| 8 | 12 | | |
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| 9 | 13 | | Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia: |
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| 10 | 14 | | |
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| 11 | 15 | | 1. That 54.1-2103 and 54.1-2111.1 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows: |
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| 12 | 16 | | |
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| 13 | 17 | | 54.1-2103. Exemptions from chapter. |
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| 14 | 18 | | |
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| 15 | 19 | | A. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to: |
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| 16 | 20 | | |
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| 17 | 21 | | 1. Any person, partnership, association, corporation, entity, or their regular employees, who as owner or lessor perform any of the acts enumerated in 54.1-2100 with reference to property owned or leased by them, where the acts are performed in the regular course of or incident to the management of the property and the investment therein. For property governed by the Virginia Real Estate Time-Share Act ( 55.1-2200 et seq.), the term "owner" for purposes of this subdivision shall include affiliated entities, provided that (i) the owner has a controlling interest in the affiliated entity or (ii) the affiliated entity and the owner have a common parent company; |
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| 18 | 22 | | |
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| 19 | 23 | | 2. Any person acting without compensation as attorney-in-fact under a power of attorney issued by a property owner solely for the purpose of authorizing the final performance required of such owner under a contract for the sale, lease, purchase, or exchange of real estate; |
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| 20 | 24 | | |
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| 21 | 25 | | 3. Service rendered by an attorney-at-law in the performance of his duties as such; |
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| 22 | 26 | | |
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| 23 | 27 | | 4. A person acting as a receiver, trustee in bankruptcy, administrator, or executor, or any person selling real estate under order of any court; |
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| 24 | 28 | | |
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| 25 | 29 | | 5. A trustee acting under a trust agreement, deed of trust, or will, or the regular salaried employees thereof; |
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| 26 | 30 | | |
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| 27 | 31 | | 6. Any corporation managing rental housing when the officers, directors, and members in the ownership corporation and the management corporation are the same and the management corporation manages no other property for other persons, partnerships, associations, or corporations; |
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| 28 | 32 | | |
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| 29 | 33 | | 7. Any existing tenant of a residential dwelling unit who refers a prospective tenant to the owner of the unit or to the owner's duly authorized agent or employee and for the referral receives, or is offered, a referral fee from the owner, agent, or employee; |
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| 30 | 34 | | |
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| 31 | 35 | | 8. Any auctioneer licensed in accordance with Chapter 6 ( 54.1-600 et seq.) of this title selling real estate at public auction when employed for such purpose by the owner of the real estate and provided the bidding at such auction is held open for no longer than forty-eight 48 hours. An auctioneer shall not advertise that he is authorized to sell real estate. An auctioneer may advertise for sale at public auction any real estate when employed to do so as herein provided, and may advertise that he is authorized to auction real estate at public auction; |
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| 32 | 36 | | |
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| 33 | 37 | | 9. [Expired.] |
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| 34 | 38 | | |
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| 35 | 39 | | 10. Any person who is licensed and is in good standing as a real estate broker or salesperson in another state, and who assists a prospective purchaser, tenant, optionee, or licensee located in another state to purchase, lease, option, or license an interest in commercial real estate, as defined in 55.1-1100, in the Commonwealth. Such real estate licensee from another state may be compensated by a real estate broker in the Commonwealth. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to permit any person not licensed and in good standing as a real estate broker or salesperson in the Commonwealth to otherwise act as a real estate broker or salesperson under this chapter. |
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| 36 | 40 | | |
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| 37 | 41 | | B. The provisions of this chapter shall not prohibit the selling of real estate (i) by an attorney-at-law in the performance of his duties as such, (ii) by a receiver, trustee in bankruptcy, administrator or, executor, a or special commissioner, or any person selling real estate under order of court, or (iii) by a trustee acting under the trust agreement, deed of trust, or will, or the regular salaried employees thereof. |
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| 38 | 42 | | |
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| 39 | 43 | | C. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any salaried person employed by a licensed real estate broker for and on behalf of the owner of any real estate or the improvements thereon which that the licensed broker has contracted to manage for the owner if the actions of such salaried employee are limited to (i) exhibiting residential units on such real estate to prospective tenants, if the employee is employed on the premises of such real estate; (ii) providing prospective tenants with factual information about the lease rental of residential real estate; (iii) accepting applications for lease the rental of such real estate; and (iv) accepting and signing broker-approved rental agreements, state or federal required disclosures, and any documents required for compliance with Chapter 5.1 ( 36-96.1 et seq.) of Title 36 related to such rental transaction; and (v) accepting security deposits and rentals, periodic rent, and other payments as contracted for in the rental agreement for such real estate. Such deposits and rentals rent shall be made payable to the owner or the broker employed by such owner. The salaried employee shall not negotiate the amounts of such security deposits or rentals, periodic rent, or other payments contracted for in the rental agreement and shall not negotiate any leases rental agreements on behalf of such owner or broker. |
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| 40 | 44 | | |
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| 41 | 45 | | D. A licensee of the Board shall comply with the Board's regulations, notwithstanding the fact that the licensee would be otherwise exempt from licensure under subsection A. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require a person to be licensed in accordance with this chapter if he would be otherwise exempt from such licensure. |
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| 42 | 46 | | |
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| 43 | 47 | | E. An attorney-at-law referring a client to a licensee shall not be entitled to receive any compensation from a listing firm or offered by a common source information company to cooperating brokers, unless the attorney is also licensed under this chapter as a real estate broker or salesperson. |
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| 44 | 48 | | |
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| 45 | 49 | | 54.1-2111.1. Voluntary compliance program; real estate brokers. |
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| 46 | 50 | | |
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| 47 | 51 | | A. The Board shall promulgate regulations to allow the audit of the practices, policies, and procedures of a real estate broker licensed by the Board, either through a third party retained by the real estate broker or through a self-audit, and if the broker is determined by such audit to not be in compliance with the provisions of this chapter or applicable regulations of the Board, to allow for the broker to enter into a voluntary compliance program to bring the broker's practices, policies, and procedures into compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The broker shall notify the Board of the discovery of any noncompliance within 30 days after discovery and shall submit a written statement with a plan to bring the practices, policies, and procedures into voluntary compliance, which completion of such voluntary compliance shall not exceed a period of 90 days from the date that the plan is submitted to the Board. |
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| 48 | 52 | | |
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| 49 | 53 | | B. Certification by the broker or auditor of such broker shall constitute immunity from an enforcement action under this chapter or under the applicable regulations of the Board. |
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| 50 | 54 | | |
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| 51 | 55 | | C. The provisions of this section do not apply if the noncompliance by the broker was intentional or a result of gross negligence of the broker, including any actions by an unlicensed employee negotiating the provisions of a rental agreement as prohibited under subsection C of 54.1-2103. |
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