News & Media

SOURCE: REBAA Members Forum

April 4, 2025

The Real Estate Buyers Agents Association of Australia (REBAA) has raised the alarm over the increasing influx of inexperienced and undereducated buyers’ agents, posing a significant risk to consumer protection.

Sales agents have also voiced their concerns, highlighting the gravity of the growing issue.

REBAA President Melinda Jennison said that the industry’s low barriers to entry and lack of specialist education leave property buyers vulnerable to costly errors.

“The rapid growth of the buyers’ agent industry, while exciting, has also brought significant challenges,” Ms Jennison said.

“This includes a lack of regulatory oversight and the prevalence of inexperienced operators who may have completed their real estate licence but know very little about buying property.”

Ms Jennison said that the property market’s inherent challenges are compounded by the risk of hiring unqualified buying representatives, leading to potentially serious consequences for buyers.

“Unfortunately, this can result in overpaying for properties or facing legal issues due to improper advice,” she added.

The issue, according to Ms Jennison, also stems from varying qualification and industry experience requirements across the nation, coupled with mutual licence recognition.

“Mutual licence recognition allows agents to obtain licences in states with lower regulatory barriers and then operate in unfamiliar states,” she said.

“Imagine hiring someone for a $1 million purchase only to discover they lack knowledge of local laws or market dynamics? This is happening every day, and buyers are unaware.”

Ms Jennison said that mutual licence recognition has become a loophole, allowing buyers’ agents to operate in markets without sufficient local knowledge or legislative understanding.

“Operators are cutting corners by getting licensed in states with fewer requirements and entering competitive markets without proper training. It’s a ticking time bomb for consumer trust and financial safety,” she said.

Sales agents have expressed frustration over the inexperience of some new buyers’ agents, which not only complicates their work but could also jeopardise buyers’ financial wellbeing.

John Cunningham, Managing Director of Cunninghams Real Estate in Sydney, recounted an incident involving a new buyers’ agency with no relevant experience.

“They hung around open homes and pounced on buyers, but they simply did not know what to do and could never get to the point of getting any sales done via our firm as they kept losing out due to inaction or absence.

Many buyers lost up-front fees before the agency folded within 18 months,” Mr Cunningham said.

Tristan Rowland, Principal at Brisbane’s Stone Real Estate Aspley, believes many buyers are unaware of the differences between competent and incompetent buyers’ agents.

“How do you know what a buyer’s agent has inspected or whom they’ve contacted? If they’re not presenting properties regularly, they’re not doing their job,” Mr Rowland said.

He emphasized the need for thorough training, comparing the four-day course for buyers’ agents to a five-day course for baristas.

To address the issue, REBAA urges consumers to ask three key questions before engaging a buyers’ agent:

1. Are they fully licensed to purchase in all States they operate within, and did they obtain their licence through the standard licensing process in each relevant state?
2. Do they hold Professional Indemnity Insurance?
3. Are they a member of REBAA, adhering to the highest professional standards and ethical codes?