The Changing Face of MARS

Arizona Real Estate Blog

by Jon Kichen

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The Changing Face of MARS

September 2nd, 2011 at 4:23 pm

Have the rules regarding the MARS disclosures changed?

Our market was not complicated enough before we needed to make disclosures to our sellers that we would not attempt to hurt, scam or lie to them about short selling their homes. But, nonetheless, these requirements for disclosure came on the scene in early 2011 and have been part of the

landscape since.

The original rule from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) came out in February. Soon thereafter, The Arizona Department of Real Estate (ADRE) enacted additional rules which brought us the 4 MARS disclosures that are required. The MARS disclosures are typically 4 different forms. First is Advertising Disclosure, then the Consumer Disclosure, The Offer-Contract Disclosure and lastly the Lender-Servicer Disclosure. (They will often have slightly different titles from broker to broker if the broker did not use the forms that AAR provided). While all 4 were required there was confusion as to when the agent needed to have them completed.

Needless to say, there was considerable confusion about what we needed to disclose and when. But, as the months have marched on, we now have settled into a moderate routine that does not seem that bad.

In early July, the rules were rescinded…maybe. The FTC announced that although the rules are still in place, they would not enforce them on real estate licensees. When news of this arrived, the citizens rejoiced. No more MARS disclosures. The party lasted only a day or so, before ADRE delivered a message that basically said “…not so fast…” While the FTC relaxed their enforcement, ADRE said that we still needed to make the disclosures, could not charge the seller for short sale negotiation and identified who could negotiate a short sale for a fee.

Was that clear to everyone? No, so what we have now is loose and limited adherence to the MARS disclosure rules, as brokers across the state have interpreted the two statements differently.

Now with the confusion of ADRE and the FTC saying different things, there is more confusion as to if the forms are needed at all, and if so, which ones and when.

Your obligation to be in compliance falls to you and your broker. Thus, if you are listing short sale properties, to insure that you are most current on the MARS disclosures, you need to research as much as you can, and ultimately follow what your broker says. Some brokers have relaxed the rules, while others have maintained adherence to the rule.