Professional Standards info now on-line

Raising the level of professionalism Professional Standards Information available on web site The Columbus Board of REALTORS® is charged with enforcing standards for professional conduct, or the Code of Ethics, within the board’s membership.  Though not a government or licensing agency, when a formal complaint is received by CBR it may, through the Grievance and Professional Standards Committees, conduct investigations and hearings involving members to enforce those professional standards.

Click here to visit the Professional Standards web pages

One type of investigation that may be conducted is the “Ethics Complaint”, which alleges violations by a member of one or more of the 17 Articles of the Code of Ethics of the National Association of REALTORS®. 

The other type of investigation is called a “Request for Arbitration.”  An arbitration hearing, or the alternative service of mediation, will determine disputes over real estate commissions that arise between REALTORS® and other REALTORS®, or between REALTORS® and their customers or clients.

A System of Peer Review
The board’s Grievance Committee and Professional Standards Committees are comprised of REALTORS® only.  They are local members who have volunteered their time for extra training to gain an in depth knowledge of our REALTOR® professional standards and the associated complaint-handling process.  Through this volunteerism, we have a very good system of peer review.  Most will agree that a system of peer review is preferable to members or the public having to file complaints through the Ohio Division of Real Estate and Professional Licensing, or file litigation through the courts.
 
Confidentiality
Professional standards complaints brought to the board, as well as the correspondence related to complaints, are considered to be of a strictly confidential nature.  Board staff, the board’s Grievance Committee, and the board’s Professional Standards Committee are responsible for confidentiality as well as for ensuring that due process is afforded to all the parties involved in complaints.  This is true whether it be in the conduct of a hearing to enforce the Code of Ethics or in the arbitration of commission disputes arising from the real estate business.  The board’s professional standards files are not public record, and inquiry by the public or even by other members is not permitted.

More information about REALTOR® professional standards
Members are now long accustomed to the Ohio Division of Real Estate’s requirement of 3 hours of continuing education covering ethics. 

More recently, the National Association of REALTORS® passed a requirement that each REALTOR® member of the board complete quadrennial ethics training of not less than 2.5 hours. Fortunately, our Columbus Board of REALTORS® Department of Professional Development and the Ohio Association of REALTORS® offer courses that can fulfill both requirements.  New REALTORS® are required to complete the board’s new member orientation course, which includes 2.5 hours covering the Code of Ethics.  This course also covers other board services including multiple listing, and has become very popular among new members.

CBR’s Member Service Center offers several very good publications on the subject of ethics in real estate, including the Code of Ethics and Arbitration Manual of the National Association of REALTORS®.   The NAR manual, updated every year, is the basis for CBR’s volunteer training in the area of professional standards.

www.ColumbusREALTORS.com
Members are also urged to visit the board’s website for more information about professional standards.  There, under the Member Services tab, can be found some very useful information about the Code of Ethics, about the complaint process, and the official forms required to initiate a complaint. 

For more detail about the board’s professional standards complaint procedures, members may call the board and speak with Stan Collins, CBR’s Assistant Executive Officer, or with Larry Metzger, CEO.