The Guide on Best Practices for Consumer Ratings of Property Agents is an initiative under the Real Estate Industry Transformation Map. It was borne out of an 11-month collaborative effort by the Ratings of Property Agents Workgroup (RPAWG), a multi-stakeholder workgroup led by the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA).
Representatives from the real estate agency industry, industry and consumer associations, academia, and the property portal industry contributed to the joint development of the Guide. The Guide seeks to introduce consistent standards for the ratings of property agents and to build trust among users of such rating platforms.
How can the industry benefit from the development of the Guide?
The Guide sets an industry standard for the rating of property agents, including the key attribute categories, namely Service, Professionalism and Skills as well as safeguards and due processes to enhance the veracity, timeliness and comparability of ratings and reviews across platforms. It would also be useful as a reference for property agencies, property portals and other stakeholders with plans to develop their own rating platforms.
As more rating platforms adopt the Guide, consumers can better compare the ratings of property agents received based on attributes under the three key categories across different rating platforms and make a more informed decision when choosing an agent to represent them.
Property agents can also use the ratings received across various platforms to market themselves and improve their service levels. It would also enable property agents who have put in the effort to go the extra mile for the clients, provide value-added services to be recognised publicly.
The guide can be accessed and downloaded here (PDF, 369KB).
Who are the Early Adopters of the best practice guide?
Several organisations which are represented in the RPAWG have committed to adopting the features and recommendations set in the Guide. Together, they would cover about 90 per cent of property agents in the industry. Their plans are briefly outlined in the table:
| S/N | Early Adopters | Brief implementation details |
| 1. | ERA Realty Network Pte Ltd | Updated its existing FindPropertyAgent.sg platform to incorporate the guidelines in the Guide. |
| 2. | OrangeTee & Tie Pte Ltd | Updated its existing PropertyAgentsReview.com platform to incorporate the guidelines in the Guide. |
| 3. | Huttons Asia Pte Ltd | Updated its existing YourPropertyAgent.sg platform to align with the recommendations in the Guide.
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| 4. | PropNex Realty Pte Ltd
| Updated its existing PropertyAgentsRating.com platform to align with the recommendations in the Guide.
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| 5. | Singapore Estate Agents Association & PropertyGuru | This is a partnership to build a new ratings platform by adopting the guidelines in the Guide. |
More details on the RPAWG and the Guide can be found in the attached factsheet (PDF, 75KB) and frequently-asked questions (PDF, 144KB).
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