Realtors serve their customers with the level of skill, knowledge and attention to detail required in today’s real estate transaction
Words by: Rochelle D’Souza Images: Various sources
Who is a Realtor?
A Realtor is a person who can understand his clients’ requirements, and act accordingly to project his clients. Realtors have the expertise and experience to help sellers protect theirs. A Realtor must current with all the updates, in regulations, laws, contracts and practices.
Today’s contracts can be 20 pages long not counting addendums and riders. Realtors can help you navigate these complex documents and craft an attractive offer that makes sense for you. Plus, when it comes to negotiation, your Realtor is your advocate and can bring an objective voice to a very subjective situation.
While all Realtors are also state-issued licensees as agents or brokers, a major difference between a real estate licensee and a Realtor is that Realtors have taken an oath to subscribe to a stringent, enforceable Code of Ethics with Standards of Practice that promote the fair, ethical and honest treatment of all parties in a transaction. Real estate licensees (those that have a state-issued license but are not members of a Realtor association) are not bound to the ethical practices and principles set forth in the Realtor Code.
In addition, Realtor associations offer a wealth of training courses to their member Realtors, to help assure that Realtors serve their customers with the level of skill, knowledge and attention to detail required in today’s real estate transaction. The continual training provided to Realtors underscores the importance of having help and guidance from someone who fully understands the process – a Realtor.
Most realtors rely on referrals and repeat business to build the kind of clientèle base they’ll need to survive in the business. This means that doing what’s best for their clients should be as important to them as any individual sale.
If the agent calls himself a Realtor with a capital “R”, that means he is a member of NAR. By hiring a Realtor “The most important thing you get in an agent who formally pledges to support the code of ethics”. For more than 10 years NAR-India is the credible voice of Realtors.
Technology
15 years ago, the real estate market was a different beast, information wise. When records used to be buried in file folders, it put buyers in a much different place than they are today, able to access detailed property records on their smart phones within minutes. Realtors are freed up to help get the deals done. But now they have to be agent, negotiator, price setter, and a community resource. Technology shifting the role of realtors from an information arbiter to a local market expert and service provider, while realtors need to better leverage technology to help their team become responsive, active experts for their clients. Many in the industry feel success is about reacting to evolving client expectations, and adapting as technology changes the buyer-realtor relationship. Clients today are much more knowledgeable. They do online research, know what they’re looking for, and know the neighbourhood. The key is that realtors should be more responsive, understand better what the client wants, and justify the money that they’re getting. Technology will continue to provide more access to information, and realtors need to continually be more responsive with clients.
The Realtor Commitment
The professional commitment of a Realtor is to ensure that a seller and a buyer are brought together in an agreement that provides each with a transaction that is fair and equitable. The motivation is easy to understand. For most full-service brokerages, they receive no compensation whatsoever unless and until the sale closes.
While all Realtors are also state-issued licensees as agents or brokers, a major difference between a real estate licensee and a Realtor is that Realtors have taken an oath to subscribe to a stringent, enforceable Code of Ethics with Standards of Practice that promote the fair, ethical and honest treatment of all parties in a transaction. Real estate licensees (those that have a state-issued license but are not members of a Realtor association) are not bound to the ethical practices and principles set forth in the Realtor Code.