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The only thing hotter than B.C. housing prices is the debate over them and what can be done.

The recent independent report on the state of the real estate industry’s self-regulation was largely good in my opinion. A number of their recommendations absolutely should be implemented, but some aspects I disagree with wholeheartedly.

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As an industry insider, I want to respond. I especially want to explain why the limited dual agency — where one real estate agent acts for both the buyer and seller — is not getting full and fair treatment. The argument of the Christy Clark administration, which is endlessly recycled by often-sensationalist media, is that dual agencies and so-called “shadow flipping” are at the root of agency misconduct and that banning them will help ease housing cost inflation. This is a flawed notion and reflects a limited understanding of how things work on the ground.

Essentially, “shadow flipping” is when a property is sold under value because it was not properly marketed, which allows the buyer (and presumably the seller’s unscrupulous real estate agent) to maximize profit by immediately turning around and selling it at a fair market value plus inflation. The inflation part is really the key issue here. The fact is, a sale price that was fair at the time of confirmation is already under market value by the time of closing, an average time span of two to four months. This is a reality of our market and does not represent a malicious underselling of the property.