BCFSA Becomes Real Estate Regulator on August 1: What You Need to Know
Shaheed Devji
BCREA
On August 1, 2021, the Real Estate Council of BC (RECBC) and the Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate (OSRE) will be integrated into the BC Financial Services Authority (BCFSA), resulting in one single regulator for real estate in BC. As a result, RECBC and OSRE will no longer exist. There will be no changes to what the BC Real Estate Association (BCREA) and the province’s real estate boards do.
This change is a result of a key recommendation from the Expert Panel on Money Laundering report released in May 2019 and – according to BCFSA – is intended to centralize expertise and provide strengthened consumer protection through a modern, effective, and efficient regulatory framework.
BCFSA intends for there to be little to no disruption to services during the transition period, which begins on August 1. RECBC and OSRE staff will be integrated into BCFSA, resources from the RECBC website will be migrated to an updated BCFSA website, and phone numbers and email addresses will be redirected to BCFSA.
Three things REALTORS® can do to prepare for the regulatory change
1. Watch BCREA’s regulatory update video
In this video, BCREA VP Government Relations Trevor Hargreaves gives an overview of the upcoming changes, BCREA’s advocacy work to date and how we can support you during the shift.
2. Read the Integration Update from RECBC’s July 2021 Report from Council
RECBC has published its July 2021 Report from Council, which includes an Integration Update exploring several common questions that might arise as a result of the regulatory change.
As the RECBC website will cease to exist after July 31, this link may be updated on August 1 to direct to the new BCFSA website. Keep an eye on the BCREA website for updates.
3. Review resources from BCREA’s Managing Broker Community of Practice
On July 28, 2021, members of RECBC and OSRE who will be transitioning to senior leadership roles within BCFSA August 1 presented at BCREA’s Managing Broker Community of Practice. During the presentation, guests Erin Seeley, Michael Noseworthy and David Avren highlighted some of the key changes and answered questions from attendees.
(REALTOR Link® login required)
Support for REALTORS® through regulatory transition
Realtors should visit the new BCFSA website at www.bcfsa.ca, which will be published on August 1 and will include real estate resources previously housed on the RECBC website. If you have additional questions related to this regulatory change, feel free to contact the new regulator, BCFSA, directly.
BCREA will also be updating our resources, including Standard Forms and professional development courses with updated information and new links as soon as possible, prioritizing changes with the most impact on daily real estate practice. Given this is a manual process, we appreciate your patience.
Additionally, links on the main pages of our website will be changed as appropriate and any new publications we produce, such as blog posts, reports, etc., will include relevant new links. We do not plan to change links in all previous blog posts. We appreciate your understanding.
If you have questions or comments about how these changes affect you, please contact the BCREA Government Relations team at [email protected]. You can also reach out to BCREA VP Government Relations Trevor Hargreaves by emailing [email protected] or calling 236.333.4572.
To subscribe to receive BCREA publications such as this one, or to update your email address or current subscriptions, click here.
Copyright © 2021 British Columbia Real Estate Association