Competition Bureau advances investigation into the Canadian Real Estate Association’s policies
Oct. 8, 2024
Global Korean Post
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The Competition Bureau has obtained a court order to advance its investigation into potential anti-competitive conduct by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) related to rules about real estate commissions and the REALTOR® Cooperation Policy.
The order, granted by the Federal Court, requires CREA to produce records and information relevant to the Bureau’s investigation.
The Bureau is investigating if CREA’s commission rules discourage buyers’ realtors from competing to offer lower commission rates or affect competition in other ways, which could result in less competition and higher costs for both buyers and sellers.
The Bureau is also looking to determine if CREA’s Realtor Cooperation Policy makes it more difficult for alternative listing services to compete, reduces competition among realtors, or gives larger real estate brokerages an unfair advantage over smaller ones.
The investigation is ongoing and there is no conclusion of wrongdoing at this time.
The Bureau is also seeking information from the public about their experiences with real estate commissions and alternative listing services.
CREA is one of Canada’s largest single-industry associations, representing over 160,000 real estate professionals.
