Consent Order

Published on
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Licensee
Raj Banga, Raj Banga
Brokerage at Time of Sanctioned Activity
Sutton Group-West Coast Realty
Current Brokerage
Sutton Group - West Coast Realty, Nanaimo
Consent Order Date
10 December 2019

Summary

On July 8, 2020, the Financial Services Tribunal (FST) dismissed an appeal filed by the Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate (the "OSRE"), at OSRE's request, to Mr. Banga’s Liability and Penalty Decisions of the Real Estate Council of British Columbia (the Council).

As a result of the FST’s decision, the Decision of the Council’s Discipline Committee is no longer stayed and its order will take effect as follows: Mr. Banga’s licence will be suspended for two months from August 26, 2020 until to October 26, 2020, inclusive.

FST Decision July 8, 2020

On December 10, 2019, a Discipline Committee of the Real Estate Council of British Columbia (the "Council") accepted the Consent Order Proposal submitted by Raj Banga, and found that Mr. Banga committed professional misconduct when he:

  1. published real estate advertising for the property that he knew contained misleading information in that the property's lower level did not contain an authorized kitchen or cooking facility and/or was not suitable as a mortgage helper;
  2. failed to disclose in writing or at all to the buyers that the property contained an unauthorized kitchen/stove;
  3. failed to take reasonable steps to avoid, or to promptly and fully disclose, a conflict of interest when he acted as a limited dual agent for himself, the seller, and the buyers, without:
  4. explaining to the buyers his conflict as a principal/owner in the transaction could not be resolved by limited dual agency; and
  5. explaining to the buyers that he had an additional conflict of interest as the builder that could not be resolved by limited dual agency,
  6. failed to advise the buyers to seek independent advice with respect to accepting agency from a seller/builder/listing agent;
  7. failed to act impartially between his own interests as the seller, and the interests of the buyer, when he did not include a condition in the Contract of Purchase and Sale that required a property disclosure statement or other written disclosure of any alternations to the property made in conflict to, after or without required municipal permits; and
  8. failed to act with reasonable care and skill, when he engaged in the conduct described at (a)-(e).
  9. Note: Dual agency was not prohibited by the Rules made under the Real Estate Services Act until June 2018.

Results

A discipline committee of the Council has ordered, and Mr. Banga has agreed to, the following penalties:

  1. suspension of two (2) months (from January 29 to March 28, 2020, inclusive);
  2. prohibition from acting as an unlicensed assistant during the suspension period;
  3. a discipline penalty of $11,000;
  4. enforcement expenses of $1,000; and
  5. successful completion of the Real Estate Trading Services Remedial Education Course.

PDF Files

Consent Order

Full consent order is available as a PDF.

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