You'll have to include almost every professional association in this category (ABA, AMA, NABA, NBA etc.) and most members don't care, because they have more important things to consider.
No one is forced to comply with the REALTOR COE, however, anybody who as a member or non-member wants to impose their own interpretations, is obviously having too much time on their hands to "re-invent the wheel" IMO.

I consider it to be a choice, and a good one at that!

I know of no state that requires such membership to obtain a real estate license so the choice is the broker you sign up with. If you don't want to belong to the professional associations representing the real estate busines then ask a non-member broker to sponsor you!

I consider it a good choice for many reasons but no real need to detail that here, those that agree already know and those that don't wouldn't be convinced anyway!

Ditto!

I find, that the ones who usually don't make enough money in this business are the first ones complaining about having to join.
In my 19 years in this biz, I have never found a top producer complaining about joining a local board or being a member of NAR.

so I guess we're talking about "pay to play" ethics.

it doesn't bother anyone that the broker requirement is a guaranteed income stream for NAR and the state and local associations? does that say something about their motive?

it appears that we've found the underlying base for the ethics of some in this biz...MONEY. that's a far cry from "the golden rule" so often cited, and other ethical concepts based on fairness and equity.

Shana, nobody forces you to do anything in this life - you just have to live with your own choices (and the consequences of those choices). If you choose to join a broker who is a member of the NAR, then you are choosing to be a member of the NAR - if you don't like it, find another broker who isn't a member. If you can't, then get your brokers license and start your own brokerage. If enough agents decided they didn't like the NAR enough that they didn't go to work with participating brokers, those brokers may re-think their affiliation. again...100% voluntary - nobody forces you.

Regarding the comment above:



I am only bound to a client for as long as I choose to be bound to a client. If a client ever asked me to do something that I didn't want to do, and insisted that I follow through on their request even after I explained my reasons for not agreeing to it, I can excuse myself from the obligation and fire the client (I don't think I'd want to work with someone like that anyway).

Like I said above, your choices are your own, nobody forces you to do anything.

Regarding your argument that there are people who allow their ethical motivations be controlled by money...yes there are. They exist in every business, in every town, in every state, in every country - what's the point? I don't think anybody here would say "everybody is perfect" and that seems to be what your expectation is...

What does paying to be a part of an association have to do with ethics?

What does paying to be a part of an association have to do with ethics?

I want people to understand the nature of the ethics that in this case are imposed upon them. what many people in the industry may not realize is that this kind of unnecessarily controlling behavior by associations and other entities contributes greatly to corruption and monopolization of industries, which is generally a bad thing.

do you want an open, competitive industry, or do you want an industry controlled by a few, large entities? for me, the choice is clear.

federal anti-trust laws were enacted nearly a century ago to prevent this kind of behavior.

Any kind of association that has a large membership and wants to be credible has a COE.
This has nothing to do with anti trust laws; and saying at the same time, that because NAR is the controlling organization, makes it easier to be corrupt, is really going "out there".

I find that major trade associations want a clean image of their business and that having a Code of Ethics provides a measurable standard by which the membership can be held accountable to that goal.

Certainly anyone not wanting to commit to an ethical standard is free to do business without being a member (assuming proper training and licensing).

Shana - nothing is imposed on anybody...you can choose to be a member of NAR and held to their standard of ethics, or you can choose to NOT be a member of NAR and NOT be held to their standard of ethics. Again...nothing is IMPOSED on anybody against their will here...NAR is a voluntary association...and if the NAR code of ethics was an anti-trust violation, it wouldn't be here any longer...

Your arguments seem to be jumping to huge conclusions without any substance...

it's like saying "yeah...I'd play in the NBA if only they didn't have those stupid rules they impose on everybody...so instead I'll play by my own rules...fight the power!"....

...
...yeah...

I didn't say the COE is a violation of anti-trust.

But, it is common knowledge that NAR has been sued for anti-trust violations. did you miss the memo?

NAR membership is NOT a completely voluntary choice if most of the brokers in a particular market are NAR-affiliated/MLS members. newly licensed agents just don't have many options in this regard.

Because of the VOW policy? I have not noticed a difference in my day to day RE activities, have you?

The DOJ keeps trying to make something stick, regardless if it's beneficial for the general public or not.

http://www.realtor.org/realtororg.nsf/pages/lawsuitdismissed

http://www.realtor.org/law_and_policy/doj/nar_doj

Shana,

Anybody can get sued for anything - it doesn't mean the lawsuit has merit. The DOJ lawsuit has been settled and NAR isn't in violation of any anti-trust laws...so I'm not sure where you're going with that...

Find me an agent who says there is no alternative than joining the NAR and I'll show you an agent who's not looking. Shana - you're not a member...so obviously you had a choice, yes? Just checking...

In another thread, shana affirmed that she is not a member but did say she uses the MLS. I have questions about a couple of things.

First, does that mean the full MLS, or just an IDX feed intended for the public? Second, if it is the full MLS, how does that happen?

Answers to these questions will likely bring more questions....

TB, I really want you to answer your own questions, because this is not by any means secret information. LOL

TB not all MLS systems require an agent to be a REALTOR to be a member. I believe Jennifer Allan's market in Denver is like that.