Real estate watchdog fields 320 complaints in first five months

Authority board chairperson Kristy McDonald, QC. Photo / Supplied

The newly formed Real Estate Agents Authority (REAA) has received more than 320 complaints in its first five months of operation.

It has also fielded over 17,000 phone and email inquiries.

The authority was set up to license industry workers and offer an independent, transparent complaints process.

"These complaints come from both consumers and licensees and range from minor through to serious," authority board chairperson Kristy McDonald, QC, said.

The authority was operating under new legislation which meant processing complaints took time to ensure each was properly investigated, she said.

"It was difficult for us to predict the number of complaints we would receive accurately, given there was no data available about complaints made under the 1976 Act.

"The large number of complaints received since implementation of the new Act is significant and highlights there was a need for this new legislation with its consumer protection focus."

When a complaint is received it goes before a Complaints Assessment Committee (CAC), comprised of one authority board member and a lawyer. If the committee finds a complaint is valid it has a range of powers from censuring an individual through to fining them up to $10,000 (or $20,000 for a company).

If the offense is deemed serious it can be put before the Real Estate Agents' Disciplinary Tribunal which can cancel an agent's licence, ban them from working for an agency, impose a fine of up to $15,000 (or $30,000 for a company) or order compensation payment of up to $100,000 to the complainant.

The CAC have so far considered 11 cases. One was referred to the tribunal, eight dismissed, one not released and one -- the case of an agent who sent a condolence card with an attached house valuation to a widow - resulted in a censure.

Ms McDonald said the key to the new system was its transparency.

"The industry has shifted from a self-regulating system that was often seen as not open and transparent to a new system and provides an independent assessment of those complaints and where findings can be made public."

- NZPA