New Property Agents Act and National Licensing Proposals

AccomNews Sunday, September 18, 2011

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I recently had the opportunity to address a parliamentary committee on proposed new legislation for property agents licensing. My report follows:

“In a process which I hope was fortunate for the management rights industry, I was able to respond to an invitation and to address the Queensland Parliamentary Committee for Legal Affairs, Police Corrective Services and Emergency Services, “the committee”, at its hearing on 24 August 2011 in regards to the bills presented to parliament to replace the Property Agents and Motor Dealers Act, with separate acts for the coverage of various licences.

Previously, along with ARAMA and other parties, Short Punch & Greatorix had lodged a submission to the committee in regard to the new legislation. This is a new parliamentary process in Queensland where, for the first time, the committee has sat representing both the government and the opposition in order to hear from interested parties as to proposed bills relating to the Justice portfolio before they become enacted as law.

In the formal surroundings of the committee hearings at Parliament House, I presented my concerns on the need to continue with a Resident Letting Agents Licence process in Queensland, on behalf of managers and unit owners. Whilst the bill coming before parliament does do that, there is a great deal of activity on the federal scene for co-operative activity between all of the states to significantly alter the licensing arrangements relating to any person who needs a licence for their occupation, commonly known as the National Occupation Licensing System.

The idea is to standardise occupation licences throughout Australia, particularly for real estate activity. While this might be commendable, it does not take into account some of the very specific needs which apply to the granting of licences for property transactions in Queensland and perhaps not existing in the other states. I therefore took the opportunity to raise with the committee and with the departmental officers present, the importance of a Resident Letting Agents Licence system, which is particularly valuable in Queensland for the ongoing needs of the industry covering management rights and tourism. I also explained the protections to the public from this style of licence.

It seems most strange that there are bills before parliament to rearrange and reinforce our current licences for sales and letting of real estate in Queensland, by re-organising the PAMD Act as several acts, and yet other persons in the department are in the midst of changing, or taking away those licences, with possible effect from 2012 through the NOLS system.

The committee showed a great deal of interest in my submission and that of ARAMA on the same matter.

Additionally, I took the opportunity to appraise the committee of some of the other difficulties which could be covered by the act. In particular, the question of a resident letting agent in a tourist oriented building being able to pool the rentals from a group of apartments and to split the net amount each month with all of the owners in the pool on a specified basis. By their relevant questions, it was shown that the politicians involved had a reasonable grasp of how the current system works. This area of discussion also raised the problem of the situation where an owner of a lot, which is used by the manager for holiday guests, suddenly, without giving 90 days notice to the manager, sells the lot to an owner who wishes to immediately occupy the lot to the exclusion of guests who are already booked in.

Whilst no conclusions or solutions were particularly formed, I am certain that the department in charge of the legislation will be well queried by the politicians on the application of the future laws, based on the information presented for on site letting managers and this is a positive step for the management rights industry.”

John Punch
Short Punch & Greatorix