The new Professional Standards Program is yet another great accomplishment of our Association’s Leadership who have been committed to making this program become a reality. This program has been added to the expanding scope of our IAR Legal Department and is becoming one of its top priorities. More than 6,000 Realtors in Iowa are under the authority of the IAR Professional Standards Program including 15 of our local boards and associations. The long hours of administering professional standards will always be worth it if it betters our profession and the lives of the public we serve. Gabe Walsh is the IAR Legal Counsel and is responsible for administering our Statewide Professional Standards Program. IAR is lucky to have the caliber of volunteer REALTORS® who take entire days from their busy schedules to hear these cases. Gabe looks forward to working with our Leadership and all our volunteers to continually improve our Statewide Professional Standards program for years to come.
Why was the program adopted?
The size of many local boards made it hard to find impartial hearing panels without conflicts. Having a pool of members from across the State review complaints and conduct hearings increases impartiality and fairness. We believed that many complaints were not being filed due to these concerns. Enforcing the Code of Ethics is perhaps the most important thing we do as REALTORS® and this program was a way to greatly improve this profession and the interests of the public.
How do you file an Ethics Complaint?
We have made filing an ethics complaint easy. All you need to do is submit your
complaint on our online form here. This form allows you to submit up to 10 supporting attachments as well.
Read the rest of the Professional Standards Frequently Asked Questions.
Read a snapshot of the case report stats ands hear from Lance Hanson, Greivance Committee Chair and Kurt Schade, Professional Standards Committee Chair in our digital Benchmark Magazine.
Gabe Walsh, IAR Legal Counsel, is responsible for administering our Statewide Professional Standards Program.
Gavel image from Bill Oxford - Unsplash.