BLA - Estate agents

Online Transactions Now Available

Online Business Licensing transactions are now available. The public can search the Estate Agents register online at no cost. Individual licensed estate agents or officers in effective control of a company that holds a licence can pay by credit card and submit their annual statement online. The BLA can also be advised of changes to estate agent licence details, including changes to agents representatives, online at no cost.

On 1 July 2005, amendments to the Estate Agents Act 1980 came into force.

General Information
The Estate Agents Act 1980 regulates who can work in real estate in Victoria.

If you buy, sell, lease or manage real estate or a business on behalf of a vendor, landlord, purchaser or tenant you must hold an estate agent's licence or be employed by a licensed estate agent as an agent's representative.

A licence authorises an estate agent to operate anywhere in Victoria and may be issued to an individual or to a corporation. Licences are ongoing until it they are surrendered, suspended or cancelled.

Estate agents perform a range of activities, including:

Acting on behalf of owners, buyers and tenants to arrange the sale or lease of property including houses, buildings, factories, shops, farms, land and businesses;
Providing market appraisals of properties and businesses for clients;
Negotiating the sale or lease of properties and businesses;
Preparing agreements between buyers and sellers or landlords and tenants; and,
Collecting rents and managing rented properties.

A person who holds an individual estate agent's licence can also own and/or manage a real estate agency as a sole trader, in partnership, or through a corporation. To operate a real estate agency as a corporation, the corporation must hold an estate agent's licence in its own right.

Not all estate agents choose to be involved in the management of a real estate agency. Some prefer to work as employee estate agents in sales or rentals.

Penalties
You risk imprisonment and a fine of up to 500 penalty units for an individual (One Penalty Unit = $110.20) or 1000 penalty units for a corporation for trading as an estate agent without holding a licence.

Victorian Property Fund
Fees collected from licensed estate agents together with part of the interest earned on deposits in estate agent's trust accounts, are deposited into the Victorian Property Fund, which meets:

Costs in regulating the estate agency industry to protect the Victorian public; and,
Successful claims in favour of consumers who have suffered loss because of their dealing with an estate agent.

Australian Corporations Legislation
If you intend to operate a business through a company, you need to be aware of both the Director's and Company Secretary's responsibilities under the Australian Corporations Legislation. Visit the Australian Securities & Investments Commission website to find out more about the legislation requirements.

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Licensing requirements for individuals.
Licensing requirements for corporations.
Agent's representatives.
Ongoing responsibilities.
Business Licensing Authority Glossary.
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Real Estate Legislation
Business Licensing Online Transactions