You have spent years building your real estate business that you can be proud of. Your livelihood and career depend on your real estate brokerage professional license. If a person files a complaint against you with the California Bureau of Real Estate, you risk facing disciplinary proceedings and penalties, including probation, license suspension, license revocation, and public reprimand.
Hiring Oakland License Attorney can increase your chances of obtaining the most favorable case outcome. We can stand with you throughout the disciplinary process and develop the best course of action based on your allegation and case facts.
Who is a Real Estate Broker?
A real estate broker is a certified professional who serves as an intermediary between sellers and buyers of real estate. The broker oversees the entire real estate transaction process, including finalizing deals, negotiating, and listing properties.
You represent clients in the sale and purchase of industrial, commercial, and residential assets. You work closely with clients to understand their preferences and needs and use your expertise to find the appropriate buyer or asset. Moreover, you conduct market research to determine the value of assets and marketing assets to potential tenants or buyers.
Additionally, you offer services including real estate investment advice, real estate consulting, and property management. You can also specialize in certain asset types, including commercial buildings, vacation rentals, or luxury homes.
Here are the general requirements of becoming a real estate broker in California:
- You must be above 18
- You must be truthful and honest
- You should have at least two years of experience as a full-time licensed salesperson within the last five years, or two years of uncertified equivalent experience or a four-year degree with a minor/major in real estate.
The California Bureau of Real Estate (BRE)
The mandate of the BRE is to protect the public from harm or financial fraud in real estate matters. The board accomplishes its mission by issuing licenses to qualified candidates, enforcing regulations and laws through imposing disciplinary action, and establishing statutes that uphold high standards for the real estate industry.
Some of the violations that can trigger the board imposing formal discipline are as follows:
- Exceeding the scope of your professional license or expertise
- Operating without a valid real estate license
- Failing to supervise an assistant who is working under you
- Engaging in unprofessional conduct
- Engaging in real estate fraud or misrepresentation to a client of the facts essential in making wise real estate decisions
- Being investigated by another licensing board in California or another state
- Criminal conduct
- Failing to maintain appropriate trust fund records or trust fund shortages
The BRE’s Investigations
The BRE receives complaints from different people, including homeowners, insurance companies, clients, competitors, colleagues, and employees. After receiving the complaint, the board investigates the matter. The board can conduct a sting operation if it believes that contacting you about the complaint could compromise its ability to gather sufficient evidence. Alternatively, the board can send you a notice of investigation by mail or issue a notice of audit of your business practices. The board will dismiss the complaint if it thinks the allegations are unmerited.
If the investigators contact you about the allegation, you should cooperate. However, you should avoid speaking with them without your lawyer. The lawyer will handle your communication with the board. The attorney prevents the possibility of self-incrimination and limiting your available legal defense options.
Here are other ways to prepare for the investigation:
- Take the investigation seriously—Even when you know you are innocent and you are certain the allegation will not jeopardize your professional license, you should take the investigation seriously.
- Collect relevant evidence—After investigations begin, the BRE will begin collecting information about the allegation. The investigators might request materials and records and conduct interviews to get the picture of what occurred. You should also collect and organize relevant evidence for your investigations; the records could alter the defense’s narrative. When organizing your evidence and records, do not modify or dispose of essential paperwork. Even when the documentation shows you are in the wrong, do not attempt to destroy or conceal it; doing so could result in more legal trouble.
- Do not talk with any person other than your professional defense lawyer— Avoid discussing the investigations with any other person other than your attorney, including your colleagues and loved ones. You might be tempted to vent, but whatever you tell them could be used against you. Your conversations with your attorney, on the other hand, are protected by client-attorney privilege and cannot be used against you.
- Cooperate with your experienced defense lawyer.
Receiving a Formal Accusation and Sending a Notice of Defense
If the BRE believes it has a case against you, it will send you an accusation with a statement of issues that outlines your allegations.
You should respond to the accusation with a notice of defense. Submitting the notice of defense preserves your right to an administrative hearing presided over by an administrative law judge. In your notice of defense, you can challenge the accusation or argue that your accusation is ambiguous or uncertain.
You should file your notice of defense within 15 days of service. Some license holders mistakenly believe the 15 days start running from the date of the accusation, which is incorrect and could result in default. If you fail to file your notice of defense on time, the board could take your license by default (impose the harshest sanction, including license revocation).
The notice of defense requires only your signature and mailing address. However, it is common for the notice of defense to include checkboxes and blanks for other details. One characteristic is a checkbox you can use to indicate whether you object to the recording of the administrative hearing. Most professional license defense attorneys recommend requesting a court reporter instead of a recording because recordings can be jumbled, faint, or contain participants speaking to each other during the hearing.
Your professional license defense lawyer should help you draft and file the notice of defense correctly and on time.
Stipulated Settlement
While the next phase of the disciplinary process is the administrative hearing, most cases are settled via negotiated settlements. In your stipulated settlement, you will stipulate to your allegation and agree to the professional discipline the board has warranted. Generally, it is a less severe sanction than what would stem from your hearing. The settlement terms could entail continuing education requirements, practicing while under supervision, meeting probation terms and conditions, and paying fines.
Although the stipulated settlement will reduce the related uncertainty and legal fees, you should enter into any agreement after your lawyer reviews it. Accepting unfavorable terms can negatively impact your career and livelihood. Your attorney can negotiate conditions that safeguard your professional license and present proof of your rehabilitation and mitigation to aid you in realizing the best possible case outcome.
Administrative Hearing and Appeal
During the administrative hearing, the ALJ will listen to both sides present their arguments and evidence. Next, the ALJ should prepare a comprehensive written decision within 30 days. 30 days after the ALJ issues the proposed decision, each side is entitled to receive a copy. The board can either reject, amend, or adopt the recommended decision.
If you disagree with the board’s disciplinary action against you, you can file an appeal with the Superior Court. Please note that the Superior Court will only review whether the ALJ and the board made any legal mistakes during the administrative hearing, or whether the hearing’s transcript contains evidence supporting the BRE’s imposed disciplinary action. Except in rare cases, you cannot make new legal arguments or introduce new proof in the Superior Court that you could have presented in your hearing.
Why You Should Keep Your Contact Records with the Board Updated
There are numerous reasons why you might miss essential board notices, including forgetting to check your mail or forgetting to change your address after changing your job or moving. Although forgetting to update the address with your licensing board can be understandable, its repercussions can be detrimental, especially vital correspondence about your license status, including enforcement action and license renewal.
A potential risk of failing to update your address is the board imposing discipline by default, including default revocation. For instance, when the board sends you the formal accusation and you fail to respond, the board can enter a disciplinary order by default without considering your defense or listening to you. It can put your career, income, and professional integrity at risk.
It is easy to update the professional license with the BRE. Thanks to the BreEZE system, which manages license verification, renewals, and applications. Once you sign in to the online portal, you should update your address within a couple of minutes.
To prevent default discipline, always keep your email address and mailing address updated with the BRE. If you use your employer’s address for your address, remember to change the address after switching jobs. You should also update the address after relocating.
Remember to check the address regularly to avoid potential oversight. If the board has sent you any correspondence, respond immediately.
If you miss your licensing board notice and the professional license is at stake, you might have legal options depending mainly on the law and time. Even after the board has entered a default decision, there might be a short timeframe to request the board to set aside the decision. You should retain a lawyer immediately after learning about any disciplinary action against you.
The attorney will review whether relief is available, prepare your defense, and communicate with your licensing board. If relief is unavailable, your legal counsel can help you pursue alternative options, like reapplying for your license or filing a reinstatement petition.
How to Handle Your Clients’ Complaints
It can be demotivating when a client complains against you. Fortunately, there are things you can do to handle the complaints respectfully and lower the chances of anyone filing a complaint against you to the BRE. These strategies include the following:
Act Proactively
They say prevention is better than cure. It holds if you are a real estate broker.
Contact your clients regularly to inquire how they are doing and if they require your help. Letting your clients know that you care about them makes a good impression and reduces the possibility of clients filing a complaint against you with the BRE.
Listen to Your Clients
Ensure your clients feel heard.
Listen to them carefully and pay attention to what they are telling you. Allow them to finish what they are saying and then respond. Address their concerns and tell them why you cannot do something.
Validate and Apologize to Your Clients
Some complaints can be frivolous, while others are understandable and valid. Irrespective of the situation, you can defuse your client’s complaint by validating their feelings and apologizing for their experience. You do not have to confess to doing something wrong, but you can tell them that you are sorry that they are facing a challenging time.
Document Every Complaint
Another practical way to protect yourself after a client files a complaint against you is to document the complaint. Since the BRE investigators will request to see your clients’ records, ensure that they have your clients’ issues and how you resolved the matter.
Consult an Attorney
Once you learn a client has filed a complaint with the BRE, you should avoid signing any documents or speaking with the board’s investigators without consulting your lawyer. The board can use whatever you say against you in your disciplinary proceedings.
Your lawyer will review your allegations and related documentation and assist you in developing a thorough defense strategy. Sometimes it can lead to a dismissal of a complaint.
Find Competent and Aggressive Legal Assistance Near Me
The BRE’s professional license disciplinary process might first look like correspondence that a prompt response to the board will resolve the matter. However, the board is tasked with protecting the public, has investigative authority, and can impose disciplinary action against you. With your livelihood, career, and reputation at stake, you cannot afford to have anything less than a competent lawyer.
Oakland License Attorney can collect evidence and analyze case facts to develop an individualized defense strategy tailored to obtain the most favorable case outcome. We can also handle your communications with the board. Please contact us at 510-250-4709 to schedule your initial consultation.
