Talk of sovereignty is stirring on more than just the political front in Quebec with the federation representing the province?s 15,000 realtors threatening to pull out of the Canadian Real Estate Association.
The Quebec Federation of Real Estate Boards has indicated that it?s ready to separate from the national association, the lobby group for some 100,000 agents across Canada, at the end of this year.
At the same time, the head of the Montreal real estate board, which has been considering leaving CREA for the last two years, says it is stepping up its review of the pros and cons.
It even plans a referendum, of sorts: A meeting will be held for its 10,000 members in the next few weeks where CREA, which owns the online listings bulletin board, Realtor.ca, will be asked to state its case.
Montreal-area realtors will then vote online, likely in mid September, whether they want to go or stay.
The crux of the concern is CREA?s ?questionable? expenses and fees that continue to climb ? they are now up to about $300 per year per agent ? for services that are excessive, of no value or simply redundant for Quebec?s real estate agents, according to the Montreal board which has been lobbying to buy services a la carte instead.
Quebec realtors are the only ones in Canada who have their own online listings system, Centris.ca. Leaving CREA would allow provincial agents to access details on provincial properties but make it more onerous to access listings for the rest of the country.
The issue is causing considerable debate even outside Quebec as the market cools and realtors prepare for what could be a tough few years ahead. Agents can pay anywhere from $1,200 to $2,000 a year in fees between their local, provincial boards and CREA.
?We?ve been asking CREA for the last two years to find a way to reduce expenses,? says Diane Menard of the Montreal Real Estate Board. ?Everyone around the world is cutting back right now, but they don?t want to look at their expenses.?
CREA spends about $30 million per year as the lobby group for Canada?s 100,000 real estate agents, holding meetings in various parts of the country, doing national economic analysis and running Realtor.ca.
CREA?s annual realtor fees have jumped $90 just in the last two years because of technological advances to Realtor.ca, including development of new smart phone apps needed to keep agents competitive, says Wayne Moen, president of CREA.
The association also had to cover more than $1 million in legal fees from its failed battle with Ottawa?s competition bureau: The two sides reached a deal in 2010 (the Toronto Real Estate Board remains in the midst of a fight on a different but related issue) that opened up the MLS system to low-cost competitors.
CREA continues to talk to the Quebec federation and the Montreal board in hopes of avoiding a major exodus of Quebec agents. So far, just the 240-member Granby board has indicated it will pull out of CREA for certain at year?s end.
Article source: http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1240195--quebec-realtors-on-verge-of-separating-from-canadian-real-estate-association
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