An investigation into the ethical standards and values of registered property valuers in South Africa

Abstract

Ethical issues and standards of property professions are being scrutinised. To date, no research has been carried out on the ethical standards in the property valuation profession in South Africa. This research compared the content of codes of ethics and professional conduct of the South African property valuation profession to international standards, and investigated the ethical standards and moral values held by registered valuers in South Africa. A self-administered survey, administered to 611 professional and professional associate valuers, was used. It measured five constructs of unethical behaviour layered into a survey adapted from Hoyt, Wright and Croft (2002). No statistically significant differences were found between different demographic factors in the ethical beliefs of South African valuers. A literature review comparing South Africa’s codes of conduct with those in the United States of America, Australia and New Zealand showed that the standards of ethics and professional practice in South Africa are not in line with international standards. South African valuers appear to be ethical and resist external pressures which could lead to unethical behaviour.