CODE OF ETHICS
Preamble
This Code of Ethics has been adopted by Korea Real Estate Service Development Association (“KRESDA”) to promote the ethical and professional operation of KRESDA and its Members. All KRESDA Members (“Members”) are bound by the provisions of this Code of Ethics and have pledged to abide by such provisions as well as the spirit of this Code of Ethics. The Code of Ethics covers the conduct of Members in connection with transactions in general, dealings with clients, and dealing with other real estate brokers, agents, and salespersons, including other Members (“Real Estate Professionals”). While the Code of Ethics establishes obligations that may be higher than those mandated by law, in any instance where the Code of Ethics and the law conflict, the obligations of the law must take precedence. It is the hope of KRESDA that this Code of Ethics will help guide all Members so that they operate in a manner that enhances the reputation of KRESDA and ensures that KRESDA is perceived by the public and others in the industry as being the most ethical, professional, skilled, experienced, and successful real estate organization.
In recognition and appreciation of their obligations to clients, customers, the public, and each other, Members continuously strive to become and remain informed on issues affecting real estate and, as knowledgeable professionals, they willingly share the fruit of their experience and study with others. They identify and take steps, through enforcement of this Code of Ethics and by assisting appropriate regulatory bodies, to eliminate practices which may damage the public or which might discredit or bring dishonor to the real estate profession. Members having direct personal knowledge of conduct that may violate the Code of Ethics involving misappropriation of client or customer funds or property, willful discrimination, or fraud resulting in substantial economic harm, bring such matters to the attention of KRESDA.
Realizing that cooperation with other Real Estate Professionals promotes the best interests of those who utilize their services, KRESDA urges exclusive representation of clients; do not attempt to gain any unfair advantage over their competitors; and they refrain from making unsolicited comments about other practitioners. In instances where their opinion is sought, or where Members believe that comment is necessary, their opinion is offered in an objective, professional manner, uninfluenced by any personal motivation or potential advantage or gain.
Accepting this standard as their own, Members pledge to observe its spirit in all their activities whether conducted personally, through associates or others, or via technological means, and to conduct their business in accordance with the tenets set forth below.
Duties of Members
Article 1
Members shall perform to the best of their abilities the duties and obligations stipulated in KRESDA bylaws to improve the quality of Korean real estate services.
Article 2
Members shall keep informed of all relevant matters affecting real estate in their community, town, city, province, and country.
Article 3
Members shall be familiar with all relevant laws, ordinances, rules, regulations, public policies, customs, standards, and practices affecting real estate in their community, town, city, province, and country.
Article 4
Members shall provide at least that level of competent service, fairness, and high integrity ordinarily expected by the public in its dealings with a Real Estate Professional. No Member shall render advice concerning matters that are beyond their professional expertise.
Article 5
Members shall undertake to receive regular, periodic training, educational and/or informational updates with respect to technology, tools, skills, and other matters relating to their careers as Real Estate Professionals to advance their careers.
Article 6
Members shall undertake to eliminate any practice by Real Estate Professionals in their community which could be damaging to the public or bring discredit to the real estate profession. In keeping with this policy, litigation shall be undertaken by Members only if it is necessary or unavoidable, or if all other appropriate dispute resolution alternatives have failed.
Article 7
No Member shall engage in the unauthorized practice of law and shall recommend to their clients that legal counsel be obtained when the interest of the client requires it.
Article 8
At any time, any party to a transaction sign or initials any document, Members shall ensure that such party receives a copy of such signed or initialed document.
Article 9
No Member shall mislead any seller, buyer, Real Estate Professional, or other party to a transaction or use any deceptive or fraudulent practices in the conduct of his/her business.
Duties to Clients and Customers
Article 10
Members always shall protect and promote the interests of their clients while simultaneously treating fairly all parties to a transaction.
Article 11
Members shall preserve confidential information (as defined by community, town, city, province, or country law) provided by their clients in the course of any professional relationship with their clients.
Article 12
No Member shall knowingly, during or following the termination of professional relationships with his or her clients:
1)The leakage of confidential information from customers.
2)Use of confidential information of customers against customers.
3)The use of confidential information of the customer in favor of a third party or himself/herself unless the following cases apply.
a) After disclosing confidential information, the customer accepts it.
b) A request for a law or court order.
c) If the customer intends to commit a crime and the information is necessary for crime prevention,
d) Where it is necessary to protect a member or his/her employee suspected of cheating by a member.
Article 13
Members, to the extent possible, shall ensure that all financial obligations and commitments between Members and their clients regarding real estate transactions are in writing, express the final and complete agreement of the parties, and otherwise conform to applicable law.
Article 14
Signs giving notice of property for sale, rent, lease or exchange shall not be placed on property without the consent of the owner.
Article 15
No Member shall acquire an interest in or buy for him/herself, any member of his/her family, his/her firm, or any member thereof, or any entity in which he/she has substantial ownership interest, property listed with him/her, without making the true position know to the seller. In selling property owned by him/herself, or in which he/she has any interest, a Members shall reveal the facts of his/her ownership or interest to the buyer.
Article 16
No Member shall recommend or suggest to a client or a customer the use of services of an organization or business entity in which he/she has a financial interest without fully disclosing such interest at the time of the recommendation or suggestion.
Article 17
Members, until the closing of a transaction, shall submit all offers to purchase to the seller as quickly as possible and in an objective and unbiased manner.
Article 18
Members shall, within a reasonable time, disclose the existence of an accepted offer to any broker, agent or salesperson seeking cooperation.
Article 19
Members shall not enter any arrangement to accept compensation, rebate, or profit from more than one party to a transaction without full disclosure to all the parties.
Article 20
A Member acting as the exclusive agent of a seller shall establish the terms and conditions of offers to cooperate. Cooperating brokers, agents and salespersons should not assume that an offer of cooperation includes an offer of compensation. Entitlement to compensation in a cooperative transaction must be agreed upon between the listing and cooperating broker, agent, or salesperson prior to the time an offer to purchase the property is produced.
Article 21
A Member shall avoid exaggeration, misrepresentation or concealment of pertinent facts relating to any property or transaction and shall disclose all defects in property known to such Member, which defects substantially affect such property’s value or affect the intended use of such property; Members are not obligated, however, to discover latent defects in the property or advise on matters beyond their expertise.
Duties to the Public
Article 22
Members shall not deny equal professional services to any person for reasons of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin. Members shall not be a party to any plan or agreement to discriminate against any person or persons based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
Article 23
Members shall present true and accurate information in their advertisements and/or representations to the public and shall not deceive or mislead the public in any way by:
Article 24
The services which Members offer to the public shall conform to the standards or practice and competence which are reasonably expected in the specific real estate discipline in which they engage. Members shall not undertake to provide specialized professional services concerning a property type or service that is outside their field of competence unless they engage the assistance of a person competent in such area.
Article 25
Only if the Member is the listing broker, agent or salesperson may he/she claim to have “sold” the property, even if the sale resulted through the cooperative efforts of another Real Estate Professional. However, after transactions have closed, the listing broker, agent or salesperson may not prohibit successful cooperating brokers, agents, and salespeople from advertising their “cooperation,” “participation” or “assistance” in the transactions, or from making similar representations.
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involved in the creation of deceptive and unauthorized real estate brokerage websites
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Exclusive content manipulation in a deceptive and misleading manner (e.g., presenting the exclusive content of another person)
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Deceptive use of meta tags, keywords, other equipment and methods to attract Internet traffic, or mislead consumers.
Duties to other Real Estate Professionals
Article 26
No Member shall seek any unfair advantage over any other Real Estate Professional.
Article 27
In the conduct of their business, Members shall strive to avoid controversy with other Real Estate Professionals.
Article 28
No Member shall knowingly or recklessly make publicly disparaging or misleading comments about a competitor, their business, or their business practices, nor volunteer an opinion of another Real Estate Professional’s transaction(s). If the opinion of a Member is sought and if such Member deems it appropriate to respond, such opinion shall be rendered with strict professional integrity and courtesy.
Article 29
If a Member is contacted by an owner of property regarding the sale of such property that is exclusively listed with another Real Estate Professional and the Member has not directly or indirectly initiated the discussion, the Member may discuss the terms upon which he/she might take a future listing or, alternatively, may take a listing to become effective upon expiration of any existing exclusive listing.
Article 30
In cooperative transactions, all compensation owing in connection with a transaction shall be paid to the office with which the Real Estate Professional is affiliated and not to the individual Real Estate Professional.
Article 31
Negotiations concerning property which is listed exclusively with a Real Estate Professional shall be conducted with such Real Estate Professional and not with the owner of the property, except with the consent of such Real Estate Professional.
Article 32
Any Member who obtains information from a listing broker, agent or salesperson about property that is for sale shall not convey this information to, not invite the cooperation of a third-party broker, agent or salesperson without the consent of the listing broker, agent or salesperson.
Article 33
Any Member representing a buyer shall disclose such relationship to the Real Estate Professional representing the seller at the first available opportunity.
Article 34
With respect to unlisted property, any Member representing a buyer shall disclose such relationship to the seller at the first available opportunity.
Article 35
Any Member representing a seller of property shall disclose such relationship to buyers at the first available opportunity.
Article 36
Members may contact clients of other Real Estate Professionals for the purpose of offering to provide, or entering a contract to provide, a different type of real estate service unrelated to the type of service currently provided by such other Real Estate Professional.
Article 37
No Member shall solicit a listing which is currently listed exclusively with another Real Estate Professional. This shall not prohibit a Member from soliciting such listing after its expiration. Moreover, if the listing broker, agent, or salesperson refuses to disclose the expiration date and nature of a listing, a Member may contact the seller to obtain such information and may discuss the terms upon which he/she might take a future listing or, alternatively, may take a listing to become effective upon expiration of any existing exclusive listing.
Article 38
No Member shall solicit as a client, personally or by telephone, property owners who have been identified as having exclusively listed their property with another Real Estate Professional.
Article 39
No Member shall distribute mail or other forms of written solicitations to property owners whose properties are exclusively listed with another Real Estate Professional when such solicitations are not part of a general mailing but are directed specifically to property owners whose properties are exclusively listed with another Real Estate Professional.
Article 40
Prior to accepting a listing, Members have an affirmative obligation to make reasonable efforts to determine whether the property is subject to a current, valid exclusive listing agreement.