Realtor or Real Estate Agent?

[cohdane]

I know no one asked, but I thought I'd give a client's perspective. As a seller, a buyer and a former advertising professional, the whole all caps REALTOR® thing seems silly at best and annoying at worst. To me, it's like a group of accountants organizing themselves into an association and then referring to themselves-- and insisting you refer to them-- as ACCOUNTANTS®. Those old radio ads with the guy over-pronouncing the word didn't help.

And, yes. I associate REALTORS® with the NAR. Which isn't a good thing. Having followed their predictions in the press for the last couple of years, they seem to be an organization more concerned with spin and propaganda than accurate forecasts. As far as making either misguided or deliberately misleading statements to consumers, they rank right up there with the tobacco industry these days. They've lost all credibility. In my book, calling yourself a REALTOR® is only going to lose you points.

That said, I had a wonderful agent, realtor, real estate agent on my home sale in Boston. She really knew her stuff. My buyer's agent, realtor, house goddess here also seems to be on top of things. I have no idea if they're REALTORS®. It's their personal record that matters to me, not their membership in some professional organization.

Apologies in advance if I've offended. It's a candid perspective. Perhaps there's another seller/buyer out there who sees things just the opposite.

Good luck to all, I know these are troubling times for those in your profession.

[MikeJaquish]

...as long as you don't forget to call me for supper.


Mike Jaquish, Realtor.

[cohdane]

BBQ ribs here. You're officially invited, Realtor.

[20yrsinBranson]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

To be perfectly legal, it should always be used thus: REALTOR®, all caps, with the symbol. (It's registered, not trademarked.) Which I think looks pretty dumb, frankly (the all caps part), but that's how we're supposed to use it.

As for influencing how the public uses it, good luck!

A REALTOR® can also be referred to as a real estate agent.

I don't mind the all caps but putting that little circle with the "R" in it is a real pain in the tush.

20yrsinBranson

[Brytanica1]

I don't care which people use.

But for the love of all thats holy please pronounce Realtor and Realty correctly.

Everytime I hear "Real-uh-tor" or "Real-Uh-Tee" I want to go out and club a baby seal to death.