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Kale Realty loses right to operate in Illinois
State regulators' ruling will force brokerage’s agents to seek new licenses and work with different sponsors
Chicago brokerage Kale Realty, which sponsors nearly 400 agents, failed to properly supervise its employees and let some agents work without licenses, according to state regulators.
A ruling by the Illinois Department of Professional and Financial Regulation will effectively strip the Chicago-based brokerage of its right to do business in the state, according to Inman, which first reported on the ruling.
The 65-year-old firm effectively will have to cease operations, and its agents will need to get new licenses through a different sponsor.
The regulatory body said over a 10-year period from 2007 to 2017, owner Nick Patterson and current managing broker David Bovyn failed to supervise several agents who used deceptive advertising and did business without licenses.
In one alleged impropriety cited by Inman, agent Danny Lewis used the moniker “The Lewis Real Estate Group” between 2012 and 2015 without properly disclosing that Kale Realty was his sponsor.
Another agent, Michael Kang, continued to work listings for Kale after his license was terminated in 2016.
And also in 2016, an agent named Delight Lora Cherry was hired by Kale and listed on its website as a broker despite not having a license to practice real estate, the ruling claims.
Fines of $10,000 have been imposed separately on the firm and Patterson. Bovyn’s real estate license will be suspended for two years. [Inman]