The Real Estate Oath

Jon, last time I raised the bar I was working the limbo game at Grossingers. Pay stunk but we were allowed to keep all the unclaimed dentures and whatever spare change shook out on the carpet.

I've attributed my approach to my fellow humans with the only two oaths I ever uttered:

"I do" and

"I'm not going to pay a lot for this muffler."

Okay, yuks aside. Yours is a noble, high-minded effort. If I were more mature, I'd find room for your oath on the back of my business card.

Jonathan  Oaths are great, but they are meaningless if the person taking them doesn't have the moral bearing to begin with.  Unfortunately, we live in a society where customer service is a slogan, not a business practice.  As a Rotarian I believe in a simple, but straightforward policy, "Service Above Self"

I am very impessed by this post. It is not typical to read about love, good relationships and manners every day.

Thank you,Johnatan you just made may day!

This post has a different title every time I come back.  For the sake of finality, I was thinking an acronym of either of the last two incarnations would be suitable:  "REPO" or "REO"

only if half of the industry follows half of those oath, we will be in a better place!

Nice oath.

Too bad there are entire states where the legal attitude is  -

I don't care what the buyer pays or what the seller gets, my level of service will rise to the level of reasonable care and of the parties to the transaction I will owe my allegiance to will be none but myself.

Transaction Brokers

Thanks for the thoughtful post.  Our professional needs a dose of raised character, professionalism, and skill set.  I wish it were harder to become a real estate agent because the weak agents cast a pall over the rest of us who stand up and work hard with character, integrity, and straight common sense. 

I became a lightening rod in a networking group friday morning.  The outcry wasn't really aimed at me but at realtors in general.  "I can't stand realtors," it began.  "You guys just want people to drop their price so you can get your commission! That's all you guys care about!"   "You guys are responsible for bringing down the market!"  "Yeah," added another, "if you guys just tried a little salesmanship to sell houses at more what they are worth, our property values wouldn't be in the shape they are in!" 

Now, these people don't know much about me.  They don't know about my professionalism, character, my ethics, my knowledge of the real estate market.  These folks were railing against realtors in general, and I became a recipient of antagonism because I was there. 

The point is, as realtors, we may not be seen with the professionalism we may deserve as individuals.  The poor, weak, unprofessional agents who permeate the market have made it harder for the rest of us to be viwwed with the respect we may deserve. 

Elegantly written, however (to me) there is a glaring omission. Something along the lines of "I will defend and protect the precepts and integrity of my profession by reporting transgressors"... or some such idea. 

Dismal agents continue to operate on a dismal level and tar ALL of you with the same brush --- because they CAN!!!!  Few, few, very few...nearly none get reported and/or are sanctioned for squirrely activities. How many posts have you read here on A/R where a horrific story of behavior is meticulously unfolded and then followed by "Should I report them?"  Uh, DUH... IMHO unless and until there is a reasonable mechanism for responsibly reporting malfeasance that the majority of Realtors embrace and practice .... nothing much will change ... and the aforementioned elegantly written posting will have little positive resonance.

I do not think that even 50% of the agents I encounter follow even 1/2 of your points.  It is really a sad state of affairs for our industry.  I applaud you for your oath.

Beautifully stated and worth a re-blog.  Even the clients I am not comfortable with we are still called to "love".  As you stated it is an action.  Joy

You wrote such a serious post and then we get these comments about snakes in the grass (#6 - loved that one!) and other craziness (#17). If we could get everyone to take such a pledge, it would work just as well as it does for doctors and all our ethical problems would be solved!

I need to print this oath out and put next to my computer and pass it out at the office as well.

Perhaps we need to remember sonething else: When I first started as a salesman in CA, one had to be recommended by a Broker who would testify to the newbie's honesty and integrity - after the required time and a new test to the level of Broker, one could apply for membership on the REALTOR community. The REALTOR pin in the lapel of your SUIT signified a high level of accomplishment.

I think the oath is well stated.  The oath / core values that I adopt for my brokerage may use some different language that my team is more comfortable with, but I really like where you are going with this.

I think the more important aspect of this dialog concerns raising the bar in our industry.  I understand that real estate has been a great opportunity for people with less education and means, and that it really and truly is a meritocracy.  However, until there are higher professional standards (more hours required to become an agent, a higher bar for continuing education and greater accountability for ethical breaches) I fear that many consumers will continue to perceive the majority of our profession as undertrained and overpaid...

Can I print this out and use it in my office as a reminder for the newbies? Perhaps I should get them to swear it every morning as well (I just might as well)

Nice and easier to remember than the entire code of ethics.  or at least a good summary.

I am happy that most real estate agents in Vermont already practice the tenets of your oath.

I just pulled up the Realtor Pledge from NAR's website.  I have been at some meetings and we start the meeting by reciting it.