Real estate brokers in Brazil: CRECI registration

What a broker does in a Brazilian purchase

Article 3 of the law gives the broker the task of “exercer a intermediação na compra, venda, permuta e locação de imóveis” (to act as intermediary in the purchase, sale, exchange and rental of real estate), and to give an opinion on the marketing of a property. The broker is not your lawyer and does not issue the matrícula (property record) or the certificates. The steps after the offer are in buying a home in Brazil, step by step, the purchase agreement and deposit and due diligence certificates.

What the law says

We read Lei 6.530 in its original publication on the Senado Federal database (the page says “Este texto não substitui o original”); the Planalto page did not answer, so we did not read the consolidated version.

• Art. 2: the profession is open to the holder of the title of Técnico em Transações Imobiliárias.
• Art. 3: intermediation in purchase, sale, exchange and rental; a registered company may also do it, with an individually registered broker as partner, manager or director (art. 6).
• Art. 5: the federal council (COFECI) and the regional councils (CRECI) supervise and discipline the profession.
• Art. 17, VI: each CRECI keeps the register of the individuals and companies registered with it.

We did not read the text of the regulating Decree 81.871/1978.

How to check a broker’s registration

1. Ask the broker, in writing, for the CRECI number and the State (region) of registration. A company has its own number, with the letter “J”.
2. Open the website of that CRECI yourself, by typing its address.3. Search by number, by tax ID (CPF) or by name. The CRECI-SP search page offers CRECI, CPF, name, area of activity, municipality, languages and “Avaliador Imobiliário” (appraiser); its service sheet adds the registration status (“situação cadastral”).
3. Compare the name and the number with those on the offer, the brokerage authorisation and the receipt, and read the status.

Registers we read. CRECI-SP (São Paulo State): https://www.crecisp.gov.br/cidadao/buscaporcorretores, with a separate search for companies in the portal menu. CRECI-RJ (Rio de Janeiro State): its home page links a “Busca Corretores e Imobiliárias” at crecirj.conselho.net.br, a domain that is not a .gov.br address; the form offers a search by CRECI number and by CPF/CNPJ. Its page “Como identificar um profissional” tells the public to ask for the Cédula de Identidade Profissional (professional identity card). COFECI: we found no national search of brokers. Other CRECIs: not read.

What the registers’ terms of use say

Payotte copies none of these registers. The terms below are those we read, in the original Portuguese, with a translation.

CRECI-SP, Termos de uso:

• “O conteúdo é fornecido “no estado em que se encontra”.” (The content is provided “as is”.)
• “As informações podem ser atualizadas ou modificadas periodicamente, não devendo ser consideradas definitivas.” (The information may be updated or changed from time to time and should not be considered final.)
• “O Usuário é integralmente responsável pela finalidade de uso de quaisquer dados obtidos por meio do Portal.” (The user is fully responsible for the purpose for which any data obtained through the portal is used.)
• “O simples acesso ao Portal não confere qualquer autorização de uso, reprodução, cópia, modificação ou distribuição, salvo quando expressamente autorizado pelo CRECISP.” (Mere access to the portal gives no authorisation to use, reproduce, copy, modify or distribute, unless CRECI-SP expressly authorises it.)

CRECI-RJ, Termos de uso (same model): “O conteúdo é fornecido “no estado em que se encontra”.” and “O CRECI-RJ poderá alterar estes Termos a qualquer tempo, de forma unilateral” (CRECI-RJ may change these terms at any time, unilaterally). It also says that mere access gives no authorisation to reproduce or distribute.

Search page of CRECI-SP: “Para cumprir a Lei geral de proteção de dados (LGPD), não serão exibidas informações complementares, não autorizadas pelos profissionais, exceto através de ordem judicial.” (To comply with the data protection law, further information that the professionals have not authorised is not shown, except by court order.)

COFECI and other CRECIs: no terms of use read.

Advertising rules

• Lei 6.530, art. 20: a registered broker or company may not “auxiliar, ou por qualquer meio facilitar, o exercício da profissão aos não inscritos” (help or facilitate the practice of the profession by people not registered) (II); publicly advertise a transaction without written authorisation (III); publish an advertisement “sem mencionar o número de inscritos” [sic], that is without the registration number (IV); or advertise a subdivided lot or a condominium without the registration number of the subdivision or the development at the Registro de Imóveis (V).
• Code of ethics (COFECI Resolution 326/1992, copy hosted by CRECI-SP): art. 6, XVII forbids “anunciar capciosamente” (to advertise deceptively); art. 4, II requires “dados rigorosamente certos” (strictly correct data).
• COFECI Resolution 1.065/2007: a broker who publishes his or her name must add “corretor de imóveis” or “profissional liberal” and the CRECI number; an individual may not use a trade name. CRECI-SP’s 2023 manual still applies it; we found no repeal.

We read no text on paying to appear on a portal.

Which professional to consult

A property lawyer can read the brokerage authorisation and the purchase agreement. For a valuation, see property appraisers; for a loan, mortgage lenders. To estimate the costs of the purchase, use the purchase costs calculator.

Questions to ask

• What is your CRECI number, in which State, and is it a personal or a company number?
• Do you have the owner’s written authorisation to sell this property?
• What is the commission, who pays it, and when is it due?
• Is the subdivision or the development registered, and under which number?