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A real estate agency in Western Australia has been fined for multiple breaches of trust account records and delays in bond lodgments.
Kununurra real estate agency East Kimberley Real Estate Pty Ltd and its licensee have been fined $7,000 and formally reprimanded by the WA State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) for repeated breaches related to trust account management and tenancy bond lodgements.
The state administrative tribunal found that the agency had repeatedly failed to record trust account transactions on nine occasions and delayed the lodgement of seven tenancy bonds with the Bond Administrator, some by more than 1,000 days.
The agency, East Kimberley Real Estate Pty Ltd, was fined $4,000, while its licensee, Valda McKeen, was fined $3,000 for failing in her duty to ensure staff compliance.
According to the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978 and the industry Code of Conduct, real estate agents are required to log trust account payments within a single business day and submit tenancy bonds to the Bond Administrator within 14 days of receipt.
While mitigating, the SAT said the agency licensee had shown remorse and accountability for the breaches and had begun improving internal processes to prevent similar incidents.
The court also noted that no clients suffered financial losses, and some breaches occurred while McKeen was dealing with personal difficulties.
Commissioner for Consumer Protection Trish Blake said trust account and bond lodgment obligations need to be faultless to ensure consumer protection and trust in the industry.
“Even in the absence of financial loss, these breaches represent serious failures of professional responsibility,” Blake concluded.
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