In recent years, the Bureau of Local Supervision and Administration has been committed to regulating illegal acts in the agency industry
According to the latest information from the Bureau, a total of 299 complaints were received last year, a slight decrease of 2% year-on-year, and a decline for the second consecutive year. Cases, an increase of 34% year-on-year. In addition, a total of 55 agents were revoked during the period, an increase of 34% year-on-year.
The Chairman of the Supervision and Administration Bureau, Liang Yongxiang, said that the bureau received a total of 299 complaints last year, a year-on-year decrease of 2% compared with 306 cases in 2018. However, there were 63 complaints involving first-hand residential properties last year, an increase of about 34% year-on-year.
The most common complaints include 74 cases of “improper handling of temporary sale and purchase agreements or temporary leases”, 56 cases of “issue of illegal advertisements”, 44 cases of “not having entered into or interpreting the” Real Estate Agency Agreement “with customers” and “providing “Inaccurate or misleading property information” involved 28 cases.
“ Improper handling of appointments ” is most common
Among them, the largest increase was in the number of complaints involving illegal advertising, from 20 in 2018 to 56 last year, an increase of 1.8 times year-on-year. It is believed to be related to the new practice notice issued by the Bureau of Property Advertising at the end of 2018. Complaints include the publication of advertisements without the seller’s written consent and the lack of property numbers.
As for the new property complaints received, they mainly involved providing inaccurate information and issuing advertisements without the developer’s permission. There were also five complaint cases concerning the order of real estate agents at the new property sales points. The council has processed 48 complaints about new listings, including 10 allegations of establishment, 19 unsuccessful complaints, and 1 lack of information. The most severe penalties for new listings last year were real estate agents fighting at sales points in the new listing market. Suspended for 2 months and fined. On the other hand, complaints about property sales outside Hong Kong recorded a 60% decline, from 15 in 2018 to 6 last year.
Six overseas property complaints
Han Wanping, Chief Executive Officer of the Local Supervision and Administration Bureau, added that six complaints about overseas property sales last year related to overseas properties in the UK, Thailand, Malaysia and the Mainland. The complaints included unlicensed real estate work and inaccurate provision of property driving information. Sanctions include condemnation, a fine of 3,000 yuan, 4500 yuan, and the issue of a guidance letter.
Liang Yongxiang continued that the bureau took action against 258 real estate agents last year, revoked 55 licenses and suspended 18 licenses, and 116 and 147 licensees were fined and punished respectively. The agents whose licenses have been revoked are all determined by the Licensing Committee, but the reasons for revocation are not related to their practice, such as involving criminal liability, bankruptcy, etc.
875 new inspections
In addition, the bureau last year inspected a total of 875 first-hand real estate sales, 1935 real estate agent shops and spot checks on online property advertisements a total of 678 times. During the inspection, a total of 143 cases of violations were found, of which the number of complaints about advertising violations was the largest, accounting for 86 cases, while 30 cases related to the requirements for keeping customer records against money laundering and terrorist financing were recorded, compared with 2018 It fell 50% year-on-year.
Although the overall level of practice has improved, the bureau will continue to step up its education work this year, with a special focus on consumer education. It will continue to work with the industry to promote compliance with regulations and promote the industry’s professional image among the public.