Featured News
Register for our AGM, featuring renowned real estate speaker Rob Hahn
Don’t miss our virtual annual general meeting (AGM) on March 30 – click here to register now!
This free meeting is your chance to get the full picture on one of the most unique years your Board has faced from Chair Colette Gerber and CEO Brad Scott. And while there are no special resolutions for you to vote on this year, we’ve lined up one of North America's most sought after real estate speakers: Rob Hahn.
Who's Rob Hahn?
Rob is the founder and managing partner of 7DS Associates, a consulting firm specializing in creative solutions rooted in strategic analysis and data for the real estate industry. They cover corporate strategy, technology strategy, product development, marketing and communications, training and coaching, corporate finance, and more.
Rob’s presentation will look at life after the pandemic. Last year was a year of change, and the way the world adapted coincided with major developments in the real estate industry. Rob will discuss some of the biggest changes happening in the US and the likelihood that they’ll make their way to Canada, including:
- Tech adoption and its impact: teams, brokerages, iBuyers, oh my!
- Cooperation and compensation under attack.
- Asset bubble inflating?
Don’t miss Rob’s presentation – register for our free AGM today!
See more of Rob’s work
Read Rob’s popular blog, the Notorious ROB, where he opines on topics in real estate, technology, marketing, and strategy. You’ll also find his work at Inman.
Check out Rob’s presentation at the MLS® Executives Workshop from 2019 below:
Remember to stay vigilant and follow COVID-19 safety protocols
With new COVID-19 cases still averaging around 500 a day in BC, your Board continues to strongly encourage you to adhere to the provincial health and WorkSafeBC guidelines for the profession.
Here are the most up to date safety protocols:
- Guidelines for showings
- Guidelines for offices and Managing Brokers
- WorkSafeBC Real Estate Guidelines
“REALTORS® have been named an essential service in this pandemic. With this designation comes a responsibility to do everything we can to follow the safety protocols in place for real estate,” said REBGV Chair Colette Gerber. “We can’t relent. We must remain committed to stopping the spread of this virus for the wellbeing of our clients, ourselves, and the long-term good of our community and profession.”
The real estate boards and regulatory bodies in our province continue to urge you not to hold open houses and to limit in-person interactions. Where possible, use technology-based solutions for activities such as showcasing a home, assessing neighbourhood amenities, and completing paperwork.
While Realtors are still permitted to conduct home showings, you’re expected to wear a mask at all times, to limit the number of people inside a home at once to six or less, and to ensure that people aren’t gathering outside of a home.
Register for a new webinar on public trust
BCREA is offering a free two-hour interactive webinar on how REALTORS® can continue to safeguard public trust during the COVID-19 pandemic. You'll be able to claim two self-directed PDP hours by attending.
This webinar will give you the skills and confidence to better manage COVID-19 risks so you can preserve public trust in the profession and work within the safety guidelines for our profession. You'll also learn how to advise clients and colleagues more effectively on the shared risks everyone faces if they are perceived to disregard public health orders.
Panelists include former Board President Phil Moore and Real Estate Council of BC's Professional Standards Advisor Bruce McCoubrey, and will be moderated by Edelman's VP of Crisis and Risk Ari Indryk. Register for this free event here.
Regulators expand the use of administrative penalties
The Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate (OSRE) recently announced changes to expand the use of administrative penalties as a disciplinary tool to deal with rule violations within the profession. These changes took effect on February 1.
While these changes don't introduce new rules or requirements, they expand the number of rule violations that can result in an administrative penalty. They also increase the amount the regulators can charge.
These automatic fines will be imposed on real estate licensees for minor rule violations deemed to have caused little or no public harm. OSRE and Council believe this new approach will speed up the discipline process and allow Council to devote more investigative resources to the most serious infractions.
When OSRE first proposed these changes last year, your Board, along with BCREA and the other BC boards, sent this submission with our feedback and recommendations.
For more information on this change, you can review these links:
What we all can do to improve REALTOR® reputation
In his latest video, Ethics Guy® Kim Spencer discusses behaviour and attitudes necessary to improve our collective reputation with the public. In the fast pace of a busy market, like we’re seeing today, issues of ethics and professionalism become more visible to the public.
A big part of professionalism relates to treating colleagues and their clients with courtesy and respect. That means promptly returning phone calls and texts from other Realtors, providing complete information in your listings, and ensuring prospective home buyers have equal opportunities to view and make offers on your listings.
Watch the video below to hear from Kim about how we can work together to improve public perception of Realtors.
Kim's column from January 2019, republished below, also speaks to the importance of etiquette when dealing with clients and colleagues.
Did the experience match the expectation?
A while back the Board put a call out to new members to ask any questions they may have, and to experienced REALTORS® to share their advice. While trolling through the responses I noticed that etiquette was identified as a key component to success for all Realtors, whether new or experienced.
This isn’t a surprise, of course. As Realtors, we’re competing and collaborating with each other all the time. Good etiquette fosters respectful relationships. It’s much easier to work with someone you respect than with someone you don’t.
Members provided a lot of wisdom in their replies. Here are some of your responses to our question:
- Respect your colleagues’ relationship with their clients. Be sensitive about giving marketing materials with your name and brokerage logo all over them to someone else’s clients. If, for example, a buyer agent doesn’t have an open house feature sheet or Paragon print-out, you should offer one of yours but only offering it to the other Realtor directly, not to the buyers.
- While it can seem like we’re always at work, we should remember that we’re judged by how we present ourselves. While dressing professionally is a matter of opinion, it’s better to err on the side of dressing in business attire than to dress too casually and leave a potentially negative impression on the parties you need to put together a deal.
- One tip I’d like to share is directing buyers back to their Realtor when they inquire into one of my listings. When they’re working with a Realtor, I like to get in touch with their Realtor and give them a heads up that their client called about XYZ listing. It gives them an opportunity to reach out to their client and book an appointment, and I maintain a professional and courteous relationship with my colleagues. This builds trust for future negotiations.
Often mentioned as being a major concern was a lack of civility between members. It’s been said that “civility costs nothing, but means everything.”
- Why can’t we be civil to one another and also try and help each other out?
This member went on to say that he appreciates receiving prompt showing feedback from buyers’ agents, He also appreciates when a colleague shares a firm sale price with him, especially if it hasn’t yet been reported as being sold. He finished his post with a plea, asking his colleagues to please identify themselves and their brokerage when they meet in person or on the phone. It’s so very nice to know whom one is talking to!
A few others weighed in on the topic of basic courtesy:
- My biggest pet peeve is attitude. We’re both trying to get to the same goal here. Why are you bullying me? Aggression isn’t helping. Your client doesn’t think you’re a hero because you’re acting rude.
- I feel very irritated when I’ve confirmed a showing and am meeting the buyers and their agent at the property and then sit and cool my heels for 30 minutes or more before tracking down the Realtor only to find out the buyer has cancelled and the agent did not have the courtesy to call me!
- We all know it can be difficult to schedule times when you have many properties to show. Buyers may like one house and spend extra time, or they may hate a house and go through quickly. It happens to all of us. Please, if you are running early or late the courtesy of a phone call or a text is appreciated.
Finally, one member posted the ABCs of Realtor courtesy that we all would do well to remember:
- Always identify yourself and your company when meeting someone or leaving a message.
- Give me a business card (in person) so I know you’re a Realtor.
- Accept correction if something needs to be added to a contract to keep the deal together, or us Realtors out of trouble. For goodness sake’, accept the information graciously and thankfully. We need to work together to make our business work.
- Communication is paramount. I believe all Realtors should have their cell phone number on their listings, emails, and other correspondence. Often I’m told by real estate offices that a Realtor doesn’t allow their cell phone number to be given out. In this case, I must page the Realtor and wait for them to call me back (on their cell phone) at which time I record the number so I can call them easily if there are questions. This wastes time and is annoying. Being reachable by colleagues and clients is essential in our “new” marketplace.
The future of False Creek South Lands, and our updated tree bylaw matrix
Have your say on the future of False Creek South lands
The city of Vancouver is updating its plan for False Creek South, an 80-acre parcel of city-owned lands located between the Cambie and Burrard Street bridges. Have your say.
We’ve updated our municipal tree bylaw matrix
Can your client remove trees from her property? Is a permit required? At what cost? Each local government has its own bylaw or policy, permit requirements, and fees. Here’s a summary.
Register for one of our online events in February!
Register for one of our virtual member engagement events today - here are the details:
The Land Ownership Transparency Registry – what you need to know
The Land Owner Transparency Registry is a first-of-its-kind in Canada registry system designed by the provincial government to improve transparency and reveal beneficial ownership of property in BC.
Join us at 10:30 a.m. on February 16 for the first of multiple events about this new system and how it affects the way you do business.
REBGV’s Manager of Government Relations, Harriet Permut, will chat with real estate lawyer Bijan Ahmadian about:
- What the Land Owner Transparency Registry is;
- How it affects my day-to-day work; and
- What to expect when the registry opens for the public to search this April.
Circular Economy: Meeting the needs of eco-conscious clients
Deconstruction, rather than demolition, is an environmentally responsible and economically beneficial option for homeowners looking to rebuild or renovate.
Adam Corneil of Unbuilders & Heritage Lumber, and Suzanne Fruson of Habitat for Humanity, are promoting deconstruction through a City of Vancouver-sponsored project aimed at reducing the estimated four million tons of construction waste in Canada each year.
The project is in concert with new Vancouver bylaws that’ll affect more than 600 demolitions next year. Through deconstruction, heritage products can be salvaged, sold, and reused in new buildings and homes according to the project structure.
These bylaws will change building practices in the coming months and years. Ensure you’re on top of what’s changing and understand how to access the additional cash flow deconstruction offers and the renewable resources your clients can acquire.
At our event on February 17 at 10 a.m., you'll learn about:
- The ‘Circular Economy’
- Construction waste reduction bylaws
- What it means for renovations, demolitions, and other changes of land.
- How your clients can take advantage of available heritage products
- Restoring heritage homes and where the Rebuild Hub comes in
What REALTORS® need to know about radon
Join us on February 19 and get the full picture of the radon issue including advice you can share with your clients. Dr. Aaron Goodarzi, scientific lead of Evict Radon, and Dr. Noah Quastel of the Healthy Indoor Environments Program, will discuss:
- What radon is and why it's harmful
- How radon gets in homes and other buildings
- Radon testing
- How real estate professionals can better educate themselves and their clients about radon
COVID-19: Looking back and looking ahead with Dr. Patricia Daly
Join us on Wednesday, February 24 at 4 p.m. for an informative update on COVID-19, public health interventions, and the vaccine rollout with Dr. Patricia Daly, Chief Medical Health Officer, Vancouver Coastal Health.
Dr. Daly will discuss:
- An overview of the COVID-19 pandemic - where we’ve come from and where we’re going.
- Tips and advice all REALTORS® should know.
- Public health interventions, including their benefits and unintended harms.
- The vaccination rollout plan.
Other News
Review the latest disciplinary decisions
Stay on top of the work your Board does to uphold and enforce professional standards within the profession and resolve disputes between members.
Our Professional Conduct Committee (PCC) investigates alleged member breaches of the REALTOR® Code and our Rules of Cooperation. Click here to review the PCC’s latest ruling (C20-13).
REBGV’s arbitration and professional conduct committees need volunteers
Do you value ethics and professionalism? Do you take an interest in the REALTOR® Code and the Rules of Cooperation?
If you answered yes, please consider volunteering for our Arbitration or Professional Conduct Committee. Both committees are seeking members who are licensed as managing brokers.
The current committee terms end in April, and new volunteers are needed for May. This could be your opportunity to put your years of experience to use while helping promote and strengthen our profession.
The Arbitration Committee oversees and, when necessary, adjudicates all arbitration disputes between corporate members. The Professional Conduct Committee upholds and enforces the Board’s bylaws, regulations, Realtor Code, and Rules of Cooperation.
If you’d like to be considered for either of these committees, or for other volunteer opportunities, please visit our volunteer website and sign up.
Police continue to investigate threatening, lewd messages and images sent to female REALTORS® - what you need to know
We’ve now heard from over two dozen female Realtors across the province who have received lewd and threatening calls and texts from what appears to be the same individual.
The perpetrator is using aliases and spoofed phone numbers. He often begins conversations by saying his father is moving into a home and he wants to sell the house.
His fake numbers have included area codes: 236, 445, 831, 604, and 778. More recently, he’s been blocking his phone number completely, or using apps like FaceTime.
We’ve also heard reports of someone trying to schedule showings alone with female Realtors. This person is going by the names Steve, Alex, or Chad. We’re unsure if these cases are related.
What to do if you’re contacted
If this person contacts you, note the date and time of the call, the phone number if applicable, and other details that may help identify this person.
We’re working with the police to coordinate information about this case. If this person has contacted you, please file a report with your local police and email Mark Moldowan at mmoldowan@rebgv.org with the case number.
If you’re reporting to the Vancouver Police Department, quote file number 2021-4768. If you live outside Vancouver, let your local police know about the VPD investigation, quoting the same file number.
Safety tips for Realtors
- Always have another Realtor at your showing.
- Jot down your client’s car descriptions, license plate numbers, and physical descriptions.
- Trust your gut — if you sense someone is up to no good, cancel the appointment. Don’t meet with the person and stop communicating with them.
- Do whatever it takes to remove yourself from an uncomfortable situation.
- Always walk behind an attendee at a showing and show the house by directing, not leading, them.
- Notify someone in your office or a friend that you’ll call every hour on the hour when conducting a showing. If you don’t call, they should notify police.
Please stay safe out there.
In the media
We’ve been interviewed by multiple media outlets to inform as many people as possible about this situation.
Here is a selection of coverage:
- More than 2 dozen female real estate agents targeted by obscene calls and messages in B.C. (CBC)
- Female Realtors in the Lower Mainland receiving harassing phone calls, explicit texts (Surrey Now-Leader)
- 'Such a violating feeling': Disturbing calls and messages reported by multiple female realtors in B.C. (CTV News)
- Female realtors targets of harassment (Global News)
Take our personal safety course
We’ve developed a personal safety course for Realtors that covers various predatory behaviours, steps you can take to reduce the likelihood of getting into an unsafe situation, and how to protect yourself during an open house or when meeting a new client.
We'll offer the course on February 22 – click here to register today.
Obituary: Don Klassen
REALTOR® Don Klassen passed away in December. He was 79.
Don was born in Winnipeg and moved with his family to Vancouver when he was six months old (though he would often joke he moved his parents here). He was a teacher before becoming a Realtor and was first licensed with Crest Realty on the North Shore in 1972.
Over his career, Don worked for offices like Showcase Realty Plus, Sabre Realty Group, All Points Realty Group, and Prudential Sussex Realty to name a few. He was most recently with Royal LePage Sterling Realty, where he’d been since 2017.
Don had a gift for listening, which formed a baseline for the way he dealt with each of his clients and colleagues. By listening, Don heard what people were really trying to tell him, and that allowed him to connect with people in direct and meaningful ways. He was generous with his time and had a photographic memory.
These traits also turned one of his clients into a lifelong partner. After helping his client Patty find the home she was looking for, going on her description of her ideal home as something out of Knots Landing, they soon became romantically involved, marrying in 1989. Two years later, Patty Klassen received her real estate licence and they worked as a team from 1991 until his passing.
Outside of real estate, Don was an avid skier whether on water or down a snowy slope. He enjoyed the outdoors and going for long walks with Patty. He was also a family man who was caring, gentle, and kind.
He's survived by his wife and partner Patty; son Darren; daughters Silvana and Giovanna; grandchildren Sofie, Kaleb, Jeya, Ever, and Josie; and countless friends and associates. He will be missed terribly.
January 2021 stats resources to share with clients
As you’re all aware, the heightened demand we saw to close 2020 has carried into 2021. We have a variety of resources to help you educate your clients about today's market. Share our stats resources on your websites and social media channels:
- Click here for our January 2021 stats package.
- Click here to see our January 2021 market insights video.
- Click here to access January 2021 Stats Centre Reports.
Council raising licensing fees in April
The Real Estate Council of BC (Council) will increase their fee for a first-time or re-licensing application to $2,000 from $1,800 starting April 1, 2021. The fee to renew your license will increase to $1,650 from $1,450 on that date as well.
We asked members to send feedback to Council about its proposed fee increase late last year. We also worked with BCREA and the other BC boards to develop these recommendations to improve their services if the fees did increase.
You can read the consultation paper Council published when they began collecting feedback in December here.
REBGV’s 2021 member survey coming to your inbox next week
On Tuesday, February 16, you’ll receive an email from Alec Milne of Framework Partners asking you to complete our 2021 REBGV member survey. Please take some time to complete the survey when you receive it.
This survey is your opportunity to share your thoughts and satisfaction levels on the multitude of services, programs, and support we offer. Your feedback helps us determine how we can better serve you, or members.
You’ll also be eligible for gift cards and other prizes when you complete the survey.
We appreciate your feedback!