Have you had buyers who, when sitting in front of a listed property, decided they no longer wished to see the home? Or have you been running late with your buyers, so you need to cancel a showing? When that happens, do you contact the listing brokerage to cancel?

Your answer to that should be an emphatic “Yes!”. If your answer was “No”, or you aren’t sure, take a look at what happened in a Professional Standards complaint heard at RAHB. This is an actual case.

A salesperson, “Bob” (not the actual salesperson’s real name), contacted a Listing Brokerage to make an appointment to view their listed property. When Bob and his buyers arrived at the property, the buyers decided they didn’t like the location and didn’t want to even look inside the house, so they moved on to the next house. Bob did not contact the Listing Brokerage or the seller to say they wouldn’t be keeping the appointment.

The sellers were extremely upset, as they had tidied up and taken three young children and two dogs out of the house for the appointed time, and then Bob and his buyers didn’t view the house and didn’t have the courtesy to cancel the appointment. The Sellers told their Listing Salesperson they were disappointed and frustrated, and they thought Bob lacked professionalism because he failed to cancel the appointment.

The Listing Salesperson filed a complaint about Bob with RAHB’s Professional Standards Committee. The complaint was based on RAHB’s MLS® Rules and Regulations, Section 8 – Selling Procedures, Sub-section 8.04 that says:

If a Member is unable to keep an appointment, the Member shall:
i. Where the appointment was made directly with the Listing Brokerage, advise the Listing Brokerage, or if direct contact with the  Listing Brokerage is not possible, advise  the Seller directly, or
ii. Where the appointment was made directly  with the Seller as permitted under these Rules, advise the Seller directly.

After going through the Professional Standards/Discipline process, Bob was ultimately required to pay a fine of $500 and hearing fee costs of $250.

SUMMING UP: you are responsible for notifying the Listing Brokerage or seller if you aren’t keeping an appointment. Not cancelling an appointment is considered unprofessional by consumers and other members alike, it shows a lack of respect of the seller’s time and efforts, and it is a breach of RAHB’s MLS® Rules and Regulations.


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