For the RECOrd: April 2025
In this issue
Holiday closures
RECO's office will be closed on:
- Friday, April 18, 2025 for the Good Friday holiday.
- Monday, May 19, 2025 for the Victoria Day statutory holiday.
Reminder: RECO Annual General Meeting – May 29, 2025
RECO’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place on May 29, 2025 at 10 a.m. This will be a virtual event, as registrants surveyed following past events have strongly supported this format to provide them with the greatest flexibility to participate.
As shared in late 2024 and discussed on a RECO webinar in early January, at this year’s AGM, members will elect three sector directors to RECO’s board of directors. Voting for sector directors will take place only at the AGM and registrants must be present to vote. Salespersons and brokers must register in advance to confirm eligibility to vote and to participate in voting (registration details coming soon).
More details on sector director elections can be found on RECO’s website.
FINTRAC compliance course now mandatory
The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) enforces the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act and is the financial intelligence unit dedicated to detecting and deterring money laundering and terrorist financing in Canada.
RECO’s course, FINTRAC Compliance: Meeting Your Legal Obligations is mandatory for all salespersons and brokers with a registration cycle ending in 2026 or 2027 as part of registrants’ continuing education requirements. The course has previously been available as an elective for some time and was recently updated to reflect recent changes to registrant requirements.
Making the course mandatory will enable registrants to understand their legal responsibilities under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act.
Through the course, registrants will review key obligations, including:
- proper recordkeeping practices,
- how to accurately identify their client, and
- what to do when a self-represented party is involved in their client’s transaction.
Access the course here
If you have any questions about completing the course and remaining in compliance, please contact education@reco.on.ca.
RECO implementing periodic Criminal Record and Judicial Matters Checks
To make obtaining a Criminal Record and Judicial Matters Check (CRJMC) more efficient and cost-effective for registrants and applicants, RECO is moving to a fully online system, as of June 2025.
In conjunction with the registration renewal process on MyWeb, registrants who are required to obtain a CRJMC as a condition of renewal will be provided with specific instructions when they click the “Renew Now” button. Please do not obtain a CRJMC unless you have received the MyWeb instructions to do so.
If you have any questions, please contact registration@reco.on.ca.
Did you know? Criminal record checks have been required to become registered with RECO since 2010.
Mortgage agent licence classes: A primer
Real estate agents often work alongside or refer clients to mortgage agents. The conduct of mortgage agents is regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA).
While the work of mortgage agents is outside of RECO’s scope and are not to be conducted by registrants who do not possess a mortgage agent licence, it is important for RECO registrants to be aware of the regulatory and licensing requirements when advising clients on options for financing and conditions based on their specific circumstances.
There are three different classes of mortgage agent licence in Ontario to reflect the need for additional competencies beyond the Level 1 class for licencees that work with private mortgage lenders. Private mortgages often include unique features that may present unfamiliar risks to consumers as they are underwritten differently from those provided by traditional financial institutions, such as banks or credit unions.
What registrants need to know
The three licence classes came into effect in April 2023:
- Mortgage Agent Level 1 – These are mortgage agents exclusively authorized to deal and trade in mortgages with lenders that are financial institutions, as defined in the Mortgage Brokerages, Lenders and Administrators Act, 2006 or approved by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) under the National Housing Act.
- Mortgage Agent Level 2 – These mortgage agents may deal and trade in mortgages with all lenders authorized for Level 1 agents, but they may also deal and trade in mortgages with lenders such as mortgage investment companies, syndicates, private individuals, agents, brokers, and brokerages who lend their own funds.
- Mortgage broker – In addition to the scope of activities listed above, this licence class also provides for supervisory responsibilities for mortgage agents (levels 1 and 2); these individuals can be appointed as the principal broker for a brokerage.
For more information about requirements for mortgage agents in Ontario, please visit FSRA’s website.
Multiple education providers to deliver real estate education across Ontario
As part of its long-term education vision, RECO announced in March 2025 the four institutions approved to deliver real estate registration education in Ontario: Algonquin College, Career College Group, Humber Polytechnic and Sir Sanford Fleming College of Applied Arts and Technology (Fleming College). The institutions will begin accepting new students in summer 2025.
The initiative to move to multiple real estate education providers offers greater choice and flexibility for learners while maintaining consistent standards. All providers will deliver RECO’s comprehensive program, including simulation sessions that provide experiential learning based on real-world transactions.
Course materials for the new education providers will reflect all updates related to the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2002 (TRESA). Some providers may offer value-added courses, experiences, and networking opportunities to further enrich the learning experience. Transition plans are in place for learners in the current program delivered by NIIT Canada in collaboration with Humber Polytechnic to either complete the program within the next few months or continue their education with one of the four approved institutions after September 2025.
To ensure a consistent and rigorous assessment process, as RECO previously announced, Meazure Learning will independently administer standardized exams across all education institutions.
Please visit the education section on RECO’s website, which contains information on pre- and post-registration education, the broker program, as well as mandatory continuing education courses.
Legal corner: Misrepresentation of property tax and size leads to significant fine
A recent discipline committee decision highlights the importance of using only reliable sources to confirm information that is to be published, advertised, or shared about a client’s property. Failure to do so can lead to disciplinary action under the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2002 (TRESA) or its predecessor, the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act, 2002 (REBBA).
In this instance:
- An agent obtained the property tax amount verbally from the sellers of a property. The agent did not obtain a copy of the current property tax bill.
- The agent also obtained the size of a workshop verbally from the sellers of a property. The agent did not verify the size of the workshop either directly or through a third-party professional measurement service.
- The agent proceeded to advertise the property on the local board listing service with the incorrect tax amount and workshop size.
- The property subsequently sold and prior to completion of the transaction it was discovered that the taxes were incorrect and were double the amount advertised. It turns out the amount provided by the seller was an interim amount and not the final tax amount for the previous year. It was also discovered that the workshop was significantly smaller than advertised.
The discipline panel found that the seller’s agent failed to take reasonable steps to verify the property taxes and workshop size and therefore advertised inaccurate information about the property. The panel found a breach of s. 5 and s. 38 of the REBBA Code of Ethics and ordered a fine of $8,000, along with a requirement to complete an educational course.
What agents need to know
RECO shares relevant cases to provide registrants with important takeaways that can be incorporated into everyday practice.
- Agents are expected to take reasonable steps to verify information provided by sellers, rather than relying solely on their assurances. To advertise an accurate tax figure, agents should obtain a copy of the previous year’s full-year tax bill issued by the municipality. Or, if they choose to utilize the interim tax bill, they must clearly indicate that the amount advertised is the interim amount. If the seller cannot provide it, municipalities will, sometimes for a fee, provide the most current tax bill. It’s also important to keep a record of what was relied upon for verifying the accuracy of the information.
- For the measurement of structures on the property, including a home or outbuildings, it is a leading practice for agents to engage the services of a qualified measurement service provider and use that information as the source of the representation.
- If there is any uncertainty about the accuracy of property information, it’s critical the agent make that clear in any advertisement and to prospective buyers before they make an offer. Agents have an obligation to verify the facts are correct and must not use an estimate or disclaimer to relinquish this obligation.
Keeping these takeaways in mind can help registrants avoid similar issues.
RECO new brand launching soon
For the past 18 months, RECO has been exploring how to more effectively communicate our role and our work with both registrants and consumers. It has been an important priority of RECO’s strategic and business plans to raise awareness and provide greater clarity on our work as a regulator and as a consumer protection organization.
In fall 2023, we engaged independent branding experts to recommend the appropriate positioning, narrative, and logo to support our brand. This included seeking valuable input from industry stakeholders, consumers, board members, and employees – which underlined the need for RECO to be more clearly defined as a regulator with a consumer protection focus.
Following the initial development of the new brand, we also engaged both consumers and registrants – about 2,000 across Ontario – to participate in a survey to provide feedback and insights on the proposed brand changes. From there, we refined our positioning and visual identity based on the input.
Look out for our new look later this month that better explains and reflects the work we do as a consumer protection organization. RECO’s mandate has not changed, but how we present and talk about our work is changing soon. RECO will launch a new logo, an updated plain language mission and vision, and an updated website. Stay tuned.
RECO’s service standards
RECO is committed to ensuring that the public and registrants receive timely and effective assistance. Each quarter, RECO reports on a set of service standards and benchmarks related to application and complaint processing, as well as response times when contacting RECO by phone. Check out our most recent report on how RECO is performing against its targets on RECO’s website.
Updated email address
Please note that this email address has been updated from RECOcommunications@reco.on.ca to RECOStakeholderRelations@reco.on.ca. Kindly update your records and direct any future correspondence to the new address.
