Rules · Real estate · RECO
Real estate teams and the brokerage name
A team can build its own brand. It cannot hide the brokerage behind it.
The rule
Ontario’s real estate rules changed on December 1, 2023, when the Trust in Real Estate Services Act, 2002 and its new regulations came into force. The Real Estate Council of Ontario, RECO, enforces them. Its bulletins on advertising set the frame for every team brand.
The first rule is the one teams break most. All advertising must name the brokerage, clearly and prominently. That covers agents working in teams, not only the brokerage itself. RECO says one of the most common complaints it receives about websites is a team site where the brokerage name is missing or hard to find. It misleads the public into thinking the team itself is registered to trade in real estate.
A team can choose its own name. RECO’s test is that the name must not suggest or imply that the team is a brokerage.
Sold stories have their own limits. An ad for a sold property must not identify a party to the deal, identify the property, or reveal the price or other terms of the agreement, unless the people concerned have consented in writing.
Awards need context. RECO’s compliance review asks whether an ad that mentions an honour or award gives the essential details, such as the source and the date.
None of this stops a team from building a real brand. A name, a voice and a visual world can be as distinctive as any agency’s. The brokerage sits where RECO expects to find it, every sold story has its consent on file, and every award carries its source.
A plain-language read, not legal advice. Rules change, so check the source or ask us before you publish.