Despite a fairly undemanding continuing education requirement, more than half of disciplinary actions against real estate agents have to do with failure to comply with that obligation.

Real estate agents and brokers in Massachusetts need only 12 hours of continuing education (CE) every two years to maintain their licenses. Many licensees in other Massachusetts industries, including electricians and appraisers, are required to take far more hours of CE to maintain their licenses.

Six hours of CE per year should be an easy hurdle to clear; even worse, experts say, failing to to meet the requirement can open agents and their firms up to significant liability.

The real estate instructors interviewed for this story each said, without prompting, that the two areas where agents need more training in are two old and relatively basic topics: agency and lead paint laws.

One of the biggest changes to the new lead paint law, which went into effect in December 2017, was the definition of lead poisoning. It was lowered from 25 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood to 10, increasing the likelihood of an increase in children diagnosed with lead poisoning each year. That makes it even more important that agents handle disclosures properly – and many don’t, according to real estate educator Anita Hill, owner of Methuen-based Anita Hill Training & Seminars.

Jim Morrison

“The law says the form must be provided to a consumer prior to entering into a contract,” she said. “Listing agents aren’t providing it to buyers’ agents. Some agents have a buyer sign a blank one, but the buyer is supposed to sign the form provided by the seller. The listing agent is supposed to make sure the seller complies with the law – and some of them don’t.”

Too many agents don’t understand the implications of the updated law, said Jack Gately, owner of the All Online Real Estate Academy.

“This is not your father’s lead paint law,” he said. “Children’s health is at risk, so we wanted to make sure the lead paint training was one of the first videos in our free online library.”

One of the other major oversights in agent education is the explanation of agency – both to agents themselves and through them to their customers.

Because agency can be complicated, some agents don’t explain it well – or worse, don’t bother to explain it at all, and that’s against the law, said Hill.

“They’re supposed to explain their relationship to the consumer,” she said. “Buyer agency, seller agency, designated dual agency and brokerage relationships can be confusing to consumers. I think agents struggle with explaining that to the consumer more than anything else. Sometimes it’s easier not to deal with it rather than deal with it. But that’s a mistake.”

Agents have to understand who they are representing – regardless of who is paying them – and be able to explain it to their customers, said attorney and real estate instructor Kosta Ligris.

“At a minimum, agents should refresh themselves on designated agencies regularly,” he said. “In any market when there’s limited inventory, like this market, agency becomes more key.”

Choosing Timely Topics

CE courses are designed to help agents protect consumers, not help agents make more money, Hill said, adding that she’s glad to see an uptick in enrollment in classes on how to write offers.

The class “looks at an offer and the many contingencies that can be added,” she said. “We’re seeing a lot of buyers dropping contingencies [in this hypercompetitive market]. We have to ensure that agents understand what that means, so they can explain it to the buyers, so they can make informed decisions.”

While occasionally brushing up on the basics is important, agents should be analyzing market trends and taking classes in anticipation of changes, Ligris said.

“Contract law and consumer protection laws are really important to be familiar with,” he said. “Agents aren’t practicing law, but they do need to be familiar with the basics. If they’re doing condo work or plan on doing it, they should take the condo class. Also, agents should watch the cycles. We don’t have a lot of short sales right now, so those classes probably aren’t well attended, but agents are going to need that training when they come back.”

Both Hill and Gately said that the CE requirement in Massachusetts is low in a field that is often criticized for having a low barrier to entry to begin with.

“It is low, considering the amount of responsibility they take on,” Hill said.

“Overall, it’s easier to get licensed in Massachusetts than it is in most states,” Gately said.

There are agents who check the box on license renewal forms indicating they completed the CE requirement when they haven’t, Hill said. Some are caught by the state audit; many are not. Agents who complete their CE requirement protect themselves by protecting their clients, she said. And it’s the law.

“There’s nothing to keep an agent from completing their continuing education before their renewal date,” Gately said. “It’s important that an agent’s continuing education be completed before they submit their renewal. If you haven’t completed your hours, don’t check that box.”