When something goes wrong in a real estate transaction, it is natural for the parties involved to look for someone to blame. Sometimes problems are caused by situations , but sometimes they are caused by the people that are involved. If the transaction was made without a real estate broker, the buyer and seller have only themselves to blame. If the transaction does involve a real estate broker, they have a handy party around to place the blame on, deserving or not.

In some instances the appropriate action is to consult with an attorney or make a complaint to the State real estate commission. If the circumstances do not warrant that type of action, there is a third course of action available to the consumer.

If a buyer or a seller have had the foresight to do business with a Realtor ( a member of the Local , State, and National Association of Realtors) they have a mechanism available to review the actions of the professional involved.

Any member of the public who has a complaint against a Realtor can always make a complaint against that party to the local Board of Realtors. Such a complaint will be reviewed by the Grievance Committee of the Board. The Grievance committee will review the complaint. Then one of three things will happen.

If a review of the actions show that the broker's actions were legal and ethical, it may be dismissed. For example a buyer who wants a broker to release escrowed funds that the seller has instructed the broker not to release. In this case, the broker would be violating the code of ethics and the state regulations regarding escrows if they released the funds. Such a case would be dismissed,and the complaining party must be told that the actions of the broker were entirely correct.

If the Grievance committee feels that the charges, if taken as true, would constitute a violation of the National Association's Code of Ethics, they will recommend that the case be reviewed by the Professional Standards Committee.

In a third scenario, the Grievance committee may find that the broker's actions constituted a violation of the code of ethics not reported by the complaining party, in which case the grievance committee may become the complaining party, and again the broker will be referred to the professional standards committee.

In either of the last two cases, the complaint will be heard by the Professional Standards Committee of the Board, and appropriate action will be taken after both parties have had a chance to make their case.

Why use this mechanism? If you have a complaint in which  the broker acted legally but unethically, or in which the sums of money involved are too small to warrant obtaining legal counsel, this procedure would be an avenue to address the problem that is relatively quick and inexpensive.