"The daily transactional work that you do, the interest that is born from those transactions, helps everyday Albertans improve their lives through the projects that we fund."

Anand is a governor on the board of the Alberta Real Estate Foundation, appointed by the Real Estate Council of Alberta in 2021. He’s also a member of the Board of Directors for RECA, and past president of CCI North Alberta.

He got involved with the Foundation at a turning point for the condominium industry. Condo professionals were being brought under the Real Estate Council, becoming part of the broader real estate family. Anand wanted to make sure his sector had a voice in that process.

When he talks about AREF, he describes it as a connector: "It's an organization that brings together different educational groups, including REALTORS®, mortgage brokers, and the general public, to build understanding of what REALTORS® do, promote the industry positively, and give back to the community."

One of the projects he points to is AREF’s support to CPLEA (the Centre for Public Legal Education Alberta) and their Condo Law for Albertans website. The site covers everything from buying a condo to understanding board governance, dispute resolution, and reserve funds. It's free, and it's publicly accessible. 

"A lot of people have questions about very basic educational items, and they need resourcing online," Anand says. "CPLEA provides that information, you can Google an answer, and it's accurate. It's because of AREF’s investments that every day Albertans are able to get the answers they need."

He also highlights a summer webinar series run by ACMEC and funded by AREF. The series was shared publicly across multiple platforms and walked people through the condominium licensing process, explaining what it involves, what it means for the industry, and how it protects consumers.

"It fosters an understanding and an education about what the industry is doing to protect consumers, it's also demonstrating knowledge and confidence and professionalization of the condominium industry." Anand says.

Beyond the condominium industry, Anand sees AREF filling funding gaps by funding projects that otherwise wouldn't be funded. For example, “Research on retrofitting homes for low-income Albertans is very critical in terms of energy efficiency, affordability, and livability. So those kinds of projects that help the individual make better decisions or can make better decisions around housing and housing affordability.”

Anand and the AREF team invite you to connect to learn if our funding programs are a fit for your ideas. We want projects to succeed, and we want to make sure funding is not a barrier to advancing Alberta. 

The Alberta Real Estate Foundation has invested more than $35 million into over 900 projects across the province. All funded through interest earned on pooled trust accounts held by real estate brokerages.