Real estate operators start application for licenses

2013-4-3

From：Macau Daily Times

To coordinate the implementation of Real Estate Agency Law on 1st July, the Housing Bureau (IHM) is starting to issue temporary licenses to some 5,200 real estate agencies and over 16,000 agents in the territory with the aim to better regulate the industry and rid it of irregular practices. IHM expressed confidence in accomplishing this massive task in less than 3 months.
Tam Kuong Man, president of IHM, announced, in a press conference held in the Bureau’s headquarters in Ilha Verde, that the application process starts today and ends on the last day of June, one day before the implementation of the new law that was passed late last year.
“There are currently over 16,000 agents and 5,200 agencies operating in the city, and we’re confident to issue the licenses to them by 30th June,” the official said, adding that the Bureau has enough staff to cope with the current task and future enforcement of the regulatory duties the new law required.
“In addition to additional human resources, we also have a reliable system that can handle with the work. Currently we have 20 staff working on the application, and will have a group of temporary workers to help with the data input and processing. And in July, a new group of staff is also joining us to handle the regulatory duties that the new law requires of us.”

The 3-year temporary license is intended as a temporary permit for agents to operate. Within this period they will have to obtain a permit for permanent operation. To help them obtain the permanent license, IHM and the Labor Affairs Bureau (DSAL) are teaming up to offer existing agents a 30-hour training course that combines practical operation techniques and relevant legal knowledge such as mortgage payment mechanism and property prices estimation skills.
DSAL said the courses will be conducted in the early morning and evening, to train at least 320 agents each month. However they don’t have to sit an exam in order to get the license, instead an attendance rate of 80 percent or above is enough for an agent to qualify for a permanent license.
The new law gives IHM a mandate for approving the licenses, and to publish a regularly updated list of licensed agents, as well as the agencies they work for, so that the public can know if they are getting services from qualified agents. Property brokerage firms also have to apply for a permit from the authority, and register their addresses with IHM.
The Law is intended as a measure that will put the industry in a properly regulated setting to avoid disputes, and to rid it of irregular operations including a real estate agency operating in the premises, addresses, or shops of a different business operation.
“Therefore a real estate agency operating inside the shop of an electrical appliances supplier will no longer be acceptable,” said the government’s legal advisor in yesterday’s conference, “because the new law requires agencies to register a proper commercial address, and the law has detailed definition of such addresses. So an agency can no longer operate under a different company by simply posting the agency’s name or property advertisements on the walls of a different company.”
The legal advisory also believe the punishments stipulated in the new law are sufficient for ensuring “healthy development” of the industry. The Law sets a fine of MOP 50,000 – MOP 300,000 on violations by agencies, and MOP 20,000 – MOP 100,000 for violations by agents. Both the agencies and their employees risk losing their license in cases of repeated or serious violations.

Copyright@Macau Daily Times