Dear Bridge AOR Members,
As announced yesterday, the health departments of Alameda County, Contra Costa County and City of Berkeley have all confirmed that they will be following the updated California State Industry Guidance to Reduce Risk with regards to Real Estate Transactions including open houses.
Unfortunately, Bridge AOR cannot give you legal advice regarding the new State Industry Guidance. If you have a specific legal question, please contact C.A.R. Legal or your own California licensed real estate attorney.
C.A.R. is diligently working towards providing further clarity on the new State Industry Guidance. Please be on the lookout for communications from C.A.R. on this front. See below in case you missed their last email:
On Wednesday, the California Dept. of Public Health updated its guidance on open houses and stated further updates were pending. C.A.R. is pleased to provide the following changes to open house protocols. Please remember to adhere to local guidelines which may be more strict in certain areas.
Open Houses: Advertising open houses, without qualifiers, is allowed and appointments for open houses are no longer required.
Social Distancing: Showings, including open houses, are somewhat relaxed under the new social gatherings guidelines but still include social distancing between members of different households while attending an open house, and are subject to capacity issues depending on the tier of the county where the house is located. Please refer to local guidelines for this information.
Signing In: There will still be a sign-in requirement on site. The new Property Sign-In (PSI) form can be used for this purpose. However, you can still use a PEAD instead of the on-site sign in if you prefer. See the new Quick Guide for more details
Forms: C.A.R. has simplified and shortened the Rules of Entry (PRE), Prevention Plan (BPPP), and the Property Sign in (PSI) form as an alternative to PEADS. There also is an addendum to the listing agreement LOHA reflecting the changed protocols. This form is necessary if the parties had previously signed the RLA-CAA, which did not allow for open houses. New listings should also include this addendum if the listing broker wants to hold open houses.
PEADS: The PEADS have been combined and simplified into one shorter PEAD-ALL form that is available if members prefer to use it instead of on-site sign-in protocols. The newly revised forms PRE, BPPP, PEAD, and a new Property Sign-in (PSI) form and the new Listing Addendum LOHA will all be available on zipForm as soon as possible. In the interim, a PDF of each of these is available here. Members may still use the current forms that are on zipForm if they choose until the new ones are released. We anticipate further announcements impacting real estate showings of all kinds and will communicate any relevant changes as quickly as possible. These changes represent a step in the right direction, and we are hopeful that they will make it easier for REALTORS® to comply with laws that are consistent with other businesses while remaining in accordance with health guidelines. ****** Please Contact Bridge AOR's Government Affairs Director with any questions or concerns. kiran@bridgeaor.org