MANITOBA'S BLIND BIDDING WARS

My Letter to the Editor. Winnipeg Free Press - June 9, 2026 

Re: "Blind bidding deserves a second look" (Letters June 8)

Reading the letter from Rocky Baronins prompts me to offer my thoughts regarding the blind bidding process which has become the norm for residential real estate sales in Winnipeg.

I believe this is a great detriment to affordable housing in the city. This marketing ploy forces potential buyers to blindly offer beyond the list price if they are to have any hope of home ownership. Potential buyers soon learn that all offers must be free of conditions and cannot be subject to obtaining financing or a home inspection. The result is that many young, first-time buyers pay thousands of dollars over the list price for a home which often requires thousands of dollars of repairs, most of which would have been identified during a simple home inspection.

I suggest that the provincial government take a step toward housing affordability and add a layer of real protection for consumers by amending regulations in three ways, as follows:

First, regulate the listing process so that offers must be presented to the vendor as they are received, not held back for a future offer date.

Second, after offer acceptance, buyers should have 10 days in which to obtain a home inspection and be allowed to withdraw their offers if the inspection reveals defects which the vendor is unable or unwilling to repair, or negotiate an appropriate price adjustment.

And finally, if a home returns to market owing to home inspection issues, this should be revealed on the ongoing listing, which would encourage vendors to deal with defects in an appropriate manner.

A long-standing practice in the real estate industry is that if a realtor delivers a full-price, unconditional offer, the realtor is entitled to the agreed commission even if the vendor does not accept the offer.

Not accepting full-price offers has become commonplace in Manitoba simply because the vendor is disappointed that the anticipated bidding war failed to produce multiple offers over the list price. I believe that regulations should be in place stating that a full-price, unconditional offer must be accepted and the property is considered sold.

Stuart Gauld

A BILLION HERE...A BILLION THERE

I think we’ve become indifferent to the idea of having or spending a Billion Dollars. Maybe it’s because we’re inundated every day with news that our government is planning its next Billion Dollar program. Maybe it's to buy new submarines at $5 Billion each...we'll take a dozen please. Maybe it's the new Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit. The one time top up payments went out on June 5. Total $3.1 Billion with an estimate of an additional $8.6 Billion over the next 5 years. With these numbers being tossed around, a Billion just doesn’t seem like such a big deal.

Forbes states that there are twenty people in the world whose net worth exceeds One Hundred Billion Dollars. The list goes on the name an additional 3,404 Billionaires. With all those hundreds of billions in the hands of the richest or the rich, couldn't we each have at least one. Apparently not. 

To understand just how huge a Billion is, try this simple math. Most reading this will live for a million more seconds...or just a tad over 11.5 days. Pretty much nobody my age (79) will live for another billion seconds...that'd be 31.7 years! A very BIG DIFFERENCE! 

Plan your work, work your plan and make it a great day!