7 September 2022
Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) published a news alert on their website last week, outlining action being taken against an estate agent with a history of unprofessional conduct. The alleged misconduct includes the mishandling of clients’ money. The agent is now facing the prospect of being banned from holding an estate agent licence.
Read More30 August 2022
The new Property and Stock Agents Regulation 2022 supports the Property and Stock Agents Act 2002.
Almost all agent obligations remain the same. There are some minor changes that improve consumer protections and reduce the administrative load for agents.
Read More22 August 2022
15 August 2022
Consumer Affairs Victoria (CAV) has published a notice on their website today, advising that they will be commencing court proceedings against Christopher Michael and Australian Property Management Solutions (APMS) Pty Ltd. It is alleged that Mr Michael accepted thousands of dollars in payments from contractors to refer work to them, failed to provide them with leads he had promised, and then failed to provide refunds.
Read More8 August 2022
Following feedback collected during NSW Fair Trading’s Property Services Listening Tour earlier this year, the Secretary has decided to establish an independent commissioner for the NSW property services sector.
The decision comes following significant reforms to the industry in March 2020 and is a timely application of additional regulation, after 206 NSW agents were found to be non-compliant with the new Continuing Professional Development (CPD) guidelines in April of this year.
Read More1 August 2022
Licence holders and property representatives in Tasmania must complete 12 points of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) training by 30 June each year, consisting of:
8 points (of the 12 points) industry-specific CPD; and
4 points (of the industry-specific CPD) need to be delivered by an external provider.
The term "external provider" means that the CPD activity is delivered by a person external to the organisation by which the property agent is employed.
Read More27 July 2022
Since October 2021, the Queensland Government has been making incremental changes to tenancy laws. The changes have been rolled out in phases, with the first phase being implemented on 20 October 2021 - the introduction of greater domestic and family violence protections for tenants and residents.
The next phase will be coming into effect on 1 October 2022. The changes will include updates to legislation concerning renting with pets, ending a tenancy, and repair orders.
Read More13 July 2022
On 1 July 2022, the ACT government introduced changes to the regulation of the real estate industry.
The reforms include changes to:
licence and registration categories
qualification and experience requirements for licences and registrations, and
restrictions on the activities each licence and registration group can undertake.
11 July 2022
Read MoreIan Andrew Phillips, formerly the sole director and principal licensee of Think Tank Management Pty Ltd, pleaded guilty in Brisbane District Court (5 July 2022) to dishonestly taking trust account money for his own use.
1 July 2022
NSW Fair Trading is inviting feedback on the proposed new Property and Stock Agents Regulation 2022.
The current Regulation supports the Property and Stock Agents Act 2002 and is due to expire on 1 September 2022.
The proposed new Regulation has been modernised and improved with more clarity, better consumer protections and less administrative load for agents.
Read More1 July 2022
Consumer watchdogs across Australia have been cracking down on the illegal practice of underquoting for many years now. South Australia’s Consumer and Business Services (CBS) department has publicly advised that they will be cracking down on agents partaking in underquoting this year, bringing to light the fact that many agents are still willing to mislead their clients despite heavy penalties.
An agent or sales representative must have reasonable grounds for advertising a property at the price stated in the advertisement, or they can face penalties under the Australian Consumer Law of up to $500,000 for an individual or $10 million for a company.
Read More
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