Current through Vol. 41, No. 13, March 15, 2024
(a)
Requirements and
prohibitions.
(1) A broker, when
advertising, must use their registered business trade name or the name under
which the broker is licensed; however, yard signs must also include the
broker's office telephone number. A firm shall not register or use a trade name
of another licensed firm. In addition, the advertisement must indicate that the
party is a real estate broker and not a private party, to include, but not
limited to, "agency", "company", "realty", or "real estate", as the case may
be. Legal abbreviations following the trade name or name under which the broker
is licensed shall be acceptable as long as they are easily identifiable by the
public as such.
(2) No real estate
advertisement shall show only a post office box number, telephone number or
street address.
(3) A broker, when
operating under a franchise name, shall clearly reveal in all office
identification and in all advertising other than institutional type advertising
designed to promote a common name, the franchise name along with the name of
the broker or business trade name as registered with the Commission. A
franchise name shall not be the complete business trade name. All institutional
type franchise advertising shall indicate that each office is independently
owned and operated.
(4) A licensee
shall not advertise, either personally or through any media, to sell, buy,
exchange, rent, or lease property when such advertisement is directed at or
referred to persons of a particular race, color, creed, religion, national
origin, familial status or handicap. The contents of any advertisement must be
confined to information relative to the property itself, and any advertisement
which is directed at or referred to persons of any particular race, color,
creed, religion, national origin, familial status, age or handicap is
prohibited.
(5) Any advertising in
any media which is misleading or inaccurate in any material fact or in any way
misrepresents any property, terms, values, services, or policies is
prohibited.
(6) A licensee shall
not advertise any property for sale, rent, lease, or exchange in any media
unless the broker has first secured the permission of the owner or the owner's
authorized representative and said permission has a definite date of
expiration.
(7) Social networking.
A licensee who is engaged in licensed activities through social networking
mediums must indicate their license status and include their broker's reference
as required elsewhere in this rule.
(8) A licensee shall not use a yard sign at
the licensee's personal residence as a marketing tool, to make it appear the
real property is for sale, lease or rent when such is not the case.
(9) A broker may, or authorize an associate
to, promote a seller incentive with the consent of the seller. The publicity
must clearly indicate the incentive is being offered by the seller and not by
the licensee and that the promotion only applies to a seller's particular
property or properties.
(b)
Associates advertising.
(1) An associate is prohibited from
advertising under only the associate's name.
(2) All advertising by an associate must be
under the direct supervision of the associate's broker.
(3) In all advertising, the associate must
include the name of the associate's broker or the name under which the broker
operates, in such a way that the broker's reference is prominent, conspicuous
and easily identifiable. For the purposes of this section, "prominent,
conspicuous and easily identifiable" means that the broker's reference shall be
at least fifty percent (50%) or larger than any associate reference included in
the advertisement. If approved by a broker, an associate may include in the
advertisement:
(A) The associate's personal
insignia of which such approval is to be maintained by the broker and which
cannot be construed as that of a firm's name.
(B) The associate's personal nickname or
alias which must be registered at the Commission prior to its use and which
cannot be construed as that of a firm's name.
(C) An associate's contact information.
(D) A slogan which cannot be
construed as that of a firm's name.
(E) A domain/website name that is registered
with the broker. Within this domain/website, the broker's reference shall
appear on every individual page and/or frame.
(4) An associate's contact information may be
added to a yard sign if the yard sign contains the registered name or trade
name and office telephone number of the broker so long as it is approved by the
broker.
(5) Open house or
directional signs used in conjunction with broker's signs do not have to
contain the name or trade name of the associate's broker and broker's telephone
number.
(c)
Team
advertising.
(1) A team is prohibited
from advertising only under the team name.
(2) All advertising by a team must be under
the direct supervision of the team's broker.
(3) All team advertising must include the
name of the team's broker or the name under which the broker operates, in such
a way that the broker's reference is prominent, conspicuous and easily
identifiable. For the purposes of this section, "prominent, conspicuous and
easily identifiable" means that the broker's reference shall be at least fifty
percent (50%) or larger than any team reference included in the advertisement.
If approved by the broker, a team may include in the advertisement:
(A) The team's personal insignia of which
such approval is to be maintained by the broker.
(B) The team's contact information.
(C) A team slogan approved by the
broker.
(D) A domain/website name
that is registered with the broker. Within this domain/website, the broker's
reference shall appear on every individual page and/or frame.
(d)
Licensee
acting as owner, purchaser or direct employee of owner.
(1) When a licensee, either active or
inactive, is purchasing real estate or is the owner of property that is being
sold, exchanged, rented or leased and such is being handled either by the
licensee or marketed through a real estate firm, the licensee is required to
disclose in writing on all documents that pertain to the transaction and in all
advertisements that he or she is licensed. On all purchase or lease contracts
the licensee is to include their license number.
(2) A licensee who is not acting in the
capacity of a licensee but is engaged in buying, selling, leasing or renting
real estate as a direct employee for the owner or as an officer for an entity
is not required to indicate in the advertising that he or she is
licensed.
Amended at 8 Ok Reg 2071, eff 7-1-91; Amended at 10 Ok Reg
2087, eff 7-1-93; Amended at 13 Ok Reg 1723, eff 7-1-96; Amended at 14 Ok Reg
3031, eff 7-11-97; Amended at 15 Ok Reg 3322, eff 7-13-98; Amended at 17 Ok Reg
2645, eff 7-1-00; Amended at 20 Ok Reg 2563, eff 7-11-03; Amended at 21 Ok Reg
2467, eff 7-1-04; Amended at 24 Ok Reg 2321, eff 7-1-07; Amended at 27 Ok Reg
1940, eff 7-1-10; Amended at 28 Ok Reg 1812, eff 7-1-11; Amended at 29 Ok Reg
1402, eff 7-1-12; Amended at 30 Ok Reg 2060, eff
11-1-13