NAR’s Board of Directors approved a change to Article 10 of the Code of Ethics on November 13, 2020, making it a violation for REALTORS® to use harassing or hate speech toward any of the protected classes. This includes race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, national origin, sexual orientation and gender identity. These changes go into effect immediately.
This violation not only applies to REALTORS® on a professional level but also on a personal level, although the obligations do not apply to behavior that occurred before this came into effect.
NAR has released a FAQ about the new policies, including why it was passed, how it will be applied, how hate speech is defined and more. Click here to read the full FAQ.
NAR will also be hosting a Breaking Down the Changes to the Code webinar each month through next year that will provide guidance to the Code of Ethics changes and provide an opportunity to ask questions of our policy experts. Click here to view the dates and register for the webinar.