March 2015 by Real Estate Magazine (REM)

Issue #309

March 2015

Lower-commission model sees success Page 3

Great photos key to faster sales

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Ground-breaking Supreme Court decision affects all real estate contracts Page 10

Jim Sturinoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 40-year legacy Page 22

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REM MARCH 2015 3

Lower-commission model sees success By Neil Sharma

othing lasts forever. That tired cliché aptly describes the real estate industry, specifically its decades-old business model that many insiders decry as arcane and deleterious to the industry’s future viability. However, it isn’t all doom and gloom for everybody, as adaptability and experimentation with new business models are beginning to yield results. Such is the case for PC275 Realty in London, Ont., slated to celebrate its third birthday on April 1 with a new 5,000sq.-ft. facility. Dustin Pritchard, CEO and co-founder of PC275 Realty, says the secret to its burgeoning business – and soaring profits – is that it charges a flat commission rate of 2.75 per cent for properties over $200,000 and a flat $1,500 for anything below. Pritchard believes in the old adage that change is the only constant, and in giving credence to new and very real threats to business like mere posting services, Pritchard says the industry must adapt in newer, and sometimes unconventional, ways. In addition to its lower commission rate, PC275 seeks to make its salespeople into partners in the company. Not only has this provided an attractive alternative to traditional brokerages, but it has also increased business. “A Realtor who grows with us and becomes a partner has incentive to make sure the company does extremely well,” said Pritchard. “They’re given respect from the brokerage by being made an owner. It’s comparable to WestJet; I’d like the employees to own most of the business. We’re a lot stronger as a team than as individuals.” PC275’s long-term ambition is to have a franchise in each major Canadian market. That’s a lot of partners, but as Pritchard sees it, everybody (the agents and perhaps most importantly, the customers) wins. “Houses have averages of fiveper-cent commissions,” says Pritchard. “Our 2.75 per cent allows sellers flexibility, meaning they can list a little lower than market value and still walk away with the same amount of money,

and it sells faster.” Pritchard draws parallels between the travel industry and the real estate industry. The former is in dire straits because technology has begun supplanting agents. Mere posting services would be the real estate equivalent, encroaching upon Realtors’ would-be clientele. It’s also telling that a recent CREA Futures study advised that integrating technology is imperative. It tacitly predicted seismic change within the industry, meaning today’s top players won’t be tomorrow’s crème de la crème because, in spite of multitudinous warning signs, a pervasive reluctance to change is gripping the industry. “This trend has been speeding up,” says Pritchard. “There are more competitors in mere posting services that make profits. I noticed that about five years ago when I was doing investment properties, I was getting more access to information as a consumer. What I noticed over a number of years is our business model has had to change to be reflective

of where the consumer is getting info. The value we provide as professionals is still there and I’m not saying the consumer isn’t seeing value in Realtors, but they realize they can get more. “If we don’t (adapt), online services will continue to drive a wedge between ourselves and the consumers. We provide an indispensible service, but if we ignore things we’ll be made redundant like travel agents. The technology is there.” Pritchard and PC275 cofounder Andrew Crook were top agents at their previous brokerage and decided to go into business for themselves. After tinkering with their formula they feel like the equation is sound, and a major reason is because PC275 deals in high volume, driving up profits. However, success did not come without first ruffling a few feathers. Pritchard chuckles when he recounts early opposition from within the industry, some going as far as stealing signs. “I still have a picture of one of our signs with tire tracks over it.”

Dustin Pritchard and Andrew Crook

Unless salespeople and brokerages adapt to an evolving marketplace, they’ll be working more hours for the same amount of money, warns Pritchard, in what he calls the commission crunch. “Mere posting services are our largest threat,” he says. “What’s going to happen is that Realtors who don’t use technology are going to have to work harder and harder for the same amount of money. Or see a decrease. Realtors unable to leverage technology will find themselves hard-pressed to

compete. Or become extinct.” PC275 Realty is very much nascent in its evolutionary trajectory, but it couldn’t be more assured of itself. And, as an emblem of success, the brokerage will be moving into a 5,000-sq.-ft. facility on Wharncliffe Road South, a street that sees nearly 40,000 vehicles every day. As Pritchard and Crook envision, it’s the first stepping stone towards turning PC275 Realty into a viable REM franchise.

Sales rep training 150 volunteers for Pan Am Games By Connie Adair

he Toronto 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games may be months away, but for Melanie Chiu most of the running is already done. Chiu, a broker with Engel & Völkers Uptown Toronto and founder of Toronto Track Volunteers, has gathered more than 150 volunteers to assist with this summer’s games. An athlete throughout high school and university, Chiu founded Toronto Track Volunteers in 2011 to provide much-needed volunteers to help officials at track and field events. Her organization has provided volunteers at such events as The Canadian National Outdoor Championships, the World Deaf Athletic Championships and the Toronto International Track and Field Games. In 2012 Chiu and her team were

awarded Volunteer of the Year by Athletics Ontario and in January 2014 she was asked to assist at the 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games in Toronto. She is also a volunteer member of the organizing committee for athletics. The former teacher became an agent three years ago – the go-getter wanting the challenge of being her own boss. She also wanted to set an example for her students. Teachers are always telling students they can do anything they set their minds to, so she decided to take her own advice. She says she loves the “chase of creating a business.” Hard work isn’t new to Chiu, who has always had a second job. While teaching, she also worked in retail and as a personal trainer. All of her experiences – teaching high school French and Spanish, athletics and real estate –

are intertwined. Work ethic, passion, discipline and executive skills all come in handy at work and play. Her first real estate clients were from Cuba and all of her clients since have been from international locations, including France and Mexico. Chiu is a mentor for young leaders, real estate agents and entrepreneurs. Her volunteers range from 12 to 70-years-old, with one volunteer in his 80s. Volunteers don’t need experience and do jobs they are comfortable doing, she says. Her organization also provides a way for students to get their mandatory high school volunteer hours. Her future goals include creating clinics and workshops but for now, she and her volunteers will concentrate on the Pan Am Games. Next up is training. Chiu spent the first years creat-

Melanie Chiu

ing Toronto Track Volunteers, building it from the ground up. She couldn’t be happier with its success. “It’s incredible and inspiring to create something larger than yourself, and to connect on a community level, not just as a business,” says Chiu, who hopes to inspire agents to “enhance their business by enhancing who you are.” Come mid-August, when the Pan Am/Parapan Am games are over, Melanie Chiu and her dedicated group of volunteers will know they did their part to help make the international event a success. REM

4 REM MARCH 2015

Multiple Listings By Jim Adair, REM Editor Do you have news to share with Canada’s real estate community? Let REM know about it! Email: jim@remonline.com

roupe Sutton - Quebec recently celebrated its 20th anniversary in Montreal, welcoming more than 625 brokers, franchisees, administrative staff, partners and suppliers, who participated in conferences and team activities. The company unveiled a refreshed logo in which red is featured prominently and the two Ts in Sutton are designed to resemble a house. New slogans, both in French and English, were also unveiled in order to emphasize the company’s mission and values. The French version, “Sutton - Quebec Les courtiers d’une grande adresse” emphasizes the teams’ skills and professionalism. The English version of the slogan is, “Sutton Quebec - A Real Estate of Mind”. The company also announced a partnership with Dans La Rue, which offers support for homeless and at risk youth, and made an initial donation of $20,000. The company says its entire network will be

called upon to donate a predetermined sum per transaction for the duration of 2015. There was also $2,000 raised at the event via personal donations made throughout the evening by brokers and franchisees, as well as by Groupe Sutton – Humania’s Bernard Payette. Groupe Sutton - Quebec has 68 offices in Quebec and Ottawa with more than 2,200 brokers. Jon Edwards has rejoined Re/Max Condos Plus in Toronto and will operate the Re/Max

Urban Toronto Team from its own office at 502 King St. E. Edwards has been in the real estate business for eight years and is in the top one per cent of salespeople at the Toronto Real Estate Board. Previously with Re/Max Condos Plus, Edwards worked at Keller Williams for the past two years. He was joined by two other salespeople and is specializing in both residential and commercial sales in the downtown market. Jamie Johnston, broker/owner of Re/Max Condos Plus, has been in the real estate business for over

Jon Edwards

Paul Fitzpatrick

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30 years. Prior to acquiring his own brokerage, he held a variety of executive positions at the national level in real estate operations, franchising, marketing and relocation. Re/Max Condos Plus is the largest resale condominium and loft broker in Toronto in terms of both sales and rentals. It operates from five retail locations with more than 150 agents. In addition to resales, the brokerage also sells preconstruction condos and has been instrumental in developing the assignment market for condos. ■ ■ ■

Aventure Real Estate Network president Bernie Vogt reports that independent brokerage At Home Group Realty in Guelph, Ont. recently merged operations with Peak Precision Realty. “Under the continued leadership of Paul Fitzpatrick, broker/

Mike DeBruyne

owner, and operating under the At Home Group Realty banner, this dynamic team of sales professionals has further solidified its position as the leading independent in the marketplace,” says Vogt. “The combined team of 36 salespeople brings a full suite of brokerage services to Guelph, Fergus, Elora and Wellington County.” Vogt adds: “In my view this highlights the capacity of the independent brokerage community to expand and build their own strong brand in this very competitive environment.” ■ ■ ■

Engel & Völkers opened a new shop in Nanaimo, B.C. in January. “Shelby Donald and Scott Piercy, the brokerage’s owners, have been doing a great job expanding the brand in Victoria and in identifying the right Realtors who share our commitment to premium service and quality,” says Richard Brinkley, senior VP, market development for Engel & Völkers. Nanaimo sales team Brian Danyliw, Wendy Langelo and Ann Buttner-Danyliw have joined the brokerage. Danyliw has more than 20 years of experience and previously owned successful construction and adventure tourism businesses. After a lengthy career as a legal secretary, Langelo left to raise her children and created a home-based Continued on page 6

Groupe Sutton – Quebec’s new logo

Jamie Johnston

Jamie Dyer

Lori Gonas

Todd Shyiak

From left: Christophe Folla, president of Groupe Sutton – Quebec; Julie Gaucher, the company’s vice-president and chief of operations; and Cécile Arbaud, executive director of Dans la Rue at the company’s 20th anniversary celebration.

A Grade 5 student from Silverspring School in Saskatoon drew the Re/Max logo for the rink board used during a recent Saskatoon Blades game. The event was Kids Takeover Day. In addition to serving as the rink board artists, kids sang the anthem and announced the game.

Clinton Miller

6 REM MARCH 2015

Continued from page 4

business before launching her real estate career. Buttner-Danyliw is the unlicensed office manager, responsible for the overall internal operations of the team. ■ ■ ■

Jamie Dyer, Mike DeBruyne and Lori Gonas have joined the Royal LePage network. Their brokerage in Estevan, Sask. operates under the new name Royal LePage Dream Realty. The brokerage services a trading area of 12,000 residents including the communities of Estevan, Bienfait, North Portal, Torquay, Ounger, Hirsch, Benson, Frobisher, Oxbow, Canrduff, Glen Ewen, Carlyle, Alameda, Lampman, Hitchcock, Midale, Stoughton, Macoun and the surrounding areas. ■ ■ ■

Century 21 Canada recently promoted Todd Shyiak to the role of vice-president, franchise sales and development. He previously served as director of operations for the company. Shyiak will lead the Franchise Sales and Customer Care teams, overseeing the conversion/implementation process for new offices as well as attending to the ongoing needs of the franchise’s brokers. Shyiak has gained extensive experience in real estate over 30 years, including his role as cofounder and president of Cogent Step Recruiting, an executive recruiting firm for productive agents; the sale of MLS systems as the Canadian regional manager of sales for Interealty; and a successful career in real estate sales. ■ ■ ■

The Realty Firm Incorporated in London, Ont. has grown to more than 60 sales reps since its inception in September 2013.

Cover photo: MARKO SHARK

Recently the brokerage opened a new 4,000-sq.-ft. office at the corner of Commissioners Road and Wellington Road, one of London’s busiest intersections. The brokers/owners are Ryan Hodge and Shawn Westerik. The new location features a large training facility, 15 private and/or shared offices, three bathrooms, a full kitchen, two contract signing rooms and a foyer to assist in welcoming clients, potential clients and salespeople from competing offices.

Gary Gray

Wendy Langelo, Brian Danyliw and Ann Buttner-Danyliw

■ ■ ■

Clinton Miller, owner of Royal LePage Parksville-Qualicum Beach Realty in B.C., is expanding his business into Port Alberni. The new location will operate under the name Royal LePage Port Alberni-Pacific Rim Realty. Miller spent 10 years in the construction industry before starting his real estate career in 2003. He first sold with Royal LePage Parksville-Qualicum Beach and in 2010 he acquired the company’s two offices. He was the driving force behind the Islandsbesthomes.ca website. Broker Gary Gray, a Vancouver Island Real Estate Board past-president, will manage the new office and its team of 10 sales professionals. It will service a trading area of 17,500 including the areas of Port Alberni, Sproat Lake, Ucluelet and Tofino. ■ ■ ■

Avison Young has opened a new office in Munich, Germany. This is the company’s second office in Germany and fourth office in Europe. Markus Bruckner is now a principal of Avison Young. He, along with Udo Stoeckl, who was previously named a principal based in Frankfurt, also become managing directors of Avison Young Germany GmbH.

Ryan Hodge

Shawn Westerik

Mike Cartwright

Bruckner will head up the company’s Munich operations and focus on implementing the firm’s growth strategy in the region, while Stoeckl will lead the company’s efforts in Frankfurt.

let the agents keep the majority of their hard-earned commissions.”

site, agents have a suite of productivity and collaboration tools at their fingertips. Gmail, personal and shared documents, meetings and events, along with best practices communities and video calling can be viewed and accessed, the company says. “The site is tailored to the everyday needs of our agents and brokerage management,” says Carolyn Cheng, SVP, strategic business services. “We have dramatically simplified rlpNetwork, while improving and adding new services to help our teams work REM faster and smarter.”

■ ■ ■

Main Street Realty, with offices in Newmarket, Stouffville and Bolton, Ont., is opening a new branch office in Brampton. The office will be located at 101 Main St. Broker of record Mike Cartwright says he has been successful because of the training the brokerage offers, and because “we

Publisher HEINO MOLLS heino@remonline.com

Editor JIM ADAIR jim@remonline.com

Director, Sales & Marketing DENNIS ROCK dennis@remonline.com

Distribution & Production MILA PURCELL distribution@remonline.com

Digital Media Manager WILLIAM MOLLS web@remonline.com

Art Director LIZ MACKIN

Brand Design SANDRA GOODER

Markus Bruckner

The Realty Firm’s new London office.

Graphic Design SHAWN KELLY

■ ■ ■

A fully redesigned and re-engineered Royal LePage Intranet launched in mid-February. The site provides agents and brokerage management access to a variety of Royal LePage tools designed to increase productivity and profitability. The site, called rlpNetwork, is accessible to Royal LePage brokers and agents from anywhere, on any device. With Google Apps for Work accessible from within the

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Phone: 416.425.3504 www.remonline.com REM complies fully with the Canadian Real Estate Association's Rules for Trademarks (CREA Rule 16.5.3.1) REALTOR® and REALTORS® are trademarks controlled in Canada by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify licensed real estate practitioners who are members of CREA. MLS® and Multiple Listing Service® are trademarks owned by CREA and identify the services rendered by members of CREA. REM is published 12 times a year. It is an independently owned and operated company and is not affiliated with any real estate association, board or company. REM is distributed across Canada by leading real estate boards and by direct delivery in selected areas. For subscription information, email distribution@remonline.com. Entire contents copyright 2015 REM. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher is prohibited. The opinions expressed in REM are not necessarily those of the publisher. ISSN 1201-1223

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8 REM MARCH 2015

Great photos are key to faster sales A

recent report by RedFin Research Centre at redfin. com says that across all price tiers, homes captured with DSLR photography were more likely to sell within six months than homes with point-and-shoot photos. In the $400,000 to $500,000 price range, 64 per cent of homes with DSLR photos sold within six months, compared to 46 per cent of homes with point-and-shoot photos. For those difficult-to-sell million dollar homes, 35 per cent of professionally photographed homes sold in six months, compared to 30 per cent of homes with point-and-shoot photos. The report also says that the sharper the image, the better the price point. As people scan real estate websites reviewing properties and residences on a digital device, Redfin says the sharpest 10 per cent of photos sold at or above list price 44 per cent of the time, while listings with average sharpness sold at or above list just 13 per cent of the time.

photography with island artists or capturing nature’s beauty for his website, SaltSpringPhotos.com. “It’s never just about taking a good photograph,” says Cameron. “You have to know where the photos are going to end up – brochures, rack cards, magazines, posters or on a real estate website. There’s always the consideration, as well, of (the MLS system).” The images have to be as sharp on a mobile device as on the printed page and appropriate in size and resolution for the everincreasing number of ways clients access listings digitally. Darlene Hobbs has no doubt that turning to a professional photographer has been worth it. “We started researching the benefits of hiring a professional photographer and overwhelmingly the research showed that properties with professional photography can net more money in less time. It seemed logical to take advantage of this fact and let the pros do the photos while we concentrated on listing, promoting, showing and selling. “Hiring John means combining professional equipment and experience with a creative eye. He keeps the technical things like room aspect and lighting in check and has a great instinct for those emotional shots that say, ‘this is what it feels like to live here’.”

John Cameron

None of these facts surprise professional photographer John Cameron. For the past four years, the Salt Spring Island resident has had the exclusive contract to photograph properties for sales reps Chris and Darlene Hobbs. He photographs the properties they list through Sotheby’s International Realty Canada on Salt Spring and the Gulf Islands. And when he’s not focusing on living rooms and exterior views, you’re likely to find him aiming his lenses at art, education and sporting events, doing product

Together, they’ll do a walkthrough reviewing highlights. It usually takes Cameron about three to four hours to photograph a high-end home over a couple of visits. It’s important, he says, to listen as the sales reps explain the features they see as most important to highlight. They know what attracts qualified buyers via a photograph. That initial visit also gives him a chance to plan the shoot, sometimes marking the spaces he’ll stand in when he returns, and to assess the quality of the light inside and outside. Preparing a home for a photo shoot, as we know

By Gayle Mavor

from watching popular home reno/design shows – Property Brothers or Love It or List It – is focused on enhancing through depersonalizing, cleaning and de-cluttering. Buyers need to be able to imagine themselves in the space. Cameron photographs about 40 homes a year for the Hobbs, aiming to photograph in the morning on a cloudy or overcast day for inside shots. That’s when inside light is as close to the light outside, minimizing deep shadows and contrasts. Accurate colour and white balance are extremely important to provide an accurate representation of the house. “The wrong tones can really detract from the appeal,” he says. It’s important, he says, to always use a wide-angle lens to capture as much of the room as possible. His pet peeve is photos that show a corner of a bed and a dresser to indicate a bedroom. Focusing from different heights and capturing the wide angle is critical in small spaces. You’re aiming for the 75-95 degree angle range in every single shot, he says. He uses a Canon 1DX with a tiltshift 17 mm architectural lens. His latest addition is a mirrorless Leica Rangefinder. Each medium requires specific sizing and resolution, so knowing how to manipulate images on a computer using current image manipulation software is also imperative. He always shoots in RAW format because a RAW image allows for greater manipulation while retaining the original image properties. “Don’t shoot everything. Save some surprises,” he says. “If a house has an amazing laundry room, it’s best to save that as a surprise for the walk through.” In a 6,000-sq.-ft. home he’s aiming for 20-30 good images. For amateur photographers, he recommends 10 really excellent images, not 10 images with five that end up detracting from the good ones.

“It’s never just about taking a good photograph,” says photographer John Cameron. “You have to know where the photos are going to end up – brochures, rack cards, magazines, posters or on a real estate website.”

Typically he’ll shoot the living room, kitchen, master bedroom and the front and back views of the property. He also knows what to leave out. If the master bedroom is the only really great-looking bedroom, he’ll forego shooting the others. It’s important to know how the sales reps are going to receive the images and how those photographs will be used. In the past, he would have advised against using cell phone images but now with the high-quality images possible from cell phones, his main concern is that a tripod be used to ensure the lines of the room remain level in the photo. Personally, he prefers to avoid flash. A lot of photography decisions, he says, are driven by the MLS system, which now accepts 20 shots. A photo should instantly capture the space’s function as well as its best feature. Potential buyers look at photos really quickly, scanning the Internet and a sharper photo can make them stop and click. Then that larger image really matters.

Cameron recommends that sales reps ask to see a portfolio and/ or a website as well as a reference when hiring a photographer. Expect to pay anywhere from $250 to $2,000 per day, the cost being dependent on the experience of the photographer, the type of property and the number of images required. You’re paying for all the fine-tuning that happens on the computer afterwards, he says, referring to manipulation of the image and multiple resizing. The photographer should also provide sales reps with ways to efficiently store and retrieve images via DVD, a USB, online or in the cloud. It’s important as well for sales reps to know what rights they are purchasing in relation to the images. Can the image be used in print and digitally? How long do you own those rights? Is it a onetime-use only for the specific project or in any way you see fit into the future? These usage rights need to be part of the conversation with the photographer and written into a contract. REM

Do: • Strategically plan the shoot ahead of time. • Level the camera using a tripod. • Pay attention to time of day and lighting. • Shoot interiors on overcast/rainy days. • Open all window coverings and turn on all the lights inside a house before photographing. • Shoot an hour before to 30 minutes after sunset for the best light. • Use exterior lighting to the photograph’s advantage. • Take the time required to get decent images. • Provide a floor plan offering a clear sense of the home’s layout. Don’t: • Photograph inside on bright days. • Point the camera into a window to capture an outside view. • Use a flash (especially into a window or flat surface) if you can manipulate the ISO or lighting. • Expect the photographer to clear the clutter or clean the space. • Shoot the commode.

10 REM MARCH 2015

Ground-breaking Supreme Court decision affects all real estate contracts By Martin Rumack

By Martin Rumack

he Supreme Court of Canada recently released a ground-breaking decision, Bhasin v. Hrynew, which articulates newly clarified duties on how the parties to a contract must behave towards each other. In particular, the decision addresses the question of how good faith and honesty come into play, in terms of each party’s contractual performance. The court concluded that in Canada there is an “organizing principle” of good faith, which dictates that each party to a contract must generally perform his or her end of the bargain in an honest

O P I N I O N

By Ross Kay

icensed to Trade Practitioners (LTTP) have operated their real estate practices with more regard to provincial trading legislation or adherence to rules and regulations attached to memberships in organized real estate, than to contract law. The consumer, not knowing how the co-operative listing service infrastructure was designed and

manner. Each must act reasonably and not in a capricious or arbitrary manner. This concept extends to imposing a duty on each party to remain mindful of the legitimate contractual interests of the other. The extent of that mindfulness will depend on the particular context of the contractual relationship. This individual duty is not unlimited in scope, however. The court emphasized that it is to be balanced against Canadian law’s “fundamental commitments” to allow each party to a contract to pursue his or her individual selfinterest. The court also clarified that this contract-based good faith duty stops short of being a fiduciary duty (which involves a duty of loyalty between contracting parties) and does not require either party to put the interests of the other party ahead of his or her own. What is perhaps also important to note about the Bhasin decision, is that while the court recognized a good faith and honesty component to contracts, it did not inject these requirements into the negotiation

process. This means that – technically speaking – until a contract is in place, the duties of good faith and honesty are not imposed on the potential contracting parties. This does not mean that negotiating parties are free to use deception or to negotiate in a bad-faith manner: such conduct can give rise to claims of negligent or fraudulent misrepresentation, which in turn will spark a legal claim by the injured party for damages, among other things. But once a contract is in place, these clear duties are woven through the parties’ obligations toward each other, including the manner in which they each perform their respective part of the contract, and the nature and extent of the information they provide to each other. In the real estate context, these duties arise in every kind of agreement that may be reached in connection with the sale of or dealing with land, including Listing Agreements, Commission Agreements, Buyer Representation Agreements, Agreements of Purchase and Sale and leases, to name just a few.

As just one real estate-based example of the many “evils” that the Supreme Court of Canada decision was intended to address, the decision in 888394 Ontario Inc. v. Cornwall Centre Road Properties Inc. is illustrative. There, the seller agreed to sell a strip mall to the buyer for $500,000, with the closing to be no later than 6 pm on Fri., Nov. 30. However – and this is an important detail – the Registry Office in which the deal was to be registered actually closed at 5 pm, to the knowledge of the parties. The 6 pm deadline appeared on the preprinted standard-form OREA Agreement of Purchase and Sale, and the parties did not bother to change it. In the days leading up to the closing, the seller became disgrun-

tled after realizing there was still a live dispute over whether the buyer had verbally agreed to pay certain rent arrears owed by existing mall tenants. As the court put it, the seller’s resulting resentment may have “prompted him to retaliate when the opportunity presented itself.” When the Friday closing date rolled around, the seller had his lawyer take the closing documents to the buyer’s lawyer, who was to take them to the Registry Office to hold in escrow pending closing of the transaction. At 4:53 pm – which was seven minutes before the Registry Office would close for the weekend – the seller cleared it for the buyer’s lawyer to register, but not before causing delay by insisting last-minute that he be Continued on page 12

Ruling changes real estate forever operates, has been at the mercy of the industry. When provincial regulators state that unless the placement of a For Sale sign is specifically addressed and required in writing as part of a listing agreement, that in fact there is no regulatory compliance required on this most basic of listing agreement services, the consumer really has been left on their own. The Bhasin v. Hrynew decision by the Supreme Court of Canada has changed forever how real estate service contracts will be reviewed by the courts. Certainly when a Code of Ethics, like the one required to access the trademarks licensed by CREA, contains requirements that prevent good faith and honest interactions between both parties to the contract, as now required through the ruling in Bhasin v Hrynew, real

estate sales as you know has changed forever. While the Supreme Court left the regulation of fiduciary duties to the provincial regulator, the duties of good faith and honesty have now been added to every Listing and Buyer Representation Agreement, as well removing “remaining silent” as being a proactive solution to mislead the consumer. For decades LTTPs have obtained a license and, without ever selling a home, have been able to hold themselves out as offering services similar to the most professional and experienced LTTPs in their communities. LTTPs who lack any formal education, training or expertise in services such as real estate marketing, advertising, online SEO, negotiation or even appraisal have been allowed to mislead the consumer by remaining

silent on what services they will provide and if they are even qualified to provide them. Bhasin v Hrynew changes all that at the moment a contract is entered into where services are to be provided. Those services must be rendered in good faith and in an honest manner. Clearly if you lack the competence in delivering those services you are now in a heap of trouble. This brings us back to that simple For Sale sign and minimum requirements expected in the performance of real estate services. While provincial trading legislation may divorce itself from protecting the consumer, many of the common practices of the industry and the infrastructure that supports it probably open up LTTPs to risk exposure through this new interpretation of contract law. Finally the

educated consumer has rights, rights that most LTTPs should take seriously. At the very least, as consumers become more engaged and educated about what is and is not allowed during service agreement negotiations or during those contracts’ fulfillment, brokerages assume a higher degree of risk exposure. They assume those services are being completed in a manner representative of the terms implied at the time the contracts were signed. Clearly when damages can be independently determined by a court and not as a result of a regulatory fine, changes to errors and omissions insurance policies and coverage are in order. Ross Kay is president and CEO of Ross Kay Realty Consultants, a consulting firm specializing in all aspects of residential real estate. REM

12 REM MARCH 2015

Supreme Court decision Continued from page 10

provided with certain title documents. As it turned out, the Registry Office closed before the documents could actually be registered. The deal was therefore up in the air. The seller, who refused to extend the closing date or give permission to have the documents registered on the following Monday, claimed that he considered the transaction to be at an end. The buyer, who very much wanted to proceed, still held the needed documents (through his lawyer) and refused to give them back. Instead, the buyer had his lawyer attend at the Registry Office to successfully register the transfer on the Monday, which was the next business day. The seller then sued to set that transfer registration aside and to have the strip mall re-conveyed back to him. One of the issues for the court to consider was whether the seller had acted in good faith, and whether he was being unreasonable by first blindsiding the buyer with last-minute document requests,

and then by refusing to allow the registration to take place on the Monday. To resolve the matter, the court looked at their agreement, pointing out that â&#x20AC;&#x153;[w]hen there is a need to complete the transaction which is of no interest to one party and great interest to another, we must interpret the contract to give effect to the partiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; reasonable expectations.â&#x20AC;? Here, as irregular as it was in some ways, the closing had been completed in accordance with the agreement, and all that remained to be done was to formally register. But nothing in its wording required the agreement to be registered and stamped by the Registry Office; while that final step would have been good evidence of the transfer, it was not necessary to the legal validity of the deal itself. In short: there was no valid legal objection for the sellerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s refusal to close, and he had acted in bad faith by not accommodating the Monday closing in the circumstances. On this and other grounds, the deal was upheld and the transfer to the buyer was declared valid. Although the court in 888394 Ontario Inc. v. Cornwall Centre

20 015 Ellectiion off Diirectors

Road Properties Inc. did consider briefly the nature of the duty to act in good faith in completing the contract, it would have been greatly assisted in its assessment by the more fulsome analysis and the clearly stated benchmarks provided by the Supreme Court of Canada in Bhasin v. Hrynew. It is not an understatement to say that the decision affects all Canadian contracts everywhere: the Supreme Court of Canada has taken a purposive and important step to confirm and refine some clearly defined legal duties of good faith and honesty that were illdefined and speculative in the law before. Going forward, everyone who signs a contract (of whatever type) should be aware of those obligations and must conduct himself or herself accordingly.

OREA asks for special $30 levy to fund ad campaign

he Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) is asking its members to approve a special levy of $30 per member per year, for a period of three years starting in 2016, to fund the Realtor Value advertising campaign. The association says its â&#x20AC;&#x153;We do the homeworkâ&#x20AC;? campaign, featuring television and billboard ads, has been running for two years and â&#x20AC;&#x153;has been a tremendous success, moving the publicâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perception of Realtors in a positive direction that benefits all of us in this profession across the province.â&#x20AC;? So far the ad campaign has been funded by OREA reserves, which will continue through this year, says the association. However, the reserves â&#x20AC;&#x153;will no longer be able to support this kind of campaignâ&#x20AC;? after this year, it says. OREA says its revenue is about $9 million annually, â&#x20AC;&#x153;but

Toronto lawyer Martin Rumackâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s practice areas include real estate law, corporate and commercial law, wills, estates, powers of attorney, family law and civil litigation. He is coauthor of Legal Responsibilities of Real Estate Agents, 3rd Edition, available at www.lexisnexis.ca/bookstore. Visit Martin Rumackâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s website at www.martinrumack.com. REM

Individual members of the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) w who ho a are re interested in serving on its Board of Dire Di rect ctor orss ar are e re requ quiir ired d tto o su sub bmit bmi it tth heir hei ir Nomination Form no later than 2:00 p.m. Wednesday April 1, 2015.

funding a professional and effective ad campaign will cost the association about $2 million a year. It is worth noting that OREA worked to trim back our budget in 2012 and 2013, and this involved staff layoffs and significant budget cutbacks. It is also worth noting that OREA has not had a dues increase since 2008. With an ad campaign representing over 20 per cent of the current member services budget, attempting to further cut a lean budget would not deliver the required funds and would have a negative impact on valued existing programs. We find ourselves with nowhere left to cut. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s why weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had to explore a new funding model for the campaign,â&#x20AC;? says the association. Voting delegates to the OREA Annual General Meeting and Assembly will vote on the recommendation on March 11. REM

RECO is also accepting videos. For instructions and details on this

Three Industry Directors will be nominated and elected â&#x20AC;&#x201D; one on e in e eac ach ac h of tthe he tthr hree hr ee rreg egio eg ions io ns o off the province as established by RECO. A copy of the Nomination Form and Candid didate t Instru t cti tions are postted d on RECO RE COâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s web bsit ite att www.reco.on.ca or on MyWeb MyW Web att https://myweb.reco.on.ca. For mo For more re iinf nfor orma mati tion on c con onta tact ct:: Shelley Westlake-Brown Tel: Tel l: 4 416 16-207 207-480 480 800 0 Toll To ll-fre free: e: 1-800 800-245 245-691 6910 0 Email il: ellectiion@ @reco.on.ca

Real Estate Council of Ontario

www.reco.on.ca

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14 REM MARCH 2015

SALES COACH

By Bruce Keith

“D

on’t take it personally.” When one of your customers is preparing to give you some bad news, they always start with the disclaimer, “Don’t take it personally”. They say “it’s not about you” or “it’s not your fault” or “we just decided on someone/something else”. As recently shared by author Seth Godin, there is a paradox here. First of all, how else do they think you would take it? They are rejecting you! They are telling you no. It’s hard not to take it personally. On the other hand, it’s never personal, it’s not about you... it’s all

Dealing with fear and rejection about them! After all, they are the customer. It really boils down to staying mentally tough enough to handle the rejection and move on. Here are some ideas on how to do that: 1. Be sure that they really are saying no. Often a good question to ask is, “What do you need to see/hear/feel to help you choose my solution to meet your needs?” Maybe they aren’t as sure about saying no as they sound. 2. If it is a definite no, take a deep breath and get over it. Rejection is never easy and at the same time, it’s part of the process of commissioned sales. It’s not realistic to expect everyone to say yes, is it? 3. What would you normally do next if it was just another sales call or phone call? Go back to your daily routine. The faster you get back on the horse, the quicker the pain goes away. Next! 4. If you are still having trouble getting over it, there is one more

solution. Decide on a specific length of time and date that you are going to be frustrated, disappointed and in mourning. When the time is up, it’s business as usual. Make it a short cycle and get back to your life. No drama allowed. The next time someone starts off a sentence by saying, “Don’t take it personally,” make sure you pay attention to what they say. They’re telling the truth. It’s not about you! It’s always about them because that’s who they are looking after. Great salespeople work on their mental toughness every day. Focus on your victories, not your losses. Besides, your victories are a lot more fun to remember. No excuses. ■ ■ ■

The fear factor. One of the things that can inhibit sales success is fear. It can stop you from moving forward. On the other hand, fear can force you to do things that otherwise might never get done.

Either way, fear has a lot of power over most people. You become afraid of what might happen. You become afraid of failing. Some people are even afraid of success. The key is to know when fear is holding you back and what opportunities your fears offer you. There is always an upside to fear. The expression, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” comes to mind. When fear rears its ugly head, the important thing is to tackle it head on! Take this approach: 1. Identify the item/task that is creating your fear (that sales call, that new script, asking for a referral, closing three to five times). 2. Don’t overanalyze, just ask yourself, “What is the worst thing that could happen here?” 3. Now ask yourself, “What will the result be when I face this fear and move past it?” 4. Here’s the critical part. Weigh out the answers to these two questions and decide, “Which

fear has more power over me? Doing it or not doing it?” Once you have made your choice, move forward and stop thinking about it. Often the fear of doing something is more painful than taking action and actually doing it. Take action! A corollary to some of your fears is the fear that “this might really work”. Don’t be afraid of success, have courage and embrace your ability to move forward. More importantly, as Susan Jeffers said in her best seller, “Feel the fear and do it anyway!” No excuses. Bruce Keith is a leading motivational speaker and trainer for sales organizations in North America specializing in real estate sales. He has been in real estate more than 25 years, including 15 years as a top coach for thousands of sales agents. Download his free e-report, 5 Building Blocks to Real Estate Results Now at RealEstateResultsNow.com. REM

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16 REM MARCH 2015

Who failed 45% of first-time buyers? By Chris Seepe

pologies in advance to non-Ontario readers, but maybe this provincial experience has a national ring to it. A Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) news release summarized its recent survey: “… almost half (45 per cent) of firsttime buyers and 41 per cent of homeowners wish they had done something differently during the transaction … A further 32 per cent of first-time homebuyers reported that they did not feel prepared and knowledgeable about the process, and only half of Ontario homeowners aged 18 to 34 felt they were prepared and knowledgeable about it.” The next question might logically have been, “Did you use a Realtor?” If so, then this would be a testament to the service quality of those involved Realtors. An August 23, 2012 Globe and Mail article says, “It is widely accepted that about 90 per cent of all home sales in Canada take

place through the Multiple Listing Service…but that number is an educated guess, because there is no database that includes both houses sold by agents and those sold privately.” RECO said in an email: “We didn’t ask (the 1,043) survey respondents to clarify whether they had worked with a registrant … The intention of the survey was to highlight that buying or selling a home is a complicated process and consumers may have regrets if they don’t educate themselves about the process.” RECO’s news release also stated, “We encourage buyers and sellers alike to work with a registered real estate professional.” However, if most of the “regretful” buyers were using Realtors, how is RECO serving the public’s interest by recommending undertrained Realtors to consumers? Who really failed these buyers? Given organized real estate’s dominant market position and the survey’s self-measured performance, it appears that real estate boards and their support/management organizations failed them. RECO responded quickly with good intent but arguably flawed logic with its Fact or Fiction campaign, designed to empower con-

sumers with more knowledge to make better decisions. But it was like doctors telling their patients to learn about remedies for their symptoms so the patient could decide whether the doctor knows what he’s talking about. There’s some sensibility to this, but then what is the doctor’s professional role in providing a guiding, advisory and informed service? Is RECO telling the public that they shouldn’t trust a Realtor’s professional advice? Assuredly, they didn’t mean to but it’s definitely a confusing message. RECO published a whitepaper on its proposed vision for registration education and solicited input, which this writer did. An autoreply stated, “Please note that there will be no formal replies issued to any specific comments.” Still, it’s also a good step in the right direction but it falls far short of any permanent, positive solution. Organized real estate should be looking inwardly to find solutions to substantially improve the quality of service and expertise of Realtors before spending resources encouraging consumers to use Realtor services that aren’t up to the public’s expected standards. The high turnover rate of Realtors must be stopped. The

odds are currently very high that a member of the public is going to be serviced by an inexperienced Realtor, a statistic that appears to be borne out by the RECO survey. A minimum two-year college or university program with a focus on a specialization in the second year would turn out solid, wellqualified apprentices. The program must embrace real-world tools that Realtors will use in their real-world jobs. A post-graduate course, after, say, at least three years of experience, would allow them to become a broker of record. Applicants should perhaps be required to pass ethics and English competency tests before they can register. The language test is not prejudicial. Some words/concepts will be learned in real estate courses, but with 135 legislated acts to be aware of in Ontario, for example, there are many other words that are necessary to professionally function in real estate. Realtors should academically prove their in-depth knowledge of each major property type before they’re licensed to sell it. It’s unrealistic to expect a Realtor to know everything necessary to fulfill their duty of care and skill in selling/buying a retail plaza, farm, oil refinery, condominium, estate home, man-

ufacturing facility, office tower or the most potentially litigious property of all – the cottage. The graduate has proven their academic mettle but they’re still hardly qualified to help a family make the most important financial decision in their lives or to assist an investor in making a major investment decision. A graduated license that begins with an apprenticeship is a critical success factor, just like it is for other professions and over 200 trades. Brokerages mandated to invest in mentoring, not just tutoring, each registrant they take on would ensure that only the best would find jobs and become established in the industry. More of the “same old” will not change the growing tsunami of Realtor irrelevancy that is crashing against Canadian real estate industry walls. Chris Seepe is a commercial real estate broker and broker of record at Aztech Realty in Toronto, specializing in income-generating and multi-residential investment properties, retail plazas, science and technology related specialty uses and tenant mandates. (416) 525-1558 Email cseepe@aztechrealty.com; website: www.aztechrealty.com. REM

If you have nothing nice to say... By Mark Weisleder

y late mother gave me this advice many years ago when it came to gossip: “If you have nothing nice to say about someone, say nothing at all.” Wise words. I imagine many of you heard the same advice growing up. These words are even more important today, as we live in a connected digital world where almost nothing is private anymore. The hacking of Sony has received worldwide attention for many reasons, one of which is that it released many personal compromising email communications of Sony

employees and their high-profile clients. This could have dramatic negative impacts on everyone whose personal information was compromised. Just look at what may happen to the Dalhousie dental students about to graduate regarding alleged Facebook posts. Their careers could be over before they even start. Now I want to leave you with something to think about: Could this ever happen to you? The answer is yes. Any email or electronic communication of any kind, including anything you may post on Facebook or any other website, could be made public one day. Imagine, something you posted as a joke five years ago could cost you a client, job or a promotion when someone decides to Google your name. If you work for any company, assume that your boss is reading

every email that you send, because the company has the right to see what you are doing on their time. Also assume that if you are regulated by any professional standards organization, your communication could also be the subject of a complaint made against you. Remember that anything negative that you post online can also severely affect the person or company you are talking about, especially if the comment goes viral. Is this really what you intended? I recall a Real Estate Council of Ontario discipline decision from 2002 where two agents were competing for a listing. One of the agents stated the following to the seller about the agent he was competing with: 1. That although the agent had a lot of listings, he did not sell many properties because he offered buyer

agents commissions that were too low; 2. That the high number of listings carried by the agent meant that he was too busy to provide proper service to his clients; 3. That his actual sales in the area were much lower than the other agents; and 4. That he would be out of business within six months. The salesperson had to pay a fine when this came before the discipline hearing. The main point to remember is that this did not help him get the listing, as it was the seller himself who disclosed this to the other competing agent. Here are six things to remember as you communicate this year: 1. Never write an email or other electronic communication of any kind when you are angry. That is when you are likely to make a mis-

take that you will later regret. 2. Do not copy anyone on an email or other electronic communication unless they really need to see it. 3. Use the phone or go speak in person when the matter is sensitive. It is much more effective and personal and you will have the person’s undivided attention. 4. Explain all of this to your children as well. Teenagers can be especially cruel on social media. This can later harm them when they grow up and try to get a job. 5. Do not disparage your competitors. Demonstrate your own value proposition, why you are different. 6. If you have nothing nice to say, just delete it before you send it. Mark Weisleder is a real estate lawyer, author and speaker. You can contact Mark at mark@markweisleder.com REM

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18 REM MARCH 2015

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y wife often remarks that I have no boundaries (i.e. shame) when it comes to what I share in my columns or online. That statement could actually be true, based on the story and image I am about to share today. We all know how critical marketing is to a real estate professionalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career. No matter how great an agent you may be, if no one knows who you are, or how to get in touch with you, your career will likely end up in the dustbin of history, alongside pay-phones, Gangnam Style and my 28-inch waist. My own marketing plans had flashes of success, alongside a few missteps. Sometimes, those combined. My wife helped me come up with the hallmark phrase of my marketing career, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sell with the Saintâ&#x20AC;?. A colleague added a halo to my profile pic and faster than Justin Bieber driving his Ferrari through school zones during construction season, my career exploded like a cannon! Well, perhaps I exaggerate a bit. A little bit of exaggeration isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t such a bad thing when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re writing your advertising copy, as long as you can back those claims up under the scrutiny of a lie detector test, or a real estate council disciplinary hearing. I even eventually hired a cartoonist to provide a number of caricatures of my smiling, honest face in a variety of scenarios â&#x20AC;&#x201C; standing beside a sold sign, holding out the keys to a new home, and in one case, assisting Ogopogo with his own underwater home search. That may have been one of those instances of gentle exaggeration. I began to consider other fictional creatures that I could be seen selling or showing homes to. I determined that even though the Okanagan was somewhat lacking in jungle and/or vines, perhaps a shot of me out with Tarzan The Ape Man might be a grand idea â&#x20AC;&#x201C; at the â&#x20AC;&#x153;heightâ&#x20AC;? of my career, so to speak. My cartoonist provided a sketch, which I received during a hectic time. I was a bit behind that week on both my newspaper advertising and my monthly

newsletter. I wrote some hasty ad copy and sent a copy of the caricature off to the newspapers I advertised in. I wrote my newsletter and made the cartoon a sizeable feature, very prominent on the front page. When I went into the office the next day, I found that I had left a copy of my newsletter in the photocopier and a couple of colleagues had posted it on the staff bulletin board. As I walked past, more than a couple of people were smiling and looking down. As I went up and glanced at it, I swear to God that was the first time I considered what the image might look like under scrutiny. Or at least could be interpreted to look like. Tarzan and I seemed to be awfully cosy, swinging from that vine. The matching loincloths were the coup de grace. As the days passed, there were many jabbed comments in passing. At a time when â&#x20AC;&#x153;viralâ&#x20AC;? wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even a thing yet, my innocent ad gained considerable notoriety among my colleagues and several clients, who took great amusement with that image. My vine days are behind me now. My cautionary tale with marketing is: get a second opinion before you swing full-steam ahead. Humour columnist and author Dan St. Yves was licensed with Royal LePage Kelowna for 11 years. www.nonsenseandstuff.com, danst.yves@hotmail.com. REM

Alberta Real Estate Agent Earns $2.2 Million in GCI Despite Taking 4 Months Off years prior to going to one of Craig Proctorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s SuperConferences. I found my way to Craig because I wanted to learn from someone who was successful in the real estate business and who had created systems. This was the kind of trainer I was looking for. Someone who could provide me with coaching and mentoring based on his real and proven track record. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been with Craig since 1997 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; almost 20 years -- and my life is completely different because of what heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s taught me. Before Craig, I was doing around 60 transactions a year and have increased my business by 10-20% every year since then. Last year I took 4 months off, worked only 35-40 hours a week and still did 340 sales . . . thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more than a home a day. This has multiplied my GCI by over 600% to about $2,000,000.00. The cost for you to buy Craigâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s system or attend

one of his SuperConferences is minimal because itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll come back to you tenfold in a very short time. I know that from my own experience and there are thousands in his program just like me. Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be scared about stepping in because Craig has made it so easy. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really just about following the very easy guidelines he sets out for each part of your business. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about copying what he did. What Craig has taught me has made my business much more systematic. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s helped me with lead generation and retention. By copying Craig, we now have amazing follow up systems in place that have dramatically increased our lead conversion. Craigâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s systems have been proven successful by thousands of agents from right across the continent. Why reinvent the wheel of real estate when Craig already has something so successful?

Hi, my name is Craig Proctor, and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had the privilege of sharing my proven real esBy Len T. Wong tate system with over 30,000 agents from all When I got into real over the world. This is the same system estate, I was kind of a lost I used myself in my sheep. I was putting in own highly success16 hour days, 60-70 hour ful real estate career weeks, including 5-6 everight here in Canada. nings per week and every (As you may know, I weekend, always on call was twice named the and basically doing every#1 RE/MAX agent in thing on my own. My wife the world and was in and I barely saw each oththe top 10 for RE/MAX er. All I knew how to do International for 15 was just get out there and years.) work away at the business You may have seen â&#x20AC;&#x201C; always in the business, my information in this putting out fires, chaspublication before ing business, babysitting and wondered if it clients, and then getting was for real. Well, Lenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s experience is up each morning to do it NOT unique. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s indicall over again. It was very ative of what happens frustrating. I knew there when you send for my had to be a better way, but free Book & CD and I never had time to refollow my system. ally look at what and how I was doing things so I cantly jumpstart your could find that better way. results like Len did by I did this for about 2-3 attending one of my free seminars where Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll walk you through my system step-bystep. By visiting 3 How to generate a steady ďŹ&#x201A;ow of ready-tto-act-n now leads WITHOUT www.CanadianSummit.com, COLD CALLING youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be able to reg3 What to offer buyers and sellerss to compel them to want to meet with you ister for some upcoming free events 3 Exacttly what to say and do in you ur presentations to securre more contracts Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be conducting in 3 How to create your Rules of Engagement with h Buyers and Sellers so the Greater Toronto area in the next few you get fairly compensated for the time you spend with them months.

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22 REM MARCH 2015

The Sturino family’s 40-year legacy

When James Sturino Realty was launched in 1974, it was the beginning of a long and successful family business that has branched well beyond real estate. By Susan Doran

aving worked in real estate 40 years as of this past fall, the Sturino family has had a unique opportunity to witness changes in the industry. They call ‘em like they see ‘em. “It’s looking good but I would like to see it even better,” says Jim Sturino, the family’s patriarch since father Otty Sturino’s death. On the plus side, Jim Sturino finds the new breed of real estate professionals to be “entrepreneurial self-starters.” On the other hand, he has witnessed the business become increasingly mired in red tape and government mandates. Whatever the future brings, he is proud to have succeeded this long in the industry. “I think it shows that we do good business,” he says. Jim Sturino was 24-years-old back in 1974 when he and his father started the family real estate business, originally called James Sturino Realty. He vividly remembers being summoned to the offices of the Toronto Real Estate Board (the Sturino’s stomping grounds are Etobicoke, which is part of the Greater Toronto Area) for a panel interview before being allowed to join. The panel members asking the questions apparently would not have been out of place in a military regime. Despite the fact that Sturino is a university graduate who had majored in economics, “They were grilling me really good,” Sturino recalls. Finally some sympathetic soul stood up and convinced the rest to back off. “I wiped my brow,” Sturino says, laughing. Before long Jim’s younger brother Ron joined the family business. In 1989, after 15 years as an independent operation, the Sturinos became one of the

first Coldwell Banker franchises in Canada. They joined because they were hoping that becoming part of a franchise would boost recruitment. It did, helping propel Coldwell Banker Sturino Realty to a top position in the area. The same year the Sturinos joined Coldwell Banker, Jim and Ron’s brother Rick became the fourth family member to join the business. He quickly developed into a top producer. Along the way the family also diversified into other businesses. These include custom home building and various other development projects; owning/ operating a number of Dairy Queen franchises (overseen by another brother, Larry Sturino); as well as general insurance (Sturino Associates Insurance Brokers is run by Ron Gillis, a business partner and resource). The family has also made some lucrative real estate investments, which have included their real estate office buildings. In 2004, looking for new opportunities, the Sturinos joined Royal LePage. Now their office, Royal LePage West Realty Group, has a team of over 80. This includes yet another Sturino – Jim’s eldest son, Chris – as well as a new boutique brokerage serving the Toronto condo market. Most of Royal LePage West Realty’s business is residential, although there is a commercial component. As broker of record, Jim Sturino says he is grooming the younger family members to eventually take over the business. He says that in his experience a lot of brokers and salespeople don’t prepare themselves and their families for retirement and he does not

want to be one of them. But he’s not entirely sure that handing the reins to his near and dear will necessarily be doing them a favour. He’s torn. “You can make more money today as an agent than a broker,” he says. And being a broker can be more stressful as well, he adds. “Our business is getting so complicated. It’s often better to be an agent today. There’s too much responsibility as a broker.” Included on the broker duty roster is having to answer to the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) and the franchisor, as well as wading through the red tape necessitated by meeting the requirements of such agencies as the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC). “As a broker, all of these things nibble at your time,” Sturino says. “I call them time wasters... Keeping everything in order can be very frustrating.” He says it’s the dictates of the Competition Act that bother him most. He views them as unreasonable. “There is so much competition in our industry now,” he says. “Consumers can get most information off the computer. But not all...and that is our lifeblood. We should not have to give that up.” He says the positive changes in the industry far outweigh the negatives, however. These include computer technology (“a big weapon today”), superior education, training and mentoring and increased opportunity for both real estate professionals and consumers. “People used to compare Realtors to used car salesmen. Things are much better today. They have to be, as the public

Jim Sturino’s family has a long history of playing on, coaching and sponsoring local hockey teams. (Photo by Marko Shark)

is so much better informed than before,” he says.

The Sturino family secret is simple, he says.

“We sell knowledge and trust. A lot of brokers think they need huge numbers. Some have 500 agents working for them. How does a broker manage 500 people? And the paperwork?”

“Work hard. Work smart. Provide great customer service and support staff. Be disciplined and financially sound, and treat agents like family.”

For Sturino, while growth is the bottom line, it needs to be manageable, built on a foundation of good training for salespeople and a referral network and database.

Lastly, he is keen to see his family help initiate improvements to the industry where needed, to help make it the best it can be. “That’s the legacy I want to leave,” says Sturino. REM

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24 REM MARCH 2015

avid MacKenzie is the 2015 president of WinnipegRealtors, succeeding David Powell. MacKenzie becomes the board’s 112th president. David MacKenzie’s father Gordon was president of the board more than 40 years ago. Gordon was instrumental in getting the board’s office building constructed in 1975. David started his real estate career in September 1981. Will one of his two sons follow suit? “Like my dad, I will let them decide on their own if they want to pursue real estate as a career,” says MacKenzie. “I know I have no regrets and look forward to my 34th year in the business.” MacKenzie and Derrick Sigmar are broker/owners of Sigmar MacKenzie Real Estate Services. The brokerage was established in 2002. Sigmar’s father Murray Sigmar headed up WinnipegRealtors in 1982. Other members of this year’s Board of Directors: Stewart Elston, president-elect, Realty Executives Premiere; Blair Sonnichsen, treasurer, Royal LePage Dynamic Real Estate; David Powell, past-president, Powell Property Group; Steve Hunt-Lesage, SDEC chair, Re/Max Professionals: Stephen Sherlock, Commercial Division chair, DTZ Barnicke Winnipeg; Ken Clark, Realty Executives Premiere; and Kourosh Doustshenas, Expert Real Estate Services. ■ ■ ■

The Durham Region Association of Realtors (DRAR) has elected Sandra O’Donohue of Keller Williams Energy Real Estate as 2015 president. Joining her on the Board of Directors are: Jane Hurst, immediate past-president; Tony Wilson, Durham Centre director; Tina Sorichetti, Durham North director; Jessica Griffeth, Durham East director; Sue Duchesnay, Durham West director; Linda Mash, director-at-large;

and Roger Bouma, director-atlarge. A licensed salesperson for 33 years, O’Donohue has sat on DRAR’s Professional Development (Education), Professional Standards, Professional Standards Hearing and Social committees. She brings strength in public relations and education as an office manager, coach and mentor, says the board. ■ ■ ■

The Association of Saskatchewan Realtors (ASR) slate for the 2015 Board of Directors has been finalized with Regina Realtor Ian Johnston at the helm as president. Johnston, a salesperson with Century 21 Dome Realty in Regina, started as a director of the Association of Regina Realtors and moved through the chairs of vicepresident, president and past-president before taking a seat at the provincial table. “I am excited to continue working on some of the biggest projects ever undertaken by the ASR. We’re making huge strides in education, but have seen some dramatic results in all three of our ongoing objectives: communicate, educate, advocate,” Johnson says. Returning to the Board of Directors is past-president Len Wassill; vice-president Kevin Wouters from Prince Albert; Shelby Wilk from Yorkton; Al Weiler from Lloydminster; Rich Jeanneau from Saskatoon; Lane Boghean from Regina; and CREA representative, Cliff Iverson from Regina. The ASR also has two new directors: Carmen Cartier from Prince Albert and Teressa Mannle from Swift Current. ■ ■ ■

When it comes to Regina’s real estate market, perception does not match reality, says the new president of the Association of Regina Realtors, Tim Chicilo. “Currently we have a high inventory of homes for sale, but

people are mistaking that for the market being slow. Public perception is that prices are down 20 per cent in the last year, but it’s actually only 3.5 per cent. Sales are still strong – in line with recent years’ levels – and I see that continuing for 2015.” Chicilo grew up in Canora, moving to Regina for university in the late ’80s. Before becoming a Realtor in 2007, he spent 14 years in retail, owning a ski and bike shop and a clothing store. A Realtor with RealtyOne Real Estate Services, Chicilo will serve as ARR president for one year. Joining him on the 2015 ARR Board of Directors: presidentelect Rick Miron, Re/Max Crown Real Estate; past-president Basil Pappas, Re/Max Crown Real Estate; Margarita Parisone, Royal LePage Regina Realty; Marina Rist, Realty Executives Dale Ripplinger & Associates; Jason Cossette, Re/Max Crown Real Estate; Brin Werrett, Royal LePage Regina Realty; Tim Otitoju, Platinum Realty Specialists; and Darren Bostock, Global Direct Realty.

Foundation’s Every Realtor campaign,” says TREB president Paul Etherington. “The decision, which allowed TREB to donate $485,410…is just one example of our members’ commitment to fostering quality of life in the communities in which they live and work.” Included among this year’s grant recipients was Habitat for Humanity Greater Toronto Area, which is currently building a home sponsored by TREB in the York Region municipality of Georgina. TREB members have also participated in the construction of the home, setting one family on the path to a better life. The board also supports a Children’s Breakfast Program operated in conjunction with the Toronto District School Board’s Toronto Foundation for Student Success. Through sponsorship and volunteerism in the program they work to provide children in need with nutritious breakfasts to sus-

tain their learning throughout every school day. Each year scholarships are also presented to four graduating high school students in the GTA, to be used towards their post-secondary education. In addition, a Ryerson University student is selected annually to receive a summer work placement and award. ■ ■ ■

The annual Ontario Real Estate Association Jam with a Past-President fundraiser event was held at the Arcadian Court Restaurant during OREA’s PAC days. Past-president Brian Walker and his band rocked the house as always with special guests including past-president Phil Dorner and Royal LePage president Phil Soper taking the stage. About 100 people attended and $6,500 was raised for shelterbased organizations in Ontario. REM

■ ■ ■

Geneva Tetreault, broker at Century 21 Vantage Realty, was elected president of the Realtors Association of Edmonton for 2015. With a business and management education background, Tetreault founded her brokerage in 2004. “She is highly involved and enthusiastic about her work and focuses on training and education to build a dynamic team of Realtors,” says Century 21 in a news release. Tetreault is a supporter of several local charities, including Junior Chamber’s Christmas Hamper Program for inner city families, Hope Mission, Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation and Santas Anonymous. She has also competed in two international marathons to raise funds for arthritis research.

David MacKenzie

Sandra O’Donohue

Tim Chicilo

Ian Johnston

Geneva Tetreault

Brian Walker at the Jam with a Past-President Fundraiser

■ ■ ■

The Toronto Real Estate Board kicked off 2015 by providing grants to 60 different shelter-related charities throughout the Greater Toronto Area. “For the past seven consecutive years Greater Toronto Realtors have voted overwhelmingly in favour of participating in the Ontario Realtors Care

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1-800-268-9599 * Based on survey responses from over 70,000 Canadian home buyers and sellers, tabulated by an independent company. © 2015 Coldwell Banker LLC. All Rights Reserved. Each Office is Independently Owned and Operated. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker LLC. Each sales representative and broker is responsible for complying with any consumer disclosure laws or regulations. Any use of the term “sales associate” or “agent” shall be replaced with the term “sales representative” in Canada.

26 REM MARCH 2015

Authentic leadership in the real estate industry By Don Kottick

aving spent my entire career in the real estate industry, I have met many of the icons, the villains and other people who work in our great industry. I have observed and worked with some of the best and a few of the worst leaders throughout my career. Some of the notable leaders I have worked with include Simon Dean, Stuart Lazier, Phil Soper, Colum Bastable, Bill Phillips, Bob Wallace, John DiMichele, Gurinder Sandhu, Jamie Gairdner, Blake Hutchison, Maura McLaren and Darrell Kent. The lesser leaders, whom shall remain nameless, have provided me with many excellent lessons on how not to lead or behave in business. One of the benefits of working with different organizations is that you are able to observe and test many different leadership strategies and techniques. Some work, some do not. With all of the looming changes to our industry, there are two key elements that will be necessary for a brokerage to

be successful in the years ahead: leadership and culture. Neither is mutually exclusive. You can’t have a good culture without a good leader and you can’t be a good leader unless you can create and maintain a good culture. To be a good sustainable leader you must be an “authentic leader”. I was first introduced to the concept of authentic leadership by Andrew J. McConnell, a former RBC senior vice-president and a life-long student of leadership. McConnell always posed the question, what does it take to be a truly authentic leader? Through my journey, I have come to believe that an authentic leader first must be true to himself, even when the going gets tough. In order to earn the respect of your team, you have to be consistent, fair, transparent and able to make decisions when necessary. The leader who can’t make a decision is often worse than no leader – both result in a rudderless organization. An authentic leader must be empathetic, introspective and aware of their own strengths and weaknesses. The authentic leader always hires the best to compensate for their own deficiencies, thereby strengthening and developing a well-heeled team. Authentic leaders must have a

vision on where the organization is headed and possess the ability to make it happen. The authentic leader creates the culture and the building blocks that promote the work community/environment to deliver their vision. Vivian Risi, president of Royal LePage Your Community with multiple offices in the Toronto area, is an example of an authentic leader. She developed a work community with more than 1,000 Realtors, who all share and embrace a culture of success, family, fun and charitable works. Gurcharan “Garry” Bhaura, president of Century 21 President Realty in Brampton, is another authentic leader. In five years he built a successful brokerage with a cohesive corporate culture. Bhaura has created a culture of success, collaboration and family using business planning, training, technology and support. It is one thing to create a culture when a company is small, but maintaining the culture through rapid growth is a real testament to his unique leadership abilities. Authentic leaders leave a legacy after they have vacated their positions of leadership. Augy Carnovale was a leader who always maintained a stellar reputation throughout his career as he created a strong Re/Max presence in the

western GTA. Augy has since retired, but his reputation and the legacy continue to this day and will exist for many years to come. Augy never wavered from his position as an authentic leader who made the tough decisions while maintaining transparency, and he continues to this day to give back to the community and our industry. One of reasons I joined Peerage Realty Partners was the opportunity to work with one of Canada’s most prominent authentic business leaders, Miles Nadal. The visionary and philanthropic Nadal is recognized internationally for developing world-class corporate cultures with such powerful tag lines as “The Place Where Great Talent Lives” and “Dare to Dream”. Nadal utilizes a unique partnership model as a way to propagate his vision for creating win-win cultures of success and empowerment. This authentic leader’s tenacity and his unyielding focus on culture

Vivian Risi

Garry Bhaura

WE SEE

enabled him to create a dominant presence in three different business segments – advertising and marketing, wealth management and now real estate. The common bond shared by these authentic leaders is that they remain true to themselves; they are genuine and courageous, they dare to dream and they all give back to the community. It is not what you learn in business school, but the experiential learning from one’s life journey that is the dominant reason these unique individuals have attained the moniker of being truly authentic leaders. The real estate industry needs more authentic leaders to help us navigate the complexity of issues and pressures that we are now facing. It is within your grasp to become an authentic leader. Don Kottick, FRI, is executive vice-president, corporate development for Peerage Realty Partners, which is the parent company for Chestnut Park Real Estate and Baker Real Estate in Toronto. Kottick is currently director at large for the Toronto Real Estate Board and director for FIABCI and REIC Toronto. REM

Augy Carnovale

Miles Nadal

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Helping your clients choose a mortgage By Don Procter

hile banks and mortgage lenders reluctantly cut lending rates after the Bank of Canada dropped its interest rate, buyers of real estate have much more to consider than the lending rates when searching for the right mortgage. Lenders that allow frequent lump sum payments, flexible portability and “blend and extend” options, in which terms are extended by blending old interest rates with new rates, are cases in point. Those lenders are not always the banks. It’s often mortgage brokers who find the best options, largely because they can select from a host of different lenders to tailor mortgages to specific clients, says Rob McLister. McLister is editor of CanadianMortgageTrends.com and founder of RateSpy.com, the latter of which provides rates and options from more than 350 lenders, including all the major banks, credit unions, trust companies and most top brokers. “Having more than one lender choice benefits the borrower,” he says, noting that major banks don’t necessarily have the most flexible mortgage features. “No one lender has the best product for every client.” Penalty clauses for breaking the mortgage contract early are a prime example. They should be reviewed with clients before signing on the dotted line because some lending institutions – particularly the Big Six banks – have more onerous clauses than others. Still, says McLister, many experienced real estate agents have established relationships with banks that have provided reasonable rates and service. Since the Bank of Canada dropped lending rates in January, mortgage brokers were quick to make the deepest rate cuts. McLister calls it the widest rate differential between the two groups in years. “With the lowest broker rates, you’re sometimes talking about different products – a low-frills mortgage versus a bank mortgage – but nevertheless the

interest cost gap is extremely wide.” That might change in the spring when property sales traditionally pick up and banks lower rates to stay competitive, he says. Why the hesitation to drop rates now? Banks are likely trying to maintain profit margins for as long as they can. Unlike the banking world, however, the broker world has access to varied funding sources. “There are always a few lenders at any given time with exceptional pricing, and the (business) volume tends to shift to them, which benefits broker customers.” One credit union, for example, DUCA Financial, has a pricing program for a select number of high-producing brokers that is “significantly below the market.” McLister cautions that due diligence is required before selecting a broker. “You want to make sure that they are established and that they have access to the best lenders and lender status programs”, which ensures that they will get the best rates and options. Experienced mortgage brokers best foresee potential problems. That helps the client avoid unpleasant surprises on closing day “because things can and do go wrong during the mortgage process.” Jim Murphy, CEO of the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals (CAAMP), says many real estate salespeople have developed relationships with specific mortgage brokers, which can assist consumers “perhaps better than banks.” Tougher lending rules and underwriting guidelines have sent more people through broker channels, he says. Typically, mortgage brokers appeal to three groups: selfemployed, many of whom have solid credit ratings but less stellar incomes; new Canadians who may have solid income but no credit history; and first-time buyers, says Murphy, adding brokers can “shop the market” to find lenders for clients who are rejected by the banks.

Founded in 1994, CAAMP has about 11,500 members across Canada – 80 per cent of which are mortgage brokers and 20 per cent are lenders, insurers and other service providers. There are a lot of mortgage brokers who were real estate agents and some who are jointly licensed. The CEO says first-time buyers have a history of turning to mortgage brokers in part because they do online research and are savvy shoppers. “Mortgage brokers have done very well at reaching out on social media.” There are banks that go through the mortgage broker channel to find the best product for their customers. The market is much more competitive than it was a decade ago – and not just for lower prices, McLister says. While mortgage companies can offer more competitive lending packages than banks today, there was a time when the reverse was true, he adds. McLister anticipates a better spring market than original forecasts but how active the market is may depend on how far rates fall. He notes that a quarter-point rate cut on an average mortgage rate means someone making $50,000 a year with no debt and five per cent down can only qualify for a 2.3 per cent more expensive home. Mortgage brokers have about 30 per cent market share in mortgages – much of that share coming in the last decade, says Murphy. According to research, says Murphy, mortgage brokers are also gaining market share on renewals, a traditionally weak area for them. Growth in mortgage credit has dropped to four to five per cent from about eight to 10 per cent growth in 2006-2009, says Murphy. He believes mortgage brokers can continue to grow, although not likely as prominently as brokers did in the U.S. prior to the mortgage meltdown, when broker share was well over 60 per cent. To continue to hike their market share in Canada, mortgage brokers have to continue to broaden awareness among the general public. REM

REM MARCH 2015 29

Forfeiture of deposit LEGAL ISSUES

By Donald H. Lapowich

n a case heard in the Court of Appeal for British Columbia, the seller and purchaser entered into a standard form contract of purchase and sale for residential property in an amount just over $2 million. The buyer made a deposit of $100,000 but failed to complete the transaction. The seller sold the property to another purchaser at a higher price and did not suffer any loss. However, the seller took the position that the deposit was forfeited to them. The court ruled that where a buyer failed to complete a purchase and repudiated a contract under which a deposit had been paid, it was to be forfeited to the seller. Damages do not need to be proven in order for the seller to retain the deposit. This was a win -win for the seller. Tang v. Zhang, 2013 BCCA 52 (CanLII) ■ ■ ■

Dual agency decision: A real estate agent acted for both the vendor and purchaser. The agent introduced the vendor to the purchaser. The purchaser was interested in buying the vendor’s 30-unit property. There was a discussion of dual agency. The purchaser agreed to buy the property for $2.5 million. The vendor later became aware of other sales of similar property up to $120,000 a unit. The vendor then sued the real estate agent and her broker and the action was allowed. This was because the agent and broker were in a fiduciary relationship with the vendor and the real estate agent breached

her fiduciary duty by failing to disclose material information of which she was aware, namely the market value of the vendor’s property (comparable to other properties in the area). The court also concluded that the real estate agent displayed partiality towards the purchaser at the expense of the vendor. S. Maclise Enterprises Inc. v Grover, 2014 ABQB 591 (CanLII) ■ ■ ■

A sudden odour: A tenant had a retail clothing business in a store that experienced an unpleasant odour. It was worse when the air conditioning system operated. The tenant called an air conditioning technician to service the unit, which temporarily relieved the odour. Unfortunately, the tenant immediately stopped paying rent, vacated and terminated the lease. The landlord sued the tenant. The British Columbia Court of Appeal stated that the landlord did not cause the odour nor interfere with exclusive occupancy (without interference). The odour was not caused by an act or omission of the landlord and the failure to correct it did not deprive the tenant of the whole benefit of the lease. The odour did not undermine the “foundation of the contract” because the tenant was still able to carry on her business. She was not able to prove loss of sales or profits because of the odour. Stearman v. Powers, 2014 BCCA 206 (CanLII) ■ ■ ■

Injury to a minor: A 12-yearold student was injured when he fell from the roof of an elementary school. He reached the roof by climbing up a cherry tree, which was in close proximity to the school. When a school official yelled from an open window at the student, in order to avoid being caught, the child jumped 20 feet on to a cement surface and badly injured himself. It was known to the school that students often used the tree to access the roof. Both the lower Continued on page 31

30 REM MARCH 2015

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overnment of Canada bond yields have been in free fall recently, with the most recent plunge being fuelled by a disappointing GDP release from Statistics Canada. The latest GDP data estimated that our economy contracted by 0.2 per cent in November. The impact of sharply lower oil prices was evident in the detail, which showed a 1.5-per-cent decline in the sector defined as mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction. When we remember that a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil was selling for $75 in November and that the same barrel now sells for closer to $45, it is easier to understand why the Bank of Canada (BoC) felt that an emergency rate cut was in order (even if our major banks didn’t entirely agree). The most immediate impacts of the oil-price shock are expected to be negative as oil-patch investment dries up and our import purchasing power weakens. The longer-term benefits of a strengthening U.S. economy and a weaker Loonie will take longer to accrue, and are thus less certain. That’s consistent with the latest GDP data, which showed that at least so far, the cheaper Loonie has yet to buoy our manufacturing sector, where activity declined by 1.9 per cent in November. To put that decline in context, it marked the worst monthly performance for the manufacturing sector in more than five years. The lagging benefits of the

cheaper Loonie are further delayed in the current environment because this recovery isn’t just a matter of Canadian export manufacturers ramping up production to meet rising demand. The Great Recession dealt a broadside to our manufacturing base and wiped out companies altogether, so many of the export manufacturers that would otherwise exploit the competitive advantage of a cheaper Loonie still need to be invented (or reinvented). Speaking of the Loonie, part of the reason for its fall is based on widespread speculation that the BoC will cut its overnight rate again in March, which would bring it down to 0.50 per cent and within reach of the 0.25 per cent level we saw at the depths of the 2008 financial meltdown. But before we get too excited, let’s remember that there now appears to be no guarantee that more BoC rate cuts will translate into lower variable mortgage rates, at least without another round of hue and cry from borrowers if lenders once again choose to pocket the extra spread instead of passing it on to their customers as interest-rate savings. Time will tell. The U.S Bureau of Economic Analysis also released its latest GDP estimate for the fourth quarter of 2014, and while U.S. GDP grew by a more impressive 2.6 per cent, that marked a sharp slowdown from the 4.6 per cent U.S. GDP growth seen in the second quarter, and the 5.0 per cent growth that we saw in the third quarter. David Rosenberg estimates that the U.S. is now headed for two per cent GDP growth in the first quarter of 2015, and while that growth rate is still the envy of most of the developed world, it may also be an indication that the surge we saw in the middle of 2014 was just a temporary spike, rather than an early signal that

REM MARCH 2015 31

the start of the next great U.S. growth boom was now at hand. At the same time, lower oil prices and the surging Greenback are dampening inflationary pressures in the U.S. and when these factors are combined with slowing GDP growth, the odds of a near-term rate hike by the U.S. Fed are fading fast. In fact, there is now speculation that the next U.S. Fed rate hike could well be pushed out to sometime in 2016. Haven’t we heard this tune before? Lenders are gradually dropping their fixed-mortgage rates, but most continue to adopt a cautious wait-and-see approach to the recent bond-yield volatility. The Bottom Line: The latest U.S and Canadian GDP data show slowing economic momentum in both countries. While not encouraging on an overall basis, the data implies that fixed and variable mortgage rates are likely to either remain at current levels, or fall again, in the near future. We’ll call that the silver lining on an otherwise cloudy economic day. David Larock is an independent mortgage planner and industry insider specializing in helping clients purchase, refinance or renew their mortgages. His posts appear weekly at integratedmortgageplanners.com/ blog. REM

Forfeitureof deposit Continued from page 29

court and the Court of Appeal held that the split in liability of 25 per cent for the child and 75 per cent for the school under “occupiers’ liability” was reasonable and imposed a proper standard of care on the school district. Paquette v. School District No. 36 (Surrey), 2014 BCSC 205 (CanLII) Donald Lapowich, Q.C. is a partner at the law firm of Koskie, Minsky in Toronto, where he practices civil litigation, with a particular emphasis on real estate litigation and mediation, acting for builders, real estate agents and lawyers. REM

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Sales rep, tech guy develop real estate deposit system

By Connie Adair

Royal LePage Port Alberni - Pacific Rim Realty

Port Alberni, British Columbia Clinton Miller

Gary Gray

We are pleased to announce that effective January 1, 2015 Clinton Miller owner of Royal LePage ParksvilleQualicum Beach Realty has expanded into Port Alberni. Clinton’s newest location is operating under the name Royal LePage Port Alberni-Pacific Rim Realty. Clinton spent 10 years in the construction industry before starting his real estate career in 2003. He first sold with Royal LePage Parksville-Qualicum Beach, and in 2010 he aquired the company’s two offices. Clinton was the driving force behind Islandsbesthomes.ca - an exclusive Royal LePage website providing Royal LePage agents and brokerages with a competitive advantage on Vancouver Island.

Broker, Gary Gray who is a Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) pastpresident, will manage Royal LePage Port Alberni-Pacific Rim Realty and its team of 10 sales professionals. Servicing a trading area of 17,500 including the areas of Port Alberni, Sproat Lake, Ucluelet and Tofino Royal LePage Port Alberni-Pacific Rim Realty can be reached at: #1- 4505 Victoria Quay Port Alberni, British Columbia V9Y 6G2 Office: (250) 723-5478 Fax: (250) 723-2736 GaryGray@royallepage.ca Please join us in congratulating Clinton on his expansion, and welcoming Gary and everyone at Royal LePage Port AlberniPacific Rim Realty to Royal LePage. †

franchise@royallepage.ca †Royal LePage is a trademark used under license.

Royal LePage Dream Realty Estevan, Saskatchewan Jamie Dyer

Mike DeBruyne

We are pleased to announce that Jamie Dyer, Mike DeBruyne and Lori Gonas have joined the Royal LePage network, effective Dec. 19, 2014. Their brokerage in Estevan, Saskatchewan is operating under the new name Royal LePage Dream Realty. After attaining success in real estate sales with two former brokerages, Jamie Dyer now owns and operates his own brokerage. He is also a journeyman carpenter and operates a roofing/construction company. Jamie enjoys time with his wife, Lindsay and their three small children. Mike DeBruyne’s move to owning a brokerage was made following 23 years in the real estate profession. Mike is active in the community and has four children. Lori Gonas will serve as a partner and sales representative, building on previous success achieved with Jamie and Mike. Lori is an active volunteer and lends her time to many events, stemming from her time in raising a family in the community.

Lori Gonas Royal LePage Dream Realty services a trading area of 12,000 residents including the communities of Estevan, Bienfait, North Portal, Torquay, Ounger, Hirsch, Benson, Frobisher, Oxbow, Canrduff, Glen Ewen, Carlyle, Alameda, Lampman, Hitchcock, Midale, Stoughton, Macoun and the surrounding areas. Royal LePage Dream Realty can be reached at: 725-4th Street Estevan, SK S4A 0V6 Office Phone: 306-634-HOME (4663) Fax: 306-634-4660 mikedebruyne@royallepage.ca jamiedyer@royallepage.ca lorigonas@royallepage.ca Please join us in congratulating Mike, Lori and Jamie and welcoming everyone at Royal LePage Dream Realty to Royal LePage. †

franchise@royallepage.ca †Royal LePage is a trademark used under license.

aving a deal go the way of the dodo bird because of a late deposit cheque is just sad. And the running around to make sure that doesn’t happen is stressful for all involved. Halifaxbased Chris Ryan and Kevin Kline figured there had to be a better way, so they came up with one: ExactDeposit. Ryan has been a top-producing agent for more than 10 years and Kline has more than 20 years of technology and telecommunications experience. The salesperson and the tech guy put their skills together to develop an online deposit solution for brokers, agents and their clients. The system eliminates the use of personal or certified cheques and offers an efficient and secure online payment system that takes less than 10 minutes using a smartphone, a computer or tablet in real time, Ryan says. “It’s new to everywhere.” Once an offer is accepted, the agent emails a deposit invoice to the buyer. Using a secure portal, the client reviews the invoice then submits payment using their credit card. Clients can’t go on the system and make a payment on their own. It must be facilitated by the agent. Deposit receipts are generated and the process is complete in less than 10 minutes, with documentation provided to the broker, agent and client. Clients will be happy to save time and frustration. Many young buyers don’t even use cheques, Ryan says. And who isn’t happy to avoid wasting time at a bank branch getting a certified cheque? Debit can be a problem depending on how much can be transferred out per day (having to make payments over several days can be problematic when time is of the essence). Wire transfers still mean a trip to the bank, plus it requires brokerages to give out their banking information and many brokers prefer not to, he says. There is also no notification about when the

Kevin Kline

Chris Ryan

The system eliminates the use of personal or certified cheques and offers an efficient and secure online payment system. money will appear, which means brokers have to constantly check their trust account. ExactDeposit dashboards keep everyone – agent, broker and client – in the loop by providing status updates. The system also automatically generates FINTRAC paperwork, another timesaver for agents. The secure ExactDeposit system is connected to a broker’s trust account and the broker has visibility into all of their agents’ files, so they can monitor upcoming deadlines. Refunds can be made just as easily and quickly. The agent issues a termination agreement and money is returned as designated on the agreement (directly to the cardholder or by cheque). ExactDeposit was two years in the making and the pilot program started in February. More than a dozen brokerages, representing over 500 agents and accounting for about 80 per cent of Halifax’s (city

and surrounding areas) annual real estate sales activity, have already signed up to participate, Ryan says. Those offices include Royal LePage Atlantic, Re/Max Nova, Exit Realty Metro and Keller Williams Select. It’s been a lot of legwork to create ExactDeposit with Ryan and Kline doing conference calls and training and meeting with brokerages and regulatory bodies. They received technology and innovation grants and worked with PhDs and Masters students from Dalhousie University. Fees for real estate professionals will start at $10 per month for unlimited usage. Buyers will pay a 2.9-per-cent fee. Feedback is that they don’t mind paying for a system that relieves stress, saves time and ensures their deal doesn’t fall through because of a late deposit payment, Ryan says. The points earned by paying by credit card also helps offset the fee, he says. REM

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34 REM MARCH 2015

Storm water - The new knob and tube

Announcement RE/MAX Condos Plus Corp. Brokerage Expands in Busy Downtown Toronto! RE/MAX INTEGRA Ontario-Atlantic Region would like to welcome back, from Keller Williams, Jon Edwards to the RE/MAX family, as part of Jamie Johnston Broker/Owner’s team at RE/MAX Condos Plus Corp. Brokerage. Jon will be operating RE/MAX Urban Toronto Team Inc. from his own location on King Street East, joined by two sales associates from RE/MAX Condos Plus. RE/MAX Condos Plus has grown to be the largest resale condominium and loft broker in Toronto in terms of both sales and rentals. It currently operates from ﬁve retail locations with over 150 agents. Please join us in congratulating Jamie and Jon on their conversion and expansion! We wish them nothing but tremendous success! And Jon, welcome home.

Jon Edwards Broker/Owner,

RE/MAX Urban Toronto Team Inc. (left) Jamie Johnston Broker/Owner,

RE/MAX Condos Plus Corp. (right)

Announcement Join Us In Welcoming RE/MAX Royal Properties Realty Ltd. RE/MAX INTEGRA, Ontario-Atlantic Canada is pleased to announce the conversion of Royal Properties Realty Ltd. to RE/MAX. Owner and Broker of Record, Renuka Selvakumar, has been a REALTOR® for 8 years alongside her husband, Ram Anandappa, who has been a REALTOR® for 10 years. Their small independent brokerage has been in business for 5 years and has been very active in the community, supporting cancer and breast cancer research, as well as the Hospital for Sick Children. Prior to opening their own brokerage, Ram sharpened his brokerage skills by recruiting and teaching over 100 sales associates at their former brokerage with Homelife. After many months of due diligence, Renuka and Ram made their decision to convert to RE/MAX and have opened RE/MAX Royal Properties Realty Ltd., located at 1801 Harwood Ave. N. in Ajax, Ontario. Please join us in welcoming Renuka Selvakumar and Ram Anandappa to the RE/MAX family!

Renuka Selvakumar Broker/Owner,

RE/MAX Royal Properties Realty Ltd. (left) Ram Anandappa Sales Associate,

RE/MAX Royal Properties Realty Ltd. (right)

By Chris Chopik

eal estate professionals understand insurance risk related to fire, such as knob and tube wiring and insulbrick siding. In the coming years our industry will be dealing with flood and sewage backup risk and insurability as a course of business. You don’t have to be a climatologist, lawyer or insurance broker to understand there is increased risk for real estate professionals and homeowners in the face of changing and more severe weather patterns. Insurers warn that stormwater related property damage is quickly becoming the most prevalent insurance risks for homeowners. Basement flooding is one of the most common weather-related property damage claims. What can you do to protect clients from liability? It is important to know that every region of Canada has different climate and weather risks. Municipal governments across Canada are investigating how to reduce risk to homeowners. As an example, in Toronto, 42 neighbourhoods have been identified as being “at risk” of basement flooding. Municipalities and insurers are addressing basement flooding aggressively, with reduced coverage, constrained coverage parameters and riskreduction strategies such as backflow prevention valves. “The insurance industry sees increasingly frequent natural disasters. In financial terms, the cost of damage from natural disasters has doubled every five to seven years since the 1960s. In human terms, more families are suffering unnecessary losses,” says Kathy Bardswick, president and CEO of The Co-operators and chairperson of the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction. “We feel a responsibility to respond to the realities of today’s weather by promoting flood protection to homeowners in Canada.” Some of the issues: Homes built in flood-prone areas: When Hurricane Hazel hit

Ontario half a century ago, municipal planners created development criteria that seeks to avoid building in areas that can put people and property at risk. But there are always exceptions – neighbourhoods that were built prior to Hazel and homes built in floodprone areas despite the risk. Homes connected to sewer infrastructure that is prone to overflow and backflow: The intensity of storm systems is increasing and this means sewer infrastructure has greater demand than ever before. There are several contributing factors related to

Resources for homeowners and advice for real estate professionals: It will be increasingly important for real estate professionals to be aware of flood-prone neighbourhoods and areas that are prone to sewage backup. Practitioners with neighbourhood experience will already be aware of areas at risk within their marketplace. Municipalities and conservation authorities have a wealth of resources about what happens to surface water within a watershed and an understanding of where the storm water systems are subject to

You don’t have to be a climatologist, lawyer or insurance broker to understand there is increased risk for real estate professionals and homeowners in the face of changing and more severe weather patterns. storm water and sewage backup. Some situations that occur in flood-prone areas include: 1) the diameter of the sewer pipe is not sufficient to hold all of the water flow during a heavy storm event; 2) the gradient of the sewer pipe is not steep enough to allow water flow at the same rate as the rain; and 3) heavily paved areas do not allow water to absorb into the ground, forcing more water into sewers. Storms are bigger and more frequent: It seems no matter what part of Canada you live in, unusual weather patterns are threatening property everywhere. From ice storms in Toronto to floods in Calgary, we have seen an unprecedented level of destructive weather in recent years and it appears that this is just the beginning.

overflow and back flow. This information is important and valuable to home buyers and demonstrates caring and fiduciary professional expertise. Most of these kinds of resources are available through municipal governments. Here are some links to get you started: http://watercanada.net/2013/m unicipal-risk-assessment-tool/ GTA Flood Prone Areas: http://goo.gl/nO1zIs Calgary Flooding: goo.gl/S76E57 Winnipeg Flooding: goo.gl/MFMfiu Chris Chopik is a sales representative and chief agent of change at Sage Real Estate in Toronto. www.ChrisChopik.com; Twitter: @EvolutionGreen REM

REM MARCH 2015 35

Good Works R

eal Estate Centre’s Farm Team of Coaldale, Alta. held its annual Customer Appreciation event recently, hosted by Ben Van Dyk, Heleen Jacobsen and the Farm Team salespeople. The event was combined with a charity auction in aid of Sunrise of Life. About 200 guests were treated to dinner and a free bar, followed by a presentation about the charity of choice. Many local companies supported the event by donating items to be auctioned and more than $22,500 was raised. ■ ■ ■

The joy on the faces of children at the Asuncion Oviedo School in northwest Nicaragua is something Geoff Morgan, a sales rep with Sutton Group - Incentive Realty in Barrie, Ont., will never forget. Along with many donors and volunteers, he replaced their unsafe school, which was constructed of scrap metal and wood. Now the children learn in bright new classrooms in a sturdy structure. This is one of 14 projects completed through Building Walls of Wisdom, a non-profit organization founded by Morgan with the goal of eradicating poverty through education. He invites 100 individ-

uals to donate to each new school project and to help build it, if they are able. “Nothing has affected me more completely or wounded me more deeply than witnessing the needless human suffering caused by absolute poverty. Witnessing this type of inequity firsthand is the reason why I have made a lifelong commitment to creating educational opportunities for children living in poverty,” he says. ■ ■ ■

The Prince George, B.C. Relay for Life has been named the No. 1 relay in Canada by the Canadian Cancer Society. Much of that distinction is thanks to the hard work and generous donations of Brent Marshall, broker/owner of Re/Max Centre City. Prince George raised $576,678 overall and then Marshall personally topped up funds raised to achieve a total of $600,000. A big factor in the fundraising was the donation of a new Jeep Cherokee by Marshall and his brokerage to

help raise funds. ■ ■ ■

Sutton Group - West Coast Realty in Victoria is supporting the Adopt-a-School program. Each salesperson makes a monthly contribution to the fund, which benefits one local school each year. In 2014, Cloverdale Elementary received $5,000. The eighth recipient in the office’s charitable program is Colwood Elementary. The selection process prioritizes schools in less prosperous neighbourhoods, where families can afford fewer extracurricular activities and children rely on school facilities. Sales rep Deborah Farley, a founding member of the Adopt-aSchool organizing committee, says, “To date, we have donated $37,000 to seven schools. Our donations have funded playground equipment, permanent picnic tables and sports facilities such as a ball wall. We hope to reach our $50,000 milestone in 2016.” An organizing committee manages the program, including

sending out letters, collecting funds and making presentations. Farley has been involved since the beginning along with Julie Demelo. The newest committee members are Wendy Thompson and Danielle Moreau. ■ ■ ■

Sales reps from Re/Max Rouge River contributed more than $25,000 last year to Toronto’s SickKids Hospital through the Miracle Home Program. With every completed transaction, participating sales reps make a contribution to the program. Lead by broker of record David Pearce and based in Toronto, the brokerage has branch offices in Pickering, Ajax, Whitby, Oshawa, Courtice, Bowmanville and Newcastle. ■ ■ ■

When children are diagnosed with a serious illness, they often must travel for specialized treatContinued on page 38

Mr. Prosser, the principal of Yapala primary school in Ghana, with Geoff Morgan.

Rhonda Blanchette and Linda Mack and the team at Re/Max Blue Chip Realty in Estevan, Sask. recently collected gifts from the community for pets at the Estevan Humane Society. They got the word out in the area and collected more than 300 pounds of food, litter, beds, blankets, towels and cleaning supplies for pets.

Heleen Jacobsen, left and Ben Van Dyk, of Real Estate Centre in Coaldale, Alta. present a cheque to Yvonne Kreft and Hilda DeJonge, representatives for the Sunrise of Life charity.

From left: Royal LePage Atlantic salesperson and the office’s top contributor of commission donations, Rosie Porter; Heather Byrne, executive director, Alice Housing; and Royal LePage Atlantic broker/owner Ralph Stephen. From left: Sutton Group - Preferred Realty staff and family helped out at Ronald McDonald House. From left: Hayden Payne, Gerry Weir, Lori Payne, Cathy Combs, Judy Kalar, Valerie Waite, Jennifer Kraft, Jolin Payne and Ken Payne.

Re/Max Centre City Realty broker/owner Carl Vandergoot recently presented $16,900 to the Children’s Health Foundation in London, Ont. Agents from the brokerage donate a portion of each of their sales to the foundation. Funds support the Local Children’s Hospital. To date Re/Max Centre City has donated $286,000 to the foundation.

Kathy Lilyholm, senior manager at Munroe House, receives the cheque from Ilan Heller, manager of Sutton Group - West Coast Realty in Kerrisdale, B.C.

The Century 21 Movers and Shakers

From left: Sutton Group - West Coast Realty’s Danielle Moreau, Elka Pettipas, Wendy Thompson, Deborah Farley and Kevin White support the Adopt-a-School program in Victoria. Julie Demelo, a co-founder of the program, took the photo.

36 REM MARCH 2015

METES & BOUNDS

By Marty Douglas he Banff Western Connection 2015 (BWC2015) is in the record books. The quality of the content, the Realtor delegates and trade show exhibitors continue to raise the bar and exceed years past. The best little real estate conference in North America has called the Fairmont Banff Springs home since the early ’90s. It attracts more than 700 delegates for three days of leadership training, motivation, education and technology supported by a very tight group of pertinent exhibitors – you can’t buy silk carpets at this bazaar. The tech talks

Here’s what you missed in Banff are the most current, presented by actual top-producing individual and team agents and brokers. This year’s keynote – to be fair, there were three speakers who could have led the conference – was Jon Montgomery, who won gold in men’s skeleton at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. You may recall him more familiarly as the host of The Amazing Race Canada. If your memory cells are intact from 2010, you likely recall him as the red-bearded Olympian walking Whistler’s streets quaffing from a beer jug. Jon took us from his early years in Russell, Man. to that triumphant hero’s walk, describing a journey of the effort it took to earn the best reward, urging hushed listeners to “do things that scare you”, reminding us things are only “out of your reach if you put them there.” Jon’s presentation kept us laughing and attentive but as it closed with the video of his gold medal run and “walk of fame” you could feel the time warp as we

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remembered where we were in 2010, reliving the moment. As the video froze on its last image we were on our feet, teary eyed, lumps in throats, hollering and stamping and clapping. I have never experienced such an intense surge of emotion from a crowd. Then I had to speak. A strangled thank you from me was all it took for the applause for Jon to start again. Then he volunteered to auction a replica beer jug and Olympic autographed souvenir gear for the BWC2015 charity, the Banff YWCA. Who knew he was an auctioneer too? And a master. He took the crowd from $100 to $2,500 in easy steps and the winning bidders were vibrating in their victory dash down the aisle to claim the gold. Follow that speech, I dare you. We did – with chef, restaurateur and entrepreneur Vikram Vij. He is the latest addition to the CBC program Dragon’s Den. Vij is not an Olympic athlete. In his own words, “There’s nothing low fat about me!” His too was a journey to success. Born in India; crossing to Canada with an opportunity to work in the Banff Springs Hotel and stories along the way of his early experiences with entrepreneurs – they didn’t share his vision – to the opening of his signature restaurant to his latest, My Shanti. Funny accounts punctuated his presentation, illustrating his message: Be proud enough to put your name on it, take care of family, take chances, cherish your mistakes, be passionate and creative. Of the new technology, of an “app” for everything, he scorned, “Why can’t you just write this shit down?” It was another gold medal performance and standing ovation. Two for two. CREA president Beth Crosbie and other national directors and staff gave us an update and reminder of the values of CREA and specifically, new tools and resources at Realtor.ca and RealtorLink. The ability of members to use the word Realtor in domain names and email addresses, the Realtor Action Network and 2014 Consumer Insights were presented. Members were urged to lead their clients to the mobile app for Realtor.ca and

We listened to a panel of six consumers discuss their experiences with real estate agents and why three of them ultimately decided to sell their own homes. to look at it themselves. Afternoon sessions included Jeph Maystruck, who asked why kids laugh 300 times a day while adults can only muster six. His presentation was peppered with free lottery tickets and at least one $50 bill. Technical presenters, Realtors Tony Joe and Dennis Plintz, reviewed client communication strategies, including the cautionary tale of voice recognition software. Siri, as iPhone users will attest, is very capable but when a text message dictated as “Thank you for having a thick skin when it matters” became “Thank you for having sex when it matters” some damage control was necessary. We listened to a panel of six consumers discuss their experiences with real estate agents and why three of them ultimately decided to sell their own homes. Their use of social networks, how they chose their Realtor, what they didn’t like – registering in order to get information and unqualified buyers – was enlightening. Ultimately, the consumers complimented the resources of the industry, if not the salespeople they dealt with. They acknowledged that in a slower market, only one of them would still attempt to sell their own property. Final sessions included Scott Stratten, the author of UnSelling and creator of the YouTube segment wherein he broke off his dysfunctional relationship as a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Michael Thorne spoke on social media and his weekly web show Mobile Agent TV and a final panel presented suggestions for selling to the inter-

national market. We wrapped up with John Spence on the future of business excellence and cartoonist and artist Hugh MacLeod, who had been drawing throughout the conference. The evenings at Banff are filled with funny money casino gambling, mouth-watering food – the final banquet featured lobster and beef tenderloin this year, only one of which came from Alberta – endless buffets and valuable prizes. Thankfully, the snow blower went to a lady from Lethbridge. In all about $25,000 in prizes were given away and the 50/50 draws presented the Banff YWCA and a lucky delegate a little over $8,000 cash each. My summary of the theme of the BWC2015 is simple. Despite the myriad of tools appearing almost daily, few endure. The old premise of getting face to face, voice to voice, belly to belly with a client and growing a relationship that matures from knowing to liking and finally to one of trust – is timeless. Is there a secret to success in sales? Yes indeed. It’s a relationship, stupid! Contact Marty Douglas by email at mgdouglas247@gmail.com . Follow or connect with Marty on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. He is a managing broker for Re/Max Ocean Pacific Realty in Comox and Courtenay, B.C. He is a past chair of the Real Estate Errors and Omissions Insurance Corporation of B.C., the Real Estate Council of B.C., the B.C. Real Estate Association and the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. REM

REM MARCH 2015 37

Trade Shows and Conferences To add a listing to this calendar, email jim@remonline.com Engel & Völkers Exchange March 9 - 11 Red Rock Casino-Resort-Spa Las Vegas The three days include breakout sessions, training, E&V Awards and recognition and special guests. Ontario Real Estate Association Regeneration Thursday, March 12 The Westin Harbour Castle www.orea.com

Joint NAR/CREA AE Institute March 13 – 16 Hyatt Regency Vancouver Vancouver jdaviau@crea.ca Realtors Association of HamiltonBurlington Realtor Connections AGM, Conference and Trade Show Tuesday, March 24 Hamilton Convention Centre Hamilton Sheila - 905.529.8101 ext234 sheilas@rahb.ca

Canadian Real Estate Association Leadership Summit Sunday, March 29 The Westin Ottawa Ottawa jdaviau@crea.ca

The Lakelands Association of Realtors AGM and Trade Show Wednesday, April 22 Deerhurst Resort, Huntsville Kelly Warr - 705-788-1504 ext 229 kelly@thelakelands.ca

2015 AREAA Global and Luxury Real Estate Summit April 19 – 21 Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago summit.areaa.org

Toronto Real Estate Board Realtor Quest May 6 – 7 Toronto Congress Centre Toronto www.realtorquest.ca

London St. Thomas Association of Realtors AGM and Trade Show Tuesday, April 21 London Convention Centre London tracy@lstar.ca

HomeLife 30th Anniversary Conference and Awards Gala May 28 – 29 Fallsview Casino Resort Niagara Falls, Ont. HomeLife@HomeLife.com

Compiled with the assistance of Bob Campbell at Colour Tech Marketing, www.colourtech.com

CANADA’S CA ANADA’S ANADA DA S LARGEST LAR RGEST REAL R REA ESTATE ES STATE CONFERENCE C CONFE CO ERENCE & TRADE TRA ADE SHOW Trade Tr rade Show fe rad features eatures over 1 170 70 exhibito exhibi exhibitors ors so far! Mark Ma ark Your Calen Calendars: ndars: May 6 - 7, 7 2015 15 | Toronto Toron nt Congress Centre nto Ce entre Do Don’t miss mis ss th the most excitin exciting ng lineup of ® QUEST UEST speakerss ever, with REA ALTOR R QU REALTOR 43 se essio i ns to choose h from f m! sessions from! Spring A Annual Ann nual Meeting Mee eting Keynote e Speaker The Futur Future re of Real Estate Esstate Sales: F Five Inevitable eT Trends You u Can’t Ignore Igno On May 6, Richard Riichard Rob bbins, worldworld Robbins, renowned speaker, sp peaker, author, autthor, and elite eli business ccoach, coa ach, unveilss the forces driving the e coming coming changes cha anges in the real estate e in industry, ndustry, an and nd the shifts needed in n order orrder to thrive. thrrive.

Exhibitor Ex xhibit xhibitor xhib bito or & S Spo Sponsorship onsorship sorship opp opportunities portunities ar are re sti still till availab available! ble! 416.443.8136 41 6 43.8 6.4 6.443.8136 6.443 813 | www.realtorquest.ca ww ww.realtor torquest.cca a | realtorquest@trebnet.com realtorq realtorquestt@tre rebnet.com | #realtorquest

38 REM MARCH 2015

THE PUBLISHER’S PAGE

By Heino Molls

MARKETPLACE

orking in real estate can be the most fulfilling work you can do. You can experience the highest level of satisfaction and goodness. You can be helping families and you can be the catalyst for others to achieve their dreams. Within it all you can make money and do well for yourself and your own family. With that said, nobody ever suggested, at least nobody should ever have even intimated to you, that this business was easy. It is competitive, it is frustrating and it is exhausting. It is not for the faint of heart or those who are shorttempered. If you are one of those, don’t come near this work, you will blow a gasket. There are so many frustrations

Nobody said it would be easy within the industry, ranging from new commission structures to government demands and regulations. There are also the frustrations of dealing with customers who can be thoughtless and inconsiderate of your best efforts. There are customers out there who use salespeople as a novelty or a recreational activity without any thought to the fact that sales reps are deserving of consideration. They call up without notice to see a property and then when all manner of arrangements and inconvenience is taken to accommodate their wishes, they change their minds, sometimes without even telling the sales rep. There are people who present themselves as customers who have no intention of buying a home, yet have salespeople show them dozens of properties just for weekend outings. The worst are the customers for whom a sales rep spends hours researching properties, digging through files and showing listings, and then the client says, “We’ll get back to you” – only to turn around

and buy a property from another sales rep a couple of months later. Perhaps not a property the previous sales rep showed them, but still a property that was purchased after much knowledge and research was imparted to them by the first agent about a certain community or about the buying process. In this particular case, organized real estate has tried to help sales reps protect themselves from those people who take such thoughtless advantage of a sales rep. A Buyer Representation Agreement was created and sales reps were urged to ask their customers to sign that agreement to safeguard all the work they do. Anyone buying a home, regardless of what language they use, knows the value of that transaction. They must understand from the outset the weight of what a real estate professional does for them. The Buyer Representation Agreement acknowledges in writing that they do in fact understand that value. There was a story in the media recently about a buyer who

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worked with a sales rep and signed the Buyer Representation Agreement. This person subsequently bought a property with another sales rep. The first salesperson claimed compensation for the work he had done and was granted his commission through the courts. All of that seems right to me. However, a story about it ran on the CBC and a lot of other smaller blogs and print rags picked it up, rewriting it but still presenting it in the same negative light that the CBC created toward the sales rep who sued for his compensation. He was presented as a heartless schmuck. It seems that the client who lost the case in court is now challenged personally to pay the compensation. He claims he was tricked into signing the docu-

Good Works Continued from page 35

ments that last for weeks or months. It becomes costly for parents to be by their child’s side. Sutton Group - Preferred Realty in London recently helped out by purchasing the ingredients and cooking dinner for 70 guests at the Ronald McDonald House (RMH) in London. In 2015, they plan to prepare five more meals and raise funds for the cause. In early December, several salespeople from Sutton Preferred Realty, along with family and friends, pitched in to prepare a meal for 32 families. ■ ■ ■

Royal LePage Atlantic in Halifax recently presented more than $40,000 to the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. The brokerage raised funds through commission-based donations, sales meeting 50/50 draws, a bake sale auction, a successful golf tournament and participation in the National Garage Sale for Shelter. A presentation was made to Alice Housing at the brokerage’s annual kick-off meeting in early January. The organization provides safe second stage housing and supportive counselling to women and children leaving domestic abuse in Halifax. Some funds were also directed to Phoenix House. In recognition of Royal

ment because he did not speak the language. I feel bad for him truly and I wish there could have been another solution but it went all the way to court and that was the finding. I think there is more to the case than just the one side that was presented by the CBC and the Mickey Mouse blogs that re-ran the story. Justice was served for the sales rep who originally worked with this person, because he was protected by the Buyer Representative Agreement. That’s what it was for. Unfortunately this sales rep ended up looking bad, but he is not the only one. Everyone involved in this case lost, including the general public who badly need to be educated about the value of working with a real estate professional. Heino Molls is publisher of REM. Email heino@remonline.com. REM

LePage Atlantic’s ongoing and generous support, the foundation presented it with the 2014 Shelter Award for East Coast Office of the Year. ■ ■ ■

The YWCA Metro Vancouver operates eight “supportive communities” that provide housing, services and programs for women and their children escaping abusive homes. Sutton Group - West Coast Realty in Kerrisdale delivered a $1,000 donation to the YWCA’s Munroe House just before Christmas. “For mothers and children, it’s a safe place to stay,” says manager Ilan Heller. ■ ■ ■

Recently the Century 21 Movers and Shakers from Century 21 Blue Sky Region Realty in North Bay, Ont. were the Community Team Challenge winners at a walk/run event to raise funds for the local hospital. The brokerage took home the coveted Silver Bed Pan trophy. The team also won the Spirit Award, also known as the Silver Kidney Basin Award, which is awarded to the team that shows the most enthusiasm throughout the event. Decked out in top hats and gold blazers and making lots of noise with air horns, the team, led by broker Jean Jamieson, raised $9,000 for the cause. REM

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