Standards governing ethical conduct in the real estate industry were created recently by the International Ethics Standards Coalition (IESC), according to Tony Grant, deputy chair of the IESC and founder of the Grant Center for Real Estate and Economic Development at Coastal Carolina University.

This is the first time a global set of high-level ethical principles has been produced for the real estate industry.

The publication of the standards is a momentous event for the global market in land, property, construction, infrastructure and related professions, and real estate professionals hope it will bind the industry to a universal standard of transparency, integrity and lawfulness. The IESC created these standards with hopes to emulate other organizations and professions that have established global ethical standards to help guide their employees to make ethical decisions in the workplace.

"This is a highly significant event for the entire global real estate industry," said Grant. "For the first time, there will be a published standard of professional ethics against which the conduct of practitioners everywhere in the world can be judged. At a time when integrity in business generally is of growing public concern, the introduction of international standards in land, property, construction and infrastructure will be widely welcomed. It will have the effect of increasing confidence in the real estate sector, which will ultimately lead to more stable markets and higher values. This is a win-win scenario and disproves the theory that commercial gain and ethical behavior are inevitably in conflict."

The publication of the new standards is an important development for CCU's Grant Center for Real Estate and Economic Development. The center will adhere closely to the standards and will be supportive of their implementation in the future. Coastal Carolina University was the first American academic body to be recognized by the IESC as an academic supporter.

"I have no doubt that, as a result, Coastal Carolina University will soon be recognized as a leading center of learning and research for subjects relating to ethical conduct in the real estate professions," said Grant. The IESC first met in October 2014 at the United Nations for the purpose of writing the ethical standards for real estate. The coalition, founded by 18 different organizations, now has more than 100 members and 85 supporters. The growth of the coalition is expected to rapidly increase due to the publication of the ethical standards, which are expected to transform the real estate industry.

The ethical standards are outlined according to purpose, mission and vision. The individual ethical principles detailed in the document are accountability, confidentiality, conflict of interest, financial responsibility, integrity, lawfulness, reflection, standard of service, transparency and trust.

For a complete copy of the ethical standards, visit https://ies-coalition.org/standards/. Learn more about the Grant Center at coastal.edu/business.