The Council for Estate Agencies (CEA) has released new regulatory measures to safeguard consumer interest and heighten the professional credibility of the real estate industry.
These measures will include photographs of estate agents on CEA’s online public register site; the introduction of estate agent cards; a dispute resolution scheme; and an initiative to promote consumer awareness and education.
Starting 1 March 2011, CEA’s website (www.cea.gov.sg) will bear the photographs of CEA registered salespeople. This resource is provided to customers so they have the liberty to check eachsalesperson’s credentials.
Estate agent ID cards, which will include pertinent information about the sales person, must now be presented throughout their work.
Launched on 3 January, the disputes resolution scheme will allow disagreements between consumers and estate agents to be efficiently resolved.
“Promoting consumer awareness and education are key focuses of CEA’s work,” said Chionh Chye Khye, Executive Director of CEA.
“CEA will work with Case, HDB and the industry to raise consumer awareness, and to educate them on their rights and responsibilities when appointing salespersons for property transactions.”