CEA slaps property agency, agent with $16,000 fine

This is in line with a sale misrepresentation of NZ property.

The Council for Estate Agencies’ (CEA) Disciplinary Committee has sentenced SQFT Global Properties Singapore Pte Ltd (SQFT) to a financial penalty of S$10,000 for one count of failing to supervise Paleenia Wong Mui Wah, who was its property agent then, regarding the conduct of her estate agency work for the sale and marketing of Albany Heights Villas, a property in Auckland, New Zealand.

The Disciplinary Committee also sentenced Wong to a financial penalty of S$6,000 for misrepresenting to an investor that the NZ$65,000 to be paid by the investor in relation to his purchase of a unit in Albany Heights Villas would be kept safe in a law practice’s trust account for the construction of Albany Heights Villas, and that the developer, Albany Heights Villa Ltd, would not be able to use the money in the trust account for other purposes.

According to CEA, the representation turned out to be false as the developer took money from the trust account without any construction having started on Albany Heights Villas.

The investor has not been able to recover the money. Wong had thereby failed to act reasonably towards the investor in the sale and marketing of Albany Heights Villas.