A SPECIAL tribunal might be set up to resolve disputes over residential real estate transactions - replacing the current bewildering hotch potch of options.
This is one of a wide-ranging set of proposals aimed at protecting consumers and lifting standards in the largely fragmented and self-regulating property industry.
Others include: Accrediting all agents, setting up a central registry and instituting a common entrance examination for agents.
The Ministry of National Development (MND) will launch a public consultation exercise for one month from today.
It has just conducted extensive industry consultations on the proposed shake-up. A key impetus for the review, the Government said, has been the high number of complaints in recent years.
To resolve disputes, consumers usually go to the agencies, the industry associations or the Consumers Association of Singapore (Case). Case, for instance, had 727 real estate cases in the first nine months of the year, compared with 1,100 cases last year and 1,055 cases in 2007. It had just 379 cases in 2002.
Case executive director Seah Seng Choon said a tribunal specialising in real estate disputes would help both consumers and agents cut dispute-related costs and, hopefully, speed up resolution.
The Government could help initially by providing start-up funding, but its operation would eventually rest with the industry, it said.
Also, MND said it may be necessary for all agencies to put in place complaints handling processes.
'The first line of defence should be the agencies, followed by an independent body before the case goes to the tribunal. If not, everybody will be heading straight to the tribunal,' said Institute of Estate Agents president Jeff Foo.
He added the framework is a 'good step forward after more than 20 years of self-regulation'.
Another key proposal is mandatory accreditation for agents. The accreditation body - possibly a group of professionals - could keep a public central registry to let agencies assess the background of agents they aim to hire.
This registry could help solve the problem of errant agents who switch from one agency to another undetected or those attached to multiple agencies, experts said.
About 1,700 agencies and 25,000 to 30,000 agents deal in HDB and private homes here.
To add clout to its plan, the Government wants to introduce a regulatory authority, which will be a government agency working with the accreditation body, to set up a disciplinary framework for taking action against errant agents.
For instance, to prevent rogue agents from jumping from one agency to another, MND is thinking of having a demerit points system. These points would stay with the agents and be widely known, MND deputy secretary (development) Tay Lim Heng said yesterday.
Agencies may also face the same disciplinary actions.
Still, some industry sources say more needs to be done. 'The industry has been pushing for the licensing of individual agents for more than a decade. The basic minimum requirements weeds out only agents who don't know what they are doing, not the unethical agents,' said ERA Asia Pacific's associate director Eugene Lim. 'The agents have to fear the accreditation body. Otherwise, there is only so much the agencies can do.'
Real Estate Developers Association of Singapore chief executive Steven Choo said: 'You can't legislate ethics, but you can transmit knowledge and raise standards of professionalism. No industry matures overnight. Given time, we should be looking at an improved industry.'
Consumers may benefit, but they also have to help make the framework effective. There would be public education outreach programmes to help them understand their responsibilities and rights.
Key elements of the new framework are expected to be out by the end of the year, with the legislative work to be done by the first half of next year. It would be up and running in the second half of the year.
The public can offer feedback on www.mnd.gov.sg
Source: Straits Times, 13 Oct 2009
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