While Educational Advisories and fines are tools available to us when necessary, our role extends far beyond enforcement. We are committed to educating and advising members on practice standards, protecting the accuracy and integrity of MLS® listing data through audits and compliance reviews, and being available to answer questions and provide guidance on practice and compliance.
Summary offences
If a listing or activity doesn't align with CREB® Rules, the Member Practice team may issue a summary offence notice. For summary offences, a member's first offence is addressed through an Educational Advisory, while repetitive or unresolved issues may result in a second, third or subsequent notices.
From Jan. 1 to July 15, 2026, we issued:
• 1,007 Educational Advisories
• 105 second offences
• 18 third offences
• 2 fourth offences
• 3 fifth offences
The three most common MLS® rule violations were:
1. Virtual enhancement of photos: Remember, virtual staging is permitted, but virtual enhancement is not. Read Virtual staging vs. virtual enhancement: How to avoid misrepresenting a property.
2. Residential Measurement Standard (RMS) reporting: The most common RMS-related issues on the MLS® System are incomplete fields and simple data entry errors in the measurement fields. Take a few extra moments to review your listing for accuracy before publishing. Visit RECA's RMS webpage for guidance on accurately reporting property sizes, answers to FAQs and information on how measurements are determined.
3. Incorrect property location information: Correct location details help match MLS® listings with buyer search criteria. This includes
- Incorrect LINC numbers: Double check the title to ensure the LINC on the listing matches
- Using a temporary LINC when a permanent one exists: Temporary LINC numbers are only suitable in specific situations. For example, subdivisions submitted to the land titles office and in the process of title assignments.
- Entering an incorrect property address: This is more common if the property is entered on the listing as being inside city/town limits. For example, listing the property in Airdrie when it’s actually in Rural Rockyview County.
- Incorrectly mapping a property: Review the Listing Location in OnePlatform tutorial to learn more about how to correctly pin a property.
Our intention when issuing summary offence notices is first and foremost to educate. That’s why a member’s first offence is addressed through an Educational Advisory, which does not carry a fine. This approach reflects our commitment to supporting member success, promoting professional standards and maintaining the integrity of the shared MLS® System.
One of the best ways to avoid a summary offence is to check your listing using the REListCheck™ tool. If you receive an email that is raising a potential concern about one of your listings, you can proactively correct the listing before Member Practice becomes involved. Learn more about the REListCheck™ tool here.
Formal complaints
Some offences under CREB® Rules and The REALTOR® Code fall outside the summary offence process and are handled as formal complaints.
Member Practice facilitates member-to-member, CREB®-to-member and public-to-member complaints, as well as show-cause hearings. So far in 2026, we’re hearing an influx of concerns about entering a property without permission and conduct unbecoming. As a reminder, members can only access a property with permission.
If you're running late for a showing, don’t assume you can show the property outside the approved showing time, even if it’s just a little bit late - instead contact the listing agent to reschedule.
Have a pre-possession walk through clause for your buyer? Make sure to arrange access to the property through the listing agent before showing up or going in.
If you have questions about compliance or practice matters, contact the Member Practice team at advice@creb.ca.
{ 1 comments…}