Revamp of estate agent law on the cards

The original Estate Agents Act was passed in 1976 and needed to be reworked to modernise it and ensure that it took into account the recent developments in the industry, Trade and Industry chief director of policy and legislation Fungai Sibanda said yesterday. Business Day reports that a recent development was that property developers were often engaged in estate agency work but did not fall within the ambit of the Act - which regulates the interaction between the consumer and estate agents, the maintenance of trust accounts, protection of the consumer against fraudulent agents and the operation of the industry-wide fidelity fund. The medium-term project is part of a thorough departmental review and reform of numerous laws falling under its ambit. Full Business Day report