Overview
- A consent agreement announced Oct. 15 requires the Quebec Professional Association of Real Estate Brokers and Société Centris to provide members with automated data feeds that include sale prices, listing history and property characteristics.
- The Competition Bureau said the association’s prior rules that blocked feeds and limited use of data amounted to abuse of dominance and likely slowed innovation and competition in brokerage services.
- The data feeds will allow brokerages to offer client-facing services through secure virtual office websites (VOWs) and other agency platforms, where clients can view sold-property data and listing details.
- QPAREB has committed to implement the changes over the next 12 months using password-protected channels and access controls designed to comply with Quebec’s stricter privacy laws.
- The settlement builds on past rulings in the TRREB dispute, is registered with the Competition Tribunal for 10 years, and could let brokers develop valuation, comparison and visualization tools that give consumers more market information.