Oct 22 start for real estate stat board
All property agents must be registered with Council for Estate Agencies from next year
By Jessica Cheam
PARLIAMENT yesterday passed the Estate Agents Bill which will regulate property agents for the first time, marking an important milestone for Singapore's real estate industry.
The new statutory board to oversee the industry - the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) - will begin operations on Oct 22, said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan.
From Jan 1 next year, all property agents will have to be registered with the CEA and have to meet certain standards to continue working.
The Bill comes as the Government moves to address the standards of an industry dogged by a rising number of complaints against errant agents.
It follows a housing Bill sped through Parliament and passed in July to close a loophole which had allowed moneylenders to lodge caveats on HDB flats to claim a stake in sale proceeds.
MPs had highlighted the role of irresponsible housing agents who act in cahoots with moneylenders to mislead home owners as one of the unethical practices seen in recent years as Singapore experiences a property boom.
The new regulatory landscape forbids property agencies and agents from simultaneously acting as moneylenders. It also features a new code on ethics and conduct which bans agents from making referrals to moneylenders, among other practices, said Mr Mah.
Many MPs who spoke yesterday supported the Bill, although they also raised various concerns, ranging from foreigners operating as agents to commission guidelines and consumer awareness.
MPs Ho Geok Choo (West Coast GRC) and Lee Bee Wah (Ang Mo Kio GRC) asked if foreigners without knowledge of local laws should be allowed to work as agents. Mr Ang Mong Seng (Hong Kah GRC) went a step further to ask if foreigners could be banned from such jobs.
Mr Mah said 'no' as such measures would contravene the various free trade agreements Singapore has signed with its trading partners and would be considered a discriminatory practice.
However, although foreigners will still be allowed to operate as property agents, they will need to qualify for a work pass from the Manpower Ministry, comply with new rules and be registered with an agency under the new Bill.
Questions also surfaced from MPs such as Mr Cedric Foo (West Coast GRC) on how the new standard agreements - to replace current commission contracts between agents and buyers - will protect consumer interests.
Mr Mah said the new standard contracts will remove the auto-renewal clause that current contracts contain, and will also require the disclosure of any potential conflict of interest by the agent.
It will also allow for the commission to be paid to the agent only upon the completion of the transaction.
'Our main intention is to protect the consumer and we will endeavour to do so as much as possible without micro-managing the industry,' said Mr Mah.
Many MPs spoke on the issue of commissions, urging the CEA to fix commission rates. Mr Mah said the CEA cannot do so as this would be anti-competitive, and it was better for such rates to be influenced by market forces.
He also assured MPs that the ministry will work with the industry to ensure a smooth transition - a concern raised by Madam Ho and MP Halimah Yacob (Jurong GRC).
'We have been working with the industry for over a year, consulted them on the key changes and prepared them for the transition,' Mr Mah said.
Most importantly, he added, the key to a healthy, professional industry was public education - a theme MPs touched upon. 'We can have seminars, forums, and consumer guides...but CEA cannot do it on its own,' he said.
He advised consumers to look up their agents in the CEA's central database - which has details of all registered agents - before engaging them.
'The purpose of the new regulatory framework is not just to safeguard consumers against errant agents and salespersons, but also to preserve the integrity of the industry and the reputation of the large number of agents and salespersons providing professional service,' he said.
'Consumers must also exercise due vigilance in their property transactions. Only then can the new regime succeed.'
jcheam@sph.com.sg
The new regulations are not just to guard consumers against errant housing agents, but also to preserve the integrity of the industry and the reputation of agents. -- ST FILE PHOTO
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