45 topics · Updated 2026-09-17
Every Rental Location Agent must provide a contract or receipt to each customer who pays full or partial consideration for the Agent's services. This document must conform to the requirements of Rule 1260-03-.05.
A prescribed rescission (cancellation) statement must appear in boldface and conspicuous type in every public offering statement and in every sale contract immediately above the purchaser's signature space. It informs buyers of their right to cancel a time-share purchase.
The rescission statement specifies three acceptable methods for a buyer to deliver a notice of cancellation within the designated period. Candidates should know all three methods and their timing triggers.
In a lawful proceeding against any person required to hold a designated agent license and/or a vacation lodging services license, the Commission may—in addition to or in lieu of other lawful disciplinary action—assess a civil penalty for each separate violation of a statute, rule, or order pertaining to the Commission in the amount of $0 to $1,000.00. Each day of a continued violation may constitute a separate violation, meaning penalties can accumulate quickly.
When setting the amount of a civil penalty, the Commission may consider: whether the amount will be a substantial economic deterrent to the violation; the circumstances leading to the violation; the severity of the violation and the risk of harm to the public; the economic benefits gained by the violator from non-compliance; and the interest of the public.
Chapter 1260-03 governs Rental Location Agents in Tennessee. This chapter was originally filed November 14, 1978, and became effective December 29, 1978. Rental location agents are individuals or firms that, for a fee, provide information or assistance to prospective tenants in locating rental housing. This is a distinct licensing category with its own regulatory requirements under TREC.
To be eligible for Commission approval, a real estate course must be under the personal and direct supervision of a qualified instructor. Effective January 1, 1995, the instructor must have completed a Commission-approved instructor training course, hold a high school diploma or equivalent, and have no unresolved complaints in the Office of the Commission.
Instructors must meet field-specific criteria: principles/math/sales technique courses require a licensed broker (or approved affiliate broker) with five years experience; law of real estate courses require an ABA-accredited or State Board of Law Examiners-approved law school graduate; other fields require the recognized degree/designation or five years experience; and college/university credit courses require a master's degree with three years experience or a terminal degree.
The Commission may use earnings of the real estate education and recovery account (established by T.C.A. § 62-13-208) for functions authorized by statute, dissemination of information for licensees, holding seminars on regulatory matters, monitoring/evaluating approved post-licensing courses, and publishing a newsletter for licensees. Training of Commission members and staff is also permitted.
The Commission may not authorize any expenditure that would reduce the education and recovery account balance below five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00). The rule does not preclude spending funds specifically appropriated by the General Assembly for any purpose.
A post office box cannot be used as a business location, but may be included in a business address for the purpose of receiving mail.
The contract or receipt must include a legend stating that the service is an information service only and no attempt is made to secure housing. The service offers only compiled information concerning available rental housing units.
The contract or receipt must include a legend, with the agent's name filled in, requiring a representative to mark one of two boxes after checking current listings: either that rental property meeting the customer's needs has been verified as available within the last 72 hours, or that no property meeting the customer's needs can be verified as currently available.
The contract or receipt must include a refund legend. Customers are entitled to a refund of all but $10.00 if, after a bonafide effort, they fail to find a rental through the service. To qualify, the customer must contact the named person in person or by telephone at least once each day for at least 10 days and attempt to contact each landlord whose number is given. Finding a rental other than through the service before 10 days expire also earns the refund. Refunds must be mailed within 10 days of receipt of the written request.
Every contract or receipt must contain the legends set forth in paragraphs (2), (3), and (4), and provide blanks for the information in paragraph (5). Legends must be in boldface type of at least the greater of 10 points or the largest type in the remainder of the document. If not printed, legends must be in all capital letters, and no other part except the agent's name may be in all capital letters.
The contract or receipt must provide spaces for the customer's property specifications: maximum rent per month, number of bedrooms, number of children, pet, and general location. For general location, the agent must show each customer a map dividing the served area into numbered districts not larger than zip code areas, possibly with special districts for universities, colleges, or high-density renter areas.
A developer may not intentionally cause a material change in a time-share program as represented in the public offering statement without at least ten (10) days advance notice to the Commission. Unintended material changes must also be reported promptly.
A 'material change' is a change in any information or document in or attached to the public offering statement that renders it false or misleading. The rule lists specific circumstances deemed material.
Fees include: examination fee paid to testing vendor as set by state contract; original license issuance fee of ninety dollars ($90.00) paid to the Commission; license renewal fee of seventy-five dollars ($75.00); Change of Principal Broker $25.00; transfer of affiliation or in/out of retirement status $25.00; certification of licensure $25.00. Bad checks are subject to penalties under T.C.A. §§ 9-1-108 and 9-1-109.
A penalty fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) per month, or portion thereof, applies for failing to timely renew a license if reinstated within the sixty (60) day timeframe under T.C.A. § 62-13-319(a), though the Commission may waive or lower it for good cause. When applying for an original license as a broker, affiliate broker, or time-share salesperson, the applicant pays an additional one dollar ($1.00) for deposit into the real estate education and recovery account.
To be certified as an instructor of vacation lodging services, an applicant must hold a high school diploma or GED and must EITHER hold a license as a designated agent under the Vacation Lodging Services Act OR possess a minimum of three (3) years experience in vacation lodging services. If a course concerns another field in which a degree, certification, or recognized designation is commonly awarded, the instructor must have earned that credential or have at least three (3) years of relevant experience in that field.
The Commission may charge a fee of twenty-five dollars ($25) for each instructor in an education cycle in order to review that instructor's qualifications.
Chapter 1260-04 establishes the Rules of Procedure for Hearing Contested Cases before the Tennessee Real Estate Commission. Originally filed November 22, 1978, effective January 8, 1979, these rules govern disciplinary and administrative hearings against licensees. An administrative correction to a chapter reference was made November 28, 2022. These procedures ensure due process when TREC pursues disciplinary action.
No broker or affiliate broker may accept or enter a listing based on a 'net price' — a price excluding the customary commission and expenses associated with the sale.
Applicants who elect to obtain their real estate education through the Tennessee Realtors' Institute remain subject to the 'basic principles of real estate' and 'office or brokerage management' course requirements of T.C.A. § 62-13-303 for affiliate broker and broker licenses respectively.
No rental housing may be advertised in any medium unless its availability for rental has been verified by the Rental Location Agent on the day the advertising request is made. Availability of all advertised property must be verified daily while the ads continue to be published.
For any property not being advertised, the Rental Location Agent may not represent it as available unless availability has been verified within 72 hours of the time the representation is made. If verification cannot be made within that time, the property must be removed from listings until verified.
For any property represented as available, the agent must fully, accurately, and clearly disclose: date of availability if not currently available, monthly rent, existence/amount of any deposits or extra charges, number of bedrooms, whether a lease is required, restrictions (such as no pets, except those imposed by law), types of housing, location by reference to established areas, utilities paid, and the landlord's telephone number. In advertising, only date of availability, monthly rent, and location must be disclosed.
No representation may be made to any person that rental property meeting their needs is in the agent's listings unless it is true and unless availability has been verified as required. For purposes of this rule, 'Rental Location Agent' includes the licensed agent and all its employees and agents.
Chapter 1260-05 sets forth the Educational Requirements for Tennessee real estate licensees, including pre-licensing education and continuing education. Rule 1260-05-.03 (course approval/requirements) has been amended many times. New rule 1260-05-.18 was added effective November 23, 2023, and rule 1260-05-.11 was amended at the same time. Candidates must complete required education to obtain and maintain their licenses.
The original educational rules 1260-05-.01 through 1260-05-.10 were filed September 30, 1980, effective December 15, 1980, with rules .11 through .13 added in 1984, .14 in 1988, .15 and .16 in later years. This progressive expansion reflects Tennessee's increasing emphasis on formal education for real estate professionals. Rule 1260-05-.15 was amended effective November 3, 2019.
A broker or affiliate broker must promptly tender every written offer until a contract is signed by all parties. Upon proper acceptance of an offer or counteroffer, they must promptly deliver true executed copies to both purchaser and seller. All terms and conditions must be included in the contract, and rejected offers should be noted and returned.
Each acquisition agent must furnish specified information on the Commission's prescribed form, including office and personnel details and the programs/developers involved. Any changes must be reported.
For issuance of an original vacation lodging service firm license or an original designated agent license, the fee paid to the Commission is one hundred dollars ($100.00). For each renewal of a license, the fee paid to the Commission is eighty dollars ($80.00). Candidates should memorize these exact fee amounts.
Documents may be remitted to the Commission by mail, fax, e-mail, hand delivery, or approved online submission containing substantially the same information as the paper form. For mailed documents, the filing date is determined by the official postmark. Documents submitted electronically or by hand-delivery are not considered filed if received after the Commission's business hours on the deadline date. The Director may develop an online submission process requiring electronic signatures where signatures are required.
Real estate courses designed to satisfy educational requirements may not be conducted in a facility also used for a broker's or brokerage firm's business, nor advertised in conjunction with any broker/brokerage advertisement. Brokers may not use course facilities to discuss, induce, or promote affiliation.
Active licensees must carry errors and omissions insurance to cover all activities under the Tennessee Real Estate Broker License Act, unless the Commission is unable to obtain coverage under T.C.A. § 62-13-112(g). Licensees in inactive or retired status need not carry E&O insurance until their license is activated. New licensees, those activating from inactive/retired status, and those reinstating from expired status mid-period pay a prorated premium.
The Commission performs random audits to ensure licensees meet E&O requirements. Any independently obtained E&O policy must, at a minimum, be issued on the same terms and conditions as the policy obtained by the Commission under T.C.A. § 62-13-112, including limits of coverage, permissible deductible, permissible exemptions, and term of the policy.
'Commingling' means maintaining others' funds in the same account with personal/business funds. 'Trust money' is money belonging to others received by a licensee acting as agent/facilitator or held as temporary custodian. Each principal broker must maintain a separate escrow/trustee account for trust money.
Principal brokers are responsible at all times for trust money accepted by them or their affiliated brokers. When a contract authorizes the broker to hold trust money, the contract must specify disbursement terms and the name/address of who holds the money. The broker is relieved of responsibility when another authorized entity receives the money.
A principal broker may properly disburse trust money upon reasonable interpretation of the contract, a separate written agreement signed by all interested parties, at closing, upon rejection or withdrawal of an offer, upon filing an interpleader action, or upon court order.
Absent a compelling reason, earnest money must be disbursed, interpleaded, or turned over to an attorney with interpleader instructions within twenty-one (21) calendar days from the date of receipt of a written request for disbursement.
Trust money must be deposited into an escrow/trustee account promptly upon acceptance of the offer unless the offer states 'Trust money to be deposited by:'. All trust money related to leasing property must be held in one or more separate escrow/trustee accounts. Commingling within firm accounts is expressly prohibited.
Interest-bearing escrow/trustee accounts are neither required nor prohibited. If used, the licensee must disclose to the payor at contract execution that the deposit will be interest-bearing, execute a written agreement on disposition of interest, acknowledge the licensee does not own the money or interest until properly disbursed, and keep detailed accounting of interest earned.
Each sales agent must furnish specified information on the Commission's prescribed form regarding office, personnel, the programs sold, and the developer. Changes must be promptly reported.
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