Alberta is restructuring its real estate regulator, eight months after the government fired the previous board on the grounds it was irredeemably dysfunctional.
“Bill 20 … is the next step in the process to reform the governance of [the board] and to restore the faith of Albertans and the real estate industry in the real estate regulator,” Service Alberta Minister Nate Glubish said Wednesday prior to introducing the legislation in the house.
“The end result will be a new governance structure that will increase transparency, improve accountability and ultimately restore good governance to the real estate regulator.”
The Real Estate Council of Alberta licenses and regulates residential and commercial real estate agents and brokers, mortgage brokers, and property managers.
Lack of oversight, poor dealings
Last October, Glubish fired the existing board and appointed an interim administrator.
The move followed a third-party audit that reported the previous board had broken down, foundering under fractious interpersonal relationships and poor dealings with those in the industry.
The report outlined poor relations with the industry associations represented by the council and a tendency for members to spend 80 per cent of their time discussing governance issues, instead of considering the strategic and regulatory matters that are the reason for the council’s existence.
The KPMG report also found key committees were left empty, meetings were not held and there was a lack of oversight on spending.
‘Common sense regulation’
The bill would restructure the council overseen by a board of directors, with four new industry councils: residential real estate agents and brokers; commercial real estate agents and brokers and commercial property managers; mortgage brokers; and residential property managers and condominium managers.
These new industry councils would identify and address issues related to their parts of the real estate sector, setting standards and rules and determining licensing requirements.
There would also be a new dispute resolution process and board members and industry council members would not be allowed to sit on disciplinary hearings. Those hearings would be staffed by industry people or members of the public at large.
The council would also have to make public staff salaries and meeting minutes.
Greater openness and transparency standards will help rebuild eroded trust,”– Kristie Kruger
Condominium managers would be added to the groups overseen by the regulator while real estate appraisers would be removed, given they are self-regulated through their own industry association.
The Alberta Real Estate Association called the bill a critical first step towards reform.
“Refocusing the real estate regulator on common sense regulation will better protect the public and improve the real estate industry, while greater openness and transparency standards will help rebuild eroded trust,” Kristie Kruger, chairwoman of the association, said in a statement.
The association represents more than 10,000 realtors and 10 real estate boards.
HALIFAX – A village of tiny homes is set to open next month in a Halifax suburb, the latest project by the provincial government to address homelessness.
Located in Lower Sackville, N.S., the tiny home community will house up to 34 people when the first 26 units open Nov. 4.
Another 35 people are scheduled to move in when construction on another 29 units should be complete in December, under a partnership between the province, the Halifax Regional Municipality, United Way Halifax, The Shaw Group and Dexter Construction.
The province invested $9.4 million to build the village and will contribute $935,000 annually for operating costs.
Residents have been chosen from a list of people experiencing homelessness maintained by the Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia.
They will pay rent that is tied to their income for a unit that is fully furnished with a private bathroom, shower and a kitchen equipped with a cooktop, small fridge and microwave.
The Atlantic Community Shelters Society will also provide support to residents, ranging from counselling and mental health supports to employment and educational services.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2024.
Housing affordability is a key issue in the provincial election campaign in British Columbia, particularly in major centres.
Here are some statistics about housing in B.C. from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s 2024 Rental Market Report, issued in January, and the B.C. Real Estate Association’s August 2024 report.
Average residential home price in B.C.: $938,500
Average price in greater Vancouver (2024 year to date): $1,304,438
Average price in greater Victoria (2024 year to date): $979,103
Average price in the Okanagan (2024 year to date): $748,015
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Vancouver: $2,181
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Victoria: $1,839
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Canada: $1,359
Rental vacancy rate in Vancouver: 0.9 per cent
How much more do new renters in Vancouver pay compared with renters who have occupied their home for at least a year: 27 per cent
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Voters along the south coast of British Columbia who have not cast their ballots yet will have to contend with heavy rain and high winds from an incoming atmospheric river weather system on election day.
Environment Canada says the weather system will bring prolonged heavy rain to Metro Vancouver, the Sunshine Coast, Fraser Valley, Howe Sound, Whistler and Vancouver Island starting Friday.
The agency says strong winds with gusts up to 80 kilometres an hour will also develop on Saturday — the day thousands are expected to go to the polls across B.C. — in parts of Vancouver Island and Metro Vancouver.
Wednesday was the last day for advance voting, which started on Oct. 10.
More than 180,000 voters cast their votes Wednesday — the most ever on an advance voting day in B.C., beating the record set just days earlier on Oct. 10 of more than 170,000 votes.
Environment Canada says voters in the area of the atmospheric river can expect around 70 millimetres of precipitation generally and up to 100 millimetres along the coastal mountains, while parts of Vancouver Island could see as much as 200 millimetres of rainfall for the weekend.
An atmospheric river system in November 2021 created severe flooding and landslides that at one point severed most rail links between Vancouver’s port and the rest of Canada while inundating communities in the Fraser Valley and B.C. Interior.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
