Mortgage Broker Industry Council Update

A message from your Chair, Gord Appel

On December 1, 2020, Gord Appel was appointed by the other Mortgage Broker Industry Council members to be its first Chair. Mr. Appel formerly served as the Alberta Mortgage Broker Association (AMBA) president and brings 16 years of experience in the mortgage industry. He is currently a managing partner at Axiom Mortgage Solutions.

The Mortgage Broker Industry Council has been hard at work these past five months. Please read on to see what we’ve been working on and learn about some of the important upcoming engagement opportunities.

Education Divestment

When the Real Estate Amendment Act 2020 came into force on December 1, 2020, it stated that licensing education must be divested from RECA by December 1, 2022. We are collaborating with the other Industry Councils to ensure we take a consistent approach, which includes creating core competencies for mortgage industry professionals and education requirements that we’ll impart to approved third-party providers. We will consult with mortgage industry stakeholders on competencies and education outcomes in the near future. Please keep an eye on your inboxes so you can make your voice heard. This initiative is a priority for us in the coming months and I hope to share more information with you all soon.

At the Industry Council table

At our next Industry Council meeting we will continue to work on education divestment. We will also be discussing what we believe the criteria for mortgage licensees wanting to stand for election (to the Industry Council) should be, and passing our thoughts on to the Board of Directors as they develop the election Bylaws.

We will also continue our discussion of the increase in condition-free offers mortgage licensees are seeing come across their desks lately. I’m happy to report that upon hearing from licensees that it was a growing concern, the Industry Council directed RECA Administration to prepare communications for consumers about the risks of condition-free offers, and within days a consumer alert was published and a digital marketing campaign was launched. I look forward to taking further proactive action on consumer protection when the Industry Council becomes aware of issues. So let us know if you see anything concerning in your day-to-day business that licensees or consumers would benefit from knowing.

Engagement Opportunities

On May 27, the Industry Council will be hosting an online engagement session via Zoom and I encourage you to register to attend. I will be providing an explanation of how we operate within RECA’s new governance structure, an update on our recent activities, and our priorities for the coming months. This session is a great opportunity to meet your Industry Council and ask us questions.

If you can’t make the session, you can reach us at: MortgageIC@reca.ab.ca and ask us a question we’ll address in the session. The session will be posted to RECA’s website after the fact.

We want to hear from you! In the next couple of months, watch for information about a Broker Forum and other informal groups to discuss the latest regulatory issues we are seeing in the mortgage industry. All managing brokers or broker delegates that are interested in attending these meetings, please email MortgageIC@reca.ab.ca.

Take some time to provide feedback through the Strategic Planning form on RECA’s website. We will use the feedback gathered from the form, and from the other engagement opportunities, to set the priorities for us as an Industry Council, and to help inform the strategic planning process of RECA’s Board of Directors. I strongly encourage you to participate in any and all engagement sessions and provide your feedback to ensure the mortgage trends and issues you see in your day-to-day business are captured. I look forward to hosting you all on May 27 and learning more about how our Industry Council can work to serve you, our industry, and the public interest.