REM Magazine June 2009

R e a l E s t a t e M a r k e t i n g N e w s M o r t g a g e s Te c h n o l o g y O p i n i o n

Issue #240 June 2009

Critics grumble about Quebec reformsPage 3

Why we love this industryPage 14

It’s REM’s 20th anniversary issue!What’s changed since 1989? What hasn’t?Page 12

Pierre Beauchampon his 27 years as CREA EO

Page 16

Peace of Mind for Your Transactions

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RMX_WC_TT0509C1 14/05/09 16:48 Page 1

uebec’s long-awaitedreform of the rules gov-erning the real estate

industry is getting mixed reviewsfrom agents and brokers.

The main changes come inthe province’s new Real EstateBrokerage Act, which is expect-ed to come into effect July 1. Thenew law is meant to update rulesgoverning the industry and bringmore transparency and account-ability. But some critics say thechanges will increase the cost ofdoing business and lead to a bigdrop in the number of new agentsentering the field.

The main cost increase willbe a doubling of the duration ofthe province’s real estate coursefrom 250 to 500 hours. Alsogoing up are membership dues atthe Quebec Real Estate Brokersand Agents Association. Thenew fee will be $903 per year, upfrom $409.

“The feeling is there will be adrop in the number of agents,”says Domenic Mammarella,owner of a Groupe Sutton-Royal

REM JUNE 2009 3

Q

Critics grumble about Quebec reformsBy Alex Roslin

franchise in Montreal’s WestIsland and Ville St. Laurent.“There’s probably going to be adead period with nobody comingin (for a few months),” he says.

“It’ll be harder for new peopleto get in,” says Peter Reindler,owner of a Royal LePage fran-chise in Cowanswille in Quebec’sEastern Townships, an hoursoutheast of Montreal.

“The cost of operating will goup substantially. There will bequite a few agents who drop outof the game. The less productiveagents are complaining more andmore about the increasing costsof staying in business. This isonly going to push the envelopefurther for them,” he says.

The new law, which has beenin the works since 1999, isintended to improve account-ability and update rules to fit cur-rent practices.

Under the existing law, forexample, the public does businessdirectly with brokerage firms forwhich agents work, with only anindirect legal relationship

between agent and client. Thenew law changes this relation-ship, making agents the only par-ties authorized to conduct realestate brokerage acts.

Also under the new law, theassociation representing theprovince’s 18,000 agents and bro-kers will have expanded discipli-nary powers and increased boardrepresentation from the public. Italso gets a new name – theOrganisme d’autoréglementationdu courtage immobilier duQuébec (Quebec Real EstateBrokerage Self-RegulatingOrganization).

Another name change:agents will be called “brokers”under the new law, while broker-age firms will be called “real-estate agencies.”

As for the increased course-work for new agents, the lawdrops a requirement that theytake 250 hours of classes. Instead,the real estate association hasdeveloped a tougher new examand worked with Quebec collegesto create an updated 500-hour

course for new agents that isexpected to debut this fall.

The course won’t be formallyrequired by law, but anyone hop-ing to pass the new exam willhave little choice but to take theclasses, says Mammarella, whoteaches courses at Montreal’sChamplain College.

The existing exam takes threehours to complete and coversthree domains – residential andcommercial real estate and mort-gages. The new system will havethree separate exams that allowagents to have a specialty in anyor all of the three areas. The res-idential and commercial examswill both take six hours each,while the mortgage brokers’exam will last three hours.

The improved accountabilityand updated provisions have gen-erally received a good reception.“There is a lot of good stuff in (thenew law),” says Mammarella.

Reindler agrees: “The con-cept is good. In theory, it’s posi-tive because they’re trying toupgrade the practitioners and

protect the public.”But he says some of the

changes have provoked grum-bling. “Many of the cash-strapped agents aren’t very excit-ed about it. Given the state ofthe economy, many of them aresaying it’s not the best time toinstitute this. They’re alreadyworried about expenses,” he says.

Robert Nadeau, president andCEO of the real estate associa-tion, did not speculate aboutwhether the changes will lead tofewer agents. “It’s hard to say ifthere will be a reduction or not,”he says. “It’s more the economiccontext that could cause a reduc-tion. For the moment, we don’tsee fewer agents.”

Nonetheless, controversyover the reforms was a key issuein this spring’s election for thereal estate association’s board ofdirectors.

One candidate for chair ofthe board, François Léger, wroteon his website: “I am worriedabout what is happening in ourassociation… I fear that membersmight not be well informed aboutwhat they will be faced with andabout the slippery slope on whichthe association is treading ifnothing is done.”

Léger’s website includedresults from an online poll thatasked if the new legislation “willbe good for our profession.”Forty-six per cent of respondentssaid “not at all,” compared with23 per cent who said “absolutely”and 26 per cent who answered“maybe.”

Léger couldn’t be reached forcomment. The election, sched-uled for May 22, took place afterpress time.

The province is now studyingregulations that will accompanythe new law, which were devel-oped by the real estate associa-tion in consultation with mem-bers. Government approval isexpected in coming weeks, withNadeau saying everythingappears to be on track for thenew law to come into effect July1 as expected. REM

4 REM JUNE 2009

herry Chris, president andCEO of Better Homes andGardens Real Estate,

recently visited Toronto to drumup interest in the brand’s relaunchin Canada – this time as part of theRealogy family of real estate fran-chises. Chris says the company isin discussions with independentcompanies that have over 100agents, offering them regionalmaster franchises.

Realogy signed a long-termlicensing agreement withMeredith Corporation, whichowns the Better Homes andGardens trademarks and has pub-lished Better Homes and Gardensmagazine since 1927. The compa-ny launched the new BetterHomes and Gardens Real Estatefranchise in the U.S. on July 1,2008; it is now licensed to operatein Canada and is in the process oflicensing the brand in 40 countriesaround the world.

Chris is a Canadian real estateveteran with almost 30 years expe-rience. She was formerly a RoyalLePage executive and most

recently was COO of ColdwellBanker Real Estate, another of thecompanies that operate as part ofRealogy Franchise Group.

Meredith Corporation origi-nally launched its own BetterHomes and Gardens Real Estateservices in 1978; in 1998, it soldthe business to GMAC, butretained ownership of the trade-mark. As part of the sales agree-ment, GMAC had the right to usethe trademark for 10 years, while ittransitioned the business into anew brand. GMAC rebranded itsreal estate business – includingthose in Canada – to GMAC RealEstate. The brand has since beenacquired by Brookfield ResidentialProperty Services, the parent com-pany of Royal LePage.

Chris says the relaunchedBetter Homes and Gardens RealEstate franchise is bringing some-thing new to real estate – theindustry’s first “lifestyle” brand.

“Our intention is to help takeconsumers – through our brokersand agents that affiliate with us –right through the buying stage, the

owning stage, decorating, garden-ing, enjoying the home, getting itready to sell and selling it,” saysChris. “We want the consumer tocontinue to visit us online, evenafter they’ve completed the trans-action.”

The real estate franchise hopesto leverage the popularity of theBetter Homes and Gardens maga-zine to help sell franchises andgain customers.

“The name speaks to peoplewho are passionate about living intheir home – people of all ages,”says Chris. “Our grandmothersread it, our mothers read it, and wedo today and our children are vis-iting BHG.com online and gettingtheir recipes, decorating tips andwhatnot. There’s a huge cachetthat goes with that.”

For its international growthefforts, the new real estate fran-chise is targeting, among others,countries where Better Homes andGardens magazine is published,which include India, Japan, Chinaand Australia. Internationally, theplan is to sell master franchises

with rights to an entire country. In the U.S., the company has

been licensing a more direct fran-chise model, directed towardmedium to larger companies, typi-cally with 200 to 300 agents ormore and gross commissionincome of five million annually,which are within the top three orfour market share leaders for theirarea. Since launching in the U.S.last summer, Better Homes andGardens Real Estate has beenbringing aboard one company permonth across the country.

While admitting that therewere certain challenges in launch-ing in the U.S. in the summer of2008, when the economic down-turn was very evident, Chris saysthere were certain advantages aswell.

“The momentum started topick up after we launched, withbroker/owners looking at how theywere going to survive in this mar-ket,” she says. “Broker/ownerswere considering doing things thatthey never would have done inbetter markets, such as merging

with their fiercest competitor, sell-ing their company, rolling in withother brands that they neverthought they’d want to be with.So for us that created an opportu-nity.”

The real estate franchise alsosees opportunities in marketing itsservices to consumers between theages of 18-34, which the franchisebelieves will be driving the indus-try over the next 30 years. REM

Better Homes and Gardens recultivates CanadaBy Kathy Bevan

S

Sherry Chris

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6 REM JUNE 2009

PublisherHEINO MOLLS

e-mail: [email protected]

General ManagerJOHN COOPER


Director, Sales & MarketingDENNIS ROCK


Brand DesignSANDRA GOODER

EditorJIM ADAIR


Senior EditorKATHY BEVAN


Art DirectorLIZ MACKIN

Graphic DesignSHAWN KELLY

REALTOR® and REALTORS® are trademarks controlled in Canada by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify licensedreal estate practitioners who are members of CREA. MLS® and Multiple Listing Service® are trademarks owned by CREA and identify theservices 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 any real estate association, board orcompany. REM is distributed across Canada by leading real estate boards and by direct delivery in selected areas. Subscriptions are $40.95 per year(including $1.95 GST), payable by personal cheque. Entire contents copyright 2009 REM. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher is prohibited. The opinions expressed in REM are not necessarily those of the publisher.

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2255B Queen Street EastSuite #1178Toronto, ON M4E 1G3Phone: 416.425.3504www.remonline.com

If you have industry news or want us to know about your company or services

Email [email protected]

J U N E 2 0 0 9Cover photo:

PHILLIP MIRSKY

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

By Jim Adair

oldwell Banker PlatinumRealty Services, a bou-tique real estate operation

in western Toronto, has joinedmulti-office Coldwell BankerCase Realty.

Michael Reis, broker of recordof the former Coldwell BankerPlatinum Realty Services, hasbeen in real estate for 17 years andspent many years with ColdwellBanker Case Realty. He was thebrokerage’s No. 1 agent for twoconsecutive years, and one of thenational network’s most successful

C sales reps. He has now decided toreturn to selling and real estatedevelopment.

Coldwell Banker Case Realtyis led by broker/owners RobertaCase, Angelika Erner and FrankMihalek. The former Platinumoffice, the brokerage’s seventh,will continue to operate at 311Roncesvalles Ave., serving theRoncesvalles, High Park andBloor West Village communities.

■ ■ ■

Guardian Commercial Real

Estate Services in Saskatoon hasconverted to Re/Max. Currentowner Gilbert Dobroskay part-nered with Nav Sra and DaleAnderson, and will operate asRe/Max Guardian Commercial.

Dobroskay started his com-mercial real estate career in 1981.In 2001, he and a partner pur-chased a commercial brokerage inSaskatoon. Five years later, heestablished his own commercialoffice and started GuardianCommercial Real Estate Services.Sra recently moved to Saskatoonfrom Edmonton. Living inAlberta, he saw the potential forgrowth in Saskatchewan andbegan to invest in commercialproperties in the area before mak-ing the move. Anderson, a long-time resident of Saskatoon, hasbeen involved in residential andcommercial real estate for over 25years. In 2001, Anderson joinedRe/Max, earning induction intothe Re/Max Hall of Fame in 2009.

■ ■ ■

Whitby, Ont. sales rep DaveSachko has joined Keller

Williams Advantage Realty inToronto. He has more than 14years of real estate service inDurham Region and the GTA,ranking among the top sales repson the Toronto Real Estate Board.He has been recognized with mul-tiple sales achievement awards.

“With two-thirds of his busi-ness from past clients and theirreferrals, Dave attributes much ofhis success to his ongoing servicesystems,” says Keller Williams in anews release. “A leader inInternet marketing, Dave hasshared innovative and creativesystems for lead generationthrough his popular training ses-sions.”

His team includes Tara Baylis,Sylvia Smith, and full-time mar-keting co-ordinator LarryHarrison.

■ ■ ■

Property management special-ist Carole Arbour has joinedAvison Young’s Quebec opera-tions as vice-president, manage-ment services. She will be basedout of Avison Young’s Montrealoffice. Arbour practiced law as apartner with Arbour Cordeau formore than 10 years, specializing incommercial, construction and realestate law. During the past 11years, she has been activelyinvolved in the property manage-ment business. Between 1998 and2001, she worked for SITQ asbuilding manager for the Laval

office portfolio. She was subse-quently promoted to senior build-ing manager of Place Ville Marie,a position she held for the nextseven years. Place Ville Marie is athree million-square-foot com-plex with more than 280 officeand retail tenants in downtownMontreal. During the past year,Arbour was a management con-sultant with CIM, a specializedconsultant firm in Montreal.

■ ■ ■

Exit Realty Corp.International says it has paid outsecretarial bonuses of more than$1.5 million across NorthAmerica. The deal-driven bonusstructure allows secretaries andadministrators a way to get a“piece of the action” for the con-tributions they make at the bro-kerage level, the company says.

“Exit’s business model pro-vides this as a special thank youfor the dedication and hard workthat the secretarial personnel pro-vide in assisting their manage-ment and agents,” says the com-pany in a news release. “One ofthe cornerstones of real estate bro-kerage operations is strong andpersonable administrative staffthat inspires confidence through-out the business day and createsan inviting environment foragents and the public. Often over-

Larissa Hadley Robert Nutbrown

Dave Sachko Carole Arbour

Vanora Spreen Keith Lutsiak Trevor Yurchak

Continued on page 8

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The information offered in this ad is applicable in Canada only. This is not an offer to franchise. Each Office Is independently Owned And Operated. ©2009 Realogy Corporation. The Coldwell Banker logo and trademark are registered marks and are used by permission.

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11103M_10X11_REM5186_11103_REM.indd 15186_11103_REM.indd 1 2/11/09 2:30:40 PM2/11/09 2:30:40 PM

he BBC has landed itselfin a row with Britain’s125,000 estate agents

over a new TV program thatencourages viewers not to usethem.

The TV series follows thefortunes of homeownersthroughout England who havedecided to go it alone and selltheir houses without the assis-tance of an agent. The show,which demonstrates to viewershow to use the Internet to buyand sell property and avoid pay-ing any fees, has been gettinggood viewing figures in the cur-rent economic downturn, havingre-ignited a long-running debateon whether agents are actuallynecessary.

But many of Britain’s leadinghouse-sellers have condemnedthe corporation for airing theprogram – and some have nowcalled on the profession not topay the annual £142.50 ($256Cdn) TV licence fee in protest.

Lee Bramzell, who runsPropertyindex.com – the U.K.’s

8 REM JUNE 2009

T

U.K. agents urged to boycott TV licenceEstate agents angered over show that asks if viewers should ‘axe the agent’ By Nigel Burnham

fastest-growing property websitewith large numbers of U.K.estate agency branches signingup to advertise on a cost per leadbasis every day – was so enragedhe wrote a letter of complaint toMark Thompson, director gener-al of the BBC.

“Estate agents are expectedto pay their TV licence fee, yetthe BBC uses this money to cre-ate a show that could result inthe loss of their jobs – and theirability to pay the licence fee,” hesaid.

“I believe that estate agentsare absolutely essential for boththe buyer and the seller. Thesafety net they provide helpswith things like helping peoplein the chain to completion – avital service.”

Bramzell said estate agentshelp to establish an accurate val-uation for a property and securethe best possible price duringnegotiations, while they alsoaccompany potential buyers onviewings and help drive the dif-ferent members of the chain to

ensure completion.“Even if the program aims to

be reasonably balanced, thepremise and the title Axe theAgent? is deliberately antagonis-tic,” he said.

“This is the kind of irrespon-sible broadcasting one mightexpect to see on lesser channelsbut not from the state broadcast-er, which should be inclusive ofall professions. I doubt the BBCwill be encouraging their viewersto axe their GP, fire departmentor police,” he added.

One of the show’s presenters,Gary McCausland, accepted thatsome agents have been upset bythe program’s format.

“The boom produced a lot ofmediocre agents, the business ischanging and people are nowbetter informed,” he says.“Thanks to the Internet theydon’t necessarily need to sellthrough estate agents. But agood one is worth his weight ingold and I still use them on myown developments.”

The BBC defended the show,

saying it was not encouragingpeople to avoid estate agents, butexploring their options in thecurrent market.

A spokesman said the pro-gram was merely offering guid-ance to sellers who choose thiscourse and made it clear at thebeginning of each episode thatnot using an agent was a “hugestep” which should not be takenlightly, while at the end of everyprogram it said: “Axeing theagent is never the easy option.”

“The program has no inten-tion of depriving estate agents oftheir livelihood and it complieswith the BBC’s editorial guide-lines,” he says. “The questionmark in the title is deliberate inmaking this a question and not astatement.

“In the current property mar-ket many people are consideringwhat options they have toimprove their situation – andone option is to choose to sellyour property yourself, and this iswhat is explored in the series.”

In the U.K., you need a

licence to use any televisionreceiving equipment, including aTV set, set-top box, video orDVD recorder, computer ormobile phone to watch or recordTV programs as they are beingshown on TV. And you need alicence for any equipment youhave capable of receiving pictures– even if you don’t watch them.The annual cost of a TV licence(which is set by the government)is currently £142.50 for a colourtelevison and £48 for viewers stillwatching in black and white.Viewers who don’t pay are guiltyof a criminal offence, which couldlead to prosecution and a fine ofup to £1,000 ($1,809 Cdn) pluslegal costs.

The BBC – which provideseight interactive TV channels,10 radio networks, more than 50local TV and radio services, theBBC’s website, and the on-demand TV and radio service,BBC iPlayer – is funded directlythrough each household TVlicence and has no advertising.

REM

looked for their valuable contri-bution to the business, ExitRealty Corp. International hastaken the initiative to rewardthose individuals who are typi-cally the broker/owner’s ‘rightarm’ and facilitators of keepingthe back and front office opera-tions working smoothly fromday-to-day.”

■ ■ ■

Robert Nutbrown, broker/owner of the brokerage formerlyoperating as Coldwell BankerInnovators Realty in Brampton,Ont., has joined the RoyalLePage franchise network. Thecompany will operate under thename Royal LePage InnovatorsRealty. The brokerage has a teamof 65 sales professionals who ser-vice Brampton and surroundingareas.

Vanora Spreen, broker of

record, will manage the twoRoyal LePage Innovators Realtyoffices.

■ ■ ■

Century 21 Rison Realty inClearwater, B.C., located an hournorth of Kamloops in the heart ofthe B.C. interior, was recentlyopened for business by broker/owners Larissa and RonaldHadley. Larissa has been a mem-ber of the Century 21 Systemsince 2005.

Century 21 Rison Realty isthe only real estate companywith a retail location inClearwater.

■ ■ ■

Keith Lutsiak of RoyalLePage Fort Nelson Realty haspurchased the brokerage fromBill Craddock, former broker/owner. Craddock is staying onas a licensed sales agent, special-izing in commercial and indus-trial projects.

Fort Nelson Realty is thelongest serving real estate com-pany in Fort Nelson. It wasformed more than 30 years ago asa proprietorship. The brokeragejoined the Royal LePage fran-chise network in March 2002.

■ ■ ■

Thomas Goebel has affiliat-ed with 100% Realty inWindsor, Ont. Goebel is aninternational real estate consul-tant who offers services to bro-kers, agents, investors andlawyers in Ontario and the U.S.Services include consulting toproperty managers, specializingin reducing operating cost suchas gas, hydro, water and wasteremoval. He is accredited by the U.S. Green Building Council as a Leadership in Energyand Environmental DesignAccredited Professional. Goebelwas formerly president of theInstitute of Real EstateManagement (IREM), Chapter

#5. He works out of offices inLivonia, Mich. and Windsor,and says he “intends to help inthe greening of Windsor”.

■ ■ ■

Royal LePage’s interactiveonline consumer contest, MyGreat Neighbourhood, is gener-ating a buzz across Canada, thecompany says. The contest is anational challenge for con-sumers to submit stories, photosand videos related to their com-munity and why they feel it isthe best place to live in Canada.Hundreds of entries have beenreceived so far.

Each month a prize of $500is awarded to the entrant withthe most votes throughwww.royallepage/mygreatneigh-bourhood. The grand prize of$25,000 will be announced onOctober 20 when the contestends. In addition, a donation of$5,000 will be made to theRoyal LePage Shelter

Foundation in the name of thegrand prize winner.

The contest incorporates astrong social media component.Twitter and Facebook are beingused to promote the contest,and provide sales reps tools topromote both the contest andtheir services.

■ ■ ■

Trevor Yurchak of RoyalLePage County Realty has pur-chased the brokerage from for-mer broker/owner Rod Kerr,who retired last August.Yurchak started his career inreal estate with Royal LePageCounty in 2005, and in May2008 completed his broker’slicense.

Royal LePage County Realtyis a five-person team and enjoys75 per cent of the market share inthe area, says Royal LePage. Itserves the areas of Athabasca,Boyle, Wandering River andWabasca. REM

Multiple ListingsContinued from page 6

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adie Moranis, broker ofrecord of Sadie MoranisPrudential Realty in

Toronto and the first woman tobecome president of the TorontoReal Estate Board, died on May21. She was 84.

Mrs. Moranis was the matri-arch of a well-known family ofreal estate professionals thatincluded her son Stephen andher late daughter Terry. She wasalso predeceased by her husbandJules.

The obituary issued by herfamily says Mrs. Moranis “was anaccomplished pianist havingstudied with Boris Berlin at theRoyal Conservatory, an editor ofthe Varsity at University ofToronto and an accomplishedathlete and sportswoman wholoved tennis, badminton, boatingand fishing.”

In 2006, Mrs. Moranis wrotea book about her life, Catch theGold Ring. In the January 2007issue of REM, publisher HeinoMolls wrote: “Sadie writes abouther life from Sunderland, Ont.,where she was born, through hercareer in real estate today. Sadiehas had some challenges and tellsyou how she dealt with them. Itis a candid story of her life andher business.

“This is a story about awoman who didn’t need to workwhen she was young and enjoyeda great lifestyle with a husbandwho was a successful businessmanfor many years. Then abruptly atthe age of 37, with two youngkids at home, she had to go outand find work. It’s a compellingtale of what she went throughlearning about a business thatwas not her first choice of whatto do as a career or in life.

“One story that stood out forme was her recounting of anevening when she had to leavethe kids in the car outside whileshe was inside a house workingon closing a deal. She wrote ofhow long the evening was andhow many times she dashed outof the house to check on the kids.This story especially touched my

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Sadie Moranisheart. How easily we could allcriticize Sadie for leaving thekids in the car. But I can tell youthere isn’t a working stiff in thisworld with children they lovedesperately, who wouldn’t under-stand the reality of that situationand the conundrum Sadie musthave been in to get that dealdone.

“If I had seen Sadie on thestreet five minutes after I readthat part of the book, I wouldhave picked her up and huggedher.”

The family’s obituary adds:“Driven to succeed, she wantedto prove that given equal oppor-tunities, a woman can accom-plish as much as a man; sherefused to let anything deter herfrom what she was capable ofdoing. Sadie grew her companyfrom a neighbourhood broker toa large organization in Toronto.

“Sadie’s zeal for life in the faceof surviving breast cancer in1977 to her most recent healthrelated issues can be bestdescribed when she acclaimed,‘When you think you have prob-lems, remember that other peo-ple may have problems greaterthan yours.’ ”

Memorial donations can bemade to the Sadie MoranisMemorial Fund c/o TheBenjamin Foundation, 3429Bathurst St., Toronto, Ontario,M6A 2C3. (416) 780-0324 orwww.benjamins.ca REM

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➪ ➪ His name is Craig Proctor, and he is THE ONLYPERSON IN REAL ESTATE teaching what hecurrently does. Real-life, real-world, right-now‘stuff’ that works. (NOT just ‘ideas.’)

… And you get First-Hand access to Craig’ssystem for almost FREE, at his upcoming One-Day Canadian Recession-Rescue Boot Camp to beheld Wednesday, June 17/09 in Toronto.

If you feel you’re working too hard for yourmoney, if finding the next client is uncertain anddifficult, if you feel “squashed” by top agentsoutspending you 100-to-1 in advertising, if you knowyou would benefit from inside secrets-based, currentexperience-based training and ready-to-use tools,then Craig’s your guy, and this One-Day Recession-Rescue Boot Camp is for you.

You HAVE seen information about Craig before. And ignored it.

These agents didn’t...“After implementing what I learned, I completed 26transactions the next year, and 65 transactions theyear after that.”

-- Matt Cooper, Whitby, ON

“With Craig’s systems, my business went fromGOOD to NBELIEVABLE. In 2007 we finishednumber 125 in Canada.”

-- Gail Bibeau, Ft. McMurray, AB

It’s never a good time to go it alone, but nowmay be the worst time ever. The complexity of thebusiness is rising. The economic pressures aretoughening. Be sure to connect yourself with themost constructive influences and protect yourselffrom the most TOXIC. You need to learn fromsomeone with the track record to help you succeed inTHIS Market FAST. But hurry. Seating is limited.

Visit www.June17BootCamp.comnow to reserve one of the remaining seats.

Look, the crash and burn of the real estate industry may get worse before it gets better, butit WILL get better. Since 1931, there have been 12 documented recessions in North America,and every one of these 12 recessions has been followed by the emergence of a new, healthyeconomy. So while you may be feeling hopeless about how bad things are right now, it’simportant for you to understand that these conditions are temporary.

With that said, however, it’s also important for you to understand that things will never goback to the way they were. Some agents are foolishly burying their heads in the sand, hopingthey can hold on long enough until things return to normal. We are never going back to 2005.

You Can’t Wait it Out…This isn’t a mid-afternoon thunderstorm that you can wait out ina doorway until the rain stops. What’s happening in the real estate market is real (of courseyou know that), but standing still and hoping fervently that you can last long enough for it to allget better is foolish. Allowing yourself to be shell-shocked, cutting back your marketing efforts,putting a halt to your active acquisition of customers, promotion, selling, innovation, growthand expansion is tantamount to suicide.

While some agents are worrying and floundering, I am confidently navigating this marketand continue to do really, really well. So are the agents who are ACTIVELY using my system.

As you know, this industry has been very good to me throughout my 20 year career, both ingood markets and bad ones. At this One-Day Recession-Rescue Boot Camp, you’ll get acrash course in how to survive this crash.

I’ll show you how to make a lot of money selling real estate in your marketplace when mostothers aren’t, and how to prepare yourself to prosper in the new and different economy waitingfor you at the other end. You'll learn how to find the hidden buyers in your marketplace,how to most effectively price your listings and get price reductions, guerrilla tactics thatwill pack the most punch on CraigsList, Kijiji etc. and much more. Bottom line, I’ll show youhow to get closings in 30 days so you can get back in the game immediately -- guaranteed.

For more information or to register for the June 17 Boot Camp visit:

www.June17BootCamp.com

Jun 17/09 Boot Camp Agenda:

“... Gee thanks, Craig, but I’m just going to waituntil the market improves.”

12 REM JUNE 2009

ost real estate profes-sionals would agree thatthe biggest change in

real estate in the last 20 years hasbeen the emergency of new tech-nology.

• “If you look at the last 20years, the biggest change has beenthe Internet. Fundamentally ithas changed how we are per-ceived, how we do business, andhow people can access informa-tion, which is the key,” says JohnPowers of Claussen Walters &Associates in Lunenburg, N.S.(25 years in real estate)

• “When I began, cell phoneswere just coming in. There werelots of ‘dead’ areas so (there were)many stops at pay phones duringthe day. To get info to your clientsyou would photocopy the page(s)from the paper catalogue, get yourscissors and glue stick out to cutand paste them, then drive overto their home. Very time consum-ing! Just a little different thannow,” says Keith Mazurenko ofCoast Realty in Ladysmith, B.C.(20 years)

• “No matter where you prac-tice, you are no longer marketingto your specific area or province,you are marketing your listedproperties to the entire world 24hours per day. That is what theconsumer wants and we providethem with that service,” says LenWassill, broker and general man-ager of Century 21 BroadwayPark Realty in Yorkton, Sask. (28years)

But more than technology haschanged in the past two decades:

• “What’s changed is theamount of bureaucracy and theamount of forms. (In the 1980s)

What’s changed since REM’slaunch in 1989? By Toby Welch

This is the 20th anniversary of REM’s launch in June 1989. In our first issue, the feature technology story was about the latest in faxmachines. Nowadays, REM gets so few faxes that we’ve ditched our dedicated fax line. A story about cold calling in that first issue outlinedhow to line the pages of your notebook (not a computer, an actual notebook) and use a box of recipe cards to set up a cold calling system.Things have indeed come a long way since then.

Or have they? In our first issue, the front-page story dealt with ideas for selling in a recession. We also had stories urging professional con-duct for real estate agents and brokers; how to cope with difficult people; and how the industry was being hit with high taxes. That soundsa lot like the contents of this issue in June 2009!

What do some of those in the real estate industry believe have been the biggest changes since 1989? What has stayed the same?

the listing form and the purchasesale agreement were one page.Now they are each 10 to 15 pages.The amount of paperwork, theentanglement with federal regu-lations for the Privacy Act, ter-rorism, money laundering, thecollection of HST – all that stuffhas impacted our business. We’vebecome a bureaucratic machine,much different and much moreregulated and litigious,” saysPowers.

• “The introduction of theBuyer Representation Agreementin the mid-’90s is certainly one ofthe most significant changes thatoccurred in real estate in the past20 years. Given that the co-oper-ating brokerage is no longer asub-agent to the seller, Realtorscan effectively represent theinterests of the buyer,” saysToronto Real Estate Board presi-dent-elect Tom Lebour, broker atRoyal LePage Real Estate inMississauga, Ont. (33 years)

• “The advancement inmandatory education require-ments for licensed Realtors andthe willingness of Realtors toaccept and embrace the consis-tency of organized real estatethroughout our industry” is amajor change, says ShirleyPowell, owner and manager ofLet’s Deal Real Estate inMoncton, N.B. (25 years). “Goneare the days 20 years ago when allone had to do to sell real estatewas study a manual and write anexam and pass and then get hiredby a broker. But the biggestchange is how easy it is to do busi-ness today with the proper tools,tools that save so much time.”

• Another major change is

“the legal aspect, which primarilydeals with the buyer/seller rela-tionship, compared to what itonce was in respect to legal repre-sentation,” says Daniel Clover, ofRe/Max Camosun Oak Bay inVictoria (23 years). “At one timethe seller only was represented.The buyer was never legally rep-resented other than by a fiduciaryresponsibility.”

Despite all the changes, somethings remained the same. Theyinclude:

• “One-on-one communica-tion between buyers, sellers and

agents,” says Timothy Salisbury,broker with Royal LePageNiagara Real Estate Centre in St.Catharines, Ont. (21 years)

• “People still want to receivequality service, advice, andinformed consultations on theirrespective real estate needs,” saysRobert Tatomir, broker of recordand owner of Future Homes &Real Estate in Leamington,Ontario. (23 years)

• “Relationship building withclients and other real estate pro-fessionals is still the most funda-mental factor.” – Lebour

• “This industry is not rocket

science. Provide a level of ser-vice above what your vendorsand purchasers expect and workhard. That was a sure-fire for-mula for success in real estate 20years ago and it still workstoday.” – Wassill

• “It’s a personal face-to-faceservice industry where your com-mitment to your clients, true car-ing about doing your best forthem, and giving your sincerebest advice above all will lead tosuccess in this business.” –Mazurenko

• “We still create the paper

trail. Many inquiries still comeover the phone. Salespeoplestill do office caravans and con-duct open houses. Salespeopleare still only paid on commis-sion basis. Our deposits for trustaccounts are still only accept-able by cash, money order, orcheque; don’t know if we willever advance to Visa orMasterCard. Sales reps stillcarry business cards where todaywith all the opportunity of tech-nology we should really be justpassing out DVDs.” – Powell

• “The ongoing need forbuyer/seller and a sales rep’s per-

sonal contact. If you can’t sitdown with your clients and devel-op that crucial trust and rapport,your business still will not growthe way it is supposed to grow. Ifyou’ve got a client who can trustyou, you’ve got a client for life.” –Clover

• “What hasn’t changed is thenature of the interaction betweenan agent and the public. I thinkit is still a people business, it’s stilla trust business, and all of thecontract stuff in the world won’tallow you to proceed with a con-tract unless you have the actual

trust of a client.” – Powers• Another thing that hasn’t

changed is “the desire to makereal estate something that willmake you rich at somebody else’sexpense,” says Sam Longbothamof Prudential Toole Peet inCalgary (41 years). “There’s stillthat group out there that hasbeen there always – the specula-tors, the hustlers, the people thatare trying to manipulate every-body so they can get rich on yourefforts.”

It will be interesting in 2029to reflect on the last 20 years inreal estate. REM

M

“This industry is not rocket science. Providea level of service above what your vendors

and purchasers expect and work hard. Thatwas a sure-fire formula for success in real

estate 20 years ago and it still works today.”

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14 REM JUNE 2009

ales reps and brokers whohave worked in the realestate industry in Canada

for 20 years or more know it canbe one of the most rewardingcareers. Here is a compilation ofwhat some people in the throes ofreal estate feel is the best thingabout working in their field.

• “The best thing about work-ing in real estate is the people. Realestate is made up of a wide varietyof individual personalities, who arean interesting group of classy andvery capable professionals,” saysLen Wassill, broker and generalmanager of Century 21 BroadwayPark Realty in Yorkton, Sask.

• “The best thing about work-ing in real estate would be theopportunity it provides, especiallyin relation to the risk factor (asopposed to most businesses forself/small business operator) forthose who work hard, showintegrity, and continually upgradetheir industry knowledge so theycan provide a high level of ser-vice,” says Keith Mazurenko ofCoast Realty in Ladysmith, B.C.

Why we love this industry By Toby Welch

Twenty-year veterans offer up reasons why real estate is a great profession in Canada.

• “The fact that you are neverbored in this industry because notwo days are ever alike,” adds LenWassill.

• “The Canadian mortgageindustry is much more structuredand stable versus the U.S. mort-gage industry. Canadians are moreconservative in their lending prac-tices, not resulting in the same sub-prime disaster as witnessed in theU.S.,” says Robert Tatomir, brokerof record and owner of FutureHomes & Real Estate Ltd. inLeamington, Ont.

• “The best thing about work-ing in real estate in Canada todayis that there are more educatedsalespeople and educated con-sumers,” says Shirley Powell,owner and manager of Let’s DealReal Estate in Moncton.

• “Back 20 years ago, each realestate board ran their own littleshop. Today the real estate boardsare always communicating witheach other and usually jointlyimplementing changes on con-tracts, key boxes, MLS systems,sharing educational speakers, andtraining material. Specifically inNew Brunswick, the real estate

boards don’t rush into any majorchange or financial expense unlessconsultation and feedback wassought from other boards. Clearlygone are the days of real estateboards competing with each other;it’s more working together andbeing focused on what’s best for themembers and public and the bot-tom line being how the dollar isspent. Twenty years ago each realestate board didn’t freely share theworking of their boards, it was theirbest kept secret!” says Powell.

• “In St. Catharines (Ont.)and Canada, the market overalldoesn’t change as much as say theU.S. and other countries,” saysTimothy Salisbury, broker withRoyal LePage Niagara Real EstateCentre.

• “Through mandatory contin-uing education, Realtors haveraised the level of professionalism.In fact, real estate has become acareer choice for many college anduniversity graduates. In addition tothe commitment we make throughcontinuing education, Realtors alsoagree to adhere to the code of ethicsand professional standards. Theseare just two of the factors that makeme proud to be a Realtor,” saysToronto Real Estate Board’s presi-dent-elect Tom Lebour, broker atRoyal LePage Real Estate Servicesin Mississauga, Ont.

• “I think when you are work-ing in Victoria you’re literally ableto thank God every day that youare able to work in a professionthat you love in a city that is spec-tacular. Work isn’t work if you likeit. I love it and I get to do it in awonderful place like this,” saysDaniel Clover of Re/MaxCamosun Oak Bay in Victoria.

• “The best thing about realestate is to see people get some-thing they can afford and wind upowning houses. That’s been myfocus since becoming a Realtorover 41 years ago,” says SamLongbotham of Prudential ToolePeet in Calgary.

• “There’s something like5,400 of us in Calgary, agents andbrokers, but just over 500 or sohave been in this business for 20years or more. If you start talkingto that group of people, you’ll findan awful lot of them don’t reallyspend a whole lot of time out therepushing to get more business, theyare happy dealing with the peoplewho come to them. It keeps thembusy and they make a good livingand it’s a referral business,” saysLongbotham.

• “Our particular company hasa very strong national base ofclientele. Also, where we work inNova Scotia, it’s a great place to beinvolved in real estate simplybecause it’s a place where peoplewant to come. It’s clean, it’s safe,it’s all the things you would say

about Canada in terms of stability,”says John Powers of ClaussenWalters & Associates Limited inLunenburg, Nova Scotia.

• “It’s a marketplace generallyspeaking that hasn’t seen the hugehighs and lows other countrieshave seen. It’s a place where thereis financial stability in the bankingsystem. It’s a place where ournational real estate association hasdone a fairly good job in monitor-ing the real estate business nation-ally, better than the United States,for example, which is more frag-mented. We’re essentially well-runand if you have to be run by abureaucracy, they’re doing a prettygood job. And I think working inCanada there is an underlying sta-bility even though some of themarkets tend to be boom or bust.There are relatively few of those.It’s generally a good, stable place towork,” says Powers.

What do you think is the bestpart of working in real estate inCanada? Share it on the REMForum at www.remonline.com.

REM

S

Tom Lebour John Powers Daniel Clover

Shirley Powell Len Wassill

Resale housing worth$22.5 billion - report

he resale housing industry in Canada generated more than202,000 jobs and an average of $22.3 billion annually in vari-ous economic spinoffs in the period from 2006 and 2008,

according to a study prepared for The Canadian Real EstateAssociation by Altus Clayton.

The report says each residential MLS transaction generated anaverage of $46,400 in additional consumer spending in the period from2006 to 2008. This included the purchase of furniture and appliances,moving costs, renovations, services, and taxes. By comparison, from2004 to 2006 the average transaction yielded $32,200 in additionalconsumer spending. In the period from 2002 to 2004, it was $24,697.

The new study says the economic impact of each MLS sale variesby province or region, from a high of $60,200 in British Columbia to$28,925 in Atlantic Canada. The report says the spending relates tothe cost of moving from one home to another and for renovations aftermoving in – it does not include any renovation expenditures by sellersto prepare properties for sale.

“Purchases and sales of homes trigger additional expenditures thathave broad economic impacts,” says CREA chief economist GregoryKlump. “Job creation is also a major factor of the sale of a home. Thestudy shows that an average of 202,750 jobs was created in Canadaeach year covered by the study as a direct result of resale housing trans-actions.”

The complete updated Clayton Research report is available atwww.crea.ca. REM

T

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16 REM JUNE 2009

REM: What would you say has been the change that’s had the biggest impact on Realtors over the past 20 years, since REM first began covering Canada’s real estate industry?

BEAUCHAMP: We’ve gone from pagers and fax machines to Blackberries and other tools that technology has provided to us, and that’s changed a lot of things. It’s put a lot of pressure on everybody to be sharp and to be able to react more quickly than ever before.

It wasn’t so long ago that we went from tear sheets to Realtor.ca for exposure of MLS. The public now has access, par-ticularly in the past 10 years, to superb information that they can consult from a site like Realtor.ca. They no longer have

to go into a broker’s office, like they did 20 years ago, to look at tear sheets and catalogues.

Realtors themselves have changed too. Back at the end of the ’90s, less than 50 per cent of Realtors at that time had an Internet or email address. In 2007, our statistics for members stated that 99 per cent have an email address – that’s a huge dif-ference. In 1998, less than 10 per cent of Realtors had a website. In 2008, 70 per cent told us they have at least one website that they use for business purposes.

REM: With the sense of empowerment that technology and information access gives to consumers today, is it becom-ing an increasing challenge for Realtors not to get pushed out of

the buying and selling process?

BEAUCHAMP: Back in the ’80s and ’90s, there were many who said that technology will wipe out the real estate business and Realtors will be out of a job. In the mid-’90s, when we came out with MLS.ca, exactly the opposite happened. The same thing is happening now, with the new wave of technology.

Technology is great, but at the end of the day what the pub-lic does is pick someone who is going to provide a service that’s a complicated one, more than ever before. It’s not just a question of finding a property, it’s a question of what does the consumer do from there, whether they are sell-ing or buying.

We end up today with Realtors who are really specialized. Today, you are a specialized condo per-son, you’re specialized in senior houses – more market niches are being recognized and pursued, so you end up in being specialized in marketing property.

With first-time homebuyers there is definitely a greater appe-tite now and greater demand for market insight and analy-sis. What’s happening out there, what’s happening in the market? Especially with the times we’re in now, with the economic down-turn. There’s also recognition that many Realtors have much more to offer than just access to information. I think that’s been recognized and I think it’s for the reasons we’ve been successful as an industry – not just for first-time homebuyers, but generally speaking for the public.

You have to be flexible to adapt, or say, “This is the ser-vice I provide, this is how we work within my brokerage” and offer that to the public. But you have to be in a position to com-pete. Always remember, Realtors

are probably in one of the most competitive businesses in the world. They compete against each other, yet they share their stock on the shelf. Who else does that – think about it. Realtors as well are people who only get paid when they perform, they don’t get paid otherwise. Those are elements that don’t change.

REM: Do you think the fed-eral government’s Competition Bureau will ever agree that orga-nized real estate is competitive enough, whatever the market and economic conditions?

BEAUCHAMP: The bureau’s job is to ensure compe-tition in every industry – that’s really what they’re trying to do. The job of Realtors is already a very, very competitive busi-ness. Our challenge in many ways has been to demonstrate to the bureau the nature of that competition and how diverse the services and businesses plans are that exist in the real estate indus-try, to serve consumers. At times, there have been disagreements about that aspect; that’s why we keep plugging at it, trying to show what it is that Realtors do in selling real estate.

We own the MLS trademarks and we’ve been appointed by our membership to protect those trademarks. Those trademarks mean we’re going to have certain limitations, because a trademark is designed to distinguish itself from anything else that is in the market.

We’re there to maintain a trademark within a competi-tive business and we encourage that competition. CREA does not dictate what business plan a business is going to have; everybody is welcome, provided they are prepared to adhere to the basic rules of our trademark. It’s a co-operative system that has served the public very well

in our country.

So we keep answering the questions of the bureau; we keep co-operating 100 per cent with all departments at the federal level, whether it is finance with the anti-money laundering, where we’re involved as far as we can go to work to ensure that these programs are in full com-pliance. There are compliance programs within RealtorLink for competition, for anti-money laundering – it’s all there and we try to help members, through negotiation and discussion with the Competition Bureau, the Finance Department and FINTRAC, to solve these issues.

We’re a big country – the challenge for a national body is to come up with policies and directions that are going to satisfy everybody. How can you do that in a country the size of Canada? It’s difficult, because no matter what you do, you’ll have some people who will not be totally in accord with where you’re going. But at one point or another, you have to consider what is the best thing to do. That’s what we do, with the best legal help, with the best minds around and obvi-ously with Realtors looking at the vision that they’ve created and finding ways to better imple-ment it.

REM: CREA’s federal efforts aren’t limited to discussions with various federal government departments and agencies – your association also continues to actively lobby the federal gov-ernment at all levels, with some notable results. To what do you attribute CREA’s success to date with those lobbying efforts?

BEAUCHAMP: We are very aggressive with that. And at our recent PAC (Political Action) Days in Ottawa, Prime Minister Harper came to visit us and

For 27 years, Pierre Beauchamp has been in an executive leadership position with the Canadian Real Estate Association – first as executive vice-president and then as CEO. For this 20th anniversary issue of REM, Beauchamp and REM senior editor Kathy Bevan discussed some of the transitions he’s seen over the past two decades, within CREA and Canada’s real estate industry.

In conversation with Pierre Beauchamp, CREA CEO

Photo: Phillip Mirsky

agreed to have his photograph taken, spending over a full hour with delegates from every prov-ince in Canada. We had about 300 people in the room, and the prime minister and Finance Minister Jim Flaherty stood in the room for photos with all these groups from all the regions of the country. We’ve have prime ministers visit before, but we’ve never had them stay and have pictures taken with us.

That night, we had a major reception for all MPs on Parliament Hill in the West Block and Michael Ignatieff dropped by to say hello, as did many ministers and senators. We had the best attendance at this reception that we’ve ever had.

We’ve had a lot of success with our lobbying efforts over time. Part of the reason for that success is that the files we take on – the issues that we deal with – are always designed to stimu-late the economy. The Home Buyers’ Plan – that’s an old one now – it’s been in since 1992. That plan may have been good for Realtors, but it sure has been good to consumers. We’re now suggesting the Home Buyers’ Plan withdrawal limit be per-manently indexed to inflation, so we don’t have to come back to the federal government to change the numbers. We’re also suggesting that they consider changing the plan to make it applicable to all homebuyers for two years.

We’re also supporting a rein-vestment in real estate program, which would allow a person to roll over the capital gains tax to a new rental property when they are selling their existing rental property. That’s a file that would help get the big engine going for commercial property and help the residential sector. Too many people today are holding onto the commercial property that they own because the capital gains tax on it is going to be so huge that, after they’ve paid the capital gains, it would make no sense for them to reinvest and buy another revenue property. If they were allowed to simply post-

pone the payment of that tax, it would encourage quite a number of people to get involved.

The files that we adopt are not necessarily things that are going to benefit Realtors – that’s important. We do all kinds of things that go beyond just plans that might directly or indirect-ly help Realtors. For example, for about 15 years now, we’ve been sponsors for parliamenta-ry internships here in Ottawa. Our Realtors Care programs are designed to show the public and the media, via promotional material about Realtors, what it is that Realtors do to sup-port good works in communities across Canada.

All of this to say that our lob-bying efforts are not just based on making money, they’re based on making a contribution as Canadian citizens, wherever in the country we happen to be.

REM: There’s a lot more on the plate of an executive officer now than when you were hired by CREA – when you eventu-ally step down, what will the job description for the next appli-cant look like?

BEAUCHAMP: When I applied, there were close to 250 applicants, but CREA decided it would be useful to work with someone from the industry at the time, as that would fulfill one of the needs that they had. But remember, in those days CREA did not have a lobbying

movement that was as strong as it is today, we didn’t have PAC days, technology was not there, and the legal framework was totally different. I think that those things have structured the national body in a totally different way.

We’re now involved, for example, with the Realtor.ca site; we’re involved in the daily affairs of Realtors, whereas we were not as involved in that way in the past. While we still work through the real estate boards, we have more impact – particularly with the laws at the national level, for example the anti-money laundering laws, the competition laws, and so on. We have impact that was not needed in the early days of our association.

The people who will succeed me and many others will be individuals who will be required to have a good deal of vision. Planning will be the key, because there are so many different direc-tions an association like ours can take, whether in the technol-ogy or the lobbying field. They’ll have to create visions to follow and have strategic plans that reflect what the expectations of members and consumers are going to be in future.

Volunteers also must be taken into account. Finding willing vol-unteers is obviously going to be a challenge; once they’re found, the idea will be to try to spend

enough time on training through leadership programs that are now available. That’s something else that wasn’t here 10 years ago. The Ontario Association has written programs that we’ve sponsored jointly, specifically for the training of the elected leader-ship. It’s important for those who are going to be presidents, vice-presidents and directors of asso-ciations and real estate boards to clearly understand their role – an extremely more complicated role than it was way back then. We’ve established courses to lead people to better understand the role function and responsibilities, and help them to work as directors of organizations.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not suggesting that everything was done wrong before! I’m simply suggesting that this is part of the natural evolution, given the demands that are going to be made in the future.

REM: What has given you the greatest personal satisfac-tion so far, over your past three decades of serving CREA and the real estate industry?

BEAUCHAMP: Basically the success that we have – whether it’s through lobbying or watching my unbelievable staff flick the switch on a new piece of technology that at three o’clock in the morning is going to be seen by 3,000 people who are all on the system at that particular low point in the day. That’s what happened with

Realtor.ca, so we could continue to work the bugs out.

I get satisfaction out of see-ing the industry evolve in all these different directions and in coming up with solutions to the various challenges that we have, whether they be technological, political or legal. It’s been kind of fun to help build and partici-pate in what we’ve done, to end up where we are now.

In just 10 years, we’ve dou-bled our staff; we’ve more than doubled the budget we had back then, because Realtors want more service. We provide ser-vices at a rate that is cheaper than almost any other coun-try at the moment – certainly cheaper than what Realtors to the south are paying for their technology.

I’m proud of those accom-plishments because they’ve put us into a leadership role in the world. We’re in demand in other countries that want us to tell them how we do things. I love it when associations in other countries come and see us and say, “Your PAC program and PAC network visiting MPs across the country has worked so well, tell us how do you do it?” We’ve had 25 years of doing it and I think we’ve got it refined enough that, as happened this time, we had a PM join us to shake hands with 300 people. I’m proud of those things and I’m happy to be part of what made them happen. REM

17 REM JUNE 2009

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty meets Pierre Beauchamp at CREA’s PAC Days. Beauchamp welcomes Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff.

challenges faced by Canadians andprovided his perspective on how tobuild a better province.

Phil Nanavati, chairman of theOntario Real Estate AssociationCommercial Council, provided anupdate on the newly formedOntario Commercial Federation.

■ ■ ■

Ontario’s provincial govern-ment backed away from imposingmandatory energy audits on thesale of every home. Under the newGreen Energy Act, which recentlypassed in the Ontario Legislature, abuyer can opt out if an audit is notdesired.

But Ontario Real EstateAssociation (OREA) presidentPauline Aunger says the proposedrules are still flawed, because buy-ers can still demand an energyaudit and the onus is on the sellerto provide it. The association alsohas questions about the standardsthat will be used for the audits.

A poll released by OREA saysthat two-thirds of Ontario’s princi-pal residence homeowners opposemandatory home energy audits and“instead overwhelmingly favourvoluntary audits (92 per cent).”

The poll found that 70 per centof Ontario homeowners think thatmandatory home energy audits willdeter homeowners from selling

18 REM JUNE 2009

he London St. ThomasAssociation of Realtors(LSTAR) says it’s the first

real estate board in North Americato integrate a security system thatuses voice recognition to protectits MLS system data. The voicerecognition allows clients tocounter identity fraud, and helpsidentify the fraudulent partiesinvolved.

In a news release, LSTAR andsystem supplier Touchbase say,“Our voice is as trustworthy andunique as a digital fingerprint. Notonly is this technology used as away to identify ourselves, our voicealso offers the possibility of a supe-rior degree of security. Voiceauthentication cannot be shared,borrowed, or reproduced, and allusers need is their voice and a tele-phone.

“This technology relies on thefact that vocal characteristics, likefingerprints, are unique to eachperson. When a member attemptsto access the MLS, the Doorman(system) verifies their identity byauthenticating their voice com-bined with their MLS access codeand password.”

Alain Brunel, Touchbase realestate vice-president, says,“According to statistics from theCanadian Anti-fraud Call Centre,identity theft increased from $19million to $23 million in 2008.Especially with the economic situ-ation, it is urgent to protect non-public data. The use of our voiceoffers very efficient, convenientprotection, and we are very happythat LSTAR has opted to use ourintelligent voice recognition sys-tem for their security. Voice bio-metrics are affordable and easy touse.”

■ ■ ■

John Tillie, a Duncan Realtorand former president of theVancouver Island Real EstateBoard, has been elected as 2009-2010 president of the BritishColumbia Real Estate Association(BCREA).

“After 29 years as a licensee, I

still love the real estate businessand being a Realtor,” says Tillie.He is an associate broker withRe/Max Duncan.

Joining Tillie as officers of theassociation are vice-president MossMoloney of Re/Max PerformanceRealty in Surrey, past-presidentScott Veitch of Century 21 VeitchRealty in Creston and chief execu-tive officer Robert Laing.

New directors are SharronBilley (Cranbrook), Barbara Gallie(Victoria), Jim McCaughan(Abbotsford) and Rosario Setticasi(North Vancouver). Returning asdirectors are Eugen Klein(Vancouver), Jennifer Lynch(Gabriola Island), Bea Smith(Penticton), Hanne Selby(Chilliwack), Delores St. Amand(Prince George) and RichardValouche (Vancouver).

■ ■ ■

The Regional CommercialCouncil of the RealtorsAssociation of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB) hosted itsAnnual Commercial Summitrecently. This year’s summit,Redefining Risk and Opportunity,drew 130 members and guests andan array of commercially relatedexhibitors.

The event featured moderatorMarvin Ryder and three key speak-ers well versed in the economy.Paul Ferley, assistant chief econo-mist from RBC Financial, openedthe summit with his presentationencompassing Ontario’s economicstatus and how it is affected by theU.S. economy. Douglas Newson,director at Statistics Canada’sCentral Region, explained thedemographics of the region,including information on averagehousehold income, average yearsof education and information onhow residents travel to and fromtheir place of work.

Bringing the event to a closewas Jonathan Wellum, CEO andCIO of AIC Limited. A no-non-sense optimistic personality,Wellum’s self-proclaimed provoca-tive presentation outlined the

their home, having a detrimentaleffect on the real estate sector andthe Ontario economy.

“During these difficult eco-nomic times, homeowners areright to oppose a system of manda-tory requirements that could seethem paying thousands of dollarsto preserve equity in their homes,”says Aunger.

OREA is pleased with pro-posed changes to Ontario’s MiningAct, which it says will strengthenproperty rights in Ontario. Landsin Southern Ontario, where thereis a surface rights owner and themining rights belong to theCrown, are deemed to be with-drawn from prospecting, staking,sale and lease if the bill becomeslaw.

“Bill 173 reflects the realities ofOntario in the 21st century,” saysAunger. “Home and cottage own-ers in Southern Ontario should bepleased to hear that their propertyis not subject to prospecting andmining.”

For property owners inNorthern Ontario, Bill 173 putsrestrictions on the types of proper-ty that prospectors can enter with-out permission from the landown-er. It also approves the use of mapstaking.

“The new Mining Act encour-ages more consultation and dia-

logue between landowners andprospectors,” says Aunger.“Traditional methods of prospect-ing are often destructive to privateproperty. Map staking removes theneed to cut down trees, knockdown fences or excavate landwhen a prospector stakes a claim.”

Further debate and consulta-tion on the bill will take place overthe coming weeks.

■ ■ ■

Bob Cliffe of Sorrento is thepresident of the OkanaganMainline Real Estate Board(OMREB) for the 2009-2010term. He was installed along with11 directors representing theCentral Okanagan, NorthOkanagan and Shuswap Zones atOMREB’s Annual GeneralMeeting.

A Realtor and managing bro-ker with Re/Max Shuswap Realtyfor the past 10 years, Cliffe hasbeen a member of OMREB since1988, serving as a director since2007 and previously for six years.He replaces outgoing presidentPeter Lockhart of Royal LePageDowntown Vernon, who stays onas past-president.

“I look forward to continuingto raise the profile of our boardwithin the province and working

T

Continued on page 20

Toronto Real Estate Board mem-bers stream in to Realtor Quest.(Photo by Geoff Parkin, GPPhoto)

More than 100 people gathered at theColonel R.S. McLaughlin Armoury inOshawa to support Canadian troopsfighting in Afghanistan. (Photo courtesyof SNAP Oshawa)

Delegates enjoy a lighter moment atthe RAHB Annual CommercialSummit.

Prime Minister Stephen Harperrecently met with Sarnia-LambtonReal Estate Board president RalphFlaminio. Harper was in Sarniaobtaining information regardinglocal economic and border issuesfrom business leaders.

John Tillie

Bob Cliffe

R5

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20 REM JUNE 2009

The conference featuredCanada’s largest real estatetradeshow with more than 200booths, a sizeable continuing edu-cation component and non-stopinformation and entertainment.

Several prominent municipalpoliticians, including MississaugaMayor Hazel McCallion, paid avisit for a panel discussion abouttaxes on property. Moderated byAM640’s morning show host JohnOakley, the panel also includedCity of Toronto councillors DenzilMinnan-Wong, Karen Stintz andMichael Thompson, who haveoften been cited as potential candi-dates to challenge Mayor DavidMiller in the next municipal elec-tion. Mayor Frank Scarpitti fromthe Town of Markham, whereproperty taxes were recentlyfrozen, also took part in the discus-sion.

Jason Mercer, who is responsi-ble for TREB’s market analysis,teamed up with George Carras,founder of RealNet Canada, totalk about trends in major seg-ments of the GTA real estate mar-ket with respect to residential andcommercial property, both newand resale. Mercer and Carras toldthe crowd that the GTA is instronger shape than many othermarkets in North America andthat recent conditions were weath-ered much better than in previouscycles.

The session was included aspart of TREB’s General Meeting,during which several key decisionswere made. Members voted over-whelmingly in favour of participat-ing for the second consecutive yearin the Realtors Care Foundation’sEvery Realtor program. TREB willmake a contribution to the founda-tion equivalent to $1 per memberper month for a year.

On day two of the conference,TV personality Mike Holmesmade an appearance at the show.

Throughout the two-dayevent, 30 free continuing educa-tion courses were offered in sevendifferent streams. The coursesdrew more than 8,000 attendees.Both days’ events capped off withreceptions that included livemusic, an auction and free refresh-ments.

“Many members regard theRealtor Quest conference as one ofthe key benefits of membership,”says TREB president MaureenO’Neill. “It’s certainly a reflection ofthe emphasis TREB places on valuefor membership dues.” REM

Boards and AssociationsContinued from page 18

with local governments and otherstakeholders to enhance housingopportunities for families in theboard area,” Cliffe says. “Withimproved affordability and recordlow interest rates, this is an opti-mum time for first-time buyers toenter the market.”

Brenda Moshansky of ColdwellBanker Horizon Realty in Kelownawas installed as vice-president.Other members of the Board ofDirectors: Francis Braam, RoyalLePage Kelowna – Central Zone;George Cwiklewski, MacdonaldRealty Kelowna – Central Zone;Corry Perret, Re/Max Kelowna –Central Zone; Barret Watson,Coldwell Banker Horizon,Kelowna – Central Zone; HowardNeufeld, Century 21 ExecutivesVernon – North Zone; JoePearson, Re/Max Vernon – NorthZone; Rob Shaw, Royal LePageDowntown Vernon – North Zone;Steve Lewis, Shirley Real Estate,Salmon Arm – Shuswap Zone; andKaren Singbeil, Re/Max at MaraLake, Sicamous – Shuswap Zone.

■ ■ ■

Durham Region Association ofRealtors (DRAR) membersshowed their support for Canadianmen and women serving overseasin Afghanistan, by wearing red andgetting together for a large groupphoto. The event was organized byLindsay Smith of Re/Max Spirit.

Others in the community whotook part in the shoot were MayorJohn Gray, and members ofDurham Regional Police, DurhamFirefighters and the Veteran’sAssociation.

More than 100 soldiers havedied during the mission and manymore have been injured. ForDRAR members, it hit close tohome when Darryl Dawson, son of2009 DRAR president DebbieDawson, was injured. He was oneof five Canadian soldiers that wereinvolved in an accident when theirvehicle hit a roadside bomb inKandahar. Fortunately he survivedthe accident.

■ ■ ■

More than 8,000 GTARealtors took time away from aresurging spring market recently toattend the Toronto Real EstateBoard’s annual Realtor Quest con-ference. Attendance figures forthe fifth annual event surpassedthose of previous years.

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22 REM JUNE 2009

s Canadians weather theharsh economy, a beaconof their strength is the con-

siderable amount of equity theyhave in their properties, says areport by the Canadian Associationof Accredited MortgageProfessionals (CAAMP). Newchallenges, such as budgeting formortgage payments, are emerging,yet housing affordability has dra-matically improved due to lowerinterest rates and price reductions.The report is authored by CAAMPchief economist Will Dunning andbased on information gathered byMaritz Research Canada in anonline survey conducted in March.

Over 40 per cent of all mort-gage holders have at least 50 percent of the value of their homes inequity, and of all Canadian home-owners, which includes thosewithout mortgages, 65 per centhold at least half the value of theirproperties, says CAAMP. Onlytwo per cent of mortgage holdershave negative home equity, mean-ing the value of the mortgageexceeds the value of the home.

During the past year, 15 percent of mortgage holders tookequity out of their homes, repre-senting a national total of $34 bil-lion. Over half (57 per cent) usedthese funds for debt repayment orconsolidation amounting to $12.5billion.

“CAAMP’s report demon-strates that homeowners have solidequity positions and although fac-ing financial uncertainties, mostCanadians have the ability to dealwith temporary market fluctua-tions and reductions in personalincome,” says Jim Murphy, presi-dent and CEO of CAAMP. “Withonly a very small number at risk ofnot being able to pay or refinancetheir mortgages, our overall marketis very strong.”

There is no doubt that the cur-rent economic backdrop meansincreased financial challenges forCanadians, says CAAMP. Job lossis a major risk factor for homeown-ers and 18 per cent of those sur-veyed indicated an individual intheir household had lost a job inthe past six months.

The economy looms largewhen people consider buying a

A

Equity in homes a‘beacon of strength’

home. Despite the fact that 55 percent say now is a good time to buy,up almost 20 percentage pointsfrom fall 2008, only four per cent ofhomeowners and six per cent ofnon-owners actually say theyanticipate buying – about the samenumber as last fall.

Low and flexible interest ratesplus longer terms are adding buoy-ancy to the mortgage market.Mortgage holders are “extremelysuccessful” negotiating their inter-est rates, knocking off an averageof 1.68 per cent from the postedrate, says the association. Three-quarters of those who renewedtheir mortgage in the past year hadtheir interest rate reduced. Onaverage, renewals resulted in inter-est rate reductions of almost onefull per cent. Three-quarters ofCanadian borrowers are also likelyto see reductions in their interestrates at their next renewal.

“While many Canadians areexperiencing mortgage-relatedchallenges, these issues are muchless significant than the problems inthe American market,” saysDunning. “We are not seeing thedramatic mortgage rate resets orpanic selling that occurred in theUnited States, and Canadian mort-gage lenders and insurers aredemonstrating a willingness to workwith those who encounter financialdifficulties. These are good signs forthe health of the market.”

The survey says 46 per cent ofnew mortgages taken out in thepast year were secured throughmortgage brokers. Sixty-one percent of mortgage renewalsoccurred with the major banks.

Based on current housing mar-ket forecasts, CAAMP says theoutstanding volume of residentialmortgage credit is forecast toexpand by close to $70 billion inboth 2009 and 2010, growing at arate of 7.6 per cent in 2009 andseven per cent in 2010, althoughthe growth rate has decreased from10.4 per cent in 2008. Mortgagecredit is expected to surpass $1 tril-lion about mid-2010. The volumeof annual approvals may fall toabout $150 billion in 2009 and$160 billion in 2010, down fromtotals that exceeded $200 billonper year in 2007 and 2008. REM

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CANADA’S ELITE MORTGAGE BROKERS

24 REM JUNE 2009

n historic English chapelthat inspired LewisCarroll’s Alice’s Adventures

in Wonderland has come on themarket for £725,000.

A unique ecclesiastical conver-sion given Grade II-listing protec-tion by the British government andenjoying a secure, tranquil settingtwo miles west of Ripon, NorthYorkshire, The Old Chapel willbeguile home hunters looking forsomething a bit different.

The agents’ description focuseson its bedrooms, reception rooms,bathrooms, garages and gardens.Closer inspection reveals a porch, aliving room, kitchen, an inner hall-way with lobby, a magnificentdrawing room with a study area, adining room, and two ‘galleried’bedroom suites.

It’s a desirable property in any-one’s book.

What sets The Old Chapelapart is that Lewis Carroll (realname Charles Lutwidge Dodgson)spent a lot of time here in the mid-19th century, and was inspired by

the building’s statues and stone gar-goyles to invent some of the char-acters that populated his classicfantasy Alice’s Adventures InWonderland and its sequels.

Now a converted home stand-ing in the grounds of the formerBishop of Ripon’s Palace, The OldChapel has gone on sale at a diffi-cult time for the English housingmarket – but its connection toAlice is likely to stand it in goodstead.

“We have around 14 gargoyles

Alice in Wonderland inspiration for saleLewis Carroll was inspired by the building’s statues and stone gargoyles to invent some of the characters thatpopulated his classic fantasy Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland and its sequels.By Nigel Burnham

on the building, including an owl, acow and a more recent carving ofAlice herself,” says current ownerDavid Brown, 49. “They help makethe chapel something really differ-ent. I really like the Gothic styleand the amount of space it offers.The area is lovely and quiet and Ihave found it very peaceful livinghere.”

Lewis Carroll took inspirationfor some of the characters in Alicewhile visiting family and friends inRipon in the mid-1800s.

His father, Reverend CharlesDodgson, became a residentcanon of Ripon Cathedral in1843 and Carroll would travel upfrom his home in Oxford to visithis family there. CanonBadcock, a close friend of hisfather’s, who lived at Ure Lodgein Ripon, had a daughter namedMary, who some historians haveclaimed was the inspiration forAlice. Carroll, a keen photogra-pher, is thought to have given a portrait of her to John Tenniel,the artist who drew the

original illustrations for Alice’sAdventures in Wonderland.

Over his lifetime Carroll builtup an extensive portfolio of pho-tographs and used Ripon and TheOld Chapel as a backdrop in manyof his pictures.

As well as its statues and gar-goyles, the Old Chapel has manyother original features, includingoak paneling, mosaics and stainedglass windows, one of which is ded-icated to Reverend Dodgson.

Built in 1846, it was designedby William Railton, a well-knownBritish architect also responsible forthe design of the iconic Nelson’sColumn in London. Railton wonthe competition to design theLondon landmark in 1838 afterpreviously pitching to design TheHouses of Parliament and finishingfourth.

Converted in to a home around11 years ago, The Old Chapelstands in the grounds of the formerBishop’s Palace with several other

residential buildings. While themain building dates back to 1841,the estate has seen many changesover the decades with buildingseven being used as an EvacuationCentre by charity Barnardos duringthe Second World War.

A spokeswoman for real estatefirm Savills says: “It would be anamazing place to live even withoutthe Lewis Carroll connection. Thechapel is said to have been mod-eled on Ripon Cathedral and muchof the timberwork is similar in style.

Its renovation has been sympathet-ic to the features it holds andbecause the building has been listed(protected) by the British govern-ment, little of the internal décorhas been changed.”

Ripon announced in 2000that it had truly arrived in theland of the Mad Hatters when 38enthusiasts spent 48 hours peeringunder cathedral choir stalls andover gypsum craters in the city,confirming an increasingly proba-ble truth in their own mad world:that Ripon was an inspiration forLewis Carroll’s Alice inWonderland — her rabbit holes,Mad Hatters and all.

Their discovery meant that thecity’s inhabitants could release acollective sigh of relief. SinceCarroll’s death in 1898, Ripon’sinfluence on the Alice stories hasbeen largely overlooked whileOxford, Daresbury in Cheshire andLlandudno, North Wales, havebuilt tourism industries aroundtheir Alice heritage – some ofwhich, in Ripon’s opinion, is prettytenuous.

Ripon’s big breakthrougharrived with the first descent intothe city of the 400-strong interna-tional Lewis Carroll Society for itsannual conference in 2000. Theresults were impressive even beforethey began poking about the place:the number of delegates has beenbettered only by the society’s cen-tennial gathering in Oxford.

The enthusiasts, from Sweden,Israel, the United States, Canadaand beyond, might not havedressed up as Mad Hatters but theywere particularly anxious to crawlround the choir stall seats at RiponCathedral. This was the placewhere Lewis Carroll’s father wascanon. Carroll frequented it andmisericord carvings there depictpossible prototype Hatters.

One carving depicts a griffincatching a rabbit, which subse-quently escapes down a hole.

Is this why Alice, in the wordsof the story, fell “down, down,down”, 4,000 miles to the centre ofthe earth, to land “bump, bump,bump?”

It has been a matter of quietcontemplation ever since. REM

Much of the original interior of the chapel has been preserved.

There are 14 gargoyles on the building.The historic chapel was converted to a home about 11 years ago.

A

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26 REM JUNE 2009

RealtyPromoter

software wenty years – congratula-tions REM! The decadesjust seem to fly by don’t

they? Wasn’t it only yesterday wecelebrated your 100th issue?(Well, actually Marty, that wasOctober 1997.) Phew – time isflying faster than Spock in thenew Star Trek movie. And speak-ing of icons, REM has been deliv-ering news and views to a genera-tion of readers, achieving impar-tiality unattainable by industryassociations while offering a plat-form for divergent visions, reach-ing Canadian brokers and salesreps with very little trace of theirToronto roots. That’s a compli-ment.

In 1989 – to give you a littlehistorical flavour – the WorldWide Web had not yet appeared.The first Mac portable dropped insomeone’s lap. We had just gonefrom analog to digital in our tele-phone systems and cell phoneswere not much smaller than thephone booths they were about tomake obsolete. Those of us whohad been in the business since the’70s were learning to put film in a35mm camera rather than devel-oping a Polaroid with the heatfrom our armpit. The digital cam-era would not appear for anothersix years and while the office copi-er had been in wide use since theearly ’80s, the cost efficient colourcopier was a child of the 21st cen-tury. The fax machine, despitebeing invented in the 1860s –that’s not a misprint – didn’tbecome a feature of every officeuntil the 1980s. Bandwidth waswhat you got from Meatloaf, thenperforming for 20 years and aboutto record Bat Out of Hell II.

What was old in 1989 besidesthe fax machine? Two things westill use today. Not counting fireand water. The QWERTY key-board (1878) and the ball point

METES & BOUNDS

By Marty Douglas

Sorting outchanges that last

T

pen (1888). Yes Sylvester, thekeyboard on your Blackberry andthe writing stick you stab it withis 100 years older than REM!

In my retrospective on REM’s100th issue, I wrote: “TheInternet – really, nothing newhere. Billboards and want-ads in anew milieu with an electroniccoupon for further information. Itmakes some aspects of the jobeasier, but, like the laptop and thecell phone and the fax, is just atool.”

I also referred to JohnBearden, then president ofColdwell Banker Canada, quotedby Katherine Macklem for theFinancial Post on June 21, 1997.He viewed the real estate industryin Canada as sleepy. “We’re realestate guys and we’re competingagainst accountants . . . I’m like afox in the chicken house.”

John isn’t the boss any more –not sure how his days in thechicken house would measure up– and there’s a new sheriff intown, John Geha. John was pro-filed in a recent issue of REM andI had the pleasure of hearing himspeak on his swing through thewestern regions of the ColdwellBanker franchise.

If John is a fox, he’s a subtleone, and a welcome change fromthe old attitude of “We’re herefrom the States to show you athing or two.” Under his leader-ship, Coldwell’s Canadian opera-tions have been recognized as adistinct region rather than justanother state where they havefunny money.

His message to an eclecticgroup of salespeople was a plea-sure to hear. “We’ve overcompli-cated our business.” Echoing mes-sages we have heard for years butcontinue to need reminding.“Does it bring value to the con-sumer? No? Then don’t do it.”Common sense advice I firstheard in 1985 – going out to findthe customer is more importantthan waiting for them to find you.On the value of brokerage, hewould agree with my boss, RandyForbes, that the most importantthing a company can give a sales-

person is a good image.Twenty years – a lot of change

and constants. Sorting outchanges that last is the challenge.Be suspicious of the hype.Change at best will provide a use-ful but temporary tool. AnthonyRobbins said, “Times may havechanged but the real secrets havenot.”

Without readers there is noneed for print media and theirinput is essential. Consider thisresponse to my column on theimpact of editorial bias on newsheadlines. Long-time friend andB.C. Realtor Richard Osborne ofLandquest Realty wrote, “Asusual my REM magazine landedon my desk and I immediatelyflipped through to your column.One of my clients said the otherday if a reporter saw Jesus Christwalking across the ocean, theheadline would read ‘God Can’tSwim’.”

The last paragraph in my100th issue column bears repeat-ing. “What else won’t change?The need for a winning attitude. Iwas between flights in Seattle,getting the dust off my travelshoes and I ventured the opinionto the shoe shine guy that the air-port authority hadn’t given him avery busy spot. He grinned up atme and said “Yeah, but oatmeal isbetter than no meal!”

From my 40th year in realestate – happy birthday rookie!

Marty Douglas is a managingbroker for Coast Realty Group(Comox Valley) Ltd., managingtwo of 15 Coast Realty Groupoffices on Vancouver Island and theSunshine Coast of B.C. His firstcolumn in REM appeared inDecember 1994. Email [email protected]; 1-800-715-3999;Fax (250) 897-3933. REM

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28 REM JUNE 2009

AS I SEE IT FROM MY DESK

By Stan Albert

Lessons from 1989or menu plans, as some brokersprefer to call them.

The upside to the lucrativepackages is that agents receivemore “bang out of their buck” tomake more money selling realestate, even after paying the brokereither a desk fee and/or a percent-age of the gross commission. Thedownside over the years to the bro-kers has been pressure from con-sumers to reduce the commission,so the broker nets less than ever intoday’s marketplace. Take a lookat some of the low fee or, in somecases, negotiation fee-based bro-kerages. As well, websites such asZillow.com offer the public view-ing of FSBOs and/or listings by allbrokers in an area.

Who’d have thought in 1989that we would have such pressures?

Brokerages could not haveforeseen that giving agents moremoney on each transaction wouldnot be a magic pill to retain theirservices.

As time went on, many of thebrokers realized that in addition topaying for technology to enhanceagent’s services, they’d have to

ramp up their own services to theagents. And so today, almost everybrokerage offers all types of educa-tional seminars and webinars.

In 1989, when I was executivevice-president at Safeguard RealEstate, the broker and I, like othersat that time, could not or wouldnot listen to the war drums ofrecession beating. The only visionwe had at that time was to increasethe amount of commission wewere paying to the agents who, inspite of our offering more, wereleaving to go to higher-payingfranchises that had been inCanada for less than 10 years. Inaddition to the higher commissionsplits, they offered a brand imagethat most of us couldn’t match.Did some of those brands fail in thesucceeding years? Yes they did, butseveral survived.

How did they do it? Well,many, like Royal LePage, Re/Maxand Century 21 made some seriousdecisions to bring not only formaleducation to the agents, butpushed the envelope to includenational advertising as well, via thecollection of regional fees.

So, fast forward to 2009. We’rein the depths of the most unimag-inable recession, bordering on thebig ‘D’ word, and it’s global, notjust in North America.

What vision must brokers havetoday as we move through the2000s? What images must brokersenvision for their future? I believethat the broker of today andtomorrow must be sales rep-drivenand not just fee driven. The salesrep of today and those graduatingtomorrow are seeking brokeragesthat will nurture the skills theymust develop at those brokerages.And it’s not a one-day seminaronce a month; it’s as often as thebroker will allocate his valuabletime for. Sure, Brian Buffini, MikeFerry and Richard Robbins aredynamic leaders in their field. Butthe guy or the gal at the helm oftheir brokerage is ultimatelyresponsible for the success or fail-ure of his/her agents to perform.

I know, many brokers are say-ing, “But Stan, when will I havetime to recruit?” or “I do enoughfor my agents now in the way oftraining!” Okay, maybe you do, but

here’s a thought: you have toensure you nurture your currentagents. If you do, I promise youthis, they will think so highly ofwhat you are offering, other thanhigh commissions, that they willrecruit for you.

I would be remiss in closing this20th anniversary article for REM ifI didn’t say to Heino Molls and histireless staff, big congratulations onyour marvelous achievement of 20years of superb information fromwriters from all over Canada andthe USA. Great work and goodluck on your next 20 years!

Stan Albert, broker/manager,ABR, ASA at Re/Max Premier inVaughan, Ont. can be reached forconsultation at [email protected] is now celebrating 40 years as anactive real estate professional. His firstREM article appeared in October2004. REM

o, REM is celebrating 20years of service to the realestate industry in Canada.

It’s no mean feat in today’s econo-my that your little magazine, sopacked with great information, hassurvived.

I went back to 1989 in REM’sarchives and reviewed some of themany articles in some depth.

From August 1989: “A REMsurvey shows lucrative newemployment packages have drawntop agents to those brokerages…”So, what’s happened since? Take alook at most brokerages today.We’re all offering similar packages

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32 REM JUNE 2009

3510-06 05/15/09 R1

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

Customized NewslettersCN

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Neighbourhood Newsletters

Attract New Clients

Increase your client base by advertising to select areas.

You may already be seeing For Sale signs popping up in your own neighbourhood. Indeed, Canada’s real estate market is poised for steady, yet moderate growth in 2008, with average housing prices forecast to rise by 3.5 per cent this year.

Regardless of national real estate trends, we know that all real estate responds to local and even individual factors. That’s why, if you’re thinking of putting your home up for sale, think about curb appeal first. First impressions can provide an important edge over other, similar properties in your neighbourhood.

A neat, well-maintained yard is paramount. Simple things like tidying up the outside of the property, putting away any equipment and toys, and placing your garbage and recycling bins out-of-sight, cost nothing but can make the difference between a positive first impression and the risk of a potential buyer just driving past.

For more tips on how to boost your curb appeal, or for the latest in market trends and local real estate action in your area, please call me today!

April Showers Bring May Curb Appeal

If you’re trying to look on the bright side of a typically rainy April, think that the gardens surrounding your house will soon be revitalized to provide greater curb appeal in time for the busiest months of the year for open houses and real estate transactions.

Figures are based on MLS® sales as reported by the Canadian Real Estate Association. 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: Canadian Real Estate Association

MAY 2008

RIVERDALE MARKET WATCH

NO. SOLD AVERAGE PRICE

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

Market Connections Inc.4950 Yonge Street, Suite 101 Toronto, ONM2N 6K1

Danny BrownBroker

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

Danny BrownBroker

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 416-441-1081 for the most up-to-date market information

about Riverdale and East Toronto.

Market Connections® Inc.

Bus: (800) 387-6058 Fax: (800) 800-70931

4950 Yonge Street, Suite 101, Toronto, ON M2N 6K1

From the desk of Danny Brown....

Danny Brown

Volume 2, Issue 3

Figures are based on MLS® sales as reported by the Canadian Real Estate Association. 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: Canadian Real Estate Association

STAN

The Lowdown on Down PaymentsWith a wide selection of properties for sale these days, and the reasonable mortgage rates available, it’s tempting for first-time buyers to push their home ownership goals forward, and for existing homeowners to consider buying a second or investment property. One question we are frequently asked is, “How much of a down payment do I need?”

A conventional mortgage requires a 20 percent down payment, while a high ratio mortgage requires a minimum of 5 percent down. Note that as high ratio mortgages require less cash up-front than conventional mortgages, they are subject to a higher insurance premium.

The next question often broached is, “How do I come up with the funds for the down payment?”

Here are some suggestions to consider:

all-time high, do you need that

that money — and savings from gas, insurance and maintenance — towards a down payment?

refund this year? A bonus from your employer? A birthday or

holiday cash gift from a family member? Put any extra money into a separate savings account that you won’t withdraw from until you meet your savings goal. Set up an automatic savings plan so that a pre-determined amount is automatically deposited into your special account every payday.

Buyers’ Plan, a federally instituted government program that allows the homebuyer to withdraw up to $20,000 per person from an RSP for their down payment.

I invite you to call me for an idea

you can set your savings goal to meet your ultimate target.

OCTOBER 2008

RIVERDALE MARKET WATCH

NO. SOLD AVERAGE PRICE

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

23

7,222

$ 588,500 35

SEMI-DETACHED

BEDROO

ROO

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CNSF

A conventional mortgage requires a 20 percent down payment, while a high-ratio mortgage requires a minimum of 5 percent down. Note that as high-ratio mortgages require less cash up front than conventional mortgages, they are subject to a higher insurance premium.

The next question often broached is, “How do I come up with the funds for the down payment?”

HERE ARE SOME SUGGESTIONS TO CONSIDER:

With the price of gas at an all-time high, do you need that second car? Why not sell it and put that money –and savings from gas, insurance and maintenance – towards a down payment?

Did you get an income tax refund this year? A bonus from your

employer? A birthday or holiday cash gift from a family member? Put any extra money into a separate savings account that you won’t withdraw from until you meet your savings goal. Set up an automatic savings plan so that a predetermined amount is automatically deposited into your special account every payday.

If you know anyone who is a first-time homebuyer, make sure they know about the Home Buyers’ Plan, a federally instituted government program that allows the homebuyer to withdraw up to $20,000 per person from an RSP for their down payment.

I invite you to call me for an idea of what’s on the market, so that you can set your savings goal to meet your ultimate target.

With a wide selection of properties for sale these days, and the reasonable mortgage rates available, it’s tempting for first-time buyers to push their home ownership goals forward, and for existing homeowners to consider buying a second or investment property. One question we are frequently asked is, “How much of a down payment do I need?”

The Lowdown on Down Payments

realtyreport®

Volume 4, Issue 10

Compliments of Danny Brown Market Connections Inc.®

Danny Brown Real Estate Agent

Market Connections Inc.®4950 Yonge Street, Suite 101Toronto, ON M2N 6K1

Bus: (800) 387-6058Fax: (800) 800-7093 [email protected]

Greetings! You’re receiving this newsletter with hopes that you find it informative and entertaining.

If you’re thinking of making a move, or are just curious as to real estate trends in your area, please feel free to call at any time. It’s always good to hear from you!

All the best,

Danny Brown

Client Newsletters

Referrals

Solidify client relationships and encourage referrals with realtyreport®.

axes are complicated.Taxes are boring. Peoplefeel they can’t do anything

to change the system or to fightthe system. People do little or notax planning. People do theirbookkeeping and tax returns atthe last minute, which makes for agreater chance mistakes will getmade. Few people take the time tolearn how to prepare their owntax returns. Many people areintimidated by the CanadaRevenue Agency (CRA)…and soon.

All negative stuff! And here Iam, wanting to write about it andhelp people with it. I must becrazy. But believe it or not, this ismeat and potatoes to me at thistime in my working life. I will tryto make it as interesting as I can,but there will be times when theknowledge and information I feelit is important to share will makefor ‘dry’ reading.

I am going to outline the basicsteps of the process that is avail-able to all taxpayers if they dis-agree with CRA…or if CRA dis-agrees with them.

Why am I outlining this in acolumn? Good question! Theanswer is F.E.A.R. – aka FalseEvidence Appearing Real orFuture Events Appearing Real.We are all born with a couple ofgood fears – fear of falling and fearof pain. These help keep us fromhurting ourselves. Just about allother fear is manufactured in ourminds and we allow it to take holdbecause of the great unknowns inour lives. In this case, the greatunknown CRA and tax system.

My thinking is that by sharingthe system and process, and thenin future columns sharing someactual stories/cases that followed

TAX CHAT &OTHER MATTERS

By Michel Chevalier

the steps of the process with suc-cess, I will be able to help youremove the fear and intimidationfactor from taxes. Then you canlegally reduce the amount of taxyou pay, and if you are questionedby CRA you know that there is aprocess you can follow to stand upfor what you feel is right.

These are the steps that a tax-payer might take in order toobject to a CRA assessment:

1. Taxpayer submits tax returnwith expected refund of $4,300.

2. Taxpayer receives CRANotice of Assessment; CRAeither agrees with tax return asfiled or disagrees and states thatrefund should only be $1,800.

3. Taxpayer has 90 days towrite and send in a Notice ofObjection to the CRA AppealsDivision explaining why the orig-inal refund amount of $4,300 isvalid; it is usually appropriate tosubmit supporting documentationwith the objection.

4. CRA will eventuallyrespond; if they agree with you,case closed. If they disagree andyou feel you have a good case withsupporting documentation(receipts) and the expenses arereal business expenses, you havethe option to file a Notice ofAppeal to The Tax Court ofCanada. This would take the formof a letter outlining the situation,again providing supporting docu-mentation.

5. At this stage, particularly ifyou have a strong case, CRA mayopt not to go to court and youhave won. CRA may also suggestnegotiating, which is sometimes agood option. If you do end up inTax Court and the amount of taxowing is $12,000 or less, you canopt for Informal Tax Court, whereyou don’t need a lawyer. Foramounts greater, you would needthe help of a lawyer.

6. If you really don’t feel youhave been treated fairly, there isnow an ombudsman in place toprovide help and assistance.

This is a simplified version ofthe process to show that you cantake action – often successfully –

on your own, and it doesn’t haveto be costly. CRA does make a lotof mistakes. Some are honest mis-takes but many really strike me asbeing deliberately misleading, soit is a good idea not to take whatCRA says at face value. Alwaysdeal with CRA in writing. Neverever count on a phone call agree-ment, always back it up in writing.

Remember what I said in mylast column – it is better to fightbecause if you become known assomeone who challenges and does-n’t simply do whatever CRA tells

you to do, they will tend to headfor the person from whom they canextract money more easily.

I am happy to answer ques-tions and if I get enough querieson the same matter, I will providethe answer in a subsequent col-umn.

Always remember…FEARNOT!

Michel Chevalier has many yearsof business experience, combiningover 20 years managing multipletrade associations representing sever-al dozen industries; building his ownsmall business from the ground up;and more recently as a consultantspecializing in helping individuals andsmall business significantly reducetaxes by implementing legal business strategies. He also represents clients in audit and other difficult situations with Canada Revenue Agency.Email: [email protected] ;www.taxaction.net. REM

T

Don’t fear the CRA

Always dealwith CRA in

writing.Never evercount on aphone callagreement.

With my schedule, I need a membership that helps me grow my business.

That’s why I’m an ABR®.As an ABR®, I get full access to REBAC.net’s user-friendly member section with news, trends, tips, and tools to help me stay competitive in the market. The marketing materials are easy to customize and effective in getting my name out there and promoting my business. And get this, I was able to take courses for my designation both in person and online. With my ABR® designation my needs are met...on my time.

The Accredited Buyer’s Representative designation is awarded by the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council (REBAC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.

Grow your business on your schedule at rebac.netCall 800-648-6224 or visit www.REBAC.net for more information and course schedules.

6:00 a Joey’s field trip: remember snacks7:00 a Yoga 8:00 a 8:30 a Pick up signs9:00 a Offer conference call with Julie10:00 a 11:00 a11:30 a Attend REBAC Connection Webinar12:00 p Meet with potential buyer1:00 p2:00 p Read Today’s Buyer’s Rep Newsletter 3:00 p Uncle Bill’s birthday: send e-card4:00 p Order marketing brochures from REBAC Print Shop5:00 p Lily’s swim meet6:00 p 7:00 p 7:15 p Update blog: add Green article from TBR HotSheet

empowered byREBAC is a proud partner in NAR’s REALTOR Benefits® Program. NAR members receive a 10% discount on REALTOR® University online courses owned by REBAC.

34 REM JUNE 2009

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WEBForms™ is a trademark owned by The Canadian Real Estate Association.

THE SENIOR AGENT

By Barry Lebow

The future is old the number of individuals aged65 to 74 will almost double, from2.3 million to about 4.5 million.The share of the total populationcomprised of these “youngseniors” will increase from sevenper cent to 11.9 per cent, saysStatistics Canada. The numberof Canadians aged 85 plus willnearly double as well, rising fromabout 500,000 in 2006 to about900,000 in 2026.

For real estate professionals,the problems of dealing withinthe largest segment of the mar-ket consist predominately withtired clichés and mindsets.Forget about the myth thatseniors are difficult or are stayingin place. According to StatsCanada, those over 65 will movemore than three more times intheir lifetimes and for the agent,the rewards are large. First-timebuyers and young families willdecrease as Canadian low fertili-ty rates are going to have a majorimpact on the next generations.They simply are not making as

many young people today as theydid in the past. Banking on first-time buyers, young move-upsand their kind is a dwindlingproposition.

In my lectures and seminars Ifind challenges to the word“senior.” The Oxford CanadianDictionary defines a senior citizenas “an elderly person, especially aperson over 65”. Given thateven the government states thatat 65 a person is a senior, whocares about the semantics of language?

Many of our pop cultureicons from Tina Turner to BobDylan are seniors, with MickJagger and the Rolling Stonesand many others in the samedemographic.

So where is your businessgoing to come from in the nextdecade if seniors represent thefastest growing population groupin Canada? People are livinglonger, as attested by the factthat the fastest growth in theseniors’ population is occurring

among the oldest Canadians. Ninety-three per cent of all

seniors reside in private house-holds (including rentals). MostCanadian seniors live in single-detached houses. In 1997, overtwo-thirds of senior householdsowned their home, which wereon average, mortgage free.

It is wrong to stereotypeseniors as elderly. Many livestrong, healthy lives and are ripefor new real estate ventures.They will upgrade, downsize,move to other communities,acquire second homes (remem-ber, they are also going to inher-it from their parents) and travel.They will be seasoned buyers orsellers as it will not be a newexperience for them. But formany, it will have been a longtime since their last purchaseand times have changed.

Real estate professionals alsohave to change. To work withthe coming boom in the seniormarket will require specialknowledge of tax law, estates and

trusts, wills, how to help familiesin transition, and just dealingwith decades of home owner-ship. A niche agent specializingin any sector of the market tradi-tionally outperforms their peers.The best part of working withinthe senior sector is that businesscan be driven to those who focusin within this area. Lawyers andestate trustees can be sources ofreferrals for years and can formgreat working relationships withthose agents who understand thespecial needs of this market.

It is going to happen – buyersand sellers will age and you havea choice. Watch it happen or bepart of what is happening.

Barry Lebow, a real estate pro-fessional since 1968, is the founderof the successful Accredited SeniorAgent designation, now with about400 members and growing month-ly. His first column in REMappeared in October 1991. [email protected]; websitewww.thesenioragent.com. REM

anada faces significantaging of its population asthe proportion of seniors

increases more rapidly than allother age groups. In 2001, oneCanadian in eight was aged 65years or over. By 2026, oneCanadian in five will havereached age 65.

Canada’s senior populationhas grown about twice as fast asthe overall population since theearly 1980s. The growth is alsoexpected to continue early in thesecond decade of the new centu-ry when baby boomers turn 65.

Over the next two decades,

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36 REM JUNE 2009

By Leon d’Ancona

Are you ready for market upturn?probe a little and ask, “so whatpercentage of your market iscondo sales”, the answer is eithernonexistent or totally wrong.

About 13 per cent have apretty good plan based on badassumptions. Only about one ortwo per cent have a good busi-ness plan based on proper infor-mation.

In some Canadian cities wesee the upturn coming. In othersit will be many months away. Nomatter what your market isdoing, now is the time to getready for the upturn by knowingyour market inside and out.

First ask yourself: Would youdeal with a stockbroker whonever knows what the DowJones is doing when you call? Orwould you work with a plumberwho only fixes certain types offaucets? How about a bank thatdoes not let you write cheques? Ifyour answer is no (real estate isfull of contrarians) then askyourself, would people deal withme, given my current expertise?

In an age when the public hasaccess to massive amounts ofinformation, they rightfullydemand in-depth informationfrom their real estate professionalthat is not available to them. Ifyour expertise consists of whatyour prospective client read inyesterday’s paper, don’t expect toget her business. Perhaps this lackof information is why there aregenerally about 15 per cent moreprofessionals who work with buy-ers, than work with sellers.

Here are three steps guaran-teed to increase your incomenow, and in a market upturn.

Step 1: Time allocation – To

participate in the upturn, make aclear-cut decision about how youwill allocate your time, with buyersor with sellers. Remember that youcan pick a geographical area to listhomes, but you have no dominionover where a purchaser wants tobuy their dream home. Spendingall your time working with buyerscan quickly turn you into a glori-fied taxi driver. The general con-sensus among coaches is that in aperfect world, you spend 60 percent on listings and 40 per centwith buyers.

Step 2: The perfect territory– The territory you decide towork in is the wellspring fromwhich your income flows. Startby breaking up your MLS by dis-trict, city, county or map-grid.One of the best ways to decide isto pick an area and distill it intoFSA (the first three numbers of a postal code). It will likely give you a homogeneous neighbourhood. For example,Toronto’s M2N had the highestturnover in condo apartments;Vancouver’s V0N had the mosttwo-storey type homes sold.

Go to http://www.canada-post.ca/cpc2/addrm/hh/current/indexp/tpALL-e.asp and you geta fabulous breakdown of everyFSA in Canada, as well as thetotal houses, apartments andbusinesses in each FSA.Bookmark the site and use itoften. It’s your taxes at work. Getyour money’s worth!

Determine if your pick willsatisfy the needs of your clients.When building your territory,consider historical and currentfacts about: home inventorydiversity, current average days onmarket, units sold, average andmedian price.

Step 3: Value ranges – Havingpicked your dream area, determinethe price ranges you have justlocked into. Clients can generallybe divided into three groups, start-up, move-up and luxury.

Examine if this breakdownworks for you and your prospec-tive buyers and sellers. There areother obvious factors rooted inethnicity and culture that arewise to consider when determin-ing where you will work.

Years ago I remember spend-ing weeks with clients workingon the perfect territory.

Fortunately, today territory mod-els can be done with greateraccuracy in less than 15 minutes.This allows for the creation ofmultiple choices and frequentchanges. A great strategy is tohave a secondary territory to fallback on. Every week I give freewebinars to professionals likeyou and help them in theirchoice, using the latest Internettechnology. The consensus isamazement with the lucrativesimplicity available. You’re wel-come to join.

My glass is half full ratherthan half empty evaluating realestate. Many calls I get ask,“Have we hit bottom”? My stan-dard reply is that you can only seethe bottom looking down. Eventhe most astute pundits can’t pin-point the bottom to the last dol-lar. But we all know it is coming.

If you’re not ready, some of yourcompetition is! People call thearea they work in, their “farmarea”, which brings to mind anancient truth: “He who sows insorrow, in joy shall surely reap”.

Now is the time to stir upaction with prospects. Tell themyou’re the expert they can relyon to tell them when the besttime is to buy, sell, or trade up.

Leon d’Ancona B.T.L.,M.T.L., RRESI, is president andfounder of IMS Incorporated, andcreator of REality, an online serviceused by franchises, brokers and agentsto improve their bottom line. Authorand writer, he is a regular speaker atreal estate gatherings throughout thecontinent, and is well-known for hisentertaining, illuminating presenta-tions. Email: [email protected]. REM

elf-employed Canadians tend to have more debt and risk tomanage than the average Canadian employee, but that is havinglimited effect on their stress and work levels during this reces-

sion, according to a survey conducted by Desjardins Financial Security.Self-employed Canadians are carrying more personal debt, excluding

mortgages on their primary residence, than the average Canadian.Despite their heavier debt loads and the additional risk that it brings, asurvey of self-employed Canadians, conducted the first week of March,found that self-employed Canadians remain split on the impact of therecession on their stress levels. Just more than half (56 per cent) feeltheir stress level is higher now compared to a year ago and fewer (44 percent) feel it is harder to be competitive now compared to the start of therecession. However, 72 per cent of self-employed Canadians said theyare not working significantly more hours since the start of the recession.

“It is encouraging that Canada’s self-employed are getting throughthe recession, however, the survey results also show that many are notdoing enough to mitigate the risks particular to small businesses,” saysNathalie Tremblay, a manager at Desjardins Financial Security. “Peoplewho start their own companies often tend to think like an employeewith a benefits package, where most of the risk is covered by the com-pany. When you run your own business, you are responsible for every-thing: your livelihood, employees, creditors, vendors and ultimately yourfamily, so self-employed Canadians need to use different tools to protecttheir interests.”

While 85 per cent of Canadians carry a debt load of $25,000 or less,just over half of self-employed workers claimed their debt was in this bot-tom category. At the top end of debt levels, only five per cent ofCanadians generally have more than $50,000 of debt, compared to 21per cent of self-employed Canadians who have more than $50,000 ofdebt.

The survey says the majority of self-employed Canadians said theyown health insurance, like most Canadian employees. However, 54 percent of respondents said they didn’t have enough disability coverage and80 per cent said they were not familiar with business expense insurance.

REM

Self-employed: more debt and risk

ou know the upturn iscoming when your news-paper’s articles are not

just about gloom and doom.Lately my newspaper has had ahealthy sprinkling of optimismin its financial section, and eventhe front page contained encour-aging Canadian economic news.We all know that consumer con-fidence fuels home sales. Thisbrings me to the point of thisarticle.

In slower markets with lowerprices, too few professionalsadapt to the prevailing condi-tions. Most successful adaptersare making almost the sameincome they made in bettertimes. If you step back and lookbehind the gloom and doom, thestrategy needed is pretty clear –change your business plan to theprevailing conditions.

When I want to have somefun on a dreary telephone call, Iask the question, “When is thelast time you changed your busi-ness plan?” About 50 per centcome right out and say some-thing like, “Uh, I work in C01,mostly with buyers.” About 35per cent are too embarrassed toadmit to no plan and mumblesomething like, “I am changingstrategies because I have decidedto do more condos.” When I

Y

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38 REM JUNE 2009

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40 REM JUNE 2009

he plaintiff transferred acottage to the defendants,her nephew and his wife.

The defendants were to fulfill cer-tain conditions and when they didnot, the aunt sued to get the prop-erty back.

A settlement offer to returnthe property in exchange for theprice paid and legal fees was orallyaccepted, but the nephew and hiswife reneged. They argued thatsuch a re-conveyance could not beoral but had to be in writing to bebinding.

The court made quick work ofthe argument. This was an “oral”settlement and not an oral con-tract, it ruled. A contract involv-ing the Statute of Frauds, such as“a sale or purchase of property” inwhich “writing” would avoid afraud, could not be left to an oraloffer/acceptance only. An oralsettlement, however, is enforce-able, the court ruled.

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LEGAL ISSUES

By Donald H. Lapowich

T

More recent cases■ ■ ■

In another case, the vendorssold a property and flea marketbusiness to the purchaser. The pur-chaser required a condition thathe be able to hire a manager forthe business and receive compre-hensive information on his pur-chase (property and flea market).When the purchaser failed toclose, the following facts came tolight:

• The purchaser interviewedthe vendor’s part-time manager ofthe business, who was willing andable to work full-time for the pur-chaser;

• The purchaser refused toaccept the financial informationprovided, because of “slight” mis-calculations. Despite beingoffered the opportunity to speak tovendor’s accountant, the purchas-er did not contact the accountant.

The court was quick to holdthe purchaser liable because therewere no grounds to rescind thepurchaser agreement. All condi-tions had been in fact fulfilled anddamages were in order.

Is this case a sign of the times?The ruling proves that perfectionis not the standard, nor should itbe.

■ ■ ■

In a different case, the plaintiff

bought a house and arranged tofinance it through the defendantcorporation. The amountrequired was $270,000, secured bya mortgage for two years. Thedefendant required an extensionto produce the funds, but this wasimpossible because the deal had toclose, so the plaintiff was forced toobtain an alternative source forone year. Thereafter, anothersource to finance was obtained.

Costs were incurred and whensued, the defendant admitted lia-bility but denied the damages.The defendant insisted a trial wasrequired for damages to be deter-mined. The court disagreed andfound two years of damages werein order, by simply comparing thecost of the two alternative sourcesagainst the proposed cost with thedefendant.

Justice can come quickly with-out trial costs being enforcedwhen liability is admitted.

Donald H. Lapowich, Q.C.Hon. FRGD is a partner at the lawfirm of Koskie, Minsky LLP inToronto, where he practices civil liti-gation, with a particular emphasis onreal estate litigation and acts for pro-fessionals including lawyers, realestate agents, insurancebrokers/agents and dentists. His firstcolumn in REM appeared inNovember 1995. REM

anadian office and industrial markets are beginning to experience the full impact of the economic down-turn, with rising availability rates and a sharp increase in sublet space in some major Canadian cities, saysa report by Colliers International. It says that although Canada’s real estate market is still relatively sta-

ble, recent Canadian job losses and stalled economic growth is now having an impact on the commercial realestate sector. Of note is a growing trend by companies to shed leased space that was earmarked for future growthrequirements as they reorganize business operations to endure the current economic climate.

The report says that sublet space – one of the leading indicators of the health of the office market – jumpedduring the first quarter of the year and now accounts for 19.5 per cent of total vacant office space across the coun-try. The flipside of this trend is the opportunity presented to tenants by way of potentially discounted rents forbuilt-out premises that are often “turn-key” on short notice, it says. The average national vacancy rate for down-town and suburban markets rose to 5.9 per cent in the first quarter, up from 5.1 per cent in the last quarter of2008.

“These figures are by no means bleak,” says Ian MacCulloch, Canadian vice-president of research, ColliersInternational. “We entered the current recession with historically low vacancy rates and significant new supplycoming to market in only two cities. Although demand for office space is likely to remain soft across most regionsthroughout 2009, we expect to see a healthy bounce once corporate Canada regains confidence. The rise in sub-let space seen during Q1 is in line with expectations, and by no means suggests an impending commercial realestate crisis.” REM

Robert Nutbrown

Vanora Spreen

†Royal LePage is a trademark used under license.

Andy Puthon, Executive Vice President, Network Development is pleased toannounce that Robert Nutbrown broker/owner of the brokerage formerly operatingas Coldwell Banker Innovators Realty, Brokerage in Brampton, Ontario has joinedthe Royal LePage franchise network. The company will now operate under thenew name of Royal LePage Innovators Realty, Brokerage.

Bob’s background is extensive and varied, having moved to Prince Edward Islandafter graduating from McGill University where he was appointed as Secretary tothe Cabinet and Principal Secretary to the Premier, including a stint as Advisor tothe Leader of the Opposition and Assistant Deputy Minister of Agriculture. He latermoved to Ontario, where he again worked in government in the Treasury andEconomics sectors, and Skills Development.

Bob has been in the real estate industry for 21 years, and first sold with E.A.Mitchell Real Estate. In 1994 Bob joined the Coldwell Banker brand.

Involved in his local community Bob is Past President of the Brampton Board ofTrade, Past President of the YMCA, and has been involved in the ChairmanMayor’s Roundtable on Downtown & Queen Street Corridor. Bob is a 45 year resident of Brampton.

Royal LePage Innovators Realty has a team of 65 sales professionals who service Brampton, and surrounding areas.

Vanora Spreen, Broker of Record will be managing the two Royal LePageInnovators Realty offices, located at:

16 Kennedy Road South 17 Worthington AvenueBrampton, Ontario Brampton, OntarioL6W 3E1 L6W 3E1Phone: 905-796-8888 Phone: 905-796-8888Toll Free: 877-941-1613 Toll Free: 877-941-1613Fax: 905-796-8899 Fax: 905-846-6985Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]

Please join us in welcoming Bob, Vanora and everyone at Royal LePageInnovators Realty to Royal LePage.

For information on the Royal LePage franchise program, please call Andy Puthondirectly at (416) 510-5827.

†

CICI markets feeling downturn

42 REM JUNE 2009

ere’s part of a recent con-versation I had with Dr.Zvi Blank, a U.S.- based

independent consultant and train-er with extensive experience inenvironmental issues pertaining tovarious types of real estate markets.

Q. What specific environmen-tal issue(s) do you believe residen-tial real estate agents need to knowto become successful?

A. The old cliché, “Location,location, location” applies to thequality of the neighbourhood inwhich the property is located, notonly in terms of educational facili-ties, shopping convenience, and soon, but also in terms of proximityto potential sources of pollution(both air and water). You mayremember the explosion of liquidpropane storage tanks in Toronto afew months ago. Would you likeyour house to be near that tankfarm? Similarly, you want to be surethat the water supply in your area issafe to drink.

Every agent needs to know aboutasbestos in buildings and the impor-tance of how to deal with it. Theyalso need to know about lead inpaint, underground storage tanks ofheating oil, private wells (if theyexist on the property), and septictanks, as applicable. Vendors maywant to know if the insulation in thehouse is likely to emit residualformaldehyde (a highly carcinogenicmaterial) that was used in manufac-turing insulation in the past.

Now, what I mean by “need toknow” is not necessarily knowingall the answers to all the technicaldetails, but knowing about thepotential problems and how to getthe answers to customers’ ques-tions. They can always turn to anoutside consultant for help.

Q. Can you outline environ-mental issues of concern for agentswho specialize in commercial prop-erties?

By Avi Rosen

Environmental issues you need to know

A. All the issues outlinedabove may well be relevant tocommercial properties. Whetherthe potential buyer can pay cashfor the deal or finance the purchasethrough a third party, the sophisti-cated buyer will most likely wantto conduct a Due Diligence Study(otherwise known as Phase I inves-tigation, All Appropriate Inquiryor ASTM E 1527) and dependingon the result of Phase I, a Phase IImay be desired. (Phase II mayinvolve sampling in areas of con-cern on the property that havebeen identified in Phase I, such asnear the location of a heating oiltank).

The services of a competentenvironmental consultant may berequired.

A good real estate agent shouldbe able to identify, for example, thepresence of mercury- containinglight fixtures and possibly evenPCB containing-transformers. Ifthe agent is not sure, again, theadvice of a consultant should besought.

I can share with you a fewexamples of how our firm hashelped clients with some environ-mental issues. In one case, a lawyerowned a commercial condomini-um where most tenants on sitewere offices. One unit becameavailable and a new potential ten-ant (coming through a real estateagent) was going to set up a shopproviding a polyurethane-basedproduct that required the use of atleast one hazardous chemical onsite. To do that, a variance wasrequired, which the tenant appliedfor from the local planning board.The condominium owner realizedhe needed an expert opinion onthe risks involved as a result of stor-ing this chemical in the building.After an investigation of theprocess and the unit in which thebusiness was going to be set up, weprovided the owner with a riskassessment that convinced theplanning board to vote againstapproving the deal.

In another case, a buyer waslooking for a property to set up aday care centre in New Jersey.After an extensive search, he iden-tified an attractive deal in a shop-ping mall, conveniently located

with good financing terms, andhe was ready to sign on the deal.Now, in the state of New Jersey,day care centres must be licensedand therefore a due diligencestudy is mandatory. Our consult-ing firm was hired to perform thestudy. In addition to looking atthe site itself, we looked at adja-cent units and we noticed thatthe day care centre was going tobe very close to a dry cleaningoperation that used per-chloroethylene – a carcinogenicsolvent that is very volatile – asthe dry cleaning solvent. Fromour experience there was a highlikelihood of vapour intrusioninto the day care centre unit dueto the construction of theplenum on the premises.

We advised the buyer of therisk he was taking and the poten-tial liability he may be facing, notto mention the impact on theinsurance he would have to pur-chase.

Q. Can you tell us about someother issues that may be unique toindustrial properties?

A. Generally speaking, theseare the most complex type ofproperties any real estate agent islikely to face. So, I must add thatin addition to the issues andexamples already discussed, athorough understanding of theindustrial activities that havetaken place in the past (such asin the case of Brownfield proper-ties) on the site or are currentlytaking place, is required. In thiscase it is always recommended tohire the services of an environ-mental consulting firm who canalso advise on site remediation,should it be necessary.

Q. One final question: whatcan you tell us about green build-ings and to what extent does thereal estate agent need to knowabout that?

A. Again, knowledge of greenbuildings or sustainable buildings isextremely beneficial. Nowadayseverybody hears the buzzword“green buildings” just like you hearabout “green chemistry”, “greenenergy” and all other greens.

So what can be defined as

green or sustainable buildings?These are buildings that save ener-gy via a number of ways. Theyhave to be well insulated, andcould provide esthetic appeal atthe same time. For example, if amajor part of the exterior walls isglass, the glass should have a spe-cially glazed surface so as to repelheat in the summer but allow heatto be retained inside during thewinter. There are hand-helddevices that can detect infraredradiation and thereby measureheat leakage (energy losses) frombuildings. These instruments areuseful in conducting an energyaudit of a building. If a building isequipped with solar panels it cangenerate its own electricity and in

some cases also heat.The way the building is main-

tained, including cleaning, dispos-ing of waste and protecting againstpests is also an important part ofconsidering whether a building isgreen or not.

Zvi Blank, Ph.D., CHMM, hasa degree in chemical engineering andbusiness management, and is a sea-soned veteran of environmental issuesand management of hazardous mate-rials. He has been a consultant, train-er, and expert witness for over 35years. www.calilabs.com; phone(973) 335-2254.

Avi Rosen is a 40-year veteran inour industry and has written manybooks, articles and conducted manyseminars. He currently manages aCentury 21 office in Toronto. He isalso back at university, studying busi-ness administration and marketingand economics. Phone (416) 229-6400. REM

H

‘One of Canada’s greenest homes’ opens

demonstration house billed as “one of Canada’s greenesthomes” was unveiled recently in Vaughan, Ont.

The Archetype Sustainable House consists of two semi-detached units, with one unit showcasing environmentally sensitivemethods of building, and the other featuring the future of “buildinggreen”. The units will serve as an education facility for trades andbuilders. More than 150,000 students and members of the general pub-lic are also projected to visit the house annually.

Energy andwater conservationtechnologies, aswell as materialsourcing and con-struction processeswill be addressed.Each home is ratedunder a variety ofnew home labelingsystems includingE n e r g y S t a r ,G r e e n H o u s e ,LEED for Homesand R-2000 labels.

“We’re choosingnewer, innovativeand experimentaltechnologies to helpensure a greenerfuture,” says LeithMoore, chair of theBuilding Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). “Thiscollaboration will forge the future of sustainable, livable, and affordablecommunities in the GTA and across Ontario. There are great gains tobe made through a short-term investment in sustainable housing, as wellas government programs for retrofit that GTA residents need to be edu-cated about.” REM

At the official opening of the Archetype Home,from left: Leith Moore, chair, BILD; GeorgeSmitherman, Ontario deputy premier and minis-ter for energy and infrastructure; Alex Waters,house project manager, Toronto and RegionConservation Authority (TRCA); LarryBrydon, Reliance Home Comfort and GreenCommittee chair with BILD; and Brian Denney,chief administrative officer, TRCA.

A

44 REM JUNE 2009

What’s

New

What’s

NewUtopria adopts freemarketing model

Utopria is offering a free inter-active media platform for salesreps and brokers. The companylaunched the free platform inApril and has already seen posi-tive results, it says.

“The economy is makingthings difficult, especially southof the border,” says MartyLachance, president of Utopria.“Technology and innovation isthe key right now.”

Utopria says it’s the first com-pany in North America to offer afree marketing platform thatincludes audio/video and proper-ty information from the curb andonline. Also included is Utopria’sIVR 2.0 platform, which offers atoll-free hotline from the curb.The service can be linked direct-ly to Realtor.ca or any of the salesrep’s websites.

In February, Utopria launchedthe Prestige Business Directory.This allows sales reps and brokersto invite their preferred vendors(lenders, inspectors) to partici-pate in their online listings andwebsites. It provides a voice totheir partners as each business isable to use the IVR platform toexplain the benefits of their busi-ness using online audio.

“We’re still offering a paidmembership model for those salesreps who are heavy listers, but wewanted to provide these tools toothers who are looking to addinnovative technology to theirportfolio. They are now able tocompete on a more level-playingfield,” says Lachance.

To register for interactivemedia: http://register.utopria.com

Protect PDFs withoutrequiring plug-ins

Vitrium Systems inVancouver recently releasedProtectedpdf Small BusinessEdition, a web-based applicationthat allows content providers ofbooks, magazines, white papers,reports, data sheets and otherpublications to define and modifyreader access rights to their con-tent. Vitrium says it is now theonly company offering PDF pro-tection that does not requirereaders to use third-party softwareto view files.

“Whether users want to limitthe number of computers a PDF

can be viewed on, disable print-ing or set permissions for a multi-tude of other items, Protectedpdfmakes it quick, easy and econom-ical to protect, track and knowwho is reading your PDFs,” thecompany says in a news release.The service is accessed via theInternet and requires no softwareinstallations or downloads. “Userssimply login to the Protectedpdfwebsite, upload their PDFs,choose protection options anddownload the protected PDF fordistribution. The PDF may beemailed as an attachment, postedto a web site, burned onto aCD/DVD or saved to a flash/USBdrive for distribution as you nor-mally would do.”

For a free trial, visit www.pro-tectedpdf.com.

Book can becustomized foragents’ clients

Arizona-based Dolyttle &Seamore Publishers havereleased a book that real estateagents customize to suit theirneeds and give to potentialclients.

Titled (Your Name) Guide toSelling Your Home: How to Get theMost Money for Your House,Condo or Co-op in Any Market,the book turns agents intoinstant experts, generates morelistings and helps them sellhomes faster by differentiatingthem from the competition, the

company says.“Real estate agents have a lot

of expertise and many of themhave been threatening to write abook for years,” says Mark Young,Dolyttle & Seamore’s president.“Now, they don’t have to.”

The idea for the Guide toSelling Your Home came aboutwhen Young was handling mar-

keting for a local real estate agentand the two of them were look-ing for ways to make the smallagency stand out from the com-petition. The agent mentionedthat he had enough informationto fill a book, but lacked the timeto make it a reality.

Young suggested that theywork on the book together—andoffer it to other (non-competing)agents to make it cost effective.The two began work on the book

early last year. “It was harderthan we thought,” said Young.“We realized that the way realestate was sold differed in everystate, and so we contacted agentseverywhere so the book could beused nationally.

“Because there are thousandsof books on real estate, oursneeded to be different. We setourselves apart from the competi-tion by making it customizable.Print-on-demand technology hasadvanced to the point that it’snow possible to personalize thebook for every agent withoutbreaking the bank. This meansagents can make changes to suittheir circumstances, town orexpertise.

“As well as putting theirname and company on the cover,a (sales rep) can write a personalintroduction, add or delete chap-ters, and modify any section tomeet their needs. They can evenget their partners (mortgage bro-kers, home inspectors) to sponsorthe book to reduce costs.”

The book is divided into 15chapters including: preparing ahome for sale, mistakes, staging,marketing, holding an openhouse, negotiating an offer andclosing the deal. There’s a bonuschapter on selling a home in arecession.

Depending on the quantity,agents can purchase the book foras little as $3 each and in quanti-ties as low as 25.

For information: (212) 496-8771; www.dolyttle.com REM

The customized Guide to SellingYour Home

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46 REM JUNE 2009

s the sluggish U.S. econo-my continues to lag, sodoes the rise in housing

options, with more affordableprices and historically low mort-gage interest rates. In the luxurysecond-home market, at resortcommunities along the Gulf ofMexico beaches in northwestFlorida, buyers can now purchase a1,432 square-foot, three-bedroom,two-bath cottage-style home for$339,000 (US). It’s atSummerCamp Beach, a 762-acrecoastal vacation retreat 46 milessouth of Tallahassee, set along fourmiles of Gulf of Mexico shoreline,woodlands, tidal marshes and con-servation land.

The property’s first modelbeach cottage home offers unob-structed Gulf views 130 feet awayand features such as a wood-burn-ing fireplace, pinewood floors,laundry facilities, modern kitchenwith granite countertops, dish-washer and microwave oven, andbathrooms with walk-in showersand bench seats. A total of 499single-family home sites areplanned for SummerCamp Beach,located on either Gulf front, Gulfview or wooded lots surrounded bytall pine trees. Home sites begin at$99,900. House designs usuallyreflect “Old Florida” architecture,featuring wide verandas and sleep-ing porches.

Further west in Port St. Joe is

Prices dropping for U.S.second homesA WindMark Beach, a new 2,020-

acre property, spanning nearly fourmiles of white sand beach alongthe Gulf of Mexico. The propertyis now offering home sites pricedfrom $99,900, as well as four newmodel three- and four-bedroomhomes, steps from the beach, withup to 2,838 square feet of livingspace, priced from $796,000 to$880,000, and designed by some ofthe nation’s top architects.

Homes have open floor plansthat invite social interaction fromthe kitchen, dining and livingspaces, and large screened frontand back porches offering a seclud-ed comfortable space for outdoorliving.

One of the newest neighbor-hoods at WaterColor, a 499-acreSouthern coastal resort and resi-dential community, isSummersweet Place, a collectionof 98 home sites, each with lessthan a one-quarter acre and pricedfrom the low $100,000 range.Summersweet Place is part of theCrossing District, which alsoincludes the new neighborhood ofTurtle Ridge, with three-bedroomtwo-storey, single-family cottage-style homes priced from $415,000.Elsewhere on the property, homesites range from $96,000 to $1.5million and houses range from$575,000 to $4.6 million for a six-bedroom, 7.5-bathroom Floridacottage-style mansion, complete

with a separate carriage house,two-car garage, garden room,library room, billiard room and atower for both Gulf and lake views.

WaterColor, which sits directlyon the Gulf of Mexico along famedScenic Highway 30A, will include1,140 residences at full build-out.Nearly half the property is devoted

to open space and preservationareas with shared communityparks, conservation areas andrecreational amenities.

A few miles away fromWaterColor is The Town ofWaterSound, which includesWaterSound, with 1,400 acres andhome sites priced from $59,000and houses priced from $459,000;WaterSound West Beach, with 62acres, home sites priced from$159,000 and houses from$699,000; and the flagship proper-ty, WaterSound Beach, with 256acres set on a mile of white sandbeach. Homes there are pricedfrom $865,000 to $5.95 million;home sites begin at $275,000. Allthree communities are an architec-tural response to the early mar-itime villages of Nantucket – amerging of distinctive, coastalshingle homes with Floridian ver-nacular building styles.

For information: www.joe.com.REM

The model beach cottage home at SummerCamp Beach, along the Gulf ofMexico beaches.

The property’sfirst model

beach cottage

home offers unobstructedGulf views130 feet

away

48 REM JUNE 2009

ight At Home Realty inToronto, which has morethan 1,200 salespeople,

recently launched a mission tocontribute to the cost of building ahome for Habitat For Humanity.

The company made a $10,000corporate donation and embarkedon a salesperson supported pro-gram, the Right At Home Realty/Habitat For Humanity fund. Thevoluntary program has receivedoverwhelming support from thesalespeople, the company says.

“We are pleased to be involvedwith Habitat For Humanity,” saysArthur Bartram, president of RightAt Home Realty. “As a companywhose industry revolves aroundhomes, we support the importantwork this organization has done inthe past and look forward to beingan important contributor to build-ing homes in the future.”

■ ■ ■

A charity car wash and barbe-cue was recently held by Re/MaxKelowna’s Real Estate brokers andsales reps in support of Team CorryRe/Max Kelowna’s entry in The2009 Ride to Conquer Cancer. It’sa cycling fundraiser to raise moneyfor research and enhancements topatient care at the B.C. CancerAgency. Riders will embark on atwo-day ride starting in Vancouverand continuing to Seattle, Wash.

Good WorksGood WorksThe ride begins June 19.

Cliff Shillington, broker/ownerof Re/Max Kelowna, says, “I amthrilled to be leading our group ofriders in this very worthwhileevent. Cancer has touched ourRe/Max Kelowna family and wefeel compelled to get involved bycreating awareness and raisingmuch needed funds to beat thisdevastating disease. Our office willbe hosting a series of fundraisersprior to the ride in support of ourentrants.”

■ ■ ■

The 100-plus sales reps atSutton Group - Future Realty inNewmarket, Ont. recently raised$10,000 for the Alzheimer SocietyYork Region, which plans to usethe contribution towards develop-ing a new website. The website willoffer pertinent information forthose affected by the disease andpromote the society’s resourcesincluding educational programs,support group programs, and a day-care program for those sufferingfrom Alzheimer’s, offering supportand providing the primary caregiv-er with respite.

“So many people in the officehave been touched by this disease,and we felt by choosing to con-tribute to this charity we would

R

Continued on page 50

Launching the Right At Home/Habitat for Humanityfund, from left: Howard Drukarsh, vice-president andbroker of record; Eva Liu, broker/manager; Anissa Ho,broker/manager; and Arthur Bartram, president/brokerof Right At Home.

The staff at Sutton Group – Future Realty poseswith the $10,000 cheque for the Alzheimer SocietyYork Region.

Will Hickey, a sales rep with Re/Max Accord inEdmonton, presents Carolyn McKenzie, corpo-rate giving manager, Stollery Children’sHospital Foundation, with a cheque for$440,000. The funds were raised by Re/Maxagents in 2008.

Ken Cowie (left) and PaulBelhumeur

At the Easter Seals cheque presentation to repairdamages to a summer camp by vandals, from left:Bill Hubbard, owner, Century 21 ExecutivesRealty; sales rep Shelinda Morin; JenniferIngham, Easter Seals representative; NirmBlatchford, donor development manager; and RealRousseau, managing broker.

Environmentally friendly volunteers from Royal LePagePerformance Realty in Cornwall, Ont. help clean up their cityevery year.

Jim Knowles (top row, second from right) withstudents and instructors from the CanadianAssociation for Disabled Skiing.

Brian McRobert gift cards help out Hearth Place, alocal cancer support centre.

Members of the Durham Region Association of Realtorsrecently came out and showed their pride in the communityby participating in the Communities with Brooms event tohelp clean up Oshawa’s downtown.

50 REM JUNE 2009

MANAGER WANTED

We are seeking a highly motivated individualfor the position of Broker of Record for a well established independent office.

Ideal candidates should possess the followingcharacteristics:

* Candidate must have initiative and personal discipline.* Candidate must have strong leadership qualities.* Candidate must have excellent writing skills.* Candidate must be driven to train, mentor and assist others in reaching their goals.* Candidate must have a minimum of 5 years successful real estate sales experience.

Compensation includes base salary and bonus.

Only qualified candidates will be contacted for interviews.

Contact us today at: [email protected]

Broker of Record - Ottawa, Ontario

make an impact on a diverse rangeof people,” says Michelle Haick,who was on the company’s charitycommittee.

■ ■ ■

Re/Max sales associates inEdmonton banded together tobecome a “Miracle City” inWestern Canada. To earn thistitle, 100 per cent of the sales reps,565 in total, pledged a donation onbehalf of each property bought andsold to the Children’s MiracleNetwork and its affiliated hospital,the Stollery Children’s HospitalFoundation.

In addition to each rep con-tributing a portion of their incometo the cause, broker/owners mustencourage new and existing agentsto participate in the program.Office administrators must takepart in training sessions to reportdonations and liaise between theCMN and each office.

Recently the StolleryChildren’s Hospital Foundationhosted a “thank you” luncheon formore than 160 Re/Max agents.

■ ■ ■

Last year Jim Knowles ofRe/Max Real Estate Kamloops inKamloops B.C. was certified as aCanadian Association for DisabledSkiing instructor, and he spent twodays a week at Sun Peaks helpingmobility challenged kids learn totackle the slopes. At a Canadiannational event held at Sun Peaks,teams from all over the world prac-ticed for the upcoming 2010Paralympics.

Recently the local televisionstation interviewed one ofKnowles’ students, 18-year-oldKayla who has spina bifida.

“What brought home to all ofus standing listening to the inter-view how lucky we all are, wereKayla’s inspiring words: ‘Life islike a puzzle. It’s hard but justkeep trying, and in the end, youwill find the piece that’s missing.’We had tears freezing to our faces,and we will never forget thosewords and how inspiring thisyoung lady is to us, and howinspiring she will be to many oth-ers in the future,” says Knowles.

■ ■ ■

Oshawa, Ont. sales rep BrianMcRobert recently launched aCommission for the Cure cam-

paign to support Hearth PlaceCancer Support Centre.

Commission for the Cure is aone-year campaign designed todonate $1,000 per sale to HearthPlace. A McRobert client, usingone of his campaign gift cards forhis services to buy and/or sell theirproperty, will see $500 from thesale and $500 from a purchase fromMcRobert’s earned commissioncreate the $1,000 donation. Acharitable tax receipt is also issued.McRobert is a sales representativewith Coldwell Banker RMR RealEstate.

Hearth Place provides commu-nity support for patients and theirfamilies dealing with cancerthrough peer support, information,a resource centre, wellness pro-grams and an ongoing lecture anddiscussion series. The facility doesnot receive ongoing governmentfunding and relies on corporatesponsorships, public donations andcommunity fundraising events tohelp deliver its services.

■ ■ ■

Recently members from SuttonGroup - West Coast Realty inWhite Rock, B.C. pedaled throughtheir local neighbourhood on abicycle built for 30. The Big Bikeevent’s goal is to raise awarenessand fundraise for the Heart &Stroke Foundation. The Suttonoffice takes part in the event eachyear, organized by office adminis-trators Barb Maguire and MariaPerry-Whittingham. This yearthey recruited Deana Legrier, a fel-low office administrator, and salesreps Lynn Brice Polegato and PattiCowan, to help plan the event.

■ ■ ■

Re/Max of Western Canada ishelping spread the word on theneed for organ donors. Re/Maxprovides a link from its website,www.remax-western.ca, to theprovincial transplant programs fororgan donation registration.

“It is our hope that our com-mitment to raising awarenessabout the shortage of organ donorswill encourage the public to regis-ter their decision or sign a donorcard,” says Elton Ash, regionalexecutive vice-president, Re/Maxof Western Canada.

The company becameinvolved with organ donor aware-ness in 2004 because of the gift oflife that one Re/Max agent gave toanother. Paul Belhumeur ofRe/Max 2000 Realty Guildford in

Surrey, B.C. suffered with polycys-tic kidney disease for 11 years,when he was told by his nephrolo-gists that he would need a new kid-ney. The doctors advised thatBelhumeur had a much betterchance of finding his own livedonor than waiting on the seven-year-long organ donor list. Hestarted an email campaign to hisfriends, family and other contactsto plant the seed that he wouldsoon need a kidney transplant.

Without telling friends or fam-ily, Ken Cowie of the same office,who was Belhumeur’s colleague formore than 20 years, decided to gettested for the kidney donation.After six months of thorough test-ing and screening, Cowie wasinformed that he was indeed amatch. He waited untilBelhumeur’s birthday to tell himthe news. Five years later,Belhumeur has made a full recov-ery and is in great health, and themen continue to work together atRe/Max 2000 Realty Guildford.

■ ■ ■

The Cornwall, Ont. streets arelooking greener these days thanksto the work of some environmen-tally friendly volunteers. RoyalLePage Performance Realtyrecently held its annual Earth Dayevent. For the last four years thecompany has planted trees orpicked up litter. Organizer andsales rep Josiane Duguay says, “Theover 300 trees planted so far makesit easier for the world to breathe alittle bit easier.”

■ ■ ■

A break-in and vandalism ofthe Easter Seals camp in Winfield,B.C. shocked the community andleft citizens shaking their heads atthe heartless crime. The staff ofCentury 21 Executives Realty in

Vernon wasted no time after thenews spread and quickly heededthe call for help.

In -18 C temperatures and mid-winter conditions, sales reps fromthe company donned mitts, parkasand aprons to host a fundraisingbarbecue. Over $1,500 was raisedto replace the goods and specialequipment that was stolen fromthe summer camp for disabled chil-dren. The 80-person real estateoffice matched the funds raisedduring the cookout and presenteda $3,000 cheque to Easter Seals.

“We had people pulling over atthe stop lights and holding up traf-fic while they jumped out and gaveus money,” says Bill Hubbard, bro-ker/owner of Century 21Executives Realty. “We wereappalled at this crime and everyonein our office wanted to be proactiveand do something to help. We areso pleased about the support thatthe community has shown.”

■ ■ ■

Twenty-four students fromWestern Canada have won aRe/Max 2009 Quest for Excellencebursary, valued at $500 each, to bepresented during their school com-mencement ceremonies.

The annual Re/Max Quest forExcellence program encouragesgraduating students from BritishColumbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan,Manitoba, Northwest and YukonTerritories to write an essay basedon their personal experience inone of six topics – leadership,sports, technology or trades, per-forming arts, fine arts and commu-nity service.

“More than 1,500 entries werereceived from students acrossWestern Canada,” says MarieSheppy, senior co-ordinator, cor-porate affairs, Re/Max of WesternCanada. REM

Good WorksContinued from page 48

Jim and Maureen Farquharson, sales reps from the Fergus, Ont. officeof Re/Max Real Estate Centre, sponsored the Curl for the Cure eventat the Fergus Curling Club recently. The event raised $26,390 for theCancer Unit at Groves Memorial Community Hospital in Fergus.

Regina’s North Central Family Centre (NCFC) is a non-profit charitable organization that delivers over 45 struc-tured programs to Regina’s inner city children, youth,families and seniors. Their programsand services are designed to promotepositive and healthy changes in theRegina community and, through thegenerosity of local REALTORS®, theNCFC now has more funding for avariety of these programs.

2005 marked the start of a three-yearpartnership between the Association of Regina REAL-TORS® and the NCFC’s Youth Empowerment Program.Last July, the ARR presented the Youth EmpowermentProgram with $4,000 – a portion of which came from the

ARR’s 2008 golf tournament. Over the past three-years,the Association has provided the NCFC with over$10,000 in assistance.

“Regina’s REALTORS® are verypleased to continue this partner-ship with the NCFC. It’s a grassroot organization that is on theground everyday helping theyouth of north central Regina”,said Shawn Fay, 2008 Presidentof the Association of Regina

REALTORS® Inc. “This year’s assistance will providenorth central teenagers with work experience opportuni-ties that otherwise may not be there.”

Last June approximately 50 golfers hit the links at theCarman Creek Golf Course in support of theFredericton Real Estate Boards fifthannual charity golf tournament.Proceeds went to support SpecialOlympics New Brunswick.

In 2003 the Fredericton Real EstateBoard chose the Special Olympics asa charity they were interested in sup-porting. Over the past five years, theFredericton Board has raised over$31,000 for Special Olympics New Brunswick – with$5,245 of it coming at this past tournament. In 2008the Special Olympics developed a tour of nine golftournaments throughout the province, with the kickofftournament organized by REALTORS®.

Contacting the local business community for teamprizes, silent auction items and donations, organizing

tee-off times and ‘hole sponsors’and assembling volunteers forthe barbecue all needed to bedone to help make the tourna-ment successful. Major sponsorssuch as a local Ford dealer pro-vided a car for a hole in one con-test and Wilson Insurance pro-vided a twenty thousand dollarcash prize for a hole in one.

Shawn McDonald – a mortgage lender withScotiabank - donated the food and staffed the bar-beque during the entire tournament. There were manyother events including a putting contest, a fifty-fiftydraw and a silent auction.

The Canadian REALTORS Care® Foundationreports that between January 1st, 2008 and May 1st2009, REALTORS® across Canada raised at least$8,171,826 through a variety of community and vol-unteer efforts. The amount is compiled based oninformation provided by real estate Boards andAssociations, franchises and other third parties inthe stated period.

This is the first time the national Foundation hasreported on the collective efforts of REALTORS®.Boards, Associations and members have beenencouraged to provide details of fund raising andcommunity initiatives, so the national Foundationcan both promote the events and portray the valueof the good works REALTORS® do.

“The Canadian Real Estate Association and theCanadian REALTORS Care® Foundation recognizethe inherent value that REALTORS® bring to theircommunities” says the Chair of the Canadian REAL-TORS® Care Foundation, Tom Bosley. “Our goal isto help members to continue engaging in, and grow-ing, community efforts, and to bring their story to abroader audience.”

The value of the community involvement was gener-ated from more than 100 reports providing details onREALTORS Care® events since the nationalFoundation was launched. “We’re obviously hopingfor more, and would encourage anyone involved inplanning or participating in a community or fundrais-ing event to let us know” the Foundation Chair adds.

The reporting form is available on the REALTORSCare® page of www.realtorlink.ca.

“The Foundation is also there to help” Chair TomBosley adds. “Many individuals or organizationsmay not have the resources or the experience topromote their activities, and may not have charita-ble status in order to provide tax receipts for theircontributions, or the contribution of partners.”Support material available from the Foundationincludes posters, brochures explaining the REAL-TORS Care® program, and certificates recognizingthe efforts of supporters, sponsors, or participants.

REALTORS® across Canada continue to volunteermore than Canadians in general. The latest CREAmembership survey shows that 66 per cent of mem-bers reported volunteering in their community in2008, nearly double the national average reportedby Volunteer Canada. There are individual initia-tives, local broker office projects, and Board andAssociation efforts included in the “volunteer mix”.

These are just some of the events REALTOR® vol-unteers have been involved in because of their carefor their community.

REALTORS® raise $8 million in community work

News and Views from The Canadian Real Estate Association you can contact us at [email protected]

Fredericton REALTORS® hit the links for Special Olympics

Special guests for PAC Days 2009

Both Prime Minister Harper and FinanceMinister Jim Flaherty were guests at PAC Days2009, held April 26-28 in Ottawa. The two spe-cial guests also met with PAC Reps, includingthe members of CREA’s Board of Directors, pic-tured here. There was also a record turnout forthe PAC Reception on Parliament Hill duringPAC Days, where guests included NDP LeaderJack Layton, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff,Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and The Hon.Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources andSkills Development. You can see more photosfrom PAC Days on REALTOR Link®.

REALTORS® had the opportunity to thank thePrime Minister and the Finance Minister foraction taken in Budget 2009 to stimulate thehousing sector; and, in particular, for answeringthe call to restore the purchasing power of theHome Buyers’ Plan. Most report forms filed byPAC Reps after meeting MPs indicate continuedinterest in our Reinvestment (capital gainsrollover) proposal, and for in our proposals tonow index the Home Buyers’ Plan RRSP with-drawal limit and to extend the Home Buyers’Plan to all home buyers for a two year period,rather than restricting it to first time buyers only.

Regina REALTORS® help inner-city youth

CREA_REM_June09:Layout 1 5/20/2009 4:06 PM Page 1

ome people have askedabout the legal differ-ences between someone

who is classified as an employeecompared to an individual who isconsidered to be an independentcontractor.

For employers and employees,there are tax-saving opportunitiesand other advantages if you dealwith each other as independentcontractors. A business that buysservices from independent con-tractors – rather than hiringemployees to produce the sameresults – can avoid a host ofemployment law obligations suchas vacation pay, termination orlay-off notices. As well, pay equityand employment equity require-ments may be reduced or elimi-nated.

Perhaps even more importantis avoiding employer costs such asworkers’ compensation, unem-ployment insurance, CanadaPension Plan and provincialhealth taxes – all levied on thepayroll. These hidden taxes havegrown over the years to become aheavy burden for business.Employers have to deductemployee contributions to allthese programs and withholdincome tax from employees’salaries, wages, commissions andeven non-cash benefits, and remitall these funds to the government.

As many employers havelearned from experience, you canbe severely penalized if you makea simple mistake in the paper-work, or if you’re a day late in

52 REM JUNE 2009

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“All Policies Are Not Created Equal - Expect The Unexpected”

“All Policies Are Not Created Equal - Expect The Unexpected”

Independent contracting pays offBy Martin K.I. Rumack

remitting funds. The tax authori-ties accept no excuses.

If you buy services from anindependent contractor, younegotiate the terms of the dealwithout a lot of laws and regula-tions. You pay the supplier’sinvoice without any added payrolllevies and with no need to with-hold part of the payment for taxes.GST may be added to the suppli-er’s invoice, but it can likely berecovered as an input credit fromthe GST collected on your owntaxable sales.

Employers are not the onlybeneficiaries. Suppliers who oper-ate as independent contractorscan avoid payroll deductions forthings like unemployment insur-ance and income tax.Independent contractors alsohave more flexible and conve-nient work hours, and a muchgreater ability to deduct the costsof earning an income from theirown tax payable.

Under current tax laws, youare allowed almost no deductionsfor expenses incurred to earnemployment income. But the lawpermits almost any reasonableexpenses incurred to earn businessincome. As an independent con-tractor, you are earning businessincome.

For example, employees can-not deduct the cost of commutingfrom home to an employer’s placeof business. But an independentbusiness person operating fromhome can deduct travel expensesto a customer’s premises to pro-

vide services there.The cost of an office or work-

shop at home is seldom, if ever,deductible from income. Butthere are much fewer restrictionsif you use your home office to earnbusiness income.

In today’s economy, moreemployers are providing flexiblework hours and letting employeeswork at home using their owncomputers and other tools of thetrade. So, the opportunities forestablishing independent contrac-tor relationships are growing.

Revenue Canada, not surpris-ingly, is always on the lookout forpeople claiming they are indepen-dent contractors when they reallyare employees. So, understandingthe often fine legal distinctionbetween the two is critical if youhope to benefit tax-wise.

In each particular case, theactual relationship between twoparties – is it an employment or acontracting arrangement? – is aquestion of law. If necessary, youshould get legal advice in drawingup agreements and planningfuture dealings. But RevenueCanada does have some operatingguidelines on this matter.

When are you an employer oremployee and when are you anindependent contractor? In eachcase, this must be decided accord-ing to employment law. When indoubt, consult a lawyer.

Here are some general rulesyou can use to decide whether youfall within or outside an employ-ment relationship. BecauseRevenue Canada follows guide-lines of this kind in reviewingmaterial you submit, you willprobably not be scrutinized asclosely if you follow them.

For the worker, employmentusually is characterized by closecontrol and supervision; for theemployer, it means assuming allrisk and obligations to third par-ties and providing a workplaceand tools of the trade.

Generally an employer tells anemployee what to do and how todo it, and has the right to overseethe work as it is carried out.

Independent contractors areresponsible to customers for

results, but they can decide howthose results will be delivered.They make operating decisions asthe work progresses.

Contractors usually supplytheir own tools, equipment andvehicles, and are not required towork specific hours. The job doesnot have to be done by a specificperson or method so long as thefinished product is satisfactoryand delivered on time.

It may be helpful to have awritten agreement between theparties stating they do not intendto be employer and employee, but

this will not be conclusive.Actions are more important thanwords in determining the truerelationship.

Ordinarily, a supplier of ser-vices does not participate in anyemployee benefit plans, such asgroup insurance coverage. Heshould not act like an employee orbe treated like an employee. Anindependent supplier of servicesshould have his own stationery orinvoice forms, and render bills oraccounts for services on a timelybasis before payment is made.Customers’ payments should beinitiated by these bills or invoicesand should not be programmed tooccur automatically.

Contractors also should havetheir own business address andtelephone number. It can be thesame as their home if that’s wherethey operate from, but if so, itshould be used in advertising orprovided to business contacts. Anindependent contractor shouldnot use the address or telephonenumber of a major customer forhis or her own business.

Although not absolutely nec-

essary, an independent contractorshould have more than one cus-tomer so that there is no implica-tion that he or she is employed bya single customer.

As a minimum, an indepen-dent contractor should not be pre-vented from working for morethan one customer. A YellowPages listing or other type ofadvertising is evidence of solicit-ing additional customers.

Another characteristic of anindependent contractor relation-ship is assuming risks or obliga-tions for minimum performance,

rather than just making someeffort or awaiting the passage oftime.

Insurance coverage for loss ordamage to property of third par-ties, or errors and omissions liabil-ity, may be helpful in determiningan independent contractor’s trueposition.

Some of these factors may bemore important than others inyour case: it’s not necessary to beon side on all points. But the moreof these conditions you fulfill, thebetter. This will help avoid uncer-tainty that may drag you into dis-agreements with the tax authori-ties.

If you have any further ques-tions please feel free to contact medirectly.

Martin K. I. Rumack was calledto the bar in March 1973, and established his own practice in 1978.His areas of practice include realestate, corporate and commerciallaw, wills, powers of attorney andestates, some civil litigation and family law. (416) 961-3441;www.martinrumack.com REM

Actions are more importantthan words in determining

the true relationship.

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54 REM JUNE 2009

Re/Max honours topOntario/Atlanticsales professionals

Re/Max recently recognized itstop-performing sales professionalsfor 2008 in Ontario and AtlanticCanada at separate award func-tions held in Toronto and Halifax.

More than 300 sales reps,guests, and industry members fromAtlantic Canada attended theRe/Max Awards Gala in Halifaxon April 4. An intimate luncheonwas held for specialty award win-ners in Toronto on April 9.

Vesna Kolenc of Re/MaxExcellence in Woodbridge washonoured as 2008’s TopResidential Individual in Canadaand ranked 10th worldwide. PamDeCourcey of Re/MaxProfessionals Saint John in SaintJohn, N.B. ranked number one inAtlantic Canada for the 14th con-secutive year. DeCourcey ranked52nd nationwide. Andy Pristol ofRe/Max Haliburton Highlands inHaliburton was named as the Top Industrial CommercialInvestment (ICI) sales rep inCanada in 2008.

Christopher Invidiata and histeam at Re/Max Aboutowne inOakville received the TopResidential Team Award inCanada for the sixth year. Theteam also ranked fourth world-wide. David Norris of Re/MaxUnited in Mount Pearl, Nfld.,earned the Top Residential TeamAward in Atlantic Canada. Norrisis ranked 82nd nationwide.

Earning top individual awardsin the transaction category inOntario were: Maurice DeLaere,Re/Max Tri County, Tillsonburg,for population under 50,000; PeterHogeterp, Re/Max Del Mar inStoney Creek for population50,000 – 150,000; and Frank Leo,Re/Max West in Toronto for pop-ulation over 150,000. PamDeCourcey, Re/Max ProfessionalsSaint John, ranked top individualin the transaction category in

Atlantic Canada. Securing awardsfor Top Team in the transactioncategory were: Jean Boynton,Re/Max High Country inFlesherton for population under50,000; Dan Plowman, Re/MaxRouge River in Whitby for popu-lation between 50,000 and150,000; and Sam McDadi,Re/Max Performance inMississauga for population of150,000-plus. David Norris,Re/Max United, claimed firstplace for Team Transactions inAtlantic Canada.

Along with its top sales repre-sentatives, Re/Max Ontario-Atlantic Canada marked anotheryear of growth. The organizationexperienced a substantial netincrease of agents in 2008, earningrecognition as “Region of theYear” for the second consecutive

year from Re/Max International inFebruary 2009.

Re/Max broker/owners inOntario were also recognized forexcellence in leadership world-wide. Fostering strong and steadygrowth, Peter Degroot of Re/MaxTwin City in Kitchener, Waterloo,Brantford and Cambridge was rec-ognized for a net gain of 70 associ-ates worldwide. Co-broker/ownersDelio Oliveira and DavidMedeiros, of Re/Max Real EstateCentre earned internationalrecognition for the largest net gainin associates in the multi-officecategory for the Re/Max globalnetwork for the second consecu-tive year. Re/Max Real EstateCentre has close to 500 sales associates operating in 13 offices throughout Peel, Halton,Wellington, and Waterlooregions.

Re/Max Ontario-AtlanticCanada also acknowledgedMichael Perry of Re/MaxLakeshore in Cobourg and CorbyAdams, Corrie Holliday and MarkPauli of Re/Max Chay in Barrie forthe Largest Net Gain inAssociates – Small Market SingleOffice Operations.

Earlier in the year, Re/Max

recognized exceptional contribu-tions to Children’s MiracleNetwork. Re/Max Hallmark inToronto was honoured as the top-contributing company in Ontario.Re/Max Orillia was the top con-tributor in the small market cate-gory. In Atlantic Canada, the top contributors to bothChildren’s Miracle Network andthe Canadian Breast CancerFoundation – Atlantic Chapterwere the sales representatives ofRe/Max in St. John’s and MountPearl. Re/Max Nova in Halifaxand the Re/Max Group ofCompanies, Rural Newfoundlandand Labrador rounded out the topthree contributors to Children’sMiracle Network.

Re/Max First Realty inPickering earned recognition as

the Top Contributing office to the Canadian Breast CancerFoundation – Ontario Chapter.Re/Max Land Exchange was thetop contributor in the small mar-ket category. In Atlantic Canada,Re/Max Group Four Realty Ltd. inFredericton and Re/Max Nova inHalifax ranked second and thirdfor contributions to the CanadianBreast Cancer Foundation.

Dorothy Friesenreceives Awardof Excellence

The executive officer of theB.C. Northern Real Estate Board,Dorothy Friesen, has been award-ed the AEC Award of Excellencefor 2009. The presentation wasmade during the opening cere-

Walter Schneider, president and co-founder, Re/MaxOntario-Atlantic Canada (left) and Michael Polzler, execu-tive vice-president, Re/Max Ontario-Atlantic Canada, pre-sent Christopher Invidiata of Re/Max Aboutowne in Oakvillewith his top team award.

Walter Schneider (left) and Michael Polzler present the Top Individual award to Vesna Kolenc.

Joe Bosco receives his award fromCail Maclean, DRAR executiveofficer.

Phillip Mack (right) receives his awardfrom Earl Kotlar.

Paul Penner, president of theFVREB, accepts the 2009 EthicsAward from CREA president DaleRipplinger.

Dorothy Friesen receivesthe AEC Award ofExcellence from CREACEO Pierre Beauchamp.

The Re/Max Top Individual forAtlantic Canada, PamDeCourcey, receives her awardfrom Michael Polzler,

REM JUNE 2009 55

monies of CREA’s LeadershipConference in April.

“I am deeply honored by thisrecognition from my peers,”Friesen said in accepting theaward. “I also cannot accept thiswithout acknowledging those whohave won it before me. Their ded-ication to our industry and mem-bers is an inspiration.” She said itwas important the AEC Awardwas not a lifetime achievementaward. “There is so much more Iwant to do,” she told delegates at the CREA LeadershipConference. “I am nowhere closeto being done yet.”

Phillip Mack is ARRRealtor of the Year

The Association of ReginaRealtors (ARR) and CanadaMortgage and Housing Corp.(CMHC) have named PhillipMack of Re/Max Crown RealEstate as the 2008 Realtor of theYear. Dale Ripplinger, president ofCREA, made the presentation onbehalf of CMHC at the associa-tion’s 24th Annual MemberRecognition Evening.

“This award is intended to rec-ognize a Regina Realtor who hasmade an important contributionto the real estate industry andtheir community,” says EarlKotlar, manager of business development, Manitoba andSaskatchewan, CMHC. “PhillipMack’s involvement in manyindustry leadership roles and inthe community is definitely in thespirit of this award.”

FVREB winstwo national awards

CREA recently awarded itsnew Ethics Award to the FraserValley Real Estate Board(FVREB).

The Ethics Award recognizesoutstanding achievement in edu-cation, promotion and awarenessof ethical principles in the realestate industry.

Three weeks later, at CREA’sPolitical Action Committee(PAC) Days, the FVREB was therecipient of the Most InnovativePAC Program Award in recogni-tion of efforts in lobbying all lev-els of government to raise home-buyers’ awareness of the chal-lenges in determining whether aproperty was ever used as an ille-gal drug operation.

The FVREB hosted a forumlast fall, attended by over 100stakeholders involved in the issueof marijuana grow-ops and clan-destine drug labs and their impacton housing and communities. Theboard would like to see consistentmethods of reporting whether aproperty was an illegal drug opera-tion and consistent standards ofremediating them, it says.

Coldwell BankerPeter Benningerwins top awardAt the recent Coldwell BankerCanadian Awards & RecognitionGala in Toronto, Coldwell BankerPeter Benninger Realty was pre-sented with the Chairman’s CircleAward for 2008. This honour isawarded to Coldwell Banker com-panies whose sales volume placesthem in the top tier of the inter-national network. One of only 58Coldwell Banker companiesthroughout the world to receivethis acknowledgement, this is the10th time the brokerage hasearned this award.

Peter Kritz, broker and opera-tions manager for ColdwellBanker Peter Benninger Realty,says, “We are incredibly proud ofall of our wonderful sales represen-tatives, brokers and support stafffor such an outstanding year.”

The firm’s commercial divisionalso received top accolades,named the No. 1 commercialoffice in Canada with the highestgross commission from commer-cial transactions for the perfor-mance year.

Joe Bosco getsDRAR award

The Durham RegionAssociation of Realtors (DRAR)recently presented the 2008 W.Paul Ristow Founder’s Cup awardto Joe Bosco of Royal LePageFrank Real Estate, Oshawa. Boscowas 2008 DRAR commercialcouncil chair. Each year, the awardis given to a director or committeechair each year, whose commit-ment and service to the associa-tion was exemplary.

“I would like to thank othercommittee members throughoutthe years, the association, and alsothe late Walter Frank, founder ofRoyal LePage Frank Real Estate,who was my mentor when I beganworking in real estate,” said Bosco.

REM

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REM JUNE 2009 57

pon learning that thisissue was going to fall onthe 20th anniversary of

REM’s debut, I had to think aboutwhat to write to commemoratesuch a celebration. Then Ithought, if there’s one thing thathas changed immensely in the past20 years, it would be personal com-puting. Once a curious recreation-al interest, now it’s integral toeveryday business practices in thereal estate industry.

That said, not always smoothly. Lately I crave an Apple.

How to Become a BetterNegotiator, second editionBy Richard A. Luecke andJames G. PattersonAmacom Books$13.30 at Amazon.ca

This 98-page paperback liststhe common characteristicsshared by great negotiators andoutlines different tactics forhandling conflict, and when touse each one. It also includesways to counteract the tactics ofothers, and how to deal withhostile and overbearing oppo-nents.

The book has a series ofquizzes to help readers sharpentheir strengths and weaknessesat the negotiating table, as wellas a discussion of common mis-takes made during negotia-tions.

Realty BloggingBy Richard Nacht and PaulChaneyMcGraw-Hill $16.75 at Amazon.ca

This book was released in2006, which seems like a longtime ago when you’re talkingabout Internet developments.However, the advice it offers toreal estate professionals whowant to set up a blog is still validand updated at the author’s web-site, www.realtyblogging.com.You can also set up your ownfree blog via that site.

The book offers 10 strategicbenefits that blogs can provide,along with case studies of salesreps who are effectively usingblogs to increase their business.It also covers the benefits of

using Intranet blogs for commu-nications within your companyor real estate association.

Barron’s Real EstateHandbook, seventh editionBy Jack P. Friedman, Jack C.Harris and Barry A. DiskinBarron’s$31.67 at chaptersindigo.ca

At more than 400 pages, thistextbook offers an A to Z realestate glossary with short defini-tions of real estate terms, housestyles and parts and financingterms. It’s a U.S. publication, soyou’ll find a listing for Fannie Maebut none for Canada Mortgage

and Housing Corp. However,there is lots of information com-mon to both countries, from thelisting about urea formaldehydefoam insulation to the definitionof a FSBO. There are also assortedforms and worksheets.

Do Your Own Home StagingBy Tina ParkerSelf-Counsel Press$17.44 at chapters.indigo.ca

Aimed at consumers who aregetting their homes ready to putthem on the market, this bookcomes with a CD-ROM thatincludes before-and-after roomphotos. The book and the CD also

include a series of home improve-ment and staging checklists, pro-viding quick ideas to help anyproperty show better.

The book goes beyond stagingideas to provide practical advicefor home renovations, energy-sav-ing tips, good painting techniques,packing and moving tips, andeven how to hire professionalsincluding home inspectors andreal estate agents. There are tipsthroughout from professionalhome inspectors throughout theU.S. and Canada. REM

Note: Book prices and availabilitywere accurate at press time but maychange.

A FUNNY THINGHAPPENED

By Dan St. Yves

I crave an AppleConsidering my name isn’t Adam,consummating this desire shouldn’t end all thatunfavourably. Having been a PCuser for over a decade or more now,it’s easy to forget that I started mycomputing life in the Apple envi-ronment a few millennia ago. Iowned a cherished little desktopLC II, which offered a number ofprograms and games. While PCcomputers at that time offered“windows” and whacks of variedsoftware programs, Apple comput-ers simply offered practical pro-grams, which all worked seamlesslytogether. My flying toasters alonewere magnificent in their flawlessformations.

I had no intention of everswitching to a PC, even thougheveryone I knew would try to coaxme into what they considered theindustry-leading operating system.“We can almost see outside,through Windows”, many wouldboast. I held firm, embracing mytoasters.

During my tenure as a realestate agent, the board adopted anew MLS program that apparentlyran only on Windows. If I plannedon ever using the MLS system afterimplementation, I would have toswitch to a PC.

Surprisingly, the move was rel-atively painless. Not only was Ifinally able to purchase a few ofthose whacks of varied softwareprograms, Windows 95 was a fairlyuser-friendly operating system.Although I did take a bit of time toget up to speed, which was fast-tracked thanks in part to a cousinwho had many years of PC experi-ence. I’d thank him here, but I’mreluctant to make his head swell.Besides, after a month or six of pes-tering him with incessant (daily)computer questions, he enrolled ina voluntary witness relocation pro-gram and vanished. I was left tofend for myself.

Happy enough as a new PC-user, I eventually upgraded toWindows 98, and a few years later,

Windows ME. Sure, there was alearning curve for each of thosenew environments, and more thana few hiccups along the way, butisn’t that why Extra-StrengthTylenol is readily available overthe counter? It had been yearssince I abandoned my Apple com-puter, and friends on Macs werenow producing theatre-qualitymovies on their MacBooks. I wasstill fumbling loading digital pic-tures onto my PC.

Then, along came a productcalled Windows Vista. A product Iwas charmingly silly enough toinstall, before all the bugs had beenworked out. Bugs as big as ptero-dactyls. My computing life came toa grinding halt, accompanied by aforehead welt as large as the openspace on the desk. I’d be mistakenfor a hammerhead shark by now ifI hadn’t seen an episode of DottoTech Café, illustrating the ease ofApple’s i-Life suite of products,bringing all the new advanced fea-tures there together, just like those

on my beloved old LCII. Sure, I’ll admit there are loads

of people out there that loveWindows-based operating systems,even Vista. Let’s call them sado-masochists, charge-by-the-minutehelp desk staff, or “Windows-certi-fied system engineers”. For me, Ithink the future is looking a bitmore like a tree fruit. I must havemy Apple. An Apple a day mightkeep the forehead welts away…

Happy 20th anniversary, REM!I’m happy to have been a smallpart of your historic run, and wishyou many more years!

Humour columnist and author DanSt. Yves was licensed with Royal LePageKelowna for 11 years. His first column inREM appeared in November 2000.Check out his website at www.nonsense-andstuff.com, or contact him [email protected]. REM

U

Real Estate BooksReal Estate Books

58 REM JUNE 2009

THE PUBLISHER’SPAGE

By Heino Molls

Trade Showsand ConferencesTrade Showsand Conferences

For complete listings, visit www.remonline.comTo add a listing to this calendar, email [email protected]

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

Canadian Real EstateAssociation AEC Seminar June 8 – 11 Hilton Hotel Whistler, B.C. Christa Girard –[email protected]

Shift into Overdrive withGary KellerWednesday, June 10Paramount Conference CentreVaughan, Ont.www.millionairesystems.com

Sutton National Conference2009September 16 – 18The Fairmont Royal YorkHotel, [email protected]

La Capitale Real EstateNetworkAnnual ConventionSeptember 22 – 23Levis Convention CenterLevis, Que.France Masse – 1-800-363-6715, ext. [email protected]

Century 21 CanadianConference 2009 September 25 – 27Vancouver Exhibitor inquiries:[email protected]

Realtors Association ofHamilton-BurlingtonRealtors without BordersConference & Trade ShowThursday, Oct. 8Hamilton Convention CentreHamilton, Ont.Sheila Sferrazza [email protected]

WinnipegRealtorsTechnology Conference andTrade ShowWednesday, Oct. 14Victoria Inn, WinnipegLucy Hajkowski – [email protected]

The Peak ExperienceRe/Max 26th AnnualCanadian ConferenceNovember 5 – 7Fairmont Banff SpringsBanff, Alta.http://www.remax-western.ca/banff/

National Association ofRealtors2009 Realtors Conference & ExpoNovember 13 - 16 San Diego, Calif.www.realtor.org

hat a year of anniver-saries this is for me.From the first time I

delivered a paper route to workingat the Toronto Star to Real EstateNews and all kinds of stuff inbetween. I could tell you stories.But not today.

This story is about REM.Back in 1989 I launched a

cable television business calledReal Estate TV and I needed a wayto advertise its programs to realestate professionals. There was nonewspaper or magazine dedicatedto the real estate professional com-munity in Canada that wouldaccept advertising from RETV.

Around that time, my friendJim Adair was writing copy forReal Estate TV, more out of friend-ship than money, considering theamount he usually received forwriting was more than I could pay.Jim had already established his rep-utation as an excellent writer andeditor for national magazines and

It was 20 yearsago today

W

newspapers. He and I had talkedfor years wistfully about the poten-tial of a good sincere publicationdedicated to real professionals.

Jim told me he would bepleased to be the founding editor ofsuch a publication. With hisencouragement and willingness tobe the editor, I started a publicationfor Realtors and real estate profes-sionals that would be independent,objective and above all useful forthose working in the industry – notto mention a publication thatwould accept advertising from RealEstate TV. I remember Jim sayingat the time that it should be a pub-lication where Canadian real estateprofessionals can get informationthat they cannot find anywhereelse. I use that perfect line todescribe REM to this day.

I talked to an advertising sales-man with Jim at a restaurant in ashopping mall. We scribbled out arough draft of what we felt was afair rate card on a table napkin. Iwrote out his first month’s paycheque from my dwindling person-al bank account right there. I tookthe napkin back to my office. Wedid not have computers back then,so I had it typeset for printing oncard stock. I came up with thename Real Estate Marketing, as itseemed to best describe what it wassupposed to be. Then it becameReal Estate Magazine and then Jimcoined the word REM and that iswhat it remains today.

The first issue of REM rolled offpress in June 1989. Twenty yearsago.

It has been quite a ride. There

have been so many times that Ihave been on the brink and overthe edge with this publication –financially and emotionally – Ihave lost count. Some say thatnational publications are supposedto be published by big mega corpo-rations. REM has never been that,that’s for sure. I have always kept itgoing with bits of glue, old rubberbands and scraps of used string, oneissue at a time.

Sometimes I think that manywho come upon this publicationwould think it’s just a damn news-paper for a bunch of real estatepeople. How serious can you getabout something like that?

Well I reckon more seriousthan I can describe. I worry that ifREM were to ever actually be pub-lished by a big corporation or con-glomerate, it could lose its objec-tivity and no longer be meaningfulor important to the real estatecommunity in Canada the way it isnow.

Even though my home is rent-ed today, REM has kept a roof overour heads for all this time. Mostimportantly, REM has helped meunderstand a great many things inlife because I think keeping thisthing going is a lot like the businessof life. Any time you want to hearabout it, give me a call and I’ll tellyou about it. Lord knows Jim won’tgive me enough space to tell youabout it here. He’s one of the finestmen I have ever known and aboutthe best friend anyone could everhave but he is a man with no timefor schmaltz.

This business never made mevery rich in money but it gave memore wealth in friendships and lifethan I could ever calculate or evendescribe. If you were to ask me whohas been the most important friendto me over all these years I wouldn’t hesitate for a minute tosay it was you. The way I see it, youare the one I should thank themost. So I thank you so very muchfor the past 20 years. Thank you forreading all the way through REMto this page. Let’s start the next 20together right now.

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

REM

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REM Magazine June 2009