State Codes and Statutes

Statutes > Wisconsin > 452 > 452.01

452.01

452.01 Definitions. In this chapter:

452.01(1e)

(1e) "Adverse fact" means any of the following:

452.01(1e)(a)

(a) A condition or occurrence that is generally recognized by a competent licensee as doing any of the following:

452.01(1e)(a)1.

1. Significantly and adversely affecting the value of the property.

452.01(1e)(a)2.

2. Significantly reducing the structural integrity of improvements to real estate.

452.01(1e)(a)3.

3. Presenting a significant health risk to occupants of the property.

452.01(1e)(b)

(b) Information that indicates that a party to a transaction is not able to or does not intend to meet his or her obligations under a contract or agreement made concerning the transaction.

452.01(1m)

(1m) "Agency agreement" means a written agreement between a broker and a client in which the client authorizes the broker to provide brokerage services to the client.

452.01(1s)

(1s) "Board" means real estate board.

452.01(2)

(2) "Broker" means any person not excluded by sub. (3), who does any of the following:

452.01(2)(a)

(a) For another person, and for commission, money, or other thing of value, negotiates or offers or attempts to negotiate a sale, exchange, purchase, or rental of, or the granting or acceptance of an option to sell, exchange, purchase, or rent, an interest or estate in real estate, a time share, or a business or its goodwill, inventory, or fixtures, whether or not the business includes real property.

452.01(2)(b)

(b) Is engaged wholly or in part in the business of selling or exchanging interests or estates in real estate or businesses, including businesses' goodwill, inventory, or fixtures, whether or not the business includes real property, to the extent that a pattern of sales or exchanges is established, whether or not the person owns the real estate or businesses. Five sales or exchanges in one year or 10 sales or exchanges in 5 years is presumptive evidence of a pattern of sales or exchanges.

452.01(2)(bm)

(bm) For another person, and for commission, money, or other thing of value shows real estate or a business or its inventory or fixtures, whether or not the business includes real property, except that this paragraph does not include showing a property that is offered exclusively for rent.

452.01(2)(h)

(h) For another person, and for commission, money, or other thing of value, promotes the sale, exchange, purchase, option, rental, or leasing of real estate, a time share, or a business or its goodwill, inventory, or fixtures, whether or not the business includes real property. This paragraph does not apply to a person who only publishes or disseminates verbatim information provided by another person.

452.01(3)

(3) "Broker" does not include any of the following:

452.01(3)(a)

(a) Receivers, trustees, personal representatives, guardians, or other persons appointed by or acting under the judgment or order of any court.

452.01(3)(b)

(b) Public officers while performing their official duties.

452.01(3)(c)

(c) Any bank, trust company, savings bank, savings and loan association, insurance company, or any land mortgage or farm loan association organized under the laws of this state or of the United States, when engaged in the transaction of business within the scope of its corporate powers as provided by law.

452.01(3)(d)

(d) Employees of persons enumerated in pars. (a) to (c) and (f) when engaged in the specific performance of their duties as such employees.

452.01(3)(dm)

(dm) Any employee of an attorney under par. (h) if all of the following are true:

452.01(3)(dm)1.

1. The employee's activities are directly supportive of the attorney's provision of legal services to the attorney's client.

452.01(3)(dm)2.

2. The employee's activities are activities that the attorney may perform under par. (h).

452.01(3)(dm)3.

3. The employee is under the direction and supervision of the attorney.

452.01(3)(e)

(e) Any custodian, janitor, employee or agent of the owner or manager of a residential building who exhibits a residential unit therein to prospective tenants, accepts applications for leases and furnishes such prospective tenants with information relative to the rental of such unit, terms and conditions of leases required by the owner or manager, and similar information.

452.01(3)(f)

(f) Any credit union which negotiates loans secured by real estate mortgages or any licensee under ch. 138 which negotiates loans secured by real estate mortgages or any licensed attorney who, incidental to the general practice of law, negotiates or offers or attempts to negotiate a loan, secured or to be secured by mortgage or other transfer of or encumbrance on real estate.

452.01(3)(g)

(g) A person licensed as a mortgage banker under s. 224.72 who does not engage in activities described under sub. (2).

452.01(3)(h)

(h) Attorneys licensed to practice in this state while acting within the scope of their attorney's license.

452.01(3e)

(3e) "Brokerage service" means any service described under sub. (2) provided by a broker to another person.

452.01(3j)

(3j) "Business entity" means any organization or enterprise, other than a sole proprietorship, which is operated for profit or that is nonprofit and nongovernmental, including an association, business trust, corporation, joint venture, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, partnership or syndicate.

452.01(3k)

(3k) "Business representative" means a director, manager, member, officer, owner or partner of a business entity.

452.01(3m)

(3m) "Client" means a party to a transaction who has an agency agreement with a broker for brokerage services.

452.01(3s)

(3s) "Customer" means a party to a transaction who is provided brokerage services by a broker but who is not a client.

452.01(3w)

(3w) "Designated agency" means a multiple representation relationship in which each client of the broker in the multiple representation relationship receives negotiation services from the broker only from employees of the broker who are not providing negotiation services to any other client of the broker in the transaction.

452.01(4)

(4) "Disciplinary proceeding" means a proceeding against one or more licensees or registrants in which the board may revoke, suspend or limit a license or registration, reprimand a licensee or registrant, issue a private letter of warning to a licensee or registrant, or assess a forfeiture or require education or training under s. 452.14 (4m).

452.01(4d)

(4d) "Employ," when used in reference to a broker employing another broker, a salesperson, or a time-share salesperson, means engaging the services of another broker, a salesperson, or a time-share salesperson to provide brokerage services to the broker's clients and customers on behalf of the broker and under the broker's supervision, including engaging a broker, salesperson, or time-share salesperson as an independent contractor.

452.01(4h)

(4h) "Employee," when used in reference to an employee of a broker, means another broker, a salesperson, or a time-share salesperson who provides brokerage services to the broker's clients and customers on behalf of the broker and under the broker's supervision, including a broker, salesperson, or time-share salesperson engaged by the broker as an independent contractor.

452.01(4p)

(4p) "Employer," when used in reference to a broker who is the employer of another broker, a salesperson, or a time-share salesperson, means a broker who engages the services of another broker, a salesperson, or a time-share salesperson to provide brokerage services to the broker's clients and customers on behalf of the broker and under the broker's supervision, including a broker who engages the services of another broker, salesperson, or time-share salesperson as an independent contractor.

452.01(4t)

(4t) "Employment," when used in reference to a broker's employment of another broker, a salesperson, or a time-share salesperson, means the state of being engaged by a broker to provide services to the broker's clients and customers on behalf of the broker and under the broker's supervision, including being engaged by the employing broker as an independent contractor.

452.01(5)

(5) "Licensee" means any person licensed or registered under this chapter, other than an inactive licensee registered under s. 452.12 (6).

452.01(5g)

(5g) "Material adverse fact" means an adverse fact that a party indicates is of such significance, or that is generally recognized by a competent licensee as being of such significance to a reasonable party, that it affects or would affect the party's decision to enter into a contract or agreement concerning a transaction or affects or would affect the party's decision about the terms of such a contract or agreement.

452.01(5j)

(5j) "Multiple representation relationship" means a relationship between a broker and 2 or more of the broker's clients in which the clients are parties in the same transaction.

452.01(5m)

(5m) "Negotiate" means to provide to a party assistance within the scope of the knowledge, skills, and training required under this chapter in developing a proposal or agreement relating to a transaction, including doing any of the following:

452.01(5m)(a)

(a) Acting as an intermediary by facilitating or participating in communications between parties related to the parties' interests in a transaction. In this paragraph, providing advice or opinions on matters that are material to a transaction in which a person is engaged or intends to engage or showing a party real estate does not, in and of itself, constitute acting as an intermediary by facilitating or participating in communications between parties.

452.01(5m)(b)

(b) Completing, when requested by a party, appropriate department-approved forms or other writings to document the party's proposal consistent with the party's intent.

452.01(5m)(c)

(c) Presenting to a party the proposals of other parties to the transaction and giving the party a general explanation of the provisions of the proposal.

452.01(5r)

(5r) "Party" means a person seeking to engage in a transaction.

452.01(5w)

(5w) "Principal broker" means a broker who engages a subagent to provide brokerage services in a transaction.

452.01(6)

(6) "Real estate practice" means engaging in conduct which requires a license under this chapter.

452.01(7)

(7) "Salesperson" means any person other than a broker or time-share salesperson who is employed by a broker.

452.01(7r)

(7r) "Subagent" means a broker who is engaged by another broker to provide brokerage services in a transaction, but who is not the other broker's employee.

452.01(8)

(8) "Time share" has the meaning given in s. 707.02 (24).

452.01(9)

(9) "Time-share salesperson" means a person, other than a person licensed under s. 452.09, who is employed by a licensed broker to sell or offer or attempt to negotiate an initial sale or purchase of a time share but who may not perform any other acts authorized by this chapter to be performed by a broker or salesperson.

452.01(10)

(10) "Transaction" means the sale, exchange, purchase or rental of, or the granting or acceptance of an option to sell, exchange, purchase or rent, an interest in real estate, a business or a business opportunity.

452.01 - ANNOT.

History: 1981 c. 94; 1983 a. 27; 1985 a. 305; 1987 a. 359, 399; 1987 a. 403 s. 256; 1989 a. 341; 1991 a. 221; 1993 a. 127; 1995 a. 27, 400; 1997 a. 263; 2001 a. 102; 2005 a. 87; 2009 a. 2.

452.01 - ANNOT.

A foreign corporation that entered into a brokerage contract to sell a radio station without being licensed in this state could not sue for its commission. The licensing requirement is not an unlawful burden on interstate commerce. Chapman Company, Inc. v. Service Broadcasting Corporation, 52 Wis. 2d 32, 187 N.W.2d 794 (1971).

452.01 - ANNOT.

Units of interest in a limited partnership are personalty and not real estate, and no real estate broker's license is required for their sale. 60 Atty. Gen. 254.

452.01 - ANNOT.

Although sub. (2) (d) speaks of the sale or purchase of a "business," it is not defined. However, "business entity" is defined in sub. (3j) as any organization or enterprise, other than a sole proprietorship, operated for profit or operated not for profit but nongovernmental. A natural reading of the statute is that "business" differs from "business entity." Reading "business" in the context of the rest of the statute, it must be separate from or broader than "business entity." Because sales of corporate stock are specifically governed by securities laws suggests strongly that they are outside the intended scope of ss. 452.01 and 452.20. Bertha v. Remy International, Inc., 414 F. Supp. 2d 869 (2006).

452.01 - ANNOT.

The `New' Chapter 452: Defining Real Estate Broker Practice. Leibsle. Wis. Law. June 2006.