EAA Publications
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| The Freshman |
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| Only a licensed estate agent
or salesperson may perform estate agency work |
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 It
is no more than common sense that if you are sick, you see a
doctor; if you want to go to court, you find a lawyer. However,
it may not be generally known that in buying, selling or renting
a property, if it is done through a third party, the entrusted
person must be a licensed estate agent.
As of 1st January 1999, individuals and firms engaging in the
estate agency business must hold licences, otherwise it is against
the law. In the following case, a person transacted a property
deal without going through a licensed person and suffered losses.
Mrs Au had a lot of friends, and she was also very fond of playing
mahjong. So the mahjong table became her information exchange
centre. She knew who had a flat for sale and who wanted to buy
one. Then she would usually go one step further and assumed
the role of an intermediary, and had successfully clinched a
number of deals and made some easy money.
Recently, she helped to conclude another deal successfuly. Not
long after he moved into the flat he bought, Mr Ng, the purchaser,
received a notice from the management office of the building
demanding a contribution towards repair of the building in tens
of thousands of dollars. It turned out that an external wall
maintenance project was carried out a few months before. The
previous owner had not mentioned it during the course of transaction.
Now that the sale of the flat was completed, Mr Ng believed
that it would not get him anywhere if he tried to parley with
the previous owner. When he complained to Mrs Au, she proved
to be equally in the dark. There was nothing Mr Ng could do
but to resign to the fate of losing tens of thousands of dollars.
The above-mentioned practice of an unlicensed person acting
as an agent to earn extra income used to be quite common, especially
among some night-watchmen and caretakers who, taking advantage
of their positions, mediated the purchase, sale or rental of
flats. But after the licensing requirement under the Estate
Agents Ordinance has become effective, such practice is now
against the law.
The consumer should also ascertain the status of the estate
agent before proceeding with the deal. Under the Practice Regulation,
an estate agent or salesperson shall inform his prospective
clients the fact that he is licensed and of his licence number.
If the consumer is in doubt about the status of the estate agent
or salesperson, he may make inquiries at the relevant estate
agency. He may also either go to the offices of the Estate Agents
Authority in person or visit the website of the Authority to
search, free of charge, the register containing information
on licence holders.
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