A latest survey conducted in Singapore showed that 80 percent of all property deals transacted in the country are done through property agents, with most of the transactions ending with customers complaining about some sort of ‘bad service’.
This was part of the findings on the perception and expectation of the public on real estate agents, which was a recent research project done by students in the final year of their Diploma in Real Estate Business at Ngee Ann Polytechnic.
The survey polled 1,014 respondents from various age groups, educational and professional backgrounds.
Nicholas Mak, a property lecturer at the tertiary institution who led the survey, noted that eight out of every 10 real estate transactions in Singapore were done through property agents and 77 percent of those who used real estate agents complained of having encountered ‘bad service’ of some sort.
The survey also showed that 73 percent of the respondents felt the necessity to accredit the profession, with two-thirds of them conveying their satisfaction with the present accreditation scheme.
Ninety-seven percent of those who suggested that accreditation is necessary also wanted some form of government intervention, Mr. Mak added.
He felt that the findings are timely with the new regulatory framework for property agents, which the government intends to establish soon.
“This survey was initiated with the objectives of finding out consumer opinion of real estate agents and improving the existing accreditation system,” noted Mr. Mak.
The lecturer also noted that those unsatisfied with the services rendered by estate agents highlighted key problems like ‘bad or wrong advice’ and the failure to achieve favorable prices.
“Some of them also felt that their real estate agents neglected their opinions or suggestions,” he added.
The survey also covered the views of the public regarding the following issues: the minimum qualification of the property agents and its impact on their competencies; expectations of consumers on services provided by property agents; weight of qualification and experience in the choice of estate agent; and suggestions for government action.