Canadian Realtors have avoided an additional association fee after a proposed $75 per-member special assessment was voted down at the Canadian Real Estate Association’s annual general meeting in Ottawa on Apr. 8.
The fee had been intended to provide a substantial boost to CREA’s legal fund amid escalating litigation tied to ongoing commission-related lawsuits and a Competition Bureau investigation. CREA previously told members its legal costs surged substantially from $626,000 in 2023 to over $4-million in 2024—a nearly 540 per cent increase.
The vote was close, with 57 per cent of delegates voting against the assessment.
CREA’s response
In a statement, CREA spokesperson Pierre Leduc says, “The legal issues facing our industry are momentous: they are of national significance, high-profile, and often precedent-setting. As a result of today’s vote on the Legal Defence Program special assessment, CREA will now take the time to assess the impact of this outcome and adjust accordingly.”
Since its inception in 2006, CREA’s Legal Defence Program maintained a $2-million balance. The national association had intended to use the approximately $12-million that would have been generated from the levy to fund ongoing legal defence and increase the available balance in its legal fund to $10-million.
CREA had also proposed raising the new member initiation fee from $200 to $500 to replenish its contingency reserve fund. That motion—which passed narrowly with 51 per cent of delegates voting in favour—will take effect in June.
Industry reaction
Industry reactions to the vote were mixed. Brad Mitchell, CEO of the Alberta Real Estate Association, opposed the fee, arguing revenue should already cover legal expenses.
“CREA has a lot of resources, and ultimately, I think we saw in the defeat of the first motion a message from the membership that CREA already has the resources it needs to be successful,” Mitchell said shortly after the vote. “CREA has lots of opportunities, and they have a talented board of directors. I think they’ll figure it out.”
“Time to be bold—the membership is asking for it,’ says SRA CEO Chris Guerette
Saskatchewan Realtors Association CEO Chris Guerette supported the assessment, previously emphasizing unity during challenging times. “I would say the motion failing today is more a message to CREA than about the actual intent of this $75 levy—we are generally unified when it comes to properly defending this sector from litigation,” she tells Real Estate Magazine.
“While good fiscal progress has been made in the last year, the membership is sending a clear message that they want more from CREA’s performance,” Guerette adds. “In my opinion, this creates a nice landscape for CREA: they now have a clear political mandate to use this crisis as they see fit—innovate, cut and create large-scale efficiencies. Time to be bold—the membership is asking for it.”
Next steps
With the rejection of the special assessment, CREA may need to consider alternative strategies.
“The legal landscape has become more litigious, not just in Canada but across North America,” James Mabey, immediate past chair of CREA, told REM in a March interview. Mabey previously indicated CREA would need to explore other measures, potentially including increasing regular membership dues, underscoring the unpredictable nature of the current legal landscape.
In the meantime, CREA promises that “critical defence against the Sunderland and McFall litigation and the Competition Bureau investigation will continue.”
Jordana is the editor of Real Estate Magazine. You can reach her by email.
Looks like those in support of this increase are once again muzzled by TRREB. Face it, in Canada TRREB holds the power to influence decisions across this Country. Can you imagine that ? The inequality that currently exists in the Real Estate Profession in Ontario and Canada has to change if there is to be any significant progress. It is almost as though TRREB is paying people off to support anything they want to do.
Like OREA SHOULD BE DESOLVED.
AND TRREB has far to much power.
VOTES NEED TO BE BY REALTOS NOT BY BOARD OF DIRECTORS.
BUT GOOD LUCK WITH THAT.
CROOKED AND CORRUPT.
THEY NEED THEIR THERE POWERS TAKEN AWAY.
NO ONE GIVES A SHIT
Class action lawyers in Canada are only following the lead of their American counterparts. We should be paying close attention to the fact that not only are the number of class actions exploding in the States, but the causes of action are many and varied. The ultimate “fix” is to change our way of doing business.
Any Exclusive Buyer Brokerage should not advertise their business as being associated with the REALTOR brand. The legacy of seller only agency remains fully entrenched in everything the brand is still today.
I saw two articles. One about fees going up relating to errors and law suits. The second about care in square footage. I do believe in care in room sizes. That is important for furniture don’t over measure. That little alcove beside the door that gives the room 4 more feet of length is not going to hold anyone’s furniture. Do not add to the bedrooms length. Does the square footage need to an essential part of a listing. The layout of a home itself is more important. A huge entrance with a cathedral ceiling of no value. Will sell a house for the airspace. A homes layout smaller may be over looked because of a number on a page, but be perfect for a client. I believe square footage is something that people like as ego booster. If they like the house don’t look at numbers.
The absurdity of this discussion and CREA itself is beyond belief?
The Average Commission included in the purchase price of a home across Canada last year was around $32,000 plus HST.
The Commission charged on the Commission included in the purchase price of a home was $1400. Yes folks you charge Commission on the Commission and if the Competition Bureau clues in look out.
So realtors charge $1400 of Commission on Commission but can’t afford $75 to ensure they can keep charging this as they have done for over 70 years?
CREA and the REALTOR brand are worthless trademarks today as their history when exposed make them virtually unrecoverable assets. When the brand represents a membership where the Median member will not trade 6 homes in their entire membership career is not a brand anyone should even consider running the family business under.
TRREB members handle less than 15% of transaction sides realtors accounted for across Canada in 2024 yet it has 100% power over the business lives the remaining 85% of transaction side members.
TRREB’s non-REALTOR staff has worked tirelessly for decades to take control away from Ontario REALTORs and put in the hands of TRREB’s non-realtor staff who has ZERO experience working it’s own mls system.
Why does RE/MAX and Lepage allow TRREB to control their own brands licensees destiny?
What’s next DiMichelle or Mercer are qualified to speak about the market when TRREB has ensured their membership violates TRESA if they open their own mouths and speak about the market on BNN?
Do you really believe Jason Mercer has even the remotest understanding of why the SNLR was created, was created in the way it was and what it was NEVER intended to be used for? Lets not talk about changing Purchase Price to Sales Price, DOM, SP/LP ratio all statistics any lawyer being informed of their design and intent can launch even more massive class action lawsuits.
Imagine the incompetence required to be unable to sell a simple $75 charge to protect your own business from being wiped out by lawsuits?
Absurd!
Maybe if they stop changing our systems with things that are not tested and full of glitches this would not happen as much… We had a simple system that worked and now it’s full of errors and items that are no longer available. I’m sure more changes are coming and we will have no say on any of them again.
Having served both locally and provincially, I find it difficult to understand why members across the country would not realize the necessity of this move. With it being such a very close vote, it makes me realize the need for more communication, not only from Crea, but also from our MLS.
CREA, all of ORE, arguably have more than enough resources. Except for CRA inaction at enforcing the Income Tax Act those assets would be near zero. In that event an assessment of members to fund the extraordinary expenses that DO OCCUR, would be the way. Instead we are told to fear the future, fund it now. ORE has an ability to institute assessment systems into its bylaws, with its requisite requirement that justification for fees be self evident rather than imagined or predicted.
Great quote – “more a message to CREA than about the actual intent of this $75 levy”
Can’t log in as my email has changed, and can’t reset the password as my old email is invalid. I can’t sign up anew, as the little box says “verify you are human” but does not provide a method to do so. So, for now, I comment as a guest.
I really dislike the verbous explanations that accompany many stories. Sometimes, answers can be simple and effective. Lawsuits around commission? Rewrite the rules so they are painfully clear to the most vapid readers.
Are square footage calculations causing distress? Simply put out a guide, showing a basic layout, with or without cubbies and tiny alcoves and shoe EXACTLy how rooms should be measured. You can bet that a builder would count that 2×3 ft. useless area as part of the TOTAL square footage area. It really isn’t that complicated.
There is much trepidation around who is paying the cooperative commission (not among agents but more among lawyers trying to keep busy). Consider inserting a line that states, “The purchase price includes the cost of commission plus hst that is paid to the listing and cooperating brokerage but does not include fees, taxes or legal costs other than the commission plus hst as noted. Purchasers are responsible for all legal fees, local taxes and improvement fees, land transfer taxes, community surcharges or fees, land lease fees or other fees that may be associated with this purchase” or something similar. This may be more effective than paying millions in legal fees.
Curious – how did BCREA vote on the $75 assessment? I believe this assessment was needed.
I don’t know what BCREA voted but Alberta voted against it because we did the math on how much money CREA has and how much it already generates from Membership fees. CREA still has enough money to operate and defend members. CREA’s revenue has risen by over 24% since 2020 yet its NON-LEGAL expenses have grown at a significantly higher rate. What wasn’t apparent in most of the materials sent out by CREA was the resources they do have and how they are utilized.
It is so disappointing that except one board no one has power to do anything. The BIG Board decides who gets elected on OREA and CREA. Maybe this is time to dissolve all the associations and start new. One member one VOTE and then let’s see what would happen. So tired of organized real estate as it is member’s money they are using. OREA sitting on 100 million dollars and THE BIGGEST BOARD probably even more. Nothing will ever change if the same people keep running the show. Would love to know how there was no other qualified person in all of Canada who could be the CO- CEO of TRREB. Well I guess they want to control the whole real estate industry and they are doing it. Before you know TRREB could be running all of CANADA oh who am I kidding they are already doing it, Members have no POWER.
I attended the AGM and can say that while the vote was close, the majority of the boards supported the motion.
The defeat of the initial motion was not a “message from the membership,” as quoted in the article. Instead, it was a message from three or four boards whose empire-building interests do not align with the rest of the country or their members. If these boards are not supporting their members, who exactly are they supporting?
While several boards spoke in support of the assessment, none who voted against it explained their opposition. Instead, they resorted to backroom maneuvering to force their agenda.
I was at the the AGM too. Many boards voted against. It was not only 3 or 4 boards. There were many discussions with CREA beforehand and there was no hidden agenda that I was aware of. Consider that the vote failed because CREA needs to revisit its budgeting and spending processes. it never ceases to amaze me the conspiracy theories bandied about.
Rather than charging members more, CREA could simply reduce non essential items in their budget such as advertising or travel, or why CREA intentionally ran a significant deficit in 2023? We heard no reasonable answers. CREA made a recommendation to the assembly, it was rejected. Nothing more nothing less.