A prominent Toronto real estate broker has been fined $40,000 by the Real Estate Council of Ontario following a series of ethical breaches that included misleading a client into overpaying for a home and making disturbing promises to an undercover journalist during a hidden camera investigation. The discipline decision, which was released regarding the conduct of Shahnaz Soltanian, who trades under the name Sharon Soltanian, outlines a pattern of professional misconduct involving multiple properties, misleading advertising, and failures to properly disclose personal interests in real estate transactions. The penalties were handed down after Soltanian agreed to a statement of facts acknowledging that her actions violated the Code of Ethics under the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act.
The regulatory body’s decision details several distinct incidents that occurred largely throughout 2016, painting a picture of a registrant who failed to act with fairness and integrity. Perhaps the most widely publicized element of the case involved Soltanian’s interaction with an investigative journalist from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s consumer affairs program, Marketplace. In August 2016, the journalist posed as a potential, unrepresented buyer interested in a property located at what the decision refers to as 1-A Street. The journalist was equipped with a hidden camera and microphone to record the interaction with the listing agent.
During the meeting at the property, Soltanian engaged in a conversation that suggested she would manipulate the bidding process to favor the unrepresented buyer, provided she could represent both sides of the transaction. The decision notes that Soltanian told the undercover journalist that she had control on both sides of the potential deal. She explicitly suggested that before any other offer arrived to create a multiple offer situation, she would try to close the deal for the undercover buyer. The broker was recorded stating that she would use her power in order for the buyer to get the house. This conduct was found to be a violation of her duty to treat all parties fairly and honestly, as well as a breach of her obligation to protect the best interests of her seller client.
While the interaction with the journalist was captured on video, another incident detailed in the decision resulted in a direct financial loss for one of Soltanian’s own clients. This incident involved a property identified as 3-C Street in City A. In May 2016, the property was listed for sale with an asking price of $1.18 million. The listing indicated that the sellers were willing to accept pre-emptive offers, which are bids submitted before a specific offer presentation date. Soltanian was representing a buyer who was interested in purchasing this home.
Acting on her client’s instructions, Soltanian arranged to meet with the listing representative on the evening of May 26, 2016, to present a pre-emptive offer of $1.4 million. When Soltanian arrived at the listing agent’s office, she observed another real estate registrant waiting in the reception area. Based solely on the presence of this other individual, Soltanian assumed that a competing offer was being presented on the property. However, she did not verify this information. Instead, she proceeded to inform her buyer client that there was a competing offer on the table.
Believing they were in a bidding war, the buyer client agreed to increase their offer to ensure they secured the property. The client raised their bid by $31,000, resulting in a final offer that was accepted by the sellers. The agreed statement of facts reveals that, in reality, there was no competing offer for the property at that time. Soltanian’s assumption and subsequent advice caused her client to pay $31,000 more than their original intended offer price, a clear breach of the requirement to treat clients fairly and avoid misrepresentation.
The investigation by the Real Estate Council of Ontario also uncovered issues regarding how Soltanian advertised her success rates and managed listing agreements. One specific case involved a property at 2-B Street. Soltanian and her brokerage entered into a listing agreement with the seller on May 9, 2016. The property was sold privately on May 17, 2016. However, the Multiple Listing Service data for the property was not uploaded until May 18, 2016, the day after the property had already been sold.
Despite the property being sold before it ever appeared on the public system, the MLS listing incorrectly stated the listing date and the sold date as the same day, May 18. Furthermore, the listing incorrectly claimed the property had been sold via the MLS system. Following this transaction, Soltanian’s brokerage publicly advertised that the property had been sold in one day. The regulator found this to be misleading, as the timeline was manipulated to make the sale appear faster and more efficient than it actually was. The advertisement and the data entry created a false impression of the market activity surrounding that specific property.
Further administrative irregularities were found in how Soltanian handled the paperwork for exclusive listings. In dealing with the seller of the 1-A Street property, the listing agreement was ambiguous regarding when the exclusivity period began. The document had a handwritten notation at the top claiming an exclusive listing start date of June 29, 2016, but the body of the agreement lacked a specific start day, listing only the month of July. Similar issues were found with the agreement for the 2-B Street property. The Code of Ethics requires that all written agreements clearly, comprehensibly, and prominently specify the dates on which the agreement takes effect and expires to ensure consumers understand the terms of their contract.
Beyond her dealings with clients and the public, the decision also highlighted Soltanian’s failure to properly disclose her personal interest when buying real estate for herself. Soltanian’s legal name is Shahnaz Hossein Gholizadeh, but she trades in real estate under the name Sharon Soltanian. Between 2014 and 2016, she entered into agreements to purchase three separate properties identified as 4-D Street, 5-E Street, and 6-F Street.
In these transactions, she acted as the buyer on her own behalf while also acting as the real estate representative. The agreements of purchase and sale listed the buyer as Shahnaz Hossein Gholizadeh, her legal name. However, the representative for the buyer was listed as Sharon Soltanian. While she did complete a Registrant’s Disclosure of Interest form for these transactions, the forms failed to clearly explain that the buyer and the agent were the exact same person.
For example, in the transaction for 4-D Street, the disclosure stated that Shahnaz Hossein Gholizadeh was a registered broker and that she was related to the buyer. This was technically inaccurate and confusing because she was the buyer. The form did not indicate that Sharon Soltanian and Shahnaz Hossein Gholizadeh were one and the same. In another instance involving 5-E Street, she noted that Sharon Soltanian represents self as the buyer but the contract listed the buyer as Gholizadeh, creating a disconnect in the paperwork that obscured the true nature of the parties involved. The regulator determined that these disclosures were inadequate and failed to meet the strict transparency standards required when agents trade in real estate for their own portfolios.
The cumulative effect of these actions led to a finding of unprofessional conduct. The discipline committee concluded that Soltanian’s behavior breached multiple sections of the Code of Ethics, specifically those regarding fairness, honesty, the protection of client interests, conscientious service, and the prevention of error and misrepresentation. The committee accepted the joint submission from RECO and Soltanian regarding the appropriate penalty for these transgressions.
As a result of the proceedings, Shahnaz Soltanian was ordered to pay a fine of $40,000 to the Real Estate Council of Ontario. The fine was due on or before March 31, 2021. In addition to the significant monetary penalty, Soltanian was ordered to undertake further education to ensure she understands her ethical obligations moving forward. She is required to successfully complete a course titled Ethics in Business Practice provided by the Real Estate Institute of Canada. Proof of the successful completion of this course was required to be submitted to the regulator by July 31, 2021. The decision stands as a reminder to all real estate registrants in Ontario regarding the high standards of transparency and honesty required in the profession, particularly concerning the handling of multiple offers and the accuracy of public advertising.
