On 5/22/08 I opened the AJC to find the front page cover story stating "Georgia Realtors to pay record ethics fine". First of all....they are not talking about those real estate agents that are licensed in Georgia. They are talking about the Georgia Association of Realtors, of which I am and many countless other agents in Georgia are a member.
As the story goes the GA Association of Realtors did not disclose more than $585,000 in political spending in 2006 and sounds as if they have agreed to settle on an $80,000 penalty for their nondisclosure. According to the article the comptroller who failed to file the forms was fired by the association.
I find it interesting that an association that enforces such a strong code of ethics and requires their real estate agent members to complete ethics training on a regular basis would be caught up in a disclosure issue. It sounds as if this is a case of negligent error on one individual's part.
It would have been nice for the AJC to have been a little more concise with the title line. For the record, I am not involved in the case and myself and other Georgia Real Estate Agents that are Realtors by association are not liable for these actions. We remain trusted and true to our clients and to referrals from those who know us best.