Mount Pleasant Magazine July/August 2019

216 www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.ILoveMountPleasant.com | www.BestOfMP.com real estate R emember Honor Society from high school — how all the kids at the top of the graduating class were in Honor Society? As a newly minted, wet-behind-the-calculator Realtor®, the Realtors of Distinction was my “Honor Society.” Achieving this designation was my quest for the banner of achievement to show the world (and myself ) that I was smart, industrious and savvy enough to be ranked among the best of the best in the business of real estate. Of the 5,843 members of the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors (CTAR), only 292 individual agents and 29 teams were in the 2018 class of Realtors of Distinction award winners. What brought “distinction” to these Realtors? What does a Realtor have to do — or not do as it turns out — to achieve the designation? As we set out on this journey of discovery, it is important to point out that not everyone who sells real estate is a Realtor. Passing the South Carolina licensing exam makes you a “salesman.” To be a Realtor requires attending classes, passing a test on ethics and professionalism and taking a pledge of adherence to the code. A code violation results in a Realtor being brought in front of a panel of peers at CTAR for evaluation and/or discipline. Being free of Code of Ethics violations for three years is one of the three criteria categories necessary to apply for the designation. This is the first feather in the cap of a Realtors of Distinction. These Realtors run their businesses with professionalism and a high standard of ethics. Professionalism teamed up with high ethical standards is the foundation for creating a busy and lucrative business. Business success creates the next category measured for membership in this elite group: sales volume and number of transactions. In 2018, entry-level sales volume for a Silver level of BY SARAH GRAHAM Realtors of Distinction Who Are They? What Is It? Glean Insight into This Prestigious Designation