Critics deride realtor ‘bodyshop’ model in wake of iPro scandal

As the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) faces increasing scrutiny for its handling of the iPro Realty Ltd. scandal, industry experts claim one shared trait between the RECO’s governing model and the business model of the disgraced brokerage is an obsession with increasing the number of realtors in the province.

“I see daily how our industry has become addicted to ‘bums in seats’ – boards reliant on dues, brokerages warehousing agents and an erosion of professionalism,” said Todd Shyiak, executive vice-president of Century 21 Canada Limited Partnership. “There are more realtors in the GTA per capita than double the rest of the country. Many are part-timers who are taxi drivers and bartenders but they don’t want to say that: they are a realtor, but really they have another job.”