Real estate no longer a
cowboy industry: Khaw
The
transformation of the real estate sector has begun, and what used to be
regarded as a "cowboy" industry is now more professional, National
Development Minister Khaw Boon Wan has said.
In a
post in his blog "Housing Matters", he wrote that the industry now
has "a more systematic and professional process of proper registration of
salespersons and licensing of estate agents".
He
also noted that complaints had been filed in only one per cent of the more than
100,000 property transactions each year.
His
positive comments came with the release of the results of the inaugural public
perception survey of the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA), which marked its
second anniversary last month.
The
survey found that eight in 10 consumers were satisfied with the conduct and
services of the agent handling the sale, purchase or rental of their property.
A
further seven in 10 said they would recommend their salesperson to others.
But
while most consumers found their salespersons contactable, responsive to
queries and courteous, their knowledge of the real estate sector apparently
fell short.
Specifically,
consumers said they wanted their salespersons to be able to give advice on financial
matters related to the transaction, and accurate, up-to-date information
related to the property and the property market.
Awareness
of key industry practices and regulations among consumers was generally high,
averaging 72 per cent; the awareness level among potential consumers averaged
59 per cent.
Of
the 2,260 consumers and potential consumers interviewed between March and July,
more resale consumers (87 per cent) were satisfied with their salespersons than
rental consumers (75 per cent).
Separately,
an online survey among key executive officers (KEOs) and salespersons was
carried out.
It
found that 80 per cent of KEOs and salespersons indicated that the regulatory
measures and enforcement of minimum eligibility criteria for salespersons had
raised the professionalism of the industry; 91 per cent said the training,
including the mandatory Continuing Professional Development courses they
received, were useful in raising their professionalism.
Calling
these trends a good start to the transformation of the industry, Mr Khaw urged
salespersons to embrace continuous learning to stay relevant and to bring value
to their clients.
Source: Business Times –27 November 2012
Six
months after the Hougang by-election, the opposition constituency is being
upgraded at a pace that has raised some eyebrows.
-l.jpg "Topiary EC @ Fernvale")
