. Is it legal for me to deliver the

check to the title company?

YES. e Occupational Code states:

If a purchase agreement signed by a seller and

purchaser provides that an escrowee other than a

real estate broker shall hold a deposit, a licensee in

possession of that deposit shall cause the deposit

to be delivered to the named escrowee within 2

banking days aer the licensee receives notice that

an oer to purchase is accepted by all parties.

MCL339.2512(k)(vii).

REALTORS

should understand that title companies

are not subject to the requirements of Article 25

of the Occupational Code and may have their own

rules as to how funds will be held and under what

terms they will be released. Oen a title company

will only hold an earnest money deposit if the

parties execute the title company’s form of escrow

agreement.

24 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

Eight months ago, both the buyer and the seller

claimed the earnest money in connection with

a failed transaction. I did not hear anything on

this until the buyer called recently and requested

the money. Can I release the earnest money to

the buyer without contacting the seller?

Once a dispute has occurred, Rule 313(6) requires a

REALTOR

to keep the earnest money deposit until

the parties reach an agreement or until there is a

court order directing the release of the funds. Aer

a dispute arises, there is no provision that allows a

REALTOR

to release the deposit aer a stated time

period has elapsed.

Note that under Michigan escheats law, if an escrow

agent “has a contract with one party, but a release

cannot be secured from the other party,” the funds

must be reported to the State three years from the

date of the last contact with the missing party.

What are a REALTOR

’s responsibilities when a

title company or other entity is to act as escrow

agent and hold the earnest money deposit?

If a purchase agreement signed by a seller and

purchaser provides that an escrowee other than a

real estate broker shall hold a deposit, a licensee in

possession of that deposit shall cause the deposit

to be delivered to the named escrowee within 2

banking days aer the licensee receives notice that

an oer to purchase is accepted by all parties. MCL

339.2512(k)(vii).

Once a transaction falls through, does a broker

need to get a written release from both parties

before releasing the earnest money deposit?

Rule 313(6) only requires that a written release be

signed if there is a dispute. Once a broker is aware

that both sides claim a deposit, the rules require

that the broker not disburse the funds until he has a

written agreement signed by both parties or a court

order.

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 25

My buyers are having second thoughts about

going ahead with the purchase of a home. Can

they just walk away from the transaction and

forfeit their earnest money or are there other

potential risks?

Some purchase contracts provide that in the event

of a default by the buyers, the sellers’ only remedy

is to keep the buyers’ earnest money deposit as

“liquidated damages.” However, many, perhaps

most, purchase agreements provide that in the event

the buyers default, the sellers can keep the earnest

money deposit and sue the buyers for damages.

I have money in my trust account from a failed

transaction three years ago. Icannot locate either

party to the transaction. What should I do with

this money?

Unclaimed money “escheats” to the State. (Michigan

Department of Treasury – Unclaimed Property

Division – 517- 636-6940.)

http://www.michigan.gov/

treasury/0,1607,7-121-44435-5585--,00.html

Should the commission check that a broker

receives at closing be deposited in the broker’s

trust account pending disbursement of the

salesperson’s portion of the commission?

It is not necessary that a commission check be

deposited in the broker’s trust account and, in fact,

it is at least arguable that a broker is prohibited

from doing so by the provision that prohibits a

broker from commingling his own business funds

with trust funds. MCL 339.2512(k)(iv).

I am a REALTOR

representing a buyer who is

making an oer on a property that a bank has

taken back through the foreclosure process. e

bank, through its listing agent, has countered

my buyer’s oer stating that the earnest money

deposit will be held by the listing oce. I told the

listing agent that this is illegal. Am I correct?

NO. ere is no prohibition against the listing

oce holding the earnest money deposit in its trust

account. e amount of the deposit and where it is

held is negotiable between the buyer and the seller.

What if an earnest money deposit check bounces?

A REALTOR

’s role as an escrow agent is a neutral

role and, therefore, the REALTOR

should notify

both parties if the buyers’ earnest money check

bounces.

I am a REALTOR

that just moved to Michigan

from another state. e state I’m coming from

requires a listing broker to make sure that an

earnest money deposit is provided for each

transaction. Is this required in Michigan?

NO. While an earnest money deposit is typically

provided as a matter of custom (and is a good idea),

it is not required in order for there to be a valid

binding contract. e parties’ mutual promises

contained in a purchase agreement constitute

sucient “consideration” to create a binding

contract.

I am a broker who represents a buyer. My buyer

made an oer on a property that was accepted

by the seller. Both the buyer and the seller have

agreed in the contract that I am to hold the

earnest money check in my oce and not deposit

it in my trust account until the inspection period

has passed. Would this be allowable under

Michigan law?

NO. e Occupational Code provides:

A real estate broker shall deposit, within 2

banking days aer the broker has received notice

that an oer to purchase is accepted by all parties,

money that belongs to others and is made payable

to the real estate broker into a separate custodial

trust or escrow account maintained by the real

estate broker with a bank, savings and loan

association, credit union, or recognized depository

until the transaction involved is consummated or

terminated, at which time the real estate broker

shall account for the full amount received. MCL

339.2512(k)(v).

An agreement to the contrary by the buyer on the

seller does not relieve the broker from his duty to

deposit money in his/her possession within the

prescribed time set by the code. If the buyer and

seller want to make such an agreement, then they

should also agree to have someone other than a real

estate licensee hold the funds.

EARNEST MONEY DEPOSITS

26 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I am a broker and some of my agents put

Christian crosses on their signs. Arethere any

consequences to me for permitting this practice?

Can I make these agents stop this practice?

Placing crosses or any other religious symbols on

real estate signs may be interpreted as an attempt to

discourage buyers of other faiths. For this reason,

brokers should not permit their agents to do this.

I have clients who are selling their house. In a

recent showing, the sellers’ neighbors accosted

the agent showing the house as well as the

prospective buyer because the buyer was an

ethnic minority. ey hurled racial epithets and

the agent and buyer were forced to leave the area.

What can be done to remedy this situation?

e neighbors should be advised that this behavior

is both illegal and actionable. e buyers and their

agent should be advised that the sellers do not

condone their neighbors’ oensive conduct and be

invited back to view the house.

I have a prospective buyer who is Hispanic.

He told me that he wants to live in a “Hispanic

neighborhood.” What can I do about this?

e client needs to be told that it is illegal for you to

direct him/her to particular neighborhoods based

upon ethnicity or nationality of the residents in

that neighborhood. If, on the other hand, the client

identies a particular geographic area in which he

wishes to live, the REALTOR

can honor the client’s

request to limit the search to that neighborhood.

e REALTOR

would be well-advised to have a

written record as to the client’s specic request.

I have a rental house that I have recently rented

to someone who has physical disabilities. e

tenant wants me to install rails in a number of

areas within the house at my expense. Must I do

this?

If a person has a disability, a landlord must allow

him or her to make reasonable modications to the

rental unit; however, the landlord can require the

disabled tenant to pay for the modications and

for the restoration of the property to its original

condition at the termination of the lease.

I own a two-bedroom rental home. Can I restrict

large families from leasing this property due to

the house’s limited capacity?

Landlords can restrict the number of persons that

may occupy a home or apartment and, in fact, many

municipalities license rental units for a particular

number of occupants. While it is appropriate to

restrict the number of occupants, a restriction

should never refer to “large families” or a specic

number of children.

I have a buyer who wanted me to nd out the

local area school test scores. When I went to the

website with the scores, I noticed that they were

broken down by many dierent demographics

including race. Can I provide my buyers with this

list?

REALTORS

should not distribute demographic

information broken down by race. Instead,

REALTORS

should provide buyers with a list of the

various websites from which they can obtain school

test score information.

We had a buyer come to our oce who has

plainly stated that he does not want a woman

representing him. What should I tell him?

e Fair Housing Act prohibits a broker from

matching clients with agents on the basis of gender

(or on the basis of any other protected class).

fair housing

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 27

FAIR HOUSING

I plan on stating on the MLS and other

advertising that my seller’s house is in a

“family neighborhood.” Can I use this type of

description?

Real estate advertising should not include

statements that either suggest that families with

children are NOT welcome or that they are the

ONLY people welcome. A reference to a “family

neighborhood” may be interpreted as an attempt

to discourage buyers who are not families with

children.

I plan to start an advertising campaign

marketing my services exclusively to single

women. I also plan to incorporate a donation

to women’s charities into this advertising

campaign. Is this allowable?

While it is permissible to set up a program which

donates money to one or more specic “women’s

charities,” an advertising campaign should not be

directed at women (as opposed to men) or single

persons (as opposed to married persons). Unlike

the Fair Housing Act, the Michigan Elliott-Larsen

Civil Rights Act also prohibits discrimination based

upon marital status. MCL37.2502.

I have a prospective buyer that wants to see a

home in a neighborhood that I consider to be

very dangerous. However, this neighborhood

is primarily made up of a number of ethnic

minorities. What can I do?

REALTORS

should never refuse to show (or even

discourage a buyer from seeing) a particular house

that a buyer-client has asked to see based upon

the REALTOR’S

assumption that the buyer would

not like the neighborhood. Historically, a large

number of Fair Housing Act cases have involved

agents who have allegedly steered clients to

particular neighborhoods where the agent thought

the client would be “most comfortable.” If a client

makes a specic inquiry about crime statistics, the

REALTOR

should not oer her own perceptions

as to an area, but should refer the client to places

where ocial statistics may be available.

28 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I represent the seller on a short sale. I have

worked for six months to put together a short

sale and now the seller’s lender has conditioned

its acceptance on my agreement to reduce my

commission by 2%. Can the seller’s lender do

this?

Unfortunately, yes. e seller’s lender is being

asked to agree to take less than it is contractually

owed. Accordingly, it can refuse to do so, or it

can condition its approval on just about anything,

including a lower commission payment.

I am a REALTOR

that bought a property at a

sheri’s sale. e owner of the property no longer

occupies the property. As the buyer, am I allowed

to declare the property abandoned and shorten

the redemption period to 30days?

NO. Only a mortgagee can le an adavit of

abandonment to shorten the redemption period

aer a sheri’s sale. A successful third-party bidder

at a foreclosure sale cannot use the abandonment

process.

A landlord is currently in the foreclosure process

on his investment property. e landlord has

tenants that claim they no longer have to pay rent

due to the foreclosure. Is this true?

NO. e tenants are still responsible for the

payment of rent to the landlord under the terms

of their lease, despite the property being in

foreclosure.

I represent a buyer who is buying a foreclosed

property from a bank. e bank has made a

condition of the contract that it holds the earnest

money deposit. Ibelieve that this is illegal. Am I

correct?

NO. ere is no prohibition against the seller

holding the earnest money deposit. Both the

amount of the deposit and where it is to be held are

negotiable items between the buyer and the seller.

I represent a seller whose mortgage is in default

and who has a foreclosure sale coming up. We

have received numerous oers on the property

but we need the lender’s approval on what will

certainly be a short sale. I was told to have the

seller accept all of the oers and present them all

to the seller’s bank for its consideration. Is this

permissible?

A purchase agreement, which is contingent upon

the sellers’ bank’s approval, is in many ways the

same as a purchase agreement that is contingent

upon the purchasers’ bank’s approval. In both

situations, there is an implied obligation on

the part of the sellers or buyers to do all they

can to obtain their bank’s approval. ere is a

strong argument that each purchase agreement

accepted by the sellers would constitute a binding

purchase agreement subject to satisfaction of any

contingencies. In order to avoid problems, a seller

who wants to sign more than one oer may wish

to include a statement along the lines of: “is

agreement shall not be binding on the seller unless

approved by sellers’ mortgagee. Sellers shall have

the right to present more than one contract for their

mortgagee’s consideration.” Keep in mind, however,

that if the contract is not binding on the sellers, it is

probably not binding upon the buyers either.

I am listing a property for a seller whose house

sold at sheri’s sale. e seller owes the bank

$150,000. e bank had a winning bid of

$100,000, resulting in a deciency of $50,000.

If we are unable to sell the property during the

redemption period, will the seller be liable for

the $50,000 dierence?

Yes, ordinarily the seller will be liable for the

$50,000 deciency whether or not the property

is redeemed. If the seller happens to have other

loans which had been secured by junior liens on

the property, the seller would also remain liable for

those debts as well.

foreclosures and short sales

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 29

FORECLOSURES AND SHORT SALES

I represent sellers whose house was auctioned at

a sheri’s sale and is currently in the redemption

period. e house was purchased at the sheri’s

sale by someone other than the lender. How can

my client redeem the property?

By law, payment of the redemption price may

be made either to the register of deeds or to the

person who actually purchased that property at the

foreclosure sale. e sheri’s deed should have a

“redemption adavit” attached which includes the

calculation of the redemption price and provides

contact information for the purchaser or the

“purchaser’s designee” representative for facilitating

the redemption.

I represent a buyer who has submitted

an oer that will result in a short sale

situation. e oer was accepted by

the seller subject to the seller’s lender’s

approval. Several months have gone by

without any response from the seller’s

lender. Can my buyer terminate the

contract?

ere is no law that gives a party the right

to terminate a contract aer a particular

period of time. For this reason, a purchase

contract with a contingency for the

seller’s lender’s approval – as with any

other contingency – should have a stated

deadline for obtaining such approval,

aer which the buyer can terminate the

contract.

I just entered into a listing agreement

with sellers that is likely to end up

being a short sale. I plan to make this

fact known when I enter the listing

into the MLS. Should I get my sellers’

permission to do this?

YES. Entering information that the

sale of the home will be a short sale

may aect the sellers’ ability to sell

the home, therefore, you should

get their permission before

entering that information into

the MLS. (Note that some MLS

rules require the disclosure

of a potential short sale when

“reasonably known.”)

I represent a seller whose house is in foreclosure.

e property was purchased by the bank at the

sheri’s sale. e seller entered into a purchase

agreement but due to some unforeseen delays

the closing will not be able to take place until

the redemption period expires. Must the bank

allow the sale to go through since the purchase

agreement was in place before the redemption

period expired?

NO. Once the redemption period expires the seller

has no legal title or rights to the property. e bank

has no contractual duty to sell the property to the

buyer.

30 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I want to change the name of my brokerage

company. Do I need to get a new license?

NO. If you are simply changing the name of your

existing company you should le Form LCL-013

(Request for Name and/or Address Update).

I am a licensed real estate agent. Whenever

I host an open house, I have my unlicensed

assistant accompany me to answer the door and

ask prospective buyers ll in a register. Several

agents have told me that unlicensed assistants

cannot attend open houses. Is this correct?

IT DEPENDS. A non-licensee cannot

independently conduct an open house. e manner

described above is allowable since the unlicensed

assistant is acting as a host/hostess and not

performing any licensed activities.

I was at a continuing education class and the

instructor told us that we are no longer required

to display our licenses to the public. Isthis

correct?

YES. Brokers are no longer required to display

their licenses to the public; however, licensees are

still required to have their pocket cards in their

possession while they are performing licensed

activities. MCL 339.2506.

I am a licensed salesperson commonly known by

the nickname “Stevie M” and I use that name in

all of my advertising. Is it a violation of licensing

law to use a nickname in my advertising?

NO. e Occupational Code does not prohibit

salespersons from using nicknames in their

advertising. However, the broker’s name and

telephone number or address must also appear in

the advertising.

I have a friend who owns and leases more than

5 separate homes. Doesn’tshe need a real estate

license?

NO. Licensure is required if a person engages

in more than 5 real estate sales in any 12-month

period. MCL 339.2502b.

A man from Canada is selling land located in

Michigan. Can I represent him or does he need a

Canadian agent?

YES, you can represent him in this transaction.

Your license authorizes you to sell real estate in the

state of Michigan. It does not matter if the client is

from another state or country.

I am both a licensed appraiser and licensed real

estate broker. Ihave a partner who is a licensed

appraiser. I will be on vacation and unavailable

for two weeks. May I have my partner show one

of my listings during this time?

NO. Your partner is required to have a real estate

license (not just an appraiser’s license) in order to

show property.

A former salesperson who wants to join my

company has contacted me. Her license expired

ten years ago. What is she required to do in order

to get her license reissued?

A prior licensee who has been unlicensed for more

than three years can get her new license by doing

one of the following:

1. Successfully complete six hours of approved

continuing education courses for each year

and partial year that have lapsed since the

expiration of her license;

1. Successfully complete an approved 40-hour

prelicensure course in the 12-month period

preceding the date of application; or

1. Pass the State examination required for a

salesperson’s license.

MCL 339.2502a(6).

general licensing issues (OCCUPATIONAL CODE AND RULES)

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 31

GENERAL LICENSING ISSUES

It recently came to my attention that I am

required to provide a written policy and

procedures manual. Is this true?

YES. e Occupational Code provides that a broker

must supervise the work of a real estate salesperson.

“Supervision” is dened to include “at least” all of

the following:

a) Direct communication in person or by radio,

telephone, or electronic communication on a

regular basis.

b) Review of the practice of the supervised

licensee.

c) Review of the salesperson’s reports.

d) Analyses and guidance of the salesperson’s

performance in regulated activities.

e) Providing written operating policies and

procedures to the salesperson. MCL 339.2512f.

e real estate brokerage that I own has

numerous branch oces licensed with the state

of Michigan. One of the branches sells vacation

homes and is only open during the peak season.

Other brokers have told me that an oce must

be open year round to be a legal branch oce. Is

this true?

NO. e Occupational Code does not set any rules

requiring a branch to be open year round.

How long should my oce hold records?

Rule 313(5) requires that escrow account records

be maintained for at least three years. It is possible,

based on statutes of limitations for various causes

of action, that litigation could be initiated up to

six years aer a transaction has closed. ere are

also tolling provisions in the law that could extend

the statute of limitations. us, while there are no

absolutes, it is advisable to hold all records for a

minimum of seven years.

I am a real estate licensee and I would like to

make an oer on some property but I do not wish

to disclose the fact that I am a real estate licensee

until aer the purchase agreement is accepted.

Can I do this?

NO. e Occupational Code provides:

If a licensee buys or otherwise acquires, directly or

indirectly, an interest in real property, the licensee

shall disclose to the owner of the property that

the licensee is licensed under this part before the

owner is asked to sign the purchase agreement.

MCL 339.2517.

A potential buyer of the property is a limited

liability company, one of the members of whom

is a real estate licensee. Do I need to disclose that

fact to the seller?

YES. Disclosure is required if a real estate licensee

is acquiring property “directly or indirectly.”

Acquiring property through a limited liability

company in which you are a member would likely

be viewed as an “indirect” acquisition.

I am a listing broker and my seller has just

recently accepted a purchase agreement. Today,

I received another oer for this property. Does

license law obligate me to present this oer to my

seller?

NO, unless your listing agreement provides to the

contrary. Rule 307(5) states:

A licensee shall not be subject to disciplinary

action for failing to submit to the seller any

additional oers to purchase which are received

aer the seller has accepted an oer and the

sales agreement is fully executed, unless a service

provision agreement requires that subsequent

oers be presented.

To avoid some type of breach of duciary duty

claim from a seller-client, REALTORS

who do

not wish to present additional oers are strongly

encouraged to include a provision in their listing

agreement form which expressly states that

additional oers received aer a binding purchase

agreement is signed will not be presented to the

seller.

32 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

e house that I have listed was the scene of a

terrible crime. Is this fact something that I have

to disclose to prospective buyers?

NO. An agent is not required to disclose this type

of occurrence unless the prospective buyer was to

specically inquire. e Occupational Code states:

An action shall not be brought against a real

estate broker, an associate broker, or a real estate

salesperson under the following circumstances: . .

. (b) For failure to disclose to a purchaser or lessee

of real property that the real property was or was

suspected to have been the site of a homicide,

suicide, or other occurrence prohibited by law

which had no material eect on the condition of

the real property or improvements located on the

real property. MCL339.2518(b).

REALTORS

should be aware that if a buyer were

to ask if anything of this nature has occurred, the

REALTOR

must respond honestly to such question.

I have real estate broker’s licenses in both

Michigan and Indiana. Currently, Ialso have

oces in both states. I want to close my oce in

Michigan but still operate in both states. Is this

possible?

NO. e Occupational Code requires a real estate

broker to maintain a “place of business” which is

dened as:

. . . a physical location that a real estate broker, by

advertisement, signage or otherwise represents to

the public is a place where clients and customers

may consult or do business with a licensee. MCL

339.2501(m); MCL 339.2505(3).

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 33

What kind of records does a broker need to keep

for its trust account? Howlong does a broker

need to keep these records?

Trust account requirements include:

(1) A trust account must be a non-interest-

bearing account;

(2) Checks from a trust account must be signed by

broker or associate broker;

(3) Broker must maintain a chronological

journal for the account showing all deposits/

disbursements and showing a running balance

aer each entry;

(4) Broker must also maintain separate

accounting ledgers showing receipts/

disbursements for each transaction;

(5) Broker may deposit its own funds – not to

exceed $2,000 – so as to avoid bank charges.

Broker must maintain a ledger for its own

funds; and

(6) Trust account records must be maintained for

at least 3 years.

(See MCL 339.2512(1)(k) and Rule 313 for more

detail).

Who can provide a market analysis and who can

be paid for a market analysis?

e Occupational Code allows a salesperson to

prepare a market analysis only for a customer or

potential customer and only if the salesperson does

not charge separately for this service. is means

that a salesperson cannot prepare a market analysis

for any third party. A broker or associate broker

can prepare a market analysis for any person or

entity other than in “federally related transactions”

and can charge for this service. e market analysis

must be in writing and also include this language

in boldface print: “is is a market analysis, not

an appraisal and was prepared by a licensed real

estate broker or associate broker, not a licensed

appraiser.” MCL339.2601(a)(ii).

I am a REALTOR

representing a seller to

whom I am related. I have spoken to other

agents and they told me that I have to disclose

this relationship to potential buyers. Are they

correct?

NO. ere is nothing in the Occupational Code or

the rules that require agents to disclose that they

are related to a seller or buyer whom they represent.

When the Code refers to someone buying property

“indirectly,” it is referring to the situation where, for

example, the licensee is a partner in a partnership

that is buying the home. A licensee does not hold

an “indirect” interest in a home by virtue of the fact

that the home is owned by a relative of that licensee.

I am the listing broker. My sellers have told

me that they need to receive a minimum

amount of $200,000 from the sale but that I

can keep any amount in excess of this amount

as my commission. I told them that such an

arrangement is illegal in Michigan. Am I correct?

YES. is would be a “net list agreement”

prohibited by Rule 315(3), whichprovides:

A licensee shall not become a party to a net

service provision agreement for an owner, seller,

or buyer as a means of securing a real estate

commission.

I am a broker who has a salesperson who recently

tendered her resignation in writing to me. is

agent owes me a substantial amount of money in

membership dues and MLS fees. I told the agent

that I would not be sending her license back to

the state until these obligations were met. Can I

do this?

NO. e Occupational Code states:

If a real estate salesperson is discharged or

terminates employment with a real estate broker

by giving the employer a written notice of the

termination, the real estate broker shall deliver or

mail by certied mail to the department, within

5 days, the real estate salesperson’s license . . . .

MCL339.2507(1).

If a salesperson or associate broker has departed,

a broker cannot impose any conditions upon the

release of the license.

GENERAL LICENSING ISSUES

34 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I have a house listed. A buyer went directly to the

seller with an oer which was accepted. Is this a

valid purchase agreement?

YES. Although the buyer went directly to the

seller instead of the listing agent, there is still a

valid purchase agreement. Assuming the contract

was an exclusive right to sell, the seller still owes a

commission.

I am the broker/owner of ABC Realty Company.

I have decided that I no longer wish to be

associated with the ABC Realty franchise and I

have decided to go with 123 Realty franchise. Do

I have to get the authorization of all my clients

to transfer the listings and agency agreements to

the 123-franchise name?

It depends. If you are setting up a new corporation,

then you will need to transfer the listings from

the old corporation to the new corporation and

obtain the sellers’ approvals to do so. If you are

simply using your existing corporation with a new

assumed name referencing the new franchisor,

thenno transfer will be required. In the latter

situation, however, a seller could argue that the

new aliation gives him the right to terminate the

listing, if he chooses to do so. In other words, the

seller could argue that his decision to list with your

company was based upon your aliation with the

ABC-franchise.

My sellers sent me a written notice terminating

my listing contract for their residence 6 weeks

prior to its expiration. ey will no longer return

my calls or allow any showings. Aren’t my sellers

in breach of contract and can’t I require them to

let me show their home to potential buyers?

Even if your sellers are in breach of contract, you

cannot require them to let you show their home.

Your only remedy would be to le a lawsuit asking a

court to compensate you monetarily for the sellers’

breach of contract.

I currently have two buyers under buyers’ agency

contracts that are both interested in making

oers on the same home. How should I handle

this situation?

Your buyers’ agency contract form should contain

language notifying buyers of the possibility of

competing oers. e contract should contain

language that puts buyers on notice that other

buyers represented by your oce may make oers

on the same property. e contract should also

contain a provision that states that your rm will

preserve any condential information gained from

the agency relationship. e MR Exclusive Buyer

Agency Contract contains the following language in

paragraph 7.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST (BUYERS): Buyer

acknowledges that Broker may represent other

buyers desirous of purchasing property similar

to the Desired Property. Buyer acknowledges

and agrees that Broker may show more than

one buyer the same property, and may prepare

oers on the same property for more than one

buyer. Broker shall preserve any condential

information disclosed by any buyer-client and

shall not disclose the existence of, or the terms

of, any oer prepared on behalf of one buyer to

another buyer. In the event Broker works for two

competing buyer-clients in connection with any

specic property, Broker will be working equally

for both buyer-clients and without the full range

of duciary duties owed by a buyer’s agent to a

buyer. In this situation, the competing buyer-

clients are giving up their rights to undivided

loyalty and will be owed only limited duties of

disclosure, obedience and condentiality.

If your buyer agency form contains similar language

and you are careful not to disclose any condential

information to either client, you should be

protected. If you do not have such a written waiver,

you could face claims of breach of duciary duties

from one or both buyers.

listing agreements and

buyer agency contracts

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 35

LISTING AGREEMENTS AND BUYER AGENCY CONTRACTS

Is it true that so long as I check “buyer’s agent”

on an agency disclosure form, a buyer agency

agreement isn’t necessary?

No. While the agency disclosure form is required

by the Occupational Code, it does not oer

REALTORS

all of the protections set forth in a

typical buyer’s agency contract. A buyer’s agency

contract, for example, should put the buyer on

notice as to the limitations on the role of the buyer’s

agent. Moreover, for designated agency rms, a

buyer’s agency contract is not just a good idea, but

is required in order to establish the designated

agency relationship.

I am the listing agent on a

listing that is about to expire.

ere is a binding contingent

purchase agreement in place,

but closing is not scheduled

until next month. Do the

sellers have to re-list with my

company?

No. e sellers are not

required to re-list with

your company once the

listing period expires.

ey should be advised,

however, that if they list

with another company,

they will need to exclude

the pending sale from

the new listing (sothey

don’t nd themselves

inadvertently liable for two

commissions).

What is a “service

provision agreement?”

A “service provision

agreement” is the term

that DLARA uses to

refer to both listing

contracts and buyer

agency contracts. MCL

339.2501(w).

A competitor’s listing agreement has a clause

that provides for an automatic 6-month renewal

period if the seller does not cancel the contract

before the listing expires. I don’t believe this is a

legal contract. Am I correct?

YES. ere can be no automatic renewals in listing

agreements. Rule305(2) provides:

A service provision agreement shall include a

denite expiration date and shall not contain

a provision requiring the party signing the

agreement to notify the broker of the party’s

intention to cancel the agreement upon or aer

the expiration date.

e property that I have listed has attracted very

little interest. In order to create more interest

I want to set up a rae at the next open house

whereby agents can drop o their business cards

for the opportunity to win a $500gi certicate

at a local retailer. Can I do this?

NO. e Occupational Code provides that:

“A plan or scheme involving a lottery, contest,

game, prize, or drawing shall not be used by a

real estate broker or real estate salesperson for the

sale or promotion of a sale of real estate.” MCL

339.2511.

It does not matter whether the prize is oered to

the potential buyers or to their agents – both are

prohibited.

I am a REALTOR

representing sellers in

connection with the sale of their property.

In order to generate some trac, my sellers

suggested that we give away instant lottery

tickets to the rst 20 people who come to an open

house. Is this legal?

YES. ere is no prohibition

against the giving away

instant lottery tickets

to a predetermined

number of prospective

buyers. What you need

to avoid, however, is

conducting any raes or

other games of chance at

open houses.

My sellers are having a dicult time selling their

home. ey have asked whether they can sell

their property by having a rae. Is this legal?

NO. According to the Michigan lottery statute, only

certain nonprot organizations are eligible for a

license to conduct bingos, millionaire parties, and

raes, and to sell charity game tickets.

I want to start a marketing program where I will

contact past clients for referrals and then enter

their names into a drawing to win prizes. Is this

legal?

NO. You cannot pay any consideration to

individuals who are not licensed under the

Occupational Code. Even a chance to win a prize

would likely be viewed as “consideration.” e only

exception is a landlord may pay a referral fee to an

existing tenant for a referral of another tenant, so

long as the value does not exceed ½ month’s rent.

lotteries/raes/games of chance

36 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 37

I run a property management company that

specializes in luxury home rentals. In order to

ensure that only eligible candidates apply, I have

instituted a policy that requires prospective

tenants to have a minimum credit score prior to

viewing the property. Is this an allowable policy?

YES. It is permissible to require a minimum

credit rating as a criterion to determine whether a

prospective tenant is eligible to see a property. Such

a policy should be disclosed to and approved by the

owner of the property and must be applied to all

applicants equally. Any variation in the application

of the policy could subject you to a claim of

unlawful discrimination.

I am currently leasing a house to a tenant

whose former boyfriend has been stalking and

harassing her. She wants to terminate the lease

early and go into hiding. Can she do this?

YES, if she has a “reasonable apprehension of

present danger.” eLandlord-Tenant Act allows

tenants to terminate a rental agreement in cases of

domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking. MCL

554.601b.

e law states:

“. . . a tenant shall be released from his or her

rental payment obligation in accordance with

the requirements of this section aer submittal of

written notice of his or her intent to seek a release

and written documentation that the tenant has a

reasonable apprehension of present danger to the

tenant or his or her child from domestic violence,

sexual assault, or stalking. Submittal of written

notice shall be made by certied mail.”

Written documentation of a reasonable

apprehension of present danger includes:

• A valid personal protection order.

• Avalidprobationorder,conditionalrelease

order or parole order.

• Awrittenpolicereportthathasresultedinthe

ling of charges by a prosecuting attorney.

I am a broker who wants to get into property

management. Can I use my existing trust account

for property management funds or should I set

up a separate account?

A broker should set up a separate property

management account, which may be an interest-

bearing account. e Occupational Code states:

A property management account may be an

interest-bearing account or instrument, unless

the property management employment contract

provides to the contrary. e interest earned on a

property management account shall be handled

in accordance with the property management

employment contract. MCL339.2512c(3).

I am a REALTOR

representing an individual

who owns rental properties. Heprohibits pets

in his apartments. A blind person who uses a

guide dog has expressed interest in one of the

apartments. Can the property owner refuse to

rent an apartment to this individual based on the

pet prohibition?

NO. A guide/leader dog is not considered a “pet,”

but rather a service animal. Prohibiting service

animals would violate various laws/regulations

prohibiting discrimination against disabled persons.

I represent someone who is interested in leasing

a house. Am I required to provide an agency

disclosure form?

YES. e agency disclosure law denes a real

estate transaction as one involving the sale OR

LEASE of real estate consisting of not less than

one or not more than four residential dwelling

units or a building site for a residential unit. MCL

339.2517(11)(g). Although the “standard” agency

form may be used in lease situations, MR has an

agency disclosure form designed specically for

lease transactions available on its website (Form

K-Lease).

property management/leases

38 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I manage several residential rental properties. Is

it okay to charge rst and last months rent plus a

security deposit in advance?

e Landlord and Tenant Relationship Act allows

landlords to charge up to one and one-half months

rent as a security deposit. MCL 554.602. In

addition, the rst month’s rent may be required in

advance of move in. If a landlord also charges the

last month’s rent in advance, it must be considered

part of the security deposit. us, the security

deposit plus last month’s rent cannot exceed one

and one-half month’s rent. e last month’s rent

must be deposited with the security deposit and

handled in accordance with the Security Deposit

Act.

I heard that any residential real estate lease that

is longer than one-year is illegal in the state of

Michigan. Is this true?

NO. ere is no prohibition in Michigan against

leases that are longer than one year.

I own a 2-bedroom rental home. Can I restrict

large families from leasing this property due to

the house’s limited capacity?

Landlords can restrict the number of persons that

may occupy a home or apartment and, in fact, many

municipalities license rental units for a particular

number of occupants. While it is appropriate to

restrict the number of occupants, a restriction

should never refer to “large families” or a specic

number of children.

I have a rental house that I have recently rented

to someone who has physical disabilities. e

tenant wants me to install rails in a number of

areas within the house at my expense. Must I do

this?

If a person has a disability, a landlord must permit

him or her to make reasonable modications to the

rental unit; however, the landlord can require the

disabled tenant to pay for the modications and to

restore the property to its original condition at the

termination of the lease.

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 39

I am selling a piece of commercial property that

has a lower SEV now than when I purchased it. Is

this transaction exempt from state transfer tax?

NO. e declining SEV exemption from the

state transfer tax is not applicable to commercial

property. It is only applicable to residential property

that is your principal residence

Some clients of mine sold their principal

residence in 2013 and the SEV was lower at the

time they sold it than when they purchased it.

ey just found out that they might be entitled

to a refund of the state transfer tax they paid.

ey sold the house at a prot; will they still be

entitled to the refund?

YES, to qualify for the state transfer tax refund, the

SEV at the time of purchase must be higher than

the SEV at the time of sale. e fact that they sold

the house at a prot has no eect on their ability

to get a refund. e only requirement is that the

home was sold at the price that would be arrived at

through an arms-length negotiation.

Some clients of mine bought vacant land in

2011 on which they had a house constructed in

2012. ey sold the house in late 2014. Will they

be entitled to a state transfer tax refund if the

SEV of their property at the time the house was

completed was more than at the time of sale?

NO, since at the time of purchase, the land was

vacant, they cannot claim a refund of the state

transfer tax since the property was not their

principal residence at the time of purchase.

I have a client that is transferring her house to

her sister in return for her sister’s agreement to

pay o the mortgage. Is this transaction exempt

from transfer tax? If not, how will the transfer

tax be calculated?

Transfers between siblings are not exempt from

transfer tax. Here,theconsideration paid is the

amount of the mortgage being assumed.

I represented a buyer of a Fannie Mae/Freddie

Mac property who paid the Michigan real estate

transfer tax. Now that a recent Federal Circuit

Court ruling has said that Fannie Mae/Freddie

Mac are exempt from transfer tax, is my buyer

eligible for a refund?

YES. Assuming that the transaction occurred

within the last four years, the buyer can obtain

a refund by ling form 2796 with the Michigan

Department of Treasury, along with a copy of the

settlement statement (HUD-1) and the recorded

deed containing the tax stamp.

My church is selling some property it owns which

is exempt from real property taxes. Will the deed

be exempt from transfer tax?

NO. e transfer of real property from a non-prot

organization is not exempt from transfer tax.

I own 100% of a corporation, which in turn

owns an apartment complex. ecorporation

has owned the property for many years and

the current taxable value is signicantly lower

than the SEV. I am in the process of selling

this property and the buyer has asked that

we structure this sale as a stock sale in order

to prevent the assessor from uncapping the

taxable value. Will this transaction result in an

uncapping?

YES. A sale of more than 50% of the ownership

interest in an entity will trigger the uncapping of the

taxable value. (Such transaction will also be subject

to state transfer tax.)

I have clients that are in the process of selling

one of their properties to their adopted

granddaughter. It is my understanding that this

is an exempt transaction for purposes of state

transfer tax transfer. Am I correct?

YES. Under the State Real Estate Transfer Tax Act,

this is an exempt transfer. MCL 207.526(k). No state

transfer tax is owed.

real property taxes/transfer taxes

40 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

My client is purchasing a second home that he

will be using as a primary residence. It is my

understanding that he may claim a homestead

exemption on the house he is leaving. Is this true?

YES, provided certain criteria are met.

e Michigan Department of Treasury allows for

a Conditional Rescission of Principal Residence

Exemption (PRE). A conditional rescission allows

an owner to receive a PRE on both the owner’s

current property and on previously exempted

property if the previous principal residence meets

ALL of the following criteria:

• is not occupied.

• is for sale.

• is not leased.

• is not used for any business

or commercial purpose.

If your client’s property meets ALL of these criteria,

he can claim a Conditional Rescission of Principal

Residence Exemption.

I am representing a seller who is buying a second

home to live in while he tears down his existing

home in order to build a new one. Can he claim

the Conditional Rescission of the Principal

Residence Exemption under these circumstances?

NO. In order to qualify for the conditional

rescission, the prior home must be listed for sale.

I am selling the mineral rights on a parcel of land

that I own. Am I required to pay transfer tax?

NO. A transfer of mineral rights is exempt

from both state and county transfer taxes (MCL

207.505(n); MCL 207.526(q)).

I am selling a property on land contract payable

over a ve-year period. Whenis the transfer tax

due in such a transaction?

According to the State Real Estate Transfer Tax

Act, the transfer tax is not due until legal title is

passed from the grantor to the grantee aer all

consideration is paid. MCL 207.526(o). On the other

hand, the property is subject to the “popup tax” at

the time the land contract begins. MCL 211.27a(6)

(b).

I am a REALTOR

who just recently acquired

a real estate license in Arizona. Ihave moved

to my new home in Arizona and am trying to

sell my home here in Michigan. Can I claim the

Conditional Rescission of a Principal Residence

Exemption (PRE) on my Michigan home?

NO. You can only claim the Conditional Rescission

of a Principal Residence Exemption if both of the

residential properties you own are in Michigan.

I have a client who recently remarried and has

moved to her new husband’s house, but is not on

the title for that house. She has listed her prior

home for sale, but has not found a buyer. Can

she claim a Conditional Recission of Principal

Residence Exemption on her prior home?

NO. In order to qualify for a conditional rescission

on a prior residence, the owner of that property

must be eligible and claim a principal residence

exemption on her current home.

I am currently listing for sale the home of a man

who has moved into an assisted living facility.

Is he still eligible for the principal residence

exemption?

YES. e general property tax act provides:

A person who previously occupied property as

his or her principal residence but now resides in a

nursing home orassistedliving facility may retain

an exemption on that property if the owner satises

all of the following conditions:

• e owner continues to own that property

while residing in the nursing home or

assistedliving facility.

• e owner has not established a new principal

residence.

• e owner maintains or provides for the

maintenance of that property while residing in

the nursing home orassistedliving facility.

• at property is not occupied, is not leased,

and is not used for any business or commercial

purpose. MCL 211.7cc(5).

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 41

I have clients that have bought and sold many

properties through me over the years. ey have

just referred a couple to me so that I could assist

them in locating a home. I would like to give a gi

certicate to my long term clients. Can I do this?

It depends on the reason for the gi. You may not

give your long term clients a gi for a referral. e

Occupational Code states that a licensee is subject

to the penalties set for in Article 6 if he or she

“shares or pays a fee, commission, or other valuable

consideration to a person not licensed under this

article . . . .” MCL339.2512(h). In this example,

unless your client is a real estate licensee, you are

prohibited from making any payments for this

referral. On the other hand, a licensee can give a

gi to the client to show his/her appreciation for the

client’s past business.

I have heard that the TILA-RESPA Integrated

Disclosure Rule (TRID) aects the manner in

which the appraisals are ordered. Am I correct?

TRID requires that a lender provide a buyer with

two new disclosure forms: one at the time the

borrower applies for a loan (Loan Estimate), and

the other at the time the buyer closes on the loan

(Closing Disclosure). eLoan Estimate must be

provided to the buyer within three business days

aer the buyer receives the buyer’s loan application.

Under TRID, lenders cannot receive fees nor order

appraisals until they get authorization from the

buyer to proceed aer the buyer has received the

Loan Estimate. erefore, purchase agreements

should not contain language that requires buyers to

cause the lender to order an appraisal immediately.

respa and other federal regulatory issues

42 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

I am selling commercial property to a buyer

that is paying cash. Is RESPA applicable to this

transaction?

NO. RESPA applies only to residential transactions

that involve a federally related mortgage loan.

I recently entered into an arrangement with the

local school system whereby I will be making

donations to the school system on behalf of the

students whose parents are referred by the school

system to me as clients. Is this acceptable?

NO. e Occupational Code states that a licensee

is subject to the penalties set forth in Article 6 if

he or she “shares or pays a fee, commission, or other

valuable consideration to a person not licensed under

this article . . . .” MCL339.2512(h). A licensee may

not pay referral fees to an organization, even if the

organization is a public or a charitable organization.

An agent licensed in the state of California

referred a buyer to me. Can I pay that agent a

referral fee?

YES, provided it is paid through their broker and

the California agent does not conduct in Michigan

“a negotiation for which a commission is paid”

(MCL339.2512(h)). In other words, a Michigan

broker can pay an out of state agent a referral fee

provided the out of state agent does not represent

either the buyer or seller in a Michigan real estate

transaction.

I am representing a buyer in the purchase of

a home. I have referred the buyer to a moving

company and I will be receiving a referral fee

from this company. Is this a violation of RESPA?

NO. RESPA regulates “settlement services” related

to the making of a federally related mortgage loan.

Services that are provided aer closing, such as

moving services, are not considered “settlement

services” as dened by RESPA.

A local attorney referred his client to me to

purchase one of my listings. He is not a real estate

licensee but he is demanding a referral fee. He

said because he is an attorney he is exempt from

the rule prohibiting referral fees to non-licensees.

Can I pay him?

NO. ere is no exemption from the licensing

requirement for attorneys. eonly exemption

to the referral fee prohibition deals with paying

existing tenants for the referral of other tenants.

MCL 339.2512b(b).

Does the buyer or seller get to choose the title

company?

is is simply a matter of contract between the

parties. REALTORS

should keep in mind, however,

that RESPA prohibits a seller from requiring the

buyer to purchase title insurance from a particular

title company. is restriction would not apply in

the typical situation where the seller is paying for

the buyer’s owner’s policy. However, this restriction

would apply if the seller required the buyer to

purchase the lender’s policy from a particular title

company.

I am a REALTOR

and I am interested in going

into a joint advertising venture with a title

company. Would this be possible?

IT DEPENDS. RESPA does not prohibit joint

advertising; however, if one party is paying less than

its pro-rata share of the cost of the advertisement,

there may be a RESPA violation.

I have a property that I am trying to move. To

generate interest I am oering tickets to a Detroit

Red Wings game to anyone that refers a buyer to

me, provided that the sale successfully closes. Is

this permissible?

NO. e Occupational Code prohibits such a

payment to anyone who is not licensed. MCL

339.2512(h). (It would, however, be permissible

to give the Detroit Red Wings tickets to the actual

buyer of the home as DLARA does not consider this

to be a “referral fee.”)

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 43

What if only one spouse of a married couple signs

a listing agreement? Is the result the same where

only one spouse signs the purchase agreement?

A listing agreement or buyer’s agency agreement

signed by only the husband or wife is binding on

that party even if his/her spouse does not sign the

agreement. In the event of sale, the spouse that

signed the listing agreement would be legally bound

to pay a commission. e same is not true for the

seller on a purchase agreement. In order to be valid,

a purchase agreement must have the signatures of

all of the owners of the property. A husband or a

wife can make a binding contract to buy property

without the signature of his/her spouse.

I am a REALTOR

that is representing a seller

who is selling a large parcel of land in northern

Michigan. e oil and gas rights were reserved 30

years ago by the previous owner. ere has been

no drilling done during this timeframe. Does the

previous owner continue to retain these rights?

IT DEPENDS. Under the Michigan Dormant

Minerals Act, under certain circumstances, reserved

oil and gas rights will terminate aer 20 years.

e Dormant Minerals Act applies only to oil or gas

rights, and not to other mineral rights. You should

advise your seller to discuss this issue with an

attorney to see what steps can be taken to clear title.

title issues

I was contacted by a prospective seller who wants

to sell her deceased father’s home. She believes

she should be able sell it without going through

probate because she has her father’s power of

attorney. Is she correct?

NO. e power of attorney expired upon the death

of the father.

For estate planning purposes, my neighbor would

like to add her 14-year-old daughter to the deed to

her home. Is this legal?

Yes. ere is nothing prohibiting a minor from

holding title to real property. e diculty will

arise if the neighbor and her daughter later want to

sell the home while the child is still a minor. Your

neighbor should consult an estate planning attorney

prior to adding her daughter to the deed.

I am a buyer’s agent. e title work shows the

seller’s deceased father as record title holder of

record to a small portion of the land my client

is purchasing. Seller has asked his father’s estate

attorney to take care of this matter. Buyer does

not want to delay closing. Should I let my buyer

close before this title problem is worked out?

While it may not be advisable to close under these

circumstances, the buyer cannot be prevented from

closing. In circumstances such as this, a buyer’s

agent should give his client something in writing

recommending that the closing not take place until

the buyer consults with an attorney.

I am an agent representing a seller in the sale

of the home. He wants me to advertise that the

payment on this house is $600 per month. Can I

do this?

YES, but only if the advertisement includes

additional information. RegulationZ of the Federal

Truth in Lending Act provides a list of criteria one

must follow when advertising nancing terms. is

regulation states that if a “triggering term” is used

in the advertisement, then the advertisement must

include additional information. A triggering term

includes one or more of the following:

1) e amount of the down payment expressed as

either a percentage or dollar amount.

2) e amount of any payment expressed as

either a percentage or dollar amount.

3) e number of payments or the period of

repayment.

4) e amount of any nance charge.

If the advertisement uses a “triggering term,” then it

must also contain the following information:

• eamountorpercentageofthedown

payment.

• etermsoftherepayment.

• eannualpercentagerateor“APR.”

I am a REALTOR

that represents a seller of a

home. He recently had a construction company

build a deck and patio for him. Because of a

dispute, he did not pay the full amount he was

charged for construction. e contractor led a

construction lien and is threatening to foreclose.

Can the contractor do this?

YES. e contractor claiming the lien may sue to

foreclose at any time within one year aer the lien is

recorded. Provided it is a valid lien, a circuit court

may order the sale or partial sale of the property.

44 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

WWW.MIREALTORS.COM 45

I have received a Writ of Garnishment on one of

my agents. It is my understanding that since my

agent is an independent contractor, I do not have

to obey this order. Am I correct?

No. e Writ of Garnishment is a court order,

and you must obey it. e fact that the agent is

an independent contractor does not absolve you

from obeying the order. Failure to honor a writ of

garnishment can result in you becoming liable for

all or a portion of the agent’s debt.

I am a REALTOR

who wishes to sell some

investment property on land contract. What is

the maximum amount of interest that I will be

able to charge?

e answer to this question depends on the status of

the buyer. While generally, the maximum amount

of interest on land contracts cannot exceed 11% per

year, a buyer who is a corporation or limited liability

company may be charged up to 25% per year.

Some agents in my area are giving potential

buyers the combination or code to the lock boxes

on vacant properties. Is this permissible?

NO. Although this situation is not specically

addressed by the Occupational Code, it is extremely

ill-advised to provide the code or lock box

combinations to non-agents. Doing so could subject

the agent (and the agent’s rm) to any number of

possible claims, including breach of duciary duty

and negligence claims. is practice may also be

deemed to violate the Code of Ethics. Standard of

Practice 3-9 provides that “REALTORS

shall not

provide access to listed property on terms other

than established by the owner or the listing broker.”

My real estate company used to be a franchisee

with a national company whose name is a

registered trademark. During this time, I

bought a number of Internet domain names

that included the name of the franchise. I am no

longer a franchisee, for this company. May I still

legally use the domain names that I purchased?

NO. Since the name of

this national company is

trademarked and you are no

longer a franchisee, you are

not licensed to use this domain

name.

My next-door neighbors’

fence is the color brown, but

I want to paint the side facing

my yard a dierent color.

Do I need my neighbor’s

permission to paint the fence

a dierent color?

Yes. Since the fence is your

neighbors’ property, you will

need their permission to

paint the fence.

miscellaneous

46 MICHIGANREALTOR® 2018 LEGAL HOTLINE COMPANION

legal hotline

e Michigan Realtors® Legal Hotline allows members to have direct, toll-free access to a qualied attorney

who can provide information on real estate law and other related matters. is service is only available to

Michigan Realtors® members. is is not a public service. e service is provided through members’ dues.

e Legal Hotline number is 800.522.2820. It is operated 9 a.m.– 3 p.m., Monday – Friday. is makes the

Michigan Realtors® Legal Hotline available to Members approximately 250 workdays per year. Recognized

holidays are excluded. If the Legal Hotline is busy; an answering machine will take calls. Calls are returned

within 24 hours, usually during the same day.

ce anywhere (on-demand video courses)

Complete these Legal CE Marketplace Certied video courses at your own pace at your home, oce, or

Anywhere you have an internet connection.

ondeman d.mirealtors.com

law library

is is a collection of articles and legal update materials that Michigan Realtors® has provided for you over the

years. Please remember that the law is constantly changing and that the articles in this library are not revised

or updated aer their publication date. For legal advice, please consult with an attorney.

mirealtors.com/Legal-Resources

letter of the law

Michigan Realtors® presents the “Letter of the Law” video series, a monthly legal analysis generated by input

from you, the viewer. Please send your ideas for future installments to bwestrin@mirealtors.com. We look

forward to hearing from you.

mirealtors.com/Legal-Resources

additional legal resources

8 x 11

17 x 11

1/2”

3/4”

1/4”

Quarter

201

,000

Realtors®!

Realtors®

WWW.MIREALTORS.COMVolume 16 | Number 3 MAY 2017

A publication of Michigan Realtors®

good

Decisions

Making

PLUS:

PLUS: Purchase Agreements Future Appraisal Practices Breaking the Ice

PLUS: Capitol Report Teams President’s Report Hack Protection Legal Lines

WWW.MIREALTORS.COMVolume 16 | Number 5 SEPTEMBER 2017

A publication of Michigan Realtors®

and the role of the Realtor

LARA

Compliance

WWW.MIREALTORS.COMVolume 16 | Number 4 AUGUST 2017

A publication of Michigan Realtors®

US:

Coaching Barriers President’s Report Commission & Dower Rights Capitol Report

•

THE C

ONVENTION

T G

DE IN

8 x 11

17 x 11

1/2”

3/4”

1/4”

Quarter

201

,000

Realtors®!

Realtors®

WWW.MIREALTORS.COMVolume 16 | Number 3 MAY 2017

A publication of Michigan Realtors®

good

Decisions

Making

PLUS:

Purchase Agreements Future Appraisal Practices Breaking the Ice

PLUS: Capitol Report Teams President’s Report Hack Protection Legal Lines

WWW.MIREALTORS.COMVolume 16 | Number 5 SEPTEMBER 2017

A publication of Michigan Realtors®

and the role of the Realtor

LARA

Compliance

Purchase Agreements

WWW.MIREALTORS.COMVolume 16 | Number 4 AUGUST 2017

A publication of Michigan Realtors®

US:

Coaching Barriers President’s Report Commission & Dower Rights Capitol Report

•

THE C

ONVENTION

ONVENTIONONVENTIONONVENTION

ONVENTION

T G

UIUIUI

DE IN

SISISI

Hack Protection

and the role of the Realtor