The Ontario government has fired the Real Estate Council of Ontario’s entire board as a provincially appointed administrator takes control of the regulator.

RECO confirmed to The Toronto Star and some other media outlets that all eight board members “cease to hold office upon the appointment of the administrator.” 

Jean Lépine, who started this week as the administrator, was appointed by the province, which formally assumed control of the organization on Monday in the wake of the $10.5-million iPro Realty scandal and heavy criticism of RECO’s board.

Stephen Crawford, minister of public and business service delivery and procurement, appointed Lépine to take control of RECO. The future of Brenda Buchanan, RECO’s president and CEO, remains uncertain.

RECO told the Star and Real Estate Magazine that the administrator now holds “the exclusive right to exercise all the powers and perform all the duties of the board, officers and members of RECO.” Buchanan became CEO in July after serving as interim leader and previously spent six years as chief operating officer.

Under the minister’s order, Lépine will earn $2,000 per day for up to 250 days, with a maximum of $500,000, plus up to $35,000 in reimbursable expenses. He has spent the past three years as chief strategy officer at Ontario One Call and is chair of the Ontario French-Language Educational Communications Authority.

Lépine has been directed to stabilize RECO’s operations, implement structural and policy changes to restore public trust, and respond to key recommendations from law firm Dentons following its audit of RECO’s handling of iPro. RECO allowed the company to operate for months after becoming aware of financial irregularities.

RECO closed iPro months after finding that $10.5 million had been withdrawn, allegedly illegally, from the former trust accounts. The company later paid back $3 million and co-founders Rui Alves, who is a former RECO board member, and Fede Colucci agreed never to apply to certify a brokerage again or serve as brokers. As a result, they were not fined or charged.

Lépine must deliver an implementation plan by March 31, followed by an initial written report by June 30 and a final public report by Dec. 31, 2026.

In a speech to the Ontario Real Estate Association’s Power House Conference in Toronto, Premier Doug Ford vowed to support real estate agents who did not receive their commissions as a result of iPro’s closure following the company’s admission that it mishandled client and broker funds.

“My biggest concern is get that money into their pockets. If we have to cover them, these people work their backs off. They deserve their commissions,” Ford told realtors, according to multiple media reports. “We’re going to cover each and every single agent that’s owed every single penny.”

But Alternative Risk Services, an insurance company appointed to handle realtor claims has warned that there will not be enough money to pay all realtors the amounts due.

Industry groups, including OREA, have lauded the government’s decision to appoint an Lépine. The province heeded calls to rein in RECO.

Pictured: Former iPro Realty listing.

Photo: Realtor.ca