This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on November 1, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) said it supports the call by the Malaysian Institute of Professional Property Managers and Facility Managers to establish a separate board for real estate agents.

In a statement yesterday, Eric Lim, president of MIEA, which represents 5,000 real estate agents, said a separate board will more effectively regulate its practitioners.

The profession is currently regulated under Act 242 by the Board of Valuers, Appraisers, Estate Agents and Property Managers (BOVEAP), which comes under the purview of the ministry of finance.

However, BOVEAP president Nordin Daharom said in a statement yesterday that there is no need for separate boards regulating the real estate service profession.

On the contrary, Lim pointed out the current board is overwhelmed regulating the four professions under the real estate service industry, namely property managers, valuers, appraisers and real estate agents.

“Real estate agents, who make up the majority of the profession, are not adequately represented at the board level. The real estate profession should be regulated by its practitioners, similar to other professional bodies in Malaysia and Singapore,” he said.

MIEA chief executive officer Soma Sundram concurred, noting that in terms of real estate practice standards, Malaysia is 25 years behind developed countries like the US and Australia.

“In Singapore, there is one registered real estate agent for every 200 people while Malaysia has one registered real estate agent for every 1,264 people. We are concerned that the industry is not growing, as every year, only around 100 new registered estate agents come into the market. This number can’t meet the needs of the industry,” said MIEA secretary-general Chan Ai Cheng.

“Sabah and Sarawak, for example, are very much underserved,” Chan said, adding that out of RM139 billion in property transactions recorded last year, 60% were carried out by real estate practitioners.