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Superintendent of Real Estate approves further amendments to the Real Estate Rules
The Superintendent of Real Estate has approved amendments to the Real Estate Rules. The approved rule amendments:
- incorporate the Real Estate Council of British Columbia’s English language proficiency requirements for new applicants into the Rules;
- require that new remuneration disclosures to sellers include a dollar amount; and
- create new rules to address conflicts of interest where a licensee finds themselves potentially working with multiple parties that would constitute dual agency.
These new rules are complementary to rules made on November 8, 2017 that will prohibit dual agency and enhance consumer disclosure. The rules come into effect on June 15, 2018, with the exception of the English language proficiency rule, which comes into effect immediately.
Rule amendments that would have created a new requirement for licensees to complete continuing professional education courses, and designating the first continuing professional education course to be completed by trading services and rental property management licensees, were not adopted. Instead, the Superintendent is supportive of the Real Estate Council’s decision to mandate that all trading services and rental property management licensees must, as part of their Re-licensing Education Requirements, complete the UBC Sauder School of Business, Real Estate Division “Rule Changes: Agency and Disclosure” course prior to being re-licensed. This ensures that licensees will still receive education on the new rules while being responsive to feedback received during the consultation on the proposed continuing professional education rule.
These rules were published for a 30-day public comment period, which closed on April 20, 2018. A summary report is available with the results of this feedback:
The Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate (OSRE) is a regulatory agency of the B.C. government that carries out the regulatory, oversight and enforcement duties of the Superintendent of Real Estate. OSRE receives its statutory authority from the Real Estate Services Act, the Real Estate Development Marketing Act and the Strata Property Act.
