New Legal Services Program to be Offered

Starting Jan. 1, NC REALTORS’® members will be able to participate in an exciting, newly expanded Legal Services Program. This new program will be available to members choosing to pay a small voluntary annual subscription fee. Below is a summary of the program’s benefits.

First, you will be able to make unlimited calls every weekday to the Hotline. Your call will be handled by one of NCAR’s lawyers, who collectively have more than 20 years’ experience representing REALTORS® on a daily basis. They’re not just any lawyers: they’re lawyers who know and understand the legal issues you face, plus they are lawyers you may already know – Will Martin and Bill Gifford.

Will and Bill will handle a wide range of topics, including questions about forms, contracts, disclosure, agency, real estate licensing law, REALTOR® Code of Ethics, commission disputes, fair housing and landlord/tenant law, just to name a few.

Additionally, you will have exclusive access to the very popular Q&As that NCAR’s lawyers write weekly based on hotline calls they receive. Plus, NCAR is launching a new subscriber-only blog that will allow you to follow up with comments and questions about the weekly Q&As and view comments and questions posted by other subscribers. You’ll also be able to search all the Q&As in a new online archive.

Finally, as a subscriber, you’ll have exclusive access to an annual legal seminar that will be put on by NCAR’s lawyers. The cost alone of a legal seminar that you would purchase separately from this Legal Services Program would rival paying for your entire annual subscription.

The cost of the Legal Services Program is only $125 per calendar year. However, if you sign up on or before Nov. 30, you’ll receive a special discounted annual rate of $99! (Members who sign up on anytime on or after July 1 of next year will pay a prorated fee of $62.50.)

Here’s an example of the weekly Q&A you will receive:

Question: I have a listing on a condo in a 100-unit condo complex. Does the owner have to complete a Residential Property Disclosure Statement? It seems like it should be required, but the instructions for completing the Disclosure Statement state that it’s only required for owners of single-family homes and buildings with up to four dwelling units.

Answer: Your owner is required to complete a Residential Property Disclosure Statement. The important fact is how many units are being sold, not how many units are in the complex. Although we agree that the wording of the first sentence in the “Instructions to Property Owners” is somewhat awkward, the Residential Property Disclosure Act specifically applies to sales of residential real property “consisting of not less than one nor more than four dwelling units.” Since your seller is selling a single dwelling unit, the Act applies. Conversely, if your owner owned five condos in the complex and sold them together, the Act would not apply.

I hope that you will be as excited as I am about this new, expanded Legal Services Program. For more information, contact Kay Bailey at 336-808-4235 or kbailey@ncrealtors.org. n Contact

Administrative Andrea Bushnel Executive Vice President 336-808-4220

Anne Shoemaker Chief Operating Officer 336-808-4229

Bryan Jenkins Chief Financial Officer 336-294-3112

Denise Daly Membership Records Coordinator/Bookkeeper 336-808-4223

Diane Greene Director of Community Outreach 336-808-4234

Sherry Harris Administrative Assistant 336-808-4230

Amanda Lowe Accounting Assistant 336-217-1048

Phyllis Lycan Accountant 336-808-4224

Donna Peterson Executive Assistant 336-808-4221

Kristin Miller Partners Program Manager 336-217-1047

Scott Bailey Business Development Manager 336-808-4228

Communications & Marketing Kevin Brafford Director of Communications and Marketing 336-808-4225

Samantha Ashburn Electronic Communications Manager 336-808-4226

Barbara West Communications Specialist 336-808-4227

Legislative Cady Thomas Director of Government Affairs 919-573-0996

David McGowan Director of Regulatory Affairs 919-573-0994

Julie Woodson Director of Political Communications 919-573-0992

Professional Development Pam Haire Director of Professional Development 336-808-4237

Ellie Edwards Professional Development Assistant Director 336-808-4231

Legal Will Martin General Counsel 336-808-4238

Kay Bailey Legal Assistant 336-808-4235

Events Mandy Lowe Events Director 336-808-4236

Keri Epps Meeting Planner 336-217-1049