Cathy Polan, president of the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA), said the organization applauds the provincial government’s decision to review the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) in the wake of the iPro Realty Ltd. scandal.
In a statement provided to Real Estate Magazine, Polan said the “turmoil and lack of meaningful support” by RECO for those affected “only underscores what (Realtors) have said for years: Ontario’s real estate regulator lacks independent oversight, transparency, and the teeth to hold bad actors accountable.”
While OREA recognizes the value of engaging external communications support in challenging times, Polan said OREA is “deeply concerned that RECO chose to hire a crisis communications firm while registrants and their clients were left scrambling – with no charges laid, and no meaningful actions taken under the Trust in Real Estate Services Act (TRESA).”
She said the sudden closure of iPro has disrupted the livelihoods of over 2,400 real estate professionals and their clients, and the ripple effects are undeniable.
The closure followed the discovery of a $10.5-million shortfall in the company’s consumer deposit and commission trust accounts. The amount has since declined to less than $8 million, RECO has said.
“Trust in our regulator has been destroyed, and without decisive reform, it will continue to undermine the businesses of hardworking agents, the confidence of consumers, and the stability of Ontario’s housing market,” said Polan.
She said consumers must be able to trust that brokerages will manage deposits and trust accounts responsibly – and that if they don’t, the regulator will protect them.
Call for greater government involvement
Polan said over 1,000 other arms-length government agencies are overseen by the Ontario Ombudsman, but RECO remains exempt from this independent oversight and accountability.
RECO must be placed under ombudsperson oversight, she said.
“OREA refuses to stand by while consumer trust in Ontario’s real estate market is eroded by weak regulation and inadequate consumer protections,” she said. “Ontario’s regulatory framework must protect both consumers and registrants, safeguarding families making the largest financial transaction of their lives while also ensuring Ontario’s real estate agents are shielded from the failures of brokerages and unethical behaviour.”
Mario Toneguzzi is a contributing writer for REM. He has more than 40 years of experience as a daily newspaper writer, columnist, and editor. He worked for 35 years at the Calgary Herald, covering sports, crime, politics, health, faith, city and breaking news, and business. He now works on his own as a freelance writer for several national publications and consultant in communications and media relations/training. Mario was named in 2021 as one of the Top 10 Business Journalists in the World by PR News – the only Canadian to make the list.