The Alabama Real Estate Commission met in Montgomery last Thursday for its March 2023 meeting. Commissioners heard reports from staff and conducted hearings for those accused of license law violations and those whose requests require a hearing. Continue reading for a brief summary of the meeting. 

One item of note is that licenses issued during February declined from the prior month but are steady from this time last year. Last month, the commission received nearly 9.6 new license applications a day, compared to 10.7 per day in January and 9.3 in February 2022. Over the past two years, the total licenses issued by the commission has grown tremendously. Last month, 41,899 total licenses had been issued, compared to 38,050 in February 2022, just over 36,000 in February 2021, and 35,000 in October 2020 (the last date the official minutes provide a total). Currently, over 12,000 of the licenses are on inactive status. 

This year is an education renewal year. Commission staff will begin the process of accepting education renewals this summer, with all schools, instructors and courses due to be renewed by September 30^th. 

Commissioner held hearings on a variety of typical matters, including complaints for bad checks or rejected electronic payments and for a late payment, requests for extensions, applications for a salesperson’s temporary license, for a determination of licensing eligibility, and for a salesperson’s reciprocal license. AREC changed the hearings to include a consent decree docket for those that have consented to a specific charge. These are primarily used for bad check cases. 

The Commission travels for the next meeting to Huntsville, to be held on April 20^th, followed by a return to Montgomery on May 25^th.