In 2026, I am celebrating 25 years of my professional career, including 10 years in Australian real estate.

The journey has taken me through business management, accounting, property sales, academic research, buyer advocacy, industry representation and authorship. Although my roles have changed, one principle has remained constant: professional success must be built on a strong ethical foundation.

Ethics Is More Than Compliance

Professional ethics is often associated with legislation, regulations and codes of conduct. These are essential, but genuine ethical practice goes further.

It means doing the right thing even when nobody is watching. It means being honest about risks, disclosing conflicts of interest, protecting confidential information and placing a client’s interests ahead of personal financial gain.

In property, these responsibilities are especially important. Purchasing a home or investment property may be one of the largest financial commitments a person ever makes. A poor recommendation can affect a buyer’s finances, family and future for many years.

For me, ethics is therefore not simply a regulatory obligation. It is a personal and professional responsibility.

Lessons From a Diverse Career

I began my professional career in 2001 in the pharmaceutical industry but left it after 5 years because of unethical practices and corruption.

Completing an Executive MBA at RMIT University in 2007 and an accounting degree in 2010 strengthened my understanding of governance, financial accountability and evidence-based decision-making.

When I entered real estate sales in 2016, I gained firsthand experience of the relationship between vendors, selling agents and buyers. That experience taught me an important lesson: every professional must be completely clear about whose interests they represent.

A selling agent has a legal and professional responsibility to achieve the best outcome for the vendor. A buyer’s agent, by contrast, must act exclusively for the buyer.

This distinction is fundamental. Buyers should understand who is advising them, how that adviser is paid and whether any commercial relationship could influence the recommendation they receive. But after 3 years, decided to leave due to unethical practices.

When I became an exclusive buyer’s agent in 2023, I made independence a central part of my professional practice. I do not represent vendors, and my responsibility is to protect the interests of the buyer throughout the purchasing process.

Ethical Buyer Advocacy

Ethical buyer advocacy is not about encouraging someone to purchase a property at any cost. Sometimes, the most responsible advice is to walk away.

A buyer’s agent should be prepared to reject a property when the research, building inspection, contract review, market evidence or financial fundamentals do not support the purchase—even if walking away delays the transaction and the payment of a professional fee.

My role is to help clients make informed decisions by presenting both the opportunities and the risks. This includes conducting thorough research, undertaking due diligence, assessing value, negotiating carefully and ensuring that clients understand the reasoning behind a recommendation.

Clients deserve honest advice, not selective information designed merely to complete a transaction.

Research Must Also Be Ethical

My commitment to ethics extends beyond client representation.

In 2021, I started a post graduate academic thesis relating to blockchain technology use in Australian real estate, and in 2022, I presented my research at an international real estate conference. I was also invited as a Guest Lecturer at RMIT university, to deliver a lecture. But 3 years into my research, I decided to leave the uni, when my thesis was 80% complete. Reason. Unethical practices by the 3 research supervisors and other staff at uni.

In 2026, after consolidating five thesis drafts comprising approximately 150,000 words, I became the published author of two real estate books.

Research and authorship carry their own ethical responsibilities. Information must be properly examined, sources should be acknowledged and conclusions should not be manipulated to support a predetermined commercial message.

This is becoming even more important as artificial intelligence and property technology influence the information available to consumers. Technology may process enormous volumes of data, but its conclusions can still reflect incomplete information, biased assumptions or the interests of the organisation providing it.

Professionals must therefore question the data, understand its limitations and explain those limitations to consumers.

Technology can assist professional judgement, but it should never replace accountability, transparency or human responsibility.

Contributing to Higher Industry Standards

My involvement with the Property Investors Council of Australia’s Victorian Council and the REIV Buyers’ Agents Chapter Committee has strengthened my belief that professional ethics must be supported across the industry.

As buyer advocacy continues to grow, consumers should be able to expect appropriate qualifications, practical experience, transparency and accountability from the people advising them.

Technical knowledge is important, but knowledge without integrity can still produce harmful outcomes. Professional credibility is earned through consistent conduct—not simply through a title, licence, award or social media presence.

Industry bodies, regulators and experienced practitioners all have a role to play in improving standards, educating consumers and supporting ethical behaviour.

Trust Is Earned Over Time

Awards, qualifications, committee positions and published books are meaningful milestones, but they are not the ultimate measure of a professional career.

The true measure is whether people can trust your advice.

Trust develops when your actions consistently match your words. It grows when you communicate openly, acknowledge uncertainty, disclose conflicts, respect confidentiality and remain prepared to deliver difficult advice when it is in the client’s best interest.

It can take many years to establish a professional reputation and only one unethical decision to damage it.

My Continuing Commitment

After 25 years in professional life and 10 years in real estate, I remain convinced that ethics is not an obstacle to commercial success. It is the foundation of sustainable success.

As a researcher, I must present information responsibly.

As an author, I must educate without misleading.

As a licensed buyer’s agent, I must protect the interests of my clients.

As an industry representative, I must contribute constructively to higher professional standards.

The roles may be different, but the responsibility is the same: act honestly, remain independent, communicate transparently and never place short-term gain ahead of long-term trust.

That is the professional legacy I want to build—and the standard I intend to uphold throughout the next chapter of my career.

Ritesh Tandon is a researcher, published author and licensed buyer’s agent. He is the founder of Nest or Invest – Buyers Agents, a member of the REIV Buyers’ Agents Chapter Committee and a member of the PICA Victorian Council.