Sounds like an interesting site. Will check it out…

Thx

Russ

Our office stuggles with business ethics on a regular basis. That is, when is it right to shut down a signing when a distressed borrower states, “I can’t afford this loan” or learn that the borrower (s) just filed for divorce a day prior to closing or learn that the seller is giving back the downpayment to the borrower immediately post closing (lender fraud). These and other ethical dilemma’s present difficult choices.

Because escrow companies are a professional service business (in my opinion) similar to CPA’s, Attorney’s, etc..yet we are only compensated for our service if a transaction closes (commission structured), it can present another ethical wrinkle—if we don’t close the transaction our business viability is compromised. It can be particularly charged when we know the chain reaction than can occur if we shut down a closing.

Where I went to college at Seattle Pacific University, one of the excellent spinoff’s of the School of Business & Economics is the Center for Integrity in Business. It is a phenominal resource for business people and CEO’s that attend their symposiums and I am a regular reader of their publication, Ethix.org

“REALTORS®…refrain from making unsolicited comments about other practitioners.”

Thoughts?

Russ

I would say it’s fairly obviously a Realtor making the comment because they used the trademark symbol Also likely one who blogs because they complained that my phone number shows on my blog, and liken “Different strokes for different folks” to prostitution.

The only thing that bothers me is it is obviously someone I “know” who chose this roundabout means to take a shot at me, as opposed to saying it more out in the open and identifying themselves when doing so. Likely it is one of my RealTownBlog compatriots.

RE: Status as “Realtor”. Perhaps the writer is referring to your status because of the current discussions on Inman about real estate professionals. Dr. Kevin Boileau in a recent Inman article on real estate ethics says, “There really is a technical, traditional definition of professional status, which includes three criteria: 1) specialized knowledge; 2) group identification and membership; and 3) agreed-upon education and training, including ethics training, certification by examination and continuing education.”

He goes on to say, “So, while many agents may have specialized knowledge, they must also be obligated to follow certain, written ethical standards of practice. This allows individuals in a specific industry to maintain specific behavioral expectations amongst themselves as well as toward their target consumers. Without a written code of ethics, standards are nebulous and therefore cannot be formally learned or enforced. This breeds moral chaos.”

I think his point is that by joining a professional organization, such as the National Association of Realtors, you give yourself credibility and announce to the world that you agree to maintain a certain code of behavior and ethics, and without doing that, you are something less than “professional”. That’s just my guess. But if you don’t care, I wouldn’t worry about it.