The Save Max name is coming off a Brampton sportsplex now that the brokerage’s sponsorship has been terminated, not long after its accounts were frozen by Ontario’s real estate board.
A spokesperson for the City of Brampton confirmed to INsauga.com that the Save Max Sports Centre will be going back to its previous name of the Brampton Soccer Centre, and that the sponsorship agreement with Save Max Real Estate Inc. “has been terminated in accordance with the terms of the agreement.”
The name change comes after the Real Estate Council of Ontario said several Save Max real estate brokerages in Mississauga and Brampton used $2.7 million in client funds to pay off expenses – allegations that Save Max has disputed.
The board says funds held in trust for real estate sales were instead used for loan payments, property management fees, taxes, credit card balances and vendor services.
Save Max and the city inked a 15-year $2,512,500 sponsorship deal in 2020 for exterior naming rights. Listings on the city’s website show sponsorship and name rights opportunities for the Brampton Soccer Centre field and gymnasium.
The city didn’t specifically say whether the sponsorship was terminated due to the allegations against Save Max, but says signage updates and online references are currently underway.
Between 100 to 150 active Save Max listings were frozen by the RECO, and some 400 registered real estate salespeople left brokerages across the broader Save Max network following the freeze.
But the RECO has agreed to lift the freeze if strict conditions are met, including assigning a third-party monitor to oversee the management of two accounts, and the suspension of Raman Dua, Save Max’s broker of record and sole director.
Suspensions are also still in place for Nidhi Dua (broker of record of Save Max First Choice Real Estate Inc.), Save Max First Choice Real Estate Inc., Save Max Supreme Real Estate Inc., and Save Max Ace Real Estate, the RECO says.
“The Freeze Order pertaining to Save Max Real Estate Inc.’s Commission Trust Account continues to apply until a comprehensive audit is completed to RECO’s satisfaction,” the council said in March.
Lawyers for Save Max filed an appeal of the freeze, admitting investigations by the RECO did find “incorrect disbursements,” but claim most were “reversed promptly within 30 days – a number of them within 24 to 48 hours, and one within a matter of minutes.”
The largest of the disputed transactions was a transfer of $700,000, which was “reversed the next day,” according to the appeal.
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