REAL ESTATE CREDENTIALS: If a person is licensed to sell real estate in any state in the US, they are a "Real Estate Agent". The MARK of a REALTOR is owned by the National Association of Realtors ® (NAR). To be eligible to use this MARK, a licensed agent in good standing in any STATE must pay yearly DUES to NAR AND certify that they will adhere to the NAR Code Of Ethics. 54% of all Washington real estate agents are Realtors ® (46% are NOT). What? You thought everyone with a real estate liciense was a Realtor??? Not so. |||| I am a "Full Service", full time Realtor ®. I am a member of the National Association of Realtors ® and both the Washington State and a local County Association -- The Snohomish County - Camaneo Association of Realtors ® -- see www.SCCAR.com . |||| SPECIALIZED REAL ESTATE EDUCATION: In addition to my real estate license, I am also a licensed Washington State Broker (an additional 120 hours of training) AND I have earned the following NAR CERTIFICATIONS: CRS ® (Certified Residential Specialist), GRI ®(Graduate, Realtor Institute), ABR ® (Accredited Buyers Representative), SRES ® (Senior's Real Estate Specialist), e-PRO ® (Accredited Internet Specialist) and CLHMS ®(Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist). Only the ILHM (the Dallas Texas based Institute for Luxury Home Marketing, owner of the CLHMS ® mark/logo) is not part of NAR |||| In Washington State, each county has a county association of Realtors ®. I belong to SCCAR, The Snohomish County - Camano Association of Realtors ®. Each county ASSOCIATION has a Professional Standards Committee and an Ethics Hearings Panel. The PANEL conducts HEARINGS monthly on complaints filed by agents and the public -- against member agents(only Realtors ®) who allegedly break the NAR Code of Ethics ®. A range of PENALTIES includes (1) Fines -- $500 to $5000 and/or (2) required additional education courses or (3) the "loss of license." Sadly enough, many incidents that do occur are simply the result of a lack of experience and an ignorance of the growing complexities of real estate and real estate law. As with any field of business (e.g., healthcare), knowledge and training often determine the level of confidence and competance that an agent can provide to their clientele. |||| 46 % Washington State agents are NOT Realtors (20,200). That is a big number. |||| The purchase or sale of a home often involves the largest outlay of funds in the lives of 98% of Americans. When you seek the services of a real estate agent -- ask to see their Realtor ® membership card. Play it safe. Increase the odds that you will be represented by a professional -- hire a Realtor ®. The commission or fee charged by the vast majority of REALTORS ® is typically no more then what is charged by non-Realtors ®. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. |||| Agents who have NOT paid their dues to NAR are not eligible to use the "R" Trade Mark. Nor are they able to use the marks associated with any NAR Certification -- CRS, GRI, ABR, SRES, e-PRO, etc -- which includes the non NAR CLHMS certification (even if once earned - certifications require anual renewal). Paying your annual renewal fee gives an agent (Realtor ®) in good standing the right to DISPLAY these marks / logos. By design (because of the heavy use of the Internet for coursework), only the e-PRO accreditation REQUIRED on-line course materials, interaction and testing. In retrospect, from my perspective anyway (and I am a borderline GEEK), this course was more comprehensive and accademically challenging than all of my certification course work -- except the CRS.