The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) is hiring a new Executive Director. Our long-serving Executive Director, Douglas Oldmixon, is retiring at the end of March 2020. The Executive Director serves as the agency leader for both TREC and for the Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board (TALCB), and is responsible for organizational culture and day-to-day operations of the agency.

In April of 2018, the Executive Director of the Agency reached out to our stakeholders and to the public to acknowledge that the customer service the Agency was providing was unacceptable, and that we were working diligently to find sustainable solutions to resolve these issues. Since that time, the Agency has made great strides to improve the level of service by employing a holistic approach, including a combination of technological improvements, additional staff, and enhanced process efficiencies.

The 2019 Legislative Session concluded on May 27. With over 7,000 bills filed by legislators, this session was a busy one.  While the Agency’s primary focus this session was on our Sunset legislation, we did keep our eye on the progress of several bills that could have impacted the Agency in one way or another.

Below is a list the bills that passed and a brief summary of their impact the regulatory authority of the Agency. In case you missed it, we hosted a Facebook LIVE discussing these bills and more. Check out the video below: 

As a result of changes recommended by TREC and implemented by the Agency’s sunset bill, a separate license certificate displaying the address for each branch office maintained by a broker or brokerage will no longer be required as of September 1, 2019,

Scott Kesner was appointed chair of the Texas Real Estate Commission on April 25, 2019. With more than 25 years of experience, this appointment is another highlight in Scott's long career.  Chair Kesner recently traveled to Austin from his home city of El Paso to meet with Agency senior staff and learn more about the Commission. He spent the day speaking to each director, learning about everything from enforcement to communications to technology. We sat down with Scott to ask him some questions about his experiences and learn more about his plans.

The Enforcement Division of the Texas Real Estate Commission protects consumers by enforcing the laws and rules that regulate real estate brokers and sales agents, real estate inspectors, and timeshare plans. The Enforcement Division also oversees the Fitness Determination request process and reviews applications to determine if prospective license holders meet the Commission's standards for honesty, integrity, and trustworthiness.

The Commission has received several questions about whether a broker may advertise about a service provider (such as a real estate inspector) and, if allowed, are there any limits to this type of activity?

Contributed by - Tony Slagle – Deputy Executive Director

Many of you know that the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) and the Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board (TALCB) is currently undergoing a review by the staff of the Sunset Advisory Commission. But what is a Sunset review and why is it necessary?

In the mid-1970s, many states, including Texas, established Sunset laws as a method to introduce an additional level of accountability for state agencies. Here’s a breakdown of how the process works in Texas: