Here are three common practice violations that CREB^®’s Member Practice team comes across, along with easy ways to avoid making them.

1. Using renderings of what a property could potentially be, but the plans and build are not included in the sale price.

CREB^® Rule Part I, 4.04(a) states: Images and videos on an MLS^® listing must represent the characteristics of the property that a purchaser will receive in the sale.

Practice advice: Only include photos or renderings that represent what is included in the list price. Images showing what the property could potentially become may be uploaded as supplements.

2. Sending unsolicited messages without proper permissions.

CREB^® Rule Part I, 5.01 states: 

a) Members are required to abide by all applicable laws and/or Rules and are solely responsible for all acts or omissions that occur under your electronic identity including the content of your transmission. 

b) By way of example and as a limitation, Members agree: 

i. Not to send Unsolicited Messages, chain letters, junk e-mail, Spam (goods and services provided by CREB^® are not considered spam) or other duplicative services offered by CREB^® (copies of Listings or open house notices are already available through the MLS^® System), to other Members unless they have the recipient’s permission, with the following exceptions:

1) The message being sent to another Member is only requesting permission to send more detailed and specific information.

2) Members seeking to fill an advertised vacancy for an elected role in organized real estate or the Real Estate Council of Alberta are permitted to send messages to notify other Members of their nomination and related details when campaigning to be elected to one of the aforementioned organizations. (Please see CREB^® Rule Part I, 5.04 for further member obligations.)
 
Practice advice: Ensure you have the necessary permissions before sending marketing emails. Doing your due diligence helps you stay compliant with CREB^® Rules, the REALTOR^® Code, and Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL).

3. Using board-supported tools (e.g., ShowingTime “Notify All”) to market events unrelated to the property itself  

CREB^® Rule Part I, 4.05 states: 

a) If Members use tools and systems supported by the Board, they must be used for the purposes for which they were designed.

i. Board-supported tools used to communicate or organize showing appointments must not create access restrictions beyond what is permitted by CREB^® Rule Part III 2.03(b).  

ii. Members may use the MLS^® Listing private remarks to communicate a seller’s showing schedule preference. 

Practice advice: When members opt in to ShowingTime notifications, they opt in to all notifications—there is no option to be selective. When a member from a brokerage selects "Notify All" a message will be sent to the entire brokerage team. Members can opt out of receiving notifications; however, this means opting out of all notifications.

Please be professional and property-specific when selecting “Notify All” in the ShowingTime tool to avoid potential rule violations.