Parker - Illinois requires license law and ethics continuing education to renew your license. As far as designations, I know agents with alphabet soup after their name that don't keep up with recent changes to the C.O.E. or MLS rules and often put unnecessary hurdles in a transaction. Some even think they are still a sub-agent (no longer in Illinois) of the seller. Over time, Illinois has increased the number of hours required to obtain a license and also the hours required for renewal. As a member of our Professional Standards Committee, I am often amazed at what agents do and their reasoning. We have a trainer who has a continuing class titled "What were you thinking?" That title puts most of it in a nutshell!

I will disagree with certain points that you make but not all. Ethics can not be learned in a classroom or school,Just like all the schooling in the world wont make a sucessful agent.Ethics come from upbringing and from within ones self.Ethics are how we define ourselves.The schooling teaches one how to not get in difficulty.Its the same as learning how to drive and the rules of the road so one doesnt kill another or themselves. Serving a client or customer properly comes from other agents and brokers while one is practicing realestate. I think requirments that agents should apprentice or assist with a qualified agent or broker for a certain period of time and deals prior to going out on their own may be a proper answer for the ills this industry is facing. Designations like Epro ABR ect show that an agent has taken the initiative to bettter themselves. In closing Ethics are truly measured only by how one defines themselves. And yes you may quote me.

By the way since when does knowing how to be ethical make one so?

A thief knows and is taught in school church and reform school as a child to be honest But does it make him so?

Ethics are a learned behavior,but the training begins as a child,not upon receipt of a real state license.In all pursuits there exist the criminal,the apathetic,the ignorant.Our duty is to weed them out.There exist ethics committees in the boards I am or have been a member.If there is someone behaving unethically aren't we obliged to address it through proper channels.( refusing to acquiesce to the other sides every request does not qualify as unethical)

Will training help?Maybe. One semester of college?Not a reasonable barometer.I was an administrator in a Northern Law Enforcement agency.We set minimal standards.The result was exclusion of people due to factors they could not control.Education is what you make of it.There are very proficient and ethical laborers as well as inefficient and corrupt Doctors.

I believe in education,I know I need to rpursue,receive ,and utilize every available resource to reach my goals. I'm not the agent next to me,she or he has their own methods. Annual mandated industry related education is effective,if for no other reason then the criminal or apathetic can no longer plead ignorance, I feel if we are diligent in protecting our profession,we will all be happier and more successful.

Ethics are a learned behavior,but the training begins as a child,not upon receipt of a real state license.In all pursuits there exist the criminal,the apathetic,the ignorant.Our duty is to weed them out.There exist ethics committees in the boards I am or have been a member.If there is someone behaving unethically aren't we obliged to address it through proper channels.( refusing to acquiesce to the other sides every request does not qualify as unethical)

Will training help?Maybe. One semester of college?Not a reasonable barometer.I was an administrator in a Northern Law Enforcement agency.We set minimal standards.The result was exclusion of people due to factors they could not control.Education is what you make of it.There are very proficient and ethical laborers as well as inefficient and corrupt Doctors.

I believe in education,I know I need to rpursue,receive ,and utilize every available resource to reach my goals. I'm not the agent next to me,she or he has their own methods. Annual mandated industry related education is effective,if for no other reason then the criminal or apathetic can no longer plead ignorance, I feel if we are diligent in protecting our profession,we will all be happier and more successful.

Designations - may impress a client but unless the holder of said designation actually learned and practices what is and should be expected of them the designation is nothing more than "fluff"

Experience - no comment..I agree with you 100%

Hard to get license - again I agree, the more a person has to learn and study to enter the business the better, the more knowlagable and profressional we are the more credability we have in the public eye which reflects on us all. Here in NB the format was changed and the instuctors do not know what is on the exam and thus must teach the course completely and the student must study everything as you have no idea what is on the exam. When this change came into place, just before I took the course, the failure rate was 30% because people assumed it was easy to do, it's not, you need to work at it to get the required mimimum of 75, for the record I had 97, I take this seriously, I am professioanal as I have always held careers that it is was required. It should be hard to get a license, we don't need agents out there that are going to give the rest of us a bad name because they do not know what they are doing.

I just completed a deal with an experienced agent with designations this weekend, the other agent asked for the washer..no dryer? I called and and was told they did want the dryer too, also they asked for all window coverings..forgot to say all rods and hooks...shall we just leave the curtains on the floor? We did change it to protect the other agents client and also made a couple other minor changes to insure the buyer was getting what they expected. I really don't have the right to comment or post as I have only been licensed since April10, 2006 but with 12 completed transactions and more pending I have had some experience and  want to participate in the message board. Thank You

Bravo Thomas.  Passing an ethics course, that might have even been cheated on to pass, does not make one ethical.  

One's character makes one ethical.   It's kinda like being pregnant...you either are or you aren't...not any maybe about it.

http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Character-It-s-How-You-Act-Posters_i1025200_.htm

Take the time to read the poem here too...

http://www.soon.org.uk/poems/when_noone_is_watching.htm

This is a great topic regarding ethics and experience.  I am a newer agent, and it has been difficult "moving in".  I have focused on drawing from past experience and applying some of that to my business practices.  We really are "jacks-of-all-trades" when it comes to the business world.  Some areas I am finding are familiar and others I am continuing to develop.  The "experience" debate I have found usually comes from established agents who feel "threatened" by competition within the market.  Some have refused to change with the dynamics of the industry and are frustrated.  

When it comes to ethics, I have always put this front and foremost in my practices no matter what position I have held.  Our Association requires courses to be taken.  But, as you said, a course or piece of paper doesn't declare one as "ethical".  "Ethical" is visible.  It's about being honest and putting yourself in the customer's "shoes".  When I do that, I don't even have to worry about the ethics piece.  The other part is that the customers in my community are not just customers, they are my neighbors and friends.  I see many of them on a daily or weekly basis, and I want to be able to hold my head up high when seeing them.  

I just completed a course in "Ethics and Legal Update" as part of my license renewal. I got somethings I can use out of the course mostly legal matters.  I think the main idea is to refresh ones thinking on ethics and to keep it in the forefront of ones mind.

Can you teach ethics?  I am not sure you can, but I do feel the teaching of ethics is the right thing to do. Things change and people change too and over time the perception of ethical behavior may also change. We just may need that 3 hour block of ethics to put us back on the right track with ethics.

A word on desiginations, they mean nothing to the general public!  When I started in real estate I had no idea what they meant and I am sure it is the same with the public in general.  I have a link on my website to tell those that venture there what an e-PRO is. I had a fellow Realtor tell me that it is mostly to let other Realtors know we have additional training.  I do agree having a designation is not proof of having mastered a subject.

I completed the requirements for my license in 6 weeks.  I felt I knew just enough to get in trouble. I found a small brokerage office with a mentorship program and joined there.  This helped me a great deal to get my feet on the floor and my head out of the clouds as to what real estae was all about.  I do caution that mentorship and training is not something any agent can do for another. A great deal of attention should be given to who is doing the training or mentoring in an office.  The perception of what is ethical may be at state!

Gene,

I would love to see a course taught by NAR called "What were you thinking?" We hear it everyday. We have a print publication come out every few months from the Oregon Association of Realtors and the last few pages have all the agent repromands and dismissals. As agents we all joke that when we get it, we never read the front pages first. We all jump to the back to see "A" if we know anyone "B" to see what everyone did to get their lic. taken away or a fine from the state.

It really isn't a laughing matter, but when you see three pages of fines and I am just amazed at what agents do somethimes. It really is "What were you thinking?"

Todd

I agree with Ron, you are ethical if you have good character. I agree ethics should be taught to show agents that this is the standard. But there are people of bad character in every walk of life so you learn to work around them, learned behavior is hard to break in an adult and especially if they don't care about standards. Alot of what I see of unethical behavior is in agents that seem to be out doing their own thing without the broker knowing or caring about what they do. Have you ever had an agent from another company knock on your sellers door with buyers in tow to show their property without calling the listing agent? Ever heard of an agent telling their seller that there listing expired last year but if they relist now they will still have to pay the same commission because it is already on paper? I could write a book. Some people love coloring outside the lines, I actually think they think they are new and innovative? Picky buyers and grumpy sellers are a bigger joy to me than unethical agents in this business.

I agree, one is ethical or one is not, there is a code of ethics in Real Estate to adhere to, but it still requires a person with good  ethics to adhere to them, and yes its not something that is aquired overnight its who we are and  who we should be. In life the good always suffers with the bad but the onus  always is upon each and everyone to strive to give the best  they can give, it really is not that difficult to  what is right.  I do feel designations are good and I am not speaking about the badge, I am talking about the course content.  I became an agent in 2005, I was a dual career agent, but very soon realized I needed to do a lot more learning so I went full time 2006, I believe in CE I like to keep updated with changes that might affect new transactions.  Our clients and customers deserves and should receive the highest possible standards the Real Estate Industry offers.  Let us all continue to give service with CARE, LOYALTY, TRUST WITH INTEGRITY.