To be a successful REALTOR® in Northeast Florida, it is important for real estate professionals to adhere to high ethical standards and understand how to do business in a progressive multicultural environment. Joining Northeast Florida Association of REALTORS® new professional society, EDGE, is the way to demonstrate to your clients that you have reached this pinnacle of professionalism.
Designed to educate REALTOR® members in a way that enhances their professionalism, EDGE represents an acronym that stands for Ethics, Diversity, Goals, Excellence. The professional society was founded in 2021 and is open to all REALTOR® members who complete six specific certifications, including several sponsored by the National Association of REALTORS®, and have obtained a minimum of 30 points by completing several approved courses during each three-year renewal period. Also, it is imperative that EDGE members are not found to be in violation of the Code of Ethics during the previous five years.
To apply candidates should submit an email to Designations@NEFAR.com with the documentation for all of the above requirements. Once your application email has been submitted a member of the EDGE task force will review your information and send you an invoice for the $25 background check fee.
All applications are subject to approval by the EDGE task force within 30 days of receipt of the application.
AHWD is a NAR certification that helps REALTORS® develop an increased awareness of cultural and personal biases that may inhibit them from fully embracing diversity and creating multicultural real estate businesses. In the class, participants learn inclusive, multicultural marketing and advertising strategies and how to formulate an inclusive business plan to help them negotiate cultural barriers within a rapidly changing real estate industry.
Not a course, class, or designation, C2EX is more of an “endorsement” that REALTORS® can promote when serving clients and other REALTORS®. To earn C2EX, REALTORS® begin by logging on to c2EX.realtor and taking any one of 11 self-assessments to measure proficiency in 10 aspects of professionalism (11 for brokers), ranging from customer service to technology. The platform generates a customized learning path and recommends experiences and resources to enhance the REALTORS®’ individual skillset. As industry standards and best practices evolve, new content, reference, and resource materials are added to the platform so that REALTORS® who have already earned their C2EX endorsement can keep their skills and knowledge up to date.
NAR’s Implicit bias video, Bias Override: Overcoming Barriers to Fair Housing, which runs for 55 minutes, illustrates how the human brain’s automatic, instant association of stereotypes with certain groups can cause people to unfairly treat people who are different. Scientific evidence also suggests such bias can persist despite best intentions and often without conscious awareness. The video helps viewers to develop strategies to override bias to convey respect, ensure fairness, and improve business relationships. The video is a precursor to a more in-depth training curriculum being developed for real estate brokers to deliver to their licensees.
NAR launched Fairhaven, a fair housing simulator for REALTORS®, by using the power of storytelling to help them identify, prevent, and address discriminatory practices in real estate. In the innovative online experience, agents work against the clock to sell homes in the fictional town of Fairhaven, while confronting discrimination within the homebuying process. Participants also walk in the shoes of the homebuyer who faces discrimination. The training provides customized feedback that can be applied to daily business interactions.
NEFAR’s eight-hour Gold Key Certification assists REALTORS® in developing and implementing business strategies – the “keys to success” – that help to make their business and personal actions more professional every day.
Take a Code of Ethics course that is required and approved by NAR and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) for license renewal education. This does not include the free NAR Code of Ethics course because that course does NOT meet the business ethics requirement by DBPR.
EDGE members must also continue to maintain and renew their commitment to professionalism by obtaining a minimum of 30 points from completing the following approved courses every three years.
Examples of courses that may be used for renewal: