This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
REAL estate agents caught misleading prospective buyers will be fined up to $30,000 under new laws proposed by the Victorian government.
Minister for Consumer Affairs, Gaming and Liquor Regulation Jane Garrett said the major reforms to the Estate Agents Act 1980, will double fines for underquoting to $30,000.
Agents will also risk losing any sales commissions and other fees if they are found guilty of the dodgy practice. This could represent an additional penalty of around $14,000 on an average home under the proposed laws.
Under the new laws, agents would be banned from advertising properties with ‘plus’ or ‘offers over’, and the advertised price must be within a 10% range, for example $500,000-550,000).
The changes will apply to residential – rather than rural or commercial – private sales and auctions.
Furthermore, the advertised price would also need to be updated within one business day if a higher offer is rejected at any time.
Agents would also need to provide all prospective buyers with a fact sheet, which must include three recent comparable sales, the estimated selling price, and the median price for the suburb.
Garrett said the director of Consumer Affairs would be given powers to force agents to provide evidence to justify their choice of comparable properties. It will be the agent’s responsibility to prove they are not underquoting with evidence about how they arrived at a property’s advertised price.
The reforms has been welcomed by Real Estate Institute of Victoria. REIV CEO Enzo Raimondo said that the changes would bring transparency and consistency to price representation in the property sector.
Raimondo said that the reforms would be effective in a variety of market conditions, and for all stakeholders in property transactions.
Meanwhile a Hocking Stuart agent has reportedly been charged with underquoting following recent inspections of over 100 agents.
A further 10 agents are under investigation.
Australian Property Journal
