REALTORS® and Appraisers who are members of the local, state and national association of REALTORS® are required to complete ethics training of not less than 2 hours, 30 minutes of instructional time every three years.

But not all ethics classes are equal.

The National Association of REALTORS® in 2019 changed its policy to ensure members taking ethics classes were being provided with mandatory content. To that end, all education providers that wish to offer Code of Ethics classes must submit course outlines to local associations for approval. Without proper approval, associations will not accept transcripts and members will not be considered as in compliance.

There are a few caveats. First, the association must provide access to ethics classes, which the Greater Lehigh Valley REALTORS® does through the Greater Lehigh Valley Real Estate Academy and through its partnership with The CE Shop (look for classes with the yellow “NAR Ethics” banner). Second, if another local association has approved a course provider’s outline, ALL associations in the state must accept that education provider’s ethics training and transcript.

Example: If York-Adams approves an ethics class that School X is offering, a GLVR member who submits a transcript from School X’s ethics class will be in compliance of the required Code of Ethics training. And it works in reverse. If GLVR approves an ethics class the Greater Lehigh Valley Real Estate Academy is offering, a York-Adams member who submits a transcript from the Academy will be in compliance of the required Code of Ethics training.

Please confirm with GLVR which schools are approved before spending your time and money on a potentially non-compliant class (as of July 15, 2022, GLVREA – classes to be scheduled – and The CE Shop are approved). A running list, when available, will be posted to GLVR’s Member Portal under Member Resources > Code of Ethics Training.

The current Code of Ethics cycle began on January 1, 2022, and ends on December 31, 2024. Any member who is not in compliance by the end of 2024 will have their membership suspended for the following January and February, or until the requirement is met. Members who have still not completed their ethics training by March 1, 2025, will be terminated and will incur a $500 reinstatement fee.