REAL ESTATE AND BUSINESS AGENTS ACT 1978
Table of Provisions
PART I -- Preliminary
- 1 Short title
- 2 Commencement
- 4 Terms used
PART II -- Advisory Committee and review
- 22 Powers of investigation
- 23 Application for review by SAT
Division 4 -- Advisory committees
- 23A Advisory committees, establishing etc.
- 23B Minister may delegate s. 23A powers
Division 5 -- Conciliation
- 23C Conciliation of disputes about transactions
PART III -- Licensing of agents
- 24 Applications for licences
- 26 Real estate agents and business agents must be licensed
- 27 Licensing of individuals
- 28 Firms, licensing of
- 29 Bodies corporate, licensing of
- 30 Licence, effect of
- 31 Licensee’s triennial certificate: grant and renewal
- 32 Licensee’s triennial certificate: late renewal
- 33 Licensee’s triennial certificate: late renewal after 12 months
- 34 Conditions on licences and triennial certificates
- 34AA Imposing special conditions on licences or triennial certificates
- 34AB Removing special conditions on licences or triennial certificates
- 34A Commissioner may grant licence or triennial certificate without notice to applicant
- 34B SAT may suspend licence in some cases
- 34C Licensee may surrender licence and triennial certificate
- 34D Firm or body corporate must surrender licence and triennial certificate in certain circumstances
- 35 Licensee to notify Commissioner when commencing or ceasing business
- 36 Registered office of licensee
- 37 Branch office of licensee
- 38 Triennial certificates, contents of
- 39 Licence and triennial certificate not transferable etc.
- 40A Duplicate licence, certificate of registration or triennial certificate
- 40B Licensee to comply with prescribed educational requirements
- 40 Business names, use of by licensees
- 41 Notices to be exhibited at offices; particulars to appear on documents
PART IV -- Registration of sales representatives
- 42 Natural persons only may be registered
- 43 Applications for registration
- 44 Real estate sales representatives must be registered etc.
- 45 Business sales representatives must be registered etc.
- 46 Partners and directors of licensees to be registered in certain cases
- 47 Natural persons, grant of certificate of registration to
- 48 Certificates of registration, duration and renewal of
- 49 Certificates of registration, late renewal of
- 50 Conditions on certificates of registration
- 50AA Imposing special conditions on certificates of registration
- 50AB Removing special conditions on certificates of registration
- 50A Unopposed applications
- 50B SAT may suspend registration in some cases
- 50C Sales representative to comply with prescribed educational requirements
- 51 Registered sales representatives to notify Commissioner of certain changes
- 52 Certificate of registration not transferable
- 53 Certificate of registration, surrender of
- 54 Sales representatives, employment of
- 55 Sales representative to be in service of one person
PART V -- General controls
- 56 Franchising agreements, licensee not to carry on business under without Commissioner’s approval
- 57 Developers, principal place of business to be registered and service on
- 58 Developer to notify Commissioner of change in principal place of business
- 59 Developer to keep records of real estate transactions
- 60 Agent not entitled to commission etc. unless licensed and validly appointed
- 61 Maximum remuneration of licensees, fixing of etc.
- 61A Agents not to demand etc. money etc. for letting etc. from tenants
- 62 Advertising by agents and developers
- 63 Agents etc. to supply signatories of documents with copies
- 64 Conflicts of interest of agents etc.
- 65 Rates etc., agents to ensure payment and apportionment of
- 66 Keys to houses etc. and information about tenancies etc., payment for is an offence
PART VI -- Agents’ trust accounts
- 67 Terms used
- 68 Use of trust accounts
- 68A Client may ask agent for separate trust account
- 68B Interest on trust accounts to be paid by financial institutions
- 68C Agents to give Commissioner information about trust accounts
- 69 Money received by agents, duties as to
- 70 Audits of trust accounts
- 71 Date of audit, Commissioner may change
- 72 Auditors, qualification and approval of
- 73 Auditors, appointment of
- 74 Audits of business carried on at more than one place, directions as to
- 75 Approvals etc. under this Part, Commissioner’s power to cancel etc.
- 77 Audits, agents’ duties and auditors’ powers as to
- 78 Audits, bankers’ duties as to
- 79 Auditors’ reports, content of
- 80 Moneys etc. held on trust, statement of by agents
- 81 Auditor’s report to report breaches of law etc.
- 82 Auditors’ duty of confidentiality
- 83 Right of some persons to information in auditors’ reports
- 84 Offences under this Part
- 85 Auditors’ remuneration
- 86 Agents with no accounts to audit
- 87 Accounts of firm or body corporate or agent with branch office, effect of audits as to
- 88 Audit of trust account, Commissioner may do
- 90 Cost of audit done under s.
- 91 Confidentiality of audit done under s.
- 92 Restraining bank etc. from dealing with agent’s account, SAT’s powers as to
- 93 Suspension of agents, appointment of supervisors etc., SAT’s powers as to
- 94 Order under s. 93 for supervisor, effect of
- 95 Supervisors’ duties
- 96 Hindering etc. supervisors, offence
- 97 Discharge or variation of s. 92 or 93 order
- 98 SAT’s additional powers as to s. 92, 93 and 97 orders; schemes for distributing funds
- 99 Service of s. 92, 93, 97 or 98 orders; penalty for breach of
- 100 Banks etc., duty to disclose certain accounts etc. if required to by authorised person
- 100A Information about trust accounts, Commissioner’s power to obtain
PART VII -- Discipline of agents and sales representatives
- 101 Codes of conduct
- 102 Disciplinary action by SAT, alleging cause for
- 103 Disciplinary action, SAT’s powers as to
- 104 Offences that cause licence and triennial certificate to be cancelled
- 105 Certain offences by licensees, additional sentencing powers for
- 105A Cancellation of licence due to insufficient resources or cessation of business
- 106 Persons with cancelled licences etc., offences by and in respect of
PART VIII -- Fidelity Guarantee Account
- 107 Account established
- 108 Investment of moneys in account
- 109 Moneys to be credited to account
- 110 Expenditure from account
- 112 Administration of account
- 113 Payments to account by applicants for licences etc.
- 114 Cap on payments under s.
- 115 Levies for account against certificate holders
- 116 Purpose of account; making claims against account
- 117 Claims against account; recovery from account
- 118 Defences to claims against account
- 119 Subrogation of rights of claimant against account
- 120 Insufficiency in account
- 121 State may insure against claims
- 122 Application of insurance payouts
- 123 Advertising for claims in relation to defaulting licensee
- 124 Documents etc. to support claims, CEO may require
- 124AA Commissioner may investigate claims against Fidelity Account
PART VIIIA -- Education and General Purpose Account
- 124A Account established; administration of account
- 124B Moneys to be credited to account
- 124C Expenditure from account
- 124D Investment of moneys in account
PART IX -- Real Estate and Business Agents Interest Account
- 125 Account established; administration of account
- 126 Moneys to be credited to account
- 127 Expenditure from account
- 128 Investment of moneys in account
PART IXA -- Assistance to home buyers
- 131A Terms used
- 131B Home Buyers Assistance Account established
- 131C Investment of moneys in account
- 131D Moneys to be credited to account
- 131E Expenditure from account
- 131G Administration of account
- 131L Applying for assistance for buyers of first homes
- 131M Deciding applications for assistance
- 131N Assistance, payment and application of
- 131O Criteria for granting assistance, formulating
PART X -- Miscellaneous
- 132 Unlicensed assistants to be supervised etc.
- 133 Registers of licensees etc., Commissioner to keep etc.
- 134A Offence to give false or misleading information
- 134 Commissioner’s certificate
- 135 Annual report by department
- 136 Commissioner to report to Minister on Act’s effectiveness as to protecting against defalcations
- 136A Refunds of fees, Commissioner’s powers as to
- 137 Protection from personal liability
- 138 Confidentiality of information officially obtained
- 139 Directors of body corporate, liability of
- 140 Other rights and remedies not affected by this Act
- 141 Rights conferred by Act cannot be waived
- 142 General penalty for offences
- 143 Proceedings for offences
- 144 Forms
- 145 Regulations
PART XI -- Savings and transitional
- 148 Terms used
- 149 Former Board abolished
- 150 References to former Board
- 151 Immunity continues
- 152 Notices by former Board
- 153 References to former Registrar
- 154 Unfinished investigations by former Board
- 155 Unfinished proceedings by former Board
- 156 Winding-up former Board
- 157 Final report by former Board
- 158 Staff of former Board
- 159 Transitional regulations