The nation's real estate industry watchdog says tougher action against misbehaving agents is necessary to remind them of their obligations to act in the best interests of commission-paying sellers and that there are consequences for wrongdoing. Speaking this morning on Radio New Zealand's Nine to Noon show, Real Estate Agents Authority chief Kevin Lampen-Smith said the agency was becoming more proactive in trying to root out cases of house flipping where agents were in "cahoots" with on-selling investors or taking bribes. An agent's primary responsibility was to act in the vendor's best interests and attain the best possible market price for the property they were selling. However the Real Estate Agents Disciplinary Tribunal could order "rectification - in other words make good" - in terms of financial compensation or repayment of commission. "The fines are quite small but there are other ways a real estate agent can be held to account."

Source: New Zealand Herald March 09, 2017 21:49 UTC