The Georgia Association of Realtors (GAR) has made some changes to our 2011 real estate contracts. One change I think is very interesting is the acknowledgement of being a local real estate board member.
I want to point this out to my friends, clients, and sphere who are not real estate agents.
On the bottom of our Purchase and Sale Agreement there is a blank to fill in your board membership. If you are not a member of a local Georgia board of realtors you leave the space blank.
What does that mean to you?
If an agent is not a member of a local Georgia Board of Realtors then they are also not a member of the National Association of Realtors.
Can they still practice real estate in Georgia if they are not board members? Yes they can. The state of Georgia does not require an agent to belong to a Georgia member board of realtors in order to practice their profession. They have to have a state of Georgia real estate license.
What does this mean to you?
If an agent does not belong to a board of realtors then they are not obligated to follow the Naitonal Association/Georgia Assocaiton of Realtors Code of Ethics.
The code of ethics gives us guidelines on how we represent our clients, how we interact with fellow realtors, and how we should conduct our business. My partner Barb and I make every effort to abide by these rules.
Unfortunately we have had issues with other agents who are not obligated to follow our code of ethics. Without getting into detail there was a noticeable difference in the lack of professionalism.
The next time you select an agent to help you buy or sell a home ask them if they are a member of a board of realtors.
Here is the link to the Georgia Association Board of Realtors Code of Ethics
http://www.garealtor.com/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=RoNuhd4TAtY%3d&tabid=192
No comments:
Post a Comment