Realtor disciplined for breaking rules

HALIFAX — A Halifax Realtor has been suspended for a month and fined for showing a client a home when that person had come from outside Atlantic Canada and wasn’t following the quarantine rules.

The Nova Scotia Real Estate Commission suspended Adam Scott of HaliPad Real Estate Inc. The suspension is effective Jan. 18 and slated to last until Feb. 17. Scott has also been fined $1,000.

“The violation resulted from an investigation of a complaint from a member of the public. The evidence supported Mr. Scott facilitated a viewing with a client knowing the client arrived from outside of Atlantic Canada the night before and had not completed the province’s COVID-19 pandemic mandatory 14-day self-isolation,” said the commission’s decision.

“The commission communicated to the industry numerous times via email and posted on our website that licensees are required to follow the COVID-19 health directives from the federal and provincial government. The commission also provided licensees with the direct link to this information.”

Scott declined to comment when reached Monday by telephone, instead referring calls to his broker, Chris Perkins. Perkins, who also owns HaliPad, couldn’t be reached by phone, but he did send a written statement about the matter.

"In July 2020, one of our agents made a critical error in judgment," Perkins said. "He attended a home under construction where the builder was in attendance, with a purchaser who had not completed their 14-day isolation period. Thankfully, this error did not involve a positive case and therefore did not result in transmission (of) the COVID-19 virus."

This is the first time HaliPad has "experienced COVID-19 protocols not being strictly followed and the agent involved has taken full accountability for his poor judgment in this situation," Perkins said.