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Have you ever encountered a situation where a seller has unexpectedly passed away during the term of an exclusive listing? The Massachusetts Court of Appeals recently addressed this question for the first time. The Case, Newton Centre Realty, Inc. v. David R. Jaffe, personal representative Shirley Jaffee had entered into three separate Exclusive Right to Sell agreements with Newton Centre Realty for her three residential properties. During the term of the agreements, Ms. Jaffee passed away and her estate’s representative sold the properties without using the brokerage during the exclusivity period of the agreements. Newton Centre Realty then sued to collect the commissions owed under the agreements. The case addresses the question of whether the death of the seller terminates a real estate brokerage agreement. The Decision The court relied on well-established common law principles and held that the seller’s…

The Question Whether a judge has authority to issue orders for rent escrow payments during the pendency of a summary process eviction action, and, if so, the circumstances under which it is appropriate to exercise that authority. The Case In the case of Davis v. Comerford, SJC-12712, (Mass. Sept. 16, 2019) a landlord served a tenant-at-will with a Notice to Quit but the tenant failed to vacate the premises. The landlord filed for summary process alleging failure to pay rent, to which the tenants answered with several affirmative defenses and counterclaims, including breach of the warranty of habitability and the covenant of quiet enjoyment, retaliatory eviction, violation of Chapter 93A, and violation of the security deposit statute. At a hearing, the judge for the Southeastern Housing Court ordered that rent be escrowed pending trial. The tenant claimed the court…

The office of Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey recently announced settlements in three housing discrimination cases requiring the defendants to pay a total of $40,000, undergo staff training, update fair housing policies, and clarify in property advertisements that Section 8 tenants are welcome. In each of the cases, individuals receiving public assistance through the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program were rejected by rental housing representatives because of their participation in the program. What Did the Agents Do? Specifically, two rental property representatives told Section 8 program participants that they could not accept Section 8 vouchers, and the third said that their rental property was “not approved for Section 8.” It is illegal to bar a Section 8 recipient from renting a property because of their participation in the program and there is no Section 8property pre-approval. In addition, one…

In 2014, the Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salesmen (the Board) initiated proceedings against real estate licensee Michael Thomann. The Board alleged that Thomann had bought and sold real estate on behalf of clients through an unlicensed limited liability company (LLC), in violation of two sections of the Massachusetts Code of Regulations (CMR).* The Board also alleged that he violated a third section of the CMR by failing to provide a proper notice of agency disclosure to the seller. Michael Thomann v. Board of Registration of Real Estate Brokers and Salesmen highlights the importance of proper licensing and agency disclosure for REALTORS® that operate their business through an LLC or other corporate entity. The Law Massachusetts regulations provide that licensees may not engage in the business of real estate brokering in an LLC or other corporate entity…