A real estate agent may give someone a token of appreciation after receiving a referral (see Question 21). Furthermore, a real estate agent may give a commission rebate to his or her client (see Question 22).

For non-RESPA transactions such as the sale of commercial property, residential property with five or more units, agricultural property or vacant land—basically any property other than residential one-to-four unit property–or a transaction not involving a federally-related mortgage loan (e.g., private one-time lender or an all-cash deal), California law allows a real estate agent to pay a referral fee to an unlicensed person for merely introducing a new client. If, however, the unlicensed person goes beyond arranging an introduction, such as by negotiating the terms of sale on behalf of a principal, the real estate agent may not compensate the unlicensed person for performing licensed acts (Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 10138).

Q 21. Can a real estate licensee who receives a referral give the referring party a small token of appreciation?

A Yes. After a real estate licensee has already received a referral, he or she may give the referring party a small token of appreciation, such as a potted plant or movie tickets. However, this arrangement would violate RESPA if there was a prior agreement that the referring party would receive that gift in exchange for the referral. Also, any gift, no matter how small, may be covered under RESPA, but a small token of appreciation after a referral has already been received should pass scrutiny
Q 8. What is a “settlement service”under RESPA?

A A “settlement service” is defined as “any service provided in connection with a real estate settlement.” Settlement service providers include, but are not limited to, the following:

. Real estate agent or broker;
. Escrow agent;
. Title insurer;
. Lender;
. Credit reporting agency;
. Appraiser;
. Pest inspector;
. Property surveyor; and
. Attorney.

(12 U.S.C. § 2602(3).)

Hence, as a settlement service provider, a real estate agent is prohibited under RESPA from giving or accepting a referral fee incident to the real estate business, whether the other party to the referral arrangement is a settlement service provider or not. For example, under RESPA, a real estate agent cannot receive a referral fee for real estate service from a credit repair service, because the real estate agent is a settlement service provider. It does not matter whether the credit repair service is considered a settlement service provider or not.

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