Tag: Real Estate Ethics

Integrity, for the Most Part, Still Rules in Real Estate

We all need to be careful that we are not scammed. We see scams all around us — in our emails, phone calls, text messages, and snail mail. Seniors in particular are targeted by scammers who have no shame about cheating someone out of their life savings.

Title companies warn buyers and sellers about wire fraud. Buyers have been known to get emails purportedly from their agent or title company giving them wiring instructions for their down payment or, in the case of a cash buyer, for the entire purchase price of a property they are buying, only to discover that they wired the money to a scammer on another continent from which it can never be retrieved.

Time shares (or fractional ownership) is another area rife with misrepresentation and deceptive practices that can trap an unwary buyer in the purchase of something they don’t really want and can’t really sell. (I speak from personal experience.)

And, yes, there are a few local real estate professionals who engage in illegal or improper behavior for which they get disciplined by the Colorado Real Estate Commission.

But I have to say that overall I have been very impressed by the level of integrity that I encounter among my fellow professionals.

Ask any Realtor, in particular, and he or she will probably tell you, as I can, that they can hardly recall a time when a fellow professional intentionally lied to them or misrepresented a client, listing or situation.

If, for example, I’m representing a buyer and the listing agent says there are three other offers and they’re all above full price, I’m confident in believing that to be true. I’ve completed hundreds of transactions and can’t recall one where I was told something that turned out not to be true or a fact withheld by the agent. Most sellers, I have found, are also aware of their responsibility to disclose all known defects, and, if not, their agent lets them know.

As an industry, we need to trust our fellow professionals, and I have found little or no reason not to. We are not just “honor bound” to be truthful. Being dishonest puts our very livelihood at risk, since any colleague or member of the public could report us to the Real Estate Commission, our MLS, or our Realtor Association, possibly resulting in a fine or even the loss of our license to practice real estate.

Real Estate Agents Have a Responsibility to Report Wrongdoing

As with many professions, we real estate professionals are largely, though not completely, self-policing. Indeed, in a recent continuing education class, we were taught that we have an “affirmative responsibility” to report wrongdoing by our colleagues, whether the offense is illegal, contrary to real estate commission or MLS rules, or, in the case of Realtors, is unethical.

(Many real estate agents belong to brokerages where membership in the Realtor association is not required, and only Realtors are bound by the Realtor Code of Ethics and can be disciplined for violating it. Ask if your broker is a Realtor.)

Of course, the public can also file complaints against licensees. You can do it online here or you can mail a complaint to the Division at 1560 Broadway, Suite 925, Denver CO 80202. You can ask to remain anonymous, but an investigator will call to interview you.

Unless a broker is independent, you can also complain to his brokerage. Ask to speak with the managing broker. If he’s a Realtor, you can file an ethics complaint with his Realtor association. Here’s a link for doing so online.

I have filed complaints about illegal behavior with the Division. I have also sent numerous emails to our MLS about violations of MLS rules and regulations — including last week when a listing agent listed himself instead of one of our broker associates as the selling agent for his listing. (Email compliance@REcolorado.com.) I have also filed ethics complaints against a fellow Realtor through my Realtor association.

By accepting that “affirmative responsibility” to report wrongdoing of any kind by fellow licensees and fellow Realtors, we protect and advance the reputation of our industry and of the Realtor brand. As managing broker at Golden Real Estate, I promote this responsibility, as I did at our weekly office meeting earlier this month.

Although some people like to demean real estate licensees and even Realtors, I have found that the vast majority of us are true professionals who put our clients’ interests above our own, as required by both law and ethics, and I am proud to be a member of this profession.