Fines issued by the DOS in these Consent Orders have ranged between $500 and $6,000. Brokers must carefully monitor all websites and social media pages of their associated licensees.
As State President, Phillips will oversee the council’s activities within New York State and act as a liaison between the regional vice president, the council’s leadership team, and its staff.
“Home sales momentum is building,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.
Fines issued by the DOS in these Consent Orders have ranged between $500 and $6,000. Brokers must carefully monitor all websites and social media pages of their associated licensees.
This past year has been one filled with unprecedented legal and market-changing developments. In 2024, the real estate industry dealt with the monumental NAR Settlement relating to commissions and allegations of anti-trust violations, the enactment of the statewide Good Cause Eviction Law, the amendment to the Property Condition Disclosure Act, changes to the definition of a “squatter,” the FARE Act, the Corporate Transparency Act, and the new Freelance Law. There have also been notable trends relating to increased DOS enforcement actions and fines against brokers and licensed salespersons.
On March 15, 2024, the National Association of Realtors proposed its settlement that would end the homeowner litigation known as the Sitzer/Burnett case related to broker commissions. The settlement would be applied globally to all similar national lawsuits filed or claims made by sellers. On Nov. 26, 2024, the court formally and finally approved the terms of the Settlement.
The Department of Justice, however, just days before the court was set to approve the settlement, interjected itself into the Sitzer/Burnett case for the first time, and filed a last-minute Statement of Interest. As reported in Real Estate News [see https://bit.ly/3VKEsu2], the DOJ “asked that if the court approves the settlement, it should clarify that using these new NAR policies does not shield NAR or other potential defendants from future enforcement by the DOJ.” The DOJ’s Statement pointed out that the settlement “does not address whether the proposed settlement prevents and restrains current antitrust violations, remedies past violations, or contains revised policies and practices that comply with the antitrust laws….”
The DOJ also raised concerns about the new requirements relating to agreements that buyers and agents must enter into before showing a property, and took the position that these agreements “may harm buyers and limit how brokers compete for clients.” The court nevertheless approved the settlement as originally proposed and did not address any of the issues raised by the DOJ.
It is recommended that all real estate licensees monitor DOS enforcement actions and trends. Licensees should frequently review DOS consent orders and decisions issued by Administrative Law Judges relating to complaints and enforcement actions filed against licensees, as these decisions and orders provide invaluable insight as to some of the examples of the unlawful behavior and violations that licensees engage in and the enforcement trends.
According to S. Anthony Gatto, Esq., NYSAR’s General Counsel, a review of recent DOS Consent Orders issued in 2024 reveals that the DOS has been citing brokers and associated licensees for not including the required disclosures, namely the Fair Housing and Anti-Discrimination Notice [see https://on.ny.gov/4iEnDL3], the Broker Standard Operating Procedure [see https://bit.ly/4gEwN8B], and Reasonable Accommodation/Modification Disclosure [see https://on.ny.gov/4gB9FYu], on their website and social media pages.
All of these required notices need to be displayed prominently and conspicuously on the broker’s and agent’s home page and must be located “above the fold”—meaning that consumers should not be required to scroll down or click through several layers in order to access or locate these notices. Additional violations by agents included the use of improper license type or corporate titles and the use of improper team names. Fines issued by the DOS in these Consent Orders have ranged between $500 and $6,000. Brokers must carefully monitor all websites and social media pages of their associated licensees.
On Apr. 20, 2024, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law, as part of the 2025 Budget, the Good Cause Eviction Law and accompanying notice requirements and procedural amendments [see The Legal Corner article at https://bit.ly/49H3Pmi]. The new law prohibits the eviction or removal of tenants from all housing accommodations without “good cause” as defined in the legislation. The Good Cause Eviction law automatically applied to New York City, however, other municipalities in New York State need to specifically “opt-in” and may make two modifications.
If the local law enacted by a municipality does not provide for a different monthly rent exemption amount or does not provide a different definition of “small landlord,” then the terms contained in the Good Cause Eviction Law would apply. Some of the municipalities that have adopted the Good Cause Eviction law include Albany, Kingston, Ithaca, Poughkeepsie, Beacon and Newburgh.
Landlords renting units subject to the Good Cause Eviction law are required to attach a specific notice [see https://bit.ly/4gH5TNe] to any initial lease, lease renewal, default or arrears notice, and legally require documents indicating that the unit is subject to the good cause eviction law. If the unit is exempt, a landlord is required to identify each applicable exemption in the notice.
On Mar. 20, 2024, the amendment to the existing Property Condition Disclosure Act went into effect [see https://bit.ly/3VK4f5n]. One of the main differences in the new PCDA is that there is no longer the option for a seller to provide a $500 credit and opt-out of delivering to a purchaser a completed Property Condition Disclosure Statement, which has been revised to include some additional items that require disclosure.
The completed PCDS is now required to be attached to the Contract of Sale and must be signed by both the seller and the buyer. One important note is that the obligations of seller and buyer agents have not changed and they are still required to timely (i.e., at first substantive contact) provide notice to their buyer and seller clients of their rights and obligations under Section 466 of the PCDA.
Another important development in 2024 was the change to the definition of a “squatter” under Section 711 of the New York Real Property Actions and Procedure Law. Prior to this change, squatters, in most instances, would acquire the rights of tenants once they take illegal occupancy of a property, and owners would be required to initiate costly and lengthy eviction proceedings in order to remove a squatter and regain possession.
Section 711 of the RPAPL now specifically states that “a tenant shall not include a squatter.” It further provides that “a squatter is a person who enters onto or intrudes upon real property without the permission of the person entitled to possession, and continues to occupy the property without title, right or permission of the owner or owner's agent or a person entitled to possession.”
In November’s article, the Legal Corner reported on the Fairness in Apartment Rental Expenses Act (the “FARE Act”) which was passed by the New York City Council on Nov. 13, 2024 [see NYC Passes the FARE Act]. Under the FARE Act, it is presumed that the broker who advertises a rental has been hired by the landlord even if that is not the case and the landlord would have the burden to prove that the broker was not hired by the tenant. The FARE Act further provides that if the landlord advertises a property for rent, the tenant cannot be forced to pay the broker’s fee. On Dec. 17th, the Real Estate Board of New York, the New York State Association of Realtors and a number of other plaintiffs sued the City of New York to block the implementation of the FARE Act.
In October’s article, Legal Corner reported on the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), which went into effect on Jan. 1, 2024 [see https://bit.ly/3ZWrPP4]. Since that time, there have been several important developments. On Dec. 3rd, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a preliminary nationwide injunction enjoining the enforcement of the CTA. As a result, the CTA’s Jan. 1, 2025 deadline for “reporting entities” to file their BOI applications has been delayed pending a decision by the court. On Dec. 5th, the DOJ appealed the U.S. District Court’s decision to issue a nationwide injunction. On Dec. 13th, the DOJ filed an emergency motion with the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals requesting that the nationwide preliminary injunction enjoining enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act be stayed. On Dec. 23rd, a three-member panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals stayed the nationwide injunction and reinstated FINCEN’s BOI filing requirements.
However, on Dec. 26th, the full panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in a surprise ruling issued an order once again staying the previous nationwide injunction. Therefore, the BOI filing requirement is once again on hold until the full panel hears oral arguments. Forbes reported that the Appeals Court stated that “in order to preserve the constitutional status quo while the merits panel considers the parties' weighty substantive arguments, that part of the motions-panel order granting the government's motion to stay the district court's preliminary injunction enjoining enforcement of the CTA and the Reporting Rule is vacated.” [See https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyphillipserb/2024/12/27/in-whiplash-maneuver-court-rules-beneficial-ownership-information-boi-reporting-requirements-are-on-hold/]. Reporting companies that have not filed yet can wait to file, but must closely follow the progress of the pending appeal and be ready to file in case the BOI filing requirement is reinstated.
The new ‘Freelance Isn’t Free Law” (“Freelance Law”) went into effect on Aug. 28, 2024 [see NY State Senate Bill 2023-S5026]. Prior to this new legislation, New York City had enacted a similar freelance law. The new law applies to all “freelance” workers and independent contractors, including licensed real estate brokers and salespersons. The Freelance Law requires that a written agreement be entered into between the parties and that a fully executed copy of the agreement must be provided to the “Freelance Worker” by the “Hiring Party.” NYSAR has now updated its standard independent contractor form to include all of the provisions required under the new law and has made it available to its members.
One important and noteworthy provision (Section 1413) protects the “freelance worker” from retaliatory actions by the “hiring party” and provides that “no hiring party [i.e., the broker or brokerage firm]…shall threaten, intimidate, discipline, harass, deny a work opportunity to, or discriminate against a freelance worker, or take any other action that penalizes a freelance worker for exercising any right guaranteed under this article, or from obtaining any future work opportunity because the freelance worker has done so.”
This past year in the real estate industry has been one for the ages. There have been more developments in the real estate industry in 2024 than in almost any other year in recent history. The changes in 2024 are substantial and real estate agents, attorneys and other industry professionals need to take it all in. While it is not easy for real estate agents to keep up with all of these significant changes, they should take advantage of the support and informational resources provided to them by HGAR, NYSAR, and NAR. It is also important for brokers and agents to reach out to their own attorneys for guidance when they are not sure what to do. There are simply too many legal requirements, and trying to keep track of everything will be nearly impossible.
Legal Column author John Dolgetta, Esq. is the principal of the law firm of Dolgetta Law, PLLC. For information about Dolgetta Law, PLLC and John Dolgetta, Esq., please visit http://www.dolgettalaw.com. The foregoing article is for informational purposes only and does not confer an attorney-client relationship and shall not be considered legal advice. The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of HGAR, its affiliates, or any other entity.
Fernandez, who has served as HGAR’s CEO since September 2023, was among three award winners. She joined HGAR after having served as CEO of the Greater Louisville Association of Realtors.
The real estate industry has expressed concerns regarding the potential repercussions of the FARE Act.
Despite representing different parties, Latimer and Lawler share a bipartisan focus on housing policy solutions. Both have expressed support for raising the cap on the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction.
Unfortunately, many small businesses, including most real estate brokerage firms, and real estate investment and holding companies, will not meet these criteria and will therefore be required to comply fully with the CTA’s filing requirements.
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