Being a real estate broker is more than just my job or career, it is a lifestyle. It is what my team and I are known for wherever we go and what we are proud of. It makes us who we are and frankly, I am a bit fed up of reading articles about the very few brokers who work outside of the rules. It seems as though the last few months have been filled with headlines about real estate brokers doing things wrong, or unethically. It seems the truth is, negativity sells papers and that’s what I believe the newspapers have been making money off for the last couple of months off the backs of those who work hard to have built a reputation of trust and confidence with their clients.
First of all, to put things into context, there is roughly 15,000 real estate brokers in the province of quebec, That means if you’ve heard a few names in the paper recently, even if one hundred names came out, it would represent 0.6% of the professionals who hold a license to practice real estate in Quebec. So why is so much otis being put on those making mistakes when the vast majority of real estate brokers are trustworthy, and earn their name through years of hard work? Do we, for some reason, believe that leaving a real estate transaction in the hands of the public would be better? Because the population of Quebec is now over 8,000,00 people, the same 100 bad apples we may have in the real estate industry equates to 48,000 crooks and thieves that you might run into during a transaction on the streets.
Secondly, It is important to note that every single industry and order in the province has members that tarnish the names of those who do nothing wrong. Whether we are talking about notaries, realtors, engineers, politicians or doctors, how many other industries have leaders that have made mistakes, have hit the headlines and have broken the trust of the public before… So why are certain newspapers in our province targeting and setting prejudice on realtors these past few months?
It is extremely important to note that I do not condone the activities of other real estate brokers and that I do agree what some of them have done is a bannable offense, but what about the real estate brokers such as myself, my team and other members of my order whom get home late every night to help our clients? Take countless calls, negotiate in good faith and fairly with all parties.. Why are we stuck answering questions because of the headlines in recent months? Everyone makes mistakes… Those who make mistakes that cost others dearly should be punished, there is no question about that… but everyone, in every industry does make mistakes.. that’s why they are re-doing the ile-aux-tourtes bridge right now and why the prevous president in the US was indicted. So why are realtors expected to be perfect?
The truth is, and always will be, that the media makes money from dramatizing situations, and although in this case, the brokers deserve the punishments that were brought to them, It is also important not to set the same fate for all other real estate brokers in the industry. Others may be afraid to stand up and say it but I am proud to be a real estate broker in Quebec, I am not perfect, and no one is … but let’s focus on the good of society instead of trying to tarnish names repeatedly.
