Realtor.ca is CREA’s most valuable asset. Because of the evolution of real estate technology, Realtor.ca has become the “go to” site for consumers. CREA needs to realize that Realtor.ca is primarily an advertising vehicle designed to generate leads for Realtors. Like MLS, the strength of Realtor.ca is its exclusivity, as we have most of the MLS listed property on that site. If it’s that exclusivity of information that makes it powerful, why would we give that information to our competitors as is contemplated in the Data Distribution Facility?

Consumers use our services because we are professional and perhaps most importantly, regulated. Woefully absent from the discussions regarding the future role of the Realtor, and a significant player (in Ontario) is the Ministry of Government Services and RECO. Does the government want this industry to continue to be regulated or will they continue to allow other non-license organizations to trade in real estate? Is it our responsibility to do the policing or is it RECOs? Does the government want a minimum standard of care or service? If the industry wants to increase its standards, isn’t this the government body that should be lobbied and at least involved in the discussion?

Technology and data – Realtor.ca was created as an advertising vehicle for organized real estate to market listings and as more people used technology in their everyday life, this site became more important to both Realtors and consumers. Since consumers could not access MLS directly, Realtor.ca became the most popular site in Canada because no other site contained all the properties listed by Realtors in the country.

Recently Realtors have been realizing the benefits of having all the listings in their local market on their own website (IDX).  Ask most Realtors, “Would you like the consumer to select the Realtor first, then a property they have listed on their website? Or would you prefer the consumer to select the property first on Realtor.ca and then the Realtor?” I suspect the Realtor would prefer the first option rather than the second. The problem is most Realtors still do not have an IDX solution available to them.

Data Distribution Facility – Let there be no misunderstanding, third-party organizations such as Zoocasa and Trulia are competitors to our Realtor.ca website. They are trying to attract the consumer to go to their website instead of Realtor.ca. In my opinion the Data Distribution Facility is flawed and misguided. Why would Realtors want to aggregate all our listing data and give that data to our competitors? It doesn’t matter that the data will be presented in a format of our choosing. All we are doing is enhancing our competitors’ websites.

Proponents of this idea say, “Well, Realtors are sending them the information now anyway, except it is not always current or up-to-date and it makes us all look bad.” The solution: if it’s not kept up-to-date, it’s a Code of Ethics violation and the Realtor should be penalized. If third-party organizations end up with all the MLS data as well as the FSBO data, will they not then have more content on their site than Realtor.ca? Will the third-party site then be the “go to”  site for the consumer?

FSBOs and the vehicles they use to advertise their properties (third-party organizations) are our competitors. The map of the future lists as one of the potential benefits for putting FSBOs on Realtor.ca as “one-stop shopping”.  I say any shopping without me, means no business for me. How does the Realtor get involved in a potential transaction when the consumer can contact the seller directly?

I have been a Realtor for 30 years and for 28 of those years the broker of record for my own company, which currently staffs just over 140 Realtors. During those years the level of professionalism and the role of the Realtor has dramatically changed, partly due to consumer expectations and education and mostly driven by government regulations and intervention. Consequently I believe the control that organized real estate  has over the role of the Realtor is minimal. Organized real estate should drive government bodies responsible for real estate to get involved in the discussion if they continue to want this industry to be regulated.

Vito Campanale C.A.

Broker of Record

Century 21 First Canadian Corp.

London, Ont.

A screen shot from David Fleming’s blog

By Connie Adair

Blogs have been around for years, and they’re not going anywhere.

They are the future, says sales rep David Fleming of Bosley Real Estate, who started his blog, http://www.torontorealtyblog.com, in 2007.  “Every single (agent) should have a blog as a way to deal with the general public,” Fleming says. “Consumers are all on the Internet. Clients come to us based on their research. Times are gone when an unrepresented buyer goes into an open house and you can snag them. That’s not the way it works.”

How do you get started? There are no rules for blogs, Fleming says. “Every blog is different. My blog is controversial and opinionated. Some are happy and full of sunshine. It doesn’t matter. Put yourself out there.”

Topics do not have to be limited to real estate. Blogs can be about family, friends, politics, economics or whatever is on your mind, he says. “People want to know the person as a person first, not a sales machine.”

Fleming blogs Monday to Friday, putting his creative writing background to work and harnessing his passion to keep the stories flowing. “Some blogs take two hours to write, some are data and statistics I have collected over the week. Some are rants that take 20 minutes (to write),” he says. Although his blogs are about 1,500 words long, he says less prolific writers shouldn’t be scared off. “Even if you do four sentences, do it. Instead of one long blog, do shorter blogs four times a week. (Blog) often and regularly.”

Some agents hire writers to blog for them, or simply repost links from newspapers stories. Keep the site current rather than have a stagnant website with out-of-date links.

And just because you don’t enjoy it, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do it. “I don’t like cold calling or open houses but I still do them. Everything in real estate is work. Even if you just post a photo, it’s okay,” Fleming says. “Blogging is a way to differentiate when and how you work.”

Feedback to his blog has been good. Back in 2007, some agents saw the blog and thought it was “neat”.  Now, because of his honesty, they say, “Wow. I wish I had the guts to say that,” says Fleming, who enjoys telling it like it is.

“No industry is good all the time. If it’s too positive all the time, it’s not interesting.”

He once had 40 negative comments to a blog, but he says controversy drives people to the site.

Fleming’s site also includes a video bio. “People want to know who you are. It’s a better way to show them,” he says.

Video bios should be professionally done. His was taped on his condo terrace for a personal touch.

“Many people think they’re too old, that an old dog can’t learn new tricks. But that’s not true. Older agents have more interesting things to say,” he says.

Blogs work for buyers in any price point, says Fleming. A recent buyer, who was in the market for a $3.5-million home, contacted him from his blog.

Last year, 30 per cent of Fleming’s business was from family, friends and referrals. A whopping 70 per cent came from his blog. For Fleming, blogs really are the future.

HomeLife says the campaign is to “reinforce brand awareness in the public consciousness and encourage new business for its brokerages and members across the country”.

Today there are people buying condominium homes who have no idea that this kind of property was unheard of by their parents not so long ago.

We have arrived at a point where we need to be clear that there are two kinds of residential properties in our major cities – houses and condos. Properties without shared common ground and properties with shared common grounds. There are lots of grey areas such as semi-detached houses, freehold town homes that share road maintenance or landscaping and houses with shared driveways. But it still comes down to a fundamental difference between a house and a condominium.

The reason it is time to look at these properties differently is the market. In the years ahead, property values will fluctuate, as they always do. From this time forward, however, houses are going to hold their value far greater than condominiums when markets move up or down. This will especially be the case in our large cities. It is just a matter of supply and demand.

We are trending to a point where the number of condominiums will far exceed the number of houses in our cities. Look around. The supply of houses is actually decreasing as swaths of neighbourhoods are assembled and flattened to make way for new condo buildings and communities. Assembling these kinds of neighbourhoods is done through the demolition of a lot of houses.

The number of condominium buildings now under construction in every major city in the Dominion is moving along at a pretty fast clip. Some would caution that it’s excessive while others will point out that they are being purchased before they are built.

As this sea change of home building moves through our big cities, there will be precious few houses left when all is said and done. The key word is precious. The foundation of all economy is supply and demand. Fewer houses mean higher prices.

We are going to have situations ahead when the real estate markets will become even more active than they have been and all prices go up. House prices will separate from condo prices and my guess is they will go up even higher. By the same token every economy will experience a time when markets slow down. In the slower markets house prices will hold and may even rise while condo prices flatten for a period. The point is that the markets are going to be different going forward.

That is not to say that condominiums will always be considered “lower priced” properties. That is hardly the case, especially with the recent sale of Toronto’s highest priced residence, a downtown condo at some $28 million. It is, however, my view that the two markets going forward are different.

It’s time to formally separate the two in projections, discussions and in all categories of real estate dialogue. From this point on, the residential real estate market should be looked formally at as two different markets not as one “housing market”.

At the end of the day a house is a building. A condo is part of a shared property. Maintenance for a house is completely different than a condo. There is no committee to address neighbourhood concerns and no condo board of directors to decide on landscaping. It’s a whole different mindset and a whole different market.

It’s time to promote this difference formally.

Heino Molls is publisher of REM. Email heino@remonline.com.

Mikey defibrillators and trained personnel are now on board Two Men and a Truck moving trucks, giving anyone experiencing sudden cardiac arrest a second chance at life. In this simulated save, two movers apply a Mikey and CPR to save a young basketball player's life. (Photo: Paul Casselman)

All Two Men and a Truck – Canada moving trucks are now equipped with a defibrillator as part of the Mikey-on-Board program. Working with Emergency Medical Services, Two Men and a Truck Canadian franchisees, their drivers and staffs have been trained to use a Mikey. The Mikey Network, a registered Canadian charity, is committed to helping people who experience Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) get a second chance at life. To date, there are over 1,200 Mikeys placed in high-risk locations across Canada and 12 lives have been saved.

SCA is the leading killer of Canadians. More than  10 per cent of occurrences happen in public, and victims who are not revived within three to five minutes usually die. The use of a public-access defibrillator by a trained “target responder” within the first moments can improve the victim’s survival rate by up to 75 per cent.

There are currently 63 Two Men and a Truck vehicles on the road throughout Ontario.  The Mikey Network chairman is also president of Heathwood Homes, Hugh Heron. “We challenge other companies with vehicles on the road to follow suit and install Mikeys and have their staff trained in CPR/AED,” he says.

Richard Morrison with wife Shelia and children Jessa and Johnny.

A real estate sales rep who broke his neck playing hockey needs your help.

Richard Morrison, 47, fell while playing recreational hockey with friends in Burnaby, B.C. on April 21. He is paralyzed from the chest down and will never walk again.

Morrison was working with Sutton Group – West Coast Realty in White Rock. “Rich is self-employed and does not have a safety net of savings or insurance,” says friend and Realtor Brent Silzer, who works at the same office.

“The accident has been devastating for Rich, his wife Sheila, six-year-old son Johnny and four-year-old daughter Jessa. Rich is facing at least a year of recovery, further medical treatments, major costs and a dramatic permanent change to his and his family’s life.

“The Morrison family badly needs help and I am asking for your help. They are great people who are handling this adversity with admirable grace, class and strength.”

Silzer is urging Realtors to visit www.richardmorrisonfund.org to learn more about the family and Richard, and to make a donation. A trust fund has also been set up at CIBC. Donations can be made at any branch – the trust account number is 87-40836 and the transit number is 02920.

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board has donated $1,500 and several fundraising events are being planned.

“The injury is very fresh so it’s very difficult to understand the full scope of what has transpired physically and how he will recover short term and long term,” says Silzer on the website. “We know it’s as serious as it gets and we know we need to help. We need to demonstrate that we are now there for Rich and his family.”

Alex and Richard Pilarski

Debra Bain and Ken McLaughlin

Several Canadians were honoured when Re/Max International paid tribute to its world-wide top producers and other honourees recently in Las Vegas.

Canadians named to the network’s highest career award level, the Circle of Legends, were:  Ron Baliski, Re/Max Saskatoon East, Saskatoon; Randy Dyck, Re/Max Little Oak Realty, Abbotsford, B.C.; Paul Eviston, Re/Max Select Properties, Vancouver;  Alan Gee, Re/Max Real Estate Centre, Edmonton; Doris Gee, Re/Max Central, Burnaby, B.C.; Derek Gillette, Re/Max of Nanaimo, Nanaimo, B.C.; Andrea Kavanagh, Re/Max Select Properties, Vancouver; Austin Kay, Re/Max Westcoast, Richmond, B.C.; Phil Moore, Re/Max Central, Burnaby, B.C.; Ron Neal, Re/Max Alliance, Victoria; Denis Pelletier, Re/Max Immo-Contact, Duvernay Laval, Que.; Colleen Pickett, Re/Max Aboutowne Realty, Oakville; Bill Renaud, Re/Max Metro-City Realty, Ottawa; Glen Sytnyk, Re/Max Performance Realty, Winnipeg; Federico Torres, Re/Max Platine, Brossard, Que.; and Anna Turner, Re/Max Metro-City Realty, Ottawa.

Shami Sandhu, Re/Max River City Realty, Edmonton, was honoured as Broker/Owner of the Year – Single Office, while Larry Stewart, Re/Max Saskatoon, Saskatoon was recognized as Broker/Owner of the Year – Multi Office Network.

Broker/Manager of the Year honours went to Gayle Kossaber, Re/Max All Points, Coquitlam, B.C.

Re/Max Realtron was also presented with an award for Largest Multi-Office Network in Canada.

Jim Burton

Valarie Sampson

Gabriel Bianchi

Re/Max United Mount Pearl in Newfoundland topped Transactions in a Small Market – Canada, with broker/owner Jim Burton on hand to accept the award. Re/Max Park Place in Sydney, N.S. earned the award for Top Net Gain in Associates (Small Market) – Canada, which was presented to broker/owner Valarie Sampson.  Re/Max Premier, in Vaughan, Ont., secured Top Net Gain in Associates – Metro Market Worldwide.  The award was accepted by broker/owner Gabriel Bianchi.

Karen Singbeil

Rob Shaw

Rob Shaw of Vernon, B.C. is the new president of The Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board (OMREB). He was installed along with 11 directors representing the Central Okanagan, North Okanagan and Shuswap zones at OMREB’s Annual General Meeting recently. Shaw replaces outgoing president George Cwiklewski of Kelowna, who stays on as past-president.

Shaw has been an active Realtor and member of OMREB since 1995, and has been a director for seven years, serving from 2003 through 2009, and returning in 2011.

A Vernon resident since 1993 and a Realtor for 17 years, he has worked with Royal LePage Downtown Vernon and its predecessors since 1995.

Karen Singbeil of Re/Max at Mara Lake in Sicamous was installed as vice-president of the Board of Directors. An OMREB member for eight years, Singbeil has served as a director since 2009.  She is an associate broker and has been a Realtor for 16 years (1996).

The other members of the board are: Kent Jorgenson (Re/Max Kelowna – Central Zone);  Scott Mayne (Points West Realty Group, Kelowna – Central Zone); Cliff Shillington (Re/Max Kelowna – Central Zone); Tanis Read (Coldwell Banker Horizon Realty – Central Zone); Christopher Miller (Royal LePage Kelowna – Central Zone); Darcy Griffiths (Re/Max Vernon – North Zone); Rorie Holton (Royal LePage Downtown Realty, Vernon – North Zone); Sharon Dahl (Century 21 Executives, Enderby – North Zone); and Steve Lewis (Shirley Real Estate, Salmon Arm – Shuswap Zone).

Anne Squires

Anne Squires, franchisee of Exit Realty on the Rock, has a new office in Happy Valley – Goose Bay, Nfld. “This is Anne’s seventh office. She is relentless in her pursuit of growing the largest and most successfully productive brokerage in the province,” says Joyce Paron, president – Canada for Exit. “Anne has a reputation for incredible passion, action orientation and a deliberate attitude to do everything first class. She is a people person who understands the value of each and every individual.

Exit Realty on the Rock is home to 85 agents across the seven locations, with the 9,000 square-foot flagship office located in St. John’s.