This is from the Auditor General’s Report:
RECOMMENDATION 14
“To increase transparency and enhance consumer protection in real estate transactions involving offers from multiple prospective buyers, we recommend that the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery work with the Real Estate Council of Ontario to:
• once legislative changes come into effect, gather information from brokerages on residential sales in which sellers opt for an open-offer process, and assess the impact of the process on these transactions and the industry; and
• explore alternatives to the current blind bidding process, including practices adopted or that may be adopted by other jurisdictions such as British Columbia.
RECO RESPONSE
RECO will work with the Ministry to monitor and assess the impact of the legislative changes that will permit sellers to opt for an open-offer process when working with a brokerage. The monitoring will begin after the legislative changes have taken effect in April 2023.
MINISTRY RESPONSE
The Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery (Ministry) thanks the Auditor General for her work. The Ministry has consulted and moved forward with changes over the past several years.
As noted in the Auditor General’s report, recent amendments to the regulations under the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act, 2002, come into force on April 1, 2023.
These include changes to give the public more choice in the real estate trade process by allowing a registrant to hold an open offer process and disclose the details of competing offers, excluding personal or identifying information in the offers, at the seller’s direction.
The Ministry has recently undertaken research, considered options, consulted extensively and considered consultation feedback in relation to the changes to the offer process. The Ministry will work with the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) to monitor the impact of these changes to inform any future policy work and decision-making for government consideration.”
COMMENT
Let’s interfere with supply and demand. Let’s interfere with contractual negotiations and the bidding process. Let’s follow Australia!
What if anything this has to do with the Auditor General’s role, I don’t know!
All the industry stakeholders have just been through this, come up with a plan, incorporated the results into amendments to the Act and Regulations, to come into force on 1 April 2023.
So, for anyone at all interested “wait and see” would be the appropriate response. Arising out of this report would be a question: who audits the Auditor General or do they just have free reign?
Brian Madigan LL. B., Broker