Overview
- Draft reforms would lift the maximum penalty for underquoting from $22,000 to $110,000 or three times an agent’s commission, whichever is greater.
- All listings would be required to display a price or price guide and a published statement of information outlining how the estimate was set, including comparable sales and suburb medians.
- NSW Fair Trading would gain expanded enforcement powers, including the ability to publish underquoting breaches and a new standalone offence for failing continuing professional development.
- The Strata and Property Taskforce’s recent work includes the suspension of Sydney agent Joshua Tesolin’s licence pending disciplinary action over alleged serious and repeated breaches.
- Parallel data from Victoria show almost 3,500 complaints to Consumer Affairs in two years but relatively few fines, underscoring the enforcement challenges the NSW package seeks to address.