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A former agent who failed to declare she had become bankrupt while trying to renew her real estate licence has been fined.
Former McGrath Bayside Cleveland sales director Pamela Neilson has been ordered to pay $10,000 by the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal for misleading the Office of Fair Trading.
She has been a licensed agent since 2005, but when she became bankrupt in 2015, she failed to tell Fair Trading.
As a result, this meant she was unable to hold a real estate licence, but she kept working and sold 21 properties between October 2015 and January 2017.
It was revealed to the tribunal that Ms Neilson filed to renew her licence in September 2016, and she signed to declare that she was not currently bankrupt. However, she came clean to Fair Trading later that year in December and revealed her financial situation.
The tribunal decided the way she conducted herself was unprofessional. However, they took into account she revealed to Fair Trading herself she was bankrupt, and also cooperated in the investigation.
Fair Trading executive director Brian Bauer said real estate agents needed to remember the importance of acting by their licensing requirements.
“Agents must be honest about their circumstances and aware of their obligations,” Mr Bauer said.
Ms Neilson has also been suspended from holding a real estate certificate for the next four months.
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