The California Department of Real Estate should require stronger educational requirements for the state's 533,000 real estate agents and brokers before licensing them to handle transactions, the state Legislative Analyst's Office said Tuesday.
The report likewise criticized the state's "onerous and time-consuming process for taking disciplinary actions against licensees who violate the law." It noted on average that cases involving consumer complaints take more than year.
The LAO report is a starting point for potential legislation to shape the department that oversees much of California's real estate industry.
In urging stronger educational requirements, the LAO said it's generally too easy to become a real estate agent in California. Sales agents need only two introductory courses in real estate basics and one elective course. Agents can pass the licensing exam and begin working with only a basic understanding of the business, said the report.
The study is available online at www.lao.ca.gov.
--Call The Sacramento Bee's Jim Wasserman, (916) 321-1102 or email him at [email protected]. Read his blog on real estate, Home Front, at www.sacbee.com/blogs.