With the recent buzz regarding the Competition Bureau alleging that CREA’s strict rules governing the MLS system makes it impossible for competitors to offer innovative services to consumers, I would like to note that there is competition in the current marketplace and it is innovative.

Canaterra.com is gaining listings across Canada from all segments of the market, whether that be Realtors, builders/developers, private sellers and rentals. Smaller regional sites serve their areas faithfully, and bigger companies like Property Guys and many other FSBO companies offer listings on their sites.

As for innovation, the fact that we are all competing with such a well established website as Realtor.ca drives us all to be more creative for our clients. So in essence, having MLS to compete with is what drives competition in this industry. I know here at Canaterra, we are on the technological cutting edge to compete, so we have developed an entire mobile marketing system, i.e. the better mousetrap.

So in the end, there IS competition and it IS innovative. There is no better way to spur innovation than to have strong competition. So keep MLS as is and the industry will thrive.

Karen Thompson

President and Founder

Canaterra.com