Edit: 57 minutes after this blog was published, OREA took a stand and called on all REALTORS to stop hosting open houses. Better late than never. Thank you.
It’s March 21, 2020. We’re in the midst of an unprecedented pandemic. The Toronto and Ontario Public Health officials have clearly recommended: “staying home and only going out for food, or medicine, or other important household needs.”
There are 466 open houses scheduled for this weekend in the GTA. This is simply unacceptable.
The various levels of organized real estate are not taking action. The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board, the Ontario Real Estate Association, the Canadian Real Estate Association, the Real Estate Council of Ontario – they are all refusing to take a stand against open houses. They have demonstrated grossly inadequate leadership to their members at a critical time – and don’t seem to recognize their shared responsibility to protect the public.
Shame on you. Shame on all of you.
While many agents and brokerages have done the responsible thing and instituted policies banning open houses, many have not.
Here’s a list of the agents hosting open houses this weekend.
Not sure what to do with your time right now? Call them. Tell them this isn’t OK.
There are Sellers who need to sell their homes – we understand that. But there are plenty of ways to market a home that don’t involve encouraging people to gather.
If you’re a Seller and allowing an open house in your home this weekend: shame on you too.
We are experiencing an unprecedented health and economic crisis – our only hope of coming out of this is to collectively do the right thing. Starting now.
No more open houses.
