EDITOR’S LETTER OPP America Words | Adrian Bishop
Anything Canada can do...
Last month I wrote about Canada’s high standards. The Americans, too, are celebrating an ethical century
US and Canadian realtors are equally wedded to honesty and integrity
sector, according to the Canadian Real Estate Outlook white paper. The way professionals act can
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be more infl uential in the careers of realtors in Canada than having attended the best universities or schools, says the vital industry report from William J. Ferguson, Chairman and CEO of Ferguson Partners Ltd.
“Values also enhance a sense of meritocracy, where people and organizations are judged by what they do and how they act. One’s professional reputation and the kind of work someone is known for mean far more than the pedigree of school or background.
“Going forward, leaders said, these values will be just as or even more important, particularly as the industry goes through the inevitable cyclicality. For example, executives described values as an important part of the evaluation equation as lenders, weighing proposals for fi nancing, take into account an organization’s track record, its reputation in the business community, and the confi dence people have in the organization’s
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ersonal integrity and leadership values underpin the Canadian real estate
leadership.” It concludes: “The Canadian industry is expected to continue to act in a disciplined fashion, with emphasis on personal integrity and leadership values.” Ethics are also vital to American
realtors. Indeed, the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice is celebrating its 100th year. The NAR 2013 Code of Ethics
Why they are proud to live by ‘the code’
features 17 articles covering duties to clients and customers, duties to the public and duties to other realtors. To ensure requirements are kept right up-to-date, the document is subject to annual review and revision.
The code – dubbed ‘the golden
thread‘ – establishes the standards of ethical practice that all realtors agree to follow as a condition of their membership of the NAR. It features the ‘golden rule’, “Whatsoever ye would that others
ADRIAN BISHOP: OPP Connect Editor
Adrian.bishop@
opp-connect.com
should do to you, do ye even so to them” and promotes “competency, fairness and high integrity resulting from adherence to a lofty ideal of moral conduct in business relations. No inducement of profi t and no instruction from clients ever can justify departure from this ideal. “Accepting this standard as their
own, Realtors pledge to observe its spirit in all of their activities whether conducted personally, through associates or others, or via technological means, and to conduct their business in accordance with the tenets set forth.”
To mark the code’s centenary,
members can upload pre-designed website banners and widgets celebrating the fact and outlining why they are proud to live by the code. They can even buy branded pins, posters and seven foot-tall pop-up display banners. NAR realtors must complete
ethics training of at least two and a half hours, every four years, which must meet specifi c learning criteria and objectives. Training may be completed through local NAR associations or through another method, such as home study, correspondence, classroom courses or online courses.
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