Abolish CA Dept of Real Estate – Bad Idea
As if the ineptitude our state legislators has not caused citizens of California enough headaches, a bill, AB 33 (Nava), was just approved in the Assembly Banking Committee to abolish the Department of Real Estate (DRE), the Department of Corporations, the Department of Financial Institutions, and the Office of Real Estate Appraisers. This legislation would transfer all of these functions to a new super-agency, the Department of Financial Services.
The California Association of Realtors opposes this bill because
“the function of a real estate licensee is not to provide financial services, but to list and show houses for sale, sell or manage investment properties and raw land, and manage and oversee residential rental properties. Real estate licensees, regulated by the DRE, should not be blended in with the banks, credit unions, consumer finance lenders, residential mortgage lenders and pawnbrokers because, unlike these other licensees, real estate licensees are individually licensed agents that have a fiduciary agency relationship with their clients.”
Despite budget difficulties, California has an excellent and effective Department of Real Estate. Let’s hope this ill-conceived concept never becomes law. Rest assured, California lawmakers will hear Realtors’ objections when approximately 1200 of us descend on Sacramento for “Leg Day” on June 3rd.