april 2015 (update)

Leave it to the local sales reps, urges broker Page 4

5 key points about buyer representation agreementsPage 35

Putting the salesperson first a winning formulaPage 3

Leave it to the local sales reps, urges broker Page 4

5 key points about buyer representation agreementsPage 35

Putting the salesperson first a winning formulaPage 3

Issue #310 April 2015Issue #310 April 2015

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REM APRIL 2015 3

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

The three agents who worked together, liked each other and decided to start a business that would put salespeople first are celebrating 30 years in business together doing just that.

Re/Max Performance Realty, started by brokers/owners Don McDougall, Dwain Johnson and Arvind Nair, serves the Surrey, North Delta, Cloverdale, White Rock and Langley, B.C. markets.

“We decided 30 years ago to put the salesperson first in every decision. That’s where

the notion to go into business together came from,” Johnson says.

At that time, Re/Max was just appearing as a franchise. The company was eager to talk to the trio about becoming the first franchise in B.C., Johnson says. “We liked them. They cater to professional agents who are established in the marketplace who work hard to do better.”

The trio were lucky enough to attract good agents right from the start.

“We were well known in the community. We were careful and

accepted those who were honest and had high ethical standards, something we’ve maintained for 30 years,” says Johnson.

In the first year there were a dozen agents, in the second year 30, and now the office has 60 agents. The trio has always made a conscious effort to keep their numbers manageable.

“We’ve been fairly consistent over the last 25 years. It’s a stable environment with a low rate of turnover. We still insist on good agents who work hard for their clients,” says Johnson.

In the beginning they worked

from a couple of thousand square feet but have grown to a 10,000-sq.-ft. office now. “We cater to a standard of agent who likes to have space – a desk, computers and assistants in a professional business office-type environment.”

One of the biggest changes is the amount of training available now. The office has a mentorship program and third-party training offering particular skill sets, he says. “When we started we didn’t have the time or resources to train. Now many want professional training right out of the gate.”

The 66-year-old Johnson says to keep abreast of the quantum leap in technology, the office makes every effort to ensure equipment is leading edge and to provide top-notch support staff focused on technology. Technology tends to flatten the playing field, but agents can’t hide behind it. Professionalism and education still matter, he says. Twenty per cent of Re/Max Performance’s agents were medallion top producers in 2013.

“We retain agents by loving them a lot and helping them

24/7. Our agents know they can call Don, Arvind or Dwain and their concerns will be taken care of, even on the weekends and at night,” Johnson says.

Agents also look after each other on a personal level, supporting colleagues who have family or medical issues. “The team effort goes a long way to foster friendship and loyalty,” he says.

A number of Re/Max Performance professionals volunteer on real estate board committees, one as a director and others working on education, MLS and public relations committees. Agents are also involved in charities including the Rotary Club, the Heart and Stroke foundation, the Children’s Miracle Network and toy and blanket drives.

As for the future, there are no retirement plans in the works. “It’s not in our nature to play golf,” Johnson says. “We’re engaged in the community and will continue to support professional standards and keep agents abreast of technology.”

Here’s to another 30 and beyond. REM

A new chapter of The Asian Real Estate Association of

America (AREAA) launched in Toronto recently.

Founded in 2003, AAREA is a professional trade organization “dedicated to promoting sustainable ownership opportunities in Asian American communities by creating a powerful national voice for the housing and real estate professionals that serve this dynamic market,” says the association. Toronto is the second Canadian chapter – there has been an active Vancouver chapter for several years.

Cynthia Lai of Global Link Realty Group is the inaugural president of the Toronto

Chapter. Garry Bhaura of Century 21 President Realty and Richard Silver of Sotheby’s International Realty are vice-presidents.

The association says Toronto has a long history of cultural diversity in terms of immigration but has been experiencing “a meteoric rise on the international real estate scene, particularly with investors from Asia. Asian investors… are seeking to diversify their holdings by funneling capital into Greater Toronto real estate.”

The new group is comprised

of Realtors, lenders, financial planners, builders and developers. Membership includes housing and real estate professionals of all cultural backgrounds and is open to those who support the mission of increasing sustainable homeownership in the Asian community, the association says.

AREAA Greater Toronto members will be attending the 2015 Global & Luxury Summit in Chicago from April 19-21 to promote Toronto. For information: http://www.areaa.org/blog/2015-globalluxury-summit/ REM

Putting the salesperson first a winning formula

AREAA launches Toronto chapter

Re/Max Performance Realty celebrates 30 years of service By Connie Adair

Celebrating 30 years, from left: Dwain Johnson; Roy Anderson, assistant regional director, Re/Max of Western Canada; Don McDougall and Arvind Nair.

Celebrating the inaugural meeting of the AREAA Greater Toronto Chapter is the organizations’ Board of Directors. From left: Winson Chan, Garry Bhaura, Emily Wang, Cynthia Lai, Linda Chu, Richard Silver, Kirby Chan, Shirley Yee and Karrie-Ann Sheppard. Not present when the photo was taken: Azizali Kanji.

4 REM APRIL 2015

ou can’t stick your headout from under the bed-covers without hearing

about globalization these days.The media rarely misses an oppor-tunity to hammer home the pointthat due to technology, the worldis shrinking and economies every-where are increasingly intercon-nected.

Real estate broker of recordMarian deWever in Stratford,Ont. gets that. Although she’saware that not everyone will agreewith her, she strongly believesthat despite the global economy,real estate should remain a localbusiness.

“A variety of things contributeto value that Realtors cannot pos-sibly know without being an arearesident,” even if they do onlineresearch, she says. These canrange from the various intricaciesof understanding which neigh-bourhoods and school districts aredesirable and where the bound-aries of these lie, to in-depthknowledge of licensing, zoning,recreational facilities, parkingrequirements, pricing, history andcrime rate.

Every community is unique,and when agents from far-flungmunicipalities who know little ornothing about an area representclients moving there, they dothem a disservice, deWever says.

This goes on everywhere, shesays, not just in pretty Stratford,the hometown she shares withteen heartthrob Justin Bieber.(“He’s here a fair bit,” she says, forthe benefit of any REM-readingBeliebers. “He still has highschool buddies in Stratford and hecomes and chills.”)

deWever, who has been in realestate for 26 years, is with Home& Company Real Estate, a bou-tique-style operation. In herobservation, “There’s an influx ofpeople purchasing in Stratfordfrom larger destinations, such asToronto.”

Gwen Kirkpatrick, EO of theHuron Perth Association ofRealtors (HPAR), which includesStratford and surrounding towns

Leave it to the local sales reps, urges brokerDespite the global economy, real estate should remain a local business, says Stratford, Ont. broker MariandeWever By Susan Doran

such as St. Marys, agrees that likemany areas, theirs has started “toexperience more inter-board list-ings,” particularly in the past cou-ple of years.

While questioning whetheragents from outside the area –some even from outside theprovince (which complicatesinsurance and liability issues) –are able to represent their buyersproperly, the association’s mainconcern in this regard is the sig-nificantly increased workload itfaces as a result of processing theadded listings.

To help with this, someregions in Ontario now haveplans to pool their data, “mergingthe databases of various nearbycommunities,” Kirkpatrick says.HPAR has not jumped on to thattrain yet, “but we will see,” shesays.

There are many reasons acommunity becomes a draw tooutside buyers…the fact that it isJustin Bieber’s birthplace not nec-essarily among them. Stratford,besides having a reputation as oneof Canada’s loveliest cities andbeing home to the StratfordFestival, is far more affordablethan Toronto and some othernearby municipalities, deWeversays.

“Stratford has become a retire-ment destination,” she says.People buy second and invest-ment properties in Stratford too,she adds, with one common usagebeing conversion to B&Bs. Onefairly common problem deWeverhas witnessed with out-of-areaagents is that, not knowingStratford’s zoning and licensingrequirements, they can wind upselling properties to aspiring B&Bowners that do not qualify or meetthe requirements once all is saidand done.

Open houses by outside agentsare another issue.

“We’re unique in Stratford inthat all real estate offices areclosed on Sundays, so open hous-es are on Saturdays instead,” saysdeWever. “But outside Realtorswill have an open house onSunday because they don’t knowthe market. I’ll see the signs – it’sjust comical. Everyone else wasout the day before. How is that inthe best interests of clients?”

Similarly, outside real estateagents representing clients in var-ious other communities may beunfamiliar or out of their depthdealing with issues such as soilerosion, Aboriginal land claimsand so on. (The same goes for out-side appraisers – they may not be

able to decipher comparablesproperly since they don’t knowthe market, deWever says.)

“We’ll see Toronto Realtorswith their buyer clients (sellerstoo, but less often),” saysdeWever. “The practical solutionis for outside Realtors to under-stand that it is not in their clients’best interests. Instead they shouldset up a referral network. Or ifthey are not comfortable handingoff the client, they can come withthem and work with us on a refer-ral basis – let us be involved.”

She suggests that some goodplaces to find salespeople to referto clients include conferences,real estate Facebook groups forthe target area and Realtor.ca.

Something to keep in mind,she says, is that referrals are oftenreciprocated.

Many agents argue that noone likes to lose clients and thatselling out of area has worked wellfor them. But deWever feels it’snot worth the possible conse-quences of being unfamiliar withthe local market and having thatbackfire. There is also the matterof time effectiveness, as hours ofdriving to and fro may beinvolved, she says.

In her opinion, “You are farbetter to build a referral networkof like-minded Realtors ratherthan take the liability” and wastedeffort.

Regina Dutt of KellerWilliams Black Diamond Realtyin Burnaby, B.C., concurs.“Absolutely I have a referral net-work,” Dutt says. “I would rathersend a client to a specialist in an

area than fake it.” Local sales reps, knowing the

area, are able to be passionateabout it and to provide a history“that is not off the Internet,” Duttadds.

Ron Stuart, partner withHarbourside Realty in Halifax,says referrals are typically 25 percent. But he says, like most otheraspects of real estate, referrals canbe negotiable and competitive.“Some agents have a focus onincoming referrals and offer apremium to get the business,” hesays.

Mere postings, disliked bymany in real estate, are worthmentioning here.

Stuart says that he has knownsales reps who “make a business ofco-ordinating with an unlicensedonline advertising company toobtain mere posting listings inmany if not all jurisdictions acrossCanada. With mere postings theycan avoid agency duties. Thehomeowner receives little or nopricing guidance.”

On the other hand, a sales repoperating under agency dutieswould generally have a duty to atleast examine the property, pro-vide pricing guidance and informhimself firsthand of the property’scondition, Stuart says.

The Real Estate Council ofOntario (RECO) makes it clearthat sales reps need to have rea-sonable knowledge of what theyare dealing with. deWever andothers argue that this is often notpossible for agents from out of thearea, thus compromising theirtransactions with clients. REM

Y

Marian deWever Regina Dutt

Many agents argue that noone likes to lose clients andthat selling out of area has

worked well for them. But deWever feels it’s not

worth the possible consequences of being

unfamiliar with the local market and

having that backfire.

6 REM APRIL 2015

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EditorJIM ADAIR

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REALTOR® and REALTORS® are trademarks controlled in Canada by The Canadian Real Estate Association(CREA) and identify licensed real estate practitioners who are members of CREA. MLS® and Multiple ListingService® are trademarks owned by CREA and identify the services rendered by members of CREA.

REM is published 12 times a year. It is an independently owned and operated company and is not affiliated with anyreal estate association, board or company. REM is distributed across Canada by leading real estate boards and by directdelivery in selected areas. For subscription information, email [email protected]. Entire contents copyright2015 REM. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher is pro-hibited. The opinions expressed in REM are not necessarily those of the publisher.

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Cover photo: DARREN HULL Pr

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Gary Emde Norm Fisher Kevin Ogle

Rosemary Barnes Hannon Bell’s ad celebrating the flag’s anniversary.

Multiple ListingsDo you have news to share with Canada’s real estate community?Let REM know about it! Email: [email protected]

By Jim Adair, REM Editor

that the majority of Canadians areadjusting to years-long wagefreezes. It just doesn’t add up.”

■ ■ ■

The Board of Directors of theReal Estate Errors and OmissionsInsurance Corporation has electedRosemary Barnes as chair of theboard.

Barnes is an associate brokerwith Park Georgia Realty inCoquitlam, B.C. and has beenactive in the real estate industry forover 38 years. She is a past-presi-dent of both the Real Estate Boardof Greater Vancouver and the B.C.Real Estate Association. She isalso a past director of CREA and apast chair of the Real EstateCouncil of B.C.

ary Emde and NormFisher have acquiredHallmark Realty in

Saskatoon. The brokerage willoperate as Royal LePage Hallmark.

Hallmark Realty is the No. 1independent brokerage in theSaskatoon market and the largestindependent in Saskatchewan.Former owners Don McIvor andColleen McDonald will continueto manage the business.

The move adds 80 sales profes-sionals to the Royal LePage sales-force in Saskatoon, bringing itstotal to more than 130, andincreases its market share to almost22 per cent in Saskatoon, the com-pany says.

■ ■ ■

Toronto real estate brokerageTheRedPin.com says it is “set tofix” a “centuries old businessmodel…with a new program thatsignificantly challenges industrynorms by shifting 50 per cent oftheir sales commissions back toconsumers.”

If a seller lists their home withTheRedPin.com and at the sametime engages them to buy a newhome, the brokerage will rebate itshalf of the listing commission uponsuccessful closing of the new home.

“This isn’t going to make uspopular with our colleagues, butour accountability is to our clients,not the industry,” says TarikGidamy, co-founder and broker ofrecord.

“Based on consistently risingproperty prices, Toronto Realtorshave essentially seen their incomesincrease by a whopping average of21.9 per cent over the past threeyears. In contrast, our survey shows

G

undergone a major transformation,with upscale high-tech officeremodeling, new technology andinnovative compensation pack-ages for their sales staff, the compa-ny says. It is a family owned andoperated brokerage, founded inPeterborough in 1956, with officesthroughout south central Ontarioin Apsley, Bancroft, Haliburton,Harrowsmith, Huntsville,Lakefield, Lindsay, Norwood,Omemee, Peterborough, Westportand Wilberforce.

■ ■ ■

In November, Winnipeg salesrep Hannon Bell of Royal LePagePrime Real Estate says he heardMP Kevin Lamoureau “bemoanthe fact that the upcoming date ofFebruary 15 was approaching andnothing was being done to cele-brate the 50th birthday of theCanadian Flag. As I know bothKevin and former Liberal leader ofManitoba Jon Gerrard, this pulledat my heart strings as I rememberedthe flag’s debut as a high schooler.”

Bell says he decided to dosomething novel to mark the occa-

Real Estate Errors andOmissions Insurance Corporationwas established in 1988. It providesmandatory errors and omissionsinsurance to real estate licensees inB.C.

■ ■ ■

Bowes & Cocks Limited inPeterborough, Ont. was recentlyawarded affiliate status in LeadingReal Estate Companies of theWorld (LeadingRE) and its luxurynetwork, Luxury PortfolioInternational.

“In addition to our local expo-sure, we now have a global plat-form for marketing our properties,”says Bill Cocks, broker of record/president.

Bowes & Cocks has recently

sion and the result was an ad thatappeared in the Winnipeg RealEstate News.

“I sent the ad to both Jon andKevin and they were verytouched,” says Bell. “In real estateit’s always wise to think outside thebox.”

■ ■ ■

Avison Young has acquiredCalgary-based real estate manage-ment company Peregrin Inc. Thepurchase adds approximately onemillion square feet of propertyunder management to AvisonYoung’s global portfolio. As aresult of the acquisition, AvisonYoung adds 12 employees inCalgary.

Peregrin founder, presidentand CEO Kevin Ogle is now aprincipal of Avison Young. Hewill direct the firm’s real estatemanagement business units inCalgary and Edmonton and beresponsible for expanding theirrelated business lines throughoutAlberta.

Also joining Avison Youngfrom Peregrin are CharlesNorthup, Jordan Haber, JoeNosella, Janelle Rowat, TerryElliott, Veruska Predan, AdeanaBohnet, Bentley Heintz, ClarissaD’Castro, Gilles Gilbert andChadi Ellahib.

■ ■ ■

Century 21 Canada recentlyadded six master coaches to its PEPeducational program.

“Almost all programs focus onteaching – PEP doesn’t. It’s allabout action,” says Kevin Stanley,the company’s director of knowl-edge and learning. “The instructorshave been there, they’ve foundwhat really works. Agents applyinstant, proven tactics while theywork, so they watch the resultshappen.”

The coaches joining Stanleyare Matthew Ferrera, RichardRobbins, Chris Leader, DebbieCooke and Eryn Richardson.

REM

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choice of exclusive Home Inspection Packages

e&O insurance to protect the referring agent

report delivered on site at the time of inspection

uring cold weather,there’s nothing morecomfortable than radiant

heating, especially when it’sinstalled in your flooring or used forhigh-end treats like heated towelracks. However, if you’ve used aproduct known as Kitec in theinstallation of the radiant heat,some insurance companies won’tinsure your home. The product hasbeen plagued with failing fittingsand disintegrating pipes. Theinsurance issue turned up in ahouse inspection recently andcaught everyone by surprise.

Is this the new UFFI? It seemsthat the plumbers who originallyinstalled Kitec have come tobelieve that if you have Kitec inyour home, it will eventually causea problem – not maybe but defi-nitely.

If you have radiant heating inyour house that is water-heated andwas installed between 1995 and2007, call your plumber and havehim certify that no Kitec was used.If you do find Kitec, the best thing

you can do is replace it right awayand join in the class action lawsuitat www.kitecsettlement.com to getsome money to help the remedia-tion.

Sold between 1995 and 2007,Kitec is a piping system that wasused both for carrying waterthroughout a home and supplyingwater to radiant heating systems.The Kitec system used brass fittingsas well as blue and orange flexiblepiping, which was made from amixture of polyurethane and alu-minum. This system was initiallythought to be a superior product tocopper piping because the Kitecpipes are more flexible, easier toinstall and less expensive than cop-per. In fact, many plumbers pushedfor the use of Kitec over copperpiping before it became apparentthat the product was faulty.

If you bought a home and dis-covered that it has Kitec in it, youmay have trouble getting yourhome insured – it all depends onyour insurance company.According to a 2013 article fromthe Nova Scotia Association ofRealtors, “Insurance companiesassess risks based on their ownclaims experience, and some larg-er companies have not hadenough bad experiences withKitec to deny insurance. Somecompanies are denying insurance,however, most likely because theyare not relying solely on their ownclaims experience, but avoidingall possible risks.”

Even if you haven’t beendenied home insurance because ofthe product, you should still be ableto receive compensation frommanufacturer IPEX in order to helpyou replace the Kitec.

In 2011, three class action law-suits – one in the U.S., one inQuebec and one covering the restof Canada – were brought againstIPEX on behalf on anyone whoowns or had previously owned ahome with Kitec in it. In 2012, allparties reached a settlement inwhich IPEX was forced to create anaccount of US$125 million inorder to compensate the claimants.

The settlement became effec-tive as of Jan. 9, 2012, and thedeadline for filing a claim againstIPEX is Jan. 9, 2020, so if youbelieve you deserve compensation,be sure to visit www.kitecsettle-ment.com to see if you are eligibleand to find out how to make aclaim.

Richard Silver, a salesperson atSotheby’s International RealtyCanada in Toronto is designated as anABR, e-PRO and a CIPS. A direc-tor-at-large for CREA, he also sits ontwo committees at the NationalAssociation of Realtors in the U.S.and he is vice-president of the Torontochapter of AREAA. He often speaksand writes about the use of technologyin real estate as well as the interna-tional real estate market. Connectwith him on Google+, Twitter orFacebook. REM

luxury home fashionedafter the Palace ofVersailles and on 2.4 acres

in the upscale Bridle Path area ofToronto, will be sold at auction onApril 16 through New York City-based firm Concierge Auctions.The property is currently listed for$13.98 million and will be soldduring a live auction in co-opera-tion with Barry Cohen, broker ofthe Barry Cohen Group at Re/MaxRealtron.

The home at 40 Park LaneCircle, also known as the BridlePath Estate, has 27,000 square feetof living space and is ready for fin-ishing touches, says ConciergeAuctions in a news release.

“This is a rare opportunity toown one of most outstanding prop-erties in the Greater Toronto Areafor your own bid price,” Cohensays. “Luxury auctions are makingan impact as the best and mosteffective alternative to the tradi-tional sales process. This has clear-ly caught on in the States. Weexpect a wonderful turnout on auc-tion day for what can only bedescribed as a one-of-a-kindhome.”

Recently redesigned by archi-tect Jacques Dinel of Dinel Design,with influences by Louis XIV andthe Palladian styles of Europe,Bridle Path Estate makes a stun-ning first impression, the companysays. Its exterior features custom-designed cartouches, friezes,emblems, two-storey flutedpilasters with projectingCorinthian capitals, ornate brack-ets and laurel leaf corbels.Elaborate rosette coffers adorn the

front portico ceiling and 30-foot-tall Corinthian columns supportthe canopy.

The home has eight bedrooms,14 bathrooms and a grand ball-room. Its master bedroom featuresdouble doors flanked by two Ioniancolumns, a fireplace, an elegantplaster ceiling and french doors toa private balcony, while the masterbathroom includes heated onyxfloors, roughed-in steam showersand a sunken Ultra whirlpool tubwith a marble surround. The addi-tional bedrooms, lower guest suite,nanny quarters and separateabove-grade in-law suite (includ-ing living room, kitchen and provi-sions for a five-piece bathroom), allboast luxurious amenities includ-ing walk-in closets, fireplaces andornate architectural adornments.

There is an office suite with atwo-sided fireplace and separateboard room – ideal for businessmeetings – in addition to a billiardsroom, a theatre and an indoorswimming pool. Outdoor ameni-ties include an Olympic-size swim-ming pool and a tennis court.

Laura Brady, president ofConcierge Auctions, says;“Toronto is a strong market, and,ranked by the Census as one of themost affluent neighbourhoods inCanada, the Bridle Path commu-nity is a crown jewel. We look for-ward to finding a new owner tomake it ‘home’.”

The auction will be held liveon April 16. The property will beopen 1 to 4 pm daily and byappointment. Brokers are protect-ed and encouraged to participate,the company says. REM

8 REM APRIL 2015

A

D

$13.98 millionhome to be soldat auction

The home at 40 Park Lane Circle has 27,000 square feet of living space.

By Richard Silver

FINTRAC legislation a mess

What a mess. I speak of thedraconian and ugly FINTRAClegislation that Prime MinisterHarper passed in 2008. It is a totalflop. One hundred and ten thou-sand members of CREA alongwith thousands of other smallbusiness persons were mandatedby law to carry out secretive legis-lation to “spy for the state”, all ina shroud of secrecy. Harper sentthe RCMP to hold meetings withthe Realtors. When a Realtorasked, “What if I don’t comply?the RCMP said, “We will arrestyou.” The RCMP stated, “Wewill do the best we can to protect

your identity.” What a farce thatwas. They can’t even protectthemselves from all their scandals.

You only bumped into thesecretive legislation when youbought or sold real estate using aRealtor. Failure to comply wouldmean $2-million fines, jail time orboth. The RCMP and CSIS wereboth involved in that legislationright up to their ears.

FINTRAC is in my opiniontotally the wrong method to gath-er intelligence for Harper’s fasciststate. Today the rules are evenmore dangerous. Realtors are nowforced to track their clients forev-er and assess a risk factor to theirclients, all in a shroud of secrecy.

Ironically, the multinationalsselling real estate are exempt fromthe legislation, as are For Sale ByOwners.

Clearly if you want the citi-zens to help fight crime you don’tdo it with this kind of bluntinstrument. The proper waywould be to do what CanadaRevenue does, with a type ofwhistle-blower legislation. Thatworks well for them, with no riskto the citizen who is trying to behelpful, and some small reward fortheir help upon summary convic-tion.

Stew Fettes, RetiredCentury 21 Dome Realty,

Regina REM

Letters to the Editor

Is Kitec the new UFFI?

COMMUNITY CANADIAN THE VOICE OFPROFITABLE COMMUNITY TRUSTED THE CANADIAN REAL ESTATE LEADERS MORE VOICE ATTRACTING KNOWLEDGEABLE TRUSTED THE BEST PASSION SERVICESERVICE IS WHAT WE DO PROFITABLE

KNOWBLE LEADERS COMMUNITY UCTIVE COMMUNITY CANADIAN THE VOICE OF

CANADIAN REAL ESTATE LEADERS MORE PRODUCTIVE SERVICE EXCELLENCE PROFITABLE COMMUNITY TRUSTED

CANADIAN THE VOICE OF CANADIAN REAL ESTATE LEADERS PASSION KNOWLEDGE

SERVICE PROFITABLE COMMUNITY TRUSTED THE VOICE CANADIAN REAL

ESTATE LEADERS PASSION EXCELLENCE PRODUCTIVE PROFITABLE CANADIAN

KNOWLEDGEABLE MORE PRODUCTIVE COMMUNITY CANADIAN THE VOICE OF

CANADIAN REAL ESTATE LEADERS MORE PRODUCTIVE SERVICE EXCELLENCE PROFITABLE COMMUNITY TRUSTED

CANADIAN THE VOICE OF CANADIAN REAL ESTATE LEADERS PASSION KNOWLEDGE

MORE PRODUCTIVE SERVICE

This is not intended as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, including a solicitation of any sales representatives or broker that is currently under contract. All offices are independently owned and operated, except those marked as “Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd., Brokerage”, “Royal LePage West Real Estate Services” and “Royal LePage Sussex”. Any copying, reproduction, distribution or other use of these materials is prohibited. ©2015 Brookfield Real Estate Services Manager Limited. All rights reserved.

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Royal LePage’s recruiting program re-energized our management team, strengthened our relationships with existing agents and reinforced an office environment that continues to attract agents. Recently, with this buzz, we were able to recruit the top local team to join our company. – Matt Honsberger, Broker Royal LePage Atlantic

Learn how Royal LePage's recruiting tools can help you grow your business.

10 REM APRIL 2015

Century 21 names topoffices, agents

Alex Palmer of Century 21Lloydminster Realty inLloydminster, Sask. has beenranked the No. 1 agent in theCentury 21 System worldwidebased on sales units in 2014.Palmer also ranked as the No. 1individual by units and by produc-tion in the Century 21 CanadaSystem.

Palmer has lived in theLloydminster area for 37 years and

has been a top salesperson sincebeginning his career in 1970. Hecredits the awards to the smoothprocess his assistants, Deb Kentand Linda Regular, allow him toprovide clients.

For the 11th straight year, theGoodale Miller Team in Oakvillehas claimed the title of No. #1team by production from Century21 Canada. They also receivedinternational acclaim in 2014,ranking as the No. 2 team by pro-duction in the world.

The Goodale Miller Team is

part of Century 21 Miller RealEstate.

For the fourth consecutive year,Century 21 Leading Edge Realty inToronto claimed the title of No. 1company by production as well asunits. The brokerage also receivedinternational acclaim in 2014,ranking as the No. 5 company byproduction in the world.

The brokerage has a team ofmore than 500 agents and multiplelocations throughout the GTA.

“We are in a business partner-ship with our agents, workingtogether, which helps us allachieve more,” says Paul Baron,broker.

Century 21 Bamber Realty inCalgary placed first in the rankingsfor performance in dollar volume.The agency has also distinguisheditself internationally, placing thirdin the world rankings. GeorgeBamber is the owner and manager.

Dale Devereauxinducted into Century21 hall of fame

Top Red Deer, Alta. sales repDale Devereaux of Century 21Advantage has been inducted intothe Century 21 Dick LoughlinInternational Hall of Fame. Theaward recognizes company mem-bers who achieve impressive salesproduction and go above andbeyond for their community. Hewas honoured onstage in front ofthousands of peers at the recentCentury 21 Global Conference inWashington, D.C.

Devereaux is the fourthCanadian to receive this interna-tional award.

Along with his customers andfriends, he helped the communityfood bank by donating a turkey forevery house he has sold for the last17 years. In total, they’ve helpedfeed more than 17,556 people dur-

ing the holidays and Devereauxhas become the Red Deer FoodBank’s single largest donor.

Devereaux has been recognizedby Century 21 Canada with theGrand Centurion Producer Awardfor his sales results every year since2003. He has also ranked as theNo. 1 individual by units at hisoffice for 18 consecutive years. In2003, he was named SalesAssociate of the Year by the com-pany.

Rick Dubord awardedFVREB’s highest honour

The Fraser Valley Real EstateBoard (FVREB) recently awardedCloverdale, B.C. managing brokerRick Dubord with its top honour,the John Armeneau Professional ofthe Year award for 2014.

Dubord, of HomeLifeContinued on page 18

From left: Greg Sexton, COO, Century 21 Real Estate LLC; AlexPalmer, Century 21 Lloydminster Realty; and Richard W.Davidson, president and CEO, Century 21 Real Estate LLC.

Don Goodale, Brad MillerFrom left: Sheila Hardy, Century 21 Hometown Realty,Dale Devereaux, Century 21 Advantage and Richard W.Davidson, president and CEO, Century 21 Real EstateLLC. Rick Dubord,

left, receiving the JohnArmeneauProfessional of the YearAward fromFVREB past-presidentRay Werger.

Paul Baron

Susan Tough

Hudson Smith

Lisa Hartigan-Middlestead

Ken Pearman

Rod Stirling Mary Bales Gary AugustGeorge Bamber

“ I chose Engel & Völkers because it is a truly international company with world class tools and technology designed to provide luxury level service whether it’s high end international sales or for first time buyers.”

Ron Amendola, Engel & Völkers Toronto Uptown

For 25 years Ron Amendola has built and managed a real estate business known in Toronto for the expertise and exceptional client services of its agents. His decisions have been guided by his own personal standards and high expectations when it comes to service. As a way to enhance the level of quality, combined with a need to reach a greater international audience, Ron has become the owner of Engel & Völkers Toronto Uptown. His business is now part of a global network that shares the same commitment to being the very best in the industry.

©2015 Engel & Völkers. All rights reserved. This advertisement is not an offering of a franchise, and where required by law, an offering can only be made 14 days after delivery of the applicable franchise disclosure document.

Only the best in the business join our brand.

Engel & Völkers Canada2 Bloor Street West · Suite 700 · Toronto · Ontario M4W 3R1 · Canada · Phone +1-416-323-1100

[email protected] · evfranchise.com

Life at the top in Kelowna Jane Hoffman overcame a devastating personal tragedy to become Kelowna’s leading luxury home specialist and Coldwell Banker Canada’s top team leader. By Kelly Putter

12 REM APRIL 2015

Jane Hoffman has lived her life largely within a six-hour curve

that includes a snowy ski resort town and the bright lights of Vancouver, but something about Kelowna keeps drawing her to the water’s edge.

Call it the lake effect minus all the negative meteorological terms that weather forecasters usually associate with it. The lake effect where Hoffman is concerned is an ever-changing environment that is simultaneously serene and awe-inspiring. It is where she lives and works, where she frolics with family and friends, and where she sells real estate as leader of Coldwell Banker Canada’s top luxury sales team.

Like a de facto den mother protecting her cherished territory, Hoffman is a serious Kelowna advocate, which is a by-product of her job as the area’s leading sales rep. It’s a picturesque mid-size city known as a four-season playground thanks to its wineries, moderate climate, sandy beaches and Big White Ski Resort. Hear Hoffman describe the lake and you immediately want to move there.

“I can honestly say I feel like I’m in the most amazing city in Canada,” says the 63-year-old sales rep, who this year marks 30 years of selling real estate in Kelowna. “I can’t explain how I can wake up every morning for 35 years and still feel like it’s the first time I’m seeing the lake. I still take a deep breath when I look at it each morning.”

She’s not alone. Lake Okanagan is a big draw for luxury homeowners attracted to the area’s new homes that are often accompanied by pools, large garages and beautiful landscaping. These high net worth homes, often in the $2-million plus bracket, feature spectacular lake

views, roughly 4,000 to 7,000 square feet of living space and smart technology. Lakefront homes cost in the neighbourhood of $5 million but that price nets you a wharf and a dock.

The majority of buyers come from B.C., though a growing number from outside markets are discovering the city, too. Albertans account for 18 per cent of Hoffman’s out-of-province buyers when reviewing all price ranges, but that percentage jumps for those buying properties over $2 million. Saskatchewan, where the potash and energy booms have created many affluent buyers, is also an important client base.

Hoffman manages a 12-person team. Last year, Hoffman and her business partner, Kristy Huber, were active agents in more than 72 per cent of all MLS sales over $3 million in her market. The team, which is known as the Jane Hoffman Group, works at Coldwell Banker Horizon Realty in Kelowna. It currently has over 200 listings, including more than 45 properties ranging from $2 million to over $10 million.

In 2014, Hoffman was honoured as Coldwell Banker Canada’s top Ultimate Service representative in Canada, based on customer satisfaction surveys returned by her own buyers and sellers. Though the Okanagan Lake waterfront area is farmed by about 1,000 real estate professionals, Hoffman and her team currently list about 50 per cent of those $2-million-plus properties.

Because luxury buyers are generally discriminating, the sales process can be a long one. You need patience if you want to crack this market. Finding the right fit can take months and sometimes years. To serve luxury clients, Hoffman believes you

need to build a strong team as buyers are typically mature and business-minded. They require expertise, personal service and professionalism in addition to discretion and confidentiality.

If you’re considering the luxury real estate market, you also need to work at building your brand. Hoffman’s branding started long before the term was commonly used. She called herself the “Lakeshore Specialist” and that moniker stuck. It’s obviously served her well as she has resold many of the lake’s homes two and three times during her career.

Hoffman often uses aerial photography and videography in her marketing. She believes strongly in taking buyers on a boat tour of the lake as it helps them visualize what life would be like there.

Originally from Revelstoke, B.C., Hoffman cut her teeth as an hotelier for snow-sporting enthusiasts, hosting the heliskiing crowd that visited her family’s boutique hotel from destinations far and wide. Her parents started the Regent Hotel during the Depression and today Hoffman owns and operates it with her brother and sister.

Hoffman’s strong hospitality streak comes from her mother, who worked in the hotel until she was 92. Guests who travelled to Revelstoke would often ask, “Where is Gramma Kay?” referring to Hoffman’s mother, who died last year at the age of 100.

It’s in Revelstoke where Hoffman met her husband, then an RCMP officer. The pair married and moved to Vancouver, and began what would eventually become a successful construction business by building homes during their off hours. The couple worked hard and as the business grew

they decided it best to relocate in Kelowna. By this time, Hoffman’s husband had partnered with his brother-in-law – Hoffman’s sister’s husband – and the company continued growing and building projects throughout the province. Sadly, on a return flight from a job, their private plane crashed, killing Hoffman’s husband and brother-in-law. Hoffman, who had a six-year-old son at the time, was just 31.

“We worked our way through it,” says Hoffman, who never remarried. “It was very difficult and very tragic. I felt fortunate because it was a seven- passenger plane and they had dropped off five of our employees before the accident. But something like that makes you stronger.”

Because the 150-employee construction company had a good number of projects in the works, Hoffman managed the firm for the next five years to honour their obligations. Her cousin suggested she get into real estate because she knew construction, she enjoyed working with people and she loved the lake. That, she

says, was a defining moment.

Today, Hoffman’s son is 39 and he has an eight-year-old son. They live nearby and that nearness is precious to Hoffman, who enjoys travelling with her grandson, taking him to Maui, her favourite spot in the world, and on short European jaunts. When Hoffman isn’t working, she enjoys skiing, ballroom dancing and fundraising for a local hospice.

And while Hoffman is at an age when many Canadians are retiring or thinking of it, she has no such plan. She does plan, however, to go on boosting the city she loves, works in and proudly calls home.

“I absolutely love where I live. I feel so fortunate. We have natural beauty, all the services you would need. I’m 45 minutes to the most incredible ski hill known as Big White. I can take my grandson to hockey in the morning, be at Big White by one and get home by five. It’s a really good lifestyle. And I never tire of working. I still get all excited and emotional about it even after 30 years.” REM

Jane Hoffman (Photo by Darren Hull)

Congratulates 2014 Top Producers

David BatoriRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Audrey AzadRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Cynthia AvisRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Zia AbbasRE/MAX Condos Plus Corp.

Toronto

Lino ArciRE/MAX Premier Inc.

Toronto

Parveen AroraRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Brampton

Sundeep BahlRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Steve BaileyRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Cambridge

Eli BakhtiariRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Bijan BaratiRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Sharon SoltanianRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

David BatoriRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Faisal Susiwala RE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc.

Kitchener

Barry CohenRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Vesna Kolenc RE/MAX Premier Inc.

Woodbridge

Bill ThomRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Wayne KahnRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Hersh LitvackRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Thornhill

Tony PullaRE/MAX Lakeshore Realty Inc.

Cobourg

Gary VanderburgRE/MAX Sarnia Realty Inc.

Sarnia

Zia AbbasRE/MAX Condos Plus Corp.

Toronto

Audrey AzadRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

#1

#6

#2

#7

#3

#8

Frank Leo RE/MAX West Realty Inc.

Toronto

Cheri McCannRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

#4

#9

#5

#10

Congratulates 2014 Top Producers The Best of The Best in Ontario-Atlantic Canada

THE

Al CosentinoRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Angelo ToscanoRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Jim BurtonRE/MAX Infinity Realty Inc.

Conception Bay South

Robert GolfiRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Jainarine BrijpaulRE/MAX West Realty Inc .

Toronto

Christopher InvidiataRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Al SinclairRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

#1

#6

Melanie WrightRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Mark RichardsRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

#2

#7

Cynthia AvisRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

#3

Cliff RegoRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Cambridge

#8

Drew WoolcottRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Burlington

#4

#9

#5

#10

Barry CohenRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Jim BurtonRE/MAX Infinity Realty Inc.

Conception Bay South

Jainarine BrijpaulRE/MAX West Realty Inc .

Toronto

Leslie BenczikRE/MAX All-Stars Realty Inc.

Markham

Gary BettsRE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Mississauga

Brad BondyRE/MAX Preferred Realty Ltd.

Amherstburg

Anne ChiltonRE/MAX Chay Realty Inc.

Barrie

Ray CochraneRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Cindy DaCostaRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Cambridge

Tony ChanRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Markham

Sandy KennedyRE/MAX Realty Services Inc.

Brampton

Bashar MahfoothRE/MAX Realty One Inc.

Mississauga

Chris RichieRE/MAX In The Hills Inc.

Caledon East

Peter KwanRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Markham

Paul OulahenRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Robert GolfiRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Peter HogeterpRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Lenard LindRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Aurora

Manjit PawarRE/MAX Dynasty Realty Inc.

Markham

Christopher InvidiataRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Hersh LitvackRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Cliff RegoRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Cambridge

Alex IrishRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Sarah LogueRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc

Burlington

Mark RichardsRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Rod FrankRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Ruby SanghaRE/MAX Excel Realty Ltd.

Markham

Vesna Kolenc RE/MAX Premier Inc.

Woodbridge

Cheri McCannRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Michelle FraserRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Mike KrauseRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Georgetown

Robert NardiRE/MAX Premier Inc.

Toronto

Reinhold SchickedanzRE/MAX All-Stars Realty Inc.

Ballantrae

Jerry HendriksRE/MAX Garden City Realty Inc.

St. Catharines

Frank LeoRE/MAX West Realty Inc.

Toronto

Monica ThaparRE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Mississauga

Al SinclairRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Sharon SoltanianRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Faisal Susiwala RE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc.

Cambridge

Samuel ShingRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Peter PapousekRE/MAX Realty Enterprises Inc.

Mississauga

Mustafa ZiaRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Mississauga

Lindsay WrightRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Mary WyldeRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Guelph

Alaa YousifRE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc .

Mississauga

Jason YuRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Richmond Hill

Angelo ToscanoRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Drew WoolcottRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Dundas

Melanie WrightRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Shahid KhawajaRE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Mississauga

Domenic ManchisiRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Burlington

Nasrin SaediRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Bill ThomRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Richard DuggalRE/MAX Premier Inc.

Toronto

The Best of the Best

Sandy KennedyRE/MAX Realty Services Inc.

Brampton

Bashar MahfoothRE/MAX Realty One Inc.

Mississauga

Chris RichieRE/MAX In The Hills Inc.

Caledon East

Zach Bayley-Hay RE/MAX Chay Realty Inc.

Barrie

Justin Cohen RE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Olivia Torun RE/MAX Realty Enterprises Inc.

Mississauga

Chuck Hogeterp RE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Ranjit Nijjar RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Brampton

Stephen Leung RE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Richmond Hill

Alex Rundle RE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Milton

Jeff Kitchen RE/MAX Professionals Saint John Inc.

Saint John

Phil Spoelstra RE/MAX Centre City Realty Inc.

London

Kevin Gibson RE/MAX Niagara Realty Ltd.

Niagara Falls

Hao Yu RE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Richmond Hill

Heather Reid RE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Evan Tang RE/MAX Crossroads Realty Inc.

Toronto

Mani Batoo RE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Mississauga

Nick Goomber RE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Mississauga

Tobias Smulders RE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Mustafa ZiaRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Mississauga

Eugene Kaplun RE/MAX Infinite Inc.

Richmond Hill

Da Zhang RE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Richmond Hill

Stacey Vermeire RE/MAX Lakeshore Realty Inc.

Cobourg

Jacki Lam RE/MAX Crossroads Realty Inc.

Markham

Khashayar Alav-Mehr RE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Emily Rawson RE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Fergus

Stephanie Pilarski RE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Thornhill

Juxhin Mezini RE/MAX Premier Inc.

Woodbridge

James Turner RE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Burlington

Brady Thrasher RE/MAX Preferred Realty Ltd.

Amherstburg

Andrew Muraco RE/MAX Niagara Realty Ltd.

Niagara Falls

Kim TranRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Top 30 Under 30*

Julie Seo, RE/MAX Ultimate Realty Inc., Toronto, Diamond Award winner and memeber of Top 30 under 30. (No Photo Provided)*Based on 2014 Total Commissions, RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada.

18 REM APRIL 2015

A NEW WAY TO GROW

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winning combination.”- Sally McGarr

Broker of Record/OwnerSally McGarr Realty Corp.

Niagara On The Lake, Ontario

“We are very proud of our invitation to be a LeadingRE member and are impressed by the quality of our affi liated fi rms and their willingness to share resources to make the

network even better.”- Kevin Sing

Managing PartnerDFH Real Estate, Ltd.

Victoria, British Columbia

“LeadingRE has given us the reach and the network we were looking for. Paired with its extensive online education

system, we have added great value to our fi ercely independent company.”

- Tim HarrisBroker & Owner

Tradewinds Realty Inc.Chester, Nova Scotia

Benchmark Realty (Cloverdale),received the award “for his tremen-dous contribution to Fraser Valleyreal estate. The award is the high-est honour the board bestows, rec-ognizing outstanding leadershipand dedication professionally andwithin the community,” says theboard in a news release.

FVREB past-president RayWerger says, “Rick is a remarkableindividual and an exceptionalmember of this board. For fourdecades, he has led through inno-vation, hard work and a commit-ment to giving back, setting a truestandard of professionalism andinspiring those around him.”

Coldwell Bankernames 2014 awardwinners

Coldwell Banker Canadarecently announced its award win-ners for 2014. The No. 1 companyin Canada was Coldwell BankerHorizon Realty in Kelowna, B.C.The brokerage was also Canada’sonly Chairman’s Circle company,gaining international recognition.The managing broker is SusanTough.

Honoured for Top Office inNorth America (for offices withone to 10 sales reps) werebroker/owners Ken Pearman andRod Stirling at Coldwell BankerNorthern Bestsellers, Yellowknife.

The No. 6 Team in NorthAmerica was The Jane HoffmanGroup, at Coldwell BankerHorizon Realty. It was also the topteam in Canada in units and grosscommission income (GCI). JaneHoffman was named Top UltimateService Representative in Canada.

Coldwell Banker’s top repre-sentatives in Canada were:

No. 1 in units – Hudson Smith,Coldwell Banker Neumann RealEstate, Guelph, Ont.

No. 1 in GCI – Lisa Hartigan-Middlestead, Coldwell Banker FortMcMurray, Fort McMurray, Alta.

Two special CanadianAmbassador Awards, the compa-ny’s highest tribute, were presentedposthumously to Gary August, bro-ker of Coldwell Banker HorizonRealty and Mary Bales, a sales repwith Coldwell Banker PeterBenninger Realty in Kitchener,

And the honour goes to...Continued from page 10

Ont. Both died in 2014.“Gary led his company to con-

sistently qualify for Chairman’sCircle status, representing thefinest Coldwell Banker companiesin Canada and around the world,”the company says. “A consummateprofessional with experience inboth residential and commercialreal estate, and greatly admired inour industry, Gary’s spirit of givingback to the community was evi-dent throughout his organization.Their 25-year history of charitableworks exemplifies the spirit of giv-ing and sets the bar high for allwho follow.”

The tribute to Mary Bales says,“Throughout her distinguished 20-year sales career with the ColdwellBanker network, nationally promi-nent philanthropist Mary Balesearned the respect and admirationof her colleagues throughout ourglobal organization and the realestate industry at large. Her repu-tation extended far beyond therealm of real estate, culminatingwhen she was honoured by theGovernor General with theMeritorious Service Medal for hercharitable work in providing safeand affordable housing for the dis-advantaged.”

Canadian firms honoured atLeadingRE conference

Leading Real EstateCompanies of the WorldConference Week, held recentlyin Las Vegas, attracted an audi-ence of more than 2,000 atten-dees from over 20 countries. Theevent was hosted by Leading RealEstate Companies of the Worldfor its member firms and offeredseparate conferences for brokers,senior managers and relocationprofessionals, sales associates, lux-ury specialists, sales managers andmarketing and technology profes-sionals.

Three Canadian firms wererecognized with company awards.The Global Alliance Award formost outgoing international refer-ral closings went to MacdonaldRealty of Vancouver. Earningrecognition with the Top 5 GlobalReferral Award, based on sendingthe most cross-border referralswere CIR Realty in Calgary andBosley Real Estate in Toronto.

REM

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NEW TEMPLATE DESIGNS

’m in Las Vegas. Sin City.Overlooking the vast rooftopsof the Mandalay Bay Resort.

The pools aren’t open yet – they’rewaiting for Spring Break.

Having just emcee’d the BanffWestern Connection, I’m adjust-ing to the leisure of a regularattendee at my brand’s interna-tional conference. Nearly 10 timesthe number of delegates are herebut the routine is familiar.Opening receptions, keynotespeakers, awards, educational ses-sions, motivational speakers andthe big closing bash – the differ-ence is in the name dropping. Theopening session features BrianBuffini and the closing party head-

METES & BOUNDS

By Marty Douglas

Apathy and annual general meetingsliner is rocker Steven Tyler.

Other than that, Realtors fillthe rooms, swap business cards,renew old friendships and embarkon new journeys. The trade showbazaar is shrill – “Buy from me!Look here Mister – almost free!”Tech tools abound and each shinyitem is a temptation – to be avoid-ed. Forty-five years in the businesswhisper in my ear – “You only needa pen and/or a QWERTY keyboardand they have been around formore than 100 years!”

In between Banff and Vegas, Iattended my home board’s annualgeneral meeting – as every membershould because the world is run bythe ones who show up. Not muchexcitement this year, and that’s agood thing compared to last year’smea culpa: “Oops, we seem to havemisplaced a tad more than a hun-dred grand!”

AGMs often struggle withmembership attendance, causinginnovative amendments to theconstitution and bylaws such asreducing the size of the necessaryquorum. (My solution – evolve to

a benevolent dictator, as long as it’sme!) Our board has tried lavishballs, innovative speakers, educa-tional credit and the ultimate inbribery, the free lunch. It all pro-duced a similar result – poor repre-sentation except by those who arepaid to be there, those within a fewminutes driving distance and thosefew of us who think membershipdeserves attention to the gover-nance of our multi-million dollarasset.

After all, we trust them to han-dle a couple of million dollars inrevenue every year, most of itmailed in by the members. Perhapswe should check in and by doingso, hold them accountable. Butthen, many of you don’t vote inour other common membership –federal, provincial and municipalelections – so why am I surprised?

One of my heroes, Phil Edgettof Royal LePage with 30-plus yearsin the business, hasn’t missed anAGM since becoming a member.Sadly there are no awards for per-fect attendance and while othersare recognized for charitable ges-

tures and years of tenure on theboard of directors, Phil has refusedrecognition, preferring to keep pri-vate the work he does, the passionhe has and the value he brings asan example of perseverance to ourindustry. If I could transfer myRealtor of the Year Award to Phil,I would.

CREA is a welcome presenceat our AGM and the presentationreminded us to get and stayinvolved at the CREA level. Hey,it’s not just about Webforms! Wantto own your name as your domain?Get to the CREA website. Need tosend a blizzard of protest to yourMP over – oh I don’t know, FIN-TRAC? Make sure you areenrolled in the Realtor ActionNetwork. Want to embed somegreat video in your website? CREAresources. How do those folks atPoint2 get your listing? Check into your settings on the DDF. Howmany views on that listing lastweek as you try for a renewal?Personal stats. All on the CREAwebsite.

But you knew that.

VIREB’s keynote speaker,morning television personalityRiaz Meghji, presented EveryConversation Counts, the impor-tance of the influence of conversa-tions in our own lives, and of ourconversations on others.

In thinking back to conversa-tions that got me where I am today,they occurred 46 years ago. Onewas with a complete stranger in ajob interview who, in turning myapplication down, commentedthat as a recent university student Iwasn’t likely to stick with his com-pany. Without my help it becameTelus.

And my mother, who after Icomplained about the lack of jobopportunities asked, “Why don’tyou try real estate?”

Thanks Mom. I’m still trying.

Contact Marty Douglas by email at [email protected] or connect with Marty onTwitter, LinkedIn and Facebook. Heis a managing broker for Re/MaxOcean Pacific Realty in Comox andCourtenay, B.C. REM

I

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Independently Owned and Operated. ®/™ trademarks owned by Century 21 Real Estate LLC used under license or authorized sub-license. © 2015 Century 21 Canada Limited Partnership ®™ Trademarks of AIR MILES International Trading B.V. Used under license by LoyaltyOne, Co. and Century 21 Canada Limited Partnership.

$650,000donated to Easter Seals in 2014

“You are all heroesin my eyes becauseyou’re helping makememories, you’re helping make smiles, you’re helping send kids to camp.And, that’s whatmatters most.”

35 years encouraging the ability in disability

Our offi ces broke fundraising records!

1,000+ 16 fully accessible camps

SINCE 2009

for Easter Seals & the Kids to Camp program

To: The C21� family

From:Brandon ListonC21® Canada NationalEaster Seals Ambassador

Since 1979, North American C21 offi ces have raised

$111M USDfor local families living with disabilities

$3Mraised kids sent to

Amazing

24 REM APRIL 2015

elling a filthy house isn’timpossible. Some buyers cansee beyond cat feces smeared

on carpeting, overflowing trashcans, dirty laundry scattered allover and piles that look like theyare from the TV show Hoarders.But it sure is a lot more challengingthan selling a sparkling cleanhome.

Cheryl Kirby, a real estate advi-sor with Keller Williams IntegrityFirst Realty in Mesa, Ariz. and theco-creator of an instructional stag-ing DVD for real estate profession-als, Get Ready, Get Set, Get Sold,feels very strongly about a sales rep-resentative’s responsibility toadvise a client rather than just

stick a sign in the yard and put iton the MLS.

“I hold the real estate profes-sional responsible as much as theseller. It’s the agent’s responsibilityto advise their clients. And onepart of the job if you want to sell forthe best price and least amount oftime is to roll up your sleeves, digin and ask what you can do to out-shine competition and win abuyer.”

Kirby continues, “There arebasically three reasons people buy ahome: location, price and condi-tion. We can’t do anything aboutlocation and price is determined bymarket, but you can work with areal estate professional on the con-

Selling a messy houseSelling a filthy house isn’t impossible, but it is a lot more challenging than selling a sparkling clean home.By Toby Welch

dition – that’s one thing you havecontrol over. If the condition isgood, you can sell at the higherend of the price bracket and sellfaster.”

What turns off prospectivebuyers in a messy house? An INGDirect survey into this topicdetailed the list in no particularorder – piles of toys, clothes andbooks in bedrooms; smelly bath-rooms; grubby kitchens; animalhairs and traces of pets; overgrownlawns; clashing colour schemes;unattractive pieces of art; anditems out of place such as dishes ina bedroom or newspapers scatteredin the kitchen.

Jasmine Lee, broker at Re/Max

Hallmark Realty in Toronto, iscareful not to tell the sellers thattheir house is a mess or a pigsty. “Iexplain to our seller clients thatthe way you live in a home and theway you present your home to sellare two totally different lifestyles.”

She calls them:• Living Lifestyle – homey,

personal, more clutter (toys, officepaperwork, memorabilia, privateitems) and easy access to items(things on counters, dressers).

• Home to Sell Lifestyle –decluttered, depersonalized, thinkmodel homes at a new homebuilder site, all items hidden andcounters free of clutter.

“We meet with our clients intheir home and make notes ofwhat is needed to get the homeshowing its best,” says Lee. “Afterour clients sign up… our stagermeets with them in their homeand explains the process and whatis needed from them in order to gettheir home sold. Our team stager,Jacqueline Onassis, uses our notesand adds them with her recom-mendations to give sellers a clearoutline of what is needed. She getsthem to tackle as much as they

possibly can and then its time todress the home for sale.”

Lee recommends using a pro-fessional cleaning service if need-ed. She says if your idea of cleanisn’t the same as your clients’, “tryto recommend a house cleaner oradd a couple of hours of servicecomplimentary to help your sellersout.”

Buyers must be able to visualizethemselves in a potential housebut that can be difficult in a filthyplace. The beauty of the home andany unique architectural featureswould be impossible to see. If sell-ers still aren’t willing to clean up,mention that homes needing worktend to take longer to sell. For sell-ers in a hurry to get a sold sign, thismight be the kick they need.

One real estate agent inter-viewed for this article asked toremain anonymous but wanted toshare his experience.

“I listed a house that neededserious cleaning and I was unpre-pared for the backlash. Buyer’sagents were forewarned about the

condition of the house ahead oftime yet they complained inces-santly afterward. In the long run,the majority of the agents wereunwilling to consider the property.I would go so far as to say that myreputation was damaged.” Hisexperience is something to consid-er, that’s for sure.

If none of your gentle proddingconvinces your sellers to tidy up,perhaps the ultimate bargainingtool will work – money. INGDirect’s survey found that a messyhouse could cut $15,000 off theselling price of an average home.Richard Doe, ING Direct’s chiefexecutive in 2012 when the surveycame out, said that even if a messyhouse doesn’t dissuade buyers, itwould almost certainly have animpact on the offers that sellersreceive.

Offers on messy houses do tendto be considerably lower than theasking price. When the conditionof the property is questionable, youdon’t find many bidding wars,making it a relatively safe bet thatany offers will be lowballs. Goingback to the ING Direct survey, themajority of the people surveyedstated that they would use the messas a reason to negotiate a lowerprice for the property. The averagereduction asked for would be fiveper cent but one in 10 people stat-ed they would ask for up to 30 percent off the asking price.

Kirby adds to this point, “Is thehome located in an area that isvery desirable where people wouldbuy the house no matter what? Ifso, is the seller willing to price it tocompensate for the condition ofthe home? ‘Price overcomes allobjections,’ as the saying goes.”

Lee has one final piece ofadvice, “Understand that yourclients have given you their trustand confidence to sell their home.Be honest in the way it currentlyshows and offer solutions. Theywill thank you for it!” REM

Cheryl Kirby Jasmine Lee

Before and after shots of a room cleaned and staged by JacquelineOnassis, team stager for Re/Max Hallmark Realty.

S

26 REM APRIL 2015

eal estate investors mustbe very careful about pur-chasing an investment

property under a five-per-cent caprate, at which many retail plazasand multifamily properties are cur-rently trading, with a down pay-ment of 25 per cent or less.

Companies with deep pocketsunderstand the consequences oflow cap rate purchases and canafford to look to a long-term returnon investment. Smaller investors,anxious to purchase a propertywithout proper financial due dili-gence, could discover that a smalldecrease in their net operatingincome or a small increase in inter-est rate or cap rate could lead to asubstantial drop in property valueand return on investment.

Assume a rental property gen-

I N D U S T R I A L , C O M M E R C I A LAND INDUSTRIAL

By Christopher Seepe

Low cap rate purchase couldmean future troubleerates $100,000/year income. Withexpenses, especially utilities andtaxes rising at an alarming rate,combined with the severe legislat-ed restrictions on rent increasesand the inability to pass on legiti-mate operating expenses, rentalproperty operating expenses forsmaller operators could be 45 to 50per cent of income. Conservativelyassuming 50-per-cent expenses,this leaves $50,000 before financ-ing, called net operating income(NOI).

If you own the property out-right with no mortgage, this is per-haps okay, although it also meansyour equity is “dead money”. Yourequity is not working for you to fuelfinancial growth. Earlier articlesdiscussed what a cap rate is andhow it’s determined, so we’ll juststate here that it establishes a“baseline” property value, by divid-ing the cap rate into the NOI.$50,000 NOI / five-per-cent caprate = $1,000,000 property value.

If expenses (not the interestrate) rose five per cent in one yearand rent guidelines allowed a 1.6-per-cent increase, you’d have an

overall decrease in NOI of 3.4 percent. NOI would then be $1,700less than last year. The same five-per-cent cap rate computes a prop-erty value of $966,000. The $1,700decrease in NOI caused a $34,000loss in property value – every $1 ofdecrease caused $20 of lost proper-ty value.

Financing costs come out ofNOI. If you pay a 25-per-centdown payment, the $1 millionproperty above would have a$750,000 mortgage (75 per centloan-to-value or LTV). Assumeinterest is 3.0 per cent, fixed, five-year closed, 25-year amortization.Monthly principal and interestwould be $3,550/month or$42,600/year. Subtracting thisfinancing from the NOI of $50,000leaves $7,400. This is the moneythat goes into your pocket (calledcash flow before taxes or profit)before paying for major capitalcosts (such as a new roof or fur-nace).

Assume all factors aboveremain the same, your mortgagecomes due and rates haveincreased to 5.0 per cent. The

monthly mortgage payment is now$4,360/month or $52,340/year.You’re now paying $2,340/yearmore than you’re making, again,before capital costs.

In real life, you would havepaid down some of the mortgageprincipal. Income would perhapshave increased but expenses and/orvacancy rates might have risen.There are many factors to considerbut the point is that the 2.0-per-cent increase in interest put yourproperty into a near break-even orpossibly even a negative cash flowsituation. The first major capitalexpense, such as a new roof, wouldmake your investment a significantlosing proposition.

If you had accepted a 4.5-per-cent cap on a NOI of $50,000 forthe property above, you’d havepurchased the property for$1,111,100. Your 75-per-centmortgage would be $833,325 withmonthly payments of $3,944 or$47,324 annually. Your pre-capitalcost “profit” dropped from $7,400to $2,676. If the interest rate rose2.0 per cent, monthly paymentsare $4,847 or $58,160/year. You’re

paying $8,160 out of your ownpocket. Your property’s income isnot covering the operating andfinancial costs of your investment.

What happens if you have tosell in a buyers’ market in a fewyears? Loosely speaking, cap rate ispartially a measure of return oninvestment (ROI). You may be sat-isfied today with a 4.5-per-centROI if 10-year government bondsare less than two per cent. But ifgovernment bonds rose to four percent, prospective buyers who takeon more risk and workload than abond buyer would demand a high-er ROI or cap rate.

Let’s say buyers demand a six-per-cent cap for the above proper-ty that you purchased for$1,111,000, which still generates$50,000 NOI. $50,000 NOI / sixper cent = $833,334.Theoretically, nothing haschanged about the condition,income, expense or any otheraspect of your property but theinvestment climate demanding a1.5-per-cent increase in ROI haseffectively wiped out $278,000 or25 per cent of your property valueand 100 per cent of your equity.You have to pay off the $833,325mortgage, leaving you nothing.

Imagine buying multiple prop-erties with only 10 per cent down,as some real estate sages haveespoused in their get-rich-quickschemes, and then experiencingthe above scenarios. It’s the prover-bial house of cards that’ll comecrashing down around you. Thesescenarios are deliberately over-stat-ed but the math and risks are real.Interest rates are the lowest they’vebeen in living memory with caprates following suit. Both will risesooner or later and your propertyincome should be able to absorbthese swings.

Chris Seepe is a commercial realestate broker and broker of record atAztech Realty in Toronto, specializingin income-generating and multi-resi-dential investment properties, retailplazas, science and technology relatedspecialty uses and tenant mandates.(416) 525-1558 [email protected]; website:www.aztechrealty.com. REM

R

he days of an optimized-for-mobile website beingan up sell or a “nice to

have” are over. If you’re not engag-ing your users on a mobile plat-form that caters to their needs,then you’re throwing away up tohalf the traffic that you workedhard to earn.

Consider these mobile statis-tics:

• Almost 80 per cent of home-buyers visit three or more realestate websites before takingaction.

• According to comScore,mobile users represent 51 per centof all Internet traffic.

• 74 per cent of web surferswill leave after five seconds if yourwebsite hasn’t loaded on theirmobile device.

• 46 per cent of those users willnever return.

• Every additional 100msadded to a website’s loading timeleads to a one per cent decrease insales and conversions.

• Real estate is hyper-local andhalf of all local searches performedare done on mobile devices.

• 36 per cent of homebuyersdo their research on their mobiledevices while sitting on the couchwhile watching TV.

• You have less time to capturea user’s attention on a smartphone.The average computer browsingsession is 39 minutes. Smartphone

sessions are less than half that, atjust 17 minutes.

• Your website needs to transi-tion from mobile to non-mobilesmoothly, because up to 60 percent of online searches are contin-ued on a computer.

• Conversely, 23 per cent oflaptop or PC-based searches endup on mobile devices.

• More than 80 per cent ofFacebook users are surfing onmobile devices (a wink wink foragents leveraging social mediamarketing).

• 61 per cent of users lose faithin a brand without an effectivemobile experience.

So, not only is a user likely toleave your website and neverreturn if it doesn’t load quickly, butthey will lose faith in the quality ofyour brand without a strongmobile front. When you consider

that 50 per cent of online researchis done on mobile devices and thatyour mobile website is up againstat least three others…you’ll under-stand why the days of a lacklustremobile experience are over.

Luckily, it’s never been easierto add a positive mobile experi-ence to your website…so make2015 the year you finally gomobile.

Robin Wilding is the creativemind behind Real Estate WebsitesCanada, a boutique real estate web-site company providing “differentiat-ing-yet-laughably-affordable websolutions for agents across the coun-try.” She says: “The company’s suc-cess is highly attributable to creatinglow-cost branded websites that high-light the personality of each individualagent. You’re unique; your websiteshould be too.” REM

Going mobile with your website

By Robin Wilding

T

28 REM APRIL 2015

PASSIONATE ABOUT REAL ESTATE?

© 2014 Coldwell Banker LLC. All Rights Reserved. Each Office is Independently Owned and Operated. Coldwell Banker

and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker LLC. Each sales representative

and broker is responsible for complying with any consumer disclosure laws or regulations. Any use of the term “sales

associate” or “agent” shall be replaced with the term “sales representative” in Canada. Not intended to solicit Brokers

under a current franchise agreement.

Leverage your real estate expertise in Western Canada

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Andy Puthon, President

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The successful candidate will:

• Become fully versed in the unique value-addedofferings available through the Coldwell Banker®

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STOP SELLINGHOUSES & STARTMAKING MONEY

By Debbie Hanlon

Oil be back:The changingmarketthis. It shows that you know yourbusiness and you’re using thatknowledge to take care of them.

For your clients looking to sell,the same things apply. If you spellout the facts it should erase anyfear they have of putting theirhouse on today’s market. If theywait they take the risk that theirhomes will not be worth as muchin two years as it is now so now isalso the perfect time to sell. Aswell, the perception that it’s a

buyer’s market means that morepeople will be looking to buy andthe more buyers you have the bet-ter price you’ll get. You can use thecurrent oil crisis to help convinceyour clients to list their homes at aprice they’re actually worth insteadof the price they think they’reworth,

The strength of the public’sreaction to the market depends toa certain degree, as everythingdoes, on geography. If you’re work-ing in a place dependent on oil likeAlberta, or Newfoundland where Iwork, it’s absolutely vital that youknow your facts and can calm yourclients down. In other areas it’s alsoimportant to be educated aboutthe market simply because it’s agood thing and you have thatknowledge should you need it.Knowing your stuff will never stopyou from getting a listing, but bynot knowing it you’re guaranteedto lose some.

Your mission, should youchoose to accept it, is to spend 20

minutes a day reading up on howthe real estate world is impacted byoil prices. Put it in your day plan-ner and your Google prompts oradd it to your to-do list on thefridge. Educate yourself and thenuse that knowledge to educate yourclients. It’s one more value-addedthing you bring to the table whenyou go after a listing. People appre-ciate it and it just makes you lookgood. In an industry as competitiveas ours you need every advantage

you can find to not only keep youin the game, but help you win it.

The next time you’re talking toa client or perspective client, dropa few facts about oil and real estateinto the conversation, becauseeven if they don’t mention it theyare probably concerned aboutwhat it all means. If you broach thesubject and use your knowledge toeducate them and calm their fears,you’ll go to a whole new level intheir eyes. So go ahead, pour someoil on those troubled waters.

Debbie Hanlon is a real estatebroker who has helped train hundredsof sales reps and brokered and man-aged a national real estate franchise.She also founded an independent realestate firm. Currently she coachessales reps all over the world. She is theCEO of All Knight Inc, a global edu-cational mobile company, as well as apublished children’s author and thecreator of the national I’m No BullyShow. https://www.facebook.com/missdebbieandfriends REM

Now, if you listen to the gloomsayers and

doomsayers you would figure people were going tostop living in houses untilprices go back up. Maybe

they’ll go live in tents or staywith relatives until it’s over.

he recent slump in oilprices has cast a long shad-ow over all sectors of our

economy, including real estate inmany parts of the country. Butdon’t give up your license just yetbecause things aren’t as bad as theyseem.

Now, if you listen to the gloom-sayers and doomsayers you wouldfigure people were going to stopliving in houses until prices goback up. Maybe they’ll go live intents or stay with relatives until it’sover. That just isn’t the case, butsome agents are worried that theirbusiness will feel a negativeimpact. If you’re one of those whois afraid that the current slump inoil prices is going to hurt your bot-tom line, there’s only one way toget rid of that fear – knowledge.The more you know about some-thing, the less you fear it.

For starters, industry expertsbelieve that the average houseprice across Canada will increasefrom $407,500 to $419,318 thisyear. That’s 2.9 per cent. It’s not agreat amount but it is still anincrease. What that means, andwhat you can tell your clients look-ing to buy, is that if they wait forhouse prices to drop they may infact end up paying more.

Experts also say that the oilslump will mean that interest rateswon’t rise as they were expected to.Again, this is good news for homebuyers – the lower the interest ratethe lower their mortgage payment.Plus, in the past falling oil priceshave encouraged home ownershipbecause the costs of driving towork and other activities will fall aswell. It is the perfect time to buy,but advise clients not to expecthuge drops in home prices becausethe real estate industry historicallylags behind oil prices by two years,and in two years who knows wherethe price of oil will be? Your buyerswill appreciate you telling them all

T

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Water Act and The EndangeredSpecies Act immediately come tomind – that authorize bureaucratsto “protect” natural features suchas limestone outcroppings, frogponds and old fields. Protection inthis case means that landownershave surrendered their rights to doa host of things on their lands –everything from ploughing andplanting an old field, to building arecreational trail through a cedarswamp that may shelter winteringdeer. And even if the current prop-erty owners are happy with therestrictions-in-lieu-of-taxes trade-off, I can’t help but wonder if theyhave given any thought to mov-ing-out day.

All properties eventually comeup for sale, and every real estatepractitioner in the country knowsthat 100 acres with no land userestrictions has more value that asimilar property where develop-ment is curtailed or prohibited. Soif you want to let the nice folks

30 REM APRIL 2015

By Jamie MacMaster

few months ago I called asalesperson from anotherbrokerage to make an

appointment to show a rural prop-erty she had listed. As she reciteda list of features, she told me that –with the exception of the houseand outbuildings – virtually all ofthe 60-acre property was exemptfrom property taxes because it wasclassified as “conservation lands”.

That intrigued me enough togo looking, and sure enough, withthe help of Google, I found this onThe Ontario Ministry of NaturalResources website: “TheConservation Land Tax IncentiveProgram (CLTIP) is designed torecognize, encourage and supportthe long-term private stewardship

One citizen’s tax exemption isanother’s burdenof Ontario’s provincially signifi-cant conservation lands by provid-ing property tax relief to thoselandowners who agree to protectthe natural heritage values of theirproperty. The current tax reliefoffered is 100-per-cent tax exemp-tion on that eligible portion of theproperty.”

Now, that got me pretty excit-ed, because with 120-odd acres ofbush, brush and fields, I figured thiswould be a pretty simple way forWeezie (my wife) and me to carvea few grand off our tax bill! But alittle voice or two stopped me.

One of them had something todo with ethics. You see, I know thatour municipality needs “x” amountof dollars per year to operate. And ifI dodge two grand, and my neigh-bours all dodge two grand, it doesn’tchange the fact that my municipal-ity still needs “x” amount of dollars.And there is only one source ofreplenishment for the taxes that wewould duck: the pockets of our fel-

low citizens. I prefer to shoulder myown societal responsibilities insteadof transferring them to the shoul-ders of other Canadians who,because of age, infirmity or employ-ment, may be a lot less able to bearthe burden. Why should senior cit-izens, perhaps already strugglingwith their own escalating propertytaxes and electricity bills, have topay my way?

The other little warning wasjust the nagging feeling that themonetary (and momentary)advantages of today’s tax exemp-tion would be poor compensationfor tomorrow’s land-use restrictionsand the attendant property devalu-ation. The process of obtaining atax exemption entails visits to theproperty by government represen-tatives, who record the naturalheritage features of the land todetermine its suitability for CLTIPdesignation.

There are several pieces ofprovincial legislation – The Clean

from the Ministry of Snatch YourResources tiptoe through yourtamaracks taking photos and mak-ing notes as they go, you go rightahead…I’ll pass, thanks. There’squite enough property rights pre-dation going on already – no needto invite the varmints into my henhouse.

The entire CLTIP program isbased on the dishonest claim thatall this natural habitat is being pre-served for the “greater public good”… and that just doesn’t pass thesniff test. If that was really true, allthe No Trespassing signs would betorn down and these lands openedup for the enjoyment of the verypublic that subsidizes them.

Jamie MacMaster and his wifeLouise Secours-MacMaster are salesrepresentatives with Storm Realty inCornwall, Ont. Jamie is also a direc-tor of the Canadian LandownerAlliance, a property-rights advocacyorganization. REM

A

royallepage.ca/franchising

hrilled to welcome Don McIvor, Colleen McDonaldWe are thand the Royal LePage Hallmark team to the

Royal LePage family.

Page’s Saskatoon market share has increased byRoyal Leost 170%* with this addition of Hallmark, formerly almthe #1 independent brokerage in Saskatchewan.

Congratulations to Gary Emde and Norm Fisher, the new broker/owners.

Partner with a leader.Join Royal LePage.

*Market share statistics as of December 31, 2014 complied from the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS®. This is not intended as an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, including a solicitation of any sales representatives or broker that is currently under contract. All offices are independently owned and operated, except those marked as “Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd., Brokerage”, “Royal LePage West Real Estate Services” and “Royal LePage Sussex”. Any copying, reproduction, distribution or other use of these materials is prohibited. ©2015 Brookfield Real Estate Services Manager Limited. All rights reserved.

IS WHAT WE DOGrowing market share

“ Hallmark Realty and its people have a long history of professionalism and service excellence in the Saskatoon market. We are thrilled to join forces with them in a move that significantly alters the real estate landscape in our area.”

– Norm Fisher, OwnerRoyal LePage Hallmark, Royal LePage Vidorra

If you have trouble finding the email or trouble logging in to vote, contact Computershare toll free at 1-800-564-6253, mentioning that you are a voter in the Real Estate Council of Ontario election.

VOTE ONLINE. No line-ups.

No excuses. Do your part as a proud real estate

professional by voting and having your say on

RECO’s leadership.

Real Estate Council of Ontario’s Board of Directors election is just around the corner…

YOUR VOTE IS YOUR VOICE: SPEAK UP!

Your VOTE MATTERS.

Voting will open on April 9.

Check out the candidates in your region by visiting

www.reco.on.ca.

entury 21 Canada officesfundraised their highestamount ever for Easter

Seals Canada, donating nearly$650,000 in 2014. Internationally,the Century 21 System raisedUS$2.9 million for Easter Seals

32 REM APRIL 2015

CGood WorksGood Works

families – 19 per cent more than in2013.

The Canadian offices alsobroke international records, claim-ing seven of the top 21 Easter Sealsfundraising rankings for the brandin North America. The top offices,

listed by their international rank: • #3 Century 21 B.J. Roth Realty,Barrie, Ont.• #5 Century 21 Dome Realty,Regina• #6 Century 21 Fusion,Saskatoon• #8 Century 21 Leading EdgeRealty, Toronto• #11 Century 21 AssuranceRealty, Kelowna, B.C.• #16 Century 21 Bamber Realty,Calgary • #17 Century 21 Heritage House,Woodstock, Ont.

Century 21 Canada is EasterSeals’ third-largest corporate part-ner in Canada for total donations

Century 21 Canada raised enough to send more than 270kids living with disabilities to camp in 2014.

Kyle Hislop camped out on the roof of his brokeragefrom Feb. 2 to 6 to raise funds for the local shelter.

Royal LePage Saskatoon hosted its 13th AnnualFunspiel recently.

Comedy for a Cause raised $7,670 for the local shelter.

Snowmobiles gather for the Snowmobile PokerRun, organized by Ashlynn Read of SuttonGroup - Select Realty in London, Ont.

MarinaRussell(left) andDianaDickey

Ashlynn Read

1-800-387-6058www.realtyreport.org

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obviously t together to e interested and layout tage of what you’re

re

on stage. e occupied this with tation into

Today’s low interest rates may have started you thinking about investing in a second, investment property. A rental property is a fixed asset, an attractive option for people looking for a tangible investment. Before you jump ahead though, do your research and assemble your team – one consisting of you, your financial advisor and your REALTOR®.

ng type and

STAN

Let’s get together to discuss what to look out for in your next real estate decision!

FEBRUARY 2015

RIVERDALE MARKET WATCH

NO. SOLD AVERAGE PRICE

DAYS ON MARKET

DETACHED

2 BEDROOM 25 $ 331,098 253 BEDROOM 54 $ 384,591 234 BEDROOM 16 $ 497,222 225+ BEDROOM 10 $ 588,500 35

SEMI-DETACHED2 BEDROOM 45 $ 308,624 203 BEDROOM 100 $ 297,423 174 BEDROOM 26 $ 429,054 245+ BEDROOM 5 $ 403,360 14

TOWNHOUSE

2 BEDROOM 12 $ 317,667 133 BEDROOM 33 $ 378,779 204 BEDROOM 1 $ 290,900 8

SEMI-DE

BEDROO

ROO

ACHEDHE

$ 5

7,222

5 35

23

0

Tino DiodatiReal Estate Agent

EAST END REPORTMarket Connections Inc.®

Whether you’re thinking of buying or selling your home, or are just curious as to real estate values in your neighbourhood, you’ll want to make sure you talk to a real estate professional who is knowledgeable and familiar with the area.I invite you to call me at 800-387-6058 for the most up-to-date market information!

2R7

From the desk of Tino Diodati

Volume 9, Issue 3

Tino Diodati

Market C

Figures are based on MLS® sales as reported by the Canadian Real Estate Association. Market values depend on factors besides housing type

number of bedrooms. Overall condition, square footage, upgrades, lot size and specific location are some other key factors involved.

Source: Canadian Real Estate Association

RESALE VS. NEW:

WHAT WORKS FOR YOU?

If you need somewhere to live right now, you’ll obviously need to

work with what’s available on the market. Call today to get the latest

updates. We’ll get together to review the current and upcoming listin

in the areas you’re interested in, in your price range, making sure the

location, amenities and layout of the unit itself are ideal for your need

The great advantage of buying into an existing building is that you c

see exactly what you’re getting and how you might fit in to both the

unit and the building.

Looking ahead to a new condo in a couple of years? Today’s low

interest rates might have started you thinking about buying a pre-

construction unit. With the down-payment due now for a building

that won’t be occupied for two or three years, you’ll need to not on

clear this with your financial advisor but also do your research into

reputation of the builder to ensure the stability of your investment s

far in the future.

Let’s get together to discuss what to look out for in your next real

estate decision!

When it comes to buying a condo, what’s your best choice –

buying a pre-construction unit or one in an established building?

FEBRUARY 2015



DAYS ON MARKET

DETACHED

SEMI-DETACHED

TOWNHOUSE

EAST END REPORT

Market Connections Inc.®

Whether you’re thinking of buying or selling your home, or are just curious as to

real estate values in your neighbourhood, you’ll want to make sure you talk to a

real estate professional who is knowledgeable and familiar with the area.

I invite you to call me at 800-387-6058 for the most up-to-date market information!

Market Connections Inc.® | 94 Scarsdale Road, Toronto, ON M

Bus: (800) 387-6058 Fax: (800) 800-7093

From the desk of Vivian Giraldi

Volume 9, Issue 3

Vivian Giraldi


94 Scarsdale Road

Toronto, ON M3B 2R7

Vivian Giraldi

Real Estate Agent

Bus: (800) 387-6058

Fax: (800) 800-7093

you’ll oWe’ll getas you’re

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NO CHILL IN THIS MARKET!

"The January results represented good news on multiple fronts. First,

strong sales growth suggests homebuyers continue to see housing as

a quality long-term investment, despite the recent period of economic

uncertainty. Second, the fact that new listings grew at a faster pace

than sales suggests that it has become easier for some people to find a

home that meets their needs," said Mr. Etherington.

"Home price growth is forecast to continue in 2015. Lower borrowing

costs will largely mitigate price growth this year, which means

affordability will remain in check. The strongest rates of price growth will

be experienced for low-rise home types, including singles, semis and

townhouses. However, robust end-user demand for condo apartments

will result in above-inflation price growth in the high-rise segment as

well," said Jason Mercer, TREB's Director of Market Analysis.

Call today to find out what’s hot in your neighbourhood!

Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) President Paul Etherington

announced a strong start to 2015, with robust year-over-year

sales and average price growth in January. Greater Toronto Area

REALTORS® reported 4,355 home sales through the Toronto

MLS® system last month, representing a 6.1 percent increase

over January 2014, while new listings rose by 9.5 percent during

the same period. The average selling price for January 2015

home sales was up by 4.9 percent year-over-year to $552,575.

Figures are based on MLS® sales as reported by the Toronto Real Estate Board. Market values depend on factors besides housing type and

number of bedrooms. Overall condition, square footage, upgrades, lot size and specific location are some other key factors involved.

Source: Toronto Real Estate Board

TREB

JANUARY 2015



DAYS ON MARKET

DETACHED

2 BEDROOM 25 $ 331,098 25

3 BEDROOM 54 $ 384,591 23

4 BEDROOM 16 $ 497,222 22

5+ BEDROOM 10 $ 588,500 35

SEMI-DETACHED

2 BEDROOM 45 $ 308,624 20

3 BEDROOM 100 $ 297,423 17

4 BEDROOM 26 $ 429,054 24

5+ BEDROOM 5 $ 403,360 14

TOWNHOUSE

2 BEDROOM 12 $ 317,667 13

3 BEDROOM 33 $ 378,779 20

4 BEDROOM 1 $ 290,900 8

SEMI-DE

BEDROO

ROO

ACHEDHE

$ 5

7,222

5 35

23

0

Courtney BrownReal Estate Agent

EAST END REPORT


Whether you’re thinking of buying or selling your home, or are just curious as to

real estate values in your neighbourhood, you’ll want to make sure you talk to a

real estate professional who is knowledgeable and familiar with the area.

I invite you to call me at 800-387-6058 for the most up-to-date market information!

Market Connections Inc.® | 94 Scarsdale Road, Toronto, ON M3B 2R7

Bus: (800) 387-6058 Fax: (800) 800-7093

From the desk of Courtney Brown

Volume 9, Issue 2

Courtney Brown


94 Scarsdale Road

Toronto, ON M3B 2R7

Courtney BrownReal Estate Agent

Bus: (800) 387-6058

Fax: (800) 800-7093

,

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[email protected]@[email protected]

6” x 4”

8.5” x 5.5”


94 Scarsdale RoadToronto, ON M3B 2R7

This is not intended to solicit buyers and sellers under contract with a broker.

Vivian GiraldiSales Representative

416-223-2250 ext. [email protected]

www.realtyreport.org

Turning your Realty Dreams into Reality!s

Tel: [email protected]

www.marketconnections.com

94 Scarsdale RoadToronto, Ontario M3B 2R7

Courtney BrownMarketing Specialist

� 1 c. flour� ½ c. cornmeal� 2 tsp. baking powder� ½ tsp. salt� 1 ½ c. blueberries� ¼ tsp. cinnamon� 1 c. plain yogurt

� 1 c. sugar� 3 eggs� 2 tsp. grated lemon zest� ½ tsp. almond extract� ¼ c. vegetable oil� ¼ c. icing sugar (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9”x5” loaf pan. 2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Stir in cinnamon and blueberries. 3. In a separate bowl, whisk together yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, almond extract, and vegetable oil. 4. Stir thedry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined. 5. Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake for approx. 55 minutes, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack. Sprinkle with icing sugar if desired and enjoy!

s

REM APRIL 2015 33

contributed. Since 2009,Canadian System members haveraised nearly $3 million for EasterSeals and the Kids to Camp pro-gram.

� � �

Kyle Hislop, a sales rep at RoyalLePage Wheeler Cheam Realty inChilliwack, B.C., was brainstorm-ing fundraising ideas for hisupcoming Machu PicchuChallenge for Shelter. He waslooking for something that wouldstand out in his community andraise significant awareness for hislocal women’s shelter.

“I figured living on a roof in themiddle of winter would work,” saysHislop. “I also knew it woulddemonstrate how much my col-leagues and I care about our com-munity.”

From Feb. 2 to 6, Hislopcamped day and night on the roofof his brokerage’s office, while col-lecting pledges from nearly 100donors. On his final day, Hislopwas welcomed from the roof byrepresentatives from Ann DavisTransition Society, who were elat-ed to learn that $8,100 had beenraised to help women and childrenescaping violence.

Participants in the MachuPicchu Challenge for Shelter willbe trekking to the lost city ofMachu Picchu, Peru in August2015. Trekkers from Royal LePageoffices across Canada must raise$5,000 each for their localwomen’s shelter and cover theirown travel costs.

� � �

Recently 143 snowmobilers inLucan, Ont. came together toenjoy a day of winter fun, a hand ofpoker and good company to helpsick children. The third annualPoker Run broke previous atten-dance and fundraising records with$2,500 for the Children’s HealthFoundation. Snowmobilers gath-ered at organizer Ashlynn Read’sfarm in Lucan and then travelledto designated locations to receiveplaying cards. At the end of thejourney, participants discoveredwhether their poker hand couldwin them any of the prizes donatedby local businesses and farms.

Read, a sales rep with SuttonGroup - Select Realty in London,says money was raised throughentry fees, a 50/50 draw, donationsand proceeds of a chili dinner. Shelaunched the Poker Run in 2013.

� � �

Royal LePage Saskatoon host-

ed its 13th Annual Funspiel in sup-port of the Royal LePage ShelterFoundation recently. Eleven teamsand guests participated in the curl-ing, which was followed by dinnerand an awards ceremony. Theevent raised $5,911 for local shel-ter Saskatoon Interval House.

“While raising funds for ourlocal women’s shelter is the prima-ry goal, our Funspiel also provides afun and social atmosphere,” saysMatt Miller, one of the organizers.The team captained by LorriWalters of Royal LePageSaskatoon emerged victorious,although rules were designed toallow for people of all skill levels toenjoy. Jim Bridgeman, LionelBetker and Lorri Walters roundedout the organizing team.

� � �

Sutton Group - Seafair Realtyin Richmond, B.C. is donating aminimum of $5,000, plus the skillsand time of sales reps and staff tohelp build six houses with mort-gage-helper suites. They will workalongside the families who committo contributing 500 hours of “sweatequity”. For the first time, the newowners will have the option toobtain trade apprenticeship train-ing to increase job prospects in theconstruction industry.

“Our team consists of 12 to 16Sutton Group - Seafair Realtymembers who will work on allaspects of this Habitat forHumanity Greater Vancouver pro-ject from electrical to painting tolandscaping depending on theprogress of the build,” says sales repDiana Dickey.

Sales rep Marina Russell says,“At the end of the day it’s aboutgiving back to the communitythrough multiple facets. Habitatfor Humanity is the perfect vehicleallowing us to do this on a multi-tier level.”

� � �

To raise funds in support of herupcoming participation in theMachu Picchu Challenge forShelter, Lorraine O’Quinn ofRoyal LePage ProAlliance Realtyin Trenton, Ont. organized afundraising evening featuring YukYuk’s comedians Chris Quigleyand Dylan Mandlsohn.

Held at the Empire Theatre inBelleville, Ont., Comedy for aCause attracted more than 500people and raised $7,670 in sup-port of Three Oaks Shelter via theRoyal LePage Shelter Foundation.

REM

34 REM APRIL 2015

www.aventurerealty.caMake The Connection With Leading Independent Brokerages From Coast To Coast And Around The Globe

RUSS ROBIDEAU, Broker/OwnerProfessional Realty Group.Edmonton, AB

SHEP ABBEY, Broker/OwnerAbbey & Olivier Real Estate Agency. Beaconsfield, QC

VINCE CAVALIERE, Broker/OwnerRiver City Realty. Kamloops, BC

PAUL FITZPATRICK, Broker/OwnerAt Home Realty Group Inc. Brokerage. Guelph, ON

JANICE PARISH, Broker/OwnerRoyal Service Real Estate Inc., Brokerage.Newcastle, ON

SHERRY MACLEOD, Broker/OwnerCape Breton Realty.St. Peter’s, NS

3D listings provide in-person viewBy Yvonne Dick

The Matterport 3D camera

here’s a new tool in townfor real estate listings – 3Dphotography. The pictures

taken by this camera are walk-through inspired video listing pho-tos. Think Google Earth inside thehome. Trying it out on one listing,you can walk around the kitchen,read magnets on the fridge, checkout the pantry contents and thencruise smoothly down the hall tothe bathroom, bedrooms and frontentryway without leaving yourdesk. Want to see upstairs? Followthe lightly outlined circles withyour mouse, click the view youwant from the stairs and be on yourway through the home.

Sara MacLennan, marketingdirector of Liv Real Estate inEdmonton, says, “For a seller thistechnology can significantlydecrease the number of unsuccess-ful showings. It’s a real time saverfor home buyers and sellers alike.Buyers can experience a home ontheir mobile device or computerand decide if it’s worth a look inperson.”

T Formatted differently than astandard digital photo, 3D photog-raphy must be hosted by a special-ized site in order to be viewed. LivRealty uses Matterport, a manufac-turer of the cameras. To under-stand why people are so excitedabout the technology, a quickprimer on what can and cannot bedone with digital cameras:

Stereography has been called3D digital photography. It is doneusing any camera and requires twophotos of the same thing lined upclose together. Viewed normally,they look like two photographsside-by-side, and like they are onepicture with dimension when youlook at them cross-eyed. But hav-ing to look at pictures of a listingcross-eyed is probably not a sellingpoint.

3D consumer cameras will takea picture of an object close up. Thequality is not as good as a comput-er-walkable house view thatMatterport and other manufactur-ers can offer.

Cycloramic photos can be

done using smartphone softwareand offer the chance to rotate thecamera manually or on a smallmotor to get a 360-degree view of aroom. They do not offer the optionto seamlessly transition from faraway to close up and to crossthrough doorways into otherrooms.

As a trained photographer her-self, MacLennan gives theMatterport camera thumbs up. “Itried it out, checked over the set-tings to see what it was capable of,”she says, “It’s not very hard to use.There is a subscription fee to havethe pictures hosted on their site.We contract out to a photographerwho takes approximately an hourand a half to shoot a listing. Thenit can be uploaded to the site, andthree hours or so later it’s ready toview.”

Controlled by tablet, theMatterport camera sits on a revolv-ing base that gently spins. It calcu-lates dimensions, colours, contoursand spatial relationships of objectsin the room. MacLennan says it

will give the photographer feed-back about the best place to set thecamera in order to capture thelargest possible perspective, andalso to see if an area will need a re-take before the photographerleaves the house. Its special websitehosting platform also serves as thesoftware that stitches together allof the information obtained by thecamera about an area, giving it arealistic look and feel, which doesn’t compare to other styles ofphotography.

The price for quality doesn’tcome cheap, however. The compa-ny currently sells the Matterport3D Pro for $4,500 plus shipping.Additionally, they do not ship toCanada. In order to obtain one, abuyer will need to find an importerto complete the transaction frompurchase to customs to final deliv-ery. MacLennan says it’s worth theprice.

“We got a phenomenalresponse when we started puttingour listings up in 3D,” she says.That trend has continued, and as

an add-on feature for showcasingand selling a house, she believesthat once enough people are ableto see the results for themselves, itjust might be the future of market-ing technology in real estate list-ings.

To get a look, go tohttps://www.edmontonrealestate.pro/liv-real-3d.php or theMatterport site at https://matter-port.com/try/. REM

REM APRIL 2015 35

here continues to bedebate across the countryabout whether real estate

agents should use a buyer represen-tation agreement (BRA) prior toworking with buyers.

Some agents say that theywould never sign one and havelong relied on the trust and therelationships that they have estab-lished over the years. They are notconcerned with a customer usingtheir services and then later tryingto avoid paying them by goingdirectly to the seller or to the list-ing agent. Others state that due tothe time and financial commit-ment they are making to buyers,they want to have the BRA signedby the prospective buyers todemonstrate that same level ofcommitment to them. Others statethat they only sign the BRA at the

TBy Mark Weisleder

5 key points about buyer representation agreementstime the first offer is presented.

Based on recent case law andpublic reaction to BRAs in general,here are five things to remember:

1. It is hard to claim commis-sion without a signed BRA. In arecent decision, an agent intro-duced a buyer to a property with-out a signed BRA. The buyer wentdirectly to the listing agent andadvised the listing agent that theywere not working with any buyeragent. The listing agent then hadthem sign a BRA with them sothey were acting in dual agency, ormultiple representation.

The listing agent received thefull commission payable. Thebuyer agent sued the listing agentfor “unjust enrichment”, statingthat they had done the work inintroducing the buyer to the prop-erty and deserved to share in thecommission. The court disagreed,stating that without a signed BRA,no claim could be made.

2. Can a buyer agent sue abuyer directly when no BRA is

signed? This is a difficult area ofthe law. With no signed BRA, abuyer agent must do more thanintroduce a buyer to a seller or to aseller’s property. They must alsoparticipate in the negotiations forthe purchase and have an expecta-tion of being paid commission.Without this, it will be difficult toclaim commission from the buyer.

3. Is taking a buyer to courtfor commission a good idea? Ialways try and discourage peoplefrom going to court, for the simplereason that decisions are madepublic and are then shared on theInternet. In a recent case, a buyerbrokerage was successful in collect-ing $12,000 in commission againsta buyer who signed a 12-monthBRA and then purchased a homeduring the holdover period.Although this was a good result forthe brokerage, there was substan-tial negative publicity associatedwith this case, as the media report-ed that the salesperson signed thebuyer to a 15-month contract

without explaining it to him andcollected commission even thoughhe did not represent the buyer inthe actual transaction.

4. What some buyers do toavoid paying commission, evenwith a signed BRA. In my experi-ence, buyers will state that theysigned the BRA late at night,without any explanation, at thetime the first offer was prepared,and that no copy was left withthem. They understood that if theoffer was accepted, the buyer agentwould be paid but if not accepted,there would be no future obliga-tions. This is also the subject ofmany complaints made to the RealEstate Council of Ontario, by buy-ers stating they were never madeaware when they signed the BRAthat the term would be for a mini-mum of six months.

5. How do I make sure I usethe BRA properly? It is better toproperly explain the BRA andhave it signed as early as possible inthe process, preferably before you

are about to prepare a first offer forthe buyer. Do it the same wayevery time. This means that allterms of the BRA are properlyexplained, including the initialterm and any holdover provision.The term of the agreement, even ifsix months or less, should alwaysbe initialled by the buyers, to makesure that it was properly explained.

Always give a signed copy ofthe BRA to each of the buyersimmediately upon signing. Whenyou explain agreements carefully,buyers will be less likely to try andavoid paying you commission.

By understanding your rightsand obligations regarding theBRA, it is hoped that it can beused as a source of building loyalclient relationships and protectingyour commission at the same time.

Mark Weisleder is a partner,author and speaker at the law firm Real Estate Lawyers.ca LLP. Contact him [email protected] REM

note a very interesting case inArizona called Desert Palm v.Petta. At the trial stage a dis-

gruntled patient was found liable indefamation and libel for an articleshe posted online about allegedunprofessional behaviour andincompetence of the plaintiff doc-tors.

The court required the defen-dant Petta to remove the postingfrom her website, which she did. Ina jury trial, the doctors were award-ed some $12 million but on anappeal the court was not pleasedwith the amount awarded and cer-tain aspects of the trial. The

Arizona Court of Appeal ordered anew trial.

It seems “all the rage” to rateyour professional online. I notethat many individuals do not signtheir rating and yet give a verynegative and demeaning commentabout the professional’s compe-tence and ability. It will be inter-esting to see if someone challengessuch an article.

■ ■ ■

Conversion of a legal non-con-forming use: A property ownerleased premises to a tenant whooperated a traditional bar, sellingalcohol. This was not authorized bythe municipal by-law but was anon-conforming use.

Subsequently, the owner leasedthe premises to a third person whodecided to operate a juice bar. Theventure was unsuccessful and thethird party had to close up. Theowner who retook possessionapplied to operate the traditionaltype of bar (alcohol) and the

municipality objected. When theowner brought a motion seeking acourt order that it had the right tothe non-conforming use, it wasfound that there had been a“change in use”, which extin-guished the non-conforming use.The premises could no longer beused for the sale of alcohol. Therewas no doubt that the non-con-forming use had ceased (or hadbeen interrupted) and that theowner was fully aware of thechange to a juice bar.

■ ■ ■

Credible vendors: The plaintiffagreed to buy the defendant’s home.The vendors had made a disclosurethat there was never any waterentering their basement duringtheir ownership.

Once the purchasers moved inthey found that water was leakingfrom cracks in the wall. Theybrought an action. The court foundthat the vendors were not negli-gent, did not make fraudulent or

negligent misrepresentations andwere honest. They also did not tryto conceal “a latent defect” eventhough they painted the basementfloor to make it look cleaner. Thiswas on the advice of their realestate agent.

Obviously the credibility of theindividuals convinced the judgethat the representation and act ofpainting the floor did not supersedethe vendor’s honesty. Clark v Styles,2014 SKQB 343

■ ■ ■

Earned commission: A broker-age entered a Listing Agreement forthe sale of a property. During thetime of the listing, the brokerage,through its agent, introduced theeventual purchaser but noAgreement of Purchase and Salewas forthcoming. The listing con-tinued the right to a commission if“written notice” was given by thebrokerage that it introduced thepurchaser during the listing agree-ment.

Three and one-half monthsafter the expiry of the listing agree-ment, the purchaser signed anagreement to purchase the property.After the sale closed the brokeragesubmitted an invoice to the vendorfor commission on the sale. Thevendor did not pay the invoice andthe brokerage commenced anaction for payment.

The Court of Appeal held thatthe commission was not payable tothe brokerage because of the lack ofwritten notice of the prior introduc-tion. On a quantum meruit basisthe court allowed the brokerage$20,000 for services provided afterexpiry of the Listing Agreement.Ariston Realty Corp. v. Elcarim Inc.,2014 ONCA 737

Donald Lapowich, Q.C. is a part-ner at the law firm of Koskie, Minskyin Toronto, where he practices civil lit-igation, with a particular emphasis onreal estate litigation and mediation,acting for builders, real estate agentsand lawyers. REM

Online rating websitesLEGAL ISSUES

By Donald H. Lapowich

I

36 REM APRIL 2015

re you about to indulge inbombastic self-promotionwith colossal photos and

boastful, self-congratulatory slo-gans plastered everywhere? Or toencourage referrals and repeatclients, do you prefer to maintain alow-key style with regular contact– in person or digitally – with a“farm” area and/or warm sphere ofinfluence?

Your choice will clearly dependon your belief system and personal-ity type. If effectively executed,both methods – mass advertisingand personal prospecting – can behighly productive. However, theformer demands a substantial

By Ross Wilson

Is your business about money or people?financial commitment combinedwith a co-ordinated long-termstrategy, while the latter can trans-late into delayed gratification andinitially, at least, an unspectacularincome, not to mention possibleconflicts with the privacy police.The personal networking methodmay not rocket you overnight tosuperstar status, but you couldenjoy the benefit of a considerablylonger career – with lower over-head.

Once on the self-promotionroad, during a busy period or whileon sabbatical, for example, youmight suspend advertising. Ads areprimarily designed to make thephone ring. And if you’re busyenough – or prefer to not be – whyspend the money? But during suchgaps, since you depend mainly onnew client generation rather thanreferrals and returning clients, thepublic may, at least temporarily,forget about you. Any notedabsence of your mug in the paper –

no matter how brief – could beconstrued as failure. Therefore, toenjoy a durable career, personalpromotion programs must berelentless.

On the other hand, regularcontact grooming is not only lessexpensive than complex mega-campaigns, but if you temporarilysuspend active connecting, sinceyour business is based on personalrelationships, contacts won’t nec-essarily assume you’ve quit. Thebonus of working with friends – oldand new – is that it can be bothfinancially and emotionallyrewarding. Familiarity and trust arecommon companions and trustbreeds referrals.

A big name’s voluminous busi-ness is certainly a commendablegoal. Nevertheless, after an expen-sive effort, if fame remains elusive,only their ego is fed – not theircredit union account. Their faceon a few park benches or a smallweekly newspaper ad probably

equates with a personal contactthrough their network every fewyears; in other words, not veryeffective. However, a carefullyorchestrated and continuingstrategic advertising campaign,with one medium consistentlycomplementing and reinforcinganother, generating a repetitivepublic perception of success, canachieve excellent results. But don’tstop until you’re ready to retire oryou risk losing that coveted “frontof mind” real estate known as pub-lic awareness.

When it’s time to move,though, no matter how muchmoney you’ve spent in the neigh-bourhood, many homeowners willstill turn to a friend in the businessbecause they’re more moved byestablished, trusting and amiableassociation than by mailbox pompand pageantry. Having said all this,if you expend neither time normoney, your old clients will likelycall a local megastar or a new

friend in the business who is mak-ing the investment.

To passively influence a smallportion of the multitude, you canspend more money and less time.Or for active influence, you canspend less money and more time –possibly achieving the same netincome. In my view, time is farmore valuable than money sincewithout the time to appreciate thequality of life to which money cancontribute, digits in an account areessentially valueless. One couldargue that investing the more valu-able resource of time can achievemore valuable results. Intermittentinvestment of advertising dollarsnormally generates only short-termresults, if any, whereas an invest-ment of your time, because you’vebuilt lasting relationships, can pro-duce sustainable, long-term results.

There’s no doubt that if doneright, either style can be highlyeffective. It’s your choice, butwhatever style you choose, be con-sistent. Also, keep in mind that wedon’t sell real estate; only propertyowners do. We are actually peoplepersuaders.

Do you think your business isall about money or people? Whereare your priorities? It’s been saidthat it’s better to know a few peo-ple well than many people a little.Think about this; would you preferto prospect in a crowd of 1,000strangers where you’re forced tosell yourself in the hope of winningtrust? Or perhaps in a group of 50,all of whom know your first nameand have faith in you? I’d ratherhave one great friend than an end-less list of casual acquaintances. Isuggest that most people prefer toassociate with someone they trustover another with a big mouth anddeep pockets. Trust wins virtuallyevery time.

Ross Wilson, broker with iProRealty, has enjoyed a rewarding four-decade career encompassing a highlyproductive referral sales practice andextensive experience as a brokerageowner, manager, trainer and mentor.His new book, The Happy Agent –Finding Harmony with a ThrivingRealty Career and an EnrichedPersonal Life is available where printand e-books are sold, including theTREB, BREB and OMDREBstores. He may be reached atwww.realty-voice.com. REM

A

ack in the pioneer dayswhen I first held my realestate licence (closely, as it

was very windy out on the openprairie astride my buckboard), Ishould have considered using a pro-fessional photographer for listingsheet brochures.

Sure, it only happened maybetwo or 18 times, but when you can’ttell a stationary house from a mov-ing cube van, perhaps you shouldn’tbe gluing those pictures on to a list-ing sheet.

It’s fairly common practice nowto use a professional stager andeven more common to get a profes-sional photographer to come inbefore you begin your marketingcampaign for a new listing. Theymight take a week or two, workingwith optimum times for daylightand artificial sources to capture

photos worthy of hanging on a wallin a gallery.

Once those puppies are incor-porated into brochures crafted by ateam of unemployed, Pulitzer-prizewinning journalists and retiredbest-selling novelists looking tomake a little extra money forbeachfront Margaritas, the homegoes on the market and sells in anhour – typically for well over theasking price.

It may be hard to believe, butthere was a time in the real estatebusiness where you once had thehomeowners brandishingweapons to encourage you tomove as quickly as possible toattract a sale. You would take pic-tures (at that particular time inthe technology curve) with a .05megapixel digital camera thatsaved images to a floppy disk.

On occasion, all your workwould get erased simply byattempting to transfer the floppydisk from the camera to the com-puter, so you had to discreetlybreak into the home when the

owners were away, to retake allthe photos. During daylight hours,with no witnesses.

Once the blurry images weresafely transferred on to your com-puter, you would sort them from“least blurry” to “is that ahaystack?” The company I startedout with back then had featuresheet property boards that we usedin the local shopping malls, with afew small picture spaces well suitedto images shot from a speeding cargoing over multiple potholes.While dangling your camera from aSlinky.

One space was for a large 8x10shot and that was where I oftenstruggled. Most times I could relyon my silver tongue to assurehomeowners that the picture theywere looking at was absolutely theirown home and not a battered four-drawer lateral filing cabinet recov-ered from a riverbed.

The only time that method didn’t work was when I listed thehome of a noted local photograph-er, who used a real camera and was

not likely to be swayed by mylawyer-like closing arguments infavour of convincing him his homewas anywhere remotely located inmy frame of the shot.

As a matter of fact, he accom-panied me during the photo shootand I could tell by the cluckingbehind me he either had a hen inhis coat pocket, or he disapprovedof my efforts. Turned out to be thelatter.

He offered to take his ownshots, for a nominal reduction inhis professional fees.

I’m sure I don’t have to tell anyof you, it’s far better to appear asprofessional as possible than it isto let pride and bad photographyskills get in the way of the bestpossible service you can providefor a client.

Humour columnist and authorDan St. Yves was licensed with RoyalLePage Kelowna for 11 years. Checkout his website at www.nonsenseand-stuff.com, or contact him [email protected]. REM

By Dan St. Yves

Real estate photography –Is that a haystack?

B

REM APRIL 2015 37

Announcement

RE/MAX CORE Realty opens their doors in Ottawa!

Left to Right: Eli Skaff, (Broker/Owner), Marc Evans, Tarek El Attar, Jarrod Davis

RE/MAX CORE Realty Inc.485 Industrial Ave, Ottawa613-699-6870

RE/MAX INTEGRA, Ontario-Atlantic Canada is pleased to announce the opening of our newest office in Ottawa, RE/MAX CORE Realty.

Broker of Record Eli Skaff has been a REALTOR® and has operated as a top performing team with a competitor since 2010. He is joined by another top performing team, Marc Evans and Tarek El Attar, as well as a long time area manager and Tom Ferry coach, Jarrod Davis.

These four partners are focused on creating an innovative and leading-edge brokerage, combining proactive leadership and facility amenities uniquely designed to support and promote top producing agents. Within the first 2 weeks of opening they already have 22 agents.

We are pleased to have them as part of our RE/MAX network and are looking forward to seeing the growth of this new company.

Please join us in welcoming RE/MAX CORE Realty Inc.

made the switch to iPhonefrom BlackBerry about fouryears ago. As I grew increas-

ingly frustrated with my oldBlackBerry’s limited capabilities,and more and more impressed withthe seemingly limitless possibilitiesof the iPhone, making the switchto Apple’s device became an easydecision.

But to this day, there’s stillsomething I miss about my oldBlackBerry that the iPhone hasnever been able to beat: That won-derful, familiar, tactile keyboard.

The truth is, the longer I’vehad my iPhone, the more it’sbecome clear to me: This touch-screen keyboard thing isn’t work-ing out. I don’t know how manytimes I’ve had to type, retype andretype again a word that either mythumbs or iPhone’s autocorrect, orboth, have mangled into nonsense.Writing anything longer than afew quick paragraphs is out of thequestion.

So right on cue arrivesBlackBerry’s new Passport, featur-ing an actual, physical keyboard.With its arrival, I find myself con-fronting the same dilemma asbefore: Do I really want all theexciting bells and whistles thatcome with Apple’s device, or asleek, professional, work-orientedsmartphone with that trustyQWERTY keyboard I’ve beenmissing so much?

Passport isn’t just a clevername. The new BlackBerry deviceis exactly the dimensions of anactual passport, giving it a uniquewider, bulkier build than mostsmartphone devices. This accom-modates a larger, square screenwith a 1:1 ratio that mostly elimi-nates the need to rotate back andforth between portrait and land-scape orientations.

The wider build means thisdevice’s keyboard is exclusively fortwo hands, so typing a quick “Onmy way” while on the go is more ofa challenge. But to be honest, inday-to-day use I rarely type any-thing one-handed on my currentdevice to begin with, and thePassport offers reliable andstraightforward voice commands(more reliable than its competitors

I

Tech review: TheBlackBerry PassportBy William Molls

at times) that make sending a mes-sage or making a call hands-freefrom the headset simply an easieroption.

The keyboard is also only threerows – no numbers or punctuationmarks, which are reserved for afourth touchscreen row thatappears when typing. The wideand narrow shape is a bit awkwardand can certainly take some get-ting used to.

But even so, the keyboard hassome nifty new tricks. While thetouchscreen offers all the expectedgestures (scrolling, pinching tozoom in and out, and so on), thosewho miss the old BlackBerrytouchpad will find that the key-board itself now fills this role.

Quickly scrolling up and downthrough a message can be achievedusing the same familiar flick of thethumb that’s still locked in yourmuscle memory, but this timeacross the touch-sensitive surfaceof the keyboard itself.

The Passport runs onBlackBerry 10.3 operating soft-ware, which does a great job ofbeing fast and responsive and,importantly, not getting in theway. It’s built around “The Hub”,which does its best to bring togeth-er your messages, social media andcalendar all in one place at a quickglance. Menus are easy to navigate,and, for the most part, apps are easyto find.

Speaking of apps, the Passportcan now run Android apps via theAmazon Appstore, but the selec-

tion is still limited – Google appsaren’t on offer, though GoogleCalendar works well enough andintegrates with “The Hub”.

One useful new BlackBerryexclusive app is BlackBerry Blend– an app that promises to let youview and send messages and con-tent from your Passport to yourcomputer or tablet and vice-versa,letting you seamlessly transitionbetween devices without losingproductivity.

As for battery life, despite thelarge screen and powerful quad-core, Qualcomm Snapdragon 801processor and 3GB of RAM, thePassport has pretty incredible sta-mina – easily lasting an entire dayand beyond.

The Passport also sports a 13megapixel camera that can shootin 1080p HD video at 30 or 60frames a second – the most power-ful of any BlackBerry device beforeit – as well as a basic but function-al front-facing 2 MP camera. Thecamera app can be a bit sluggish,but produces photos of a quality onpar with other smartphone devicesin its class. It’s by no means stellar,but it does the job.

While the keyboard itself isn’tperfect – personally, I anxiouslyawait the BlackBerry Classic,which offers the familiar keyboardshape of the old BlackBerry Curve– it’s still a big improvement overits touchscreen competitors. Howimportant that is to you will large-ly depend on how much you findyourself typing and sending mes-sages.

The Passport is definitely aunique device, given its unortho-dox shape and form. But make nomistake; this device was built witha razor-sharp focus on productivity.This phone is all about businessand is an excellent fit for a work-oriented real estate professionalwho is okay with going without thebells and whistles of offerings fromSamsung or Apple – or, as I found,anyone who misses having a phys-ical, tactile keyboard for typing asmuch as I do.

William Molls is REM’s digitalmedia manager. Email [email protected]. REM

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38 REM APRIL 2015

orda Maisey is the 2015/16president of the Fraser ValleyReal Estate Board, replacing

outgoing president Ray Werger.Maisey has been a licensed Realtorfor more than 20 years and is a salesrepresentative with Re/Max LittleOak Realty in Fort Langley.

The president-elect is CharlesWiebe, Re/Max Little Oak Realty,Fort Langley and the VP is GopalSahota, Sutton Group - WestCoast Realty, Surrey.

Directors elected to the boardare: Larry Anderson, SuttonPremier Realty, Surrey; JohnBarbisan, Sutton Premier Realty,Surrey; Sandra Benz, Re/MaxPerformance Realty, Delta; MannyBoparai, Century 21 CoastalRealty, Surrey; Karen Conyers,Sotheby’s International RealtyCanada, Surrey; Jim Cox, Re/MaxAldercenter Realty, Aldergrove;Darin Germyn, Macdonald Realty,Surrey; and Dharbinder Singh,Century 21 Coastal Realty, Surrey.

■ ■ ■

Greater Moncton Realtors du

J

In addition to supporting localcharities directly, the DurhamRegion Association of Realtors(DRAR) also supports the OntarioRealtors Care Foundation. Eachmonth, every DRAR memberdonates $1 to the foundation,which provides grants to Ontariocharities.

DRAR recently announcedthat the recipients of its 2013 char-itable contributions have beenapproved for additional fundingthrough the foundation. TheRefuge is a Christian charitableorganization dedicated to offeringhelp to homeless and street youthin Durham Region.

Precious Minds provides sup-port to families in north DurhamRegion with children who havebarriers to learning. The CharlesH. Best Diabetes Centre promotespositive integration of diabetesmanagement into the daily life ofchildren, adolescents and youngadults and their families.

■ ■ ■

The Kitchener-WaterlooAssociation of Realtors recentlypresented $14,000 to Habitat forHumanity Waterloo Region(HFHWR). The donation came asa result of HFHWR’s successfulgrant application to the RealtorsCare Foundation.

Since 1999, the foundation hasgiven more than $2 million ingrants to eligible organizations.

REM

The Windsor-Essex County Association of Realtors(WECAR) recently announced its new Board ofDirectors. Back row, from left: Barbara Manery, director,from Re/Max Preferred Realty; Julianne Green, director,a broker with Re/Max Preferred Realty; JeanetteVallance, director and broker of record for Vision RealtyWindsor; and Tina Roy, director and broker with RemoValente Real Estate (1990). Front Row: Bill Courtney,past-president, from Century 21 Request Realty;Cameron Paine, president, a broker with BuckinghamRealty (Windsor); Krista Del Gatto, EO of WECAR;and Norman Langlois, president-elect, of RegencyRealty.

Top row, from left: Kathy McFadden, chair ofDRAR’s Charity Auction Committee and committeemembers NoelCoppins, DeniseLangille, Eileen Dodd,Lisa Smith and ScottWhite. Bottom row:Janelle Dayman fromPrecious Minds;Clarence Keesman ofThe Refuge; andLaura Mountjoy of theCharles H. BestDiabetes Centre forChildren and Youth.

Grand Moncton elected AndréMalenfant president of the boardrecently. He brings 18 years of realestate experience to the position.

“I am excited to be the presi-dent in the year we celebrate our60th anniversary of running theMLS system in Greater Moncton,”says Malenfant.

“Our mission is to be an indus-try leader, providing relevant,innovative member services whichequip our Realtors to deliverexceptional service to consumers.And in 2015 our actions will provethis commitment. Our memberswill be receiving a major update oftheir MLS technology to servetheir clients,” he says.

Also elected to the Board ofDirectors: 1st vice-president RyanDavison; 2nd vice-president TrentWilkins; secretary-treasurer JesusMachado; and directors MirandaBurnett, Erika Jones and JosetteLeBlanc.

The past-president is RickyCormier and the EO is KerryRakuson.

■ ■ ■

André Malenfant

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REM APRIL 2015 39

ow far does duty of care asprescribed by the provin-cial regulators carry an

obligation on a registrant?I have served on my condo

board in the past. Our currentboard is faced with a major recon-struction of our B1 and B2 levels.

H

855.526.3939 • www.housemaster.caA GreenSaver Home Energy Services Inc. Company. Master Franchise for Canadian HouseMaster operations and Energy Services in North America

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IN YOUR FUTURE

Duty of careAS I SEE IT FROM MY DESK

By Stan Albert

All the membranes have to bereplaced and one entire wallrebuilt. The cost is enormous butwe are covered by our reserve fund.The status certificate, upon review,will indicate that everything is inorder with the exception of thedetails of the work to be done andapproved.

So, how much does a real estatesalesperson have to involve him-self once he discovers that there isa great deal of work to be done in acondo building? Does he, forexample, have to inquire how longwill it take for the work to be doneand what disruptions and/or incon-veniences it may cause to a poten-

tial buyer?In our building, in which we

have lived for nearly 20 years, thisis the second retrofit that we aregoing to experience. The firstexperience involved not only noiseand dirt for the heavy equipmenton site, but the major irritant wasthat the cars that normally park inB1 and B2 levels had to park in var-ious locations around the building,on the street or in nearby park lots.

Condos that are 20- to 40-years-old, which are mainly ofbrick and/or concrete construc-tion, begin to deteriorate. Wind,rain, winter weather and climatechange have caused the exterior

“Brands evolve over time. Theybuild and expand based on onetheme or story they are trying to tell,or they are about constant reinven-tion.” - Madonna

was in a seminar with peoplefrom different fields outside ofreal estate and I loved hearing

their stories as they brought newperspectives to the room aboutsales. One of the topics we hit onwas grooming or dressing for suc-cess. I want to relate a story that Ifound quite interesting and hasstayed with me for years.

A good-old-boy, third-genera-tion farmer from a long-estab-lished family in Ontario’s formertobacco country wanted a differ-ent career and had the desire toget into financial planning.

He thought it out and then wentfrom farm to farm to see all his rela-tives and other people that wereintertwined with his family for gen-erations. He drove in his pick-uptruck and wore his jeans and base-ball cap. For six months, he calledand called and didn’t make one sale.

In despair, he went to a familyfriend, a Dutch Uncle, and askedhim to tell him honestly what hewas doing wrong.

The old-timer said, “You comein looking like us, acting like usand you are one of us. Problem is,we don’t want one of us, we

want a professional.”The man thought on it long

and hard. He decided to make achange. He borrowed a friend’s carand started wearing his Sundaysuit and carrying a briefcase.Slowly, he started to make sales.Eventually, the sales grew into avery successful business.

A very interesting story. Iknow that many of you believethat you can sell real estate wear-ing jeans and a baseball cap, and Iacknowledge that you can – forthe short game. But for the longterm, the lesson this man related

shows that being a professional isabout image, about being yourown brand, of dressing for success.

Are you projecting a profes-sional image at all times or are youjust “one of us?”

Barry Lebow is now in his 47thyear in real estate. He has had anextensive career and has been acceptedby Canadian courts as an expert inreal estate matters in more than 500trials. He is an international speakerand an award-winning broker atRe/Max Ultimate Realty in Toronto.Email [email protected] REM

THE LEBOW REPORT

By Barry Lebow

We don’t want one of usI

walls to become extremely porousand have caused damage to theinterior walls of many unit owners’property. Many boards will have toconsider “enveloping” their build-ings with a plasticized concrete,which is a reasonable and attrac-tive solution to prevent furtherdeterioration.

In Canada we have experi-enced countless litigation ques-tioning a registrant’s duty of care.

Where does the duty of carebegin or end? Is it not a regis-trant’s duty to inquire or to investi-gate whether the building in whichhe plans to sell a unit to a potentialbuyer may be contemplating majorretrofits?

At present in Ontario, the RealEstate Council of Ontario does notrequire the registrant to have any-

thing more than a cursory knowl-edge of the status certificate. Itonly requires that a certificate mustbe provided within a reasonabletime limit.

So many sales reps’ flyers that Ireceive extol the virtues of theirlistings without truly investigatingwhat lies beneath the status certifi-cate.

On a personal note, my thanksgo out to those of you whoexpressed concern about myhealth. I am happy to say all is well.

Stan Albert, ABR, ASA is a con-sultant with Re/Max Premier inVaughan, Ont. He can be reached forconsultation at [email protected] is now celebrating his 45th yearas an active real estate professional.

REM

40 REM APRIL 2015

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Sherry Cooper namedDLC chief economist

Dominion Lending Centres(DLC) has announced that well-known economist Sherry Cooperhas taken the position of chiefeconomist.

She began her career at theFederal Reserve Board inWashington, D.C. After five yearsat the Federal Reserve, she joinedthe Federal National MortgageAssociation as director of financialeconomics. Cooper also served aschief economist and EVP of BMOFinancial Group (which includesthe Bank of Montreal in Canadaand BMO Harris Bank in theU.S.).

“Joining DLC as chief econo-mist represents a natural evolutionin my career,” says Cooper in anews release. “For over 30 years Irepresented financial institutionsby providing my insights into boththe Canadian and globaleconomies; now I am pleased toadd my voice to an organizationthat provides choice directly toconsumers. Mortgage professionalsare really one of the best optionsfor consumers seeking mortgageand financing advice for a homepurchase, home debt consolida-tion, investment properties orhome refinancing.”

Cooper will be advising on eco-nomic matters, issuing quarterly

What’s

New

What’s

New

economic updates and other state-ments as they pertain to the econ-omy and the mortgage sector onbehalf of Dominion LendingCentres, the company says.

Neighbourhood mapwallpaper

A U.K. firm says its street mapwallpaper murals “are proving tobe a highly popular choiceamongst U.K. estate agents” and ishoping to bring the concept toCanada.

“These maps are completelycustomizable so Realtors can createa street map of their geographicalarea and add their own brandingtoo,” says Michael Palmer, ofMurals Wallpaper in Liverpool.“Most customers see this as a nicetouch and it helps the Realtor giveoff an air of authority.”

Palmer says the company haslicenses to street maps all over theworld. “If a customer would like topurchase a certain street map, theysimply inform our in-house graph-

ic design team of which area codethey require and describe any cus-tomization to colour or companylogos they would like added to thewallpaper. In terms of realizing adesign concept, our technologymeans the sky really is the limit,”says Palmer.

Prices start from $45.30 and ittakes three to five working days forthe company to produce the paper.It is then shipped via UPS, whichusually takes about three days,Palmer says.

For information: www.mural-swallpaper.co.uk/world-map-mural-wallpaper.htm

Sales reps launch referrals app

Two Alberta sales repsare looking for industryprofessionals to partici-pate in a private beta testof a new referrals appprior to the launch in latespring.

Real Referrals, amobile app, will connect

users to a growing network of topreal estate professionals in everymarket across the United Statesand Canada, says the company in anews release. A free tool to helpsalespeople profit from referrals,the app displays an individual’sprofile to other users who seek tosend a qualified referral into a cho-sen local marketplace. The valueof the system is in the exchange ofreferral business, the company says.

“The app does not use an algo-rithm; it is powered by real peoplemaking genuine referrals,” says thenews release. “Real Referrals canalso be used by mortgage brokersand property managers.”

Founders Ed DePrato andDevin Stephens, both real estateagents, built the app when theyrealized there was a more efficientand cost saving way to capitalizeon agent-to-agent referrals, saysthe release.

DePrato, president of RealReferrals, says, “We took an actionthat both of us (and everyone elsein the industry) were doing everyday and streamlined the process bycapturing the information collec-tion, tracking and execution intoone place through the app.”

Users can keep their profiles atthe top of their market by sendingor accepting a referral, or by invit-ing real estate colleagues and peersto activate a Real Referrals profile.In addition to building real estateprofessionals’ businesses and net-works and allowing them to makereferrals to different markets, theReal Referrals App also has a CRMcomponent. The ReferralManagement feature helps trackand follow up on referral leads sentthrough the app.

“Agents spend thousands ofdollars and endless time attendingseminars with the hope of beingremembered when someone elsehas a referral into their market,”says DePrato. “Our app placesyour profile into the hand of asending agent at the moment theygo to place a referral.” For infor-mation: www.RealReferrals.net.

REM

Sherry Cooper

The new app willofficially launch

in late spring.

Any neighbourhood map can beturned into a wall mural

REM APRIL 2015 41

Realtors Association of Hamilton-Burlington Realtor Connections AGM, Conference and Trade ShowTuesday, March 24Hamilton Convention CentreHamiltonSheila – 905-529-8101 [email protected]

Canadian Real Estate AssociationLeadership SummitSunday, March 29The Westin [email protected]

New Brunswick Real EstateAssociationEducation Session and Annual GeneralMeetingApril 15-16Delta Beauséjour HotelMonctonhttp://nbrea.ca/2015-annual-general-meeting/

2015 AREAA Global and Luxury RealEstate SummitApril 19 – 21Trump International Hotel and TowerChicagosummit.areaa.org

London St. Thomas Association of Realtors AGM and Trade ShowTuesday, April 21London Convention [email protected]

Mississauga Real Estate BoardAGM and Exhibitor ShowcaseWednesday, April 22Mississauga Grand Banquet & Convention [email protected]

The Lakelands Association of RealtorsAGM and Trade ShowWednesday, April 22Deerhurst Resort, HuntsvilleKelly Warr - 705-788-1504 ext [email protected]

Toronto Real Estate BoardRealtor QuestMay 6 – 7Toronto Congress CentreTorontowww.realtorquest.ca

HomeLife 30th AnniversaryConference and Awards GalaMay 28 – 29Fallsview Casino ResortNiagara Falls, [email protected]

Trade Showsand ConferencesTrade Showsand ConferencesTo add a listing to this calendar, email [email protected]

Compiled with the assistance of Bob Campbell at Colour Tech Marketing, www.colourtech.com

Spring Annual Meeting Keynote Speaker – May 6

The Future of Real Estate Sales: Five inevitable trends you can’t ignore

Spring Annual Meeting Keynote Speaker – May 6

The Future of Real Estate Sales:Five inevitable trends youcan’t ignore

Richard Robbins, international speaker, author, and elite business coach.

ndy HerringtonAn Bruce Keith Bruno Marsala Dan Plowman Heather Scott Jennifer O’Brien Jaason Mercer

Jay Izso Juanita McDowellll Lou RadomskyLou Rad msk Mark Weisleder Richard Flint Tasso Eracles Waalter Sanford

Exhibitor & Sponsorship opportunities are still available!realtorquest.ca | [email protected] | #realtorquest

• “Condo 101: What You Need to Know from Start

to Finish” panel hosted by BILD : Building Industry

and Land Development

• “Are You Getting Your Share of the International

Market?” panel

• “New Homes and Condos: Builders and Market

Leaders Get You Better Informed” hosted by

RealNet

• CREA Membership Open House

• May 7 – All-Day Commercial Course Stream

And don’t miss:

CANADA’S LARGEST REAL ESTATE CONFERENCE & TRADE SHOWTrade Show features over 200 exhibitors so far!Mark Your Calendars:Ma May 6–7, 2015 | Toronto Congress Centrento Congress CeDon’t miss the most exciting lineup of REALTOR® QUEST speakers ever, with 44 sessions to choose from!4 sessions to choose f

42 REM APRIL 2015

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ack in the day, when I wasa young man, it was noth-ing to hop into your car

for a road trip right across thecountry just for the heck of it. Itwas another time and it wasanother world with cars.

Driving across the countryback in the ’50s and ’60 was agrand experience. There weresmall towns with local restau-rants that served comfort foodlike cheeseburgers, french frieswith gravy and Coca-Cola. Youcould sit in a restaurant booth,talk to the locals and hear won-derful stories about everyone intown. There were motels alongthe roadside where you coulddrive right up and park by thedoor of your unit. They were rea-sonably priced and well lookedafter too.

You had to save up a few bucksto make a trip like that but notnear the thousands it cost in

THE PUBLISHER’S PAGE

By Heino Molls

B

See Canada this summerrecent years. It could all be donevery reasonably because the lastthing anyone worried about wasthe price of gas. It only cost about25 cents for an imperial gallon.

When the ’80s came upon usthe idea of doing long trips likethat went out the window and agreat life experience was lost to usdue to soaring gas prices and cor-porate greed. It became far cheap-er to fly and save the money.

It also saved time, which hadsomehow also soared in value. Allof a sudden we were calculatingthe cost of time, something wehad never done before. We hadtime management and billinghours and the dreaded “time ismoney” come into our lives asnew phrases and buzz words. It wasa great loss, especially for youngpeople.

For what it’s worth, I see awindow of opportunity to bringback those days again because ofthe current anomaly of low gasprices. There may be a chance toonce again explore our magnifi-cent country on the road. Theway it should be. Just get in thecar and drive right across thecountry. It is the experience of alifetime and you won’t even needa passport.

Pictures will never do justiceto what you will see. You cannotcapture a place like theCanadian prairie on film. Untilyou step out of the car and see anendless sky over 100 miles, youwill never understand what thatmeans from a picture. It may begreat to fly into Regina and seethe city, but it’s nothing short ofspectacular to watch it emergefrom the road, growing from asmall dot on the horizon tobecome like the Emerald Cityfrom the Wizard of Oz in themiddle of a wide open space,with nothing else around.

We’ll all have a chance thisyear to see that and more – the

mountains, the valleys, NiagaraFalls, the Maritimes and even theArctic Circle. I’ll bet you havetalked about it and thought aboutit. Now is the time you can driveto it all, with a Tim Hortons cof-fee on the dashboard and a snackin the glove box. Enjoy the com-fort of your car, your own space.You can even sleep in it if youneed to pull over and rest.

Did you know that Walmarthas an unwritten policy thatallows long-distance travellers incampers or cars to pull into theirparking lots at night to rest with-out charging them? There are alsorest stops in every province. Iwould argue that Quebec has the

best ones although Ontario hassome nice ones too.

A lot of the good old restau-rants on the Trans CanadaHighway from years ago are sadlygone now, replaced with fast-foodjoints. I have to give them creditthough, almost all of them haveclean washrooms ready for youand many are open all night. MostTim Hortons restaurants are open24/7. Many are in places youwould never expect, such as wayup in Espanola in northernOntario.

Many say the low gas prices wehave today will not last, and ifthey do the government willquickly add on taxes that wenever had before. Either way wemay not have another chance toexperience the incredible roadtrips from yesteryear within suchreasonable cost and reach. Ibelieve the opportunity is here.Plan your summer now! I urge youto take this chance and see ourbeautiful country in this uniqueand incredible way. The way itshould really be seen. You may notget the chance again.

Heino Molls is the publisher ofREM. Email [email protected].

REM

Just get in the car anddrive right across the

country. It is the experience of a lifetime

and you won’t even need a passport.

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Your website solution

Want new revenue opportunities?

Your ad revenue program

Also providing your agents with the tools they need:

Your agents’ toolbox

Achieve your success with the right tools!www.lwolf.com

Stop chasing paperwork. Remove the back and forth between your agents and staff with our transaction management and paperless document storage solution. Once your agents create and execute their electronic transaction forms, whether manually or electronically, they can submit the forms to loadingDOCS ensuring transactions are on time, every time. With three easy steps in loadingDOCS your admins can easily manage a paperless office!

It’s your business. Learn more about how you can focus your efforts on closing your transactions and not the paperwork.

Find out how: www.lwolf.com/paperless-real-estate

1Electronically submit

the forms to the brokerage.

SUBMISSION 2Brokerage electronically reviews

and approves forms and documents.

REVIEW/ APPROVE 3

Brokerage electronically stores documents

STORAGE

REM Ad March 2015 loadingDOCS.indd 1 2015-03-10 4:53 PM

To learn more about the iBoxTMLE contact John Fancy.Tel 902-252-3610Toll free 888-652-3540

Mobile 902-579-2648Email [email protected]

The BT iBoxTMLE and eKEY are inseparable.

Your smartphone communicates directly with the iBox using Bluetooth® technology,so your phone is your key!

The BT iBoxTMLE and eKEY togetherwill simplify your life considerably...and who wouldn’t like that?

Contact us at 1-888-652-3540or visit www.supraekey.com

©2013 UTC Fire & Security. All rights reserved.

HuntsvilleDeerhurst Resort1235 Deerhurst Drive, Huntsville, ON

OttawaBrookstreet Hotel525 Legget Drive, Ottawa, ON

lOndOnLondon Convention Centre300 York Street, London, ON

ajax Ajax Convention Centre550 Beck Crescent, Ajax, ON

atlantic canadaCasino New Brunswick21 Casino Drive, Moncton, NB

GtaMississauga Convention Centre75 Derry Road West, Mississauga, ON

4/16

4/23

4/29

5/5

5/13

5/20

dates and lOcatiOnswHat can i exPect FROM Re/Max cOnnect?

FeatuRed sPeakeRTy BennettIncrease Your Influence and Your Impact

Ty’s entertaining, hilarious, thought-provoking, and inspirational address shares practical and profitable ways to increase your influence with people. He is a young, fresh voice with a fun, engaging style. Ty is the author of The Power of Influence as well as his newest book – The Power of Storytelling.

tO ReGisteR, visit www.ReMaxinteGRa.cOM/cOnnect

RE/MAX CONNECT provides a robust and fast-paced agenda that helps agents learn & stay informed!

Attendees will hear from our RE/MAX|INTEGRA leadership team, a leading industry speaker, and a panel of top-producing peers. All will be treated to an opportunity to network with colleagues at lunch. Following lunch stay engaged with a crisp two hours of education designed to keep agents ahead of the competition. The day will conclude with a fun networking reception. Guests are welcome.

#REMAXCONNECT

april 2015 (update)

Documents