By Danny Kucharsky
CREA members in Quebec will continue to receive a dues credit for advertising for the next three years.
The credit reflects the fact that French-language TV and radio advertising promoting real estate in Quebec is no longer produced by CREA.
Approved at CREA’s recent annual general meeting (AGM) in Ottawa last month, the advertising credit is worth about $1.095 million in 2013, based on a $73 credit for each of the almost 15,000 CREA members in Quebec.
A permanent solution regarding the management of advertising money has been one of the demands of the Greater Montreal Real Estate Board, which has been threatening to leave CREA. The Montreal board, which has its own upcoming AGM, did not comment on its future within CREA.
CREA has also added what it says is its first à la carte service by entering into an agreement with DocuSign, which will provide the optional service to CREA members at a reduced rate. Members in Montreal and elsewhere have also been demanding additional à la carte services from CREA.
“This is the first service that we can actually say is a true à la carte,” says Pierre Leduc, who is in charge of media relations at CREA.
DocuSign is an electronic signature provider that helps agents and clients close deals faster by eliminating the hassles and costs of printing, faxing, scanning and driving around town to get signatures. It also lets agents see who has signed documents when, and stores the documents “in the cloud” for easy access by all signing parties.
The deal allows CREA members to access DocuSign services for about $90 less per year than if they use the service on their own. “It gives members who’ve signed on a bulletproof electronic trail,” Leduc says. “It’s an eSignature solution for CREA and its members.”
Leduc says the dues credit for the national advertising campaign reduces Quebec members’ CREA dues by almost 30 per cent from $246 to $173. However, “ultimately at the end of the line they (Quebec members) don’t see a difference,” since Quebec boards can in turn collect the credit from members to create Quebec-specific ad campaigns.
Leduc says the credit allows the Quebec boards to create “ad campaigns that work for them with the reality of the Quebec market.”
The advertising credit was first approved for one year in 2011 and then extended another year in 2012. Having the credit extended for three years provides the kinds of certainty Quebec boards are looking for, Leduc says.
Last year, the Montreal board decided to remain part of CREA until CREA finalizes its Futures Planning proposals. That decision came despite a vote of members in which 40.4 per cent voted to leave CREA, while 31.5 per cent decided to postpone and 28.2 per cent decided to stay with CREA.
Aside from the advertising dues credit and more à la carte services, the Montreal board called for a clear definition of the role and responsibilities of different real estate boards, an end to duplication between CREA and real estate boards and a review of what it deemed CREA’s “questionable expenses.” It also expressed concerns with CREA’s Futures project, particularly regarding intrusions to the Real Estate Brokerage Act and various legal disputes that are underway, such as Competition Bureau vs. Toronto Real Estate Board and a lawsuit from RealtySellers.
Leduc says CREA continues to examine governance in its Futures project. He also says that CREA’s budgeting process has been benchmarked with a number of national agencies, like the Canadian Medical Association.
