Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutORDINANCES-1966-074-O-669 As Adopted, 6/6/66 • 74-0-66 AN ORDINANCE To add Sections 25-46 and 25-47 to the Code of the City of Evanston, 1957, to License Real Estate Brokers and Regulate Their Practices. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EVANSTON, COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS: SECTION l: That there be added to Chapter 25 "License and Occupation Tax" of the Code of the City of Evanston, 1957, Sections 25-46 and 25-47, providing for the licensing and regulating of real estate brokers, so that said sections shall read as follows: "Section 25-46. License Required. • It shall be unlawful for anyone to advertise, represent, hold himself out as, engage in the business of, or act in any manner as a real estate broker in the City of Evanston, without having first obtained an annual license for that purpose as provided herein. Each such license shall expire at midnight on December 31 of the calendar year in which it is issued. v (a) -- Definition: fj 8 "Real Estate Broker" within the meaning of this ordi- nance is defined to mean any person, association, co -partner- ship, or corporation who for another or others and in consider- ation of a commission, brokerage, or for compensation propor- tioned to the amount of the transaction, sells or offers for sale, buys or offers to buy, or negotiates or solicits the purchave or sale or exchange of real estate, or who leases, or offers to lease, rents or offers for rent, any real estate, or shows any real estate to any prospective purchaser, tenant, or lessee, or negotiates or solicits leases or rentals thereof or the improvements therein, or who utilizes any person as a real estate salesman or agent to perform any of the above acts. (b) -- Applications: Application for a Real Estate Broker's license shall be made to the City Clerk in writing, signed by the applicant if an individual, by a duly authorized partner if a partnership, is by a duly authorized member if an association, or by a duly authorized officer thereof if a corporation, verified by oath or affidavit. The application form shall be determined by the City Manager, and amended from time to time as he believes advisable, and shall require such information as he deems necessary. Any material falsehood, misstatement, or omission shall be grounds for immediate revocation of the license. -2- ( c ) -- Fees: Y0 The annual fee for a Real Estate Broker's license shall be ten dollars ($10.00). No license shall be issued for a • sum less than the full amount of the annual license fee. (d) -- Standards of Conduct:.;...: ," It shall be unlawful"':for any -r'ea'1` estate ..bro.ker acting with respect to Evanston re -al' estaate, to,do any of the following: 1) Make any substantial mit'represen.tation or false promise likely to induce, persuade, or influence, or engage in untruthful advertising,,or..pursue a continued or flagrant course of misrepresenting or the. making of false promises, through agents or salesmen or., otherwise; 2) Act for more;;than one party in a transaction without the knowledge of all parties to the transaction; 3) Fail to furnish copies, upon request, of all documents relating to a real estate transaction to all parties executing the same, or fail to account for or to remit any moneys or • documents coming into his possession which belong to others; .4) Fail to maintain and deposit in a special account, separate and apart from his personal or other business accounts, all moneys belonging to others entrusted to him while acting as a real estate broker, or as escrow agent, or as the temporary custodian of the funds of others, until the transaction involved is consummated or termiti'ated; -3- 5) Pay a commission or valuable consideration to any loo person for acts or services performed in violation of this ordinance; 6) Employ any person as a salesman or agent as a means • of evading provisions of this ordinance; 7) Display a "for rent" or "for'sale" sign on any property without the written consent of the owner or his duly authorized agent, or advertise that any property is for sale or for rent in a newspaper or other publication without the consent of the owner or his authorized agent; 8) Except as provided in subparagraph 12) hereafter, fail to promptly present to his principal any and all offers for sale, lease, or rental_ of .real estate; or set, without direction from his principal, the price, terms, conditions, or privileges of any kind relating to the sale, lease, rental, financing, repair, rehabilitation, construction, maintenance, or occupancy of any real estate; 9) Solicit for sale, lease, or rental, real estate on • the ground of loss of value due to the present, prospective, or alleged entry into the vicinity of any person or persons of any particular race, color, religion, national origin, or ancestry, or distribute or cause to be distributed written material or statements designed to induce any owner of real estate to sell, lease, or rent his property because of any present, prospective, or alleged change in the race, color, religion, national origin or ancestry of persons in the vicinity; I MI 10) Except as provided in subparagraph 12) hereafter, refuse examination of any listing of real estate; 11) Except as provided in subparagraph 12) hereafter, publish, circulate, issue, or display or cause to be published, • circulated, issued, or displayed any communication, notice, advertisement, sign, or other writing of any kind relating to the sale, rental, or leasing of any real property which will indicate or express any limitation in the sale, rental, or leasing of such real estate predicated upon the race, color, religion, national origin, or ancestry of any prospective buyer, lessee, or renter of such property; 12) Fail to follow the orders, directions, or wishes of said broker's principal, expressed in any way, to show said principal's real estate without regard to the race, color, religion, national origin, or ancestry of any prospec- tive purchaser, lessee, or tenant. Any licensed real estate broker whose principal wishes to place any restriction upon the listing or showing or the • sale, lease, or rental of his property must obtain written direction from the holder of legal title (owner) of the property expressing with particularity the restrictions the owner wishes the broker to observe with respect to his prop- erty. Said direction shall be acquired by the broker at the time he is engaged by the owner, or within 30 days after -5- the effective date of this ordinance in the case of broker or agency relationships existing on said effective date, and shall be signed by the owner and addressed to the real estate broker • acquiring the listing. If said broker acquiring the listing participates in any "multiple listing" arrangement, he shall make certain that the listing that is circulated to other brokers states on its face that the broker acquiring the listing has a direction from the owner. The owner's direction shall be kept in the possession of the broker originally acquiring the listing and shall be made available for inspection by the authority charged with the enforcement of this ordinance, but not by any other person. No licensed real estate broker shall be guilty of any violation of Sections 25-46 (d) 8), 10), or 11) of this ordi- nance if he has in the above manner been specifically instructed in writing of the owner's restrictions and has properly fol- lowed his instructions. • 13) Fail, within a reasonable time, to provide informa- tion requested by the person charged with enforcement of this ordinance as the result of a complaint alleging a violation of the ordinance. (e) -- Statements of Zonino: Every broker subject to the provisions of this ordinance shall furnish to the buyer before the transaction is closed 103 a Statement of Zoning obtained from the Planning and Conserva- ticn Department of the City. Said statement provided by the City shall fully and accurately disclose the present zoning classification of said real estate and describe in plain terms • the legal rights and restrictions that such present zoning classification imposes upon the use of said property. The statement shall also disclose existing violations, if a matter of record, of the building and housing codes and ordinances of the City of Evanston. The broker, by furnishing a Statement of Zoning as pro- vided by the City, shall in no way be considered to warrant the information contained in the statement nor be liable for errors or false information in the statement. The City of Evanston shall in no way be estopped from prosecuting zoning, building, or housing violations because it has issued any Statement of Zoning. The Planning and Conservation Department is hereby empowered to and shall act as a central clearing agency to • obtain the necessary information concerning housing and building code violations from other agencies and authorities of the City. The Department may charge a fee not to exceed ten dollars ($10.00) for each statement. Enforcement: Any person aggrieved in any manner by any violation of any provision of this section may file a written complaint with -7- 104 the City Manager setting forth his grievance. Said complaint shall state the name and address of the complainant and of the persons against whom the complaint is brought and shall also state the alleged facts supporting the claimed violations of this ordinance. The City Manager shall investigate each complaint alleg- ing any violation of this ordinance. If the City Manager believes there is a reasonable basis for the complaint, he shall, after giving five days written notice to the complainant and the respondent, hold a hearing on the complaint, If the City Manager determines the licensee is guilty of a violation of the provisions of this ordinance, he may suspend or revoke the license for such period as he shall determine, but not to exceed one year. The City Manager shall, after giving five days written notice to the complainant and respondent, hold a hearing on the complaint and, if he determines the licensee is guilty of a violation of the provisions of this ordinance, the City • Manager may suspend or revoke the license for such period as he shall determine, but not to exceed one year. If an un- licensed broker violates Section 25-46 (d) 1) through 13), such violation shall constitute a misdemeanor for which the fine shall be not less than twenty-five dollars ($25.00) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500.00), and every day that A a violation thereof continues shall constitute a separate offense. (g) -- Acting Without a License: • No person shall be liable for any commission or other compensation to any person or firm who acts as a real estate broker in the City of Evanston for negotiating the sale, lease, or rental of real estate located in the City of Evanston unless he is a real estate broker licensed under this ordinance. Any person, association, co -partnership, or corporation who acts as a real estate broker in the City of Evanston while not validly licensed pursuant to this ordinance is quilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not less than twenty-five dollars ($25.00) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) for each offense, and every day that a violation of this chapter shall occur shall constitute a separate and distinct offense. (h) -- State License: • In addition, the City Manager may direct the Corporation Counsel to file with the Department of Registration and Educa- tion of the State of Illinois a complaint against any real estate broker found guilty of violating Section 25-46 (d) 1) through 7) of this ordinance, seeking suspension or revocation of the license issued to such broker by the State of Illinois. �'1 ' •v "SECTION 25-47. Granting a License. The applicant shall be entitled to the issuance of a real estate broker's license upon the payment of the license • fee hereinabove provided. Said license shall be renewed annually, provided that said broker shall not have had his State or City license revoked for violation of this ordinance or the statutes of the State of Illinois." • SECTION 2: If any section, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause, or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitu- tional, such decision shall not affect any remaining portion, section or part therecf. SECTION 3: This ordinance shall take effect on January 1, 1967 after its passage, approval and publication in the manner provided by law. INTRODUCED . 1966 ADOPTED , 1966 APPROVED , 1966 Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk 0 O�9 Approved as to form: V Corporation Counsel -10-