B.C. Realtor receives maximum penalty for misconduct related to assignment sales
![Real estate sold sign A real estate sign is pictured in Vancouver, B.C., Tuesday, June, 12, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS Jonathan Hayward](/content/dam/ctvnews/en/images/2023/7/6/real-estate-sold-sign-1-6469977-1688674840452.jpg)
A Realtor and his personal real estate corporation have had their licences suspended for six months and been ordered to pay $16,000 to the BC Financial Services Authority over misconduct that occurred eight years ago.
In a consent order signed last month and posted online last week, David Chian Wei Yang and David C.W. Yang Personal Real Estate Corporation admitted to the misconduct and agreed to the penalties, which the regulator says were the maximum allowed in 2015 and 2016, when the misconduct occurred.
The penalties stem from five "assignment sales" Yang facilitated for four clients, each of which followed the same basic pattern, according to the consent order.
In each case, Yang represented a buyer who entered an agreement to purchase a property, then "assigned" the contract to a third party before completing the transaction.
The third party agreed to pay a higher price than Yang's client had agreed to pay the original seller, and Yang reported the difference in prices to his brokerage as his commission for the transaction, before retaining a predetermined portion of that amount and passing the rest on to the client.
Three of the five properties involved in this misconduct were located in Vancouver. The other two were in Richmond. They are identified in the consent order only as Property 1 through Property 5.
Details of the transactions were as follows.
- Property 1, Vancouver: Client agreed to purchase for $3 million; assignment sale for $4,060,000; Yang claimed $1,060,000 as commission, retaining $251,851.36 for himself and paying the rest – after brokerage fees – to his client
- Property 2, Richmond: Client agreed to purchase for $850,000; assignment sale for $895,000; Yang claimed $45,000 as commission, retaining $6,790 for himself and paying the rest – after brokerage fees – to his client
- Property 3, Richmond: Client agreed to purchase for $2,068,000; assignment sale for $2.3 million; Yang claimed $232,000 as commission, retaining $19,790 for himself and paying the rest – after brokerage fees – to his client
- Property 4, Vancouver: Client agreed to purchase for $3.8 million; assignment sale for $4,450,000; Yang claimed $650,000 as commission, retaining $188,225.43 for himself and paying the rest – after brokerage fees – to his client
- Property 5, Vancouver: Client agreed to purchase for $3,630,000; assignment sale for $3,890,000; Yang claimed $260,000 as commission, retaining $100,084.32 for himself and paying the rest – after brokerage fees – to his client
In total, based on the figures in the consent order, Yang pocketed more than $566,000 by handling the assignment sales in this way.
Typical Realtor commissions in Metro Vancouver are seven per cent on the first $100,000 of the sale price, plus 2.5 per cent of the remaining total, with the total commission split between the buyer's and seller's agents.
Using these typical figures to calculate commissions on five homes sold at the assignment sale prices in the Yang transactions would have amounted to a little more than $412,000, before being split among Realtors.
In the consent order, Yang admitted to professional misconduct for providing documentation to his brokerage suggesting that his commission was higher than it actually was, and for failing to disclose that he would not be retaining the full commission amount he claimed.
He also admitted to failing to provide proper written disclosure of his commissions to his clients, failing to provide proper documentation to his clients, and failing to avoid conflicts of interest on two occasions in which he personally provided money to clients to help them complete their purchases.
The consent order also describes Yang's behaviour as "conduct unbecoming" that was "contrary to the best interests of the public, undermining public confidence in the real estate industry, or bringing the real estate industry into disrepute."
The Realtor agreed to a six-month suspension of his licence, during which time he will also be prohibited from working as an unlicensed assistant.
Yang must also pay an administrative penalty of $10,000, plus enforcement expenses of $6,000.
"The penalties imposed by BCFSA on this real estate licensee were the maximum allowed when the misconduct occurred," said Jon Vandall, the BCFSA's vice president for compliance and enforcement, in a news release published alongside the consent order last week.
“In 2016, discipline penalties were increased to $250,000 per contravention in order to address and deter misconduct that harms homebuyers and the public interest. New safeguards were also put in place to bring transparency to the practice of contract assignments.”
Correction
This story has been updated to correct the description of how Realtor commissions are calculated. While the figures cited are typical for Metro Vancouver, there is no standard commission for real estate agents across B.C.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.7033161.1726018070!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
LIVE Watch live now: Donald Trump, Kamala Harris clash in heated debate
Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are exchanging barbs in a tense face-off that comes less than two months before election day.
U.S. presidential historian predicts results of November elections. Here's who he says will win
An American presidential historian is predicting a Kamala Harris presidency as the outcome of the upcoming U.S. elections in November.
Key quotes from the Trump-Harris 2024 U.S. presidential debate
U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris and former U.S. president Donald Trump took the stage on Tuesday night for their first and only scheduled presidential debate before the Nov. 5 election.
Some restaurants have increased their default tip options. Canadians think you should give this much
Despite what the default options on the payment terminal might read, most Canadians still want to tip around 15 per cent, according to a new survey.
Dave Grohl says he fathered a child outside of his marriage
The Foo Fighters frontman announced that he recently became a father again, writing in a statement on his Instagram page on Tuesday that his new baby girl was born 'outside' of his marriage to his wife Jordyn Blum.
Sinaloa shootouts sparks fear of intra-cartel war in Mexico
Shootouts in the western Mexican state of Sinaloa have kindled fears that an intra-cartel war is about to break out in the wake of the arrest of legendary trafficker, Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada, in July.
$2M home belonging to children's musician Raffi on the market
Canada’s children’s troubadour is selling his B.C. home, which is now up for grabs for $1,995,000.
PwC plans to track employees' location while at work. Is this practice legal in Canada?
As PricewaterhouseCoopers plans to enforce its back-to-office policy by tracking employees in the U.K., one employment lawyer explains whether the practice is legal in Canada.
Chinese policymakers discuss proposal to delay retirement age
China's policymakers this week assessed an official plan to delay the country's retirement age, among the world's lowest, marking a key step to address its shrinking working population.