2. Representation
2.1 Mandatory statements – broker
2.2 Mandatory statements – agency
2.3 Use of the OACIQ logo
2.4 Affiliations, professional title, education and diplomas
2.5 Corporate clubs
2.6 Number of years of experience
2.7 Specialist titles
2.8 Number of completed transactions
2.9 Comparative advertising
2.1 Mandatory statements – broker1
The following statements must appear in any advertising, client solicitation or representation related to the real estate brokerage practice (business cards, signs, brochures, radio, television, emails, Internet, including social networks, promotional articles, etc.), except periodicals for which there are specific statements.
- The name of the broker as it appears on the licence;
- One or more of the following designations, identifying the fields in which the broker is authorized to practice*:
- Real estate broker
- Residential real estate broker
- Commercial real estate broker
- The statement “certified” if the person meets all the requirements to be an agency executive officer, except the requirement of completing the training Agency executive officer, more than a director (optional);
- The statement “certified AEO” if the person meets all the requirements to be an agency executive officer and completed the training Agency executive officer, more than a director or successfully completed the agency executive officer’s certification examination (optional);
- For a broker acting on behalf of an agency, the agency name, followed by one of the following designations used by the agency to identify the licence held.* (See the section Mandatory statements – agency)
Statements in periodicals
The following statements must specifically appear in advertisements in periodicals (newspapers, magazines).
- The name of the broker as it appears on the licence;
- One of the following designations, identifying the licence held by the broker.* The statements are the same, but the following abbreviations may be used:
- Real estate broker (or the following abbreviation: R.E. Bkr);
- Residential real estate broker (or the following abbreviation: Res. R.E. Bkr);
- Commercial real estate broker (or the following abbreviation: Comm. R.E. Bkr);
- For a broker acting for an agency, the name of the agency.
* The choice of designation used to identify the broker and agency licence should be made together by the broker and the executive officer of the agency for which he acts.
Example :
Mandatory minimum statements required (two options) – to be included in any kind of advertising, except periodicals (see below).
2.2 Mandatory statements – agency2
The following statements must appear in any advertising, client solicitation or representation related to the real estate brokerage practice (business cards, signs, brochures, radio, television, emails, Internet, including social networks, promotional articles, etc.), except periodicals for which there are specific statements.
- The name of the agency as it appears on the licence;
- One or more of the following designations, identifying the licence held by the agency:
- Real estate agency
- Residential real estate agency
- Commercial real estate agency
Statements in periodicals
The following statements must specifically appear in advertisements in periodicals (newspapers, magazines).
- The name of the agency as it appears on the licence;
- One or more of the following designations identifying the licence held by the agency:
- Real estate agency (or the following abbreviation: R.E. Agcy);
- Residential real estate agency (or the following abbreviation: Res. R.E. Agcy);
- Commercial real estate agency (or the following abbreviation: Comm. R.E. Agcy).
Broker operating within a business corporation
When a broker operates within a business corporation, representations and advertising must be made by this corporation. The broker must indicate his last name and first name, type of licence held, the agency name and the name of this corporation. The broker may omit to indicate his first and last names and the type of licence held if, following the name of the corporation, he adds the words “business corporation owned by a real estate broker,” if applicable.
2 Section 115 of the Regulation respecting brokerage requirements, professional conduct of brokers and advertising
2.3 Use of the OACIQ logo
Licensees may use the OACIQ logo. It is to their advantage to highlight the fact that they hold a licence issued by the OACIQ, since they are supervised by the OACIQ and consumers who deal with them benefit from the protections provided by the Real Estate Brokerage Act.
That being said, the OACIQ logo is a registered trademark, and its use must comply with certain guidelines.
The OACIQ has established graphic standards for the use of its logo. These standards must be respected to ensure the consistency of the OACIQ's visual identification.
When the OACIQ logo is placed near another logo, like the one of the agency, the latter must be predominant.
The OACIQ logo is available for download in several versions. Click here to download them.
Security zone
The logo must be surrounded by minimal space at all times. This is to increase its visual impact and ensure that it is clearly recognized in all contexts.
The width of the door should be used to define the minimum clearance above, below and on each side. No other visual element should encroach on the security zone: no text, image, shape or texture.
This rule must apply in all circumstances, regardless of the medium, format or version used.
Prohibited uses
To maintain a strong and consistent brand image, the logo cannot be altered.
The logo cannot be changed under any circumstances, even if the change seems minor.
The following are examples of manipulations that compromise the integrity of the logo:
- Changing its colours
- Stretching or tilting it
- Changing its orientation
- Adding an effect (texture, outline, shadow, etc.)
- Making it transparent
Also, the OACIQ logo cannot appear on forms that are not published by the OACIQ.
2.4 Affiliations, professional title, education and diplomas
For the purpose of promoting his services, a licensee may indicate that he is a member of an association, holds a professional title or diploma and has completed a training course, such as his Mandatory Continuing Education Program (MCEP) courses. He must also have met all the requirements to be eligible to advertise himself in this way and be able to show that this information is accurate.
The licensee must also consult with his agency executive officer prior to any publication, whether for advertising the list of training courses he completed or presenting other advertising material.
2.5 Corporate clubs
A number of agencies and agency networks (franchisers) award “prizes” or honorific titles to their licensees .
In addition to being numerous, the rules for granting these various titles vary from one agency or banner to another.
Therefore, using these titles to promote a licensee's services is permitted as long as the criteria for awarding them are available upon request, and it is indicated where to obtain them in the advertising tool that lists these titles. The year the prize or title was awarded must also be indicated.
Examples :
“100% Club – 20XX”
The average consumer can reasonably have a doubt about the meaning of this expression. For example, “100%” could mean that this individual has successfully concluded 100% of the listings he took in a given period (even if the period is not indicated). It could also be interpreted as a guarantee of satisfaction: “100 % of clients have declared themselves satisfied with this person’s services.” For this statement to be acceptable, the criteria for membership in this club will have to be spelled out in the ad, otherwise it must be omitted.
“Executive Club – 20XX”
The lack of details can create confusion in the average consumer’s mind. Are members of the “Executive Club” among the company’s decision makers? Do they have special skills that warrant the addition of this statement? For this statement to be acceptable, the ad will have to specify where to find the criteria for membership in this club.
2.6 Number of years of experience
The number of years of experience acquired as a licensee may be indicated in the advertising tools used as long as the information is accurate and can be demonstrated.
However, the total number of years of experience of licensees forming a team or in an agency cannot be used.
2.7 Specialist titles
No regulation has been adopted by the OACIQ to determine specialist titles that could be used by licensees.3 It is therefore prohibited to use specialist titles, such as residential or commercial brokerage specialist, rental property sales specialist, co-ownership specialist, etc., which falsely suggest that the broker holds a specialist title.
3 Section 48 of the Real Estate Brokerage Act
2.8 Number of completed transactions
Licensees may advertise the number of transactions completed in a given period as long as the information is verifiable and includes enough detail not to mislead the public. This type of publicity should always specify:
- The territory concerned and the data corresponding to transactions carried out in the region in which the advertising is done;
- The period during which the number of transactions was made;
- The source of information.
IMPORTANT
A transaction can be counted only once. An accepted promise to purchase followed by a notarized deed of sale counts only as one transaction.
2.9 Comparative advertising
Comparative advertising is an ad in which agencies or brokers or even a group of agencies (e.g. a network of franchisees) compare their performance to that of other agencies, brokers, or groups of agencies.
Although this type of advertising is not prohibited, it must be used with the utmost caution. This requires providing all the necessary details to understand the context of the comparison, including the source of the data.
The information provided must of course be strictly accurate and the ad must not create any confusion as to what is being compared, including the period (month and year) and the territory concerned.
Data must not be presented in order to highlight exaggerated performance or to harm a colleague.
Thus advertising stating that brokers are “the best” without any other detail, would be considered non-compliant.
Exemples :
“No.1 seller from January”
Is this person the number one seller in Québec, in their franchisee network, their branch? Unless it is clarified and verifiable information is given, this statement cannot be used.
“5th top seller in Québec”
The notion of “top seller” is hard to pin down. In addition, what does the 5th top seller statement refer to? Has the person been top seller for 10 years or the current year? Unless it is clarified and verifiable information is given, this statement cannot be used.
