Realtors battle over new ‘exclusive’ selling rules

Opponents of the Canadian Real Estate Association’s (CREA) new rules restricting the use of unlisted, so-called “exclusive” home sales are charging that the move is anti-competitive.

On Jan. 3, CREA brought in rules that sellers of properties marketed as “exclusive” – also known as “pocket” listings – must add those properties to the Multiple Listing Service within three days or face sanctions. Critics have decried the policy as an attack on a seller’s rights to choose how they sell their home and an abuse of CREA’s dominant position as a provider of MLS data.