PETALING JAYA: There are at least 10,000 people operating illegally as real-estate agents in the country, and they come in all forms, according to the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA).

They include building management staff, renovation contractors, grille-fixers, part-time insurance agents, former negotiators of real-estate agents and even security guards, said MIEA vice-president Wendy Tan.

And dealing with them could cost property buyers their deposits, she warned.

Tan said these illegal agents had no offices but openly advertised their contact numbers and properties for sale in newspapers.

At a dialogue between the MIEA and the media on Tuesday, Tan said the public should be wary of using illegal real-estate agents as buyers could not seek redress if the agents absconded with their deposits or misled them about the properties they planned to buy.

“On the MIEA’s part, we have placed advertisements in newspapers on how to identify an illegal agent,” she said.

Tan advised property buyers to check with MIEA or the Board of Valuers and Estate Agents to find out if they were dealing with licensed agents.

Another MIEA vice-president, Warrick Singh, said illegal agents were operating openly because no action had been taken against them since the Valuers, Appraisers and Estate Agents Act was introduced.

“We don’t know of any illegal agent having been charged in court despite the many reports lodged against them,” he said.

He said illegal agents could be fined up to RM25,000 upon conviction, but no one had been fined yet.

MIEA president Khatijah Abdullah said newspapers could help by not accepting advertisements from illegal agents for their publications.

Source : The Star 20/10/2005