Personal Office Information

• Information

  BCFSA’s information provides clear, concise, easy-to-read explanations of the requirements for real estate professionals under the Real Estate Services Act (“RESA”), Real Estate Services Regulation (“Regulation”), Real Estate Services Rules (“Rules”), and other applicable legislation.

  BCFSA’s information is intended for use by real estate professionals, to support their understanding of the standards they must meet in the delivery of real estate services.

Restrictions Related to Personal Offices

Personal offices are common and consist of any office you work out of that is not the brokerage or branch office you are licensed to. If you decide to provide real estate services from a personal office, the Real Estate Services Rules require that:

• No sign be placed outside your office, in the building where the office is located, or where it is visible from outside the office that indicates real estate services are provided there;
• Your phone must not be answered in the name of your brokerage; and
• You must not indicate your personal office address on any advertising or records relating to the provision of real estate services.

While only the brokerage address may appear on advertising, you are permitted to have your personal phone number listed in lieu of the brokerage phone number.

Real estate professionals, may:

• Have a personal office in their home; however, no sign may be placed outside this office that indicates that real estate services are provided from that office.
• Have a personal office located in a commercial space. Where the personal office is located in a commercial space, the licensee may have a personal sign posted outside the commercial space office and on the building directory, if applicable (e.g., Joe Smith Personal Office).
• Have a secretary or other unlicensed staff who may work at the personal office, but who may not engage in any activity requiring a real estate licence.

Records and Trust Funds

(a) Brokerage Records

Even if you work primarily out of your personal office, all brokerage records must be provided in a timely manner to the brokerage you are licensed to. Under RESA, a brokerage must retain copies of the brokerage records at the address on file with BCFSA. This means that you cannot retain the only copy of the record that creates the brokerage file at your personal office.

Please review the guideline on Brokerage Records for more information.

(b) Trust Funds

Funds received that must be deposited in the brokerage trust account must be promptly paid or delivered to the brokerage so they may be deposited into the brokerage trust account per RESA. Holding funds received in respect of a trade in real estate, or rental or strata management, at a personal office is not permitted.