Real Estate Blog - Unethical? Inconsiderate? With Web 2.0 & Blogging, The REALTOR® Code of Ethics Needs to Change

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Unethical? Inconsiderate? With Web 2.0 & Blogging, The REALTOR® Code of Ethics Needs to Change

Real Estate Blogging, Web 2.0 and the REALTOR® Code of Ethics. By Lisa C. Hill, "THE SMART CHOICE!"

This post is probably preaching to the choir for most of our Active Rain members, and for that I am glad. I believe that 99.9% of the members here on Active Rain are great bloggers and a good fit, as I recently blogged in my post about the pieces of the Active Rain puzzle. But I just found a comment on one of my blogs that is a perfect indication of someone who is a piece of a different puzzle. I'm writing this blog post as an example for Active Rain newbies, and/or for those who are new to the world of blogging and online social networking. Realtor and Multiple Listing Service MLS

We all need to support each other by commenting on the blogs we read. It's usually not difficult to find something good or encouraging to say that will help the SEO (Search Engine Optimization) of the posts we read. It's doing unto others as we would have them do unto us. In the world of blogging and commenting, we need to be considerate of the blog space of the person who posted the blog. That being said, here is an example of how NOT to comment.

I just received a comment on a blog that I posted about a year ago. That post was about my daughters' graduation from Spruce Creek High School, and the Honors Banquet we attended. The comment I just received was from a local real estate agent, of whom I have never heard, who placed embedded links in the words "Spruce Creek", which he used twice in his comment. The embedded links pointed to this agents' own web site. door knob

Now, it has been a LONG time since I've had someone so blatantly disrespect my blog space with such an inconsiderate, rude, unconscionable comment. It may not be an actual violation of the REALTOR® Code of Ethics, but it's definitely unethical. Here's the definition of the word "Ethics" from www.dictionary.com...

Ethics: 1. (used with a singular or plural verb) A system of moral principles: the ethics of a culture.

2. The rules of conduct recognized in respect to a particular class of human actions or a particular group, culture, etc.: medical ethics; Christian ethics.

3. Moral principles, as of an individual: His ethics forbade betrayal of a confidence.

4. (usually used with a singular verb) That branch of philosophy dealing with values relating to human conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of certain actions and to the goodness and badness of the motives and ends of such actions.

To finalize this, we all know that Web 2.0 progressed so quickly that many people, and branches of different industries have been unable to keep up. To me, this is a prime example of unethical behavior, but it's not addressed in the REALTOR® Code of Ethics, or licensing laws. In my opinion, there are changes that need to be made to our Code of Ethics (or real estate laws), in order to bring the real estate industry up-do-date with the way REALTORS® do business in todays' age of technology.

What is your opinion? What changes do you think are needed in our Code of Ethics (or laws), for it to remain current and exigent for REALTORS®, so that we can remain set apart from other industries that lack this element of quality control?

**Addition: Read my responses in the comments.

By Lisa C. Hill, Real Estate Agent and proud member of the Daytona Beach Area Association of REALTORS®, and the National Association of REALTORS®.

www.LisaHillRealtor.com

Lisa Hill real estate agent

Adams Cameron Realtors of Daytona Beach FL

Posted by Lisa Hill (Daytona Beach Real Estate) on 03/29/2009 05:59 AM

Comments (148)

Ethics for Blogging and Commenting in the ActiveRain Channel

realtor code of ethics, code of ethics, realtors, blogging, web 20, ethics, real estate blog, active rain, lisa hill, real estate agent, christian real estate agent

Post is included in group: You've GOT to be kidding
Post is included in group: Web 2.0
Post is included in group: Dedicated Bloggers
Post is included in group: Blogging Etiquette 101
Post is included in group: Active Rain Newbies

148 Comments on Unethical? Inconsiderate? With Web 2.0 & Blogging, The REALTOR® Code of Ethics Needs to Change

MAR

It's a shame that there is a need to address such issues in the Code of Ethics. Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone would just "do the right thing"?

Hi Lisa!
As chair of the grievance committee of our local real estate association, I can say that it is recognized that we need to address all of the nuances that the web has brought us. It is a difficult and slippery slope, as there are more individual situations than you can imagine and trying to make articles that cover all of these is difficult at best. However, the good news is that it is recognized that there needs to be revisions and additions.

That person is clearly opportunist in the extreme. They have gone to some of your old blog posts thinking their perfidy wouldn't be discovered. I've had them try that on me too. What they don't know is that we get a notice of all comments to our posts, old and new.

The act of advertising themselves on another member's blog violates the ActiveRain guidelines. Not need to go to the dictionary or COE. They violated the guidelines of this blog.

Just dump their comment.

I used to take the time to kindly ask folks to remove their link from my blog but too many wanted to argue that they had a right to do it. So, in the interest of time, mine, I now just dump them.

GEEZ. I've had agents who are in my own market competing with me advertise themselves on my blog. They're gone. With some exceptions, agents who see ActiveRain as an opportunity to promote themselves at the expense of others don't usually stick around very long. When they don't see instant gratification, they usually drift away.

Promoting yourself in the signature of your comment on another agents blog post or promoting yourself in the body of your comment on another agents blog post: please explain to me what the difference is.

Thanks for bringing up this topic. Like Lenn, I just dump comments like the one you mentioned - without any notice or fanfare. I doubt we would have see anything specific about "blog ethics" or "online ethics" in the REALTOR Code of Ethics but the membership at ActiveRain could help develop our own, based on the ActiveRain guidelines and continuing with dialogue in this post.

Lisa, I agree with Margaret and Lenn, dump the comment.

I am sure we will have to address these issues with our boards. But perhaps AR needs to make that point clear.

That is the work of someone very desperate for business, and someone who is certainly taking the shortcut!

There are forever going to be people looking for a free ride or some way to get ahead the easy way. I agree with Lenn and Margaret dump them. Then of course AR may have some penalties that could be imposed. That would be nice too.

Having worked on our Grievance Committee I can see were all of this will have to be addressed sometime in the near future. I can't imagine the work it will take with all the possible senarios! Yikes!

It would be very hard for NAR to keep up with this. Im not sure we need anything from anybody. Just delete them and monitor your posts.

I've hesitated to dump one recently that posted a comment on my blog---because it was about rescuing dogs...but it still annoys me, because, that's right, it's my blog and while it may be a good idea, it's a bad place to promote it. I'm not sure how detailed NAR could get with all this. At least we HAVE a Code of Ethics for measuring behaviour. I wonder if financial institutions have a Code of Ethics... This is a well organized and thought-provoking post. Thank you.

I think there does need to be something in the Code Ethics; as many people don't understand what is ethically correct and what is not. I delete comments that cross the line; but I've also seen my entire blog copied and used by someone else; surely people should realize not to do this?

Lisa, You bring up some excellent points about the revisions needed. I think part of the problem is that code violations are not taken seriously by agents or state boards. We all know agents who have violated the code but it just seems like too much trouble to report them, unless it's over a commission and even then, some agents think it's not worth the time and trouble.

Most of us don't hyperlink in somebody else's blog. But that is a recommended SEO tactic to build your website. On outside blogs I allow it so long as their comments are constructive, out of my working area, and aren't a blatant go to my website. We all need to help build our websites and If I can help build an out of state's realtor's site that is ok. The comment can't be a canned response or go to my website for more info type of comment.

To me its not about being changed its about enforcing it the REALTOR code of Ethics! Meaning reporting it when necessary..as far as others and their links..keep or delete. I think they were banking on your google juice! Great post..basic ethics are not hard to live by...

First I believe the posting of links is disrespectful. Unfortunately even with education there will be those who break the rules.

I had a woman who uses some tagline about being a Christian Realtor put the fish symbol in. The fish had an embedded link.

The COE covers this and the next big thing that comes down the pike. It applied to signs, print advertising, internet advertising, blogs, social media and whatever comes next.

Leaving a comment on a blog (outside AR or here) and getting the link that is created by that is different than spamming.

I agree wholeheartedly with Lenn. Dump them. They will realize that their tricks are not welcome here soon enough. When those of us who use the Rain for the purpose of promoting ourselves and others in the correct way see this type of behavior, we take note. These self-promoters will not last. They will not be absorbed into the fabric of this community.

Unfortunately. the NAR does not enforce code of ethics, there are blind websites (do not show realtors name or company) and unethical behavior all over the internet. When I spoke with the NAR, they advised me to take them to court. Seems we police ourselves....

Lisa-Great blog on your daughter and the school! You must be very proud! It's a whole different world out here and hopefully people will get with the program. In the meantime, I'm with Lenn too, dump them! Best to you~

Wow, it's hard to understand why people are like this. We agree with you that 99.9% of agents are ethical but as we all know it's that 1% that does so much harm and gives the Real Estate Community a bad name. It can take much longer to repair the damage caused by one individual than to make people aware of all the good we all do. Thanks for your post.

Lisa, delete the comment and report it to the Active Rain supreme beings!

Sad that so much time and talent is devoted to policing so few.

Had that happen on one of my very first posts! It was a kick in the gut for me as a newbie but I must say it's one of those "things I learned in kindergarten". If it doesn't feel good to have it done to you, why in the world would you do it to others? DUMP 'EM. I think it is pathetic that we have to go back and "legislate" what should be easy to figure out with a gut-check!

Wow.

That is really classy. I wonder if this person also goes to other agents' open houses and hands out his cards to prospects too?

Lisa, I have that happen to ne quite frequently. Hit the delete button.

Unfortunately in this day and age not many people understand the word respect or ethics. It's all abot "me, me, me, me"

Want me to go smack them around for you?

I would just delete that comment.

The NAR code of ethics is wonderful, but not often enforced. And you cannot predict every possible way someone could break the COE (or the spirit of the word ETHICS).

Lisa, I do agree that there needs to be an update on ethics as we continue to grow and evolve into new areas of technology, business, marketing, etc. Unfortunately even with that there are people who do not believe it is possible to succeed by their own merits. Fear based business would be how I definite that. Keep on the high road and doing what you do. It will pay off in the long run.

Just dump the comment. Easier is better in this case. Changes in the ethics are hard to do in this very fast changing environment.

This is certainly a slpperty slope and I have read all the different opinions. There it nothing really wrong with putting hyperlinks into your comments when you are talking on topic. But ethically when it competes in the same market that is where the commenter needs to draw the line. Would you have had an issue if the comment was from a blogger out of your state and in a completely different market area or if it was from a lawyer commenting on your blog? I tend to think most people would allow that as being just SEO savvy.

I don't know if you can legislate common sense, or that classic saying that starts do unto others. When real estate internet marketing started in the 90's Boards and NAR didn't keep up then when Realtors were putting houses on the web but not in the MLS. You are right about the pace of change. Maybe replies to these Realtors that educates them, or maybe when you embed links a spam filter will toss it out.

Great dialogue here. I agree with most of the comments - basically just dump the comment, report it to Active Rain and move on. Life is too short. ~ Chris

Ethics only work when someone is ethical. Those who are unethical are not going to be stopped by a sharp slap from NAR. I believe the DELETE button was put on my keyboard for my use. I bet your keyboard has one too. And all comment boxes have one too. Hit it as often as necessary. Its your work,, your 5 seconds of glory, or whatever one wants to call it. Congrats on the Featured too. well deserved.

I've personally got no problem with an agent placing a link in a comment as long as their comment is related to the blog topic and they're not a direct competitor in our area. My opinion is that links help us and I'm happy to help any agent as long as we're not in competition for the same business.

On the other hand, if they're simply making their comment in order to post their link no matter where they work, I'd dump them without another thought, but I don't think this is serious enough for the COE. Part of the problem we face in the USA today is over-regulation. The law of unintended consequences tends to increase its interference with people's freedom in direct proportion to the number of rules implemented by well-intentioned individuals.

Finally, pardon my concern, but what you shouldn't do is to get upset or angry or obsess over the incident. You'll live longer if you forget about it. As Realtors, our job is stressful enough without agonizing over someone's lack of consideration.

I agree with Erica just delete the post

HI LIsa - it is a shame that this sort of thing must be discussed, again and again. Clearly some folks don't get it, or don't care. It's just about treating others in the way you would like to be treated, or shouold be. Delete.

Jeff

Hey Lisa - Delete, delete, delete! As far as the Code of Ethics, it will never be able to specifically address every technology issue as technology is growing far to quickly. However ethics is ethics and we know what is right and what is wrong. There will always be some who ignore what is right. So I go back to my original statement - just delete! Thanks for your post!

I did not read all of the comments but most and the sad part is if it were in the ethics code this person would be oblivious of it and act as he did (does) anyway. Thanks for flagging it.

Hey Lisa, Wow... That guy's comment & links were so out of context from the content you were sharing. Shame on him. Thanks for bring this to light.

Good morning Lisa,

Let me just say up front that I have not read the thread of comments so I may be restating some of the things already said.

First and foremost I do agree with you that something needs to be done.

My full thought is that the whole concept of social media and web 2.0 is still new to the NAR and will take a lot of work to get it down to where it really needs to be. Hince the reason the Code of Ethics is reviewed annually. We will probably be seeing more changes in this area again in 2010.

I always enjoy reading your ethics posts and thanks for being such a strong advocate for the Code of Ethics.

Isn't it unfortunate that some people just don't seem to understand ethics - or, in some cases, just ignore them. A Code of Ethics would probably help minimize this kind of wrong behavior.

Quick question: If you remove someone's comment, do they get notice of it or does it simply GO AWAY quietly?

So, as you see I have changed my signature which appears on my comments from what is asked in my profile (first name, last name, company) to getting creative. From the comments left here this is perfectly OK so it follows that (without getting creative with the comment signature) this would also be perfectly OK in the body of the comment without the URL being linked:

My Name
MyName.com
(555)555-1212
Brokerage Name

Is this the tiff, putting a link back to the commenter from a comment on another's blog post?

In my opinion, the last thing we need is for the Realtor boards and legislative bodies getting involved with more rules. LOL

What we need is for NAR to step up to the plate and offer quality education, not rules. Solid training on how to run a business, business etiquette, and the real world type of stuff.

Then we might see our industry change for the better!

Thank you,

Harrison Painter

Lisa, I understand where you are coming from and I agree it is best to just hit delete. This guy had no clue we get notified on all comments.

I just hate to see NAR get involved as there is no way to police it.

Gee I am just dumfounded someone would take the time to do this as well as not knowing that AR has No follow tags.

I agree and disagree.

The comment with the embedded link should be considered spam and deleted. As for the Code, I'd prefer that the NAR be as uninvolved in my blogging efforts as possible. It's just the law of unintended consequences- what fixes one problem creates another. Just my 2c.

Lisa, I agree with Lenn Harley. I review all the comments that come in and take particular notice of such activity then dump or delete it!

Either the gentlemen is unfamiliar with best ethical practices, or he is simply clueless. I hope it's the latter.

Lisa - If it wasn't so irritating, it would just be plain old sad, huh? I understand the thought process behind this type of behavior, and it is disrespectful and (as Lenn mentioned) opportunistic.

Great post.

I call it "RIDING ON SOMEONE'S COAT TAILS!"

There's a lot of agents who think they're so slick to attach to me as a leach would.

Let's call it "LEACHING"

I've Goggled myself, my photos, my terms and I am very surprised at that is "attached" to me!

ME! - as if I know these people?!

YUP -- the sleazy unethical agents using my coat tails to get a boost.

I am new enough to active rain that I have not had to encounter this type of blatant disprespect. Thank you for the headsup.

I am a little late to this discussion but I am so glad this was featured. You wrote about this in such an excellent way and thanks for making your points. This sort of behavior is appalling!

Great topic of discussion, but it's sad that there are a few that don't follow basic rules of ethics. Those few give the whole group a bad name.

I also agree with the respondants. We should be building up not tearing down. It is always easier to destroy than build up. Buy let's do the building and the rest will take care of itself.

Whoa! I just logged in and... surprise, surprise, this little post got featured. OK, so thanks to the AR powers-that-be, for the feature, and thanks to all my blogging buddies for the comments.

A couple of points. This person IS in my area! I've just never heard of him. And I did flag the comment. I left it there only so AR would see it. I wasn't sure if they would delete it once it had been assessed, of if I needed to do it myself. I guess I'd better get over there and handle it. I actually did not want everyone to see the whole comment and the person who left it.

As for getting upset, I really didn't. I just used it as a platform for some quick newbie education, and to see how everyone felt about our Code of Ethics getting some updates. You all have brought up some excellent points. It's interesting that some of you want less policing by NAR, altogether, and others have actually discussed it and found it to be too complex. Those who have really taken a look at the issue have mentioned the Grievance Committe. I too have served on our Grievance Committee in the past. and I highly recommend it for every agent! It's an excellent way to learn more about Code violations and how they're handled. Combine that with the MLS Committee, and you'll quickly learn about all the repeat offenders in your local Board ;-)

just hit the

DELETE KEY!

Rules rules and more rules. Is there a Realtor jail. Part of the problem is we have so many laws and rules they can't enforce the ones we have.

When creating a rule or law they should have do away with one. The world started with ten laws and when they stopped enforcing those and created more laws to make themselves feel good about themselves. All laws became subject to interruption and are enforced differently.

Read teh ten commandments and see if tose laws wouldn't work in every aspect of ones life.

I have to agree with Charles comment. Did I understand correctly that person that did this deed was a newbie? If that is the case, and you give that person direction and helped them to better understand the proper ways to utilize and participate in the network, that is the correct way to handle this. If it were someone that has been around awhile, then a more direct approach of DELETE is the better way.

One of the many things I observe in life is that people that want to legislate every possible behavior ( instead of being a mentor or a teacher) share something in common. As a personality type they usually follow the code ( rules) and they usually do the correct thing ( most of time ) but actually resent it and they want others to be called out or even monitored as a way to punish the system and others.

Then I also observe that those who endure through the generations as the greats in life, usually want to be emulated and take the time to set others on the right course even if done one by one and one on one. With grace and a smile leading the way, not only do you help them but you become an inspiration.

Very good post and subject to discuss.

I hope this never happens to me!!!!

Your right what the other Realtor did was totally uncalled for and unethical in my book. The best at this point you couldhope to do is to simply click the delete key and don't worry about it. Just keep an eye on your postings thats all. Too bad we ahve to resort to this, but no matter how many "Good Apples" you have in the basket, there always seems to be one or two rotten ones. Happy Blogging!

Lawrence

I think that this is a case of peer teaching peers and that regulation of any sort will only harm the medium. When I get comments like those I usually delete them, sometimes I send a explanation to the violator explaining why, sometimes I don't. I think that self policing in this situation works best.

Posting your link in your comment to someone else's blog is a no-no. A vast number of Realtors don't "get" the Web 2.0 environment, and see any web interaction as an opportunity to promote themselves or their listings. I think this "interruption marketing" will diminish the social media experience as it already has the blog world.

I would take it a step further and advise the etiquette of using etiquette-dot-com in lieu of a link URL, even if it is relevant to a post. The reader can figure that out. Other blogging platforms have filters that keep block comments that contain links.

I sit on the local grievance committee of my local association… There is seldom a month that goers by that we don not have to let some one off of a complaint, not because their actions were not un-ethical, but because we could not make it fit the code EXACTLY. We need to streamline the rules and make it easier to punish un-ethical agents. Also we need to stop the small fines when we do bust them, and take away their access to the MLS and suspend them… That would send a clear message to the rest of the members we hold ourselves to a higher standard!!!

I understand the just delete it comments, but that is why some people do stuff like that. I would delete it, but I would report it and I would e-mail the person who did it and tell the person why I thought it was unethical.

Some people are sleezy, but some people are just thoughtless. Sometimes we can educate the thoughtless ones.

As a practical idea, what about a popup happening whenever a comment is made with links that asks if the writer is violating the TOS by adding an improper link?

Lisa:

If you have a blog policy, handling the comment is easy. Though I find the actions of your commenter rude and inconsiderate, if the link was not a misrepresentation, it may have been inappropriate without actually being unethical.

As far as the comments about NAR not enforcing the Code of Ethics, that is actually accurate. NAR does not enforce the Code of Ethics, that is left up to the local Association of REALTORS. And the Code does cover (in Article 12) much of what has been dicussed here. And , as you accurately point out, we each have a responsibility to bring unethical behavior to the attention of the local grievance committee so that the action, may be moved forward to a Professional Standards hearing if appropriate.

In response to the comment that the code is not enforced, I would respectfully disagree, I have personally sat on hundreds of Professional standards Panels, and now that there are thousand of such hearings held every year. Ignorance of the efforts of associations to enforce the code doesn;t mean that those effrots are not being made. Less then a month ago , I was in Missouri, teaching hundreds of REALTOR members about enforcement of the Code of Ethics, an event that is held every year by the Missouri Association of REALTORS, as by so many of the state and local associations. With thousands and thousands of REALTORS spending tens and hundreds of thousands of hours working on the enforcement of the code of ethics, there is a significant impact.

Lisa, it is too bad that you even have to write a blog addressing this....

Great post Lisa! With your post and all of the thoughtful comments, I think we've all learned a LOT.

I think when it comes to the Code of Ethics, most agents know exactly what they're doing is unethical... they just don't think anyone is going to report them. Like Richard said in his post, it's really hard to catch these agents because the rule they broke doesn't fit the code "exactly". There is a bit of gray area and that's where these agents operate.

In your case, let's just hope that agent is new to 2.0 and just didn't understand that what they did was unethical. Delete the comment and hope you never hear from them again!! Google them to make sure they're not stealing anything from your web site or from your comments and answers on Trulia! You never know...

Don't get me wrong... I think this is slimy... Really slimy. A bottom feeder would do that. I would hope that potential buyer's could see through this tatic.

However... We can remove blogs, we get emails for every comment. We have to police our own blogs. It's a freedom thing to me. A choice thing. Kinda like the freedom of speech but not.

He's desperate. Let him squirm.

Lisa, from Lenn on down, I agree - just delete the comment. If it were me, I would privately email the person and let them know I did and why to give them the benefit of the doubt, but as Lenn said, there are those who will argue back and defend themselves. At least you will know you took the high road and gave them the chance to do likewise.

Lisa,

Amen! and I am all for the delete! I would also email the person to let them know it was unethical AND NOTICED!!!

I just hit delete if the comment is not nice or has links. The rude ones get deleted.

Hi Lisa, Whew. I've read the many comments.. I agree w/ Julie (63) and Mary (64) a handy pop-up would help this issue. Also educating Newbies about the basic ethics involved would probably go a long way to addressing this problem. There will be many issues about web 2.0 that the Realtor community will need to face.

I wonder if the unethical varmit is lurking here...

Great post! I'm on board with hitting the delete button. It's a powerful tool. Use it. If the other agent continues to advertise in agent blogs and is deleted over and over, he'll learn his lesson, eventually.

We are collectively getting far too sensistive which is understandable given our current economic climate. But, really give this all a little thought. If you are good, you have a client base and that client base will be loyal to you. Example - I work in a historic district where in any given year at least half of my business comes from. At the peak of the market two guys decided they would become the historic property "experts" and sent out a four color newsletter each month to all of the districts. It was the talk of the area. At every party or neighborhood event, I would hear about the newsletter and the "experts". Final chapter, the "experts" are gone. Now if you start an open blog, you should expect comments from competitors. Is that unethical? I serve on pro standards and would have a hard time finding fault. Bottom line we are a SERVICE business and it is the service we deliver that we will be judged by, not our blogs.

I wholeheartedly agree. What they did was just scummy, I don't think anyone will argue with that. I really like your point about making comments. Sometimes I make long and detailed ones. Sometimes it is just short and sweet. I feel like if I take the time to read it then I should take time to comment. Anything to give you that extra point :)

ANYONE HERE NOTICE.... EACH ONE OF YOUR COMMENTS HAS A LINK TO YOUR PROFILE! Do you think we should refrain from all commenting to be safe?

Simply commenting advertises you on others blog posts.

NAR is in the process of updating the Code of Ethics.The internet world is constantly changing. If a Realtor is in violation of our Code of Ethics we Realtors need to take the time to file a complaint through our local associations. The grievance committe will look at the complaint and send it off to ethics for a hearing. There is a process but most of the time Realtors have apathy and do not do anything about it.

I would email or call him and let him know that you caught it.

Tell him to play nice in the rain.

I agree that NAR has their work cut out for them in keeping up with the fast-paced and everchanging world of technology, and how to keep it within the realm of ethical behavior.

However, as an instructor in our local AOR for the NAR Code of Ethics since 1991, I have found one of the biggest challenges is not so much that the Code keep up with today's issues, but more that the "seasoned" agents keep up with the Code of Ethics!

Realistically, most agents don't even bother to look at the Code of Ethics when they receive their new copy each year... unless it is to point the finger at someone else. Shockingly enough, most "seasoned" agents are violating the Code on a regular basis and aren't even aware of it. Conversely, there are many behaviors that are no longer considered unethical that would have been outrageous 15-20 years ago.

The bottom line is that it is OUR responsibility as REALTORS to report unethical behavior... if your local AOR needs to make changes to their fine structure, etc, and give it more teeth, then GET INVOLVED and be the person that makes it happen. As professionals, we need to uphold the integrity of our associations, and it is up to us to make the difference. This is a battle I have been fighting locally for years, and I must tell you it has definitely opened my eyes as to the lack of knowledge even the most successful REALTORS have as to the current Code of Ethics.

So stay up-to-date, get involved and don't be afraid to blow the whistle!

Delete the ones with links

You are so right that our Code of Ethics needs to be revised. As John commented above the challenging times make us more sensitive, but they also bring out desparate people making questionable choices to get business. This issue can be reviewed under many circumstances, such as REO agents double ending a deal by not submitting better offers to the seller/bank. I call this market The Wild West, and it is in more ways than one.

I had a similar experience with a comment I could delete from my blog, but after deleting it, it was still showing up on my outside blog. I never did figure out how to get it removed from the outside blog. I think the comment was about financing not, real estate near Spruce Creek High School. ;)

I don't think we need to get NAR involved. What the agent did was wrong, but I would just delete the post, report it to AR, maybe send the agent a nasty email and leave it at that.

I would have liked to see the comment!

I couldn't agree more. Here's another problem I see:

Let's say one has a listing at "1234 Main St., ANytown, USA" So, they blog about it,and perhaps it shows up on their website as a "SOLD" listing. well, years down the road anyone who searches that address is going to find that agent's blog, and now they don't even have the listing.
I think one should be limited to using the name of the street and town, but no numerical address.

I know you cannot use another brokerage's name on metatags, as that was added to the code recently. That one came from a court decision. I think another thing that needs to be looked at is putting who one worked for on their resume. Example: "I was the top agent at ABC REALTY and was honeored many times as a top producer." Now, top producer, top agent, and ABC Realty will all show up on a search result, even though the agent does not work there anymore. One should only be able to mention the company they are now employed by.
Since there is nothing to block you from doing the same to him, use his brokerage in a blog and make it a hotlink to your website... At least you'd get a phone call from hi,!

OK. Now you all are making my head spin. It would take me all night to address the many thoughts that went through my head as I read this second section of comments. Hear are a few points, already made in the comments.

We the REALTORS have an obligation to report Code violations to our local Boards. The NAR does not enforce the Code. The local Boards do.
Yes, I believe this guy knew exactly what he was doing. He was trying to game the system, and use my post to help himself. This is why I DID report him to AR. Unless things have changed, I believe AR will block his IP address.
For anyone who questions whether or not anyone is allowed to have links in their comments, NO! They are not! But each blogger can handle their own blogs however they choose. I do not allow this. If you've been around here long enough, you'll know that this has been a hot topic for a LONG time!
I commented on the offenders' blog post, alerting him to his bad behavior!
Damon is my new best friend. LOL!! But I never even thought about my outside blog. I tend to forget about it. I'd check it if I could find it =/ With my AR posts, I categorized and bookmarked every post in "Foxmarks". Then they threw me for a loop with the promotion of the outside blogs. Ugh.
Gary- I believe the date of the old blog posts should handle any future problems. Even if the consumer gets confused, sites such as Trulia will allow them to ask the question, and REALTORS can help them figure it out.

OK. That's all I have for now. You all are wearing me out! .... I love it! LOL

That is pretty unbelievable. I find it hard to get that angry when people behave that stupidly. Did he think you would never see his comment? Kind of hilarious.

MAR

By the way check out my site at: http://www.don'treportmetoactiverain.com

There will always be this small group among our ranks--some who think competition means anything goes. They just don't get ethics.

I think these are the same agents who continue putting their A-frame signs in the street islands (violating city and safety codes, as well as their local Association rules). It's all about them, not the consumer, and certainly not about our industry.

I had an agent working with my team who'd signed a non-compete agreement with me, left, then immediately began competing. When I brought up our agreement, she said she'd checked and it wasn't enforceable unless *I* wanted to spend money on a lawsuit. When I pointed out that she'd given her word, and it was an ethics violation, she said, "I just don't see it that way." Sound familiar?

Hi, Lisa.

It was pretty mild, compared to what we've seen. I doubt that NAR's Code of Ethics can keep up with the rapid changes on the Internet. There's just too much for them to keep up with.

I'd prefer that they put their efforts into keeping the real estate transaction in the hands of Realtors. And charging us lower fees, of course.

Best thing to do is to turn off comments, if you don't want abuses to happen. For example, Activerain allows posting of images, etc., here.

Featured Property, Prime COMM'L/RESI : http://www.rerockies.com/imagesFeatured/SilverthorneRiverfrontLandCommlResi.html

Although no one can clearly define pornography, we all seem to know what it is. The same applies here. There are some posts where an embedded link is appropriate and others where it is clearly not. Unfortunately, asking NAR or anyone else to create specifications is only asking for trouble because it is a slippery slope between meaningful and inappropriate; and some idiot will undoubtedly make it a requirement to eliminate links from our siglines (which is just plain going too far).

Beyond that, there is little need to reiterate all the great posts suggesting deletion or reporting.

Hi Lisa,

Your point is well taken and because of the fast paced changes we encounter here on the internet regarding bloging or Tweeting or...Fill in the blank. Many of our rules and regulations which govern us are not up to date or cannot keep up. So as responsible REALTORS we must voice our positions so that we can push forward any new changes which will help monitor or protect us.

I'm kinda new to this whole ethics thing. Can you tell me if it's ethical to repost someone elses post? I really liked this one "

Sad that so much time and talent is devoted to policing so few.

"'Thanks! Bill

Lisa- I am not for more rules and regulations. If people don't have the courtesy to be courteous then they are not going to be policed either. You can't make people turn into who they are not with rules. Either you are ethical or you are not. Rules don't make it so.

On another point, he may have been a newbie and did not know any better. That happens a lot on my blog.I like to give folks the benefit of the doubt.

The next thing is that the Active Rain community guidelines specifically state that you are not to solicit on other people's blogs so this person was in violatoin of AR if he was a member of AR. That would be more the route to follow if it applies.

I have people do this a lot to me, and I also have people slam me and slap me right on my blog too.

Remember that the person shows their true colors, so if they are doing things that don't look good- others will see too. That only helps you.

AR has no follow links for those types of links so it does not really matter in the big picture- he can't steal your google juice this way. And there is nothing to worry about with him if he is your competitor because the world is full of abundance and there is plenty for the both of you. :)

Hello Lisa,

Thank you for sharing, something similar just happen to me. I posted a blog about short sale a couple of weeks ago and someone post a commercial about how can they help clients with short sale. They post a link and phone number and because I read all comments, I was able to notice the incident, so I just delete the comment.

I do delete often. Some of the commentors have no ideas that they are doing anything wrong and if that is what I think is the case and I have time I email them to let them know. Some of them are trying to ride our coattails and those don't desearve the time of day. Do your own work damit is what I say! Anyway NAR should reveiw the code just ot update it but the violations will still occur so self policing is the answer as many have pointed out.

I agree with many that said the code shouldn't be needed but there are quite a few things I feel that way about. It just isn't the right thing to do and they should know it. I don't think it's newbies as often as just a certain type of person.

NAR needs to go the way of other trade organizations and require a FEE to file a complaint. The fee amount should be left up to each association to set.

By reviewing and changing the code so frequently, NAR has diluted it's effectiveness. Several years ago, the code started to include the property management professionals who are also NAR members. As a CPM, I have a HIGHER code through IREM so to boot-strap my actions on behalf of my clients and residents into the Realtor code of ethics is unfair to me and other Realtors.

NAR needs to go back to "the golden rule"....do unto others....

Housechick (Kelly Kohler) recently said something to the effect, "It's your blog, it's your space, you can do with it as you choose". I think a self-promoting blog post response is no different than an agent sending you a "just listed" postcard. Just toss it and get it out of your space. Great thought-provoking post!

Tina in Virgina

Funny that every comment on this page has an embedded link to our respective AR homepages. Many of the links contain location, phone numbers, brokerage, ads, slogans and taglines.

Food for thought...

Just to be clear, you are not referring to links to other blog posts which direct the reader of the comments to other AR blogs, but rather to links to the commenter's personal website - that has got to be rather slimy, and totally worth a good scolding. I don't know that the COE has something specific about using other realtor's advertising to promote one's own presence, but certainly it is something that might need to be considered, knowing how technology has changed our industry. In the meantime, Lenn's suggestion is the best way to respond to such crass disregard of ethical standards of behavior, imho.

Remember the Golden rule. do unto others as you would have them do unto you

Mr. Volz,

I addressed this very thing at the beginning of this blog post and half way through the many comments. There is only your comment and one other that brings this up. It does seem to be perfectly OK to put your phone# and URL in your profile signature which is at the bottom of every comment a member makes.

I totally agree Dennis: Food For Thought

PS, I did change my profile signature because of this blog post from the basic First Name, Last Name, and Company Name to what it is now. And, NO, I was not the offender this blog post was written about!

Great blog. If we do not police ourselves, someone else will come in and do it for us with more rules and regulations than we need. There will always be those who try to ride on the coattails of someone who is successful because they think it will help them get ahead. Too bad they don't spend that much effort just doing the job they chose.

Interesting, sort of. I don't think that I could get that worked up over a pretty innocuous action that didn't really have any impact on you or on the traffic to his web site. It was a year old post? Did he say anything mean? Doesn't sound like it. I think I would save my outrage for all of the serious ethics violations that occur every day.

And Dennis is so right! All of us have links back to our profiles with all kinds of information about our practices and information about our contacts.

I sometimes think that people don't realize that their comments on blogs and the internet in general are there for the world to find. Who wants to work with someone who is negative, disrepectful or worse, unethical. It is a different world today and the internet lets us have a vantage point that simply wasn't available in the past.

I'm going to go against the grain here a bit.

I think your commenter was rude, not unethical and here is the reason.

Web 2.0 to which you referenced in your post is about building connections, relationships, and social networks not only with potential clients, but also with other REALTORS.

It is not at all uncommon for agents to comment on other agents blogs and to leave links back to their websites. This is part of the building of a relationship and social network.

The rude part is that the agent should have respected that you were writing content for your area and should have refrained from linking from your content to his site capitalizing on your efforts. I think it would be a terrible mistake to bring in NAR's COE into the realm of dictating where and what can be posted by REALTOR's on blog comments.

It is your Blog and you dictate what can and can't be posted in the comment section. You have 3 choices, 1) Turn off the comments, 2) Moderate the comments and remove what you deem inappropriate for your property, 3) Allow anything to be posted. That was easy, and now you don't have a committee dictating to you something that the committee very often doesn't understand fully.

Please feel free to visit my blog and post thoughtful, relevant comments with links back to your sites with your choice of keywords - www.mygulfcoastbeachteam.com . We will become connected within a micro network and who knows what might happen! Just note that I as the owner of the web property will be moderating and if I see inappropriate content I will remove it! That was easy and it didn't involve another committee!

I agree with most of the comment here, Delete. I especially agree with J.Philip, the less NAR is in our blogging business, the better off we are, just remember folks, everything that NAR does for US ends up costing US, Time and Money.

Those that have no ethics, will not suddenly adopt them because of the rules.

I will police my blogs myself and report them to Active Rain.

I got about half-way through the comments on this topic and had formed a firm opinion that it would be best to just delete any commentary that was clearly nothing more than self-promotion. However, as I kept reading, the bright line that I thought I saw started to fade. It seems most of us know bad behavior when we see it so let it stay. The self-promoting commenter will more quickly get the reputation they deserve. The unethical types often will find work-arounds to continue their bad habits regardless of rules and criticism. Egregious ethics violations need serious corrective action, but as for the relentless self-promoters, leave their comments in place and they'll eventually sink their own ship. Or maybe we'll discover they're really good at their business ... I actually doubt this, but who knows.

Sometimes I wonder if the NAR really grasps the whole concept of ethics. The mere fact that they think they can be "taught" and in our area "require" Realtors to pay for and take an online class for NAR renewal, tells me they don't really get it.

Then there is the embarrasing self-serving pollyannaish statements by Lawrence Yun over the last few years, He has given Realtors such a bad image. One wonders if the whole "code of ethics" is just a smoke screen for some Realtors to hide their bad behaviour.

If anyone watched 60 Minutes last evening, you can see the vastness of problems that continue to grow as the internet expands. What scares me to death is the idea of a malware virus residing on my computer, not known to me, and that worm may be able to gain my passwords for my online banking, etc.

Shame on those that misuse blog sites and social networking platforms for their own personal gain. We need to JAIL those that invade our privacy and steal from us. These are very critical issues that we need to continually address, and as 60 Minutes pointed out, many of the originators of these viruses are out of the country.

even if the board addressed it, you would still have those that break the rules. Obviously she wanted to steal some of your lime light and instead of being creative and writing a blog of her own she violated yours.

Hi Lisa,

I too am very tired of people who post on blogs just for the trackback links or who even insert self interest keyword links. I just delete them anymore, they are not worth your time.

It really is sad someone has to ride on someone elses' shirt tale, but isn't that life. I too would delete the comment and by emailing the culprit you have done the right thing. There is a good policing here on ActiveRain and this makes us learn and focus. The problem is when a person like this takes your blog and places it on their site or other blog formats. I ran across an interesting blog that was posted on Twitter the other day and at the bottom was a little disclaimer stating this was authered by another. So my question who was the author? I would like to see more of what this person wrote since that blog was studded with great information. That was ridiculous to have done that. I just know that the few blogs I do post I keep track of and know that it might get somewhere I wish it wasn't, but can't do anything about that so move on with my life and feel ok. What this person did to you was embed and that is a whole other problem in a nutshell. Maybe we need a group set up for names to be posted of those who don't follow the rules.

Hi Lisa, Just dump 'em. Don't waste any more time with them. It's a shame that people can't come up with their own ideas. They'll probably be gone in a year anyway.

Outsiders often make the comment that real estate is a cut throat business ,practised by greedy persons, who would sell their own mother to make a commission.

I asume that if these outsiders read this blog and comments many would say what is new ,this is what you can expect from this bunch.

lets spend our efforts to service our clients instead of trying to get more rules ,so we can start sueing each other.

I don't want to give the impresion that I endorse it.I did not even know it happened since I don't follow up on my own blogs. I don't have the time for that.

We can not count on protection from competition by NAR, Active Rain or other groups. We see these mentioned internet activities as unethical, but in other industries it might be seen as clever and just using skills and technology.

The real estate business in the USA is allready a protected business any way. The fact that we can still ask for commissions of 5-7 % is in most countries in the world an unbelievable fact. In Singapore and The Netherlands ,as example, the typical commission rate is 1.25

I have to agree with the majority, Just Hit DELETE and get rid of it. It seems we are required to police the code of ethics ourselves anyway. I don't know how many times someone has crossed the line and all my office manager would say is we might have to work with them again in the future. What good is the Code of Ethics if it is not enforced? I also think we don't need to update our current code, it handles most situations and the golden rule takes care of any thing else. We need NAR and all our local associations to stand behind what we do have and stop getting into advertising!

Lisa, same thing happend to a good friend on her very first blog, very confusing to a newbie. I agree with the bulk of the comments, just dump them. We can ask to have it included in the Code, but people like this place no real value on right and wrong, putting it in the Code is not going to stop the practice. As with many things local control is the best action, and dumping them is as close as you can get.

You know when I started out as a Realtor I made a mistake (honest mistake) that cost me a little money. A warning would have been appreciated, instead I just got the fine. When I see an agent doing something wrong I ussually send them an e-mail directly, unless it is one of the big hitters around here that I know is just playing games.

I just spent a week in Austin Texas at Keller Williams International HQ, the overiding theme for the training was "Do the Right Thing". Never compromise your integrity by doing such things, pay it forward.

The Realtor Code doesnt need to be changed to address such things, the delete key needs to be used by the Blog Owner. The comment maker is paying it backward, the mere act of deleting the comment speaks volumes and might be enough of a message in itself to smarten them up.

Have a great week! :)

That is pretty irritating isn't it Lisa. I get those sort of spam type comments all of the time. I usually just delete them and move on. Sometimes I even have competitors go directly to the blog on my real estate websites and leave comments full of links there too.

Hi Lisa - I would be deeply offended and consider this unethical. Does he think I'm stupid? However, I think I would send an email to the offending agent. Not sure if I would delete first or give him the opportunity to do so but I would explain the infraction. Great post on blogging etiquette!

Lisa, I simply do not know what else to say that has not been said already about this very interesting topic, handling and managing your blogs allows that little key >delete< to have some sort of sweet "I got you" kind of response. No matter how many rules and regulations we get in place, there will always be someone who will try and work the system to their advantage.

Antonio

Hi Lisa, I have continued to read the comments here and they are very interesting on the varied view points. I am celebrating my 2 year anniversary today with ActiveRain and the varied insights that we have all had the advantage of are amazing. This is like a free education, isn't it. Equivalent to a Masters degree in real estate, humanities, technology,etc. Whoever features these great writings of the issues of today, (like yours) really has a good handle on what makes people respond. Some excellent responses here.

I'm not sure it's an ethics violation but it absolutely is comment spam and should be deleted. Don't encourage the bad behavior. Your blog is your property and you have no obligation to allow someone else to hijack it for their own promotional purposes.

With my hosted blog, non AR and link withheld for obvious reasons, I can set the comments up so that I must approve them before they go public. I'm not aware if this is possible with AR. Comment spam is a problem but I don't think it will ever be addressed by the NAR.

I wish it were that easy,.. that NAR could simply sit down and write in new rules to enforce relating to the code of ethics. To do so would mean that they are doing well on policing and enforcing the ones already on the books. Sadly, this type of action falls into the common sense catagory and the agent is a bottom feeder looking to exploit anything that he/she can. Just like the agent who stands on the sidewalk in front of the openhouse,.. attempting to gain customers at the expense of the person actually holding the house open.

As long as these types of agents exist, they will find ways around the codes. After all, we are all a creative bunch or we would be starving.

In my mind the best policy is to take note of the person that does this type of thing and force feed them a little bit of their own medicine. Go into the message and change the links to point to your own site,.. after all,.. the blog belongs to you,... or simply delete it. Let others know to check the links that may show up in the comments area's of the blogs and encourage them to do the same,.. or point the links to some idiotic site that will discredit the author.

Just my thoughts,.. but this is common sense folks,... we don't make a living off the backs of others,.. we make a living and build a reputation based upon our own philosophies and ethics. I know that My ethics exceed NAR's mandated standard and I suspect that your's do as well.

Best of luck in 2009

It don't think an addition to the code is needed for this. Spam is subjective, as one man's treasure is another's junk. There are some who feel that a link back to one's site is earned by offering a quality comment. Notwithstanding, ActiveRain has its own guidelines that we must follow; it provides a link back to one's profile, and it can point to a personal website.

Lisa...

Getting anything done about this and so many other things will take forever. I say you let BB come and smack 'em round for you :)

TLW...ROAR!

Dear Lisa,

Unfortunately, that type of behavior is probably rampant. The folks just don't get caught!

What a flagrant thing! Glad you caught it!

Barbara

Some of the best Realtors aren't computer savvy and some of the worst are unfortunately!

It is hard enough to "police" Realtors in your own Association yet on the Web is near impossible.

REALTOR CODE OF ETHICS OUTDATED --- READ BELOW --- I AM LOSING FAITH

It is very frustrating to have someone's unethical behavior dismissed by a panel member who is not well educated in the process of Grievance and Professional Standards committee.

The worst case is when the Professional Standards Committe takes the decision to their local Board for ratification and they vote against the committees' recommendation because they are not as versed in the Code of Ethics and don't understand the entire case.

As another commentor noted: Unethical behavior and unethical according to the CODE OF ETHICS is not always one and the same. REALTORS NEED TO SEE THE VALUE OF USING THE CODE BUT SOMETIMES IT IS DISHEARTENING --- BEEN THERE - DONE THAT!

KATHY RYLANDER

LONG AND FOSTER REALTORS INC

HAGERSTOWN MARYLAND

Hello Lisa,

Part of the picture of where we are right now in the financial sector, No Ethics, just make the deal, get your money and who cares who loses, winning is all that counts. Some Realtors were part of that scenario...

Truth is what counts, along with love, though without truth there is no love, though I am sure you all know that already...

Did you check to see if that person is still in business? Most of these agents don't last long... With things like that, my thing is: Is it worth draining my energy? You have every right to be upset about it, don't let it get you down, laugh out loud and move on.

Lisa- I do think and agree that there needs to be ethics to address the every changing world that we realtros face.

Dump the comment.

The association officers and committee members in my market are "Big Hat, No Cattle" people. That's an expression from my native land, Texas, that means they are among those agents who would believe serving on committees is more important than selling houses. They must have trust funds, a big inheritence, a well-paid spouse, or family money to support them because they don't sell much real estate.

They are the same folks who asked stupid questions after they heard me speak at conventions, or speak on a panel at a local conference on the topic of technology in real estate.
1990: "Gee Erick, don't you think this 'computer stuff' is just a fad?"
1991: "Hey Erick, fax machines are just a fad. I don't allow it in MY office because it's very 'unprofessional'."
1993: "Erick, a friend of mine got one of those Pentium computers. His software won't work because those Pentium machines are so fast, they miss data."
1995: "Erick, don't you think this email stuff is just a fad?"
2001: "Erick, in MY MARKET websites are considered very UNPROFESSIONAL by my clients." ("Really," I replied... name two." "Well, uh, er... it just is.")
2009: "Erick, don't you think this blog stuff is just a fad?" "Yes," I reply, "you're right, don't do it, you'll just be wasting your time."

Let's face it, those who CAN sell real estate successfully DO; those who can't but need some money become principal brokers and managers of real estate offices; those who can't sell houses, but THINK they know it all run for office at the board of Realtors.

The folks who waste potentially dollar productive hours as managers and officers at boards, for the most part, couldn't sell hookers on an aircraft carrier.

Okay, that said, I am looking forward to "Hate Mail" from principal brokers, office managers, and board officers. Bring it on.

Once again, I'm going to address this with an all-in-one comment.

For those of you who think the comment should just be deleted, I agree. However, I also believe that people who blatantly abuse the system should suffer the consequences. This comment was an intentional affront. So before deleting, I notified Active Rain, and left a comment on the posters blog, letting him know what he had done was completely unacceptable.
For the comments about images being allowed in the comments, that is a very OLD debate around here. It is now left up to the individual blog owners as to whether or not they want to leave comments with images on their posts. BUT, remember that links are not allowed to be hidden in those images.
For those who are of the "anything goes" mindset, I'm totally onboard with social networking. But I don't have to network with everyone. In this case, I want nothing to do with this person. And being that I've spent my whole life here, and been selling housing for 15 years, but never heard of this man, AND when I looked at his web site, I was quite UNDERwhelmed, I'm not worried about him being around for long.
To the angry person who doesn't have a clue, BUH BYE! Yours is the kind of comment I don't even bother to justify with a response that requires much brain power. I just report and delete.
LOL at Ericks' comment!
TLW- You get your own response. YES! The big, bad BB is welcome to bust out the big guns on the bozo. LOL

Oh! One more response. I almost feel sorry for some of you. Our Board of REALTORS and Grievance Committe takes ethics complaints very seriously. It's disappointing to hear that not all of them do.

And for those of you who don't know or haven't thought about this, YOU have the right to decide what type of comments you allow on your blogs! I personally will never argue or debate. To me, they're one and the same. It's one of the great things about a free country. And don't ever let any insecure loser talk down to you or try to make you feel like there's anything wrong with your decisions or way of doing things! =D

And last but not least... For those of you who think I'm "upset" about this, I guess you made that assumption based on my sentence that read... "Now, it has been a LONG time since I've had someone so blatantly disrespect my blog space with such an inconsiderate, rude, unconscionable comment." LOL. OK. Let me explain something. I LOVE words. They have such power. And those words were my way of pushing the buttons of the person who left the comment I referenced in this post. (Not one of my finest traits, but I really enjoy pushing buttons.) >:oP Also, near the beginning of this post, I made it clear that this was to help educate the Active Rain newbies. This is posted to that particular group. Newbies are frequently intimidated if they're new to blogging, or are unfamiliar with a new platform. (Check the comments for proof.) So this post is letting them know that they don't have to put up with tacky behavior, or inexcuseable, unethical comments like the one I mentioned (note more button-pushing words). So don't concern yourself about me being "upset". I'm not upset ;-) This is why I love blogging. We have the power to take a stand and make a point, with powerful, attention getting words. ;-) So now can we get back to the actual topic at hand? *muwa ha ha haaaa*

MAR

I'm not even touching this one because I don't have time and it just doesn't matter to me, and I am amazed that you are surprised that 'that realtor' was less than professional. Really... who cares? Just sayin'.... But I must mention that Erick's comment about "... couldn't sell hookers on an aircraft carrier" made it all worthwhile. XXOO

Oh wa wa wa. somebody used your blog. Get over it you are a piece of work.

Wow, I am suprised to read all the comments and all the viewpoints...but then again that is exactly why I love AR!

I'm sorry to hear about your misfortune. Those who believe in ethics use it as a guideline for best practices in their actions and their manners. Although ethics change across cultural lines people in almost all societies know when they are being rude and unethical. The problem with ethical codes and other codes of conduct is they are simple to break. Interestingly there is a difference between ethical code and being ethical. Ethical code as you know from the dictionary describes the rule of conduct for a culture. Being Ethical is another story. I never thought there was a difference between the two until I went for my undergraduate in psychology. I had to write a paper on ethics and found myself wrestling with finding the difference between ethical code and acting ethical. The difference, after I found it, seemed pretty simple. Ethics is a rule of code we are supposed to follow. Being Ethical or acting Ethically is how we choose to act once those rules are driven into our minds. No matter how much we are trained by our parents, religion and society to do the right things in the end we are still confronted with free thought and free choice. Free thought allows us to make conscious decisions about actions we will or will not take. A person's objective reality and conscience forms their view of ethical reality. If a person chooses to throw aside what his or her culture has taught them about ethical conduct - right or wrong - it is very difficult to make them act ethically while they are busy choosing their own agenda. To act Ethically is to utilze all the tools you were given to make sound judgment calls - to be fair - to be honest - to do the right thing - to consider the impact of your actions on others. A sane person knows the difference between right and wrong. If you were brought up in the Judea/ Christian Culture or any culture that passes on a good ethical foundation to their children then you should know the difference between what is right and what is wrong. I have had people do the same thing on my site, and it is wrong and it is unethical The problem is I don't believe that there is any regulatory board in the world that can stop somebody from doing something like this. Certainly you could fine them, that may stop them from going on your site, at least for awhile. But rest assured another way will be found to stomp on your toes. I am not naive, but I do believe the majority of people do make an effort to act Ethically most of the time - maybe for the simple reason that it is in their best interest

Well, I've learned a bit more now. Some people are just jerks! Why does that surprise me? Because as real estate "professionals" you should want to be respected by your peers. That respect would bring you referrals, and a good reputation that would continue to payoff as time goes by. I was about to delete a rude comment, but have decided to leave it there so other agents could fnd it. Now you can make your own decisions as to whether or not you want to refer any business to this agent.

And Robin, Thank you for that well though out, and educational response!

APR

I don't think I have seen a blog with so many comments. After reading it, I see why. This is a very serious subject. I actuall just did a blog about 30 mins. ago about some other laws of real estate. Thank you for sharing and I just wish everyone would do the right thing. I wish you the best.

APR

Yes, do the right thing. But do you really think the Realtor COE has much to do with ethics. I don't. I have read it through many times and I mostly see a self serving document put together by the industry for the industry.

Wow, Lisa! Great topic and some great responses. You clearly see by the comments that some embrace the spirit of ethical behavior, while many others need the Code, the Articles and the Standards of Practice to spell it out for them in specific terms. For those who constantly seek a way to transgress on the rights of others--whether it be by advertising others listings as their own, or burying a surreptitious link in a blog--the COE will probably eventually stop them. It was just in 2007 that truth in site names and meta-tags were addressed in the Code. Obviously there is a need for continued refinement to keep up with technology. While it is much more difficult to bring a grievance against another REALTOR across the Internet, it remains each REALTOR'S responsibility to support the COE through the prescribed methods. We probably need more than a few new Standards of Practice: we may also need a revised grievance procedure. It's a shame that some commenters have so little faith in the current process that they feel the Code itself is irrelevant.

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Hey David! Look what the cat dragged in =P And your comment seems to reflect my sentiments exactly! I just don't understand why anyone would want to do business in an unethical manner. I'm proud to be a professional, and the Code is what helps to set us apart.

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Hi Lisa,

I read your other post and watch your Video. I am fairly new to blogging, and I Thank You for making the blogging world more pleasant for us all!!

Hi Lisa, a good, thought provoking post. A few years ago a local company, part of a huge national franchise, found a way to attach itself to all us little guys (private firms, not franchised). Whenever anybody went to our web-site and responded, their response was going directly to the other guy. All of a sudden, our internet leads just dried up. We had our computer tech in to figure out what was going on.

We filed an ethics complaint with our state association and discovered that while everybody agreed that what they were doing was rotten not nice, it did not violate any existing code. As a result, the code was rewritten and that issue addressed, so we felt very good about our actions. Our rules had not kept up with technology and by filing a complaint, we were able to affect change.

On the other hand, there is no way to legislate morality. We keep trying, but the bad guys will keep on finding ways to sneak through the loopholes. I simply choose to do the right thing and will only file a complaint when doing so may result in change to help us all.

Marian- That's just sleazy. I just wish there was a way we could let the public know about the unethicall agents and brokerages.

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I never thought about another agent in my area using my blog to advertise themselves, but you are right, it does need to have some changes to the system to go after that kind of unethical behavior.

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I received word today about an agent who performed in an unethical manner that had a big effect on two innocent parties. After reading all the previous posts, it seems to me that the code of ethics should be made stronger and with more consequences. I am saddened that this realtor has tarnished the profession. As with other professions and professionals, why can't people do the right thing?

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Libby- You make good points. And I think too many people lack an internal compass to guide them morally, ethically, and professionally.

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