types of materials contained in insulation. completed no later than the 30th day after the date the original course concludes. A respondent may request an informal conference; however, the decision to hold a conference shall be made by the Director of Enforcement. James Foong, a Fellow of The Nautical Institute UK and an Associate Fellow of the Royal Institute of Navigation, has more than 17 years of working experience internationally in maritime operations and shipping, integrating commercial management, executive leadership, and safety management systems. A broker may deposit and maintain a reasonable amount of money in the trust account to cover bank service fees, including fees charged for insufficient funds. If after an investigation the Commission determines that a provider or instructor engaged in any of the acts listed in this subsection, or failed to teach to the curriculum standards as required by this Chapter, the Commission may take the following disciplinary action against a provider: Probation. This section is not meant to create or require an employer/employee relationship between a broker and a sponsored sales agent. Denial of Renewal. Credit for experience. The testing service shall require official photo-bearing personal identification of individuals appearing for an examination and shall deny entrance to anyone who cannot provide adequate identification. An applicant must take and pass a written examination in accordance with 535.57 of this title. Experience Requirements. The conference shall be informal and need not follow the procedures established in this chapter for contested cases and formal hearings. Definition of Competency. deficiencies in mounting and performance of window and wall units. General Requirements. The amount of a refund ordered as provided in an agreement resulting from an informal settlement conference may not exceed the amount the consumer paid to the license holder for a service regulated by the Act and this title. Administration of licensing examinations. trip ties on 250 volt overcurrent devices or multi-wire branch circuit; anti-oxidants on aluminum conductor terminations; and. At the Commission's request, a provider shall produce instructor and course evaluation forms for inspection by Commission staff. a person applying for an inspector license under this chapter must comply with all requirements of 535.208 of this title. At least twice a year, the Committee Chair shall report on the activities of the Committee to the Commission. Termination of application. employ or pay for the services of a lawyer, directly or indirectly, to represent a principal to a real estate transaction in which the license holder is acting as an agent. the name and license number of each inspector who participated in performing the inspection, as well as the name(s) and license number(s) of any supervising real estate inspector(s) and sponsoring professional inspector(s), if applicable; the address or other unique description of the property on each page of the report; and. that the probationary license holder comply with any other terms contained in an order from any other court or administrative agency under which the probationary license holder is bound. the broker's name in at least half the size of the largest contact information for any sales agent, associated broker, or team name contained in the advertisement. If the Commission adopts new requirements for a course, including but not limited to a course approval form that divides selected qualifying course subjects into topics and units, the Commission will determine, at the time the Commission adopts the new requirements, whether a provider must revise the course or supplement the course. A person who is the designated broker of a business entity that is licensed as a real estate broker in another state is deemed to be a licensed real estate broker in another state. determine the efficiency or performance of underground or surface drainage systems. Before a license holder starts using an alternate name in an advertisement, the license holder must register the name with the Commission on a form approved by the Commission. Substitute Experience Requirements for a Professional Inspector License. Commission staff may issue an advisory letter to a respondent when it determines that a warning is sufficient to deter certain conduct or when it seeks to educate a respondent about proper conduct to avoid a future violation. A license holder may not enter into a contract or agreement with a service provider to a real estate transaction in which the license holder represents one or both of the parties if, pursuant to the contract or agreement: the license holder provides services for or on behalf of the service provider; and. For the purposes of an inspector's or inspection company's own website, it is sufficient for the license number(s) to appear on a single prominent page of the website, such as the main page or the "About Us" page. provide written evidence of legal authority to use the assumed business name in Texas, such as registration of the name with the Secretary of State or county clerk's office. The inspector shall renumber the pages of the standard form to correspond with any changes made necessary due to adjusting the space for comments or adding additional items and shall number all pages of the report, including any addenda. [1] Combination deliveryA combination of classroom and distance education where at least 50% of the course is offered through classroom delivery. You will not use our blog posts or posted content to do anything unlawful, misleading, malicious, or discriminatory; and. A provider shall maintain adequate security against forgery for official completion documentation required by this subsection. The Commission may deny an application for renewal of a registration if the developer of a timeshare plan is in violation of the terms of a Commission order. A real estate license is required for a person to solicit listings or to negotiate in Texas for listings. To be eligible to receive credit by the Commission, qualifying courses offered by an accredited college or university must meet the following requirements: cover the subject and topics set out in 1101.509, Texas Occupations Code, in substantially the same manner as clarified by the Commission in 535.68; and. The Commission may waive the education required for a real estate sales agent license if the applicant: was licensed either as a Texas real estate broker or as a Texas real estate sales agent within two years before the filing of the application; and. A market study is a map of all neighboring tracts individually numbered with corresponding notes per tract. Petition To Sell Real Estate With An Inactive License. The Proposal for Decision may be acted on by the Commission after the administrative law judge has ruled on any exceptions or replies to exceptions or on the day following the day exceptions or replies to exceptions were due if no such exceptions or replies were filed. The Committee may submit its written recommendations concerning the requirements or qualifications, as applicable, for real estate education providers, instructors, and courses to the Commission at any time the Committee deems appropriate. This report satisfies the legislative requirement of TWC 26.406 to provide the enforcement status of each case. Get familiar with the real property records of the area. For the purposes of the Act, a person conducting brokerage business from another state by mail, telephone, the Internet, email, or other medium is acting within Texas if the real property concerned is located wholly or partly in Texas. Not earlier than 90 days before the expiration of a course approval, a provider may apply for a renewal of course approval for another two-year period. The inspector shall report as Deficient: combustible material within thirty inches above the cook top burners; absence of an anti-tip device, if applicable; gas leaks in the gas range, cooktops and ovens not associated with the gas distribution system; and, thermostat accuracy (within 25 degrees Fahrenheit at a setting of 350 degrees Fahrenheit); and. A license renewed under this section is effective the day following the expiration of the previous license. All records may be maintained electronically but must be in a common format that is legible and easily printed or viewed without additional manipulation or special software. At the discretion of the Director of Enforcement and with the consent of all parties, mediation with an outside mediator may be scheduled between the Commission and a respondent or applicant when the Commission anticipates initiation of an adverse action against a respondent or applicant or any time after initiation. The complainant shall not be considered a party in the informal conference but shall be given the opportunity to be heard if the complainant attends. is a delegated supervisor under 535.2(e) of this title. Box 12188, Austin, Texas 78711-2188, www.trec.texas.gov. Such remedial action may include, but is not limited to, declaring the purchase void, reversing the award, and re-advertising the purchase using revised specifications. Upon the conclusion of oral arguments, questions by the members of the Commission, and any discussion by the members of the Commission, the presiding member shall call for a motion regarding disposition of the contested case. The report is not intended as a substitute for an inspection of the property by an inspector of the buyer's choice. General requirements. No shared information will be given to the other party unless the party sharing the information explicitly gives the mediator permission to do so. that the primary duty of the license holder is to represent the interests of the client, and the license holder's position, in this respect, should be clear to all parties concerned in a real estate transaction; that, however, the license holder, in performing duties to the client, shall treat other parties to a transaction fairly; that the license holder be faithful and observant to trust placed in the license holder, and be scrupulous and meticulous in performing the license holder's functions; and. report the condition of awnings, blinds, shutters, security devices, or other non-structural systems; determine the cosmetic condition of paints, stains, or other surface coatings; operate a lock if the key is not available; or. Except for records destroyed by an "Act of God" such as a natural disaster or fire not intentionally caused by the broker, the broker must, at a minimum, maintain the following records in a format that is readily available to the Commission for at least four years from the date of closing, termination of the contract, or end of a real estate transaction: commission agreements such as listing agreements, buyer representation agreements, or other written agreements relied upon to claim compensation; substantive communications with parties to the transaction; receipts and disbursements of compensation for services subject to the Act; appraisals, broker price opinions, and comparative market analyses; and. Questions & Answers 8. To be approved by the Commission to offer real estate, easement or right-of-way, or real estate inspector continuing education courses, the applicant must satisfy the Commission as to the applicant's ability to administer courses with competency, honesty, trustworthiness, and integrity. Who can take disciplinary action against license holders, including suspending or revoking their licenses, if the real estate agent or broker is deemed guilty of any of the following: Dishonest or untrustworthy conduct Negligence Incompetence Procuring or attempting to procure a real estate license fraudulently review of generally accepted technical writing techniques. Before renewal of an inspector license, a license holder must take the 32 hours of continuing education which shall include the following: Other approved courses related real estate inspections; and. Along with evidence of the appraiser's appraisal license, our application process requires the . An approved provider shall submit the Commission approved form and pay an annual operation fee prescribed by 535.101 of this title no later than the last day of the month of each anniversary date of the provider's approval. Instructors may receive continuing education credit for real estate qualifying courses subject to the following guidelines: An instructor may receive credit for those segments of the course that the instructor teaches by filing a completed Instructor Credit Request. Examination results for the national part and state part of the examination are valid for a period of one year from the date each part of the examination is passed. What is geographic competency? concepts critical for the positive outcome of the inspection process. If a vacancy occurs during a member's term, the Commission shall appoint a person to fill the unexpired term. the absence of fall protection at windows that are located less than 24 inches from the finished floor and greater than 72 inches from the finished grade. The Commission will assign a registration number to each registrant and provide each registrant with a certificate of registration. The Committee shall meet at the call of the Commission. The Commission shall waive the examination requirement for an applicant for a broker license who has been licensed as a broker in this state within two years before the filing of the application. Required revision of a currently approved non-elective CE course. The license of an individual broker immediately becomes inactive when: the Commission receives an application for inactive status from the broker; or. that the probationary certificate holder comply with any other terms contained in an order from any other court or administrative agency under which the probationary certificate holder is bound. To be approved by the Commission, the following elective qualifying courses must contain the content outlined below: Property Management, which shall contain the following topics, the units of which are outlined in the PROPM-0, Qualifying Real Estate Course Approval Form, Property Management, hereby adopted by reference: Professional Property Management - 120 minutes; Feasibility of Property Management - 90 minutes. Occ. Required continuing education. A motion for rehearing may be ruled upon pursuant to 2001.146(d), Texas Government Code. Not later than the 7th day after receipt of a signed, written complaint, Commission staff shall: assign the complaint a case number in the complaint tracking system; and. The Commission shall send a notice or correspondence to an active sales agent to the mailing or email address of the sales agent's sponsoring broker as shown in the Commission's records. Free updates are included as part of your purchase. The competent person should focus on . The point of delivery for a natural gas system is: the outlet of the service meter assembly; the service shut valve where a meter is not provided. The disapproval notice, applicant's request for a hearing on the disapproval, and any hearing are governed by the Administrative Procedure Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 2001, and Chapter 533 of this title (relating to Practice and Procedure). a market survey indicating the anticipated enrollment for the first year of operation. completes any applicable continuing education required under 535.92 of this title; maintains errors and omissions insurance with a minimum annual limit of $1 million per occurrence if the designated broker owns less than 10 percent of the business entity; and. commingle trust money with the broker's personal money or other non-trust money; or. To Geographic competence in appraising has become a hot topic over the last couple of years. Promulgated Contract Forms, which shall contain the following topics, the units of which are outlined in the PCF-0, Qualifying Real Estate Course Approval Form, Promulgated Contract Forms, hereby adopted by reference: Laws, Rules and Regulations - 150 minutes; Parties, Properties and Financing - 155 minutes; Covenants, Commitments and Notices - 160 minutes; Closing, Possession and More - 220 minutes; The Remaining Promulgated Forms - 205 minutes; Promulgated Addenda, Notices and Other Forms - 205 minutes; Other Real Estate Matters - 115 minutes; and. If the total of the other interest, attorney fees, and court costs of all claims exceeds the amount remaining to be paid from the Recovery Trust Account, the other interest, attorney fees, and court costs shall be prorated. the absence of performing emergency escape and rescue openings in all sleeping rooms; an attached garage doorway that is not equipped with self-closing or automatic closing devices; a door between the residence and an attached garage that is: a solid wood door less than 1-3/8 inches thick; a solid honeycomb core steel door less than 1-3/8 inches thick; or. Disciplinary proceedings, including appeals, shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of 221.024 of the Texas Timeshare Act, Chapter 533 of this title and the Administrative Procedure Act, Chapter 2001, Government Code. A developer may file an application to amend a registration before the occurrence of the change. An apprentice inspector or real estate inspector who has been placed on inactive status may return to status if: the inspector has completed all applicable continuing education requirements; and. The Commission adopts by reference TREC No. attached balconies, carports, and porches; and, abutting porches, decks, and balconies that are used for ingress and egress; and, on decks 30 inches or higher above the adjacent grade, spacings between intermediate balusters, spindles, or rails that permit passage of an object greater than four inches in diameter; and, exhaustively measure every porch, balcony, deck, or attached carport components; or. The Commission is responsible for imposing disciplinary action and/or assessing administrative penalties against respondents who are found to have violated any of the Commission's statutes or rules. Standard inspections performed by a license holder and reported on Commission promulgated report forms may contain additional information a buyer should consider in making a decision to purchase." Article 11, Standard of Practice 11-1 provides specific guidelines for REALTORS when they provide opinions of value or price. Changes in ownership or operation of an approved CE provider are governed by this subsection. A person who arranges for a tenant to occupy a residential property must have a real estate license if the person: does not own the property or lease the property from its owner; A real estate license is required for a person to receive a fee or other consideration for assisting another person to locate real property for sale, purchase, rent, or lease, including the operation of a service which finds apartments or homes. Fees established by this section must be paid when an application is filed and are not refundable once an application has been accepted for filing. If Commission staff determines that a complaint is within the Commission's jurisdiction, a copy of the complaint, including attachments, will be sent to the respondent. The presiding member may announce reasonable time limits for any oral arguments presented by the parties. An applicant who fails the examination three consecutive times may not apply for reexamination or submit a new license application unless the applicant submits evidence satisfactory to the commission that the applicant has completed additional core education as follows, after the date the applicant failed the examination for the third time: for an applicant who failed the national part of the examination, 32 hours; for an applicant who failed the state part of the examination, 8 hours; and. The Commission will determine whether or not a course offered by an exempt provider without preapproval by the Commission qualifies for credit using the standards set out under this section. requires the use of reasonable and appropriate tools to satisfy the requirements of the standards of practice. A broker owes the highest fiduciary obligation to the principal and is obliged to convey to the principal all information known to the agent which may affect the principal's decision unless prohibited by other law. has expertise in the subject area of instruction and ability as an instructor; A CE instructor shall teach a course in substantially the same manner represented to the Commission in the instructor's manual or other documents filed with the application for course approval form; A CE provider may use the services of a guest instructor who is not qualified under 535.74 of this title for real estate, easement or right-of-way, or inspector elective CE courses provided that: the guest instructor instructs for no more than a total of 50% of the course; and. sending the motion via fax to (512) 936-3788, ATTN: TREC General Counsel. Continuing education credit for instructors. Scroll. The Commission shall provide the approved provider named in the complaint a copy of the complaint. It is the policy of the Commission to change a finding of fact or conclusion of law in a Proposal for Decision of an administrative law judge when the Commission determines: that the administrative law judge did not properly apply or interpret applicable law, agency rules, written policies provided by staff, or prior administrative decisions; that a prior administrative decision on which the administrative law judge relied is incorrect or should be changed; or. Where the use of 10-point type would be impractical or impossible, a different style of type or print may be used, so long as the print remains conspicuous under the circumstances. Initial renewal of sales agent license. submit a timed course outline that includes: assignments and activities, if applicable; topic or unit quizzes, if applicable; and. Unless otherwise excepted under 535.58 of this title (relating to License for Military Service Members, Veterans, or Military Spouses), an applicant who is a military service member, veteran, or the spouse of a person who is on full-time military service in the armed forces of the United States or serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States must meet all requirements of this section. A real estate license is not required for an individual employed by a business entity for the purpose of buying, selling, or leasing real property for the entity. For the purposes of this section, advertisements are all communications created or caused to be created by a licensed inspector for the purpose of inducing or attempting to induce a member of the public to use the services of the inspector, including but not limited to the following types of communications when disseminated for this purpose: inspection reports, business cards, invoices, signs, brochures, email, the Internet, electronic transmissions, text messages, and purchased telephone directory displays and advertising by newspaper, radio and television. Designated brokerAn individual holding an active Texas real estate broker license designated by a business entity licensed by the commission to act on its behalf. Gas distribution systemAll gas lines between the point of delivery and appliance shutoff valves. "Trust money" means client's money, earnest money, rent, unearned fees, security deposits, or any money held on behalf of another person. the space provided on the form is inadequate for a complete reporting of the Inspection; attach additional reporting information produced by computer software so long as the standard report form is provided before that information; and. The complainant shall be informed that they may appear in person or may submit a written statement for consideration at the informal conference. If a calculator has printout capability, the testing service must approve use of such calculator before the examination. A sponsoring professional inspector may delegate the supervision of an apprentice inspector or real estate inspector to another professional inspector who is qualified to sponsor, but the sponsor remains responsible for the conduct of the sponsored inspector. Providers exempt from approval by the Commission may submit courses to the Commission for preapproval by meeting the standards for course approval under this section, including submitting all applicable forms and fees. A URL to the Commission website's Education Provider Exam Passage Rate page labeled "TREC Provider Exam Pass Rates" for non-digital media; promoting the provider directly or indirectly as a job placement agency, unless the provider is participating in a program recognized by federal, state, or local government and is providing job placement services to the extent the services are required by the program; making any statement which is misleading, likely to deceive the public, or which in any manner tends to create a misleading impression; advertising a course under a course name other than the course name approved by the Commission; or.