Why We Do What We Do
| July 26, 2012
The Real Estate Council of Alberta (RECA) has served as the governing body for Alberta’s real estate industry professionals since June 1996. Though as a governing body there has been some evolution in those 16 years, the fundamental reason why RECA does what it does, has not changed.
But what exactly is that reason? Why does RECA do what it does?
To put it simply, RECA’s “why” goes to ensuring there is a safe environment where the parties involved in a real estate transaction have confidence that they will be treated fairly and professionally and the outcome achieved will be positive for everybody.
Having a regulated environment for real estate industry professionals protects consumers and promotes trust and confidence in the real estate industry which, in turn, promotes the interests of the industry and improves the relative success of individual industry professionals.
Alberta’s almost 15,000 industry professionals are in the unique position to help people make what are likely the biggest financial decisions of their lives. These professionals have the education necessary, the training they need and clear rules and professional standards to follow that help ensure a safe environment for consumers to conduct their real estate transactions – one that understands their needs, respects their confidences and maintains standards that are for the benefit of the community.
Society seeks both the preservation of individual freedoms and the prevention of harm. In civil society, to achieve these goals, regulation is necessary and compliance with the rule of law and adherence to professional standards is fundamental. However, regulators, RECA included, often find themselves between these competing goals.
RECA’s approach to this challenge is to seek a regulatory balance in the fulfillment of its legislative mandate. This regulatory balance takes into account a number of elements: Alberta’s culture, norms and values; the importance of consumer choice; the desire of real estate professionals and brokerages to provide services through business models of their choice; and, the need for a real estate industry that has the trust and confidence of consumers.
Accountability, transparency, professionalism, appropriate industry standards and a solid educational foundation – those are precisely what a regulated industry can offer to consumers – and they are the reasons why RECA does what it does.
What is your “why” statement?
