The Competition Bureau is investigating the Association professionnelle des courtiers immobiliers du Québec (APCIQ) and its subsidiary Société Centris. The Bureau must determine whether the platform reserved for brokers only and those who sell with a broker prevents free competition.
The Competition Bureau has obtained a court order to advance its investigation. The APCIQ states that it is working with the Bureau to answer its questions.
“We’ve had discussions for several months already”, maintains in an interview with The Press Marc Lacasse, Chairman of the APCIQ Board of Directors.
The Bureau must understand the legislation in Quebec, which is different from that of other Canadian provinces, he raises.
Centris is an essential platform for buyers and sellers, because the majority of properties for sale in Quebec can be found there. Only sellers who have a brokerage contract with a real estate broker can see their property displayed on Centris. This is also one of the first selling points of brokers to win a contract with a client.
The APCIQ manages Société Centris, which is a collaboration system between agencies and brokers containing data on real estate transactions in Quebec. Quebec real estate brokers use this collaboration system as part of their brokerage services and the real estate data is reserved for brokers and certain certified appraisers.
“Our practices are consistent”
Is the APCIQ abusing its dominant position in the market? Has she behaved contrary to the provisions of the competition law ? Are its restrictive business practices also violating it? This is what the Bureau will determine.
The survey also seeks to know whether these two situations prevent the development of innovative online brokerage services in Quebec.
“The Bureau’s investigation is ongoing and no findings have been made as to possible wrongdoing at this time,” said the Competition Bureau’s statement released Monday.
“We claim that our practices are completely compliant and we hope that the Competition Bureau will come to this conclusion,” says Marc Lacasse, of the APCIQ.
“When you arrive at the APCIQ, you have specific courses on competition law and our boards often start with a statement on that. We are very aware of the law. So, there is no one who would want to put themselves at risk of circumventing this law,” explains Marc Lacasse.
The Supreme Court of Canada ruled in Ontario
In Ontario, the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) restricted the use and disclosure of certain material data contained in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) platform to real estate brokers and consumers.
In 2016, after five years of investigation, the Competition Tribunal concluded that TREB had abused its dominant position by controlling “the market for residential real estate services based on the MLS system because of its control over the MLS system, a key element in the provision of residential real estate services”, indicates the site of the government of Canada.
TREB went all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, which denied its appeal in 2018.
The stakes of free competition are not new
For a fee paid to the APCIQ, chartered appraisers also have access to Centris data when they are used to draw up valuation deeds – whether to establish the market value of a property, its value during a divorce or prepare property assessment rolls.
In the past, a Quebec appraisal firm had its access to Centris withdrawn because it used the data to provide DuProprio clients, who sell without a real estate broker, with a price range and not an exact appraisal.
This act of consultation and not of evaluation is not authorized by the Organisme d’autoréglementation du courtage immobilier (OACIQ). The assessment firm had to abandon the idea of contesting the OACIQ’s decision in court because of the legal costs that were too high to fight against the organization.