SINGAPORE — Those looking for property agents may now view information about them online, including their past transactions for all types of residential properties, before they make a decision to engage them.

This is part of an initiative by the Council for Estate Agencies, which said in a statement on Friday (Sept 3) that it has published a complete record of all residential property transactions by property agents in Singapore. 

Property buyers may view these records, under the Property Agents’ Transaction Records Initiative, on the council’s public register on its website. 

Previously, the public register published data only on completed transactions for government-built resale flats negotiated by registered property agents. 

Other than the transactions that property agents make, consumers may also view the date of a completed transaction, the general location of the property and the party that the agent represented for the transaction. 

This will apply to all residential property transactions, including the resale and rental of Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats as well as the sale, resale and rental of private property completed in the last two years. 

For property agents, it is mandatory under the amended Estate Agents Act to submit their residential property transaction records to the Council for Estate Agencies. 

Property agencies must ensure that the information on the transactions is “true and not misleading” for publication in the public register. 

For resale-flat transaction records, HDB will provide the Council for Estate Agencies with the information directly. 

The council said that the transaction records for each month would be updated on the 15th day of the next month and that the public may access transactions completed in the last two years from the date of access. 

“This ensures that consumers have access to the most recent transaction records,” it said. 

Records of transactions made more than two years before the date of access are available on data.gov.sg, the Government’s data portal. 

ASSURING PROPERTY BUYERS 

This initiative is one of several under the real-estate industry transformation map, launched in 2018 to enable property agencies and agents to raise their professionalism and build stronger client relationships.

Mr Tan Kiat How, Minister of State for National Development, said on Friday that those looking for property agents would often want to know more about the agents’ record and areas that they specialise in before deciding to engage them. 

“For such a big decision and investment as a home, this additional information is an assurance that we are in good hands for our property transactions,” he said in a Facebook post. 

Mr Soh Cheng Hwee, director of licensing at the Council for Estate Agencies, said that property agents would also stand to benefit.

“Property agents can also use these verified records to show their professional experience and specialisation in the kinds of residential transactions they have facilitated, as a way of gaining consumer confidence,” he said.