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The year was dominated by the portal wars, as REA Group raised its fees, Domain slammed its rival and Squiiz made its debut.
And the biggest stories of the year were …
Domain accused REA Group of trying to “disintermediate” the agent from the sales process after realestate.com.au decided to increase its prices.
9. Realestate.com.au announces changes to fees
REA Group announced it would charge agents based on the location of their listing rather than the location of their office, with agents across multiple suburbs most heavily impacted.
8. Arrests made over real estate fraud
Police arrested three Africans and charged them in connection with the attempted fraudulent sale of an Australian home.
7. Trust account misuse sees agencies wound up
Two real estate agencies were wound up following an investigation that uncovered the misuse of trust accounts and non-compliance with the Real Estate and Business Agents Act.
6. Agent chases $3m sale for home of Kyle Sandilands
Australia’s most controversial media star turned to a trusted agent when he decided to put his home on the market.
The name of the much-anticipated industry-owned portal was finally revealed.
4. Star agent faces drug charges
Brisbane real estate agent Patrick McCann was charged with more than 30 drug offences following a two-year police sting operation.
3. REA breaks silence on fee hike
REA Group responded to criticism over its fee increases, stating that agents remained critical to its core strategy and rejecting claims of attempting to ‘disintermediate’ them.
2. Major networks challenge REA Group
The major franchise networks first unveiled their plans for a new listing portal, soon after realestate.com.au announced its new fee structure.
1. Industry portal founders revealed
Real Estate Business broke the news of the real estate businesses behind the development of Squiiz.
Update: A typo in the story has been corrected.
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