Below is a letter written by Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) president Cathy Polan, which was sent to the association’s membership and obtained by Real Estate Magazine.
I’ve been a Realtor for over 16 years, and in that time, I have never seen anything more deplorable than what I’ve seen happen with the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) in the wake of the iPro Realty Ltd. scandal. Thousands of agents and consumers have been left without commissions, without deposits, and without a hope for the future.
I know you are all constantly receiving troubling information on this matter, and I am too. I am as angry and frustrated as you are. This should not have happened, and I will do everything in my power to ensure something like this never happens again.
Our members and those affected deserve to have answers and deserve retribution. OREA is having ongoing conversations with government officials and industry leaders calling for action to be taken to ensure the integrity of our industry is upheld. Though we do not have the authority to intervene directly on behalf of our members regarding this matter, we have taken every opportunity to engage RECO and the Government of Ontario in an effort to assist those affected and have to date released six public statements regarding this issue.
I want to assure you that OREA is in no way being complacent, but there are limits to what we can do. This matter is currently the subject of an ongoing police investigation, and is before the courts with an independent investigation being done by Dentons LLP, with ministerial oversight. That is why it is imperative that we let the professionals do what they need to do – in the sincere hope that justice will be done.
This situation has only further demonstrated the far-reaching impact that regulatory decisions can have on Ontario’s buyers, sellers, real estate professionals, and overall consumer confidence in the real estate market and industry. OREA will continue in our advocacy efforts with government to ensure that when it comes to ethics and consumer protections, both Realtors and Ontarians can have confidence in Ontario’s real estate market and its regulation – and we will continue to update members as we have more information to share.
I cannot undo what has been done, but moving forward, I promise to do everything I can to make sure that this never happens again.
Cathy Polan is president of the Ontario Real Estate Association.