Real Estate Wholesaling Legislation Takes Effect!
By: Andrew Huffman, VP of Legislative Affairs
Starting on March 2, real estate wholesalers must provide homeowners with a new disclosure form before entering a contract to transfer a property. The disclosure must clearly identify the party as a wholesaler and state that the wholesaler is not representing the homeowner in the transaction. The disclosure must also inform the homeowner that they are entitled to seek advice from an attorney or a real estate professional prior to entering into a contract with the wholesaler. Lastly, the disclosure informs the homeowner about the process of real estate wholesaling, that the wholesaler may assign the contract to a third party for a profit, and that the homeowner may be receiving below-market value for the property.
Property owners who do not receive and sign this disclosure can cancel the contract at any point before closing. Wholesalers who ignore the requirement can face enforcement under the Consumer Sales Practices Act.
This requirement comes after the passage of Senate Bill 155 last year. The legislation was introduced by Senators Andy Brenner (R-Delaware) and Catherine Ingram (D-Cincinnati). Ohio REALTORS® has long championed the importance of providing guardrails surrounding the practice of wholesaling and partnered with numerous other organizations to support the legislation throughout the legislative process.
These advocacy efforts will deliver much needed transparency to real estate wholesaling andestablish clear safeguards to better protect Ohio’s consumers.
Learn more about Senate Bill 155 through the following link:
Senate Bill 155 | 136th General Assembly | Ohio Legislature
Andrew Huffman
Vice President, Legislative Affairs
Serves as the primary lobbyist on state legislative and regulatory issues for Ohio REALTORS®. He is responsible for overseeing the Association’s legislative, regulatory, and political advocacy efforts and coordinating with the Association’s Legislative Steering Committee on reviewing and determining policy positions.
Andrew serves as staff liaison to the Legislative Steering Committee, Enlarge Legislative Committee, Issues Mobilization Committee, and coordinates with the Assistant Vice President of Political Affairs on managing the SPC Advisory Board and RPAC Trustees Committee.
Learn more about Andrew & his role.
