Blog
Is Your Website ADA Compliant? – Better Safe Than Sorry
With the ongoing national Covid-19 crisis, real estate brokers, agents, and property managers are more reliant than ever on the internet as a means of marketing and communication. …
Texas Real Estate Risk Management & Compliance Newsletter | COVID-19 Updates – June 26, 2020
On Friday, June 26, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued his Executive Order GA-28. This Order supersedes Executive Order GA-26 which was issued on June 3, 2020, at a time when…
CRES Real Estate E&O Per Transaction Policies
Running a real estate or mortgage brokerage business can be costly, especially in tough economic times like now. When you need to pay real estate Errors and Omissions…
What to Do When a Tenant is COVID-19 Positive
Given the widespread nature of COVID-19, property managers shouldn’t be surprised to hear that one or more tenants are symptomatic or have tested positive. The question, of course,…
Protecting Yourself and Your Real Estate Team During the Pandemic
COVID-19 has had an impact on the world that none of us could have foreseen. Here we are several months into the pandemic, and the business community is…
Tenants Who Cannot Pay Due to COVID-19
The impact of COVID-19 on the world economy is unprecedented. GDP has dropped some 4.8% for the first quarter of 2020, the stock market has taken a hit,…
Managing Short Sales
Short sales don’t happen every day, but they’re relatively common in real estate. Some sellers who struggle to pay their mortgages will take a lower price for their…
How Real Estate Professionals Should Respond to a Deposition Subpoena to Produce Documents
When there is a legal dispute between the buyer and seller, you may be served with a deposition subpoena to produce documents. This is a normal procedure for…
Managing the Risks of Facebook® Live
With 2.5 billion monthly active users, Facebook offers a wealth of opportunity for your real estate business. More than 1.6 billion Facebook users log on daily and those…
COVID-19: Moving your Real Estate Business Forward
There’s no doubt the world right now is different from the world we lived in just last year. COVID-19 is impacting the economy in the United States and…
Avoiding a Conflict of Interest Situation at Your Real Estate Brokerage
Real estate professionals can find themselves facing a lawsuit for any number of reasons. Conflicts of interest situations are one of those reasons -- especially if you have…
How to Avoid Income Discrimination Lawsuits as a Property Manager
Property managers need to be especially aware of income discrimination situations, especially with new laws in California about rent control and source of income issues. (Be sure to…
Selling Homes During Extreme Heat Conditions
When the summer home-selling season comes along, it can add risks to your business if you're selling homes during extreme heat conditions. 2019 saw the United States grapple…
Selling Properties with a Pool or Spa
With the summer months coming, properties with pools and spas can be attractive to buyers. In some states, like California and Florida, they’re almost as standard as bathrooms…
CARES Act—5 Tips to Help Your Real Estate Clients
April 1, 2020—As the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve around the world, it continues to affect the real estate industry in a myriad of ways. The recently signed…
Small Business Owner’s Guide to the CARES Act
With the Senate reaching an agreement on the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, there has been a push to consolidate resources for easy reference and…
How to Avoid a Lawsuit When Acting as an Agent for an Auctioned Property
Managing client expectations can be a challenge at the best of times. When you’re acting as a seller’s or buyer’s agent for an auctioned property, it can be…
How to Manage a Downturn in Your Real Estate Business
Whether it’s a recession, an industry bubble bursting, a global pandemic, or some other crisis, the real estate industry is a susceptible market to downturns. Ideally, the time…
Workers’ Compensation – What It Is and Why You Need It
If you’re a real estate broker managing a team of real estate professionals, you have a duty of care to protect your team. Have you considered what might…
COVID-19 and Working with Real Estate Sellers
March 19, 2020 These are unprecedented times and these issues could not have been anticipated. No one in the real estate industry has experienced a similar event on…
COVID-19: Broker, Agent, and Firm Health and Safety Suggestions
March 19, 2020 As each day dealing with the coronavirus seems to bring new challenges for the real estate industry, there are positive steps brokers and agents can…
COVID-19 – The Impact on Real Estate and How to Manage Your Risk
The situation with COVID-19 is changing each day in both the USA and other countries around the world. The coronavirus has cast a dim shadow over the world’s…
COVID-19 and the Impact on California Real Estate Transactions
Download the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® Coronavirus Addendum (C.A.R. Form CVA, 3/20). The spread of the Coronavirus COVID-19 has created uncertainty in our everyday lives -- including the…
Colorado Possible Real Estate Effects of Quarantines due to COVID-19
March 18, 2020 These are unprecedented times for consumers and the real estate industry. The Colorado real estate form contracts do not expressly address situations like this. No…
Colorado Office Closures and Transaction Delays due to COVID-19
March 18, 2020 Although Colorado real estate form contracts do not expressly address situations like COVID-19, there are ways to handle effects on real estate transactions. CRES and…
What Can Property Managers Do When Roommates Fight?
Tenants in different rental units don’t always get along, and sometimes tenant roommates have conflicts as well. Disputes can lead to noise complaints, destruction of property, and physical…
How to Minimize Risks in Your Social Media Property Marketing
Property marketing skills are an essential component in a real estate professional’s toolbox. With around 2.38 billion users on Facebook, 145 million daily active users on Twitter, and…
When to Be Wary of Cash Buyers of Real Estate
Sometimes you may come across wealthy clients that want to pay cash for a property. In the United States, only around 23% of property sales are cash transactions…
The Latest in Real Estate Phishing Scams and How to Avoid Them
Phishing is growing in popularity among scammers wanting to earn a quick buck at the expense of unsuspecting real estate brokers and agents. Some schemes are so sophisticated…
When Real Estate Sellers Don’t Want to Disclose — and What Buyers Should Be Wary of
Have you ever encountered a seller who doesn’t want to disclose? In many states, certain things must be disclosed. To facilitate this, states like Colorado have a Real…
Dealing with Real Estate Clients with Dementia and Alzheimers
According to the Alzheimers Association, one in three seniors dies with Alzheimer’s or dementia. Every 65 seconds, someone in the United States develops the disease. In your real…
The 5 Most Common Seller Errors That Can Lead to Real Estate Lawsuits
Sellers can find themselves in hot water for any number of reasons, but there are 5 most common seller errors that can lead to lawsuits. Here’s how to…
Due Diligence Checklist for Your Team for Real Estate Transactions
Due diligence is an important part of any real estate transaction, whether you’re representing the buyer or the seller. When advising clients about due diligence, it’s important your…
Airbnb and the Impact on Real Estate Sales
Airbnb has transformed the accommodation market and shaken up the property market in the process. The platform currently has 7 million listings worldwide across more than 100,000 cities,…
Lessons Learned from Real Estate Contract Errors
Copy-and-paste can be a huge time saver in your real estate contract, but if you aren’t careful, it can cause more than a headache. Recently a CRES-insured broker…
Managing the Real Estate Buying and Selling Process in Unpredictable Housing Markets
Real estate is a dynamic industry with ever-changing market conditions. This unpredictability brings with it significant risks and many potential issues for real estate professionals. Let’s take a…
How to Avoid a Real Estate Breach of Duty Claim
As a real estate professional, you face many risks every day in the course of business. Claims for “breach of duty” are just one of those risks. Here’s…
How to Avoid Client Injuries at Your Office
Client visits are an everyday occurrence for a real estate broker’s office. But what if a client trips or falls at your premises? What happens if something accidentally…
Should Brokers Complete Note and Deed of Trust?
Have you ever been asked to complete a note and deed of trust? Recently a CRES-insured broker called our CRES ClaimPrevent® Hotline, because he was asked to complete…
Selling a Home Where Drug Activity Has Occurred
Selling a home where there’s been drug activity can be problematic for any real estate agent. There are potential safety issues for you, your team, and prospective buyers…
Unescorted Access for Prospective Tenants and Buyers — Is It Just Too Risky?
Real estate is a busy profession and you can’t be everywhere at once. Sometimes it might be tempting to consider unescorted access to prospective tenants and buyers. But,…
“Business Email Compromise” Attacks – What they are and how you can avoid them
Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks are on the rise around the world, and every industry is affected. The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Centre (IC3) estimates that more than…
Source of Income Discrimination in California
Under California and federal law, it is illegal for a landlord or residential rental housing provider to discriminate against a person because of the person’s disability, religion, ethnicity,…
Selling a Smart Home: What Real Estate Agents Need to Watch Out For
The United States is the undisputed leader in smart homes globally. In 2018, $5.474 billion was spent on smart homes across the country, and this is expected to…
How a CRES Seller’s Protection Plan Can Boost Your Real Estate Business
Did you know that your sellers are the main target of real estate lawsuits (based on our 20+ years of claims history)? That’s why CRES offers the Seller’s…
Selling Estates Where Multiple Parties Are Involved: A Guide for Real Estate Agents
Selling estates where multiple parties are involved is very common. The multiple parties involved in real estate transactions vary from couples and families, to trusts or deceased estates…
Managing a Culturally Diverse Team
If you’re a real estate broker, there’s a high chance you’re managing a culturally diverse team of real estate agents. As of the 2018 Census, 60% of the…
How Good Real Estate Professionals Can Get Mixed Up in Negligence Claims
As a real estate professional, there are risks in your business which make you vulnerable to lawsuits. When you’re balancing multiple listings, contracts, clients, prospects, open houses, marketing…
How Do You Manage the Lawsuit Risk in Your Real Estate Business? Could You Do it Better?
Managing the risk of E&O claims and lawsuits is especially important in real estate. One serious lawsuit could destroy your business -- or your reputation. So you want…
Selling a Home in an Undesirable Area
Selling a home in an undesirable area can create many challenges for real estate agents. Apart from the difficulty of selling even the best home in a bad…
Military Lease Termination: What Property Managers Need to Know
Property managers may be faced with tenants who want to terminate a lease before it expires for a number of reasons. Leases exist for a reason and have…
Managing Alcohol-Related Liabilities in Your Real Estate Business
Do you provide hospitality to sellers, buyers, or even your own team of real estate agents? Where do you stand with alcohol? What happens, for example, if you…
What to Do if You Suspect Money Laundering Through a Real Estate Sale
Money laundering is a growing concern in America. Criminals are getting smarter at finding ways to launder their proceeds of crime, and the real estate industry has become…
Remote Access for Your Real Estate Team — Security Issues and Tips
Your team members need to be mobile, so they can do their jobs effectively. This means remote access to your company’s server, client files and emails. But what…
Broker Beware: Colorado Short-Term Rental Regulations
“There is [Absolutely No Other] Place Like Home.” Denver, like many cities across the U.S., prohibits individuals from operating “any short-term rental in the City and County of…
Managing Your Risk When Selling a Car-Crash- Prone Property
As a real estate professional, your likelihood of being sued can increase when selling high-risk properties. Homes on busy roads or intersections, on tight corners, or in other…
Key Considerations When Dealing with “Seniors Only” Property
Properties for seniors is a growing market in the real estate industry. According to Inman, one in 5 residents will be of retirement age by 2030. In 2013…
Electronic Document Signing — Managing the Risk
Every good real estate agent wants to expedite the sales process and make it easier for buyers and sellers. Electronic document signing technology can help, especially when dealing…
Accommodating Mental Health Disabilities Within Your Team
Millions of people are affected by mental health issues and mental illness in the United States. When we talk about mental illness, this is a general term which…
Does a Low Appraisal Need to Be Shared with the Seller?
It’s no surprise that appraisals are part of the process when it comes to real estate sales, but sometimes low appraisals can be a surprise. When this happens,…
