For the first six months of 2020, there were 129 complaints filed through the Illinois REALTORS® Ethics Citation Program. Forty-four citations were issued.

Eighteen complaints were sent to the association’s Grievance Committee because the allegations contained in the complaint were outside the Articles covered by the Ethics Citation Program.

What topped the list of most common ethics complaints? The same perennial problem areas: REALTORS® violating advertising rules or providing access to a listing without the proper authority.

Advertising Rules

Article 12 of the Code of Ethics covers advertising and marketing and is the most commonly cited Article for complaints.

Article 12 – REALTORS® shall be honest and truthful in their real estate communications and shall present a true picture in their advertising, marketing, and other representations. REALTORS® shall ensure that their status as real estate professionals is readily apparent in their advertising, marketing, and other representations, and that the recipients of all real estate communications are, or have been, notified that those communications are from a real estate professional.” ($250 fine)

Article 12, Standard of Practice 12-5: “REALTORS® shall not advertise nor permit any person employed by or affiliated with them to advertise real estate services or listed property in any medium (e.g., electronically, print, radio, television, etc.) without disclosing the name of that REALTOR®’s firm in a reasonable and readily apparent manner either in the advertisement or in electronic advertising via a link to a display with all required disclosures.” ($250 fine)

These two Facebook posts show an example of the wrong way to advertise (slide one) and the correct way (slide two) that clearly identifies the REALTORS®’ real estate firm.