Reporting of conditional sales

Existing rule:

Part I 1.01(t)

“Special Clause Sale” is a conditional sale that is subject to the Sale of Buyer’s Property.

New rule:

Part I 1.01(t) and Part III 1.01(gg)

“Time Clause” means a condition in a purchase contract that allows one party to a contract to provide the other written notice that the party has entered into another contract and the second party must remove all conditions within the specified timeframe or the contract will end.

Rationale:

Sales with a time clause are typically Sale of Buyer’s Property. However, there may be situations when a similarly structured condition is needed. This change extends the opportunity for sellers to continue to have their properties remain active to benefit from how buyer’s representatives set up property searches.

Best practice pointers:

Check to see if the conditions in the deal meet the definition of the Time Clause (E.g. Sale of Buyer’s Property).

Existing rule:

Part I 4.02(a)- Reporting of Sales

At the time of acceptance all conditional sales must be reported as Pending on the MLS^® System with the following exception:

i. A Special Clause Sale, which is not subject to Rule 4.02(a).

(1) Special Clause Sales can remain in Active status provided that the Seller has provided the Listing Brokerage with written instructions to maintain the listing as Active on the MLS^® System. This supersedes CREB^® Rule Part III 5(a).

(2) Disclosure of the existence of the special clause sale and the seller’s notice period must be included in the private remarks on the active MLS^® listing within two (2) business days of acceptance of the conditional sale.

Amendments to the rule:

Part I 4.02(a)- Reporting of Sales

At the time of acceptance all conditional sales must be reported as Pending on the MLS^® System with the following exception:

i. A Special Clause Sale with a Time Clause, which is not subject to Rule 4.02(a).

(1) Special Clause Sales A Sale with a Time Clause can remain in Active status provided that the Seller has provided the Listing Brokerage with written instructions to maintain the listing as Active on the MLS^® System. This supersedes CREB^® Rule Part III 5(a).

(2) Disclosure of the existence of the special clause Time Clause sale and the seller’s notice period must be included in the private remarks on the active MLS^® listing within two (2) business days of acceptance of the conditional sale.

Rationale:

Sales with a time clause have a different intention to seek additional offers during the condition period.

To honour this intention, members will continue to be able to keep conditionally sold properties with a Sale of Buyer’s Property or similarly structured condition as Active on the MLS^® System, with the seller’s written permission.

Members who leave Time Clause Sales in Active Status will still need to disclose, in the private remarks, that there’s a time clause condition and the notice period.

Pillar 9™ is working on a technical optimization to allow Time Clauses to remain Active. We’ll bring our members more information as we know more.

Best practice pointers:

• Active listings with a Time Clause sale are still subject to show rules in CREB^® Rule Part II 2.03(b).
  
  Examples of Private Remarks disclosures that DO meet the rule exception requirements:
  
  • Time Clause – 48 hours.
  • Subject to Sale of Buyer’s Property - 24 hours.
  • 12-hour time clause in place.
  • Conditional to buyer’s home selling - 24-hour clause.

  Examples of Private Remarks disclosures that do NOT meet the rule exception requirements:

  • Time Clause Sale.
  • Subject to Sale of Buyer’s Property.

Existing rule:

Part III 5(a) – Reporting of Pending Sales on the MLS^® System

Upon acceptance of a conditional offer, an MLS^® Listing must be reported Pending in the Board’s MLS^® System

Amendments to the rule:

Part III 5(a) – Reporting of Pending Conditional Sales on the MLS^® System

Upon acceptance of a conditional offer, an MLS^® Listing must be reported Pending in the Board’s MLS^® System. An MLS^® Listing that is subject to a Time Clause may be reported as Pending, or Active with a Time Clause as required by the Board’s MLS® System.

Respectful treatment of others

Existing rule:

Part II 2.01 – Mutual Respect

Mutual respect toward other Members, Board or AREA staff and the public is a requirement. Aggressive or abusive behavior or threats to personal safety will not be tolerated and is not in the professional image of a Member.

Amendments to the rule:

Part II 2.01 – Mutual Respect

Mutual respect toward other Members, Brokerage staff, Board staff, AREA staff and the public is a requirement. A breach of Mutual Respect is intentional conduct that the member knows or should have reasonably known would harm, humiliate, degrade, or publicly embarrass. Such conduct may take place in physical, or virtual environments, including but not limited to Aaggressive, or abusive, or threatening behaviour and is considered especially egregious in relationships involving an imbalance of power. Such behaviour or threats to personal safety will not be tolerated and is not in the professional image of a Member. (See also Article 16, 19, and 21 of the REALTOR^® Code)

Rationale:

The rule was updated to adjust how members engage with others to ensure respectful behaviour is expected in different environments.

Additionally, expanding the rules to clarify that REALTORS^® need to be mindful of their interactions to avoid bullying was crucial to reaffirm civility in the industry.

Best practice pointers:

Members should be aware of their demeanour, tone of voice, and body language in frustrating or uncomfortable situations. Stay focused on discussing/resolving the issue instead of using personal attacks.

If you’re writing a text or posting a comment to social media or other forum-style platforms, pause before sending/posting it. Consider how those remarks could impact other people as well as your reputation as a professional.

Public remarks on the MLS^® System

Existing rule:

Part III 2.02(d) – Three Pillars of the MLS^® System

All information in the general (public) remarks section of an MLS^® Listing on the Board’s MLS^® System must be property-specific. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, self-promotion and/or any contact information of the Listing Brokerage, listing REALTOR^® or Member, including but not limited to e-mail addresses, URLS (website addresses), virtual tour information and electronic links of any other kind, fax numbers or references to other "team members" or assistants is not permitted in the general (public) remarks section of an MLS^® Listing on the Board’s MLS^® System.

Amendments to the rule:

Part III 2.02(d) – Three Pillars of the MLS^® System

All information in the general (public) remarks section of an MLS^® Listing on the Board’s MLS^® System must be property-specific. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, it is not permitted to include any:

i. self-promotion or incentive and/or any

ii. contact information of the Listing Brokerage, listing REALTOR^®, or Member, or references to other “team members” or assistants;

iii.including but not limited to e-mail addresses, URLS (website addresses), virtual tour information and electronic links of any other kind, including but not limited to hashtags, @mentions and other social media handles. fax numbers or references to other "team members" or assistants is not permitted in the general (public) remarks section of an MLS^® Listing on the Board’s MLS^® System.

Rationale:

The public remarks are reserved for information about the property the buyer may purchase and should primarily be focused on the physical attributes and amenities.

CREB^® found members were unclear about what were and were not property-specific comments, and we saw an opportunity to provide more details so the rule could be better understood.

By restructuring this rule into subsections, members will be given more opportunities to learn how to adjust if they include a comment that is not considered property-specific.

By splitting different types of comments apart, we can provide more educational opportunities to members before escalating into fines.

Members will be re-starting at the Educational Advisory level if their public comments are misaligned with the amended rule.

Best practice pointers:

Property-specific comments refer to descriptions that explain the features of the property that will remain the same when the buyer takes possession (i.e., “south-facing yard” or “stainless steal appliances”). This is in contrast to comments related to the specific transaction, such as call “me,” call “us,” or “every showing is entered for a chance to win 123 Realty’s $5000 cash giveaway”, where the comment stops being relevant once the listing sells.

We know sometimes REALTORS^® have more information than what can/should be shared in the public remarks. If a listing agent needs to use a call to action, these comments should assist without violating the rule

• More information upon request
• Call your favourite REALTOR^® for more details
• Additional information can be found by visiting the listing brokerage website