After a seven-year legal battle, the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) lost their case with the Supreme Court, and home sale prices will now be released as public record in the near future. At The Chris Keleher Team, we believe that with so much information being readily available to consumers in this day and age, transparency regarding home prices should be no different.
Information about home sale prices will be made available online, as will information about property market trends in specific neighbourhoods and information about the history of a home for improved buyer awareness. Up to this point, those buying real estate would typically turn to brokers and real estate agents with access to the Multiple Listing Service database, but this recent ruling may change how homebuyers seek and find critical sales information.
While we believe that the public should have easy access to data and information about homes listed on the market, TREB has fought to maintain the confidentiality of this information since 2011 out of an interest in protecting consumer privacy. That same year, the Competition Bureau challenged TREB’s desire to keep this information in the hands of real estate professionals only, claiming that it impedes digital innovation and market competition.
At first, this data may only be available through password-protected sites, but we believe complete transparency without any type of data protection will occur in the near future. How does this recent ruling affect those buying real estate and the market as a whole? We would be happy to tell you more and what this means for your next home purchase, so reach out to us today!
