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Ethics Q&A
When must sold listings be pulled off the Web? Can the term REALTOR® be used in domain names?
Read the full Code of Ethics updated for 2003.
Q Are there any provisions in the Code of Ethics or any state regulations that impose requirements on the amount of time after a listing has sold that I must remove that listing from a Web site?
A Though there is no exact deadline spelled out in The Real Estate License Act or NAR’s Code of Ethics, both prohibit any misleading or false advertisements. If a real estate licensee advertises listings on the Internet and fails to remove the listings within a reasonable period of time after the listing sells, the licensee could be accused of misrepresenting the status of available property in his advertisement.
A real estate licensee might be accused of misleading the public to believe that the licensee has an inflated number of listings. Likewise, a member of the public or a REALTOR® could bring a complaint against a REALTOR® for violating the Code of Ethics. It would be up to a hearing panel to decide whether a violation occurred. Therefore, online advertisements that concern listed properties should be promptly removed after the listing sells.
Q May I use the term REALTOR® in my domain name?
A NAR’s Legal Affairs Department answered this question as follows: "The term REALTOR®, whether used on the Internet as part of the domain name or in any other advertisement, must refer to a member or member’s company and may not be used with descriptive words or phrases. Uses such as Number1Realtor.com, FirstRealtor.org, or RealtorProperties.com are all incorrect. Uses such as JohnDoe-Realtor.com or ABCRealty-realtors.com, on the other hand, are examples of what could be done with the term as part of a domain name."
Q I heard there was a Spanish translation of the Code of Ethics on the Web, but I can’t find it.
A There are many helpful documents related to the Code of Ethics online. In addition to Spanish, you also will find translations into Chinese, Korean, Tagalog, and Vietnamese on Realtor.org in the Law & Policy section of the Web site. (You can go directly to the translations at www.realtor.org/mempolweb.nsf/pages/foreigncode. A Realtor.org password is required). Note that the translations are for informational purposes only–the English version is the only official version of the Code of Ethics.
Other available resources from Realtor.org include online courses that satisfy the Code of Ethics training requirements for both new and continuing members, as well as the full text of the Code of Ethics.
You can also find the Code of Ethics and information about ethics complaints, arbitration, and mediation in the Prof. Standards section of TexasRealtors.com. And members of the public can access similar information on TAR’s consumer Web site, TexasRealEstate.com.
Send questions about ethics to texasrealtor@texasrealtors.com. Not all questions received can be answered.
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