In 1913 the National Association of REALTORS, after the fashion of the professions of law, medicine, and engineering, adopted a Code of Ethics that still governs the actions of its members. Few consumers realize that fact, however, or that their realtor can be subject to disciplinary actions and sanctions for deviating from that code.

The absolute crucial element in your relationship with your realtor is trust. You are engaging the services of a real estate professional to guide you through what may well be the largest financial transaction of your life -- buying or selling a home. Don’t you want to know and understand the professional principles that dictate that person’s handling of your business?

Ask your realtor for a copy of the NAR Code of Ethics or go online and research the complete document on your own. You can easily find a copy at the NAR website at realtor.org. The Code is comprised of 17 Articles and their related Standards of Practice. The detailed document clearly outlines a realtor's responsibilities to their client and provides an assurance to you that you are dealing with a professional who puts your best interests first.

** The REALTOR Code of Ethics Stresses Honesty **

Throughout the NAR Code of Ethics, the language of the document stresses honesty with all parties and entities that play a role in the transaction. This extends to such matters of principle as making only "truthful, objective comments about other real estate professionals."

Many professions suffer from stereotypes -- the shyster lawyer, the fast-talking used car salesmen. Realtors have often been portrayed as women who need something to do in their spare time. Weighed down by big hair and copious diamonds, they trade on their social connections to wheel and deal, with gossip and innuendo a central tool in their arsenal of hard sell tactics.

A stereotype is, by definition, a formulaic, over-simplified, exaggerated opinion that usually hides a prejudice or bias. Realtors are trained professionals who are knowledgeable and competent in the field of property transactions. They are bound by honor to disclose any lack of expertise that may handicap their performance and have a responsibility to locate proper assistance from someone who can fill that gap. If they have a relationship with that person, personal or financial, the realtor is bound to disclose that as well.

** REALTORS Must Disclose or Discover All Pertinent Facts About a Property **

At the same time that the NAR Code of Conduct prohibits realtors from "bad mouthing" one another, your realtor also has a responsibility either to disclose or to discover all pertinent information about a given property.

This means that if the realtor finds a statement by a seller or by their representative to be questionable, your realtor has an obligation to investigate and to share the results of those inquiries with you. If a seller's representative is asked by the homeowner to conceal a flaw in the home, like a leaky roof or a damaged foundation, the realtor cannot comply.

** Professional Responsibilities Extend to all Paperwork Involved **

A staggering amount of paperwork is involved in real estate transactions and their related financing. Your realtor has an obligation to ensure that all details of the transaction are spelled out in writing and that all parties involved are provided with copies.

This can often be a point of contention with overwhelmed clients who adopt the "just tell me where to sign" attitude. Your realtor cannot take that attitude with you. They must provide you with both the paperwork and an explanation of what that paperwork means -- for your protection and their own.

** Understanding Professional Ethics Reassures Clients **

Under the best circumstances, you know your realtor or have come to work with that person on the recommendation of someone whose opinion you trust. Regardless of the connection that brought you to work with your realtor, however, the chances are good that you have no idea how that person views their profession or what their profession requires of them.

The NAR Code of Ethics comprehensively addresses the standards by which real estate professionals choose to be bound. Their agreement to abide by those standards constitutes a promise to achieve a certain level of performance. It would, of course, be idealistic to assume that every person who works in the profession fully lives up to the code of ethics, but it is not out of line for you, as a consumer, to understand those ethics and to base your expectations on them.

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