How This New Mortgage Legislation in Alberta Could Affect You

There has been a significant change in Alberta’s real estate regulatory body recently! On October 9, 2019, the Honourable Nate Glubish, Minister of Service Alberta, introduced Bill 15, the Real Estate Amendment Act, 2019, in the Alberta Legislature.

The amendment addressed major concerns that were raised by real estate stakeholders, that included buyers, sellers, and regulatory officials. The changes were introduced to reposition the Real Estate Council of Alberta (RECA) for the immediate term and ensure efficiency and confidence in the future.

“Our government is taking action to stabilize the Real Estate Council of Alberta. For too long, serious concerns and complaints from industry and council officials themselves got ignored. That stops now. The council needs to stop focusing on trivial things like advertising guidelines and start focusing on protecting Albertans and addressing the actual issues facing the industry,” Stated Nate Glubish, Minister of Service Alberta.

The amendments give the Minister the power to dismiss the current council members, appoint an official administrator to manage the Real Estate Council of Alberta (RECA)’s affairs, and enable a smooth transition to a new council.

The amendments to the Real Estate Act was recommended by a recent third-party review by KPMG, which identified significant concerns with the governance of RECA as well as its performance and regulatory effect.

Speaking after the announcement of the new legislation, Rob Telford, RECA’s Chair of Council, said, “We welcome the amendments and look forward to working with the Minister and the Administrator to ensure compliance. As the independent governing authority for Alberta’s real estate industry, consumer protection is at the core of our mandate, and RECA will continue to operate under that mandate moving forward. Core operations at RECA are not affected by these amendments.”

We believe that this is excellent news for the Alberta real estate market, as it will create greater transparency and will lead to increased trust from homebuyers. We will keep you updated about on-going changes and how they might affect RECA guidelines, measurement standards, and consumer concerns. So watch this space!

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