Estate Agency Affairs Board of South Africa

The Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) was established in 1976 in terms of the Estate Agency Affairs Act 112 of 1976 (’the Act’), with the mandate to regulate and control certain activities of estate agents in the public interest.The EAAB regulates the estate agency profession by ensuring that all people carrying out the activities of an estate agent as a service to the public are registered with the EAAB. A fidelity fund certificate, which is to be renewed each year, is issued as evidence of registration and confirmation that the person is legally entitled to carry out the activities of an estate agent. A core function of the EAAB is to manage and control the Estate Agents Fidelity Fund in the interest of the public and estate agents registered with the EAAB.

The mandate of the Board is to: regulate, maintain and promote the standard of conduct of estate agents having due regard to the public interest; issue Fidelity Fund Certificates to qualifying applicants; prescribe the standard of training of estate agents; investigate complaints against estate agents and institute disciplinary proceedings against offending estate agents where required; and manage and control the Estate Agents Fidelity Fund.

Furthermore, the EAAB is the supervisory body of the estate agency profession pursuant to the Financial Intelligence Centre Act and is obliged to take all steps required to prevent, identify and report on money laundering and terrorist financing activities in the estate agents’ sector; and ensure a sustainable residential property market.

Based on this governmental strategic priority, the EAAB recognises its role in supporting the following: intensifying home ownership induction programmes for the affordable housing market; establishing transactional support for affordable housing market; monitoring and reporting transactions in the secondary housing subsidy market; conducting analysis and disseminating information on property trends and values in the affordable housing market; developing policy and administration systems that support individual transactions in the secondary housing market; and facilitating the regular backlog of title deeds to form part of the housing development.