CEA is empowered to investigate into complaints against salespersons of any possible breach of the Estate Agents Act, including the Code of Ethics and Professional Client Care, and to impose penalties if a breach is proven.
Complaint Management
Estate agents must have in place a system with suitable processes for the receipt and investigation of complaints against the estate agent or any of their salespersons.
All complaints against the estate agent or any of its salespersons must be investigated. A report, providing details of the results of investigation and actions taken, must be provided to CEA within 2 weeks of the receipt of a complaint.
In the case in which the complainant is making a claim against the estate agent or a salesperson, the estate agent shall meet with the complainant to explore the possibility of an amicable resolution.
Common Complaints
Some of the common complaints that CEA has received include but are not limited to the following:
- Unprofessional / poor service rendered by salespersons.
- Advertisements with misleading information.
- Advertisements without prior consent from owners.
- Misconduct of salespersons.
- Miscommunication / misrepresentation by salespersons.
- Salespersons breaking or facilitating in breaking of Housing Development Board’s (HDB’s) rules and regulations.