Residential and Rural Property Auctions
New controls regulating the activities of property agents have been introduced in New South Wales to address the widespread concerns about misleading price estimates being given by agents, the competence of auctioneers, collusive practices and vendor bids at auctions.
As part of these controls, the Commissioner for Fair Trading can now ask an agent to substantiate a price estimate of a residential property given to a seller or potential purchaser.
To address concerns about auctioneer competence, all real estate agents and stock and station agents who wish to carry out an auction must be specifically accredited to do so.
New rules for potential bidders have been introduced in response to concerns about dummy bidding at auctions of residential property (which includes residential land) and rural land. These are detailed in a bidder's guide which the Office of Fair Trading has produced and which must be distributed by agents prior to an auction.
Reproduced from In Touch With The Law, published by the Law Society of NSW
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