09-Mar-2007

The Tennessee Court of Appeals held in Burks v. Elevation Outdoor Advertising, LLC (Tenn. App. July 24, 2006) that unlicensed individuals who were paid a commission in connection with the sale of an outdoor advertising business violated the Tennessee Real Estate Broker License Act of 1973. The defendants argued that there were items sold that were not real estate since an entire business was sold and a real estate license was not required. However, the Court disagreed and determined that the real property leases were a big part of the sale of the business and a real estate broker’s license was essential to the transaction.

The moral of this story is to never gamble with this type of situation. A real estate license is essential and mandatory in relation to any transaction involving the sale of any type of real estate.