Aren’t
ALL real estate agents REALTORS®?
A real estate agent is an individual who has completed all of
the courses required to get their license, passed a series of proctored tests
and then “sat” for their half day proctored California State’s Real Estate Exam
and passed said real estate test. A REALTOR® is this same individual who has continued
in their professional career and belongs to their local Real Estate Board, The California Association of REALTORS® and
The National Association of REALTORS®. What
makes them different is that they subscribe and adhere to the higher standard of the Code of Ethics and have earned the right to use the restricted title
of honor - REALTOR®.
Unless they are a member of local AOR, CAR and NAR they cannot use the
title of REALTOR®.
 |
| Image via Wikipedia |
In my opinion, most of the REALTORS® in this profession
work as hard as any attorney, (especially in California where we do not have
attorneys in our transactions and pretty much are the ones to take a hit IF
something goes wrong). REALTORS® often times
put in as many hours as doctors, because they work 24/7 at times….. Especially
when they are first starting their career.
(NOTE: I am NOT saying we are doctors OR attorneys - just that we are as professional.)
 |
| Image via Wikipedia |
A person can get their real
estate license and they are then a real
estate agent, but if they do not belong to a real estate board, then they
do not subscribe to the local ethics,
nor the California Association of REALTORS® Ethics, NOR the National Association of REALTORS® ethics, and are therefore NOT
allowed to use the title of REALTOR®. In
my mind this is a huge issue and one that many people may not have the
information to make the distinction or even knew that there WAS a difference.
So by using the correct title
of REALTOR®,
we are trying to help the public make an educated decision to work with
an agent that goes above and beyond the basic, “get a license and sell”, to
agents that intentionally become a REALTOR®
and thereby commit to promote
our professionalism to a higher standard of care and
ethics.
Here is a
link to a video if you would like additional information on why the code
exists, how it applies, how it's enforced, and what is expected of REALTORS®.
It is my hope that you will remember
the next time someone recommends their REALTOR® and
question if they are a REALTOR®
or a real estate agent. Your
helping people recognize the difference will help them too in the long run get a more professional minded agent to help them through their transaction!
Here is the link to the
National Association of REALTORS® website
where the restrictions and definitions are spelled out: http://www.realtor.org/LetterLw.nsf/pages/TrademarkLogoRules
If
the individual is a REALTOR® Member, the term REALTOR® may be used adjacent the
Member's name provided appropriate separating punctuation is also used. The preferred form for the term is all
capital letters and the registration symbol "®".
If you have any
questions or comments, please reach me at
or my Website www.DawnOneal.com
408-923-7758
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment