Here are some questions on brokerage disclosure with answers provided by Florida Realtors.
Q: I’m a broker representing a buyer purchasing a residential property. I want to be a transaction broker for this buyer. I know that I’m no longer required to provide a Transaction Broker Relationship Notice, but I want my buyer to understand what a transaction broker relationship is. Is it illegal to still provide the buyer with a transaction broker relationship notice?
A: No. the law that required a transaction broker notice to be provided expired on July 1, 2008. However, it would not be a violation if the transaction broker notice were still provided.
Q: Since real estate licensees are presumed to be transaction brokers, does that mean that licensees are no longer required to provide the Transaction Broker Notice to buyers and sellers whom the licensee intends to represent as a transaction broker?
A: Yes. The requirement to provide the Transaction Broker Notice expired July 1, 2008.
Q: I’m a broker and I manage residential property for a landlord. I’ve been told that the disclosure requirements of the “Brokerage Relationship Disclosure Act” don’t apply to rentals. Is this true?
A: Yes, this is true. The disclosure requirements of the “Brokerage Relationship Disclosure Act” don’t apply to the rental or leasing of real property unless, the law states: “an option to purchase all or a portion of the property improved with four or fewer residential units is given …”
Q: I expect to get a listing soon for a 15-acre parcel of agricultural property. Do the "brokerage relationship" disclosure notices of section 475.278, Florida Statutes, have to be provided in this type of listing?
A: No. According to subsection 475.278 (5) (a), Florida Statutes, the real estate licensee disclosure requirements of section 475.278 apply to all “residential sales.” 475.278 defines residential sales to include the sale of agricultural property of 10 acres or fewer.
Therefore, the disclosure requirements do not apply to a transaction involving the sale of more than 10 acres of agricultural property.
Q: I’m a broker who was out of the office when a prospective buyer called me to see a home that is listed with another real estate brokerage company. This buyer wants to see the property immediately and wants me to represent him as a single agent. If I don’t have time to go back to the office to get the single agent relationship disclosure form, may I show the buyer the house and provide him with the single agent relationship disclosure form later?
A: No. Section 475.278(3)(b)1, Florida Statutes, provides that a written single agent relationship disclosure “must be made before, or at the time of, entering into a listing agreement or an agreement for representation or before the showing of property, whichever occurs first.”