TIC's as Real Estate - law passed in Utah

State Sen. Al Mansell, who also is the 2005 president of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, introduced the bill.

Purchase of properties sold as TICs is a trend nationwide. The property is sold to a number of often-unrelated buyers—usually real estate investors involved in a tax-deferred exchange—who receive an undivided, fractionalized interest in the property.

Kyler says the new law “is the first of its kind that we’re aware of,” and may serve as a national model.

The legislation was one of three major real estate bills favored by the Utah Association of REALTORS®. Gov. Jon Huntsman has signed all three into law; they become effective July 1.

Mansell also introduced a measure that spells out a minimum standard of service for practitioners in an exclusive agency relationship. The law requires brokers to present offers, prepare counteroffers, and answer any questions throughout the process—whether they’re on the buyer or seller side of the transaction.

Another law limits the ability of revenue-seeking cities to impose a business license fee on brokers and salespeople. Under the new statute, only a broker with a “bricks-and-mortar” site within the city is subject to a business fee. Neither individual licensees in the broker’s office nor outsiders involved in a transaction within the city limits can be tapped for a business license payment.

—By Corrie M. Anders for REALTOR® Magazine Online