Licensing of PersonsReal Estate Recovery Program
Section § 10470
Each year, if the Consumer Recovery Account has less than $200,000 by June 30, certain licensees must pay extra fees when they get or renew their licenses. Over the next four years, brokers will pay an extra $7, salespersons $4, and holders of prepaid rental listing service licenses will pay an extra $1 within two years. These fees go to the Consumer Recovery Account.
Section § 10470.1
This law section explains how the Real Estate Commissioner has the authority to transfer money between the Consumer Recovery Account and the Real Estate Fund. If there's a need for more money in the Consumer Recovery Account, the commissioner can move funds from the Real Estate Fund to cover it. Conversely, if the Consumer Recovery Account has more than $400,000, the commissioner can shift the excess back to the Real Estate Fund. Additionally, any amount previously moved to the Real Estate Fund from the Consumer Recovery Account can be returned if needed.
Section § 10471
This law describes the process for someone who has been wronged in a real estate transaction to seek compensation from the Consumer Recovery Account. To be eligible, the person needs a final court judgment or arbitration award based on the real estate professional's fraud, deceit, or misuse of funds. Applications to get paid must be filed within a year of the judgment and need to include specific information about the claim and efforts to collect the debt. If the wronged party is seeking recovery from a salesperson, they must show attempts to collect from the employing broker or prove the broker wasn't responsible. The application must be thorough and accurate to avoid rejection, and the claimant must show good faith in pursuing the case.
Section § 10471.1
This law section outlines the procedure for notifying a judgment debtor about a claim against the Consumer Recovery Account. It specifies that claimants must serve notice to the debtor either personally, by certified mail, or by publishing in a newspaper, depending on the debtor's license status and location. It details how long service is considered complete based on the method used. The debtor has 30 days to respond to the notice if they wish to contest the payment. Failure to respond waives the debtor's right to object and means they may not be informed of further actions. Importantly, if the claim results in payment, the debtor's real estate license will be suspended until reimbursement is made.
Section § 10471.2
If someone submits an application that doesn't meet certain requirements, the commissioner has 15 days to inform them what’s missing. The countdown for the commissioner’s decision on the application officially begins only when the application is mostly complete. If there's a disagreement on whether it's complete enough, the person can take the issue to court.
Section § 10471.3
This law section states that if you file an application with the commissioner, they'll make a final decision within 90 days unless you agree to give them more time. The commissioner can approve, deny, or settle your claim for less than the full amount. If you don't accept a settlement, they'll either officially deny your claim, or it will automatically be considered denied if they don't decide in time. Any settlement talks cannot be used as evidence later if you take the issue to court.
Section § 10471.4
This law gives the department the authority to use any legal methods or tools available to them for investigating and evaluating applications. They can refer to the specific rules outlined in another part of the Government Code to conduct thorough investigations.
Section § 10471.5
This section outlines procedures for both claimants and judgment debtors regarding decisions made by the Real Estate Commissioner about a claim against the Consumer Recovery Account. If a claim is denied, the claimant has six months to file in superior court to contest it. If approved for payment, the judgment debtor is notified that their real estate licenses will be suspended until they repay the amount with interest. The debtor can seek court review within 30 days if they disagree with the suspension.
Section § 10471.6
If it's clear that claims against a certain professional will surpass the insurance limit set by law, the commissioner must stop regular administrative processes and instead start a court procedure to fairly distribute any available funds among the claimants.
Section § 10472
If someone is denied a claim by the Real Estate Commissioner in California, they have six months to ask a superior court to make the Consumer Recovery Account pay them. If the original judgment was from a California state court, they file where that judgment happened. If it was a federal court judgment, they file in a California superior court where the case would have been suitable, or in Sacramento. The application needs to be served to both the commissioner and the debtor, with proof filed in court. The debtor is warned that they risk losing their real estate licenses if the court decides in favor of the claimant and the Consumer Recovery Account pays out. Debtors have 30 days to respond in writing, or they lose the right to contest the claim.
Section § 10472.1
This law section details the process for handling applications related to a payment from the Consumer Recovery Account. Both the commissioner and the person who owes money (judgment debtor) have 30 days to respond once they've been served with the application. After responses are filed, the court will schedule a hearing. The commissioner can ask for a 30-day delay, and further extensions can be granted if there's a good reason. The person filing the claim must provide strong evidence that they meet certain legal requirements, and they can get a new review of their case. If the person who owes money doesn't respond, the case might be settled by the commissioner at any point, allowing for a payment order from the Consumer Recovery Account.
Section § 10473
Section § 10473.1
If someone is trying to claim money from the Consumer Recovery Account because of a court judgment against you, you can defend yourself by using all available defenses and questioning witnesses. Whatever was decided in the original court case, especially issues like fraud or misuse of funds, is final and cannot be disputed again in this new proceeding.
Section § 10474
This law outlines the limits on how much the Consumer Recovery Account can pay out for claims against real estate licensees in California. The maximum payout per transaction is either $20,000 or $50,000, depending on when the claim was filed, while the maximum a single licensee can be implicated is either $100,000 or $250,000. If multiple licensed real estate professionals are involved and cause harm, a claimant can seek recovery based on any judgment against these professionals, but stays within these limits.
Section § 10474.5
If there isn't enough money in the Consumer Recovery Account to fully pay everyone who has a valid claim against a certain licensee, the available funds will be divided among the claimants based on the size of their claims. The court can decide how to split it up fairly, without considering who filed first. The court can also group all claimants against one licensee into a single case to sort out everyone's rights to the funds at once.
Section § 10475
If the state pays out money to cover a claim or a court judgment against a real estate broker, salesperson, or someone with a prepaid rental listing service license, that person's license is automatically suspended. To get their license back, they must repay the full amount with interest. Even if they declare bankruptcy, they aren't off the hook for these payments.
Section § 10476
If there's not enough money in the Consumer Recovery Account to cover a claim, it will be paid later with interest once more funds are available. Claims are paid in the order they were filed, with an added 4% interest per year.
Section § 10477
Money that the commissioner collects under this chapter has to be deposited into the State Treasury and added to the Consumer Recovery Account.
Section § 10478
This law makes it illegal for anyone or their representative to submit false or misleading documents to the commissioner when required by this chapter. If someone does this, they could face up to a year in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
Section § 10479
This law explains that if someone gets money from the Consumer Recovery Account due to a judgment, the commissioner will take over all the rights of the person who received the money. The person must give up their rights to the judgment in favor of the commissioner. Any money the commissioner then collects will go back into the Consumer Recovery Account.
Section § 10480
If someone doesn't follow all the rules in this chapter, they lose their rights under it.
Section § 10481
This law states that even if a real estate licensee pays back everything owed to the Consumer Recovery Account, they can still be disciplined for breaking real estate laws or rules. The commissioner has the power to take action against any licensee for such violations, regardless of repayments made.