New South Wales Fair Trading Minister Anoulack Chanthivong and Strata and Property Commissioner Angus Abadee were present with inspectors this week during compliance checks on Sydney real estate agencies, as the state prepares to introduce steeper penalties for underquoting and new pricing transparency rules.
The NSW Strata and Property Taskforce, established by the Minns government early last year to crack down on underquoting, carried out Anytime Anywhere compliance checks at agencies in Pyrmont and Leichhardt on Wednesday. Inspectors, dressed in a co-ordinated uniform, entered agencies, flashed their badges, and requested documents and financial data to check for suspicious activity.
Chanthivong said the new laws, due to come into effect from mid-November, would make pricing clearer for buyers and stop them wasting time on properties they cannot afford. The penalty for agents caught underquoting will increase from $22,000 to $110,000 or three times the agent’s commission, whichever is greater. The fine for dummy bidding at auctions will double to $110,000. Agents will also be prohibited from advertising a selling price lower than a previously rejected written offer or the highest unsuccessful bid at an auction. From February, agents will be required to publish a statement of information on how price guides are calculated.
Chanthivong said the measures would mean NSW agents face the steepest penalties for underquoting in the country. “Everyone should have confidence that everybody is playing by the rules,” he said.
Commissioner Abadee said the reforms were about expected standards of professional behaviour, regardless of market conditions. “There’s been a presumption that all agents are doing the wrong thing, which they’re not. Most people are doing the right thing … so this is about levelling the behavioural playing field,” he said.
The taskforce has conducted 469 compliance checks and attended 116 auctions in the past 12 months, issuing more than 70 fines worth almost $160,000.
At the Pyrmont check, Morton real estate co-founder Ewan Morton raised concerns about some “unintended consequences” of the reforms, particularly the prohibition on advertising below a rejected offer in a cooling market. “A lot of agents, they feel that they’re getting hammered,” Morton told the minister and commissioner. Chanthivong said the laws should in theory also benefit agencies, which would not want to spend staff time with potential buyers or investors who were not in the market.
The team has caught plenty of “bad eggs”. Abadee said the reforms were not intended to penalise agents for being good at their jobs and generating interest in a property that sells above expectations, but to weed out misleading conduct and give confidence to law-abiding agents.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- Home buyers in NSW face higher costs and wasted time from misleading price guides; the reforms aim to restore trust in the market.
- Agents will face the highest penalties in Australia for underquoting, which could change how properties are marketed and sold.
- The crackdown comes as Sydney’s median house price has fallen 5.8 per cent this year, making accurate pricing more critical for both buyers and sellers.
Background
Underquoting, advertising a property below its likely sale price, has been a persistent issue in Sydney’s competitive real estate market. The Minns government established the Strata and Property Taskforce early last year to lead the crackdown. The new rules, starting in November, also include mandatory publishing of price guide calculations. The moves follow similar transparency measures in Victoria, but NSW has stopped short of requiring a reserve price before auction.
Key Perspectives
Anoulack Chanthivong (Fair Trading Minister): said the reforms would make pricing clear for buyers and prevent wasted time, and that NSW agents would face the highest penalties for underquoting in the country.
Angus Abadee (Property Commissioner): said the reforms were about setting expected standards of professional conduct, not about market conditions, and that most agents do the right thing.
Ewan Morton (Morton real estate co-founder): said agents feel “hammered” and raised concerns about unintended consequences, including the rule against lowering a guide after a vendor rejects an offer in a cooling market.
What to Watch
- The November start date for the new penalty and prohibition rules, and how agents adapt their pricing practices.
- Whether the February requirement to publish statement-of-information documents leads to more transparency or legal challenges.
- The impact of the market downturn on underquoting activity and the taskforce’s enforcement focus.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 10 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedThe NSW taskforce is checking agencies as part of an underquoting crackdown.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “The taskforce was established by the Minns government early last year, with a key objective to lead NSW Fair Trading’s crackdown on underquoting”
- SupportedInspectors conducted checks at Sydney agencies with Minister Anoulack Chanthivong and Commissioner Angus Abadee present.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “after they conducted an Anytime Anywhere compliance check this week, observed by The Sydney Morning Herald as well as New South Wales Fair Trading Minister Anoulack Chanthivong.”
- Partly supportedThe new laws were due to take effect from mid-November.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “While that is set to change from mid-November as part of sweeping reforms to boost pricing transparency”
- Partly supportedChanthivong said the laws would make pricing clearer and stop buyers wasting time on properties they cannot afford.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “the new laws will not only make pricing clearer for buyers and stop them wasting their time and money on inspections for properties they can’t afford”
- SupportedChanthivong said, “Everyone should have confidence that everybody is playing by the rules.”Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: ““Everyone should have confidence that everybody is playing by the rules.””
- SupportedAbadee said there was a presumption agents were doing the wrong thing, that most were doing the right thing, and that the reforms were about levelling the behavioural playing field.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: ““There’s been a presumption that all agents are doing the wrong thing, which they’re not. Most people are doing the right thing ... so this is about levelling the behavioural playing field,” Abadee said.”
- SupportedMorton told Chanthivong and Abadee, “A lot of agents, they feel that they’re getting hammered.”Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: ““A lot of agents, they feel that they’re getting hammered,” Morton told the pair.”
- SupportedThe underquoting penalty will rise from $22,000 to $110,000 or three times the agent’s commission, whichever is greater.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “ramping up the penalty for agents caught underquoting, from $22,000 to $110,000 or three times the agent’s commission, whichever is greater.”
- SupportedThe fine for dummy bidding at auctions will double to $110,000.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “The penalty for dummy bidding at auctions will also double to $110,000.”
- SupportedAgents will be prohibited from advertising a selling price below a previously rejected written offer or the highest unsuccessful auction bid.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “Agents will also be prohibited from advertising a selling price that is lower than a previously rejected written offer or the highest unsuccessful bid at an auction.”
- SupportedFrom February, agents will have to publish a statement of information on how price guides are calculated.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “And from February, they’ll be made to publish a statement of information to be more transparent with how guides are calculated.”
- SupportedIn the past 12 months, the taskforce conducted 469 checks, attended 116 auctions and issued more than 70 fines worth almost $160,000.Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News: “In the past 12 months, they’ve attended 116 auctions and conducted 469 Anytime Anywhere underquoting compliance checks, issuing more than 70 fines worth almost $160,000.”