The newly formed Broker Responsibility Advisory Committee (BRAC) met for the first time on January 17 in Austin.

The Texas Real Estate Commission’s Broker-Lawyer Committee (BLC) had its first meeting of the year on January 12. The committee discussed potential form changes, reviewed public comments, and took a deep dive into recent case law, but one notice stole a chunk of the conversation. Here are some of the highlights.

As of January 2024, license holders have the option to register LLCs and S-Corporations (S-Corps) with TREC for the sole purpose of receiving compensation, as long as those entities meet certain requirements.

Where to Go to Register

Log in to the Online Licensing Services portal to access your account.

Starting in January 2024, license holders will have the option to register certain LLCs and S-Corps with the Texas Real Estate Commission to accept compensation. The registered entity cannot perform any other brokerage activity and must be 51% owned by the license holder on whose behalf the entity receives compensation. Read more details about the new business entity registration.

The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) met November 6 for its final quarterly meeting of 2023. TREC Chair Scott Kesner recognized a group of license holders who attended to earn Continuing Education (CE) credit. This was the first opportunity to earn CE credit by attending a quarterly TREC meeting under a rule change adopted by the Commission in August. Previously, license holders could only earn credit by attending the February TREC Meeting.

As of now, the only way a license holder can receive compensation through a business entity is by obtaining a business entity real estate broker license. Effective January 2024, license holders will have the option to register LLCs and S-Corporations (S-Corps) with TREC for the sole purpose of receiving compensation, as long as those entities meet certain requirements.

The Texas Real Estate Broker-Lawyer Committee (BLC) met October 13 and continued discussing possible revisions to contract forms and recommended one new form for proposal.

Voluntary Notice to Purchaser of Special Taxing or Assessment District Form

Under Texas law, if a seller’s property is located in a water district, like a municipal utility district (MUD), the seller must provide a notice that includes certain specific information to the buyer prior to execution of the contract.

Starting October 1, active license holders whose licenses expire will be set to inactive status as of the expiration date, and any license relationships to sales agents and/or brokers will be terminated.

If you late renew—up to six months after your expiration date—your license will be renewed on inactive status.

These changes were adopted during the May TREC Meeting.

Legislation passed by the 88th Texas Legislature requires the Texas Real Estate Commission to update two frequently used forms: the Consumer Protection Notice and the Seller’s Disclosure Notice.

Consumer Protection Notice

What changed? It no longer references the real estate inspection recovery fund, which was repealed this session.

A bill passed by the 88th Texas Legislature requires all licensing agencies, including the Texas Real Estate Commission, to remove or redact certain details about applicants and current and past license holders in publicly available information, such as the TREC website license holder search or via public information requests.