What Unlicensed Real Estate Virtual Assistants Can Do in Rhode Island

Rhode Island Division of Commercial Licensing and RegulationRhode Island Association of Realtors and the Rhode Island Real Estate Commission give agents and brokers activating in the field the possibility to benefit from the help of virtual assistant office temps in performing their administrative activities.

The solution is reported to be very effective, allowing real estate professionals to cut down costs (considering that hiring a full time secretary in a physical location would be much more costly) and save time (by delegating some of their responsibilities).

In the United States, virtual assistants are allowed to take over many secretarial duties, such as delivering documents, answering phone calls and taking messages for the licensee, typing documents and contracts, receiving and keeping track of deposits, ordering repair jobs on the listed units, etc.

These might seem simple activities, but, on a competitive market like the one in Rhode Island, licensed brokers have better things to do with their time. While some dismiss the idea worried that they would have to invest days or weeks in virtual assistant training, there are companies specialized in providing real estate assistance services, and their employees are versed and experienced in everything that assisting a real estate professional may mean.

The latter only needs to make sure that their unlicensed partners are aware of and follow the guidelines of the Rhode Island Real Estate Commission, which prohibit them from:

  1. Make interpretation on the public information listed about the units;
  2. Discuss about the units listed with possible buyers on behalf of the agent;
  3. Organize or advertise open house events without the approval and supervision of the licensee;
  4. Share details specific to their activity with someone else than the licensee;
  5. Receive any other compensation for their activity, besides the one granted by the licensee;
  6. Negotiate transaction terms and conditions or prices.

It is the licensee’s responsibility to supervise and approve their assistant’s activity.