KAWARTHA LAKES-The Government of Ontario introduced new rules on Tuesday that officials say will bring more transparency to the home buying and selling process.
One of the changes is to a practice called blind bidding.
Under the current system, potential homebuyers submit their offers but don’t know the contents of competing bids. The law states that real estate brokerages who represent clients must disclose the number of written bids but not the value of those bids.
With the new regulations, sellers would have the option to open the bidding process by disclosing details of competing bids to the buyer.
Broker Brad Bird says he welcomes the move but can’t see how it will help.
“I welcome the new changes which allow home Sellers the opportunity to choose how they want to review Offers. In my professional opinion, I do not believe this will have an impact on the recent rise in housing sale prices (that is more supply/demand driven) but I am glad to see our government allowing the public to be in charge of the decision instead of making a decision for them. It’s a step in the right direction!” stated Bird who is the owner and Broker of Record at BirdHouse Realty in Lindsay.
Remax All Stars Agent Trish Todd also has doubts about the impact of the move.
“With housing demand being so high and the supply so short. The over bidding has become our current Real Estate Market. This new regulation being introduced is if the Seller wishes to “opt in” & with Sellers wanting to get top dollar I don’t see Sellers doing this. They want the buyers to increase and outbid each other. The new regulation is fine however if we had more inventory for buyers to choose from I could see that changing the market more than this new regulation.” explains Todd.
Bird says there are other changes in the new legislation that will improve the industry as a whole.
“There are quite a few other important and welcome changes that unfortunately will likely be overshadowed by the “hot” blind bidding topic, such as plain language disclosures surrounding how a Realtor can represent a Buyer/Seller, updating the code of ethics, providing more options for how a Realtor can represent Buyers/Sellers plus a new information guide that is given to every Buyer & Seller.” says Bird “All these changes are all aimed at strengthening consumer protection and compliance for Realtors. As I mentioned before – I welcome all these changes and think some of these changes are long overdue. I can speak confidently for myself and those at BirdHouse Realty that we have always maintained an ethical and consumer-first approach.”
These changes were part of a package of reforms the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA) worked with the Province to bring forward.
OREA says the new measures will give the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) new powers to better target enforcement and compliance initiatives to activities associated with the highest risk to the public.
The announcement also provides for a new, updated Code of Ethics regulation to enhance professionalism by focusing on ethical obligations that real estate registrants have toward clients and the public.
“Ontario REALTORS® want to see North American-leading professionalism in the industry. It’s too easy to get into the business and too hard to get kicked out. These changes will give RECO extra powers to throw the book at agents who are violating consumer trust. Tougher disciplinary measures will go a long way in ensuring that the REALTOR® by your side during one of the most critical decisions of your life has the highest professional standards. said Tim Hudak, CEO of the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA)
On April 14th the Ontario government announced it had received royal assent for legislation to support the government’s More Homes for Everyone plan, which delivers both near-term solutions and long-term commitments to build more homes faster.
“With the passage of the More Homes for Everyone Act, our government is taking the next step in our long-term plan to deliver on the Housing Affordability Task Force’s report, and help more Ontarians realize the dream of home ownership,” said Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. “But there is still more work to be done. As we continue to collaborate with our municipal and industry partners, our government commits to a housing supply action plan every year over four years to deliver gentle density and multi-generational homes in communities across our province.”
The More Homes for Everyone plan outlines the next suite of actions the province is taking to address Ontario’s housing crisis, such as protecting homebuyers from unethical development practices and accelerating development timelines to get more homes built faster.
The plan includes:
- Working with municipalities to identify and enhance measures that will crack down on land speculation and protect home buyers. This is in response to feedback the province solicited from municipalities regarding projects that are approved by the municipality, but unbuilt by the developer.
- Strengthening consumer protections for purchasers of new homes by doubling fines and extending building license suspensions to address unethical conduct by developers, while ensuring penalties for cancelled projects are aligned with the impact on homebuyers. The government will also enable Tarion to extend warranties on unfinished items in a new home.
- Supporting municipalities with resources, tools and standards to provide timely review and adjudication processes by both extending legislated timelines for decisions while focusing the decision-making process. This builds on the province’s investment of up to $350 million through the Streamline Development Approvals Fund, Municipal Modernization Program, and Audit and Accountability Fund to help municipalities implement efficiencies, including in their planning and development approval processes.
- Creating a new tool specifically designed to accelerate planning processes for municipalities. The Community Infrastructure and Housing Accelerator will help municipalities expedite approvals for housing and community infrastructure, like hospitals and community centres, with clear requirements for both consultation and public notice.
