Your local real estate MLS or board office will probably schedule you for an orientation class as soon as you become affiliated with one of its member offices. They'll teach you to use the MLS system and will make you aware of local real estate customs. One of the most important topics your board office will discuss is ethics and how it applies to working with the public and with other agents.

Realtors® are expected to abide by the organization's formal Code of Ethics. If your local real estate board is affiliated with the National Association of Realtors®, you must follow its code to remain a member in good standing and you must take periodic educational updates to remind you of code guidelines and changes. You can read the Realtor Code of Ethics at the NAR's Web site, www.realtor.org.

The agents in your own town won't offer you referrals, but there are plenty of distant agents out there who will. Take plenty of business cards with you when you attend educational classes or real estate expos in other towns. Interact with other agents. Hand out your cards and ask others for theirs. Ask them to send you referrals when they have clients relocating to your area. Offer to do the same for them. Keep in touch with these agents on a regular basis. A few weeks after a seminar, your business card will be lost in the sea of others if you don't stay in touch. You probably won't pick up a great many referrals at first but, over time, your networking will definitely increase your business. Keep at it and never miss a chance to introduce yourself!