Individual agent or business agent licence - real estate

To apply for an individual real estate agent or business agent licence, applicants must:

  • be at least 18 years old;
  • be a person of good character and repute and a fit and proper person to hold a licence (see below);
  • have access to sufficient assets and financial resources enabling them to comply with all the requirements of the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978; and
  • understand fully the duties and obligations imposed upon agents by the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978.

Character and Repute

To enable the Commissioner to consider whether an applicant is of good character and repute, and a fit and proper person to hold a licence, an Australian police check must be provided. The police check must not be more than three months old at the time the application is lodged with the Commissioner. 

Please see the Police checks for occupational licensing purposes page for a list of accepted Australian police checks. 

Applicants must also provide two business references. The business references must be in the pro forma.

A person who gives false or misleading information to the Commissioner or chief executive officer under the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978, including in relation to an application for a real estate agent or business agent licence, commits an offence and is liable for a penalty of up to $20,000. 

Qualifications

To apply for a real estate and business agent licence you must have one of the following prescribed qualifications from a registered training organisation:

  • Diploma of Property Services (Agency Management) CPP50307
  • Diploma of Property (Agency Management) CPP51122 
  • Diploma of Property (Agency Management) CPP51119 

or one of the following prescribed qualifications from Curtin University of Technology:

  • Bachelor of Commerce (Property and Marketing)
  • Bachelor of Commerce (Property) 
  • Bachelor of Commerce (Property and Finance)
  • Bachelor of Commerce (Property Development and Valuation)
  • Bachelor of Commerce (Property Development and Valuation Extension Major)
  • Bachelor of Commerce (Property Valuation)
  • Master of Property
  • Graduate Diploma in Property

Please note

Applicants for a real estate and business agent licence will also be required to complete units of competency from the CPP41419 Certificate IV in Real Estate Practice based on type of sales representative registration held or qualification attained to meet previous registration requirements. Applicants who have completed one of the prescribed qualifications from Curtin University degrees are exempt from this requirement. See the FAQs and flowcharts on the Pathways to real estate and business agent licensing and registration 2020 page for more information about how this may apply to you. 

Detailed information about real estate and business agents licence qualifications can be found in the Real Estate and Business Agents (General) Regulations 1979.

Experience

Applicants must satisfy the Commissioner that they have sufficient practical experience in negotiating transactions to enable them to carry on the business of an agent satisfactorily. To assist with this assessment, applicants must provide details of their real estate activities and transactions. This information should include:

  • A current resume which details employment history for a minimum of two years preceding the application. The resume should include the various job titles, names of employers and tasks involved; and
  • A transaction list detailing:
    • sales transaction details, such as the date of sale, address of property, value/price, and whether or not it was a conjunctional sale; and/or
    • property management transaction details, such as a description of properties managed (e.g. house, flat or shop), whether you managed them alone or were part of a team, and the period you managed them; and/or
    • leasing transaction details, such as a description of properties leased (e.g. retail, commercial or residential), whether you managed them alone or were part of a team, and the period you managed them. 
    • A sample spreadsheet of information that is required is available for download. 

Applicants must demonstrate that they have had a direct involvement in negotiating the actual transactions end to end; it is not sufficient to only have observational or theoretical experience, or experience that is somewhat relevant to negotiating transactions. Consideration will be given to the volume, nature, type and complexity of transactions that have been negotiated as well as the period of time over which they were negotiated and how recent the experience is.

For reference, section 4 of the Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978 defines the terms ‘transaction’, ‘business transaction’ and ‘real estate transaction’ (refer https://www.legislation.wa.gov.au/legislation/statutes.nsf/law_a672.html ).

Access to sufficient funds

Applicants will also need to provide a confidential statement of their assets and liabilities. In addition, an independent registered auditor must be appointed to audit the agent’s trust account(s).

Re-applying for a licence

If a real estate and business agent licence has expired (because a person left the industry and/or did not pay the holding fee in accordance with the Regulations to retain the licence), a person who wishes to trade can qualify for a new licence by providing evidence that they have held a licence within the previous five years and traded for at least two of those years.

Unlicensed trading

Unlicensed real estate and business agents who falsely claim to be, or imply they are, a licensed real estate and business agent are liable for a $100,000 penalty.  

Real estate and business agents who permit or are willing to permit others to use their licence and triennial certificate are liable for a $100,000 penalty.

Further information:

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