The title of this letter is not only a play on words, but also a rather apt description of the Competition Bureau’s current agenda. It’s remarkable that the Competition Bureau wouldn’t dream of attacking either the legal or medical profession, but seems to think it’s fair game to try and dismantle the real estate profession. This action is grossly unfair and here’s why; lawyers have the courts as their working environment/arena/realm to do their business. Doctors have hospitals as their working environment/arena/realm to provide service to patients. We, as Realtors, have the MLS system as our working environment/arena/realm for clients. Each of these three professional environments has many rules, laws and legislation in place to protect members of the public. Retaining a lawyer to represent you in criminal court would involve your liberty, seeing a doctor pertains to health and hiring a Realtor is to protect the value of one’s security. I think most would agree that these are the three big issues when it comes to quality of life.
This is not a matter of commission rates or business models, but rather the Competition Bureau accusing Realtors of not providing enough scope or flexibility in the “bundle of services” one might select when using the MLS system. This is a sadly misguided and baseless argument. Under the Pillars of Agency there is currently a perfect balance of protection and representation for both sellers and buyers on the MLS system. The real estate industry has spent many years creating and structuring an environment/system that goes to the very heart of championing “consumer protection”. Over these last many years the government has watched over us closely to ensure that this remains consistent. Now, suddenly, one person heading up one department within the government is trying to make a name for herself by tearing at the very fabric of the system in place to protect the public.
If this “smear campaign” is successful, here is what will transpire: A broker, for some nominal flat fee, will allow a seller to list on MLS, with all inquiries, appointments and offers to be negotiated directly with the seller. Without the protection of an agency relationship in place for the seller, most buyer agents are going to do everything possible to get the best terms and conditions for their client. Most sellers will be ill-prepared for the aggressive campaign they have unwittingly invited. The odds dictate that, more than likely, many sellers will finally agree on a sales price considerably lower than the one they hoped to achieve. Ironically, the amount of money the seller will lose in this scenario will far exceed the difference in commission the Competition Bureau tried to save them by attacking the industry in the first place. So much for “consumer protection”.
The Competition Bureau would have people believe that the MLS system is a “monopoly”. Not true. The average consumer has, currently, any number of options when it comes to selling their property. They can sell privately using a For Sale By Owner service, post their property on any number of websites, employ a Realtor or even sell through their lawyer if they already have a buyer in mind. We, as a profession, are not simply trying to protect our paycheque, but rather are refusing to participate with an outside party’s attempt to undermine our professionalism as an industry.
The courts would strongly discourage someone who opted for defending themselves, with the presiding judge usually pointing out that, “he who is his own lawyer has a fool for a client”. A hospital would never allow an unlicensed person to perform an operation on a patient. Why should we, the Realtors of Canada, allow, or participate in, a diminishment of our work realm? The MLS system is in perfect balance now for all consumers concerned, with their rights being fully protected. This attack on our industry is unwarranted, unfair and should be recognized and investigated by another department of government for what it is, an arrogant abuse of power.
Michael Appleton
Salesperson
Sutton Group – Bayview Realty
Toronto
