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Real Estate Policy Manual - Legal and Tax Advice Section

By James Kimmons, About.com

This is a tricky area, in that clients will ask questions that we are not supposed to answer with any advice or specific guidance. You do not want to appear unresponsive, but you can get into trouble giving legal or tax advice when not licensed to do so.

One approach is to have some third party printed material on hand to give them a start, and advise that they consult their attorney or accountant for more specific advice. One area in which this comes up regularly is how title will be taken to property. A simple third party document explaining joint tenancy and other forms of ownership should be of help. However, it should state in writing that an attorney and/or accountant should be consulted.

This section also specifically details situations which should be immediately reported to the broker. These are the situations that can result in liability issues and need to be addressed quickly.

Download this example document section.

*Note: This example from an actual policy manual is provided for reference purposes only. Your brokerage should use it for ideas and guidance, consult with your attorney, and then draft your policy manual according to your desires, the laws of your state, and your attorney's counsel.

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