What Is A “Non-Member Licensee”?
The Broker: The State of Illinois issues real estate licenses. There must be at least one broker in the office that is known as the sponsoring broker. It is the broker who decides if he/she and his firm are going to join a Board of REALTORS®. A broker does not have to belong to a local Board of REALTORS®. However, to join the regional MLS, which is known as MRED, he must belong to some local Board of REALTORS®.
REALTOR® is a federally registered trademark owned by the National Association of REALTORS®. Only those who belong to a local Board of REALTORS®, like the North Shore – Barrington Association of REALTORS®, may use the term “REALTOR®”. There can be groups of people in real estate that are not part of the National Association of REALTORS®, such as the former North Side Real Estate Board. Those who belonged to North Side only could not use the term “REALTOR®” because North Side was not a part of National Association of REALTORS®.
The Agent: The broker who belongs to the local Board of REALTORS® decides to hire salespeople. The agents need to make a decision – to join the local Board or not. If the agents join the North Shore – Barrington Association of REALTORS® then they must:
1. Fill out an application form
2. Pan an initial fee
3. Pay membership dues with the application fee and continue to pay dues each year of membership
4. Attend the North Shore – Barrington orientation class called Jump-Start.
Or, the agents can decide not to join the Board. If they do not join.
1. They are not members of the Board
2. They can have no services from the Board
3. They can not use the library
4. They must pay non member fees for all functions and services
5. They can not have the North Shore – Barrington staff answer any of their questions
6. They can not have an electric lock box
7. They must pay higher fees to take North Shore – Barrington continuing education classes
8. They can not use the term “REALTOR®”
9. The broker must pay a fee based on each agent that is not a member each year. This is called designated REALTOR® dues formula. The broker must pay this each year until the agent is sent back to the State of Illinois.
10. There is no waiver for dues. There never has been a waiver for dues, only MLS fees.
Fees: Dues paid by agents (REALTORS®) for 2007 are $393.00. Dues paid by the head of the office (Designated REALTOR®) are based on a formula. The formula for 2007 is $393.00 plus $393.00 times the number of licensees within his/her office who have elected not to join the Board. Those people are called “non-member licensees”. There is only one Designed REALTOR per firm and that the owners of the company select person.
Non-member licensees are not entitled to participate in the activities, services, or programs of the Board, except, it is specifically noted that non-member licensees shall not be denied access to MLS in as much as such access to MLS must be available to any Designated REALTOR® of the Board who elects to be a Participant in MLS, and through such Participant to any individual employed by or affiliated with the Participant, irrespective of such individuals’ membership in the Board.
Dues paid by the Designated REALTOR® do not constitute dues paid for the non-member licensee. Under no circumstances must a Board attempt to exercise jurisdiction or control over non-member licensees. Any complaints concerning the conduct of non-member licensees must be directed to and answered by their Designated REALTOR®. The Designated REALTOR® has the power to impose sanctions against their non-member licensees and the Designated REALTOR® alone is responsible to the Board for actions of their non-member licensees.
If you are currently a member and wish your charges to be stopped:
If you are sponsored by a broker who is a member of a local real estate association then either you pay the dues or your broker pays the dues. If you want to keep your license active but do not want to pay dues and MLS fees then you must move your license to a sponsoring broker who is not a member of a local real estate association. If you leave your license unsponsored then: "Any broker or salesperson whose license under this Act has expired shall be eligible to renew the license for a period of 2 years following the expiration date, provided the broker or salesperson pays the fees as prescribed by rule. A broker or salesperson whose license has been expired for more than 2 years shall be required to meet the requirements for a new license."
""Inoperative" means a status of licensure where the licensee holds a current license under this Act, but the licensee is prohibited from engaging in licensed activities because the licensee is unsponsored or the license of the sponsoring broker with whom the licensee is associated or by whom he or she is employed is currently expired, revoked, suspended, or otherwise rendered invalid under this Act."
Putting your License on Hold:
First, one must find a holding company. Many of the larger offices have their own, so if you’re already affiliated with one, the Association recommends you contact them. There is no shortage of independent holding companies, however, so if you’re with a smaller office, give one of them a call.
You must terminate your membership with your current broker and with NSBAR. Your current broker must sign off on your license. A copy goes to the Illinois Division of Financial and Professional Regulations and a copy comes to NSBAR. If you have a Supra d-key, it must be returned to Association and all outstanding balances must be paid.
Once in a holding company you will not be charged national, state or local dues or mls fees. However, while in holding, you will not be a REALTOR® and cannot refer to yourself as one. You won’t have access to the MRED or Realtor.org. You will also need to keep up with your C.E. and renew your license with the state when it expires.