Pacific Union International Referral, Inc. Guidelines and Independent Contractor s Agreement 1. INTRODUCTION This Independent Contractor s Agreement ( Agreement ) is between Pacific Union International Referral, Inc. DBA: Referral Trust Network and the associate whose signature appears at the end of this Agreement (further known as Referral Associate or you ). Referral Associate agrees to accept and abide by the following requirements to act as a Referral Associate at Pacific Union International Referral, Inc. ( PUI Referral ) and to hang their real estate license with PUI Referral as Referral Associate s designated broker. Pacific Union International Referral, Inc. is a subsidiary company to Pacific Union International, Inc., a California corporation ( PUI ) whose goal is to provide referrals to PUI, its national network of brokers or when appropriate to another suitable brokerage on behalf of the Referral Associate. PUI Referral is an easy way for Referral Associates to earn extra income through referral fees of closed transactions they generate from past clients or their sphere of influence. A referral is a lead consisting of detailed information about a prospective buyer or seller. As a Referral Associate, you are exempt from the following: Payment of Errors & Omissions Insurance Required membership in a Realtor Association. You will be required to complete a Limited Function Referral Office (LFRO) Certification Form to submit to the Board of Realtors so you do not have to pay fees or dues. As a Referral Associate, you agree that such designation does not entitle you to perform any activity requiring a real estate license ( Forbidden Activity ). As an example, and for illustration purposes only, you agree that such designation does not permit you to engage in the following Forbidden Activities: Show property to prospective clients Write an offer for purchase, options, or leases, of any kind Discuss or interpret contracts or any disclosures or forms associated with the sale or lease of property with any client Meet with prospective clients for any purpose, including for the purpose of listing property Market any real property for sale or lease Negotiate the terms of any real estate transaction Accept a commission for any real estate transaction, except for referral fees from PUI Referral pursuant to this Agreement As a Referral Associate, PUI Referral agrees that you may refer clients to other non-referral PUI Associates or to an outside company with the capability of servicing the referral and that you will be paid a referral fee, as outlined by the attached Addendum A, after the close of any referred transaction. 1
You acknowledge that, other than making those referrals, you will not engage in any licensed real estate activity. If you do engage in forbidden activity, you agree to indemnify, hold harmless and defend PUI and PUI Referral from and against any and all claims arising from or in any way related to that forbidden activity. 2. PRIMARY DUTIES OF THE ASSOCIATE Referral Associates may utilize prospecting methods which will enable them to contact prospective buyers and seller to determine their real estate needs. The associate should obtain the name, address, business and/or home phone number(s), email address and other information about each prospect to assist the sales associate receiving the referral in fulfilling the prospect s real estate needs. Referral Associates may also pursue corporate contacts within their personal sphere of influence to establish a relationship within that organization. They will then provide the lead to the PUI Relocation Department who will offer real estate services to corporate employees (consistent with Item 7 of the Independent Contractor Agreement Activity Limited ). The Referral Associate will not make presentations to a corporation, the presentation will be made by the PUI Relocation Department or a partner Relocation Management Company. Referral Associate will be kept updated on the progress with the prospective company. If a corporate account is secured because of the introduction of the Referral Associate, the agreement regarding the payment on referrals will be outlined in a separate agreement and may vary from the payout outlined in Addendum A. 3. REAL ESTATE BOARDS Referral Associate acknowledges that he or she has been informed that PUI Referral is not a member of any Board of Realtors or any multiple listing services and has no intention of becoming a member. 4. REGISTRATION AND PLACEMENT OF REFERRALS All referrals should be phoned or emailed to the PUI Referral (Referral Trust Network) Counselor (further known as Counselor). You agree not to discuss referral fees with the receiving sales associate or brokerage. Referral fees will be confirmed via email with the receiving broker or sales associate. The Counselor will ensure the information provided is placed promptly with a qualified sales associate in the appropriate service area. A Referral Associate may request that the Counselor place the referral with a specific sales associate or brokerage either within PUI or to an outside company. If a PUI sales associate or an outside agent or broker is already working with the referred prospect, the Referral Associate will be notified as soon as possible that the referral has been rejected and the Counselor will work with the Referral Associate to determine next steps. 2
Affinity Group and Corporate Relocation Exclusion Clients and prospects who receive special incentives or benefits through PUI s affinity program or other affinity programs may not be eligible as a referral prospect. Clients and prospects who are part of a corporate relocation may not be eligible to be referred as they must comply with their corporate benefits program. If the client voluntarily enters one of the above programs at any time during the transaction, no fee will be due to the Referral Associate. A referral fee may be due from the receiving sales associate to an outside entity that is managing the affinity or corporate relocation program. 5. FOLLOW UP A written confirmation of the referral and its assignment to the specific sales associate will be sent via email to the assigned agent/company by the Counselor with a copy to the Referral Associate. The referral agreement must be accepted by either the Branch Manager/Regional Executive of the office receiving the referral or by the PUI Referral Department and by the brokerage receiving the referral if outside PUI. Should the prospect begin to look in other areas and buy a property through a broker other than the broker/sales associate to whom the prospect was referred, a referral fee will not be due unless the prospect has been reassigned to that broker/sales associate. 6. TIME LIMIT OF AN ACCEPTED REFERRAL A buyer and listing referral is valid for two years from the time the referral is placed to obtain a signed sales agreement or valid listing agreement. The referral agreement is considered active beyond the time limits indicated above with the written agreement of both the receiving and the referring associates. 7. BUSINESS CARDS, EMAIL ADDRESS AND WEBSITE PUI Referral associates are not permitted to use PUI business cards or a card bearing the name of any other real estate broker while associated with PUI Referral. To do so may be a violation of state DRE regulations. PUI Referral s name and/or logo may not be represented on any other company s business cards or promotional materials which includes the Referral Trust Network name. Therefore, the Referral Associate is encouraged to purchase and use PUI Referral (Referral Trust Network) business cards in order to promote and maintain contact with prospects, friends and relatives. Referral Associate will not be featured on the pacunion.com or pacunionla.com website and will not retain a pacunion.com email address after disassociation from PUI. 3
8. EDUCATION PUI Referral Associates are responsible for completing and paying for state continuing education requirements to maintain their license in good standing. 9. REFERRAL FEES AFTER TERMINATION PUI Referral will honor all referral fees due to the referral agent where, at the time of termination, the agent has provided an email identifying each referral that will qualify as outlined below: The referral must have been placed and the referral agreement signed prior to the termination; the prospect must be under contract to purchase or sell subject to the time limits in Paragraph 5 and 6 above; and the payment of referral fees to a terminated agent whose license is not current is not allowed under California BRE requirements; once the license is made current, the referral fee may be paid. 10. BENEFITS A Referral Associate is not eligible for any employee benefits and agrees to pay all his or her own expenses relating to their referral activities, professional dues and fees, insurance, taxes, business expenses and licensing. This Agreement establishes an independent contractor relationship and in no way implies employment, partnership, or joint venture. 11. ANNUAL SERVICE FEES A service fee of $75 will be charged annually to cover the internal costs of managing the associate within the referral company program. The service fee will be waived for the months prior to the January renewal date upon joining PUI Referral. The annual service fee is waived for full-time employees of PUI. If the Referral Associate chooses to pay two years membership fees at one time, the fee for two calendar years will be $135 instead of $150. If a Referral Associate is in arrears on their annual service fee when a referral closes, the Associate will be required to pay the fee before the referral fee can be paid. Associates who have failed to maintain current service fees or who fail to maintain current real estate licenses will be terminated from PUI Referral. An Associate can be reinstated promptly when license and fees are current and fully compliant. 12. REFERRAL FEES Fees are considered earned upon receipt of a referral fee by PUI Referral after closing. Referral fees will be paid as soon thereafter as is practical. Referral splits are outlined in Addendum A. 4
13. INDEMNIFICATION Referral Associate agrees to indemnify PUI Referral and PUI and hold it harmless from all claims, demands and liability, including costs, attorney fees, and damages of any nature as a result of any action taken or omitted by Referral Associate during the term of this agreement for which a claim is made against Referral Associate or PUI Referral. 14. ATTACHMENTS; ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The attached Addendum A is a part of the Guidelines and contains the referral fee split and the annual membership service fee provisions. It must be acknowledged separately. I acknowledge and have received a copy of this Guidelines and Independent Contractor Agreement and Addendum A; have read each; and agree to comply with all of its terms and provisions. 15. GENERAL PROVISIONS a. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the parties hereto and their respective heirs, legal representatives, successors, and assigns. b. Any notice, request, or other communication required or permitted under this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been given when confirmed after receipt (i) upon delivery by reputable express mail courier service providing confirmation of delivery or (ii) via email or (iii) by US mail. Either party shall have the right to change its address for notice upon at least thirty (30) days prior written notice to the other party. c. No waiver of any breach or default by any party hereto shall be considered to be a waiver of any other breach or default. d. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California. e. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which will be deemed to be an original copy of this Agreement and all of which, when taken together, will be deemed to constitute one and the same agreement. The exchange of copies of this Agreement and of signature pages by electronic mail in PDF format, including signatures provided in digital format, including without limitation using third-party software such as DocuSign, shall constitute effective execution and delivery of this Agreement as to the parties and may be used in lieu of 5
the original Agreement for all purposes. Signatures of the parties transmitted, as set forth in this paragraph, shall be deemed to be their original signatures for all purposes. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this Independent Contractor Agreement intending to be legally bound on the last date written below. Referral Associate: By: Print: Date: Pacific Union International Referral, Inc. By: Print: Teresa R. Howe Its: Vice President Business Development Date: 6