Reply version dated 08/11//2006

NOTE: The answers to any questions received by the "Ask George & Chuck" column or this website do not contain legal advice. If you wish to obtain legal advice, you should consult your own attorney.

Please use the "Search" button on our website to determine if your question has already been answered in a recent column.  Also, please be aware that whenever a state legislature or the federal Congress meets, laws can change. Hire and consult your own attorney to obtain legal advice!

---

Due to the quantity of email messages received each day, we cannot provide answers to each one no matter how much we'd like to. Chuck operates a law office, teaches real estate and law, writes text books and periodical publications, and is active in The Texas Real Estate Teachers Association, the Association of Real Estate License Law Officials, and serves on the Texas Real Estate Commission's Broker-Lawyer Committee. George runs a real estate company, a mortgage brokerage firm, a consulting practice, writes articles and books, and is active in the local, state, and national REALTOR^® associations. In addition, we both write the Ask George & Chuck column. There is simply not enough time to answer every question we receive.

However, please be assured that your communication will get read. Also, we will acknowledge receipt of your email should you send us a question or comment.

If your question or comment can be included in a future column, we'll reply with your answer or an email that we need more information. We'll use only the question (no names). Furthermore, we or the publication editor - for word length, clarity and ease of reading, may edit your question.

In keeping with the spirit and intention of the "Ask George and Chuck" column we have listed several situations below that we hope will prove helpful to you.

If you are asking a time-sensitive question (especially dealing with contract rights, obligations and responsibilities), please consult an attorney. If you do not have an attorney you wish to use, enter the name of your state plus "+Bar+Association" in the address line of almost any search engine to obtain the Internet Address ("URL") of your state bar association. For example, to obtain the Internet Address of the Texas State Bar one would enter the words Texas+Bar+Association.

If you cannot afford an attorney, most state Bar Associations also offer directory access to attorneys who charge reduced rates or take on certain cases without charge. The American Bar Association also provides information regarding free legal services at its web site.

If you reside in Texas and your question deals with Texas, enter the Texas Bar's  Internet Address. The State Bar of Texas offers a variety of services to the public. If you have questions, please call them at (800)204-2222.

If you are asking a question dealing with specific "what-to-do" issues because you are selling your own home or buying a home without using a Real Estate Agent or an Attorney, please do use a licensed real estate agent and/or an attorney. The dollars you might save by "doing it yourself" can be erased and exceeded in an eye-blink under many situations.

If you are asking a question that deals with your relationship with a Realtor® or other real estate licensee, you might try communicating your concerns to the Broker of Record for the firm (also known as the "Designated Realtor", "DR," "Designated Officer," "DO," or Broker).  In most states the Broker of Record is responsible for the actions of all licensees affiliated with his or her firm.

 

Please use our  fully-functional, searchable database to determine if we have already answered your question. It can be accessed by clicking on the "Search" button on our Home page. This searchable database contains an index of the keywords contained in all of the columns we've written from 2006 thru the present.

Thanks again for reading "Ask George and Chuck."

George C. Stephens, CRB & Charles J. "Chuck" Jacobus, JD
eMail: George@AskGeorge.net
Authors: Ask George & Chuck column
Appearing in:The Houston Chronicle
TexasRealEstate.com

I've read the above statements and I understand that submission of a question does not guarantee I will receive an answer or that if I do receive an answer, that it will be within the time-frame that I need it. If any urgency for a reply is needed I will enter into a written agreement to obtain my own licensed professional in the appropriate field.

I do not agree. Return me to the front.              

I agree and submit my question or comment.