Estate Agents Amendment (Underquoting) Act 2017 (VIC): Update of New Real Estate Regulations

Wednesday 12 July 2017 @ 10.07 a.m. | Corporate & Regulatory | Legal Research

In May of this year (2017), the Estate Agents Amendment (Underquoting) Act 2017 (VIC)(‘the Act’) commenced by proclamation. The Act amends the Estate Agents Act 1980 (VIC) (‘the Principal Act’) and introduces a variety of provisions that aim to address complaints of  underquoting and other poor practices by estate agents during the sale of property. Most recently in July, two Victorian real estate companies have been penalised under the new provisions.  The amendments are a response to a report by Consumer Affairs Victoria's (CAV) regulatory arm, TaskForce Vesta. In the report, Taskforce Vesta monitored 200 properties from first online listing to final sale throughout 2015-2016, and found significant rates of sales over the estimated price.

Minister’s Statement and Recent Events

On 9 July 2017, two Melbourne real estate companies were penalised under the new provisions by Taskforce Vesta and issued with monetary penalties. In addition, they will have to put in place a compliance programme, and will be required to display a public statement of their actions in their office. Consumer Affairs Minister Marlene Kairouz said:

"Buying a house is a huge investment and Victorians deserve to have accurate, transparent and reliable information to base their decisions on. We'll continue to investigate, expose and punish agents who break the law and underquote the value of the properties they are selling."

Selling Prices

Agents are now under an obligation to give the seller of the property an estimated selling price, under section 47A of the Principal Act. The price is to be expressed as a single amount and if it is a range, the difference between the upper and lower limits of the range cannot exceed 10 percent of the amount of the lower limit. The selling price estimate must also be reasonable, under section 47B. Furthermore, in determining the estimated selling price, the agent must take into account three comparable properties that have been sold within the previous six months if it is within the Melbourne metropolitan area, of eighteen months if it is outside of the metropolitan area. If the selling price must be revised, the agent should notify the seller in writing.

Statements of Information

Statements of information, a new requirement under section 47AF of the Principal Act, are for the purpose of increasing buyer awareness of not only the prospective price, but other comparable prices. Statements of information are only required for those properties where the sales authority was signed on or after 1 May 2017. A statement of information must include:

  • An indicative selling price either expressed as a single amount, or if it is a price range, the difference between the lower and upper amount cannot exceed 10 percent of the lower amount;
  • The asking price advertised by the seller and any offers which were rejected on the basis of price;
  • Any amount that the seller has advised the agent that the seller will accept as a price; and
  • The median selling price of that suburb sold within a period of not less than 3 consecutive months and not more than 12 consecutive months.

Advertising

The new legislation has introduced a number of provisions relating to misrepresentation and misleading advertising by inserting new section 47C into the Principal Act.

  • Advertised prices must be a single price or a range of not more than 10 percent of the lower price;
  • Words such as ‘offers over’, ‘plus’ or ‘from’ are prohibited, on the basis that they do not provide useful information;
  • Agents are prohibited from advertising below the estimate contained in the appointment with the seller; and
  • Advertising a price that is below the rejection of any written offer that was rejected by the seller is prohibited.

In addition, the agent must also change references to the price within one business day If the seller has rejected a price that is similar to or higher than the advertised price.

Penalties

Substantial penalties of up to 200 penalty units, which is more than $31,000, will apply for non-compliant real estate agents or companies. Courts can also forfeit commissions or other considertaion received in the course of engagement for serious offences. Taskforce Vesta will soon be looking into an education campaign to raise awareness amongst vendors and estate agents.

TimeBase is an independent, privately owned Australian legal publisher specialising in the online delivery of accurate, comprehensive and innovative legislation research tools including LawOne and unique Point-in-Time Products. Nothing on this website should be construed as legal advice and does not substitute for the advice of competent legal counsel.

Sources:

Estate Agents Amendment (Underquoting) Act 2017 (VIC), second reading speeches and other materials, as published on TimeBase LawOne.

Estate Agents Act 1980 (VIC), as published on TimeBase LawOne.

Two Melbourne real estate agents fined for underquoting amid crackdown,’ (ABC News), 9 July 2017.

Kaitlin Offer, ‘Vic real estate agents caught underquoting,’ (AAP), 9 July 2017.

Consumer Affairs Victoria, ‘Taskforce Vesta reveals underquoting findings - Media release,’ 4 November 2016.

Consumer Affairs Victoria, 'Taskforce Vesta concludes underquoting investigations - News alert,' 10 July 2017.

Related Articles: