This is the proposal of OREA when it comes to articling and mentorship:
“RAISING THE BAR ON EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONALISM
Education is integral to the real estate industry. It is the foundation on which real estate professionals build their knowledge and skills to support buyers and sellers. Families should be able to trust that the person they choose to buy or sell their home is trained to the highest standard and has ongoing education to maintain their registration.
OREA believes that a stronger education program will better prepare Ontario real estate agents for our increasingly complex market and the challenges of helping families through the biggest purchase of their lives. Continuously improving education standards will help ensure the REALTORS® of tomorrow are even more knowledgeable and capable of providing high-quality service right from the start.
A BETTER, MORE PRACTICAL EDUCATION
RECOMMENDATION #5: Introducing a two year mentorship and articling requirement for new registrants, providing practical training and better equipping agents to handle the evolving demands of a modern market.
Prospective registrants should be able to count on the training they receive to position them fora successful career. The unfortunate reality is that entrance education has weakened over the years, leaving new registrants unprepared for the complexities of a modern real estate market. What was once an exam with essay-style questions and real-life examples has become a simple multiple choice test. It is unreasonable to expect that one, short multiple-choice exam will prepare a new REALTOR® for the realities of drafting an offer or negotiating on behalf of their client.
Entrance education is integral to the real estate profession, and Ontario should strive to implement requirements that help attract high quality prospective registrants who go through rigorous training and education. The lack of practical knowledge is very evident in the industry, and ensuring Ontario’s newest registrants receive appropriate sales training is critical to ensuring consumer confidence in real estate.
When surveyed by Environics, two-thirds (64 percent) of OREA Members agreed that the new entrance education for REALTORS® has created a gap in practical knowledge, with 37 percent feeling strongly that this is the case. Just nine percent of Members disagreed.
An articling program is a tool that can address the practical knowledge gap and create well-informed, highly competent, and practice-ready agents/ brokers. However, the current articling program falls short for those entering the business.
A new registrant begins a two-year articling segment after successfully completing the preregistration education and registering with RECO. During the articling phase, three additional courses (35 hours total) must be completed over the two years. This includes courses like Compliance, Working in Real Estate: Ownership Alternatives and Complexities or Real Estate as an Investment Strategy: Residential Properties. While these are excellent topics for experienced REALTORS® undertaking continuing education, they miss the mark for new graduates who are helping consumers for the first time.
Across the industry, a gap has grown in practical knowledge, hands-on experience, and sales training for new registrants. This is primarily due to the current curriculum focusing on regulation and theoretical learning instead of real-life experience. While learning about the obligations under TRESA is important, the existing articling program should be strengthened to emphasize direct brokerage involvement and practical experience, like drafting an offer or negotiation tactics. These are tangible, hands-on tools that, if taught, can help REALTORS® better serve buyers and sellers across the province.
OREA would like to see TRESA amended to introduce a two-year articling and mentorship requirement for all new registrants.
The concept of formal mentorship for registrants is not new in North America. States like Michigan and New York have regulatory requirements that require a real estate agent to have a sponsoring broker before becoming licensed. The sponsorship requirement ensures that new entrants have a broker as a mentor or guide to provide them with professional oversight to help them adhere to ethical and legal standards as they navigate the real estate landscape.
The difference between OREA’s recommendation and those in place in Michigan and New York is the length of the articling and mentorship period.
Michigan and New York are indefinite and require all licensees to have a sponsor, not just new entrants. OREA believes that this can place an unwanted burden on brokers. As more registrants enter the industry, a brokers’ time and attention will be divided. As such, it should only be a requirement for new entrants during their first two years of registration.
Nearly nine in ten OREA Members would be supportive of a mandatory articling period for new agents, with four in five Members indicating they believe a mentorship program should be a condition of membership.
The concept of articling and mentorship is utilized in other industries across Ontario. From articling lawyers (ten months) to apprentices in the skilled trades (three to five years), many professions require new entrants to work and learn on the job. This allows them to not only develop their skill but get to know the business under the direction of an experienced professional.
A more practical articling and mentorship period will lead to better-prepared professionals who are well-equipped to handle the evolving demands of a modern real estate market.”
COMMENT
OREA, at the moment is being critical of the present educational system. However, up until August 2019, OREA was in that business, but they lost out to Humber College.
When OREA was in the educational business, they switched over to multiple choice exams and gave up on essay answers. Now, they are critical of the new approach. That may indeed be true, but it’s helpful to know that they were the ones who started multiple choice, and then followed by 100% multiple choice.
In the above Report, OREA states:
“Continuously improving education standards will help ensure the REALTORS® of tomorrow are even more knowledgeable and capable of providing high-quality service right from the start.”
That’s a rather strange statement. No one in any profession is providing high quality service right from the start. It sounds nice, but it isn’t true!
OREA also states “…the current articling program falls short for those entering the business.” I believe that this is quite true. There are two components of the articling Program:
- More Courses, and
- Supervision.
The Courses are fine, but supervision just doesn’t take place. That’s based upon the current model. The Managers and Brokers of Record at a Brokerage simply do not supervise those who are articling. Each Brokerage is on its own in terms of what it wants to do. The result is that they choose to “do nothing”. There is no supervision.
I am sure that if a new provisional registrant asks a question, they will try to respond, but there’s no formal supervisory plan. This is different if someone joins a family member or a Team. Then, supervision is important. The family member or the Team has a vested interest in the success and knowledge of the new colleague.
There is no accountability. The Manager or Broker of Record is never asked: “how many hours per day or per week did you supervise this person?” Or: have you documented your supervision and oversight?” Or further: “do you have any recommendations concerning this registrant?”
OREA also recommends “mentorship”. This would be an excellent idea. It doesn’t exist now, but it certainly would help. Any Brokerage taking on new registrants should have an organized system and have someone designated by the Brokerage to fulfill the mentorship role. In fact, there should be Course that would teach mentors how to perform in their roles. It doesn’t have to be the Manager or the Broker of Record. OREA points out that that would take too much time from them, if the role was to be extended past the first two years.
Nevertheless, mentorship is an excellent idea. It would actually make the articling period work.
Brian Madigan LL.B., Broker