March 5th - 2006

New REBBA means new, revised forms

The many changes to rules, regulations and terminology adopted under the new Real Estate and Business Brokers Act (REBBA) have resulted in numerous revisions and updates to the OREA standard forms.

The many changes to rules, regulations and terminology adopted under the new Real Estate and Business Brokers Act (REBBA) have resulted in numerous revisions and updates to the OREA standard forms.

REBBA 2002, which becomes law on March 31, affects more than 20 of the most commonly used forms and many of the changes will make the forms easier for consumers to understand. For example, the word “agency” has been replaced with “representation,” and where the word “broker” was used to identify the company, the term has been changed to “brokerage”.

Also, the term “confirmation of execution” on the Agreement of Purchase and Sale has been changed to “confirmation of acceptance” to more clearly link with the requirement for the deposit to be given “upon acceptance.” A substantial change has been made to the upon acceptance provision to submit a deposit. Upon acceptance is now defined as within 24 hours of acceptance: that is, the salesperson must ensure that the buyer’s deposit is submitted within 24 hours of the offer. It will be extremely important for members to comply with this time frame. There has also been a provision added for the deposit to be submitted “as otherwise described in the agreement.” This allows for unusual circumstances such as the deposit having to be sent from another province.

To make it clear what services the brokerage is providing, a statement has been added just above the signature on behalf of the brokerage that says “will market the property on behalf of the seller and represent the seller in an endeavour to obtain a valid offer on the terms set out in the listing.”

Representation
One of the most significant changes with the new Act is the inclusion of the requirements for disclosure of representation into law. Now, the disclosures in Form 320 – Confirmation of Co-operation and Representation – are mandatory for all transactions. The form ensures the parties have been informed of their representation and customer service status and there is extra space for additional disclosures, for instance, when the salesperson has more than one offer on the same property.

To be compliant with a requirement of the new Act, Form 320 includes a section for brokerages to obtain written consent for multiple representation.

Changes in the Code of Ethics regarding representation and customer service agreements will also have a significant impact on the way REALTORS do business. Previously, the requirement to obtain the party’s signature applied only to representation agreements. If, for example, the buyer did not want to be represented, the salesperson could show the buyer properties without any requirement for a written agreement between the brokerage and the buyer. Now that representation agreements and customer service agreements must have the same format and must be used in the same way, the brokerage must create a customer service agreement, have it “signed on behalf of the brokerage and submitted for signature.” This now applies to all situations dealing with customers or clients.

A new Seller Customer Service Agreement which replaces the Commission Agreement for Property Not Listed, will help members comply with these provisions as well as the new requirement that states all representation agreements, and customer service agreements, must be identical in the way they are formatted and used by brokerages.

The new form has the same format and basically all of the same features as the listing including commencement date, expiry date, and initials for agreements exceeding six months. Both the Buyer Representation Agreement and the Buyer Customer Service Agreement have been revised to reflect these changes as well.

A Declaration of Insurance has been included in the representation agreements and   customer service agreements, as this is now a requirement of REBBA 2002.

The terminology changes in REBBA 2002 have resulted in revision to almost all of OREA’s standard forms.

New forms and revisions will be available on the Web site on March 31. Visit the My OREA page, under “Forms”, “Standard Forms.”

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For more information contact

Ontario Real Estate Association

Jean-Adrien Delicano

Senior Manager, Media Relations

JeanAdrienD@orea.com

416-445-9910 ext. 246

Ontario Real Estate Association
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