Real Estate Licenses

Types of Real Estate Licenses in North Carolina

A broker licenses is the only type of license in North Carolina, but there are status levels for broker licenses.

One status is a firm license that is issues to a business that engages in real estate brokerage activities, but there are four types of broker licenses for individuals:

• Provisional Broker - Once a broker has satisfied all of the North Carolina real estate license qualification requirements, he or she will be issued this entry-level status license. A provisional broker cannot operate independently, and he or she must be supervised by a broker designated as a broker-in-charge if he or she performs the same acts as a regular broker. A broker can get the provisional status of his or her license removed by completing required post licensing education.
• Broker - After satisfying the post-licensing education requirements, this license allows a broker to work for a licensed real estate brokerage firm or another sole proprietor broker or broker-in-charge. A broker will also allow a person to operate independently as a sole proprietor, but he or she will usually need to be designated as a broker-in-charge in order to lawfully engage in most brokerage activities.
• Broker-in-Charge - A person who has been designated as a broker-in-charge either has two years of full-time brokerage experience in any state within the previous five years or has been deemed by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission to have equivalent qualifications. Every real estate office in North Carolina needs to have a broker-in-charge working in the office.
• Limited Nonresident Commercial Broker - This license is issued to a broker or salesperson residing in and holding an active real estate broker or salesperson license in another state. People with these licenses can complete transactions for compensation involving commercial real estate in North Carolina, but still need to work with a resident North Carolina broker for these types of transactions conducted within North Carolina.

Real Estate License Qualification & Education Requirements in Raleigh

The North Carolina Real Estate Commission has several basic requirements that need to be met in order for a person to qualify for a real estate broker license. Any applicant must:

• Be at least 18 years of age
• Be a United States citizen, a non-citizen national, or a qualified alien under federal law, or have a lawful presence in the U.S. and be authorized to work in the U.S. in the real estate brokerage field
• Have a social security number
• Satisfy education qualification
• File a complete application and fee
• Pass the real estate license examination
• Satisfy the North Carolina Real Estate Commission that he or she possesses the requisite character for licensure

There are four ways that an applicant may satisfy the education qualification requirement listed in the prerequisites above:

• Complete a 75-hour North Carolina Broker Prelicense Course at a school in North Carolina approved by the Real Estate Commission
• Complete a Real Estate Salesperson Prelicense Course of at least 75 classroom hours in another state that is equivalent to North Carolina course
• Exhibit substantial real estate education and/or extensive experience in real estate transactions that the Commission finds to be equivalent to the North Carolina Broker Prelicense Course
• Hold a current real estate license in another state that has been on active status within the previous three years and pass the State section of the real estate examination.

Wake County Real Estate License Disciplinary Action

The North Carolina Real Estate Commission has power to take disciplinary action under North Carolina General Statute § 93A-6. The Commission can investigate the actions of any licensee and, with probable cause, hold a hearing on any allegations of misconduct.

A broker may have his or her license suspended or revoked or he or she may be reprimanded or censured if the Commission adjudges the licensee to be guilty of offenses following a hearing:

• Making any willful or negligent misrepresentation or any willful or negligent omission of material fact.
• Making any false promises of a character likely to influence, persuade, or induce.
• Pursuing a course of misrepresentation or making of false promises through agents, advertising or otherwise.
• Acting for more than one party in a transaction without the knowledge of all parties for whom he or she acts.
• Accepting a commission or valuable consideration as a real estate broker on provisional status for the performance of prohibited acts from any person except his or her broker-in-charge or licensed broker by whom he or she is employed.
• Representing or attempting to represent a real estate broker other than the broker by whom he or she is engaged or associated, without the express knowledge and consent of the broker with whom he or she is associated.
• Failing, within a reasonable time, to account for or to remit any monies coming into his or her possession which belong to others.
• Being unworthy or incompetent to act as a real estate broker in a manner as to endanger the interest of the public.
• Paying a commission or valuable consideration to any person for acts or services performed in violation of this Chapter.
• Any other conduct which constitutes improper, fraudulent or dishonest dealing
• Performing or undertaking to perform any legal service, or any other acts constituting the practice of law.
• Commingling the money or other property of his or her principals with his or her own or failure to maintain and deposit in a trust or escrow account in a bank all money received by him or her as a real estate licensee acting in that capacity, or an escrow agent, or the custodian or manager of the funds of another person or entity which relate to or concern that person's or entity's interest or investment in real property.
• Failing to deliver, within a reasonable time, a completed copy of any purchase agreement or offer to buy and sell real estate to the buyer and to the seller.
• Failing, at the time a sales transaction is consummated, to deliver to the broker's client a detailed and accurate closing statement showing the receipt and disbursement of all monies relating to the transaction about which the broker knows or reasonably should know.
• Violating any other rule adopted by the Commission.

Additionally, the Commission can also suspend or revoke any license or reprimand or censure any licensee when:

• The licensee has obtained a license by false or fraudulent representation.
• The licensee has been convicted or has entered a plea of guilty or no contest to a crime in Florida or another state that would reasonably affect the licensee's performance in the real estate business.
• The licensee has violated any of the provisions state law when selling, leasing, or buying his or her own property.
• The broker's unlicensed employee committed any act in the regular course of business that if committed by the broker would constitute a violation state law for which the broker could be disciplined.
• The licensee, who is also licensed as an appraiser, attorney, home inspector, mortgage broker, general contractor, or member of another licensed profession or occupation, has been disciplined for an offense under any law involving fraud, theft, misrepresentation, breach of trust or fiduciary responsibility, or willful or negligent malpractice.

Find a Real Estate License Lawyer in Raleigh

If you are attempting to obtain your broker license or you are concerned about the status of your license after receiving a letter from the North Carolina Real Estate Commission, you should immediately seek legal representation. Clifford Law Group has years of experience helping clients in these types of administrative hearings.

Our firm serves communities throughout Durham County, Wake County, and Orange County. You can have our Wake County real estate attorneys review your case by calling (919) 441-1799 to set up a confidential consultation.