The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) in Queensland has approved new training requirements for people wanting to enter the real estate industry.
The new training, as part of initial licensing requirements, follows an independent review of the national property services training package.
Before approving the new training, the OFT consulted on its potential impact with a range of industry bodies and stakeholders including the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ), Australian Resident Accommodation Managers Association (ARAMA), and the Australian Livestock and Property Agents Association (ALPAA).
Fair Trading Executive Director Brian Bauer said it is important to ensure qualifications for licence requirements are contemporary, meeting the needs of industry and expectations of people using critical real estate services.
The new training requirements also remove units of competency that are obsolete and duplicative.
“Queensland has 14,647 licensed real estate agents and 19,659 registered salespersons, and the OFT issues approximately 5000 new real estate agent licences and registrations annually,” Mr Bauer said.
“People using services provided by the real estate industry need to be confident their property and financial interests are protected by licensees operating with the right blend of integrity, expertise and professionalism.”
Antonia Mercorella, CEO of the REIQ has supported the new training requirements.
“It’s pleasing to see the Office of Fair Trading’s new training requirements not only recognise the significance of the work undertaken by real estate professionals but also better reflect modern-day real estate agency practice,” Ms Mercorella said.
“The introduction of higher scholastic standards provide an enhanced understanding of consumer protections, improved professionalism and ultimately, a higher calibre of educated Queensland real estate professions.
Trevor Rawnsley, the CEO of ARAMA, has also endorsed the collaborative nature of these reforms.
“The review and subsequent updating of licensing education for resident letting agent’s in Queensland has resulted in a modern, more relevant set of training requirements offering more flexibility and more opportunities for skills transfer,” Mr Rawnsley said.
“These improvements will result in better education for agents and ultimately better outcomes for the consumer.”
