Legal Videos

Press play: in 5 minutes or less you can be up to date on a variety of common legal issues.

Please note that videos below are in alphabetical order by topic.

VIDEO: ADVERTISING VAR's Blake Hegeman addressing a classic hotline topic: advertising. Some of the questions addressed here are: What are the minimum required disclosures that must be included in advertising? What exactly constitutes advertising? What's the difference between firm and individual licensee advertising? How does social media fit in? What does "viewable page" and "one click away" mean?
VIDEO: AGENTS LEAVING OR CHANGING FIRMS VAR's Blake Hegeman discusses the perennial favorite topic: what goes down when agents leave or change firms? Questions answered include: • What happens if an agent leaves a firm when they have a deal pending? • Can you still be paid while in transition to another firm? • Where does the payment come from in those instances?
VIDEO: NEW AGENCY DISCLOSURE FORM REQUIREMENTS VAR, in collaboration with forms providers from around the state, has created new forms to help you comply with changes to agency law. These forms are concise and user-friendly and are the product of an effort to reduce the number of new agency disclosure forms. VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through new forms and changes to some old favorites, like: Disclosure of Brokerage Relationship for Unrepresented Parties Dual and Designated Agency disclosures Exclusive and Non-exclusive Right to Represent Buyer Agreements And more!
VIDEO: ANTI-TRUST VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through the ins and outs of anti-trust law. This is an important issue for REALTORS® especially - there have been many recent crackdowns on the real estate industry. Make sure you know: All about avoiding price fixing Avoiding discussions about individual firm policies and commission rates Common "boycotting" scenarios and how to avoid becoming entagled in them
VIDEO: BROKER COMPETENCY VAR Legal Counsel Blake Hegeman outlines a broker's responsibilities under the REALTOR® Code of Ethics Article 11. With a changing market, a broker remains obligated to provide service and guidance to customers only in the areas in which they can do so competently. Do you know everything you should about the following areas before offering service and guidance? Property management Commercial transactions Short sales
VIDEO: COMMISSIONS & COMPENSATION VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through some of the most common questions Realtors® have about a pretty important topic: commissions and getting paid. Blake gives some answers to questions like: What is procuring cause and what makes someone procuring cause of a transaction? May I advertise a rebate to a prospective buyer? How do I have to represent this? Can agents be paid for BPOs?
VIDEO: CLASSIC CONTRACT TERMINATION & RELEASE QUESTIONS VAR's Blake Hegeman explains some common scenarios regarding contract terminations and releases, including: POA Act rights The critical difference between a RELEASE and a TERMINATION The effect of a termination or release on earnest money deposits (EMD)
VIDEO: DESIGNATED AGENCY & MLS WITHDRAWALS VAR's Blake Hegeman introduces the newly revised hotline FAQs brochure and answers these common questions: Can a firm practice designated agency if it holds only two licenses or has only two licensees? What if my client asks me to withdraw their listing from the MLS? CLICK HERE to download the newly revised 25 Legal Hotline FAQs brochure Blake mentions in this video.
VIDEO: DISCLOSING BROKERAGE RELATIONSHIPS TO UNREPRESENTED PARTIES Want to know what's up with VAR's new Form 100 ("Disclosure of Brokerage Relationship to Unrepresented Parties")? Sound like gibberish to you? VAR Legal Counsel Blake Hegeman clears up some common misunderstandings around this required disclosure, including when you need to give it, and who it needs to be given to.
VIDEO: DISCLOSURES VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through some classic disclosure questions, including: What are the general obligations an agent has on the buyer and seller sides? What's the difference between an agent's requirements vs. the seller themselves? What the heck is caveat emptor? (Hint: buyer beware!) How about physical property issues that have been remediated (like mold)? Other stuff like: POA packets, lead based paint, etc. See also: UNUSUAL DISCLOSURE SCENARIOS
VIDEO: DUAL AGENCY VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through some important changes to Virginia's agency law as it affects dual agency practices. These changes took effect in 2012 and are reflected in VAR's updated standard forms.
VIDEO: EARNEST MONEY DEPOSITS & ESCROW (Scroll down on page to see this video) VAR's Blake Hegeman talks about one of the hottest topics on the legal hotline: earnest money deposits (EMDs) and escrow. This video covers: What does "within 5 days" mean? How do EMDs work in a short sale? What about liens? Contingencies? Other factors? When should a broker report escrow issues to the Real Estate Board? And more!
VIDEO: EARNEST MONEY DEPOSITS (THE SEQUEL!) One of the most important duties a REALTOR® has is holding a clients' funds for Earnest Money Deposits. VAR's Blake Hegeman updates viewers on EMDs by covering this info: Release of EMD funds Timeliness of releases Can the absence of an EMD prevent a contract from being ratified?
VIDEO: ETHICS & DISCLOSING ONLINE OFFERS VAR's Blake Hegeman explains all about your obligations to your clients regarding the presentation of offers on their property, including explaining: the difference between written and verbal offers disclosing existing offers to prospective buyers the REALTOR® Code of Ethics duties regarding offers And more!
VIDEO: FAIR HOUSING VAR's Blake Hegeman covers the basics on common fair housing questions, including: Do you need to show the equal housing logo in your ads? What's the deal with renting to college students? And more!
VIDEO: GRAVESITES, GHOSTS, AND...DESIGNATED AGENCY VAR's Blake Hegeman answers some important questions about disclosing some, er, interesting scenarios, including: dead bodies, or, more specifically, gravesites ghosts, goblins, and other paranormal "situations" and, to complete the potpourri, a question about designted agency with respect to the July 1, 2012 change to VA real estate agency law (you can skip ahead to 1:51 on the clock to catch that Q&A)
VIDEO: HAZARDS WITHIN THE HOME – WHAT SHOULD YOU DISCLOSE? VAR's Blake Hegeman takes you beyond "material adverse facts" and explores what other property conditions it might be a good idea to let prospective buyers know about, even before they view a property. After all, liability starts at the first viewing. Discussed here: Mold Dogs Ferrets Other hazardous conditions that could increase liability
VIDEO: LIABILITY-LIMITING LEGISLATION FROM YOUR FRIENDS AT VAR VAR's Blake Hegeman gives you an overview of some friendly legislation VAR has sponsored over the past several years that help you limit your liability, including: False information liability Disclosure obligations regarding the condition of a property
VIDEO: LICENSE TRANSFER PROCESS UPDATE FROM DPORVAR's Blake Hegeman delivers some good news in this May 2013 special edition. The transfer process for licensees in Virginia has been streamlined so that our members can begin working at their new firm immediately when transferring. Blake explains the requirements of the new process, including: What responsibility the NEW broker has in certifying that the transferring agent is active and competent What responsibility the transferring agent has in notifying their OLD brokerage about their leaving Other important considerations with regard to the new process
VIDEO: OFFERS OF COOPERATION AND THE MLS VAR's Blake Hegeman explains all about how offers of cooperation in the MLS work, plus a very important list of do's and don'ts. PLUS: What has Blake saying "It's none of your business!" Watch this video and find out.
VIDEO: ONLINE ETIQUETTE & THE LAW VAR Legal Counsel Blake Hegeman walks you through a few common online etiquette scenarios that could get you or your agents in hot water. In this episode, Blake will cover: what constitutes defamation the Duty of Confidentiality how to avoid becoming part of an online antitrust conspiracy
VIDEO: PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATIONS – PACKETS VAR's Blake Hegeman delivers a preview of the soon-to-be-released 2013 update to the wildly popular 25 Legal Hotline FAQ booklet. As part of the teaser, he'll answer two sticky questions about the POA Act, covering: POA packet timelines Termination particulars Buyer agent authority to receive packets And more!
VIDEO: PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATIONS VAR's Blake Hegeman talks about property owners associations, the dreaded POA packet, and more, including: What are my duties and obligations as a buyer agent? When does the clock start on the POA packet turnaround? Who has to deliver the packet? What about waiving rights to the POA packet? And more!
VIDEO: REBATES, REFERRALS, & ONLINE ADVERTISING DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS VAR's Blake Hegeman talks about the required disclosures and best practices for online advertising, plus some great rebate and referral guidelines.Questions answered include: What are the required disclosures for online advertising? Can I advertise rebates to potential buyers? What's the major difference between rebates and referral fees?
VIDEO: A REGULATORY GRAB BAG VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through some interesting regulatory points, including: Is property management a licensed activity? Can I pay my lead generator a fee in exchange for referrals? How long do i have to keep records per the Real Estate Board? And more!
VIDEO: REPRESENTING THE SELLER VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through the duties you have to a seller, not just as an agent but as a FIRM. Blake talks about Open houses Dual and designated agency Representing sellers
VIDEO: RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY DISCLOSURE STATEMENT & SUMMARY OF RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS FORM (SUM 1) VAR's Blake Hegeman answers your questions about the Residential Property Disclosure Act requirements, including: WHEN you must provide the disclosure to a buyer, WHY this disclosure is required, and WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE between the Residential Property Disclosure and the Summary of Rights and Obligations forms.
VIDEO: STIGMATIZED PROPERTIES VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through some very common questions about Stigmatized property Application deposits And more!
VIDEO: TEAMS Join VAR's Blake Hegeman as he discusses real estate sales teams. Blake answers common questions like: What is a team? Who do teams report to? What do teams need to know when advertising? What about teams and designated agency? How are teams compensated? Are there special licensing issues for teams? And more!
VIDEO: UNAUTHORIZED PRACTICE OF LAW You're not a lawyer – you don't even play one on TV. What constitutes the unauthorized practice of law? Hint: Better think twice before writing that contract for a fee if you're not a part of the transaction. Blake walks you through the most common instances where this very dangerous practice occurs.
VIDEO: USING AN UNLICENSED ASSISTANT VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through a clear list of do's and don'ts concerning what your unlicensed assistant can and can't do for you.
VIDEO: UNUSUAL DISCLOSURE SCENARIOS VAR's Blake Hegeman walks you through some unusual scenarios, such as: out of state referral fees out of state agents listing property in Virginia "material adverse facts" See also: DISCLOSURES

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