British Columbia

Government appoints 9 people to B.C. Real Estate Council

The Real Estate Council of B.C. has nine new "public-interest members" appointed by the provincial government.

Formerly self-regulating body now under government control

Close up of a home for sale sign.
Real Estate Council of British Columbia’s mandate is to enforce the licensing and licensee conduct requirements of the Real Estate Services Act. (Robson Fletcher/CBC)

The Real Estate Council of B.C. has nine new "public-interest members" chosen by the provincial government.

The new appointments, announced Wednesday, are the first since Premier Christy Clark announced the council would no longer have the right to self-regulate the province's real estate industry.

The council will become one of several real estate boards that will be overseen by the Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate, which will be report to superintendent of real estate Mike Noseworthy beginning on October 17.

Several of the people appointed to the council do not work in the real estate sector. The complete group is as follows:

  • Robert Holmes (Chair), a lawyer with Holmes & King and former president of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association
  • John Daly, former Global B.C. reporter
  • Rob Gialloreto, president and CEO of Consumer Protection B.C.
  • Sandra Heath, president of consulting firm HTD Inc.
  • Gerald Martin, managing broker of B.C. Farm and Ranch Realty Corp. and council member from 2006-12
  • Elana Mignosa, CFO for British Columbia Clinical and Support Services, and council member since 2015
  • Sukh Sidhu, real estate agent with RE/MAX Little Oak Realty
  • W. Tom Styffe, construction-project management expert
  • Maili Wong, VP with CIBC Wood Gundy 

The province says it will appoint a further seven people. The council is responsible for licensing, investigating complaints, enforcing rules and disciplining licensees found to be breaching their obligations.