RECA has chosen to enact a rule change effective October 2019 that will prohibit teams (which by any logical extension will also include individual real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and mortgage teams) from using words like Agency, Associates, Brokerage, Brokers, Company, Corporation, Corp., Inc., Ltd., LLC, LLP, Mortgages, Mortgage, Properties, Property, Real Estate, and Realty in our team names. They have also chosen to mandate that brokerage names (or logos) must be similar in size or larger than other identifiers, and immediately adjacent to other identifiers in advertising. Finally, for those who haven't used their own names in the names of  their teams (or companies), we will be mandated to also incorporate a "licensed individuals name" on ALL advertising. 

What this means, is that a great number of teams are going to have to completely re-brand themselves (a large expense of money and time); we will not actually be able to describe what it is that we do in our company names; we will do as much advertising of our brokerages as ourselves (while I appreciate our brokerage, I'm not advertising to push potential clients to other agents there instead of to my own business); and we will be impacted in how our teams are viewed, particularly when we have intentionally branded without an individual's name in the title so that agents can have ownership of the brand and not be seen as a "minion". 

This is an over-correction by RECA. This will not change how buyers and sellers are treated in their real estate transactions. Clients are generally not hiring a brokerage - they are hiring an agent or hiring a team. As agents, our hands are being tied and time being tied-up in this, instead of RECA either enforcing the current guidelines and dealing with unethical behaviour or focusing on issues that truly will have an impact on client experience and, with that, the reputation of the industry as a whole. 

The barriers to entry in our industry are low. Agents are not set up for success in their day-to-day activities. There is not enough skill training or focus on creating a culture that inspires agents to collectively be better. If RECA would like to focus on those issues, by all means, do so. This particular action however, to the extent that they have indicated it will be rolled out, is taking things too far.

I hesitate to get involved in this and make our team or our brokerage a target for RECA, but I cannot stand by and let this happen. I hope you will stand with me and force RECA to recall these new rules in favour of something reasonable.