John Rebchook is a former Rocky Mountain News reporter with more than 30 years of experience in writing and communications... 
Erin Toll Glover has resigned as the director of the Division of Real Estate and will sell homes for Perry & Co.
Take the Toll Polls at the bottom of the story
Erin Toll has resigned as the director of the director of the Colorado Division of Real Estate.
Toll, who has been embroiled in a controversy for the past three months, officially resigned on Monday, announcing that she will become a real estate agent with Perry & Co. In other words, instead of enforcing rules against real estate brokers, she will now become one. Toll, a lawyer, already has passed the real estate exam.
“My primary focus for more than a decade of public service has been as a consumer advocate,” Toll wrote in her letter of resignation. “Given the controversy that has distracted the division from its mission for the last several months, I believe that the best interest of the consumers and citizens of the State of Colorado is served by this action.”
Controversy dogged Toll
The controversy began following a confrontation with Sen. Ted Harvey, R-Highlands Ranch, on March 2 at a state committee meeting. The day after, Toll “officially” launched an investigation of Harvey, a mortgage banker, and his company, American Home Funding, although there is some dispute when the investigation over alleged deceptive advertising began. In any case, soon after, Toll’s boss, Barbara Kelley, the executive director of the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies, put Toll on paid leave without explanation. But before that, DORA announced there never was an investigation of Harvey. In addition to real estate brokers and mortgage brokers, the division oversees appraisers and conservation easements.
Toll, Kelley in opposite corners
Kelley also placed a gag order on Toll, which prevented her from giving her side. Toll responded with whistle-blower suits against Kelley and DORA, and other legal actions. Kelley has also declined to comment publicly. But in a legal document obtained by InsideRealEstateNews, Kelley wrote that the basis for Toll investigating Harvey was “determined to be factually inaccurate; demonstrated poor professional judgment; and was a release of information (true or false) that possibly violated the Department’s Media Policy.” Kelley said that Harvey has “not been and is not now the subject of any investigation,” by the real estate division. Kelley went on to write that Toll showed a “conflict of interest” regarding Harvey, “as well as creating the risk for damaged credibility of the Division of Real Estate” and DORA. Toll, in a legal fight, unsuccessfully tried to get her job back with all her prior responsibilities. Toll was paid just under $115,000 a year as director.
But a joint press release from Toll and Kelley released in conjunction with Toll’s resignation, “had this to say: “Ms. Kelley expresses her sincere appreciation for the service that Ms. Toll has given to the state as a passionate consumer advocate. Ms. Toll, in her letter of resignation, has expressed her gratitude to the exceptional staff at the Division of Real Estate, representatives of the Attorney General’s office that have provided counseling on legal matters and to industry representatives serving on boards and task forces.” Earlier, Toll’s attorney in the matter, Bill Finger of Evergreen, argued that the attorney general had a conflict of interest in representing Kelley and DORA, as it had represented Toll in numerous matters in the behalf. The attorney generals office removed itself from the matter, and hired a private attorney at $200 per hour instead.
Toll elicited strong opinions
In the wake of Toll’s woes, it was clear that she was a lightning rod for strong opinions. She was often criticized by readers of InsideRealEstateNews.com and the Denver Post letters as presuming people were guilty and acting as the judge, jury and executioner. Some even called her “Troll” and attacked her as being unfair. Others, however, came to her defense, noting that she had taken more actions against “bad actors” in real estate than any other regulator in Colorado’s history.
Selling home dream for Toll
Toll did not waste any time in hitting the ground in her new profession. She already has created a Web page at Perry & Co. that notes she has testified before Congress on real estate scams; has been named one of the top five most ethical real estate professionals in Colorado; and was a runner-up for the top business person of the year. “Let an expert who knows the ins and outs of the real estate world from all angles buy or sell your home,” according to the site, ErinTollGlover.topseller.net. Glover is her married name. There are no listings yet on her page.
In her own words, this is how Toll described her decision to become a real estate broker, as well as what she considers some of the work she is most proud of since being named the director in the fall of 2006. She does not address the circumstances that led to her being disciplined.
“I have decided to pursue a dream of mine to buy and sell homes for consumers,” Toll wrote in a statement. “I will be affiliated with Perry & Co, a homegrown boutique real estate brokerage that’s been specializing in luxury homes for 40 years. I entered the real estate business when I was only 16 years old. I searched titles for a title insurance company while I was still in high school. Since that time, I stayed involved with real estate while working for the state for over a decade. In 2005, I uncovered a real estate scam involving real estate companies, builders, banks and title insurers. The regulatory action led to more than $45 million in restitution paid back to consumers across the country, and an invitation to testify before the US Congress in 2006.
“‘As the Director of the Division of Real Estate, in 2006 I assisted in drafting and implemented the state’s first laws governing mortgage brokers. In 2009, the Division uncovered significant problems that threatened the conservation easement program designed to protect Colorado’s scenic beauty and wildlife habitat. I testified in support of, and implemented the country’s first conservation easement legislation.
Toll praises staff, state
“I am proud of my many accomplishments while serving the citizens of the state of Colorado. These successes would not have been possible without the hard work of an exceptional and dedicated staff, and Governor appointed commission and board members. In addition, I worked hard to forge strong industry relationships and created several task forces where mortgage lending experts, and education providers assisted the Division in creating appropriate industry standards.
Time to move on
“But is time for me to move on. The last 2 ½ months have given me time to reflect on my ultimate career and family goals. Working for the state does not allow me to achieve goals that are very important to me including being present for my family and protecting consumers from abuse in real estate transactions. I intend to transfer the passion I have for real estate work and consumer advocacy to my new role as an associate broker with Perry & Co. I can be found in the company’s Cherry Creek North office between 3rd and Fillmore
“With this resignation, I want to express my gratitude to the exceptional staff at the Division of Real Estate, the representatives of the Attorney General’s office that have been such good counselors and attorneys for the Division of Real Estate and the industry representatives serving on boards and task forces. It has been my great honor to have served the citizens of the State of Colorado. I have made many dear friends at the Division and in State government. Together, we have had numerous successes implementing legislation that oversees loan originators and conservation easements, as well as real estate brokers and appraisers.
“I will miss the projects, the teamwork and the friendship at the Division and the Department. I wish everyone all the best, as they continue their important consumer protection mission.”
POLLS:
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John Rebchook is traveling this week, but you can leave a message with him at JRCHOOK@gmail.com or 303-945-6865.
Toll was on a witch hunt and many professionals and their families suffered because of her self centered agenda.
She outright stole people’s lives from them. She should have to pay in kind. Maybe good does win in the end?
fortunately, it caught up with her. unfortunately it took too long
let’s start a poll on how long she can last as a licensee?
Hopefully we now can find someone who can be strong helping the consumers yet fair and friendly to the Real estate licensee community.
Erin Toll is typical of those who believe that governnment regulators can solve problems created in the marketplace. Although there are some unethical practitioners, most of the rules that regulators attempt to enforce do more to hamper the business of ethical real estate and mortgage brokers than they do to keep the unethical operators from harming the public.
Maybe now that so many brokers have been removed- she can have a better chance at her new profession- Hummmmm!
Talk about Conflict of Interest!! Broker license exam – Really???
Why don’t we allow her the same opportunity to make it or break it RE as the rest of us had and let the controversy end now that she is on the breadline like the rest of us. The fact is that there are unethical people in this industry and you can blame them for the amount of over regulation that exists today. There was a time when brokers were in the business to help other people achieve their dreams instead of thinking first about their own dreams of being rich and stepping on the backs of their clients to get there. Get a set and move on. Quit acting like school children and just do your job.
Chris Sanchez
Well said. Time to stop the bellyaching and get on with it. She did a great job and gave many of the folks left the credibility we deserve. Just wish she could have stayed one more year, there are still many “bad actors” out there getting away with fraud.
In 2007, Erin Toll was a speaker at the Women’s Council of Realtors luncheon. Due to the economy, our industry was reeling and, of course, still is. To the group, Ms. Toll referenced that she had just stepped in a mud puddle with her brand new Manolo Blahniks. Puleeeze, most of the women in the group cannot spell Manolo, let afford to buy them (about $600 and up a pair). This Sex and the City remark clearly demonstrated how little understanding and empathy she has. These are very necessary traits for any good real estate agent!
A SAD day for the state of Colorado and the HONEST Real Estate industry Professionals. The Thanks an honest hard-working individual gets for doing a great job!!! But it should really not surprise anyone. Everybody elses job in this country is either going into the sewer or out of the country, why not hers. Proudly hold your head up high Erin, and try again. Remember, “Only those who risk going too far, will ever know how far they can go”.
Agreed. I miss her efforts already. Notice how none of the lists have been updated? No new newsletter? It is like the public doesn’t matter any more.
you seem a bit delusional. what we really needed was an HONEST public servant not a self serving bureaucrat that would stop at nothing to advance her own agenda. it is well known that her ultimate goal was to run for public office, not serve the industry for which she claims to be an “expert who knows the ins and outs of the real estate world from all angles”. under her administration she would already be under investigation for making false claims about her expertise
Disagree with your feelings. Consumers are a product of our goverment funded education system….which is BROKEN also. The government needs to stay out of our lives and consumers need to READ what they are signing and understand what they are getting involved with. Has Ms. Toll ever performed a real estate appraisal, a mortgage transaction, or brokered a sale? She had the will to destroy the livelihood of many businesses, but doesn’t understand what it is like to be in a production role. Consumers continue to blame the industry and the governemnt for their problems. Consumers need to blame themselves for this mess. Consumers took advantage of loose credit, so they are too blame!
Sorry to disagree, gladtoseeeringo, consumers will always seek whatever advantage presents itself in the market place. For some, “loose credit” was the only way to get a foot in the door. The lenders and their overseers made the mistake in providing the lower credit standards. Further, they did what the government instructed them to do. Lend, lend, lend. Then the bubble popped. The end!
how hard it is really going to be for her, people will still bow down to her because she is so well connected.
many many gum flappers will side with her because they want to grab onto her coat tails. Basically she is a politician, and most of america believes politician’s words are worth slightly more than the paper everyone uses everyday. TOILET PAPER!
You live in a strange and sorry world. What have you done lately to make it better for the rest of us?
with her reputation and personality (or lack thereof) she will fall flat on her face. it will be interesting to watch however, now that she is not picking the pockets of the state and watch her have to work for a living. i just can’t wait until she makes a minor paperwork error or omission and comes before the board
Amazing how many inmates claim they are innocent. I have seen many appraisers and mortgage brokers and developers and bankers and real estate agents who were involved in a multi-million dollar fraud.
Everyone one of them cried “But I did nothing wrong”!!
I hope we never stop weeding out the folks who should never have been in the industry to begin with.
Thanks for your help Erin, at least you got a few of them!
You are demented. She was a female version of Hitler.
Hitler is a bit strong, but she was very impressed with herself. I long thought her intentions were for political office. Anything to advance that agenda was OK with her. I find it very interesting (and maybe I’m just stupid) how our government regulators, faced with a budget shortfall, just raise fees. Toll was a part of that! Her kingdom was brought down by an over-inflated opinion of her self-worth. She openly, and VERY publicly, accused hard working people of being crooks. Some were, and are, as in every aspect of life and business. But branding someone of being under investigation, when they are not, or found guilty before a complete investigation is wrong. Interesting she uses her married last name after “Toll” now. I wish her luck and hope she gets to feel the pleasure/pain of being a broker.
dontchaknow, it is amazing – and I will give you this – as painful as it has been with Erin’s (what felt like) strong arm.. I have been thankful for the changes that have been made..its been a matter of accountability! As a Realtor of 30++ years I am THRILLED that we finally have some type of oversight and accountability in the mortgage industry FINALLY!!
You are ignorant of facts specific to highly questionable dealings from DORA,soon to be made more public in a class action lawsuit. Why do you think she resigned, because she is innocent?
yeah, and she cried louder than any of them
And just how does one see all of these “FRAUDS”? Donchaknow, you sound amazingly like you have a dog in Tolls’ hunt. Spit it out. Are you related to her? Or, what?
Not related by any means. Just caught on to a large fraud scheme and reported it to the FBI and FDIC who have sat on their hands. Only BOREA has had the spine to do something. The rest will only say “you have no idea just how big this is”. So what, do something! Isn’t that why we pay FBI and FDIC agents?
Absolutely incredible how many licensees did nothing. How many helped the fraud along. There is a ton of crap still in our midst and we still need a flush. From what I have seen so far it won’t be “the bank auditors are not responsible for looking for fraud” Barbara Kelley.
Donchaknow, it would appear that the fraud discovery of yours would be the meat that could be used by a journalist to sharpen their teeth. Fraud spores die in the sunshine. Put what you know on Rebchook’s plate and let him run with it. He knows about what is right in real estate.
To quote your own quote:
To know what is right and not do it is the worst form of cowardice. Confucius
I did. I offered him all 200,000 pieces of evidence. He was working at the Morning News at the time. He was interested but didn’t bite.
Neither did John Ferrugia. He even came and took a look. Said it was horrible but couldn’t be told in 8 minutes or less.
A good journalist could do a book from this I have it detailed out from inception to arrests (of just a couple of the players). The depositions tell a good deal of the tale.
See below! Let’s see; the FBI, FDIC, local authorities (assumed), the newspapers, TV journalists; and, surely, others have all seen the evidence and they are not unwilling to “mount the charge”. Only, Toll?! Another reason to have fired her – she appears to engage in fantasies as well. Looks like, dontchaknow, ought to write the book. Let the public decide!
I fully support dontchaknow, friends of whatsrightmatters and especially Erin Toll. What might be appropriate is to remove Kelly from DORA for allegedly preventing free speak and Ted Harvey from state Congress for allegedly conflict of interest & selfish political pressure (he’s no charmer either & up for re-election. Highlands Ranch beware).
With a committee working on problems, nothing gets done and the unethical will continue to operate. The “Good Ole Boy network” will prevail.
Real estate sales!!!!!! It is a wonderful way to earn a living. It is hard work; for those that do it properly. And, it is gratifying for those that like to help others. It requires a skill set that is unique in so many ways. 80% of the business is done by 20% of the brokers. Toll now has an opportunity to see if she fits that mold. With all her recent publicity and people of dontchaknow’s ilk to help her; she may succeed. She will find that it is more than just following the rules that makes a good broker. It is about being able to garner respect and cooperation in a way that customers appreciate and your peers honor.
The other shoe! She left a lot of people lying in the weeds that do not have a good opinion of her. And, she will find out that the respect of other brokers has a lot to do with how she is received in the brokerage community; where cooperation is the operative word. You can’t beat up, demean, brow beat or show a lack of respect for your clients or your peers. They don’t have to work with you. There are many others that are very qualified, respected and proven that they can deal with.
What goes around, comes around. It remains to be seen what awaits Toll.
The best thing about her decision is that she is no longer in a position that she clearly did not handle well. It would be nice for an appeal process that would allow those that received the blunt end of her stick to restate their case.
Good bye, Erin, and good riddance.
PS And, for donchaknow; what have you done to make it better for yourself? One should never under estimate the capability of the unwashed masses. They are perfectly capable of fending for themselves.
I have done plenty to help make this a better world for consumers. I have testified at great risk to myself, my business and my finances. I have stood up for what is right. I have helped every law enforcement agency that has requested help.
To know what is right and not do it is the worst form of cowardice. Confucius
I think it says more about the person who has nothing nice to say about anyone and refuses to put his/her name on their comments than the person they are commenting about. We are all professionals. Have the courtesy of being upfront and quit being an anonymous naysayer. I had few rubs over the years but my ethics and my collaberation with the Commission was all I needed to prove my standards of personal integrity and I moved on in my career. If you had an issue and used the attitude I see above then you only have yourself to blame for the results.
Chris Sanchez
Chris the BIG problem is that the really bad actors have no problem harassing you or your children. Or worse, letting there pit bull lawyers loose on you.
You don’t have to be guilty of anything to have one of those buzzards tie you up in depositions and court ordered disclosures.
And let us not forget, they have millions of ill gotten dollars to do it with.
I’m sorry, but I agree. Name yourself or the facts. I would lend credence to your points.
Well,only having met Erin once right after she started at the Real Estate Commission when she was speaking at a Realtor convention, I do not know whether or not she is really a nice person that was doing a difficult job or just an aggressive/self-centered person fulfilling her dream in the job of REC Director. Anyway, while listening to her speak that first time I thought then that she seemed to be a little too impressed with herself and with her capabilities and knowledge. But, I just dismissed her attitude at the time as being a reflection of her being a lawyer.
However, a couple of years later when she was advocating raising the annual fees for real estate licensees without any justification whatsoever and would not even listen to the feedback from those of us in the industry, I thought, then, that this lady has got way too carried away with this “power” thing and she should get a grip on what she was doing.
So, now as the “world turns” it appears to me that my initial observation about her may have been correct and her personality is not suited for a position regulating anything. Hopefully, though, for her sake, I would suggest that she will have to learn that in the real estate brokerage business you cannot “control” clients, whether buyers or sellers, in order to meet your objective. As most of us have learned, it takes a little more gentle, persuasive approach to guiding the parties to a successful conclusion that truly is in the best interest of all involved. She will need to quickly realize that the client’s interest always comes first!
ummmm. does this mean she is not pursuing her action against DORA? that means her lawyer told her there no way she was going to win or, she is till pursuing her legal action and just failed to include it in her statement. on her real estate sales person application does she have to disclose the disciplinary action against her as well as her subsequent resignation due to that action? i suppose it’s fair to say i’d like to burn her at the stake
on a lighter note, i would like to thank john rebchook for his unbiased reporting (a rare thing in the media these days) and his patience in moderating these comments. he continually tried to report facts and let the articles speak for themselves, in turn fostering lively debate. kudos to you john although i doubt this is not the last we’ll hear about Ms Toll
I am a victim of real estate fraud. My name and credit were used to obtain loans. I will not say anything either way about Ms Toll but will say that that her previous office was the only dept. that conducted a thorough investigation of my complaint. The other offices dismissed my claims based on the response from the respective parties. In my case, a person was allowed to enter into 5 purchase agreements in my name with a real estate company and developer without a POA. Then set out to close all 5 in 2 weeks using 2 different Loan originators. During the process one loan originator told the real estate agent he could not obtain a loan under my name do to debt to income. The real estate agent pulled the files and gave them to a different originator who falsified the loan app and obtained funding. POA’s were not filed with the county prior to closing nor did the closing agency attempt to verify my commitment to the loan. After my complaint, POA’s which have been deemed forgeries were filed with the county.
The real estate industry has a problem! Agents and others hide behind the cloak of plausible deny-ability in these matters. If necessary they rely on their corporate attorneys to skew the facts in their favor. Hats off to those of you ethical and honest people hacking out a living. But, if the shoe fits……….
Seems like dontchaknow and Chris Sanchez are neck and neck in the world of happy words. There are other words to use, but they may not meet the civility standards. Ask a few of the people that got unnecessarily hammered by Toll what they think about what a great job she did.
Arch’s comments have been removed. Looks like Mr. Rebchook is vetting the conversation. Why do all newspaper guys feel they have to move the conversation to what they want? That is the beauty of the internet. Let it all be heard.
Yum! Just read the words – “class action”. The proletariat is assembling and the plot is thickening. Where is Paula Woodward when we need her? This is better than the funny papers.
Sorry, John, just found my earlier comment. Still wondering what, “Your comment is awaiting moderation.”, means. Explain and I’ll see what can be done.
Hi Arch,
“Your comment is awaiting moderation” means that an admin (either John or myself) must approve your comment before it goes live on the site. Several things can trigger this:
1. If you’ve never commented on the site before
2. If you use a word or phrase considered by Akismet (the WordPress spam filter) to be spam
3. If you use too many html links in your comment
John posted this article remotely and has been without Internet access for a few days, so your comments sat awaiting moderation til this morning when I got in. Sorry about that!
~P