Manitoba Real Estate Association Privacy Statement
About this Privacy Statement
The Manitoba Real Estate Association (“MREA”, “we”, “our”, “us”) leads and empowers real estate excellence through education, professional standards, advocacy and related services for the benefit of its members and the public they serve. This Privacy Statement describes our personal information handling practices, including a description of the personal information that we collect, use and disclose, for what purposes, and how to obtain further information about these practices.
Collection, Use and Disclosure of Personal Information
MREA collects, uses and discloses personal information for the following purposes.
MREA Website
MREA collects and uses certain information about anyone who visits our website at manitobarealestate.com. Our web server needs to collect and use your internet protocol (“IP”) address to facilitate communication between our server and your browser, and to protect our website against security threats.
We also use Google Analytics to obtain information about site users and how our site is used. Google Analytics collects non-identifying information, including such things as IP address, browser and device configuration, how you came to the site (e.g., by directly typing our web address vs. referral from a search engine), how much time you spend on the site, and on which pages. The insights we learn help us make our website better by improving and optimizing the content we provide and how it is delivered. You can opt out of allowing Google Analytics to anonymously track your activities by clicking here.
MREA Membership
We collect and use information about MREA members, including: MREA member number; name; employment details and employment history; member type; relicensing information; board affiliation; mailing address; phone number; credit card information (if required for payment); Canadian Real Estate Association number; and input and feedback on matters relevant to our members.
This information may be collected directly from members through an application form, or indirectly from the member’s board or association, and is used for such purposes as the following:
- processing and maintaining memberships;
- managing ongoing education requirements;
- representing and providing services to our members;
- facilitating errors and omissions (E&O) insurance and processing claims (certain information is disclosed to the Real Estate Insurance Alliance of Canada Inc.);
- communicating with members about information relevant to the real estate profession; and
- responding to complaints about members;
MREA may disclose personal information about members from time-to-time, where permitted or required by law. For example, if a member of the public requests information about a brokerage or an individual member, we will disclose the location, contact information, board affiliation, and membership status of that brokerage or individual member. Also, if we believe it is necessary to do so, we may refer complaints about members to The Manitoba Securities Commission (MSC) which licenses and registers real estate professionals in the province of Manitoba, or to other relevant authorities.
Education
MREA has a mandate to provide education to new and existing real estate professionals (for both MREA members and non-members) as required by the MSC. To do so, we collect and use information about real estate professionals such as: MREA member number (where applicable); name; mailing address; phone number; email; credit card information (if required for payment); registration date; education deadline; examination grades; input on how to improve the education we provide.
Information about a real estate professional’s education status may be disclosed to certain third parties. For example, MREA is required to provide exam and course results to the MSC. We may also provide a brokerage with information about the education status of a representative of that brokerage on request.
Manitoba Real Estate Association (MREA) Shelter Foundation
We operate the MREA Shelter Foundation, a charitable organization that raises money for shelter-related registered charities in Manitoba. If you donate to the MREA Shelter Foundation, we need to collect certain contact and payment information to process your donation and to provide you with an income tax receipt. We may, with your consent, disclose certain information to the public for recognition purposes. We may be required by law to disclose information about MREA Shelter Foundation donors to the Canada Revenue Agency to verify compliance with tax-related obligations.
Manitoba Tipi Mitawa
MREA and the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs partner in Manitoba Tipi Mitawa Inc., a not-for-profit organization that offers a program to help facilitate home ownership opportunities for First Nations families living in urban centres, and Assiniboine Credit Union is the financial lending institution under the program.
MREA collects personal information about applicants on behalf of Manitoba Tipi Mitawa Inc. using the program application form. Information collected includes: contact information; names of dependents; current housing conditions; employment status and history; income; financial status; and income tax returns; information which is necessary to determine program eligibility and to process applications.
The Public
MREA may collect, use and disclose personal information about the public where permitted or required by law. For example, if you contact us to inquire or complain about an MREA member, we will use the information you provide to respond to your inquiry or complaint. In some cases, your complaint may be referred to the MSC or other authority if we believe it is necessary to do so.
Legal Purposes
We also may use or disclose personal information if we believe that doing so is necessary:
- to comply with applicable law, a court order, warrant, request from government or law enforcement, or other legal process;
- to investigate, prevent, or take action involving illegal activities, suspected fraud, violations of professional standards, or threats to property or physical safety of any person; or
- to establish, protect, or exercise our legal rights or defend against legal claims.
Safeguards and Storage of Personal Information
MREA applies reasonable administrative, physical and technical safeguards to protect personal information in its control.
Personal information is stored using secure, access-restricted systems, which may reside on MREA servers, or on the servers of our service providers, which include the following:
- Microsoft: MREA uses Microsoft Office 365 as its email provider.
- Absorb LMS: MREA uses a learning management system called Absorb LMS to deliver the online portion of our educational courses.
Personal information processed by service providers may be transferred to and stored in other countries, such as the United States, and could therefore be accessed by courts, governments, and law enforcement agencies in those countries where required by law.
Requesting Access to Personal Information
You may request access to personal information that MREA has about you. Such requests must be made in writing to our privacy officer using the contact information provided below. MREA requires certain identification information be provided so that we can verify your identity. If you believe that the information we have in our records is incorrect, you can request that a correction be made.
MREA may refuse access and/or corrections to personal information where required or permitted by law.
Inquiries
If you have questions or comments about this Privacy Statement or our privacy practices, please contact:
Steven Hyman
Director of Professional Standards
shyman@mrea.mb.ca
Manitoba Real Estate Association
1873 Inkster Boulevard, Winnipeg, MB R2R 2A6