Terms of Service

Valleylistings.ca (herein referred to as “the website”) is a service provided by RE/MAX Banner Real Estate. RE/MAX Banner Real Estate is a real estate brokerage regulated by the Nova Scotia Real Estate Commission (NSREC). By registering for access to this site you agree to the following terms and conditions.

• Overview of service provided

ValleyListings.ca allows you to search every active property on the Annapolis Valley MLS®. Provided free of charge by RE/MAX Banner Real Estate.

Privacy

RE/MAX Banner Real Estate recognizes and respects the privacy expectations of todays consumers and the requirements of applicable federal law. We believe that making you aware of how we use your personal information and to whom it is disclosed, will form the basis of a relationship of trust between your real estate agent and our company and the public that we serve. The collection, use and retention of personal information requires your informed consent. Your information will never be published, distributed or sold. RE/MAX Banner Real Estate reserves the right to change this privacy statement from time to time as required by applicable privacy legislation.

No Agency Relationship

By agreeing to these terms of service you acknowledge that any information contiained on this website does not constitute advice provided by RE/MAX Banner Real Estate. Furthermore, no agency or client relationship is being created by agreeing to these terms of service, the definitions of such being described in the “Working With a Realtor” section below. You may agree to become a client of RE/MAXBanner Real Estate only through written consent after consultation with a licensed agent.

Liability and Warranty Disclaimer

The listing data on this website is provided by the Annapolis Valley Real Estate Board. All information displayed is believed to be accurate but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified. RE/MAX Banner Real Estate and the Annapolis Valley Real Estate Board make no warranties or representations of any kind. RE/MAX Banner Real Estate will assume no direct, incidental, consequential, indirect or punitive damages to any person or entity as a result of information found on this website. Everything on this site is provided “as-is” without warranty of any kind including all implied warranties and conditions of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title and non-infringement.

Trademarks

REALTOR®, REALTORS® and the REALTOR® logo are certification marks owned by REALTOR® Canada Inc., a corporation jointly owned by the National Association of REALTORS® and The Canadian Real Estate Association. The REALTOR® trade marks are used to identify real estate services provided by brokers and salespersons who are members of CREA and who accept and respect a strict Code of Ethics, and are required to meet consistent professional standards of business practice which is the consumer’s assurance of integrity.

MLS®, Multiple Listing Service®, and the associated logos are all registered certification marks owned by CREA and are used to identify real estate services provided by brokers and salespersons who are members of CREA.

Other trade marks used on the CREA web sites may be owned by real estate boards and other third parties. Nothing contained on this site gives any user the right or license to use any trade mark displayed on this site without the express permission of the owner.

Working with a REALTOR®

A Customer Relationship

You may choose to use the services of a Industry Member without any kind of agency relationship. This might occur, for example, when the seller’s representative is showing you a property. In this relationship, the Industry Member has a legal and ethical duty to provide you with accurate and honest answers to questions and can provide you with all of the following services:

• explain real estate terms and practices
• provide and explain forms used
• identify and estimate costs involved in a transaction
• prepare offers or counter offers at your direction
• present all offers promptly

An Industry Member who is not representing you cannot:

• recommend or suggest a price other than that given by the seller
• negotiate on your behalf
• inform you of the client’s top/bottom line
• disclose any confidential information about the client unless specifically authorized to do so

You should not provide an Industry Member who is not your representative with any information that you would not provide directly to the other party.

A Client Relationship

Real Estate Industry Members work within a legal relationship called agency. The agency relationship exists between you, the client/principal, and the brokerage with whom the Industry Member representing you is licensed. The essence of the agency relationship is that the brokerage has the authority to represent you in dealings with others. Brokerages are legally obligated to protect and promote your interests as if they were their own. Your Industry Member has the following duties:

• to protect and promote your negotiating position at all times, and disclose all known facts to you which may affect or influence your decision (undivided loyalty)
• to obey all your lawful instructions
• to keep your confidences
• to exercise reasonable care and skill in performing all assigned duties
• to account for all money and property placed in their possession while acting on your behalf

Your Industry Member will also:

• explain real estate terms and practices
• provide and explain forms used
• identify and estimate costs involved in a transaction
• negotiate on your behalf
• prepare offers or counter offers at your direction
• present all offers promptly

Transaction Brokerage/Facilitation

Transaction Brokerage/Facilitation occurs when a real estate brokerage or designated agent is representing both the buyer and the seller as clients in the same transaction. Because the brokerage or designated agent has promised a duty of confidentiality, loyalty and full disclosure to both clients simultaneously, it is necessary, if both clients consent, to limit these duties in this situation.The Industry Member will, for both the buyer and seller:

• explain real estate terms and practices
• provide and explain forms used
• identify and estimate costs involved in a transaction
• prepare offers or counter offers at your direction
• present all offers promptly

Under this relationship, the Industry Member cannot:

• recommend or suggest a price other than that given by the seller
• recommend to the buyer what they should offer
• negotiate on either parties behalf
• inform either party of the other’s top/bottom line
• disclose any confidential information about the other party unless specifically authorized to do so

The Two Agency Models

There are two different agency models practiced by brokerages in Nova Scotia: Common Law Agency and Designated Agency. The Industry Member reviewing this brochure with you will indicate which model their brokerage uses.

Common Law Agency

Under this model, all Industry Members working for the brokerage have an agency relationship with the seller, which means that they all legally represent the seller under the common law. If you, as a buyer, have entered into a relationship with an Industry Member working with this brokerage as a client, and are interested in negotiating on a property offered for sale by this brokerage, you would normally enter into a transaction brokerage relationship, as described in this brochure. If you have not had a previous relationship with an Industry Member of this brokerage, you would be provided services as a customer as described in this brochure.

Designated Agency

This model allows for a seller to be represented by a specific Industry Member, rather than the whole brokerage. This means that all Industry Members at the brokerage do not represent every seller listed with the brokerage. This model also allows a buyer to be represented by their own Industry Member in any negotiations that they may do, regardless of whether the property they are interested in is listed with that brokerage or another one. This is called designated agency because the brokerage designates that the Industry Members represent specific buyers or sellers. Should the same Industry Member happen to represent both a buyer and seller that end up wanting to negotiate, then that Industry Member would normally act as a transaction facilitator for the purposes of the real estate transaction.In both situations described above where transaction brokerage is offered, and either the buyer or seller insist on full representation, they would have to get representation from another brokerage in the case of the Common Law model or from another Designated Agent at their brokerage in the case of the Designated Agency model. They also have the option of having their lawyer represent them.

Definitions

The Brokerage (Agent) is the real estate company under which the individual Salesperson or Associate Broker is licensed.

The client/principal is someone who has engaged a Brokerage in an agency relationship to act for, and on their behalf, either to buy or sell real estate.

The customer is a person who has not engaged a Brokerage to act for, and on their behalf, either to buy or sell real estate.

Industry Member refers a person who is licensed under the Real Estate Trading Act to trade in real estate.

Mandate

The Nova Scotia Real Estate Commission’s mandate is to ensure consumer confidence by establishing standards for applicants and Industry Members in the real estate industry, which will promote higher standards of professionalism, competence, and integrity.

Privacy

Industry Members recognize and respect the privacy expectations of today’s consumers and the requirements of applicable federal law. Industry Members believe that making you aware of how your personal information will be used and to whom it is disclosed will form the basis of a relationship of trust between you and your Industry Members. Your informed consent is required for the collection, use and retention of personal information.

Acknowledgement

By using this website, you acknowledge having received and read the brochure Working with an Industry Member and have obtained satisfactory answers to any questions that it raised. You knowledge understanding the various types of relationships that may occur between yourself and an Industry Member.